Roland GR-33

This thing is easy to use, but be warned - there is a LOT of power behind this thing, it has a lot of parameters that can be set to get a good sound, and you can quite easily get lost, tweaking here and there. The patches that are provided are superb, but it's when you actually get into the editing of the patches that the real power is seen. I have this unit a month, been using it every spare moment that I can, and each day I have made new discoveries. In fact, I am itching to get to use it again, this evening. The manual isn't the best, but in a few months there's going to be a raft of websites devoted to this unit. For now - go to www.gr-30.com.
I have no idea what version of firmware is loaded, and I have no idea how to find out. I'm giving this section a 10, it really is that easy to use.

Fender Deluxe Plus Strat, Tech 21 Trademark 60. It's not a noisy unit. The sounds are not weak at all, very good presence.
Sound quality is good in the majority of the patches (about 350 of the 384 built in tones, I would guess), I found the tracking a bit "wobbly" on a few of the Piano Patches when playing chords as opposed to single or double notes. And the Acoustic guitar sims are nowhere near as good as the ones on the VG-8. The tracking can be set by using a "Play Feel" category that adapts to your style of playing, be it finger picking, hard or soft strumming, etc. Each patch has dedicated chorus and reverb plus one of 40 effects that can be applied to either or both of the voices that are used to make up a patch. You can also set a Harmonist on each patch or an Arpeggiator on each patch. You can set the hamony key, and the intervals, and there are 14 different types of arpeggio that you can apply. I'm not sure if a particular arpeggio can be programmed in by the user, but i'll keep y'all posted.
Basically this means that a tone can have Chorus, Reverb, maybe a touch of Flanger, and a harmony. This gives a filling sound, which is exactly what my band wants. It gets a nine 'cos I can't get the Piano tracking 100% and the Ac. Guitar sim is a little "fake".

Don't know if I can depend on it - it's got a battery in it that could go at any minute, so I better get those patches MIDI'd out to a PC. And i'd better write a little patch editor to allow me to do that, 'cos I haven't found one yet! It's not exactly built like a tank, but I love this thing so much that I am going to take good care of it anyway - starting with a flight case.
I would not bring it to a gig without backup, as I haven't even gigged it yet, and I'm not gigging it until I get the thing programmed for the sounds that I need.

Roland - what can I say. I haven't had to deal with them yet.

Overall, this is going to change the "sound" of my band. We are a 4 piece showband (Bass, Guitar, Vox, Drums) doing all the cabaret tunes, and this will expand our musical horizons. (This is our new direction.....we hope you like it). You know, Brass for Cracklin' Rosie and La Vida Loca, Keys for Hey Jude and Let it Be, Ac. Guitar for Wonderwall.......
Haven't compared it to other products. If it were stolen, get one in a minute, it's that good. It's a very inspiring piece of equipment, and now my band are going to revisit all of the tracks we jettisoned because we didn't have the correct instrumentation.

I think Roland did a much better job of making this more user
friendly than its past guitar synth line. Everything is laid
out with just a touch of a button.

It carries 48 voice polyphony which is 20 more than the GR30. The
sounds are more rich and detailed. The majority of the tones derive from the JV 1080. The added bonus of the 25 effects and expression pedal adds extra creativity to the mix especially towards industrial, techno, soundtracks, and progressive rock music. Some of the preset patches blew my mind away. The tracking speed has improved but I would not say a massive amount.

Only have had it for 1 week. But it looks better built than past guitar synths from Roland.

Roland does not have a 1-800 number for tech support but atleast they have finally updated their website. I would not expect much from them considering its Aug 2000 and this product was supposed to be released in April 2000.

Looks like a winner all the way. Any one who has past guitar synths from Roland and is looking for advancement in imagination should look no further than the Gr33.