Roland Clan Forums

All,

I am currently looking to replace my JX-8P (Love it but way heavy) as my second keyboard that additionally triggers my D-550 and M1. I don't think it will take much more of being moved around and would like to have it for a long time. Plus a G or X would mean I don't have to carry the D550 or M1 anymore.

SO I was looking at the Juno-G or a Fantom Xa or X6. I really like the G because it is nice and light (like the Juno-D I also use.) I like having the drum pads on the Fantom. Sound wise in a live setting I don't think anyone would notice the difference.

Will the G stand up or am I missing something critical in the Fantom X series that justifies its weight?

Thoughts? Comments?

Thanks,
DOM!

If you like Juno-G and don't need extra functions of Fantom X (RPS, patterns, more audio tracks, more SRX slots) then J-G will be a good choice.

i love my G, but i've heard the Fantoms are more solid. personally, if anything's going to have a major meltdown onstage, i'd far rather it be a $1k board than a $2-3k one.

Thanks for both your inputs.

Purely on wieght alone I like the G.

I have a G, and I bought it mainly because of weight. But if you can carry a Fantom, I would definitely get a Fantom.
It's more solid, more stable, will last longer, has more useful things for performance, like the pads and better master keyboard functions. And it has a better keyboard, with better touch and longer keys. The weight is justified by... build quality.
But if you already have the D you can judge yourself: the keyboard of the G is the same. The build quality is the same. Are you satisfied with the D?
Talking about sound and features, the G is much more capable than the D. It can replace both the M1 and D550, and do more than the two together. You will not regret them too much.
If, like me, you are tired of carrying too many heavy keyboards around, then you will be happy with the G. When you will meet one of its shortcomings, just remember how light it is and how many features it has while being so light.
So it's up to you to choose... but remember that the difference between the Fantom and the Juno is not only a matter of weight or price. You have an M1. The Fantom is built like the M1, the G is built like the D. That's the difference. Metal vs. plastic. Professional keybed vs. cheap keybed. Professional display and controls vs. cheap display and controls, and so on. My D-50 still works after 20 years. Who knows how many years my G will last? Surely not so much. But it weighs much less.

Tompabes- thanks for the input! You make many great points.. I don't mind the D and like its B3 sounds a great deal. I don't like that my High B is no longer velocity sensitve (and had stopped working for a bit..) So you scare me when you say it is the same keyboard bed because I bought a G over the weekend. The $150 instant rebate was too much for a gear freak like me to pass up!

I played out with the G Saturday night (with the D) and I really liked the Live mode that allowed me to switch between patches so easily! What a dream, they are all right there! And when I get it set up more I can only imagine! It was nice not having to bring the extra case (sorry left out the "r" out of the M1-r.)

I am debating if I sould spend the $100 for the 2 year extended warranty..

Thanks again all!
DOM!

Keyboards of D and G are not the same.

I'm a gigging musician that plays in 2 bands. I owned both the JunoG and FantomX - only the X now. I really liked the G a lot, but for live, no comparison - the X takes it. There are so many reasons - some you won't even realize until you have the X. For example, the weight. I was really worried about the extra weight with the X. Turns out that it feels so much more solid that I began to hate the G on stage because it moved on the stand. The feel of the X alone is so much better. The sound - you will notice the higher quality sounds on the X. The notes screens, the pads, RPS, sequencing, etc. There's a lot more to work with. The only reason I would go with the JunoG is if I absolutely could not afford an X. It's the only reason.

Guys, let's take a closer look at this: He mentions a second keyboard that triggers a D-550 and M-1. So he has a main keyboard plus the 8P. Now the JX-8P was an analog/digital hybrid. It preceded the D-50 line. These three synths were very prevalent from 1986 on through the end of the decade.

These are all classic synths, BTW, and no modern rompler will exactly duplicate one, save all three as far as exact sound.

But to get the flavor of all three, or to consider the application which you use them for, no doubt you'd be much better off with a Fantom, and of course now you'd be almost crazy not to wait and spend the extra $$$ for the Fantom-G. If not, I'd be looking somewhere other than Roland, like possibly one of the lightweight Korgs. But if weight, price, and needing it now are not so much a factor, I would definitely replace this "classic" synth trio with a brand new Fantom-G 61.

In all fairness, you should also check out the Yamaha Motif XS and Korg M3. But I would buy neither of those until I had compared it with the Fantom-G, which means waiting a month or two.

@DOM!: I do not know for sure, I just tried both of them and found no difference in the keyboard. Anyway, my Juno-G keyboard is still working fine. Also, I have not read about keyboard failures in Roland products, at least not more than the average, so I don't think the keyboard will be a weak point.
You will like the Juno... quite easier to make the sounds and to set it up for live performances compared to old instruments. And it sounds nice. I don't really know if you should spend $100 for the additional warranty... it's like buying an insurance... you never know if you will need it! But since you saved $150 you could get the warranty and you will be sure for at least two years!

@Oleq: are you sure? I tried the D before buying the G and the keyboard had exactly the same touch (that I do not dislike, btw) and size... it would make sense for Roland to use the same keyboard for instruments in the same league... anyway if you know it for sure I'll trust you...

@2TIM316: you are right, but consider that both the D550 and the M1 were completely digital synths. The M1 was actually a real rompler. The D50 had "sinthesized" waveforms, but the sound path was all digital anyway.
They had a great personality, so I'm not saying that on the Juno you will be able to recreate exactly the same patches. But if you don't need those exact sounds, a modern rompler will do much more. And you can get a VA for true (virtual) analog sounds.
I replaced both my Korg X5D and my D50 with the Juno-G alone and an external additional midi keyboard.
If by lightweight Korgs you mean X-50 or Triton LE, trust me... they can't compare to the Juno-G!

tompabes,
the action seems to be slightly different.
So does the league)

2TIM- I wasn't trying to get the same sounds as the D-550 or the M1-r. I am an 80's synth fiend and just love the sounds and feel of those synths. I really like the JX-8P but want to have it for a long time so I just felt that taking it to shows was going to kill it. BTW Fantom-G looks awesome but the price tag for me can't be justified.

tshapiro- This is not my bread and butter so I really couldn't justify the X's (even though I would love to have one.) My band is my fun..

Oleg- I hope the G's keyboard doesn't act up after a year!

So far the Juno G has been everything I needed and more. I will let you know when I find something annoying!

Thank you all!

Dom

How do you find the Juno-G for 80s style sounds such as Human League, Yazoo, Gary Numan, Soft Cell etc?

I would like to use these types of sounds but don't wan't to go analogue. I would rather mess around with the 80s type of sound on a Synth capable of doing modern stuff too.

Is the Juno-G worth investing in for what I've mentioned?


Woodrow

@woodrow: the Juno has some great 80s sounds IMHO! Also try the patches from the JV Collection. If you don't want to go analogue or VA, the Juno has many good patches and samples. And they can be easily tweaked. Of course you should listen by yourself. But I was impressed with the 80s feel of many Juno-G sounds.

woodrow

I will give you a better response when I have had more time with the keyboard. Honestly I haven't touched the keyboard now for almost two weeks since I have been traveling for work..