Roland Overview of the RD-700, Units of Sound, Basic Organization of the RD-700, Tone, Part

Overview of the RD-700

Basic Organization of the RD-700

The RD-700 can be divided into two sections: a keyboard controller section and a sound generator section. The two sections are connected internally by means of MIDI.

fig.00-G1

Sound

Generator

Section

Play

Keyboard Controller Section

(controllers such as keyboard, pitch bend lever, etc.)

Keyboard Controller Section

This section includes the keyboard, the Pitch Bend/ Modulation Lever, the panel knobs, and any pedal connected to the rear panel. Actions such as pressing and releasing of keys on the keyboard, depressing a pedal, and so forth, are converted to MIDI messages and sent to the sound generator section, or to an external MIDI device.

Sound Generator Section

The sound generator section produces the sound. Here, MIDI messages received from the keyboard controller section or external MIDI device are converted to musical signals, which are then output as analog signals from the OUTPUT and PHONES jacks.

Units of Sound

When using the RD-700, you will notice that a variety of different categories come into play when working with sounds. What follows is a simple explanation of each sound category.

Tone

The individual sounds used when playing the RD-700 are referred to as “Tones.” The RD-700 provides 468 types of Tones. Tones are assigned to each part.

The Tones also include various groups of percussion instrument assembled into “Rhythm Sets.” Each key (note number) of a Rhythm Set will produce a different percussion instrument.

Part

A sound generator of this type which can control multiple sounds using one device is referred to as a multitimbral sound generator. The RD-700 contains a multitimbral sound generator capable of playing sixteen Tones simultaneously.

“Parts” are where Tones that are created when the RD-700 is used as a sound generator are assigned. Since different Tones can be assigned to each of the Parts and controlled individually, you can have multiple Tones play simultaneously (layer), divide the keyboard into separate ranges and have different Tones sound in the different parts (Split), and enjoy playing ensemble performances.

The sixteen Parts played by the RD-700’s internal sound generator are referred to as “Internal Parts.”

Local Parts and MIDI TX Parts

The RD-700 features three Parts (UPPER1, UPPER2, and LOWER) that you can use for freely controlling the Internal Parts with the RD-700’s buttons and keyboard. These three Parts that are used for controlling the Internal Parts are collectively known as the “Local Parts.” Three of the sixteen Internal Parts are assigned to the Local Parts for control (the RHYTHM Part is fixed at Part 10).

Furthermore, you can freely control external MIDI sound generators with the RD-700 in the same manner as with the Local Parts. You can likewise control the external MIDI sound generator with the three Parts (UPPER1, UPPER2, and LOWER), with this group of three Parts being referred to as the “MIDI TX (Transmit) Parts.” The external MIDI sound generator is assigned to these three Parts for control (the RHYTHM Part can also be partially set).

Overview of the RD-700

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