Roland sound canvas sc 55mkii
There is one single button on the front panel for switching between SC-55 and SC-88 modes. Smaller sized version of SC-88, with a same size and panel layout as the SC-55.Ī black plastic box, with LEDs for MIDI activity. Half rack unit, additional height for more controls, introduced multiple triggering and EQ, SC-55 map support (with differences). Table top version of SC-50, rebranded as BOSS Dr. SC-55mkII without the Roland MT-32 patches, only one MIDI input.
Piano module, with a limited set of instruments.
#Roland sound canvas sc 55mkii serial#
No display, introduced serial port for PC/Mac connectivity. Half Rack unit, first product of the line, units without GM logo technically not GM compatible (GM reset interpreted as GS reset, capital tone arrangement not fully consistent with GM spec). In some cases also sold as "Edirol" rather than "Roland" as the brand name. 1.2 Sound Canvas Personal Computer Products.
If you’re a manufacturer and looking to build and sell a piano-top (clone-top, whatever) module, here’s your exemplar! Posted in Music, Music technology | Tagged expander, Roland Dr. These little boxes were thought out very well. Sorry, no velocity sensitivity since this is 1994! When in this mode, the 16 buttons are now pads that play drum sounds from the selected kit. The parameters are just part of the tone and selecting a tone recalls the last saved edit. You never have to think about the separate concept of a user performance memory or whatever. All editable parameters, split status/level, dual status/level and more are saved with each of the tones. Splits and layers are insanely easy to create and edit. Tones can be layered (DUAL) or split (SPLIT). (Like many devices from that era, parameter memory is battery powered, not flash.) The closest thing to WRITE or STORE is the simple act of leaving a menu by way of the EXIT button.
#Roland sound canvas sc 55mkii software#
There isn’t any explicit WRITE or STORE operation the software automatically captures any changes and updates the internal parameter memory. All you need to do to register a tone is to hit the catgeory button after selecting the tone. A button selects a tone category and a favorite tone within the category which the user has “registered.” That may sound complicated, but it is very natural. The best part of the overall UI design is the sixteen buttons/pads that select tones. Ever skip over the menu item you wanted and had to do a “go round?” Roland also thoughtfully provided a BWD button to move backwards within a menu. Menus are triggered by dedicated buttons and the menus are not super deep or long. Once you’re in single play mode, navigation is a breeze. Multi mode is for sequencing and since I’m pitching the module for live performance, I’ll concentrate on single play mode. Software-wise, the user interface has two major modes: single play mode and multi mode. I would also love to see a decent ROMpler in this format, too, as an expansion module for digital pianos and B-3 clones. Good Golly, how I wish that manufacturers would adopt this form factor again! I’d love to see a Reface in this physical package. (Please click on images to get higher resolution.) This means that you can set the DS-330 or SC-33 on an open spot on a keyboard (controller) and easily hit the buttons while performing. They sit flat with the display, buttons and volume control on the top, unlike the half-rack form factor and mounting style of virtually all other tone modules. And therein are the jewels.īoth units are about 8.5 inches wide and 6.5 inches deep. The DS-330 and SC-33 share a common physical package and user interface design. No problems with Cubase, a Roland SK88Pro or the Nord, however. From the circumstances, I think this is due to incorrect handling of MIDI running status. When I drive the modules from a Triton Taktile 49, I get the occasional “MIDI Off Line” error. With old gear, there are always a few compatibility issues. However, both machines are good General MIDI playback devices and quite a few of the preset voices are decent enough to play live, especially when they are layered and tweaked. The sample format is 16-bit 32KHz and the wave ROM size is 2MBytes. Neither the DS-330 or SC-33 will win any awards for sound quality based on modern standards. I won’t have any qualms about dropping it into my gig bag. The SC-33 is little bit beat, but I intend to use it with my Nord Electro 2. I fell so hard for the DS-330, again, that I bought a second hand SC-33.
The SC-33 has the same sound set as the SC-55mkII (226 tones) while the DS-330 has a subset (156 tones depending on who is counting.) It is the smaller brother to the Roland SC-33 Sound Canvas which is GS-compatible. The DS-330 dates back to 1994 (!) and is an almost (maybe) GS-compatible Sound Canvas. Every now and again, we poke around in the closet and rediscover a lost gem.