GR-55 - Wish List

[SLICK]

And another thing.......

I wish we had the option of selecting Patch level inc/ Patch level dec as an assign instead of Sound style inc/ dec
Would have been useful to map S1 and S2 to adjust patch level on the fly without having to bend over and take your hands off the guitar.

[gafaell]

+1 on the intelligent harmonizer.

+1 on being able to stop and restart the looper.  I'd like to see 20 second max length increased too.

I'd also like to see an arpeggiator, preferrably with as much control as the GR-30.

Yes, in my case:

1- Please put in a harmonizer
2- Arpeggiator
3 - Solve the problem with patch GR300 for most of piezo guitars

[iancandler]

1- Please put in a harmonizer
2- Arpeggiator

+1

Editing software bundled with the unit or as a download, we really shouldn't have to rely on third parties to sort out such basic needs and lets face it they already have software that could be used as a template from their synth range.

Free download of Sonar Se, if I spend £200 on an audio interface its bundled with it, why is it not bundled with the GR-55? with the USB facility two things you are going to want to do is record and edit the patches on your laptop or pc, the fact that neither can be done straight out of the box with provided software is reprehensible.

One thing I would like to see is tone banks being available, either as a download or in the form of a memory stick.
I will admit the 990 tones are impressive but being able to simply and easily expand them would be great.

Finally.. release it as a rack unit as well, not all want floor processors and I would imagine a lot of pro's playing live would like it in a rack so they can use their midi floor controller to control it rather than have two floor controllers and a pedal board to trip over.

[jassy]

To have an equalizer in every source would be an essential tool that would help very much  to shape the sounds created with the GR55, it would enhance very much the sound possibilities.

Now if the MOD section would allow to have at least 2 effects (i. e. compressor+distortion, wah+distortion, etc) then that would be wonderful.

I know that I'm asking for something that would not happen, because presumably there is no processing capacity in the unit to add more effects.

The only possibility would be if it where possible to dynamically allocate the resources of the unit, for example: I rarely use the alternate tuning and the 12 strings functions, so if these functions could be not used while I can have the effects mentioned, I would be happy mos of the time, other combinations would be also possible, that would make happy everyone.

The Axe-Fx works this way allocating dynamically the cpu resources according to the effects launched, so it's very possible, but we all know that Roland do not do things this way, sadly.

Anyway the GR55 is  a good unit, its not spectacular in its separate parts but the whole in that small unit is brilliant.

[Click Sky Fade]

Well no-one else has started a thread specific to this, although there has been mention in other threads about the short comings of the GR-55, so here goes.

1) Arpeggiator!!??
2) Harmonist a la GT-10
3) The ability to save presets for each Generator or effect a la GT-10. This issue can be got round by using gumtowns excellent editing software.
4) MIDI Thru.
5) TRS or XLR outs
6) Knobs. I want to be able to tweak parameters without having to delve deep into realms of the machine.

Shortcomings 1 through 3 could probably be solved with a firmware update but I doubt it.

Ok these are personal to me but i would be interested if anyone else has any issues.

Thanks.

P.S. There will be more when i remember them. I would also like to point out that i'm not just a moaning old b*****d as i love the machine, but if it had these features we'd have kids. 

[SLICK]

Actually there have been a couple of threads listing that sort if thing.

https://www.vguitarforums.com/smf/index.php?topic=3246.0

I would agree with everything you said in your post.

Perhaps we need a sticky thread to make it easy for the Roland gr-80 RnD Guys to find all of the things they need to include

[Click Sky Fade]

An indicator to show that it is MIDI synced and automatically disabling MIDI sync when no MIDI in is detected a la GT-10 would be good also.

[Click Sky Fade]

Actually there have been a couple of threads listing that sort if thing.

https://www.vguitarforums.com/smf/index.php?topic=3246.0

I would agree with everything you said in your post.

Perhaps we need a sticky thread to make it easy for the Roland gr-80 RnD Guys to find all of the things they need to include

Noted and thread appended

[FreeTime]

My big pet peeve is that you cant seperate the guitar from the synth if you want effects on the guitar.

[MrSparkle]

Well...

2 things irk me the most. I know there's a wish list thread, but I'd rather categorize these as "missed opportunities."

1. The button/stomp design is perhaps the worst Roland has ever made. Lead, rhythm, fx... Good lord. They might as well have made those mode buttons or your 3 favorites. Or they could've just made a category button and stuck to the more obvious groupings (acoustic, metal, bass, yadda). This makes it very limited as a live controller, which it clearly was meant to be. It's such compact real estate, they just wasted it. You have to waste S1/S2 buttons for simple bank changes. It's so easy to make quick adjustments in VG-99.

2. The little things that ruin its operation in professional settings, like: audio gap between bank changes, weird glitchyiness in the pitch bend effects (is it me or does it sound very low quality), GR-300 model's insane noise glitch sensitivity.... The 55 costs half as much, so I understand its inferiority to VG-99... But I find it nearly impossible to get a good live take out of this box if you "use" its "features..." by which I mean, switching patches and using the exp. pedal.

Now the fact that the menus suck so hard... It's just a misery working with in live settings unless you have specific pre-planned uses for the sounds in limited settings. I improvise a lot and experiment.. And it stinks that the GR-55 is a live, budget all-in-one box that kills a lot of functionality in the live setting. I suppose the audio glitches happen with the cheaper CPU components... But the layout is a pain. Why would anyone want Roland's mostly silly presets grouped between 3 buttons that don't necessarily have a lead or rhythmic use?

[mbenigni]

My big pet peeve is that you cant seperate the guitar from the synth if you want effects on the guitar.

Yah, this is by far the bigget issue for me.  There are lots of little "nuissances", but this one is pretty much crippling for anyone who wants to incorporate a real guitar amp.  I might break down and buy a keyboard amp at some point, but it wasn't the solution I was looking for when I got into this.  It's always something...   

[Elantric]

but this one is pretty much crippling for anyone who wants to incorporate a real guitar amp

This past weekend, I simply fed the GR-55's Guitar Out to my normal pedal board and Tube guitar amp, and it worked quite well.

I tend to only use the GR-55's built in FX for the PCM and some special case COSM patches, and use my typical Guitar FX and Guitar Amp for the bulk of Normal Pickup / COSM Pickup tones.

[mbenigni]

This past weekend, I simply fed the GR-55's Guitar Out to my normal pedal board and Tube guitar amp, and it worked quite well.

I tend to only use the GR-55's built in FX for the PCM and some special case COSM patches, and use my typical Guitar FX and Guitar Amp for the bulk of Normal Pickup / COSM Pickup tones.

This is exactly how I've been rehearsing and gigging the last couple of months, but it seems a shame that it's necessary to roll out a bunch of gear that should have been made redundant by the GR.  The reality is that I make pretty limited use of synths in the course of our set right now - two songs, and synths optional in one of them - so the value of loading out and setting up the GR55 at all comes into question when I'm forced to rely on outboard effects pedals.

It's a case of the "GR-55 can do everything!!!... Well, no not at the same time."   

[gafaell]

Well no-one else has started a thread specific to this, although there has been mention in other threads about the short comings of the GR-55, so here goes.

1) Arpeggiator!!??
2) Harmonist a la GT-10
3) The ability to save presets for each Generator or effect a la GT-10. This issue can be got round by using gumtowns excellent editing software.
4) MIDI Thru.
5) TRS or XLR outs
6) Knobs. I want to be able to tweak parameters without having to delve deep into realms of the machine.

Shortcomings 1 through 3 could probably be solved with a firmware update but I doubt it.

Ok these are personal to me but i would be interested if anyone else has any issues.

Thanks.

P.S. There will be more when i remember them. I would also like to point out that i'm not just a moaning old b*****d as i love the machine, but if it had these features we'd have kids. 

Yes, I totally agree with you.

I would add:

7) Solve the problem with piezo guitars (in my case, with Godins and GK2A), regarding GR300 sounds.
Impossible to achieve a good fit (sensivity, nuance, etc) for piezo guitars
9) Solve problems with double notes and glitches for piezo guitars
10) Lack of a fourth pedal, to reach at least 4 patches per bank (as in VG88)

[mbenigni]

P.S. Elantric, for some reason I thought you were running into a Traynor K4.  Did you go the keyboard amp route for a while and then decide you preferred a guitar amp, or do you use both on different occasions?

Musicians Friend has a cheap, slightly bashed up, used K4 I've been considering (if no one else beats me to it) but I'm not sure about going back to FR for guitar.  Worked at that approach for years and years and was never as happy as I pretended to be.   

[Elantric]

I have several rigs  - I do have a Traynor K4

I play in a few different bands and each has a specific needs. Its a combination of satisfying the band leader, myself, and my audience for each specific live performance. 

Spend most time playing pre 1965 era surf instrumentals - and never use anything we discuss here in that band.

But, I'm embarrassed  to say  have over 30 guitars, and 15 amps, 2 PAs, 6 computers, and associated I/O gear and rack FX.

[gregjon]

MP3 player.
Glide Pedal.

[Jim Williams]

Sorry to say I think both those features would require a Hardware update. What I would like to see in firmware updates is:

1. a Harmony feature on the PCM and Modeling sections.

2. to have the MFX and MOD sections have the ability to select more than one effect at a time.

3. make the amp sims in the MFX the same as the AMP section.

4. the ability to alt tune 12 string guitars.

5. the ability to pith bend individual strings.

6. add some more effects to the MOD block (harmonizer, tone mod and reverb with a good spring verb). also add a pre and post parameter to modulation effects.

[TommyJay]

Personally if they added a Harmonizer then to me I would have died and gone to heaven.  I had a Line 6 Spider IV 75 with the Smart harmonizer  and down sized to the small 30 watt which doesn't have the harmonizer and a quarter of the sounds but the GR 55 does it all but have a Hamonizer.

Hopefully Roland will read these wish lists and fulfill them.

TommyJ

[mbenigni]

2. to have the MFX and MOD sections have the ability to select more than one effect at a time.

I'm pretty sure that would require a hardware update as well.  Chances are any wish that includes the word "more" would require a hardware update.

The one realistic thing I wish they would do (and even this may be precluded by hardware design, depending on how DSP is distributed and how/ to what extent components are hardwired) is make the routing to the DLY, REV, CHO, and EQ more flexible.  i.e. Bypass routing shouldn't just blindly dump into the front of these; there should be options to route PCM, Normal, Modeling, and the subsequent MOD/MFX, into or around each of DLY/REV/CHO/EQ independently.  And DLY/REV/CHO/EQ should each have hard panning parameters so that they can be kept out of one of the L/R outputs if needed.

All of the above would be less important or even entirely unnecessary if you could optionally apply MFX/MOD to the Guitar Out jack, but I'm willing to bet that would require a hardware update.

[gregjon]

I would like an auto-tweak feature.
It would listen to your playing and tweak itself for optimum playback.

[Toni Mcoy]

Hello. I think that is an a big and easy improvement  in the next update  that Roland add the possibility to scroll the songs in the audio player with the same pedals but with a HOLD function to pass the song quickly. [/size]
Imagine if you are performing live and you want to jump to song 30...you must press the pedals 30 times( everybody disappears) or you have to duck every time.

[gumtown]

I prefix my song/sample material file names with a 3 digit number so they sequentially line up with my play list.

Hello. I think that is an a big and easy improvement  in the next update  that Roland add the possibility to scroll the songs in the audio player with the same pedals but with a HOLD function to pass the song quickly. [/size]
Imagine if you are performing live and you want to jump to song 30...you must press the pedals 30 times( everybody disappears) or you have to duck every time.

[Toni Mcoy]

I prefix my song/sample material file names with a 3 digit number so they sequentially line up with my play list.

Thanks Gumtown  .  For me the problem is that i change everyday on the go my list so....i have to bring allways a machine for the backtracks...

[Vgunn]

I used a the pedal pitch bend of the VG 8, 88, and 99 extensively.  To the point that I might say it was part of my "style" so yesterday when I got around to the pitch bend of the G-55 and found that ridiculous glitchy grainy performance I was starting to get some serious buyers remorse.  Not really sure what to think at the moment.  The GR-55 does some stuff the VG-99 does not do.  The GR-55 is half the price.  Should I expect the same performance at half the price?  Well in the digital world with a newer device, yes I think that is something that we have all come to expect.  I am sort of having the feeling that a lot of the GR55's lamenesses are intentional to prevent it from competing with the VG-99.  That is frustrating.  Time marches on Roland.