Hello from Washington, England

[Rodney]

During the 1970's I was the happy owner of my new Baile accordion, bought from the Rae Mackintosh music store on George Street in Edinburgh. After, I've played several keyboard instruments and for the last 4 years have been learning Bb Clarinet. Recently, I found myself yearning to return to the accordion and only a little research showed me literally dozens of youtube videos and reviews praising the Roland fr-8x and today I decided, placing an order with gear4music for the single black fr-8x piano accordion they have in stock in the whole of Europe.

My new piano accordion is scheduled for delivery in about two weeks, so in the meantime I've joined this Accordionists community and am readying my pdf library of scores on my ipad pro, augmenting it on sheetmusic-free.com and on free-scores.com, as well as selling my clarinet. According to medical professionals, playing a musical music is good for the brain so this 77 year old is looking forward to playing, chatting with others and learning from them as well as the joy of discovering as much about the fr-8x as possible. Thanks for being here!

Rodney

 

[Dingo40]

Welcome Rodney!
Those Bailes were very nicely finished inside and out: better even than some contemporary Italian makes.

 

[Tom]

Welcome Rodney! I hope you love the fr8x. Plenty of people here will answer your questions if you have them.

 

[Rodney]

Welcome Rodney!
Those Bailes were very nicely finished inside and out: better even than some contemporary Italian makes.

Thank you Dingo40!
Although I never saw inside my Baile, I never had a problem with it and enjoyed learning with it. My teacher even persuaded me to learn a piece to play at a concert in Livingstone. He prepared me well as, in sppite of my nerves it went well but imagine my dismay when I was asked to play again in the second half and I had nothing prepared! I just about managed to get through Lara's Theme, but my rhythm was off and my accompanist struggled to keep with me, another lesson learned!

 

[Rodney]

Welcome Rodney! I hope you love the fr8x. Plenty of people here will answer your questions if you have them.

Thank you Tom! I think one of my first quests will be to discover how to import sound sets from Roland with only an ipad and fr-8x, i.e. no other computer. Life would be so dull if it was all easy!

 

[Pipemajor]

Hi Rodney and welcome.

I have an 8frxb and load tunes onto a usb memory stick, then plug it into my microsoft surface pro and copy them to Mobile Sheets which I use in conjunction with a bluetooth page turner.
I appreciate that this isn't an I-pad but I'm sure it would be similar.
There are probably other ways but this works for me.
You can download all the manuals from the Roland site to read up while you are waiting.

 

[Rosie C]

During the 1970's I was the happy owner of my new Baile accordion

By co-incidence, during the 1970s on Sunday mornings I would go with my father to the "Makro" cash and carry in Washington to stock up for the shop he ran.

Anyway, welcome to the forum!

 

[boxplayer4000]

I just about managed to get through Lara's Theme, but my rhythm was off and my accompanist struggled to keep with me, another lesson learned!

Welcome Rodney, good luck with your accordion.
I used 'Lara's Theme' for a modern/jazz waltz for my dancers. However the 2nd part has some awkward chords and it's probably a tune which is not easily 'busked' by an accompanying player without knowledge or music.

 

[Rodney]

Hi Rodney and welcome.

I have an 8frxb and load tunes onto a usb memory stick, then plug it into my microsoft surface pro and copy them to Mobile Sheets which I use in conjunction with a bluetooth page turner.
I appreciate that this isn't an I-pad but I'm sure it would be similar.
There are probably other ways but this works for me.
You can download all the manuals from the Roland site to read up while you are waiting.

Thanks Pipemajor!

With a handle like yours I can''t help wondering if you were a pipemajor in the forces.

I've downloaded all the manuals, there's a lot to read in them but I'll get around to that when my fr-8x arrives. In the meantime, I'm stripping out all the treble scores I created in Staffpad (not the staffpad files though) and using the original piano scores I purchased.

 

[Rodney]

By co-incidence, during the 1970s on Sunday mornings I would go with my father to the "Makro" cash and carry in Washington to stock up for the shop he ran.

Anyway, welcome to the forum!

Thanks Rosie! It's a small world isn't it?

 

[Rodney]

Welcome Rodney, good luck with your accordion.
I used 'Lara's Theme' for a modern/jazz waltz for my dancers. However the 2nd part has some awkward chords and it's probably a tune which is not easily 'busked' by an accompanying player without knowledge or music.

Thanks Boxplayer, I nearly fell into the embarrassing trap of asking about your handle, happily it came to me just in time!

 

[Valski]

Thank you Tom! I think one of my first quests will be to discover how to import sound sets from Roland with only an ipad and fr-8x, i.e. no other computer. Life would be so dull if it was all easy!

Welcome Rodney,

I use a Samsung galaxy tab 12.5 inches with an app called Mobile Sheets. Songbook also works with an IPad and then your tablet can display the sheet music and you can also copy backing tracks into file for each song. These apps are simple to use and inexpensive. You will however need to use some sort of amplification for the tablet because their internal speakers are tiny. Another method would be to copy backing tracks onto a USB key and then just play along without the need for external amplification.

Trying to create your own custom sound sets is most likely tedious and disappointing for most users and many owners of the Fr8x have purchased pre-made custom sets through Richard Noel which allows you to enjoy the instrument right from the start. You can also create your own custom sets through the Fr8x tool on your computer, however it's tedious and most likely you won't be as satisfied with the results.

In any case there are many members of this forum well versed in the Fr8x and feel free to ask questions.

 

[Rodney]

Welcome Rodney,

I use a Samsung galaxy tab 12.5 inches with an app called Mobile Sheets. Songbook also works with an IPad and then your tablet can display the sheet music and you can also copy backing tracks into file for each song. These apps are simple to use and inexpensive. You will however need to use some sort of amplification for the tablet because their internal speakers are tiny. Another method would be to copy backing tracks onto a USB key and then just play along without the need for external amplification.

Trying to create your own custom sound sets is most likely tedious and disappointing for most users and many owners of the Fr8x have purchased pre-made custom sets through Richard Noel which allows you to enjoy the instrument right from the start. You can also create your own custom sets through the Fr8x tool on your computer, however it's tedious and most likely you won't be as satisfied with the results.

In any case there are many members of this forum well versed in the Fr8x and feel free to ask questions.

Thanks so much Valski!

Sadly, neither my iphone or ipad pro can interface with an USB stick, or anything else that isn't the Apple Lightning connector. I'm current waiting for the release of the 2024 ipad pro, which forecasts predict will have a USB-c connector to replace the lightning connector ... fingers crossed!

I'm very interested in Richard Noel's sets, I viewed a number of his videos while researching which v-accordion to buy. Do you have a useful URL for his sets and what they contain? Finally, Do you have experience of his sets and consequent wisdom to impart please?

 

[John M]

Here's the link to Richard Noel:

Information for Roland Digital Accordionists

Sets, User Programs, Instruction for the Roland v-Accordions by Richard Noel

www.noelaccordion.com

For my 8X, I bought Richard Noel's UPG's. They are $150.00 and worth every penny. I believe there are 35 User Programs in that package. I think there are 2 User Programs that come with your new 8X. Your 8X will have memory space for 100 Banks of User Programs. Each Bank will have 14 User Programs selectable from each of the 14 register switches on the 8X. That's 1400 User Programs! I use many Banks for User Programs -- some as "scratch templates" to try out different tones/settings. Organization of your User Programs is important. I have Richard Noel UPG's loaded into Banks 5-40 (I'm not sure of the last bank, but I loaded them all and started with Bank 5. Another thing is to "back up" all the memory in your 8X. It is simple and is basically 2 steps - but very important! If I were you, one of the first things I would do, is to back up all of your 8X to a USB memory stick. You can always do a "Factory Rest" and get back to "square one", but I am more comfortable with having it on my USB stick, as a second back up.

If you are going to do very much with UPG's -- modifying existing Richard Noel UPG's (using them as a template) -- or any changes you want to make to the "Sound" of your 8X, you will definitely want to get the Roland PC Editor. It is powerful and it is free for download from the Roland site. You really don't need the Editor -- you can do everything directly on the 8X. However, it is much more difficult -- you have to "drill down" through many menus to accomplish a modification you want to do. Roland came out with the PC Editor in 2016. I don't believe there have been any changes since then and I believe it only works on a PC -- I'm not sure. If you don't have a PC, I would suggest getting a used/cheap one somewhere, so that you can have access to the Roland PC Editor. It works right "online" with your 8X using a USB cable from the 8X to your PC, so you can hear your changes immediately.

 

[Rodney]

Here's the link to Richard Noel:

[QUOTE] https://www.noelaccordion.com/roland.html [/QUOTE]

[QUOTE="John M, post: 120129, me...5 User Programs will provide, but I'm looking

 

[John M]

http://Thanks so much John! If I ca...5 User Programs will provide, but I'm looking

 

[John M]

http://Thanks so much John! If I ca...5 User Programs will provide, but I'm looking

I suppose Richard can send them to you on a USB. He sent the 35 UPG's as files to me in an E-mail attachment.

 

[Valski]

Thanks so much Valski!

Sadly, neither my iphone or ipad pro can interface with an USB stick, or anything else that isn't the Apple Lightning connector. I'm current waiting for the release of the 2024 ipad pro, which forecasts predict will have a USB-c connector to replace the lightning connector ... fingers crossed!

I'm very interested in Richard Noel's sets, I viewed a number of his videos while researching which v-accordion to buy. Do you have a useful URL for his sets and what they contain? Finally, Do you have experience of his sets and consequent wisdom to impart please?

Hi Rodney,
I looked at the ipad pro but it was far too expensive and my Samsung tablet has virtually the same size screen, more storage and is half the price. The tablet uses a micro SD If you prefer Apple products then I 'm sure that you can purchase adaptors memory card so it's very quick and easy to load data such as PDF and MP3 files.

I purchased the Roland Bk7m backing module so I can make my own backing tracks on a USB key and plug it in the Fr8x for backing tracks that sound good. Alternatively you can download commercially available tracks and also play them on your Fr8x. There are other backing modules that will work with your accordion however I don't have experience with them. Since the Fr8x uses USB interfaces it might make sense to invest in something that can work with USB.

In any case there are a number of very experienced people on this forum for you to consult with.

 

[Rodney]

I suppose Richard can send them to you on a USB. He sent the 35 UPG's as files to me in an E-mail attachment.

There's no rush John as I won't even be getting it for almost two weeks and I'd like too see if there are any similar suppliers that are in the UK. From all accounts, I've got a lot of reading to do and then relate what I read to what I can see and touch when my fr-8x arrives, it's lucky I'm retired! All the help and advice is really helpful thanks!

 

[Rodney]

Hi Rodney,
I looked at the ipad pro but it was far too expensive and my Samsung tablet has virtually the same size screen, more storage and is half the price. The tablet uses a micro SD If you prefer Apple products then I 'm sure that you can purchase adaptors memory card so it's very quick and easy to load data such as PDF and MP3 files.

I purchased the Roland Bk7m backing module so I can make my own backing tracks on a USB key and plug it in the Fr8x for backing tracks that sound good. Alternatively you can download commercially available tracks and also play them on your Fr8x. There are other backing modules that will work with your accordion however I don't have experience with them. Since the Fr8x uses USB interfaces it might make sense to invest in something that can work with USB.

In any case there are a number of very experienced people on this forum for you to consult with.

Hi again Valski!

I used to have Samsung phones and a tablet, but got really fed up with them when the system updates and support stopped far too soon. I know they need to sell more products to flourish, but sometimes the re-buy time is just too fast for my liking.

The backing module sounds interesting, does it need a PC to run it? Probably my course of action will be sets developed by others, I think maybe Roland have some older ones. I want to spend my take re-learning the accordion and making sweet music rather than get into software development.

It's so great to be able get advice from other menbers of the community.