Roland VG-8 virtual guitar system!!

[charvelguy]

Re: Roland VG-8 virtual guitar system!!

Originally posted by Accept2:
I'm not sure if it will interact with the XING and 707. I had both of those awhile back, and I remember that both of them use a cable with a large block end, whereas the the input to the VG8 has a small round input, about twice the size of a MIDI cable............

<font size="2" face="Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif">You're right .. it is the block end.. it's a 24 pin connector..my mistake. It also has the standard 1/4" out, I just use these as straight guitars for the moment. My 700 floor unit just sits.. I haven't plugged into it in a looong time.
Still looking for the right synth module/system.

[hippietim]

Re: Roland VG-8 virtual guitar system!!

Originally posted by jgcable:
It is unbelievable. I actually had to take a day off from work because I couldn't stop playing it. I am now in the market for a Roland ready guitar like maybe a strat or a Godin or a Brian Moore.

<font size="2" face="Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif">I have a VG-8EX and 88. They seem to sound best with a GK pickup. Don't ask me why but it definitely mattered. I had a Roland Ready Fender Strat (internal GK) and a Godin LGXT (piezo system). The Fender always sounded better with the VG stuff than the Godin. I've since sold both and have a USA Fender Strat that has had an internal GK kit installed.

[hippietim]

Re: Roland VG-8 virtual guitar system!!

One more thing, if you have a stock VG-8 it can be upgraded to a VG-8EX. You need to find someone with an S-1 card and run a program I wrote to automatically download the new OS. If you are anywhere near Seattle, WA you can swing by my house and I can hook you up. Otherwise go to http://vg-8.com/upgrade/ to see if there is anyone in your area. The program I wrote to do the upgrade is available off that page as well.

The S-1 adds many new models: hollow body electrics, dual amp (you get 2 separate amp signal paths), Tele, P-90's, Soldano, Vox, etc.

The EX upgrade adds an additonal 32 patches in a new bank "E".

There are more details somewhere on http://www.vg-8.com. There are also a ton of patches up there including the ones from Roland that are discontinued.

[Accept2]

Re: Roland VG-8 virtual guitar system!!

"The only thing I would be concerned about with running it midi patched thru a GM70 is increased lag."

The GM70 and the VG8 are two different systems. The VG8 is not a midi device. It can control MIDI devices, but its sounds are not the result of MIDI triggering. The only way to run a VG8 is with a MIDI pickup. Running a GM70 into the VG8 will do nothing at all, because the GM70 can only trigger MIDI modules, which the VG8 is not........

[charvelguy]

Re: Roland VG-8 virtual guitar system!!

You have to excuse my ignorance on this. You would probably know better than me since you seem to be more aquinted with both systems and the guitars.

This was my understanding of the GM70; you plug the guitar in via the 24 pin... you midi'd a sound module and the GM70 could allow you to trigger the presets of the sounds from the sound module. It has been argued with some guys familiar with sound modules that the tracking would suffer, there would be to much lag once the signal was run thru an amp.

You cannot use the sounds from the VG8 without running directly into it?
So it's strictly a fancy signal processor and you could not tap into it's capacity as a sound module? This is where I'm getting kinda messed up.. you can tap into the effects section of other processors. Thanks for you're advice btw.

[BigDaddyD]

Re: Roland VG-8 virtual guitar system!!

This unit already has the S1 upgrade. I never upgraded it to EX, because the experts at vg-8 told me the EX patches were old, and sucked and not to bother. I do have the S1 card which you would need to upgrade it. If you want to do it, you could swing by here if you had the time.

[hippietim]

Re: Roland VG-8 virtual guitar system!!

The way all of these things work is via hexaphonic pickups - IOW, a separate output for each string. This is necessary for technical reasons to distinguish the individual notes of chords and such.

The GM70 is a pitch to MIDI convertor. All it does is try and figure out the note you played and give it a number between 0 and 127 which is the corresponding MIDI note number. The GM70 is an older unit which uses a different style pickup from the current 13-pin GK stuff out today. There are a bunch of other similar units: Roland GI-10 and GI-20, Axon, and Yamaha. Then there are units like Roland's GR-1/9/30/33 that also have synth built in. These units stil can output MIDI but they also can trigger their internal synthesizers. The theory is that the internal triggering can be faster because they don't actually convert to MIDI to talk to the internal synth - in practice it doesn't seem to matter that much. The problem with pitch detection is this: to determine the pitch you measure the frequency. The lower the note, the slower the pitch frequency. You need at least one or two ups and a downs of the frequency to get it right. So low notes just take more time.

The VG-8/88 don't do any conversion of your guitars pitch to MIDI. They do support MIDI control of patches and stuff just like a POD or other multi-effects unit. The VG uses the output of the hex pickup to do interesting things like model particular guitars, pickups, transpose individual strings, harmonize on individual strings, etc. This is how the Variax works as well - there are individual outputs for each string fed into the signal processor in the guitar.

Roland did an interesting thing with the VG-88. It doesn't require a GK input for effects and amplifier modeling - it is similar to one of the Boss GT units in that mode. They also enable you to blend the modeled guitar with the magnetic pickups. This really opens up some posibilities!

[charvelguy]

Re: Roland VG-8 virtual guitar system!!

ahh.. I think I see.

But I thought the 2010 has a hex assignable p/u already?

So essentially the GM70 makes the non hex p/u assignable according to pitch. You could program to trigger a different sound per string frequency?

It sounds like the the most simple solution is to buy a GK2H and replace the GK1, buy a VG system and forget the GM70, or just run the guitar as a straight guitar into a VG88?

[jgcable]

Re: Roland VG-8 virtual guitar system!!

This one does have the S-1 upgrade. The Lukather solo patch that is in the expansion card is incredible. It quite possibly could be the best lead sound I have ever had. I am going to record some samples this weekend and I will post them. The synth sounds are great and the VH-I and VH-II
patch is dead accurate. The player patches are all studio perfect. If any of you have been in the recording studio you will know what I am talking about. In the studio, a great recording guitar tone is very different from your live tone most of the time. This is studio quality stuff. It smokes any modeler that I have ever played used.

[Accept2]

Re: Roland VG-8 virtual guitar system!!

This is why the unit hasnt become more popular than it is. Too many people dont realize that its not made to take over your main rig. Its made to supplement it, like another guitar would. It is indisposable for anyone doing studio work, and its live applications are great as well. You just have to look at it in the right light as a missing piece of your rig, rather than what most people do, and shrug it off as another hightech wonder that has invaded the guitar world to take over regular guitars.............

[RacerX]

Re: Roland VG-8 virtual guitar system!!

Sounds like the greatest thing since sliced bread! [img]images/icons/grin.gif[/img]

How about some PICS!! [img]graemlins/poke.gif[/img] [img]graemlins/band.gif[/img]

[RacerX]

Re: Roland VG-8 virtual guitar system!!

Oh, it's a box.... [img]graemlins/images/icons/tongue.gif[/img]

OK how about some CLIPS?!

[charvelguy]

Re: Roland VG-8 virtual guitar system!!

Hmm, well, it could be midi interfaced with a roland GM70? I'm pretty sure it could and they're pretty affordable as opposed to getting a GK2H, which would be preferable pickup, but still more money/work.. eventually tho.

I'm thinking the Roland 13 pin stuff is well out of production and discontined stock by Roland.
Altho, I'm not sure.. I haven't taken this stuff out more than a time or two in the last year. (which is why I would like to upgrade to a system that can utilize it)

The only thing I would be concerned about with running it midi patched thru a GM70 is increased lag.

Hows the synth, like human voice/strings?

[ July 25, 2003, 12:57 PM: Message edited by: charvelguy ]

[BigDaddyD]

Re: Roland VG-8 virtual guitar system!!

You really have to be a tweaker and have the proper setup to get the full benefit of the VG-8. I simply don't have the time or patience to tweak and didn't have the proper setup. That is why I traded mine to JGCable. Funny thing is that on my setup, all of his favorite patches sounded like ass. It really needs to be tweaked for a setup. For instance, I had some cool patches set to go straight into my Rivera. They sounded great, but then sounded like ass with headphones. If you like to tweak and create and want to dedicate the right equipment to it, I HIGHLY recommed one of these. Many people in the know prefer the VG-8 to the VG-88, because the 8 has the ability to use the sound card, and store patches on a memory card. Plus although the VG-88 comes with a built in expression pedal, it apparently had some problems. The guy that got me into this uses a VG-88 and he smokes. Amazing tone...and he uses it direct live. That was my introduction into it. I saw him play live and was admiring his tone. When I looked on stage, I saw a Marshall JCM800 half stack and smiled at the Marshall tone, but wondered how he was getting such a variety of great contrasting tones...then I noticed that the Marshall wasn't on and almost passed out. [img]images/icons/shocked.gif[/img]

[BigDaddyD]

Re: Roland VG-8 virtual guitar system!!

www.vg-8.com

Check out the videos and clips