Roland GR-1 Guitar Synthesizer

Very Easy to use once you 'READ THE MANUAL!' . Don't think you're going to jump right into this piece. The factory presets are descent out of the box - programs are set flat on the EQ which makes sense since most people have their own setup ( equipment to amplify, etc.). I give this an 8 because you 'MUST READ THE MANUAL' or your simply not going to get the most out of it.

I use the GR-1 through a 100 watt stereo power-amp into a 2X12 cab. This is a MUST if you are going to get the most from any digital gear. Sound quality with a dedicated synth/keyboard amplifier= 10 !!! Sound with a guitar amp = 4 or 5 tops ! I see a lot of people giving this poor remarks and I know why - they're running it into a guitar rig which is completely ass backwards! Guitar amps are built for guitars and not keyboards (digital) or strange things will happen such as huge noise and distortion which can be cool when applied creatively = (JUMP or Cradle will Rock - Van Halen ) but for practical applications you should use a dedicated keyboard or power amp. MOST of us would refuse to run a guitar into a keyboard/synth amp so why would you run a keyboard/synth into a guitar amp (Hmmmmm???) By the way - the GR-1 is the only Roland Guitar Synth being used by Studio Professionals despite the fact that there is currently newer Roland Synths available - this speaks large volumes about the unit in itself. The GR-1 has the largest fan base and there are even a user forum and professional use websites dedicated entirely around the GR-1. I've tried them all - and the only other Guitar synth I would even consider compared to this is the GR-50. Forget the others - Period ! The 4-track sequencer is fantastic and can only be found in this model.

Have used mine for quite a few years now and it performs flawlessly. Seriously people - use a dedicated system - not a guitar amp!!!! I've used it 1000's of times without backup - I only have one!

Haven't had to use them - so I cannot objectively give an opinion here.

I play nearly all types of music wih the exception of Death Metal, I'd rather think about life right now than death. I've been playing guitar for 24+ years and have considerable studio experience in real studio's outside the home so I figure I'm more than qualified to give an objective opinion. If it were stolen I would turn it into my insurance company and buy another GR-1 or maybe GR-50 (only). Any digital instrument is going to sound like garbage when improperly setup -( again ....NO GUITAR AMPS PLEASE!) emphasis - Power amp or KEYBOARD AMP !! You don't have to have a 100 watts as I do - I need 100 watts for large stage monitoring but have also ran direct to board and used fill monitors which has worked fine in many venues. The expansion card is nice but the sounds can be found/tweaked within the unit without it because the tones are already there within the unit and the expansion card is not a tone generating card, more a configuration card. I chose this unit because it has everything built into one small package one would ever need, strings, horns, synths, pianos (Love the Grand), guitars ( nylon,banjo, etc.), Bass guitar, drums and percussion instruments, Latin instruments, and a huge palet of various effects. The GR-1 does all this and more and most importantly - they all sound real with fine adjustments. External real time controller input, midi control in/out which is nice for external modules, and they can be by any manufacturer and not limited to only Roland. The sound can be layered ( ex: Piano - strings). The 4 track sequencer is really nice for super layered sounds and can be triggered ( exclusive to the GR-1). Let's face it ROLAND NEVER HAS MADE JUNK! Everything they make is top of the line state of the art equiptment and probably always will be. I'm not knocking any of there other guitar synths pre, post to the GR-1, just clearling up any confusion and cloudy thoughts over the unit. In my opinion the GR-1 is the supreme unit over all others for many reasons. It's the obvious choice over the others for the professional.

I have the 6meg upgrade. There seems to be something wrong with it though. When I tried the Upgraded GR-1 in a music store about 7 years ago, the "Applause" sound worked like this: hit 1 string lightly, you get a few hands clapping. Strike all the strings and you get the sound of 1000 people clapping, whistles and cheers. I heard it, I'm not making this up. The one I just bought...does not work that way.
You hit one string...you get alot of claps...hit them all, you get 6 times that. There is a BIG difference between 1000 people clapping.... and 30 people clapping into a mic that's running through a sound-on-sound effect!
The sounds are easy enough to squish out of it, yes. The Manual, at first was torturously incomprehensible, but I sussed it eventually.
Roland was not known for it's user-friendliness.

I use a custom designed/built solid state amp. I use the GK-2 an old Strat body with a mid '50's Tele neck. This Gk-2 is weird. My GK-1 lined up PERFECTLY with the strings on my Strat. The GK-2...lines up very poorly. I use Korg A-3's with the synth, I don't use the internal fx. The synth sounds are very cheezy and reek of sampling. It takes alot of tweeking, and eq-ing to make this unit usable.
The internal fx are typical Roland....very usable.

It appears to be made very well. It behaves very well at every gig. I can still pull off the gig without it, and very well too. But it does add a neat dimension to the overall sound of the band.

Regarding the category below: The GR-1 I use now I've had for 3 weeks and bought on eBay, and paid U.S $500. I bought one in '92, and used it for 2 years, and paid Canadian $ 1,900.00 for it. The recent buy was a good one (Canadian $ 900.00), because it had the 6meg upgrade.

Style.....Fusion, Rock, Jazz, R&B.
Playing 40 years.
I have 2 50'2 Les Pauls, old Strat/Tele combo, Lucite See-thru,
7 Korg A-3's, 3 racks, Marshalls, Ampeg V-4's/V-2's, Mesa Boogie Stack
Lexus Jesus GTi V6
Proteus Keys, Hammond, String, and Horns Modules.
If it were stolen, lost or wrecked...I think I'd be crazy enough to buy another one,yes! lol
I love the feature that allows the sound of one Patch to sustain over to another selected Patch so the transition is smooth. Very hoopy piece of thinking, Roland!
I am beginning to dislike the sample quality. The Proteus modules make the Roland Sound Canvas sounds sound like pure 100% crap...but the tracking (when using the Proteus modules MIDI-ed to the GR-1)is so bad, that they're unusable.
8 years ago, the GR-1 was a neat unit. The Sound Canvas sounds are so bush league now, that it's almost laughable.
Overall...I'd have to say that it's still a neat unit, with all the functions, tracking..etc etc.
I'd LOVE to get some advice on improving the sound of the GR-1.
I wish it were more powerful, so that I could get THREE Tones at once, instead of the 2.
You know, the finger stretches I have to pull of to be able to get close to keyboard chord-clusters, actually improves technique a bit.
Helping/hindering in my case is 50/50. I realize that greatness is in the fingers, so I'll just keep plodding along. I'll make this thing sound good if it's the last thing I do!! lol
I DO wish that it had some Compression/Limiting in it. I LOVE the squishy feel of the MXR red box. All the engineers and producers I work with love it too. If only the GR-1 had a similar compressor/liniter !!!! The GR-1 is VERY dynamic. It takes alot of sensitivity to control the output. The dynamics/sensitivity controls are good, but not quite good enough.
Hey Roland...keep trying! The GR-1 is waaay ahead of everything else, except the Fairlight. You're on the right track, so don't dump it just before you achieve greatness.....just like Cadillac did with the Allente!!!!

The gr1 may not be the best or fastest guitar synth, but I find it's limitatios to help me be creative in sound creation. It's real time nobs make it easy to tweak sound and make unusual tones!

The sounds are ok. Unfortunately there is a very limited effects processor. The sounds tend to sound good in phones, but seem to overdrive PA's and amps.

I don't have a backup for my gr-1. I would die without it. I could never recreate the sounds I have spent hundreds of hours creating. Make sure you have a good elecrical plug in. If the wattage of ampage or whatever is not enough the gr-1 will tweak outt.

I play orchestral indie-pop in Seattle. The gr-1 has been a good friend. I feel very attached! A real classic!

Typical roland layout.... user freindly.... i still miss the on board cuoff knob on earier models.... Like Pat Mehteny's Gr300 or so... if u buy it... get ready to spent some more on extra pedels to expend full power of this unit.... for a guiter syn... a little too advance.... cost rise up.....

fair..... the filters seem to be a little too backward..... u must spent a lot of time to fine tune all of the presets..... still roland famous "GR 300" preset was very... very... cool...... beware of not tune up the volume too high....

i own another roland GP 16... strange.... Roland products cannot last more than 6 yrs...... i have this GR1 replaced with a new motherboard in 2001..... so.... when u buy roland.... be sure they would not last more than 6-7 yrs.......

If u have $$$$$$ backup is not a probelm...... but i cannot find the expand rom... i have try to search it in LA, NY and Tokyo.... none.... so.....

More new models comming in.... so.... trash it b4 it break.....

i love this unit--i have a problem however--it seems a section of the gr-1 quit working--can't rcord or set sensitivty--can this unit be re programmed? i would like a memory card also..

some lag time on tracking

one section quit working

can't find any support

good for all types

Other reviewers here speak of "no problem" on ease of use. Using it right out of the box, I would agree with that. But...try to create "new" sounds, modify existing sounds or add/sbtract chorus, delays or reverb and it's like balancing an armful of plates while tap dancing and walking a firsky dog! Quite a balancing act...requiring plenty of time, no interruptions and ultra-clear thought process! I even purchased two Roland GR-1 instruction tapes (Basic and Avanced) and am amazed at the instructors savvy and clarity in explaing the (to me) compliated procedures for each of the many, many knobs, shifters, pedals, etc. I am still baffled by the advanced abilities of the GR-1. I visualize that the creator/inventor of the GR-1 most certainly s loked up in some looney bin! What an absolutely MARVELOUS combination of technical mergers and acquisitions into a sigle, compact unit! Can you imagine the intricacy of creating the GR-1...especially with its depth of variables available to the end user! What a work of art technically! If I gave you $1200 and said "Build me a GR-1!", you couldn't come close to creating this sweet little baby! What a value! nd very reliable during the three years I've owned it. I was so lucky to find a GK-2A guitar pickup (for the GR-1) at a local pawn shop all by itself! Purchased it for $7 and put it on my second guitar. Now I have two guitars ready o go o match up with my GR-1...without having to swap a single GK-2 back and forth between guitars.

Superb quality of sound. But (for me) 80% of the GR-1sounds will never be used! I simply have no need for bomb explosions, spacecraft sounds etc. I have no sound card (can't find any!) to expand the sound capabilities. I match my GR-1 up with my Roland Jazz Chorus-77 (two 10" speakers) for a truly wonderful, unmatched sound. Roland is #1 in my book for "guitarist-friendly" equipment. Every one of their electronic engineers MUST be a guitarist himself (or herself!). What superior products!

No problems in spite of lots of lugging around, setting up, tearing down, etc.

Poor customer support. Want to get replacement cables...because the day will come when I eed them...but Roland rep (through dealer) says they are not available from Roland. Help! Talk about planned obselescence! Did they plan to be out of eplacement cables and parts?

For the working musician, this is an investment that will keep you working because you can now be 60+ musicians...no siply a guitarist! For the amateur/hobbyist guitarist, enjoy the GR-1 for just three years and the $1 a day cost is less than you spend on coffee! Still a great value!

the sounds are okay. I have learned a lot about synths and sequencing with it.editing is fairly easy. roland manuals are terrible!!! My synth has the expansion board installed in it.

I use a crate keyboard amp and run both synth and guitar sounds through it . a KORG AX 1000 floor processor applies affects and amp simulation to the straight guitar sound and allows me to not have to shlep my marshall or LINE 6 amp to a gig!!! Very quiet unit. effects are good too.

When i first got it after about a year it began to blow transistors. I had to absolutely raise hell with Roland to get them to help me . It went back two times to the repair center in L.A. No problems since then. I will probably back it up or replace it with a Yamaha midi converter or the new Roland GR_33 as I am in constant fear of it failing again and I have enough to worry about just trying to play the damn thing!!!

Dealing with Roland was like dealing with the department of motor vehicles and unless you are a rockstar they dont give a hoot about you . Also the technicians apparently dont actually play these things and were pathetic in their inability to answer my questions about expansion etc... The guy told me ... "well it wont really do it. It doesnt send out all the info over the cable ". Thank god I found someone to help me over the internet!!!

I play everything at the clubs and do a lot of commecial spots with it. I've played for 30 years. I f something happened to it I would have to replace it> I love the Way I can do bass and keyboard splits with it and play both parts live in real time .The bass players around here hate me !!! It definetly has helped me a lot and opened a lot of doors and they will get better . I wanted to play the sax when i was a kid but could never afford one . Now i can play sax ;flute Rhodes piano etc...

With a seperate stereo amp for the GR-1 and another guitar amp for the looped "guitar out" mixing is easy. I painted the little black buttons on the GK-2 so they can be seen on a dark stage. The 10-pin cord is flimsy, so I have velcro straps wrapped on both ends (screwed the straps down on the guitar strap and the other on the ac/dc cord sabilizer. I would gladly pay for a remote hook-up!
Editting patches is easy and the memory cards are convenient. The manual reads fine. I have no upgrades except some external processing.

With a Stratocaster the GR1 runs to a Peavey stereo equalizer to a Peavey stereo 400w amp to 2 SP2 cabs. The guitar sound loops to an array of pedals into a Roland chorus amp. The electrical is attached to a "line conditioner". All the sound is clean.

So far it has been trouble free and has more than paid for itself.

Played for 30+ years. I've used the GR1 for 6 years from classical to avant gard, blues to video effect tracks. I have a coule of bass guitars, a Juno 106, 2 classical guitars, a 12-string acoustic, a Roland B-100 bass amp, a Macintosh non-linear edit bay.
So, all the orchestra instruments have come in handy for for video production. For live performance, the B3 and bass sounds are tailored in there. Between the toggle lever and a pan-peddle I have more than I can ask for. The sweep and fat peddle features are killer. The built-in sequencer needs help in balancing tracks. The cord needs to be longer and with a more stable connection. Perhaps make the controls mount up on a stand where it is easier to read and mess with , while the detachable peddle remains on the floor.

Preset sounds are OK. Needs some work on guitar patches. Easy to edit patches, has knobs as well as buttons, good layout. The manual is easy to follow. Videos are available.

Most of the instruments sound great, really easy to use and edit.

24 note polyphony. The GK-2 pickup has excellent tracking. Reverb & Chorus built in. Tone expansion kit. 2 external pedal jacks -1 volume and 1 assignable. Patch Data Card Slot to dump patches and sequences. MIDI in/ MIDI out. Mono guitar send / stereo returns. Headphone jack. Mix out jacks. 4 track multi-timbral sequencer hold 2000 notes

It's pretty solid. Yes, I'd use it without a backup

I've called Roland for different products that I own and they are excellent.

If it were stolen, I'd buy a gun and go headhunting!!! I've been playing guitar for 14 yrs. Got into MIDI in 1989 with an Atari 1040ST, I use a pentium and Cakewalk Pro now. I'm definitely not a keyboardist so this really lets me be able to record alot of different instruments with one that I'm comfortable with.

I bought it for one reason only. I was in a reggae band and we needed a keyboard player but couldn't find one who was good enough. So I thought that maybe I could play the keyboard parts along with the guitar parts. NOT!!! The time delay between striking the chords on the guitar and when you finally heard the piano sound was way too long. This made it sound like I the "piano player" was always behind the beat. Kinda like a guy who drank too much cough medicine before the gig! Another major problem was the fact that in reggae music one tends to chop guitar chords, then mute them right after you've struck them. No playing arpeggios here. As a result, there is not time for the gr-1 to pick up on just what chord you played. The result? Rude farts and off key burps. The sitar sound was cool though i must admit. Remember that song "green tambourine"?