Roland VG88 V-Guitar System
No longer available at zZounds
Self-contained guitar processing/modeling system. GK-Ready 13-pin input plus 1/4 in. guitar input. Onboard expression pedal for realtime parameter control. (Does not include GK2AH.)
Overview
The Roland VG88 presents guitarists with the next generation of revolutionary V-Guitar technology. This futuristic guitar system uses advanced COSM technology to "model" the most popular guitars and amplifiers in history, as well as produce some very unique "guitar-meets-synth" sounds of its own. New sounds and features include more natural tube and overdriven amp sounds, new polyphonic and guitar-oriented effects, pickup and amplifier variations, new brass sounds, an onboard expression pedal, and a 1/4 in. direct guitar input.
Features
Self-contained guitar processing/modeling system which recreates a wide variety of guitar, pickup, amp, speaker cabinet, and microphone sounds using a standard electric guitar equipped with GK-2A or compatible pickup (sold separately).
GK-Ready 13-pin input plus 1/4 in. guitar input for direct access to amp/speaker modeling sections Hollow-body and acoustic guitar models including new nylon string guitar.
Extremely natural tube amp models and overdriven sounds. HRM (Harmonic Restructure Modeling) creates synth-type sounds - including new brass sounds - with natural playing nuances and without delay.
Combination guitar output/GK pickup output for completely new types of sounds.
Polyphonic Intelligent Pitch Shifter for instant open tunings, 12-string guitars, bass guitar, string-assignable octave, slow gear, and more.
Effects include reverb, chorus, hexa-pan, delay, flanger, and parametric EQ.
Extremely intuitive operation with helpful operational… read more graphics and icons.
Onboard expression pedal for realtime parameter control.
Output Select switch for connection to conventional guitar amps or power amps.
Offers 200 Preset and 100 User Patches, including newly-developed factory Patches.
About Roland
Roland Corporation U.S. is a leading manufacturer and distributor of electronic musical instruments including keyboards and synthesizers, guitar products, electronic percussion kits, digital recording equipment, amplifiers, and audio processing devices. With over 25 years of musical instrument development, Roland sets the standards in music technology for the world to follow. Check out your favorite musicians' gear - chances are they're using Roland. read less
Features
Self-contained guitar processing/modeling system which recreates a wide variety of guitar, pickup, amp, speaker cabinet, and microphone sounds using a standard electric guitar equipped with GK-2A or compatible pickup (sold separately).
GK-Ready 13-pin input plus 1/4 in. guitar input for direct access to amp/speaker modeling sections Hollow-body and acoustic guitar models including new nylon string guitar.
Extremely natural tube amp models and overdriven sounds. HRM (Harmonic Restructure Modeling) creates synth-type sounds - including new brass sounds - with natural playing nuances and without delay.
Combination guitar output/GK pickup output for completely new types of sounds.
Polyphonic Intelligent Pitch Shifter for instant open tunings, 12-string guitars, bass guitar, string-assignable octave, slow gear, and more.
Effects include reverb, chorus, hexa-pan, delay, flanger, and parametric EQ.
Extremely intuitive operation with helpful operational… read more graphics and icons.
Onboard expression pedal for realtime parameter control.
Output Select switch for connection to conventional guitar amps or power amps.
Offers 200 Preset and 100 User Patches, including newly-developed factory Patches.
About Roland
Roland Corporation U.S. is a leading manufacturer and distributor of electronic musical instruments including keyboards and synthesizers, guitar products, electronic percussion kits, digital recording equipment, amplifiers, and audio processing devices. With over 25 years of musical instrument development, Roland sets the standards in music technology for the world to follow. Check out your favorite musicians' gear - chances are they're using Roland. read less
Specs
Signal Processing:
AD Conversion: 24-bit AF Method (Normal Input), 20-bit (GK Input)
D/A Conversion: 20-bit 128x oversampling
Sampling Frequency: 44.1kHz
Patches: Total 260 (Preset: 160, User: 100)
Nominal Input Level: -10dBm
Input Impedance: 1M
Nominal Output Level:
OUTPUT: +4dBm
GUITAR OUTPUT: -10dBm
Output Impedance:
OUTPUT: 2 k
GUITAR OUTPUT: 2 k
Dynamic Range: 100dB or greater (IHF-A)
Display: 160 x 64 dots Backlit LCD, 8-segment 2-line LED
Connectors:
GK IN
GUITAR IN
GUITAR OUTPUT
OUTPUT (L, R)
PHONES
SUB EXP PEDAL/SUB CTL (1, 2)
MIDI (IN, OUT)
Power Supply: AC 117/230/240V
Dimensions (H x W x D): 101 x 504 x 303mm (4 x 19-7/8 x 11-15/16 in.)
Weight: 4.9 kg (10 lbs., 13 oz.)
Accessories: GK Connecting Cable C13-A (5m)
AD Conversion: 24-bit AF Method (Normal Input), 20-bit (GK Input)
D/A Conversion: 20-bit 128x oversampling
Sampling Frequency: 44.1kHz
Patches: Total 260 (Preset: 160, User: 100)
Nominal Input Level: -10dBm
Input Impedance: 1M
Nominal Output Level:
OUTPUT: +4dBm
GUITAR OUTPUT: -10dBm
Output Impedance:
OUTPUT: 2 k
GUITAR OUTPUT: 2 k
Dynamic Range: 100dB or greater (IHF-A)
Display: 160 x 64 dots Backlit LCD, 8-segment 2-line LED
Connectors:
GK IN
GUITAR IN
GUITAR OUTPUT
OUTPUT (L, R)
PHONES
SUB EXP PEDAL/SUB CTL (1, 2)
MIDI (IN, OUT)
Power Supply: AC 117/230/240V
Dimensions (H x W x D): 101 x 504 x 303mm (4 x 19-7/8 x 11-15/16 in.)
Weight: 4.9 kg (10 lbs., 13 oz.)
Accessories: GK Connecting Cable C13-A (5m)
Reviews
Reviewers gave this product an overall rating of 4 out of 5 stars.
(130 ratings)
by a customer from mphtower.com
"Great product for the multi-guitared."
This review has been selected by our experts as particularly helpful.
Yeah, there are some gripes. Sure. But here's the most important thing: I use the crap out of it. Recording, playing live, improvising, whatever. I haven't touched another one of my guitars in a long time because I can generally get a better tone out of this. In fact, I'm probably going to go out and get another Hex-converter to attach to my former main guitar so that I can finally retire my nearly 20-year old Roland GR.
So, if you play guitar and are constantly switching guitars for the right tone for a song, or if you jam a lot and feel that sometimes you brought the wrong instrument, or whatever, the VG-88 is a great choice. Yeah, the VG-8 is better. But it's much more expensive.
Sound
A terrific sounding guitar synth. Since the problems with it are most notable, I'll mention those, though. It's fairly difficult to tweak it to make a warm, natural guitar tone. The acoustic guitar sounds are great when mixed with other instruments, but on their own they sound a bit dull and lifeless. On the other hand, there is no way you can direct-in a guitar through effects and get as great a tone unless you shell out more cash for the VG-8. But the greatest asset is having a ton of tones in one box. It seems to excel most at bluesy, driving guitar sounds, crunchy sounds, and backup rhythm guitar. In general, this is the main stuff you need for rock, and being able to switch from convincing tone to tone without doing anything but tapping a… read more pedal is excellent. Ironically, it does a completely unconvincing job of emulating a GR-300. Go figure.
Features
Programmability is both terrific and aggravating. The sysex MIDI controls were poop last time I checked (maybe there are some new editors out there), and this does mean that you have to go through menu after menu to make your own programs. Not a deal-breaker, but certainly a pain in the tukas. The upside is that the programmability is mighty thorough. There are plenty of sounds you can make from straight out driving guitar to totally wacked noise stuff to realistic Moog synth basses to decent acoustic guitar sounds. Oh, and you can program a wild-sounding electric violin. Pretty slick.
Quality
It's a Roland product, so the quality is the closest to perfect in the electronic instrument world. I use it nearly every day for hours, switching programs, using the pedals, etc., and not yet have I had a problem with it. It's been dropped, punted, and pulled around by the guitar cable. I'm tempted to go drive over it to see if it's as indestructible as a MemoryMoog....
Value
Another Roland trademark: Great product for a reasonable price. They're like Toyota in many ways. Sometimes the stuff can be a bit bland, but they do everything you need.
Manufacturer Support
I've not needed support for this unit, but I've had to deal with Roland many times in the past. They're just okay. The manuals, of course, stink. And they're not up online. And their website is a navigational nightmare. And getting warranty work can be a bit trying. But, in general, you usually don't need much of that stuff with a Roland. In other words, they don't have the personal service of a company like E-Mu, but they're also about a bajillion times larger.
The Wow Factor
It's totally cool.
Musical Style:
Rock, Experimental read less
Sound
A terrific sounding guitar synth. Since the problems with it are most notable, I'll mention those, though. It's fairly difficult to tweak it to make a warm, natural guitar tone. The acoustic guitar sounds are great when mixed with other instruments, but on their own they sound a bit dull and lifeless. On the other hand, there is no way you can direct-in a guitar through effects and get as great a tone unless you shell out more cash for the VG-8. But the greatest asset is having a ton of tones in one box. It seems to excel most at bluesy, driving guitar sounds, crunchy sounds, and backup rhythm guitar. In general, this is the main stuff you need for rock, and being able to switch from convincing tone to tone without doing anything but tapping a… read more pedal is excellent. Ironically, it does a completely unconvincing job of emulating a GR-300. Go figure.
Features
Programmability is both terrific and aggravating. The sysex MIDI controls were poop last time I checked (maybe there are some new editors out there), and this does mean that you have to go through menu after menu to make your own programs. Not a deal-breaker, but certainly a pain in the tukas. The upside is that the programmability is mighty thorough. There are plenty of sounds you can make from straight out driving guitar to totally wacked noise stuff to realistic Moog synth basses to decent acoustic guitar sounds. Oh, and you can program a wild-sounding electric violin. Pretty slick.
Quality
It's a Roland product, so the quality is the closest to perfect in the electronic instrument world. I use it nearly every day for hours, switching programs, using the pedals, etc., and not yet have I had a problem with it. It's been dropped, punted, and pulled around by the guitar cable. I'm tempted to go drive over it to see if it's as indestructible as a MemoryMoog....
Value
Another Roland trademark: Great product for a reasonable price. They're like Toyota in many ways. Sometimes the stuff can be a bit bland, but they do everything you need.
Manufacturer Support
I've not needed support for this unit, but I've had to deal with Roland many times in the past. They're just okay. The manuals, of course, stink. And they're not up online. And their website is a navigational nightmare. And getting warranty work can be a bit trying. But, in general, you usually don't need much of that stuff with a Roland. In other words, they don't have the personal service of a company like E-Mu, but they're also about a bajillion times larger.
The Wow Factor
It's totally cool.
Musical Style:
Rock, Experimental read less
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