I cannot believe I sold my FA06 8 years ago...I really missed the pads and lush arps so I bought another 3 years ago...Im re falling in love with it. Love the spacey grooves woody
I own the FA-06 and it has revolutionized my sound tremendously. I'm not a fan of the sequencer though. But it grooves well with my other synths and workstations so it's a definite keeper.
I am amazed at how the pads and synths on this thing are like the one’s on my trusty old CS1X!! Considering it is a rompler, it has some incredible sounds 😍
Thanks for taking the time to put these videos up they are very informative and I enjoy your playing. Secondhand price for the FA-06 is incredible at the moment so I'm going to have to get one they are silly cheap. Not owned a Roland for 5-6 years now and can't wait to hear how they have improved. They really lost their way when I decided to leave them so fingers crossed I fall in love with the fa and it leads to bigger things! :)
The FA-06 is awesome. I have one and the keyboard actin is great. Non-weighted, which is what we want for keys other than piano, as you kind stated. I've had it for 10days so I'm still diving into it, but the keyboard itself is really good.
Very good work Woody, I also was waiting for this one. Though I have an FA-06 it is a good lesson for me.You really are the man we needed to do this and thank you for all your effords, all your work!Regards from Ronny in Kessel, Belgium.
I got the Fa 06 keyboard the day it came out and It's been amazing to have. Its been a pretty good investment. I'll have to upload a vid of a beat I made with it. It does kind of have a plastic feel but its really durable so I wouldnt let that scare people from buying it.
Yessir! I got a question. Can u do some tutorials on it? Like making moog basses on the Fa, making some wobbles basses from scratch and things like that. One thing I've had a problem with is having producers block and not having a way to over come it and maybe seeing some different sound design techniques on the roland would help. If it's not too much trouble.
Thanks so much for your excellent review Woody. I have the FA06 teamed up with a Roland JP50 and play in an 80s covers band and have found the synth sounds and flexibility of the FA just perfect. I do like the look of the 08 though as I'm sure the keybed on the 88 note is great. And yes I agree the sampler is just brilliant and perfect for triggering one shot samples, it's also useful in control mode (funtion 3 in the menu) for turning on and off sounds when in multi-mode.
Hi Nigel! I'm sure that the combination of those two synths are perfect for 80s covers! I'd love to take a listen, you have any clips online? i'm actually tempted to *downgrade* to the 06 as the 08 is a bit bulky and doesn't fit very well beside my desk...
+Woody Piano Shack Hi Woody, yes both synths are great for 80s sounds and the FA is just so easy to programme. I started out with a DX21 and I certainly don't miss the days of the tiny non backlit LCD screen and hundreds of button pushes. Modern synths are just so easy to program and of course very powerful. Sorry don't have any clips online yet as I only just joined the group, but when we do I'll send on a link. We're called Pump It Up, and of course include that Elvis Costello clasdic in our set and I put together a great Costello sounding 70s tranny organ on the FA, it siunds fab. Anyway keep up the good work, your reviews are some of the best I've seen on RUclips.
thank you again for the comment and your positive feedback is very motivating. I started out with a Juno 6 & Casio CZ1000 which I'm guessing was roughly the same era as your DX21. yes, today's keyboards players are very spoiled :) I'm actually on the lookout for an old yammy FM synth as I'm quite into that retro sound at the moment. Look forward to seeing some of your clips. when i was in the uk i played in a band that covered "oliver's army", so +1 for elvis costello! :)
The FA08 features one of the best keybeds of the market (workstations, obviously), blowing out of the water the Krome & Modx8 actions. Holds its ground against the RH3 (Kronos 73 & 88) and still better than some actions featured in a lot of digital pianos in the market.
Hi Woody! Thanks very much for your review series on the FA series! For the past three years or so I've had both the MOXF8 and MOXF6, using the MOXF8 as my master controller keyboard. I pretty much bought the Yamaha without comparing the keybed too much with other 88 key products - the sound and sequencing were the biggest features for me then. It felt pretty good, but after having it for this long and doing some real hardline comparison to a real baby grand, I felt the action was too muddy/squishy and was fatiguing my hands after a while. Over the past month or so I've been trying out every 88 key product across all the major manufacturers, including digital pianos, workstations, and midi controllers. I had one very specific goal this time - I wanted the keybed that I really, truly connected with and that felt most like my baby grand acoustic. After trying probably 20-30 different keyboards, the Roland FA-08, the RD-2000, and the Juno DS 88 all came in way above the others. It wasn't even close for me. Now to be fair, the keyboards I demo'd were floor models - and have probably been beaten and abused by every keyboard player's 4-year-old child banging and such. But I was very thorough. Roland came out on top for me. Of this I have absolutely no doubt. When I tested I went for each unit's big grand piano default sound, although sound quality wasn't really that big a deal, I was only focused on the feel and response of the keys. The only other units that came semi-close were the Yamaha CP4/CP40 stage pianos. Great instruments, but still a bit stiff and slow to respond to rapid fire staccato. So, I placed my order for an FA-08 this weekend. I still have the MOXF6, and I will say as you do that either of those (the FA or the MOXF) are great choices. I love the sounds of my MOXF, and having the MOXF6 around still gives me all that. But when it comes to playability and keybed, I've never been more excited to have a controller that I know I'll be happy with for a very, very long time to come. Cheers to the FA-08!
@@WoodyPianoShack well, the pads but the sequencer looks easy and fun on the roland too.... I get the impression, the modx is not so easy or intuitive..? (I'm often wrong lol)
@@WoodyPianoShack well I got two of them 🌝 And Woody I really think it's a tricky question to compare the SN synth with the FM-X tech🌚so I wonder your opinion🙏thks
Thank You very much. I expect to buy a FA and this is so usefull ! Concerning the lack of bass of the organ sound, isn't it possible to fix this with the EQ, or tone editing ? I think one of the good point of this FA is the 6 knobs for real time adjust. You should have play with them while playing to show versatility of it... By the way thank You for this rapid review. I think I will buy it. Best regards. Olivier
Nice demo! i may buy it,- you said there were no vibrato/Chorus on the organ sounds, but that maybe can be fixed with the internal FX modul, if it has those choises, greetings, Levi in SWeden
Have you tried contacting them about this? There's also organizations that exist to try and get companies to be more handicap friendly. Right now most are working with video game companies but honestly instruments like this should be easier than video games. I hope they make things more accessible for you.
Same here I have been waiting for this, yet you mostly focused on Fa Vs motive and didn't mentioned much about the PSR. But in general I love the review and thank you so much for sharing the information am yet to make up my mind and get one but will wait for more of your reviews to decide.. Many thanks man keep the good work up
not really fair to compare FA with PSR, since they are not the same kind of instrument. different prices too. but I hope to do more PSR & Tyros stuff on the channel, stay tuned... :)
As always - thank you - Thank You - THANK YOU! SO MUCH WOODY! - Absolutely brilliant review - totally honest right down to saying that the drum patterns were crap! lol - Thanks to you - My megga Cimbo pressy to myself this year will be a lovely shiny Roland FA-07 - Next week - I start the arduous task of starting to get funds together so come December I can buy my dream machine! - Thanks Woody - You my friend are inspiring! - Long may you reign! x x x
@@WoodyPianoShack Quick question for ya Woody! - Can those 16 pads be used to select sounds (Combi's etc) that you've created for instant access whilst performing live? x x x
Hello Woody, I hope to buy an FA06 workstation (or similar) within the next 12 months or so, do I need to own a PC or a Mac for updates etc... as I only have a Chromebook laptop. The computer side of synths is something I am unfamiliar with.
Forgot to mention. Have you tried an external controller with the Roland FA06/8? Curious whether you can play all the parts in performance mode as you would on the keyboard itself. I have a weighted 88 key controller and I think that would be great if it could control the FA06 as I would have the piano option and synth option available to me!
Struggling to find video instructions how to match volume/velocity? between Rhythm sounds & most other voice/tone instruments. Got a good link?: From RexM
I am seriously considering getting the FA-06 as a 61 key board that covers most things. I previously owned the vr-09 but it's lack of editing and Fisher Price keybed made me sell it. I tried in the shop to get the vr09 organ and Leslie Sim sound out of the Fa-06 but could only find cheesy sounding organs compared to the vr09 especially on fast rotary. I even couldn't coax a comparable organ on the Fantom 0 which was also in the shop....the vr09 killed them both. Is there an expansion available for the Fa series so they match the vr09?
@@WoodyPianoShack Cheers for that, the VK series were pretty good. I played the Roland ds-61 as well and was very impressed with the simplicity and cheaper price and loved the sounds. I am seriously considering a ds-61 as a single do everything board to do 80's music. But wonder if l would be missing out on features and sound by not getting the FA-06. The DS vs FA saga continues LOL
When you talk about the bassiness of the organ sound when doing bass lines, surely you could create a split and layer up a deeper edited organ bass in the bottom end you are using, from other reviews it would seem that is fairly easy to do.
Playing the sort of music that I wish to emulate, so, for me your FA08 demos are simply the best. Now we have an FA07 what about the keybed for this middle version?
Question the issue that the bass did not have a lot of punch to it and drums sounding to hard? Can this be fixed with an update of the OS? great video by the way .
Hi Woody - thank you so much for your reviews. The FA06/08 have been out for a few years now. Do you think they are still a worthwhile purchase or do you think there are newer keyboards that give better sound and performance?
HI steve! yeah you're get, getting a bit long in the tooth now, but same thing for Yamaha's offerings. Time for a refresh. But Korg recently released a new Kross, that's definitely a contender and a bit fresher!
I keep hearing conflicting reviews of the FA-06/08 in that it is a difficult beast to use when sequencing & that the instruction manual is not very detailed. I think, on the whole, Roland has more "spacey" sounds than the Krome/Moxf6. Would that be a fair assumption?
Hi Woody, I'm trying to find a video that will show how to program a whole song step by step with the FA-06 buy can't find any. Do you know of any videos or tutorials on YT?
hmm, not sure. i never did much sequencing myself, found it a bit painful. I don't remember if I did my demos onboard, or on the PC. you'll just have to hunt around here on YT.
Again another great review.....except Woody, at about 7:57 into your video you were demonstrating some errieee sounds and in the background I saw a spooky shadow move across the wall in the background. Eeeeeek. By the way Woody.....Any chance of doing a review on these Casio PX 5S or 560m Pianos. See what all the fuss is about???
that's spooky, i was alone the whole weekend . OR WAS I? :o thanks for the heads-up. I've heard postive reviews about the casios, never tried them. i'll keep my eyes open.
+Woody Piano Shack You are spooking me out mate. If you were saying you were alone.....Wow.....!!!! But I hope your playing didn't scare the ghost away... Just Jokes mate. Im hooked on your reviews. Take care..
Have you noticed , if you are layering sounds using Dual mode, for example full grand and a soft pad, that eventually the piano sound starts sounding plunky or like if its trying to sound like an arppagio* ? Its so annoying that happens im trying to play a nice smooth melody and the full grand sounds all weird
Here in Argentina I can get a Korg Kronos for the same price as an FA08, but I think i'd still prefer the FA08. Even though the FA08 has less features the Kronos looks ridiculously complex to use.SO much so that it would probably put me off playing it...and it takes longer to boot up than my PC.
@@WoodyPianoShack thanks a lot for the fast response! You're the man! What is a VA? Vintage analog? :/ :) I'm looking for something that would inspire me in a different way than a guitar or workstation does so I can continue making some fresh (pop) songs. Just got myself a Minilogue xd, and it's doing a great job at that, but it's just a 2 osc synth (+wavetable), so there's not much to do except fiddle with the sequencer.. any suggestions? I might get a groovebox/sampler like the maschine mk3, I love the idea of it.
This does not have physical modeling, as stated, only tonewheel(ish) and virtual analog, in addition to the Supernatural and plain PCM. The organ in this is FA not considered best in class for a workstation. That would be the Kronos, which is technically not in this class, but you compare the FA often to the Yamaha XF, which competed with the Kronos. Even the new Montage(not a workstation) still doesn't beat the Kronos on organs. The keybed of the FA-08 is the Ivory Feel G , also shared with some variation with the RD-300nx, A88 controller, Juno DS-88 and others. It is not their best action, and neither is that of the synth action models. Those not needing the seq might be better off with the Integra-7 module and a nicer controller.
thanks for your points xp50, i agree although not tried a kronos but the korg clonewheels used to be pretty good. integra + controller would be nice. but is there such a thing as a nice controller? to get a quality keyboard you'd have to hook it up to a pro-synth resulting in a very expensive rig.
I find the 88 key action to be a bit spongy and not realistic to a real piano. The keys do feel good. The 61 and 73 versions are the same keybeds as the Juno series, G, gi, D, di
Ironically Mark, I found the exact opposite to be true for me - the FA-08 88 key action is exactly what I was looking for, it feels almost perfect to me. And in terms of a midi controller, I've been through the desert looking for the perfect one - and there is no such beast. I was determined to find it, too. The only one I still wonder about is the Doepfer LMK series, but I'm familiar with several higher-end Fatar boards and they aren't my favorite, so I'm going to guess the Doepfer models aren't going to do it for me either. I don't doubt that the FA-08 feels not as good to you - I think feel is VERY subjective at a certain level, so lots of different views on that. If someone grows up playing a spinet upright they are going to have a different opinion of keybeds than one who grew up playing a Bosendorfer or Steinway. If one grew up playing a digital piano they will have a very different view than someone who played only acoustic. But seriously tho, for me the Roland won me over completely after really, really spending lots of time making comparisons to every other 88-key unit I could get my hands on, which turned out to be between 20-30 different models.
Woody Piano Shack - There are some pretty nice controllers these days, like the Kawai VPC1 and Studiologic SL88, both with at least partially-wooden graded hammer action keys. I had a Doepfer PK88 at one time, liked it a lot. The free Axial expansions for the FA include both an Orchestral and Strings library,. Should be some good stuff in there, relative to the Motif, now replaced by the MODX. Too bad they’re not preloaded in deep memory, as in the Integra. The Axial expansions ought to come on an included USB stick, at least.
I love how you break things up by talking and then playing but it is rather odd how you are not playing the sounds you are talking about? Believe me I know how long it takes to do these videos and how much effort goes into them so I hope you see this as constructive criticism. I sure have a lot of improvements to make with my RUclips videos 😊
5:00 sounds like just experiencing an LCD that is rid of: undersized subpixels instead of pixels, aliased fonts (subpixel anti-aliasing on already-subpixel displays), and Apple-TN panel pixel inversion. They look like that without those things :) They don't even have to be IPS.
I cannot believe I sold my FA06 8 years ago...I really missed the pads and lush arps so I bought another 3 years ago...Im re falling in love with it. Love the spacey grooves woody
Nice, comprehensive review. I like how you take your time, in this case six months, to draw your conclusions. It was very helpful.
Great presentation, well done!!! I have the FA-06 and the action is a really fast tight synth type, very good.
I'm glad to hear that, I just bought the FA06 in "mint" condition coming in Monday, I'm stoked !
I own the FA-06 and it has revolutionized my sound tremendously. I'm not a fan of the sequencer though. But it grooves well with my other synths and workstations so it's a definite keeper.
right on, the supernatural engine is awesome!
I am amazed at how the pads and synths on this thing are like the one’s on my trusty old CS1X!! Considering it is a rompler, it has some incredible sounds 😍
The JP8 strings are incredible ( The first one on preset)
Thanks for taking the time to put these videos up they are very informative and I enjoy your playing. Secondhand price for the FA-06 is incredible at the moment so I'm going to have to get one they are silly cheap.
Not owned a Roland for 5-6 years now and can't wait to hear how they have improved. They really lost their way when I decided to leave them so fingers crossed I fall in love with the fa and it leads to bigger things! :)
i previously had a Fantom, this thing is a big jump forward soundwise.
The FA-06 is awesome. I have one and the keyboard actin is great. Non-weighted, which is what we want for keys other than piano, as you kind stated. I've had it for 10days so I'm still diving into it, but the keyboard itself is really good.
Do you still have it? Do you still like it or did you change up?
Quite an interesting demonstration without hearing almost a single sound from the instrument
Now that's what I call a real review. Talking pros and cons of a keyboard with features and functionalities.
Very good work Woody, I also was waiting for this one. Though I have an FA-06 it is a good lesson for me.You really are the man we needed to do this and thank you for all your effords, all your work!Regards from Ronny in Kessel, Belgium.
cheers Ronny, thanks for the lovely feedback!
I got the Fa 06 keyboard the day it came out and It's been amazing to have. Its been a pretty good investment. I'll have to upload a vid of a beat I made with it. It does kind of have a plastic feel but its really durable so I wouldnt let that scare people from buying it.
i agree, an underestimated and good value synth!
Yessir! I got a question. Can u do some tutorials on it? Like making moog basses on the Fa, making some wobbles basses from scratch and things like that. One thing I've had a problem with is having producers block and not having a way to over come it and maybe seeing some different sound design techniques on the roland would help. If it's not too much trouble.
my fa08 is gone, needed some funds and space! but i'd like to pickup a 06 in the future so I'll remember your request. cheers!
Thanks so much for your excellent review Woody. I have the FA06 teamed up with a Roland JP50 and play in an 80s covers band and have found the synth sounds and flexibility of the FA just perfect. I do like the look of the 08 though as I'm sure the keybed on the 88 note is great. And yes I agree the sampler is just brilliant and perfect for triggering one shot samples, it's also useful in control mode (funtion 3 in the menu) for turning on and off sounds when in multi-mode.
Hi Nigel! I'm sure that the combination of those two synths are perfect for 80s covers! I'd love to take a listen, you have any clips online? i'm actually tempted to *downgrade* to the 06 as the 08 is a bit bulky and doesn't fit very well beside my desk...
+Woody Piano Shack Hi Woody, yes both synths are great for 80s sounds and the FA is just so easy to programme. I started out with a DX21 and I certainly don't miss the days of the tiny non backlit LCD screen and hundreds of button pushes. Modern synths are just so easy to program and of course very powerful. Sorry don't have any clips online yet as I only just joined the group, but when we do I'll send on a link. We're called Pump It Up, and of course include that Elvis Costello clasdic in our set and I put together a great Costello sounding 70s tranny organ on the FA, it siunds fab. Anyway keep up the good work, your reviews are some of the best I've seen on RUclips.
thank you again for the comment and your positive feedback is very motivating. I started out with a Juno 6 & Casio CZ1000 which I'm guessing was roughly the same era as your DX21. yes, today's keyboards players are very spoiled :) I'm actually on the lookout for an old yammy FM synth as I'm quite into that retro sound at the moment. Look forward to seeing some of your clips. when i was in the uk i played in a band that covered "oliver's army", so +1 for elvis costello! :)
The FA08 features one of the best keybeds of the market (workstations, obviously), blowing out of the water the Krome & Modx8 actions. Holds its ground against the RH3 (Kronos 73 & 88) and still better than some actions featured in a lot of digital pianos in the market.
Hi Woody! Thanks very much for your review series on the FA series! For the past three years or so I've had both the MOXF8 and MOXF6, using the MOXF8 as my master controller keyboard. I pretty much bought the Yamaha without comparing the keybed too much with other 88 key products - the sound and sequencing were the biggest features for me then. It felt pretty good, but after having it for this long and doing some real hardline comparison to a real baby grand, I felt the action was too muddy/squishy and was fatiguing my hands after a while. Over the past month or so I've been trying out every 88 key product across all the major manufacturers, including digital pianos, workstations, and midi controllers. I had one very specific goal this time - I wanted the keybed that I really, truly connected with and that felt most like my baby grand acoustic. After trying probably 20-30 different keyboards, the Roland FA-08, the RD-2000, and the Juno DS 88 all came in way above the others. It wasn't even close for me. Now to be fair, the keyboards I demo'd were floor models - and have probably been beaten and abused by every keyboard player's 4-year-old child banging and such. But I was very thorough. Roland came out on top for me. Of this I have absolutely no doubt. When I tested I went for each unit's big grand piano default sound, although sound quality wasn't really that big a deal, I was only focused on the feel and response of the keys. The only other units that came semi-close were the Yamaha CP4/CP40 stage pianos. Great instruments, but still a bit stiff and slow to respond to rapid fire staccato.
So, I placed my order for an FA-08 this weekend. I still have the MOXF6, and I will say as you do that either of those (the FA or the MOXF) are great choices. I love the sounds of my MOXF, and having the MOXF6 around still gives me all that. But when it comes to playability and keybed, I've never been more excited to have a controller that I know I'll be happy with for a very, very long time to come. Cheers to the FA-08!
Are you still happy with your FA-08?
@@Darrin.Crawford i threw it out the window the other day
Amazingly Comprehensive , best review i've seen yet.
cool, thanks for the feedback!
Thank you woody for wonderful insight of the machine , am still in a dilemma in between MODX 7 and FA 07
psst, don't tell roland, but MODX gets my vote, unless the sample pads are important to you.
@@WoodyPianoShack well, the pads but the sequencer looks easy and fun on the roland too.... I get the impression, the modx is not so easy or intuitive..?
(I'm often wrong lol)
@@WoodyPianoShack well I got two of them 🌝 And Woody I really think it's a tricky question to compare the SN synth with the FM-X tech🌚so I wonder your opinion🙏thks
Excellent review!
Thank You very much. I expect to buy a FA and this is so usefull !
Concerning the lack of bass of the organ sound, isn't it possible to fix this with the EQ, or tone editing ?
I think one of the good point of this FA is the 6 knobs for real time adjust. You should have play with them while playing to show versatility of it...
By the way thank You for this rapid review. I think I will buy it. Best regards. Olivier
Nice demo! i may buy it,- you said there were no vibrato/Chorus on the organ sounds, but that maybe can be fixed with the internal FX modul, if it has those choises, greetings, Levi in SWeden
i don't think so, these ar not generic fx, but very specific to the sound engine of the hammond. cheers mate!
@@WoodyPianoShack thanks!
There is an s1 button for Leslie effect.
I dont like the strings and violins and such on the Motiff. I am blind and i wish Roland and Yamaha could do more in terms of accessibility.
Have you tried contacting them about this? There's also organizations that exist to try and get companies to be more handicap friendly. Right now most are working with video game companies but honestly instruments like this should be easier than video games. I hope they make things more accessible for you.
This is the video i've been waiting for!
I'm not sure if you've done that but you can make a video showing the vocoder of the Roland FA
i forgot to mention the vocoder, but you can hear it in the outro on every video! it's very cool.
I just brought one thanks to your reviews
Same here I have been waiting for this, yet you mostly focused on Fa Vs motive and didn't mentioned much about the PSR. But in general I love the review and thank you so much for sharing the information am yet to make up my mind and get one but will wait for more of your reviews to decide.. Many thanks man keep the good work up
not really fair to compare FA with PSR, since they are not the same kind of instrument. different prices too. but I hope to do more PSR & Tyros stuff on the channel, stay tuned... :)
Thanks cant wait for that, but I meant from sound quality point, like piano sounds ect.. :) cheers man
As always - thank you - Thank You - THANK YOU! SO MUCH WOODY! - Absolutely brilliant review - totally honest right down to saying that the drum patterns were crap! lol - Thanks to you - My megga Cimbo pressy to myself this year will be a lovely shiny Roland FA-07 - Next week - I start the arduous task of starting to get funds together so come December I can buy my dream machine! - Thanks Woody - You my friend are inspiring! - Long may you reign! x x x
nice of you to write, thanks!
@@WoodyPianoShack Quick question for ya Woody! - Can those 16 pads be used to select sounds (Combi's etc) that you've created for instant access whilst performing live? x x x
i think so, but struggling to remember, you'll have to check the manual
Great review Woody.
Very useful. Thanks.
Awesome series. Thank you!
Hey thsts brilliant to watch keep up the good work my friend. Just what i need. Paul
omg, these old videos make me cringe! glad you got something from it anyways
Hi, please make a video of the pads, especially of playing the FA08's own drums and virtual ones, as a superior drummer, etc. via midi, greetings
hi, sorry, no longer have it, hope to get some more roland gear later in the year!
Hello Woody, I hope to buy an FA06 workstation (or similar) within the next 12 months or so, do I need to own a PC or a Mac for updates etc... as I only have a Chromebook laptop. The computer side of synths is something I am unfamiliar with.
That is what I call sunburn 😱😊
Forgot to mention. Have you tried an external controller with the Roland FA06/8? Curious whether you can play all the parts in performance mode as you would on the keyboard itself.
I have a weighted 88 key controller and I think that would be great if it could control the FA06 as I would have the piano option and synth option available to me!
sure, you could play different parts on each keyboard, would be fun!
Could you provide sheet music for the excerpts of themes you used in the video? Some sounded really nice. Thanks.
sorry, but these were just improvisations, i didn¨'t capture the midi or anything. glad you liked them though!
Struggling to find video instructions how to match volume/velocity? between Rhythm sounds & most other voice/tone instruments. Got a good link?: From RexM
I am seriously considering getting the FA-06 as a 61 key board that covers most things. I previously owned the vr-09 but it's lack of editing and Fisher Price keybed made me sell it. I tried in the shop to get the vr09 organ and Leslie Sim sound out of the Fa-06 but could only find cheesy sounding organs compared to the vr09 especially on fast rotary. I even couldn't coax a comparable organ on the Fantom 0 which was also in the shop....the vr09 killed them both. Is there an expansion available for the Fa series so they match the vr09?
both the fa and fantom both include a pretty decent organ emulation from the VK-series iirc. but fa lacks chorus/vibrato simulation of the hammond.
@@WoodyPianoShack Cheers for that, the VK series were pretty good. I played the Roland ds-61 as well and was very impressed with the simplicity and cheaper price and loved the sounds. I am seriously considering a ds-61 as a single do everything board to do 80's music. But wonder if l would be missing out on features and sound by not getting the FA-06. The DS vs FA saga continues LOL
When you talk about the bassiness of the organ sound when doing bass lines, surely you could create a split and layer up a deeper edited organ bass in the bottom end you are using, from other reviews it would seem that is fairly easy to do.
hi francis, yes i cover this in my dedicated video about the organ emulation, possible, but not a breeze to setup.
Playing the sort of music that I wish to emulate, so, for me your FA08 demos are simply the best. Now we have an FA07 what about the keybed for this middle version?
Question the issue that the bass did not have a lot of punch to it and drums sounding to hard? Can this be fixed with an update of the OS? great video by the way .
Hi Woody - thank you so much for your reviews. The FA06/08 have been out for a few years now. Do you think they are still a worthwhile purchase or do you think there are newer keyboards that give better sound and performance?
HI steve! yeah you're get, getting a bit long in the tooth now, but same thing for Yamaha's offerings. Time for a refresh. But Korg recently released a new Kross, that's definitely a contender and a bit fresher!
Cheers Woody - I thought you were referring to me at first! Not that you would be too wrong... will check out the Kross
if i had the money this is this would be the natural ugrade from a JV/XP synth
I keep hearing conflicting reviews of the FA-06/08 in that it is a difficult beast to use when sequencing & that the instruction manual is not very detailed. I think, on the whole, Roland has more "spacey" sounds than the Krome/Moxf6. Would that be a fair assumption?
Hi Woody, I'm trying to find a video that will show how to program a whole song step by step with the FA-06 buy can't find any. Do you know of any videos or tutorials on YT?
hmm, not sure. i never did much sequencing myself, found it a bit painful. I don't remember if I did my demos onboard, or on the PC. you'll just have to hunt around here on YT.
Again another great review.....except Woody, at about 7:57 into your video you were demonstrating some errieee sounds and in the background I saw a spooky shadow move across the wall in the background. Eeeeeek. By the way Woody.....Any chance of doing a review on these Casio PX 5S or 560m Pianos. See what all the fuss is about???
that's spooky, i was alone the whole weekend . OR WAS I? :o thanks for the heads-up. I've heard postive reviews about the casios, never tried them. i'll keep my eyes open.
+Woody Piano Shack You are spooking me out mate. If you were saying you were alone.....Wow.....!!!! But I hope your playing didn't scare the ghost away... Just Jokes mate. Im hooked on your reviews.
Take care..
Yikes!!! I went back and watched and you are right. Looked like a ghost walking by. Woody! Get Out! Now!!!
Mike Corey haha, i'll be careful... :)
Saw the shadow too! Very spooky! Must be the Supernatural sound set! Can't wait to receive my FA08 soon, but can do wihout the spooks!
What do you think of the masterkeyboard functions given this is 88 keys and weighed?
Have you noticed , if you are layering sounds using Dual mode, for example full grand and a soft pad, that eventually the piano sound starts sounding plunky or like if its trying to sound like an arppagio* ? Its so annoying that happens im trying to play a nice smooth melody and the full grand sounds all weird
Here in Argentina I can get a Korg Kronos for the same price as an FA08, but I think i'd still prefer the FA08. Even though the FA08 has less features the Kronos looks ridiculously complex to use.SO much so that it would probably put me off playing it...and it takes longer to boot up than my PC.
Simon Keating - Kronos is complicated to program, but you can play and enjoy it at a simple level.
Hi thanks for all of your very helpful fa videos can I ask if I use an 88 note midi keyboard to control the fa06 will it give me full 88 note range
yes!
@@WoodyPianoShack Thanks again
Woody , I see that You hooked up a Monitor to your PSR , Can you do the same with the FA ?
no, this seems like a unique feature for arrangers, for karaoke feature.
Damn its weird seeing you without a beard!
Would you still recommend this synth to an owner of korg kronos 2 and yamaha modx7? Thanks! :)
not really, if you already have those two, it covers the same bases. get something different,a VA, or groovebox, or stick with what you have! :)
@@WoodyPianoShack thanks a lot for the fast response! You're the man! What is a VA? Vintage analog? :/ :)
I'm looking for something that would inspire me in a different way than a guitar or workstation does so I can continue making some fresh (pop) songs. Just got myself a Minilogue xd, and it's doing a great job at that, but it's just a 2 osc synth (+wavetable), so there's not much to do except fiddle with the sequencer.. any suggestions? I might get a groovebox/sampler like the maschine mk3, I love the idea of it.
What brand do you prefer? Roland or korg?
is there any PC software available to help edit things?
BTW, i know this was 2 years ago now, but do you still use the FA08?
heck no, that one had to go a long time ago to make way for new stuff
This does not have physical modeling, as stated, only tonewheel(ish) and virtual analog, in addition to the Supernatural and plain PCM. The organ in this is FA not considered best in class for a workstation. That would be the Kronos, which is technically not in this class, but you compare the FA often to the Yamaha XF, which competed with the Kronos. Even the new Montage(not a workstation) still doesn't beat the Kronos on organs. The keybed of the FA-08 is the Ivory Feel G , also shared with some variation with the RD-300nx, A88 controller, Juno DS-88 and others. It is not their best action, and neither is that of the synth action models. Those not needing the seq might be better off with the Integra-7 module and a nicer controller.
thanks for your points xp50, i agree although not tried a kronos but the korg clonewheels used to be pretty good. integra + controller would be nice. but is there such a thing as a nice controller? to get a quality keyboard you'd have to hook it up to a pro-synth resulting in a very expensive rig.
I find the 88 key action to be a bit spongy and not realistic to a real piano. The keys do feel good. The 61 and 73 versions are the same keybeds as the Juno series, G, gi, D, di
Ironically Mark, I found the exact opposite to be true for me - the FA-08 88 key action is exactly what I was looking for, it feels almost perfect to me. And in terms of a midi controller, I've been through the desert looking for the perfect one - and there is no such beast. I was determined to find it, too. The only one I still wonder about is the Doepfer LMK series, but I'm familiar with several higher-end Fatar boards and they aren't my favorite, so I'm going to guess the Doepfer models aren't going to do it for me either.
I don't doubt that the FA-08 feels not as good to you - I think feel is VERY subjective at a certain level, so lots of different views on that. If someone grows up playing a spinet upright they are going to have a different opinion of keybeds than one who grew up playing a Bosendorfer or Steinway. If one grew up playing a digital piano they will have a very different view than someone who played only acoustic. But seriously tho, for me the Roland won me over completely after really, really spending lots of time making comparisons to every other 88-key unit I could get my hands on, which turned out to be between 20-30 different models.
Woody Piano Shack - There are some pretty nice controllers these days, like the Kawai VPC1 and Studiologic SL88, both with at least partially-wooden graded hammer action keys. I had a Doepfer PK88 at one time, liked it a lot. The free Axial expansions for the FA include both an Orchestral and Strings library,. Should be some good stuff in there, relative to the Motif, now replaced by the MODX. Too bad they’re not preloaded in deep memory, as in the Integra. The Axial expansions ought to come on an included USB stick, at least.
I'm very surprised you favor electric pianos and pianos on the FA. The expansions for the Moxf are comparable to Nord electric piano sounds!
Ok, my future keyboard will be this FA08! Goodbye my darling Kurzweil PC3LE8...
ok... i'm sure the kurz is nice too!
So how would you compare those two ?
Is that an external monitor on the Yamaha?
i don't remember what I was doing, i sometimes used external monitor on my old PSR.
What kind of stand is that with the screen?
it's probably my ultimate support apex.
I love how you break things up by talking and then playing but it is rather odd how you are not playing the sounds you are talking about? Believe me I know how long it takes to do these videos and how much effort goes into them so I hope you see this as constructive criticism. I sure have a lot of improvements to make with my RUclips videos 😊
You have a PSR S 970 too?
i do indeed
And when you compare with a Yamaha MOXF, why do you show a PSR?
5:00 sounds like just experiencing an LCD that is rid of: undersized subpixels instead of pixels, aliased fonts (subpixel anti-aliasing on already-subpixel displays), and Apple-TN panel pixel inversion. They look like that without those things :) They don't even have to be IPS.
Comes with wobble? . Get yourself a stand.
how in depth does this sampler go? Can it chop like an MPC? or would I be better off to control an old sampler through midi?
You never even played the Real Piano Sound.
Fantastic detailed review, Woody. Subbed!
thx for the comment & sub!