New Roland "DANCE" hardware- AIRA TR-8, TB-3, VT-3, SYSTEM-1

[fmr]

they also called them VSTs for a reason, if you pay any heed to the Roland Reps in the video I linked to at least.

VST is a commn denominator. I hope you are right, but I don't take Roland Reps very seriously, since usually they know little about what they are talking about (just what their marketing department told them).

Of course, they haven't specified if the VST/plugin versions will operate independently of the System-1 controller. But even in the likely scenario that the System-1 serves as a dongle/DSP ... a VST version is still a plugin, and will still benefit from all the VST/ITB luxuries that are associated with plugins. instant recall per project, preset management etc etc etc. People still call dongle protected VSTs 'plugins'... for a reason.

What the VST benefits is depending on the specific VST. Again, I hope you are right, but it's yet to be seen. About the System-1. It's not just a dongle. It's where the plug-in runs - that's why it can be also a "plug-out". So, the question is no longer "if", but how well it's programmed to take advantage of the specifications, and what formats will be supported (32-bit, 64-bit, VST2, VST3, AU, AAX). And for how long. Roland has a long history of abandoned software for hardware support, and maintaining plug-ins updated is a hard task.

[stimresp]

At these prices I'll definitely be taking at least the TR-8 for a spin.

[Ingonator]

Reading the specs and having a look at the interface the System-1 seems to have two modes called "System-1" and "Plug-Out". The System-1 mode seems to be the built-in standard engine of the synth while with plug-out you could use additional plugins like e.g. the SH-101.

As System-1 could output MIDI and audi via USB it loks comparable to the total intergration in the Viru TI line of synths. Based on that i guess the synth engine will run on DSP hardware inside System-1 while you also get a VST plugin like in the Virus TI.

Not so much interested in the SH-101 plugin as i already got TAL BassLine-101 but the System-1 synth looks nice.

For those who did not notice this is inpspired by the Sytem 100 and not the SH-101 as mentioned at the Rland website.

Another thing is that while tehre maybe is a vstplugin for computer the plugin inside the System-1 does not have to be VST too. It could be their own format like in e.g. other DSP hardware based plugins (e.g. Scope platform).


Ingo

[faun2500]

I am actually more interested in this system-1 now but wish there was a desktop version without the keys. For me it will all come down to sound & features though.

I'm far from an analogue purist and most of my equipment is digital but I do like the sound of the analogue synths I own for certain types of sounds. I am also open-minded and would love it if roland had come up with a new technology that perfectly recreates their own classic synths.

Not really interested in the drum machine as I don't have the space and have NI battery. The TB-3 looks cool but not exactly what I was expecting either. It reminds me of korg's kaos pads.

[faun2500]

musictech.net/2014/02/aira-3/

"There are several late-middle aged men crying on the news that these are digital – indeed, I was one when I heard the news. But Aira is not for me nor them "

Thanks for clearing that up Musictech. I we will all save our money then.

[fmr]

I'm far from an analogue purist and most of my equipment is digital but I do like the sound of the analogue synths I own for certain types of sounds. I am also open-minded and would love it if roland had come up with a new technology that perfectly recreates their own classic synths.

Component modelling (or circuit modelling) is not new. It's being used for some years already (allegedly, it's what Korg used to recreate their VSTi instruments, so...). If done well, the emulations can be very faithfull. Althoug it's not analogue, the sound can be good and convincing, and for it's what matters.

[chk071]

Interesting stuff, maybe they want to serve both the hardware and software crowd with this. The synths/plugins themselves are not interesting at all for me though, and i think Roland is way late. There's already a good SH-101 emulation with TAL-Bassline-101, and there's gazillions of 303 emulations, and their drum machines are well covered too. But well, i guess they will sell good anyway. Especially with those blinky hardware controllers.

[faun2500]

I'm far from an analogue purist and most of my equipment is digital but I do like the sound of the analogue synths I own for certain types of sounds. I am also open-minded and would love it if roland had come up with a new technology that perfectly recreates their own classic synths.

Component modelling (or circuit modelling) is not new. It's being used for some years already (allegedly, it's what Korg used to recreate their VSTi instruments, so...). If done well, the emulations can be very faithfull. Althoug it's not analogue, the sound can be good and convincing, and for it's what matters.

Yes of course I do know this. I mean specifically ROLANDS new ACB technology. From the video they say they spent time analyzing circuits and components so we will have to wait and see how faithful it is.

[bungle]

Having once been a Roland fan boy (No more) anybody who jumps on these needs to think first,
Rolands MMP Mic modeller - Extra models promised, Abandonded
Rolands Varios - Extra software (Plug outs hahaha) promised, Abandonded

They have a very very poor history of supporting their 'Modular software' products, so i would wait before 'assuming' that extra models will appear

As for the quality of these items, well lets be honest they are 10 years + behind Korg right now, the EA/ER range where doing this stuff in similar packages a long time ago, it is also telling that the only places with reviews at launch are 'Roland friendly' for instance Musicradar (Whose audio examples are so poor it defies belief they even posted them)

Some things to note, which shows exactly how much thought (or lack of) went in to these
A digital drum machine that dial tweaks can not be recorded into its sequencer
A digital synth whose sound edits cant be saved
A digital keyboard that has no velocity
And a reissued vocal thing that Roland would try and convince you is a classic item, the original did not sell well, time to recoup on the original R&D

Not an impressive release from a once good company.

[dolphinmusic]

AUTO-ADMIN: Non-MP3, WAV, OGG, SoundCloud, YouTube, Vimeo, Twitter and Facebook links in this post have been protected automatically. Once the member reaches 5 posts the links will function as normal.

Demo of the Tr-8 in action:

Link to all of the Aira products: http://www.dolphinmusic.co.uk/buy/Rolan ... Voice.html (http://www.dolphinmusic.co.uk/buy/Roland-Aira-Performance-Synths-Rhythm-And-Voice.html)

[bmanic]

It boggles the mind that "professional" people like in the video above can record such a useless video. RECORD THE FRIGGIN OUTPUTS YOU iDIOTS!

It's 2014.. people who use only the camera microphone for presenting music hardware or software should be punished.

[bronxsound]

poor guy, he didn't get even a chair...

[toothnclaw]

Why is the TB-3 so ugly? And digital?

[Gamma-UT]

It boggles the mind that "professional" people like in the video above can record such a useless video. RECORD THE FRIGGIN OUTPUTS YOU iDIOTS!

It's 2014.. people who use only the camera microphone for presenting music hardware or software should be punished.

It's a feature walkthrough. Why is it so vital to have the line-out sound? There'll be a ton a demo tracks that do that.

Also, everyone seems to have been scrabbling to put their videos together, probably in about the couple of hours they have the demo unit before it gets whisked off in a taxi. Matching up two audio streams is going to take a lot more time for little good reason and probably make someone else call "fake!" anyway.

[fmr]

Why is the TB-3 so ugly? And digital?

Because the analogue was already released 30 years ago And I don't find it was pretty either.