Roland EM-10

It was easy enough to use to choose it in the store. (maybe 5 minutes or so.)

Having lost a Korg Wavestation EX in a pawn shop....the polyphony was less than I wanted (not to mention the whole gigantic architecture of the wavestation). The effects sound good, but are much more useful with a GS editor which gives you the whole editing thing..filters, chorus params, reverb times/character/DELAYS, etc. (it IS a GS synth, you see) <---major reason for choosing it. The onboard "recorder" sucks, and it was a major letdown, because this was another reason I chose it. Using the EM-10 with a computer/external sequencer has been just fine. no probs. It works well with my other MIDI gear. I like the 2 stereo outputs...nice for running the thing direct, and having the other outs for phones or external processing. this 10 is all about $$$/external controllability.

I like the factory sounds just fine. and again...with a GS editor they can be tweaked completely inside-out and back. I'm happy about the sounds.

hehehe, ok....the display light burnt out promptly on mine....also...the A/C adapter died quite fast. I bought a new adapter (not Roland, but a Radio Shack thing), and mine works fine...and I leave it ON!!! ALL THE TIME 24/7, unless I'm resetting it. If I played gigs I'd be pretty sure it would work fine, although I wouldn't be able to see the display GRRR!.

I'm sure Roland is great about this stuff, but there's no info on their website about this product....disappointing. I haven't dealt with them.

lost or stolen:I'd look for something else that sounded better for the money, but I might end up getting another used one, or one that's as broken as mine(the diplay light) for ultra cheap. I've played on and off for close to 30 years, and haven't really had many keyboard instruments...a couple of piano's a small yamaha synth, and the Korg Wavestation. To follow the Korg, this thing has balls to think it's gonna make me happy...but like I said....a cool GS editor really unlocks it...without that, it's pretty plain, other than that, it sounds pretty decent through the built in speakers, and external processing does wonders as well. I wish it had a MIDI THRU and perhaps an expression pedal input, but having a sustain pedal input was yet another reason for choosing it. For the money...(and I'm poor) I think it's a great deal.

A bit confusing due to less knobs than actually nescesary. Switching between style and patch mode is only visible on the non-lit display.
All settings (such as volume!) reset each time you turn it of. So each session starts for me with turning the volume down.

ok for the price

You can really enjoy the sounds an some of the styles are pretty realistic.

Ours is broken for the second time now. Suddenly some keys start to soun very loud and after a while the don't sound at all. And we play at it very less an very gentle...

Our retailer does this very well.
(The Soundshop Amstelveen)

if i knew all i know, i'd chosen a different keyboard.

This keyboard is the typical Roland interface. Once you learn how to navigate the bank system, it's a breeze. Presets are OK, but that's said with negative connotations - they say that these sounds are top of the line Roland sounds, but I doubt it. The manual is clear enough, but there's not much you need to know from it. (I only looked at it once to find out the right way to store a User Program.)

I give it seven. Could have been an eight, but that's the way it is.

Polyphony of 32 notes. Keyboard action is not weighted at all, which puts it in the typical synth category. Only 61 keys - big disadvantage with any kind of deep piano pieces. Effects: default (excessive) Roland reverb (sounds like you're in an empty cave, not a hall) and chorus, which is actually good on the electric pianos.

No expansion capabilities. MIDI in and out, no thru, pressure sensitive keys but that's it. GM and GS compatible. Sequencer is not worth worrying about, except for the five minutes fun in practise. No dual voice - shocking omission!

Pianos need a lot of work. Never can quite get the right one. The main piano sound is good, but it's just not good enough to warrant buying this keyboard solely for. You just can't be expressive enough without a proper weighted action. Not very exciting at all. No aftertouch.

Dependable, yes, but not a gig machine. With reverb on there is a constant hiss from the outputs. Reverb off is the only way to go. I'd never take this thing to a real gig. Feels flimsy (as all portables do). Buy a stage piano!

(Five because it's not a gig piano.)

Never needed to ask. Got it from Allan's Music in Adelaide (Australia), however, and they were superb.

I'd never buy this keyboard again (sorry). I'm past the synth stage, especially in this low end - want a synth? Get an A90! I bought this just to have something to muck around with in my own room. Had enough of it already (had it about a year).

It was cheap, and it was better than the Yamaha PSR270. It doesn't have dual voice capability, which really sux. I really only use the Piano and E Piano sounds, and it was good compared to the Yamaha.

Been playing for about 8 years. I own no other keyboards (this was my first) but I have played both the Roland RD-600 and some Yamaha boards. I want the RD-600 now, to move up to something I can really gig with on stage with a proper (weighted) action.

Some presets are good, but most of them are not upto the mark.The strings really suck, so do the accopmaniment styles.....totally useless for people oriented towards techno. But functions are simpler then other roland models....i had a xp-10....which was worst than this

It is just a mediocre keyboard....built to compete with casio and likes...but good for the price tag...some effects are good....but they seem more like marketing gig....they don't have any actual use....

never given me a problem till now

overall a good keyboard for learners and beginners

Hi, I submitted the previous review. Correction: the address for the site that has the Roland EM-10 advertised for $169.00 is http://www.zzounds.com . Their site says it is not in stock but they can order it. I don't know if this company is on the level or not, they have a sophisticated website though. It turns out the keyboard I saw at Radio Shack is actually the Casio CTK-651 -- the Radio Shack version is exactly the same except it is unbranded, and I think the buttons are a different color. I'm very impressed with the CTK-651 and decided to go with it over the Yamaha PSR-280 (and way over the EM-10). http://www.music123.com sells the CTK-651 for $199.99, and right now they are including the power adaptor and headphones at that price

Not easy to use at all. I checked one of these out at the local music store today. It took me about half an hour to figure out how to change the instrument -- once I figured it out it was still a pain in the ass. Some of the sounds are decent but I was not that impressed. It would often inexplicably start playing some queer built in rythym track out of the blue when I would press a key.

MIDI, polyphony, pretty good velocity sensitivity, speakers.

Some of the sounds are decent but I was not that impressed. I've recently tried the Yamaha PSR-280: contrary to the other review, the PSR grand piano sound beats the EM-10 grand piano hands down, no contest. The Yamaha PSR-280 runs about $200.

Never owned one.

N/A

I am planning to buy a ~$200 keyboard pretty soon. I'm going to go with either a Yamaha PSR-280 or a keyboard I saw at Radio Shack (no real name, they just describe it - 61 key, 24 note polyphony General MIDI keyboard, 200 sounds, three reverbs, touch sensitivity, nice built in speakers, pitch wheel, some kind of basic synthesis function - $200 on sale). If you really want an EM-10 get it for $169.00 at www.zzsounds.com

At first glance, it's all complicated. Then looked thru its simple
and short manual, I got it all figured out. The 200+ sounds (GM/GS)
compatible and they sound better than an XP-10 surprisingly.
It is not a synth. This is a bread and butter sound keyboard.

24 polyphony, I find that is has 4-level velocity response. Great for
a cheap keyboard. It doesnt have lots of effects, just reverb and chorus.
There's no expansion capabilities. For this price, it gives you 8-user
registration memory !!! GREAT ! Supports SYSex, It response to modulation
and aftertouch from an external MIDI controller. It is General MIDI and
GS compatible. It supports 16-MIDI Tracks from external sequencer/data.
On board, it has 2 track sequencer for making simple music. For this price,
I give it a 10.

As Roland advertised it, the sounds are copied from high-end models.
Great sounds. I tried both the Yamaha CS2X and Roland XP-10, it sounds better than them!
I'm happy with the choir (only few of them thou), piano and some SFX like thunder and wind.
As i said, its a bread and butter sounding keyboard. It works well for me when I go gigging for black metal.
It'll be almost useless for Trance/Techno. Its velocity sensitivity is better than
the more expensive CTK series CASIO. It supports Octave transpose. (-12 : 12)
And again, for this price? Excellent sounds !

I banged it a few times, didn't give me a problem, YET. I hope not.

For this price range, I really cannot think of any other models.
I might be able to get better ones, used from ebay, but I'm not in US/UK/AUS, where the shipping price will cost more than $200 !
I dont do MIDI or Synth, so this bread and butter keyboard is great for me.
I want direct simple acoustic sounds. I also own a Casio MT750. I will still keep it for great sounding strings and e.piano.
I love the roland EM-10 for its great sounds. It doesnt sound like toy keyboards (such as mid-range CAsio CTK series or yamaha PSRs)
I chose this one because its the cheapest Roland keyboard. I think all the money spent is in the sounds.
Well, I'm gonna save some money to get the latest Roland 128-voice sound module. :)