Roland has released a Minions-themed version of its GO:KEYS 3 keyboard, featuring yellow and blue branding plus 32 sound variations based on the movie characters' voices, including Bob, Kevin and Stuart. Otherwise it's a standard GO:KEYS 3 with 61 keys, over 1,000 sounds via Roland's ZEN-Core engine, battery power, and Roland Cloud Connect support. The Minions edition costs $450, about $65 more than the standard $385 model.
engadget.com
· 2026-09-23
A retro gaming audio enthusiast recorded 46 classic MS-DOS game soundtracks across seven different General MIDI sound modules and their software emulations, including the Roland SC-55 and Yamaha MU80, producing 322 lossless audio samples for direct comparison. The author also released the underlying MIDI and REAPER project files so others can reproduce or extend the tests themselves.
blog.johnnovak.net
· 2026-09-15
Arthur Ashe Stadium, home of the US Open, has developed a reputation as the loudest Grand Slam venue, with fans talking, moving and cheering throughout points rather than observing the hushed decorum typical of Wimbledon or Roland Garros. Contributing factors include the arena's party-like atmosphere, popular concessions like the Honey Deuce cocktail, and a younger, more casual crowd that treats matches as social events. Tournament organizers and players are now grappling with whether to preserve this energetic vibe or push for stricter etiquette enforcement.
fastcompany.com
· 2026-09-10
Audio software maker Autodafe has launched Vintage Emulator Studio (VES), a free plugin that uses cores from the open-source MAME emulator to recreate 44 classic drum machines and synthesizers at the component level. The lineup includes famous units like the Akai MPC3000, LinnDrum, Oberheim DMX, and Roland TR-707, complete with skeuomorphic interfaces mimicking the original hardware panels.
tomshardware.com
· 2026-09-08
Roland has released Melody Flip, a digital audio workstation plug-in that uses generative AI to create musical building blocks rather than finished songs. The tool draws from roughly 250 genre-based 'Palettes' to generate melodies, chord progressions, basslines, or drum patterns, either from scratch or based on a reference track fed in by the user. Outputs come as simple MIDI loops with basic instrument sounds, meant to be exported into a DAW and refined with other synths.
theverge.com
· 2026-09-04
Roland has launched the FP-40 digital piano, notable for including built-in Wi-Fi rather than the more common Bluetooth connection found on rival instruments. The piano pairs with a new companion app called Piano Sphere, which delivers real-time feedback, song libraries, and courses, while the piano itself logs practice history and flags when a player is struggling. Roland also equipped the instrument with its Piano Reality Sound Engine and weighted, triple-sensor hammer-action keys aimed at mimicking acoustic piano feel.
engadget.com
· 2026-09-01
GoKawiil