Roland LX-9, LX-6, and LX-5 Luxury Digital Pianos - Series Overview

Find your Roland LX-series digital piano at Kraft Music:
kraftmusic.com/collections/ro...
Adam Berzowski walks us through the Roland LX-series of luxury digital pianos in the Kraft Music Gallery.
00:26 - Intro
00:45 - Models and sizes
01:10 - Aesthetics and finish
01:45 - Key covers
02:25 - Piano Reality sound engine
03:15 - Key action
05:18 - Speaker system
05:55 - Inputs and outputs
07:19 - Control panel tour
09:17 - iPad and Roland Piano App
10:18 - Conclusion
Contact Adam directly at 414-858-4008 or [e-mail] if you have any questions or would like to place an order on your very own LX-9, LX-6, or LX-5.
We’re long-time fans of the Roland LX-series (LX for Luxury), and we’re excited to audition the newest members of the family, the LX5, LX6, and the top-of-the-line LX9. They rolled into the warehouse just a few days ago, and our video team hopped to the task of building each piano so we could get our eyes, ears and hands on these beauties.

[@borispradel1037]

I have the RD2000, although it's a category way below these models, it's a great instrument PH50 keybed just like the LX-5. Now with the German Concert expansion you get way more flexibility in modelled piano sounds. Having unlimitless poliphony is so reassuring, never worried about running out of notes.

[@mdezwart]

Thanks for making this video. But it's not very clear what the differences are with the LX 705, LX 706 and LX 709. Why not tell more about the new Piano Reality Modeling sound engine. In this video it looks like there are no new innovations, but I think there are. Please let us know more.

[@ivanm9265]

Nice review, thanks, how many of the sounds are modelled?

[@ivanm9265]

Still no response?

[@dr_bodling]

omg that part at 4:30 sounded amazing. Really inspiring. Was that with the LX-9? If so, would I expect the LX-5 line out to sound just as good?

[@kraftmusic]

Yes, Adam was playing the LX-9 in that section. All three LX-series instruments use the same sound engine, so the line output would sound the same. Thanks for watching!

[@mystic8260]

Great overview. How do these models compare to the LX 700 series? (LX 705, LX 706 and LX 708)

[@kraftmusic]

Great question, and one we will be covering in a future video (lots of calls for us to that)! The short answer is that the LX5, LX6, and LX9 are nearly identical in cabinet appearance compared to their respective predecessors, in addition to the key actions. The 5, 6, and 9 all share a brand new Smart Touch panel, which is a new way to navigate around the features of the piano; the speaker configuration is new in each model; and finally, the big news is the Piano Reality technology which as been borrowed from the larger Roland Grand Piano models (GP6 and GP9). Piano tones are now modeled, as are ambience and other aspects of the sound. The keys, while they are the same action, will feel differently and more expressive with Roland’s “high definition sensor detection.” And pedaling is also improved with the Piano Reality. Sorry to get in the weeds, but that pretty well sums it up.

[@joepfruman1111]

@@kraftmusicPiano tones on previous LX series and the FP90X are also modelled. What's the difference ? (apart from acoustic projection over the speaker system - which is not relevant when playing over headphones).

[@knives6683]

Still feel the 5 and 7 are woefully underpowered. I was just about to drop money on the Kawai CA701 so I'll wait and try the LX5/6 and see how I feel.

[@kraftmusic]

Oh, I wouldn’t say that at all. The LX-5 has ample power, and is super close in spec to everything else in that $3,000 to $4,000 price point. 4 speakers, and if you hadn’t played an LX-6 or the big one, the LX-9, prior, I think you would like it. The LX-6 is the surprising one…the new 4.1 sound system configuration with the equivalent of a subwoofer built-in, makes for an excellent sounding piano. Plenty of bass. It sounded great, and we auditioned it *after* spoiling ourselves with the monster LX-9.

[@RapEye]

beautiful instruments. How would you compare the LX6 sound with the sound of the GP6? the panel seems the same.

[@kraftmusic]

You are correct, the sound engine is identical so the output of the line outputs and headphone outs would be indistinguishable between LX-6 and GP-6. However, when played out loud using the built-in speakers there will be an audible difference between the instruments. Now, this is all subjective but on paper the LX-6 has slightly more powerful and larger speakers. That's not the whole story though, because the orientation of the speakers and the lid of the GP-6 baby grand has an impact on the sound. Thanks for watching, and please feel free to contact one of our sales advisors for additional questions. -Dave

[@segundacuenta726]

@@kraftmusic how about the actions? Is the Lx9 same as gp9? And LX6 the same as gp9 without haptic feedback? I thought Gp6 was not as good as GP9, perhahps then the LX6 is better than the GP6? Cheers

[@kraftmusic]

You’re following the actions pretty well…the LX-9, and the GP-9, both have Roland’s PHA-100 Hybrid Grand Keyboard action with the hybrid wood/molded keys with Ivory feel, along with escapement, long key pivot length, and haptic vibration. It is our understanding that the LX-6 and the GP-6 share that same action, but without the haptic vibration. So the feel and response of the LX-6 should be identical to that of the GP-6.

[@segundacuenta726]

@@kraftmusicThanks for the reply. I must have confused the GP6's action with its speakers. Since the GP6's speakers are not as good as the GP9 but the action then is practically the same (just lacking haptic vibration). In that case as a Midi Controller for the best expression possible the cheapest would be LX6 or GP6. However it would be very interesting to compare feeding the VSTs audio to the internal speakers of LX9 or GP9 vs dedicated studio monitors.The visual appeal of the GP series is undeniable. Good stuff.

[@rolexmarcelo3218]

I'm a bit curious why this wasn't launched at NAMM. Does roland often do this, ie release products immediately after namm?

[@kraftmusic]

It varies. We have definitely seen product launches trending away from strictly following the NAMM schedule. It seems like more manufacturer's are launching based on their own product lifecycles and timelines. Perhaps these models were not quite ready for the show this year... -Dave

[@igorcarvalhopadilhaandrade5886]

🥰🥰🥰🥰🥰

[@CreatiVastARTS]

oof... Didn't like that control panel flex when you were pushing the buttons

[@kraftmusic]

You know, we noticed that while filming but one thing to keep in mind is that these are not physical buttons, it's a touch panel and I think Adam was pressing a little harder than he needed to. Really just a light tap will do it. The build quality seems solid, not too concerned about that flex.

[@b10rn]

I can't believe that they did away with that little notch for the lid to fall into, so that you could cover the control panel. Stupid.

[@markfowlermusic]

the main benefit of modelling isn’t unlimited polyphony, which no one in the world cares about, nor is it decay of a note, it’s the overall playability. I struggled to get through this video due to the presenter being so cringey and being treated like an idiot or child throughout.

[@rolexmarcelo3218]

I liked that aspect of the video. It can draw attention from children and encourage them to beg their parents to get roland. The adults are expected to be more capable of adjusting.

[@kraftmusic]

Thanks for the feedback. We are genuinely excited about the new pianos! That said, All Playing No Talking videos coming shortly...

[@andreavitale2845]

What do you mean by overall playability. Can you give an example comparing the highest sampling technology Yamaha uses?

[@markfowlermusic]

@@andreavitale2845 highest Yamaha sampling is just absolutely nothing compared to pianoteq or a good vst like garritan cfx

[@andreavitale2845]

@@markfowlermusic But why?