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Roland BK-5  Roland BK-5
61-key Arranger Keyboard with 128-note Polyphony, 1172 Voices, Effects, and Onboard Stereo Speakers

Retail Price: $1,199.00
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Sale Price: $999.00

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Roland Prelude (No Longer Available)

Item ID: Prelude

61-key Portable Keyboard with Velocity-sensitive Keys, 1,000+ Sounds, 80+ Effects, USB Computer Connection, USB Memory Stick Song Player, Built-in Speakers, D Beam Controller, and Center Cancel Karaoke-style Feature

Sorry, the Roland Prelude is no longer available. We've left this page up for reference only. Check out the great alternatives on this page or call toll-free (800) 222-4700 to speak with a Sweetwater Sales Engineer about similar products.

From Our Research Team:

Roland's Top-of-the-line Portable Keyboard!

Roland's Prelude packs in hundreds of high-quality sounds from Roland's top sound modules and a built-in speaker system - all in an ultra-portable keyboard, at an ultra-affordable price. Representing the next generation of Roland's portable keyboards, the Prelude also offers features you wouldn't expect at this great price, including a multi-format song player that plays songs - MP3, WAV, AIFF, and SMF - directly from your USB stick, making it easy to practice along and learn pieces. All that - plus a D BEAM performance controller - make the Roland Prelude an excellent value.

Roland Prelude 61-key Portable Keyboard at a Glance:
  • More than 1,000 instrument sounds and more than 80 effects
  • Connects to your computer via USB for easy MIDI recording
  • Onboard speaker system is ready for performance
  • Plays back music from a USB flash drive
  • "Center Cancel" allows for karaoke-style fun
  • D Beam Controller for expressive performances

More than 1,000 instrument sounds and more than 80 effects
The Roland Prelude portable keyboard is loaded with more than 1,000 top instrument sounds - many taken from Roland's very best sound modules. From world sounds to percussion instruments to your classic piano sounds and orchestral sounds, you'll find it in the Prelude - it's a perfect tool for getting creative, with nearly every instrument imaginable.

Connects to your computer via USB for easy MIDI recording
Thanks to the Roland Prelude's USB computer connection, you can connect it to your Mac or PC computer with just one cable, then be on your way to performing your favorite software instruments via MIDI. You can also use it alongside music notation software or with an educational software program, to develop your keyboard skills.

Onboard speaker system is ready for performance
With the Roland Prelude, you can just turn it on and instantly make music - it features an excellent 22-watt speaker system for practicing and performing. If you wish, you can also use its two output connectors to feed into a bigger sound system. You can also take advantage of its dual headphone outputs to practice silently - alone or with a friend.

Plays back music from a USB flash drive
Use the Roland Prelude as a convenient practice tool. Just load up your USB flash drive with your favorite songs - any MP3, WAV, AIFF, or SMF file - and you can play them back through the Prelude's speakers. Work on developing your ear by trying to play along with them - or come up with your own creative piano part over a song that doesn't have piano already. If you don't want to use the USB connector, you can still use the Prelude's 130 onboard styles to play along with and jam your ideas over the top of them.

"Center Cancel" allows for karaoke-style fun
The Prelude's handy "Center Cancel" feature lets you quiet the main vocal part in songs you have connected to it via USB. It's fun for karaoke-style parties, as well as singing along with recorded tracks, then working on singing as you play along with recorded tracks.

D Beam Controller for expressive performances
Wave your hand over the Roland Prelude's invisible D Beam controller, and you'll manipulate your sounds in wild ways. It's a fun way to transform your performances into interactive, expressive pieces - giving you a unique and exciting sound.

Roland Prelude 61-key Portable Keyboard Features:
  • 61 Keys (velocity sensitive)
  • Maximum Polyphony: 128 voices
  • Onboard sounds: More than 1,000
  • Effects: 78 multi-effects, 5 reverb types, 3 chorus types
  • Plays MP3, WAV, and AIFF files from a USB memory stick
  • 22W (2x11) stereo speaker system
  • D BEAM and Pitch Bend/Modulation controller
  • 240 x 64 dots graphic LCD display
  • Connectors: Output Jacks (L/Mono, R), Ext Input, 2 Headphones, MIDI I/O, Hold Pedal, Control Pedal
  • USB computer connection
  • 41-1/8" W x 12-1/2" D x 4-13/16" H
  • 17 lbs. 4 oz.

The Roland Prelude represents a significant value in a portable digital keyboard!

Prelude Image Gallery

Specification Detail
Manufacturer Part Number PRELUDE

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Reviews

Roland Prelude version 2...a winner

by Fran Carango from Levittown, Pa . USA
October 13, 2009
Music Background: Pro Musician
My first impressions of the Roland Prelude Version 2..

The board instantly impressed me...and I have had very recent higher priced keyboards to compare..

Soundwise..it se... read more [+]ems to be the same engine as the Juno Stage...Very good sounds..many outstanding..

Both the G70 and the E80, seem to sound better, most likely not as compressed, or at least more dynamic..

But, without a side by side comparison...the Preludes has the goods..

The MP3 player is a BIG improvement over the Juno Stage, E80 Version 2, and I believe the GW8....why?

It took over 4 minutes for the Juno Stage to scan the MP3's (about 700 files)..to be ready to play..

The E80 just under 4 minutes...The Prelude version 2...does a quick (about a second) read of the thumb drive, and apparently reads each file
just before play...just a bit sluggish to start..maybe less than a second..but seems like the better way to do things..

Version2 also allows the reading of lyrics (they must reside in the internal memory).

The ram must be pretty large...I have about 200 sequences and some styles in the internal memory, and it is not full..

My Prelude is the Latin version,and it has some great styles, and one touch settings to use with the styles..

Names of the styles I have never heard of..but I can recall songs that work well with them...no matter what the name says.

There are some great pianos on board (more sounds than on the Juno Stage)..And some of the best electric pianos found anywhere..

The surprise in the sound department are the sounds (tones) found in the "world" and "special" banks..
Many are from the SRX boards...As an example the organs and brass are better than most other boards I have heard..considerably better than the E50/60..

There are 1,193 tones and the additional "world and special" banks bring the count to 1,533...

The external input is great..a very hot input to handle low volume sources..

There are good volume controls to mix the real time sound, and song, MP3, Wave etc levels..along with the styles..

There is a good selection of effects including insert effects for styles, song, and realtime parts..

The addition of keyboard parts over and above the 16 parts that the sequencer uses is super..
.I hated the Juno Stage when I played sequences the "played" part had to use one of the 16 parts.....The Prelude is 16, plus 2 keyboard parts..

The version2 "make up" tools make the instrument great...both song and style edits in real time..
Not as simple to use as the G and E series, but useable..

All edits can be saved in play list (songs)..and user styles..

I have conversions of Korg styles (used with my E80 and G70)..and they play perfectly in the Prelude..

The Player can read 999 total and as many play list as you need..You can move the songs around, location selections within the playlist.
The Playlist editor works great too..you can rename titles , and spell to conform to 16 letters for SMF's and 32 letters for MP3's..

You can search for the next song (seq or wav/MP3) while a song or style is playing.

a single button for stop/start works great..

Changing the playlist is fast (less than a second)..compared to the E80 ( about 15 seconds)..

I was surpised how I was able to save all the edits as playlist changes on the USB drive..or the internal memory songs (where lyric songs need to be)..

The key feel is better than the JunoG, but not as good as the Juno Stage..I like the feel more than the E50, but not as much as the E60 and E80..

The speakers at 11 watts a side..are loud...much louder than the PSR (Yamaha) line, and louder than the Korg speaker models too..

They handle the full volume with out breaking up, but I would use some reserve and not push to the limit..

The MP3/seq player has additional -12/+12 volume control..and is very loud ..too loud for monitoring from the on board speakers..

The whole package comes in at 17 pounds 4 ounces..

The Roland Prelude with version 2 update..is a BIG TIME winner.. close [-]
See Also: Digital Keyboards , Roland , Roland Portable / Arranger Keyboards

Roland Prelude

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