Grangur Posted February 12, 2016 Share Posted February 12, 2016 H there, Mrs G is looking for a Digital keyboard that she can take with us on travels. Shde has a Roland Digital piano at home, but it's not exactly mobile. She's seen a Roland A-500 Pro USB/MIDI Controller Keyboard on sale at a good price. It sounds good and being Roland it'll be good kit, but is it possible to use it as a digital piano, maybe when plugged into a laptop? Any thoughts or info will be much appreciated. Thanks Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dood Posted February 12, 2016 Share Posted February 12, 2016 Yes! Of course you'll need software to actually play the sounds and possibly an audio interface to plug in too as on board sound cards on laptops can suffer from latency (a delay between pressing a key and hearing a note from the computer. On the off chance you have an iPad, I recommend the Novation LaunchKey USB controllers (I have the 49 key version) which happily works with laptops and desktops, but will plug in to an iPad further lightening your load. No audio interface needed either. With a wealth of apps at your fingers, it's great fun too. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dad3353 Posted February 12, 2016 Share Posted February 12, 2016 (edited) [quote name='Grangur' timestamp='1455316776' post='2978221']... Any thoughts or info will be much appreciated. Thanks [/quote] I'm not expert, but I'd say that, through a MIDI interface, it'll be fine into a laptop; as an alternative, into a hardware MIDI expander it'll be good, too. The expander would be less hassle, a laptop a bit more flexible. Unless you're looking for something specific, I'd recommend the simpler route of an expander (a Roland..?). There's loads around, quite affordable these days, and less fragile than a laptop set-up. Others may have differing views, of course. Edited February 12, 2016 by Dad3353 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JapanAxe Posted February 12, 2016 Share Posted February 12, 2016 I think the Roland will connect direct to a computer, sending MIDI data via the USB cable, so no need for an extra box. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Grangur Posted February 12, 2016 Author Share Posted February 12, 2016 Thanks guys. She already has an iPad. So it sounds like it could be worth exploring. Do you have any suggestions of software to use to produce the sounds of a piano? Sorry, my knowledge of these things is really non-existant. Thanks guys. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dad3353 Posted February 12, 2016 Share Posted February 12, 2016 [quote name='Grangur' timestamp='1455317560' post='2978231']... Do you have any suggestions of software to use to produce the sounds of a piano?... [/quote] Kontakt 5 has quite a selection of piano sounds, of various types, available for it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ambient Posted February 12, 2016 Share Posted February 12, 2016 I've been selling a 25 key Oxygen usb controller keyboard for ages. I used to take it with me on the train for recording on the move, it's very, very portable. It fits into my backpack. If you have an iPad, then garageband is available from the app store for £3.50 or something silly. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
xgsjx Posted February 13, 2016 Share Posted February 13, 2016 The piano sounds in Garageband are really good too. If she's got a Macbook, then Garageband is a fantastic place to start (& it's free). If not, then there's loads of free piano VSTs (virtual instruments). Many controller keyboards have some sort of software with them (either on disk or as a download). Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BassTractor Posted February 13, 2016 Share Posted February 13, 2016 (edited) [quote name='Grangur' timestamp='1455317560' post='2978231'] Do you have any suggestions of software to use to produce the sounds of a piano? [/quote] If you decide to go the iPad route, then you may wish to check out: - CMP Piano - iGrand - SampleTank These are old. I don't know whether they've been updated recently. I know there's another, newer one, but i can't remember it right now. CMP needs a newer iPad than iPad2; I don't know what the others need. At any rate, these are far better than a GarageBand piano. Remember that the resulting sound of a piano app also is very much dependant on the MIDI keyboard having a decent Velocity range, and thus also is dependant on a good keyboard. I've tested the same software with different keybeds, and there's a huge difference in what one perceives. Better control = better sound. Edited February 13, 2016 by BassTractor Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Grangur Posted February 14, 2016 Author Share Posted February 14, 2016 [quote name='ambient' timestamp='1455319624' post='2978248'] I've been selling a 25 key Oxygen usb controller keyboard for ages. I used to take it with me on the train for recording on the move, it's very, very portable. It fits into my backpack. If you have an iPad, then garageband is available from the app store for £3.50 or something silly. [/quote] Many thanks for your help. Regrettably she's wanting something with about 49-60 keys. She's a pianist, so she'd miss the keys. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Grangur Posted February 14, 2016 Author Share Posted February 14, 2016 [quote name='BassTractor' timestamp='1455321826' post='2978255'] If you decide to go the iPad route, then you may wish to check out: - CMP Piano - iGrand - SampleTank These are old. I don't know whether they've been updated recently. I know there's another, newer one, but i can't remember it right now. CMP needs a newer iPad than iPad2; I don't know what the others need. At any rate, these are far better than a GarageBand piano. Remember that the resulting sound of a piano app also is very much dependant on the MIDI keyboard having a decent Velocity range, and thus also is dependant on a good keyboard. I've tested the same software with different keybeds, and there's a huge difference in what one perceives. Better control = better sound. [/quote] Many thanks, I think we'll be sticking with Roland. She's a big Roland fan. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BassTractor Posted February 14, 2016 Share Posted February 14, 2016 [quote name='Grangur' timestamp='1455439359' post='2979016'] Many thanks, I think we'll be sticking with Roland. She's a big Roland fan. [/quote] Aye, but to me this reads as she wanting a Roland keyboard - not a Roland iPad app - whereas I thought I was talking about the iPad apps to use with that Roland controller keyboard. I went to the Piano World forums to check what pianists say about them, and they came up with these. BTW I still haven't remembered a great new piano app I know exists, and can't find it either. The iTunes app store really stinks big time. All of that said, is 4 octaves the size she wants to go for, or could this be stretched? I mean: stage pianos exist that are shorter than 88 keys. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SubsonicSimpleton Posted February 14, 2016 Share Posted February 14, 2016 These controller keyboards are great for using with software like Reason, but is your wife interested in faffing about with technology, or would she prefer to just switch one thing on and play? At the bottom end of the keyboard market nothing feels like a piano to play regardless of brand(they all feel like 80s synths to me), so maybe it would be worth considering a self contained option - lots of portable keyboards available for free almost on the used market, and even though the built in speakers aren't up to gigging, and the sounds won't be as good as a multisampled steinway grand, not having to lug amplification, invest in additional software or be restricted to headphones only can be advantageous. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ambient Posted February 14, 2016 Share Posted February 14, 2016 Korg Micro Keys are pretty good, if you want something with lots of keys, but at the same time is compact. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
xgsjx Posted February 14, 2016 Share Posted February 14, 2016 The Roland A500pro (& A800pro) don't produce any of their own sounds. If she likes the keybed on the A500, then it's then a simple case of finding a good virtual piano to play it with. Bare in mind that the keybed on the home piano is probably one of Roland's weighted beds, whereas the controller is more like a synth. Studiologic might be worth a look. They have Fatar keybeds & include a small selection of built in sounds on many of their controllers. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Grangur Posted February 14, 2016 Author Share Posted February 14, 2016 All good points, guys. At home she has an HP508, which he loves. Yes the keys are weighted, which is all part of the piano feel. Right now I'm watching a Roland Juno on EvilBay. It has 5 octaves. We saw one in London yesterday and she seems to like it. I like the idea of the MIDI keys, but you can probably plug the Juno into a PC if we want, and after all, it IS for her. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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