KVR Audio

Astralv · Post by **Astralv** » Sat Jan 11, 2020 4:37 pm

https://www.sweetwater.com/store/detail ... controller

Look at its pitch band and mod wheel! What in a world? I was looking for 88 key controller. Was saving for Native Instruments. Then A-88 came and it could be great choice- why did they have to ruin it with this joke joystick instead of the Mod wheel and PC? I get it- they want to force us to but flagship Fantom. But I already have Fantom G. I will not spend extra $3000 just to have few more sounds and more learning curve to get this thing to work. I needed controller- I could be preordering it now, but I can't use this joystick! I need full Mod Wheel to control software synths. How many people would say, "Yes, I need to use Mod wheel, but that's ok- I dont have to use it that much?"

I lost trust in Roland when Windows changed to 8 and 10 and Roland decided not to upgrade their USB driver. I lost USB MIDI on my Fantom G ($3000) and V-Synth GT ($2800). And now they come up with joystick mod wheel?

BertKoor · Post by **BertKoor** » Sat Jan 11, 2020 5:42 pm

What's new? Nothing!
Roland uses the joystick for pitch & modulation for as long as I can remember (ca 1980)

EvilDragon · Post by **EvilDragon** » Sat Jan 11, 2020 6:20 pm

Except they also have wheels on JD-Xa and RD-2000 and new Fantoms, they could've had that on this one too.

thecontrolcentre · Post by **thecontrolcentre** » Sat Jan 11, 2020 6:35 pm

BertKoor wrote: Sat Jan 11, 2020 5:42 pm What's new? Nothing!
Roland uses the joystick for pitch & modulation for as long as I can remember (ca 1980)

Yeah. My first midi controller (bought in 1998) was a Roland with the joystick. I used it mainly with a sampler and found it useful that it returned to zero when you let go, and being able to control 2 parameters with one hand was nifty too.

My Novation ReMote SL has a similar joystick to the Roland one.

zvenx · Post by **zvenx** » Sat Jan 11, 2020 6:45 pm

thecontrolcentre wrote: Sat Jan 11, 2020 6:35 pm
BertKoor wrote: Sat Jan 11, 2020 5:42 pm What's new? Nothing!
Roland uses the joystick for pitch & modulation for as long as I can remember (ca 1980)
Yeah. My first midi controller (bought in 1998) was a Roland with the joystick. I used it mainly with a sampler and found it useful that it returned to zero when you let go, and being able to control 2 parameters with one hand was nifty too.

My Novation ReMote SL has a similar joystick to the Roland one.

Amen. For me it is my favourite form of pitch bend/modulation (well except I now use a foot pedal for modulation to control sample libraries etc)
rsp

Astralv · Post by **Astralv** » Sat Jan 11, 2020 9:40 pm

I dont know. Look at it close. They dont even have close pictures to not make you pay attention to it. It is small! If I want to go gradually with Mod Wheel and leave it on a sweet spot- I can't- there is no range to move gradually. I actually kind of like NI S series MK1 touch slider for Mod Wheel. My Yamaha Motif has 2 wheels and horizontal touch slider. This joystick looks like a toy!

Funkybot's Evil Twin · Sat Jan 11, 2020 9:54 pm

I don't like the joystick but hoped the JDXA would've meant they were going to use both wheels and the joystick on their keyboard products going forward, but that was wishful thinking. And the joystick is a nice option for pitch, but just sucks for modwheel IMO.

chaosWyrM · Post by **chaosWyrM** » Mon Jan 13, 2020 3:13 pm

i understand that you dont like the joystick. but it seems youre being a tad dramatic here.

it isnt "ruined", the joystick isnt a "joke", and they certainly didnt put it there to force you to buy a different product...thats crazy talk.

And now they come up with joystick mod wheel?

now? im not sure what the complaint is really...they use joysticks, on like (almost?) every controller they make, its not a new development.

some people (like myself) actually prefer the joystick.

lfm · Post by **lfm** » Mon Jan 13, 2020 3:19 pm

Roland did good on JV80 - doubled joystick with fader for mod wheel CC#1. Rather clever approach - you could use either.

Tried using a D50 long ago as master keyboard, but got sick of this joystick - so me too not a fan.

There was an interview with Roland ceo( or R&D boss) when Jupiter Xm arrived - and not sure how in touch with userbase he is. He meant what people ask for is layering - so that they did.

Did they even ask about joystick?

Kevin63101 · Post by **Kevin63101** » Mon Jan 13, 2020 8:16 pm

I own 4 Roland keyboards. The lack of a standard mod wheel is my #1 Roland complaint, although I have gotten used to it for pitch bend. For a cc mod it offers little precision for hitting mid values ... plus it often slips pitch bends when I only want cc1 mod. I dont have trouble using it for pitch Bend only.

My solution has been assigning an expression pedal to cc 1.

Poor omission IMO.

pekbro · Post by **pekbro** » Mon Jan 13, 2020 8:26 pm

Personally, I prefer the Roland mod and pitch bend actually. For me they work great.

K-Bee · Post by **K-Bee** » Tue Jan 14, 2020 11:47 am

The legendary Roland A90 88 key controller had both wheels and joystick.

zimma1314 · Post by **zimma1314** » Wed Apr 05, 2023 9:27 am

Just came across this thread, and I fully agree, the Joystick is very bad for a Controller Keyboard.

I try to find out, if it is possible to reverse the Modwheel (up is 0, and down is 127). Does somebody know?

Most of Kontakt String Libraries use the Modwheel for Dynamic/Volume control, and with this silly Joystick always going back to zero, you'll hear the most quiet Dynamic. To find the right (String) Sound, it would be much easier, if you could reverse the Modwheel so that you'll hear the loudest Dynamic.
If that would be possible with the A 88, this would be huge for my workflow.

BBFG# · Post by **BBFG#** » Thu Apr 06, 2023 3:23 am

I prefer the joystick. However, it should be in the middle above the keybed so that it can be easily accessed and used by either hand. Studiologic VMK has proven this for me. But while we're at it, Korg has the best joystick since it can actually control three things and not just two...
The obvious omission for this price though is the lack of aftertouch. I also am starting to wonder why new controllers are still using USB 2 connections instead of USB 3...
In any event -
Ridiculous price.

3ptguitarist · Post by **3ptguitarist** » Sat Apr 08, 2023 9:19 pm

I can say that the key action of the A88 is better than the NI 88's action. The NI has a spongy action, while the Roland had a pha-4 standard action with escapement. As for having a mod wheel, you could buy a separate controller for that.

Why Roland masses up A-88 MKII Keyboard Controller?