Piano World Home Page Forums Our Most Popular Forums Digital Pianos - Electronic Pianos - Synths & Keyboards Roland FP-7F onboard speakers - opinions

Panic not. The FP-7f is a gem. I bought one when it first came out at the end of 2010...

Although I have it plugged in to a set of professional near field monitors, I tend to play it using the internal speakers as after you get used to them, they are actually perfectly okay for every day stuff. The headphone output isn't very hot so having a set of headphones that give you a lot from little current is a bonus..

I agree the headphone output of the FP-7F is low. Upon power-on I habitually set the Master Gain to +6-+9 db which should be enough for any hi-Z phones.

To MC in MA:

The KSV7 (also known as the V-Stand) is rock solid, if a little heavy tho easy to carry; extremely quick and easy to set up/tear down; and AFAIK difficult to locate for purchase. I got mine when I pre-ordered my FP-7F in the Fall of 2010: my retailer (in Topsham, ME) talked to the Roland distributor (maybe the same as yours in MA) who knew where one could be gotten. It's been great for gigging.

Good luck whatever stand you choose; all three options should be satisfactory.

what do you mean by "hot", regarding the FP7F's headphone output?

The default output level from the FP pianos is relatively low (i.e. not hot), requiring one to either increase the gain internally (must be done every time) or use some other means of boosting the level, such as a mixer, when using the line outs. For headphones, it is necessary to choose a pair that have an impedance/performance that is consistent with the output level from the Roland's headphone socket - others can advise on suitable brands/models.

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ah so that's what you mean..
and what the "gain" effect does to the sound (besides increasing the volume)? I see it also in Aduicaty, and I never figure out what it does.

I believe all it does is increase the volume, problem is this can easily lead to distortion.

Forum Veterans, I’m still kind of new. Should I start a new post with my reviews of the FP7F or just stay here?

I say start a new one, this one doesn't even have the word 'Review' in the title! It was first about the speakers, then about the stand and now we finally have the conclusion [small review by the OP] - everybody's happy, so let's move on.

ok - doing it now.

That and checking prices.

Hey James, so are you implying the Kawai ES7 is an inferior offering to the FP-7F?

The ES7 was not announced when I wrote that post - hence prefacing the statement with 'currently'.

Cheers,
James
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Hehe. I figured it was going to be something like that. You're a box full of surprises... now, can I bother to ask your opinion of which of these units is best, according to your own personal judgement?

Well, I like the FP-7F, however I prefer the greater flexibility of the ES7.

Cheers,
James
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Last question: what do you mean with flexibility? flexibility in what?

I believe the ES7 offers rather more control over parameters and settings than the FP-7F, which I felt was a little 'dumbed down'.

For example, compare the EP sounds of the two models. I seem to recall that the Roland's Rhodes has a tremolo effect applied automatically, with no option to adjust or turn it off. The Kawai on the other hand allows effects to be selected and adjusted manually, and then enhanced with the amp sim etc.

Again, I think they're both great boards, however in my personal opinion, the Kawai is superior.

Cheers,
James
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Thanks for your insight James. Sometime ago I was debating to buy whether the ES7 or the FP-7F. I was very curious about Roland's superNATURAL modelling thing, which reputedly is superior to Kawai's sample and tone generators. Admittedly, even if the ES7 uses the same samples as the Kawai MP6 –which I found lacking in the piano department–, its tone generator gives it (ES7) a more than subtle advantage in pianistic realism. It feels alive, with a little imagination from your part. Only con is that some reverb presets feel kind of over the top.

I will never be able to test the FP-7F to the ES7 side by side, so I'm interested in other people's opinions on this, including that of our dearest Kawai James.

I certainly see your point and found a couple of little features or controls strangely absent, however I think Roland's features are combined in a different way. Plus, the shear quantity of features seems meant to appeal and draw a crazy, wide range of customers. For example, having a mic input is certainly unusual, but very cool for a few customers.