Roland
RA-800 Realtime Arranger
July
12, 1996
Roland Corporation is premiering its most powerful arranger module to date: the
RA-800 Realtime Arranger. Designed to meet the needs of the demanding professional,
the RA-800 features a GM/GS-compatible sound source with 64-voice polyphony and
32-part multitimbral capability. The RA-800 incorporates a 3.5-inch disk drive
for Standard MIDI File (SMF) recording and playback. It also provides 128 built-in
high definition styles and a variety of musical innovations that make it the ideal
partner for the performing musician, songwriter, hobbyist or teacher with a MIDI-compatible
instrument. The powerful GS sound source in the RA-800 is equivalent to the
highly acclaimed G-800 Arranger Workstation. There are 689 GS sounds and 25 complete
drum sets built in. The RA-800's other standout features include: eight separate
tracks of multi-instrument accompaniment; up to eight user styles that can be
created and stored as presets; a sophisticated Chord Recognition function to manage
and play chords and bass inversions like C 9/D or Ab Maj7 9/Bb, as well as a variety
of other complex chord combinations; and a Piano Style for intelligent full-range
keyboard Chord Recognition. Individual control of the balance between tracks
is possible using the Dynamic Arranger function. Up to five parts (Upper1, Upper2,
Lower, MBass, MDrums) can be played together with the arranger section or with
SMF songs. Dedicated rotary encoders provide control over volume, pan, chorus,
reverb, delay and tone changes. These changes can be stored into any of 192 Performance
memories. The Standard MIDI File (SMF) player/recorder can read either MS-DOS
or Atari disks. Realtime playback is possible direct from disk; no loading time
is required. Track mute for any of the 16 tracks is possible for "minus one" playback.
There is also a built-in Chord Sequencer which can work as a simple arranger loop
or as a sophisticated sequencer, storing style and division changes. The RA-800's
performance capabilities are enhanced by an easy-to-understand panel layout with
a large backlit LCD that can display lyrics embedded in Standard MIDI Files (available
from various third-party vendors). The RA-800 can even be controlled by an FC-7
Foot Controller, making realtime performance and accompaniment a breeze. For more information contact Roland Corporation
U.S., 7200 Dominion Circle, Los Angeles, CA 90040, 213.685.5141. Visit their web
site at www.rolandus.com. | 
