Utterly Confused about Fantom.

You really just need to sit down and start playing with things to see what happens. Worst comes to worst, restore from a backup if things get out of hand.

I would start with the FAQ on this website. After that, perhaps Artemio's Tweakbook will help you with patch editing and arppegiator ideas. Do you need to use MIDI right away? If you are just using your Fantom X6 alone, I would ignore it for now. One thing at a time.

Performances are used for a variety of reasons, but due to their added complexity, I would concentrate on the FAQ and Artemio's Tweakbook for a start. If you are functioning with your band OK and aren't needing to change anything there yet, I wouldn't worry about Performances just yet either.

Best to learn the Fantom in small doses.

Hi Djandrey_m!

A good read and a valuable resource! Right-click and save target as -

http://www.rolandus.com/uploads/CMS/Downloads/322/FXWS01.pdf
http://www.rolandus.com/uploads/CMS/Downloads/323/FXWS02.pdf
http://www.rolandus.com/uploads/CMS/Downloads/324/FXWS03.pdf
http://www.rolandus.com/uploads/CMS/Downloads/325/FXWS04.pdf
http://www.rolandus.com/uploads/CMS/Downloads/326/FXWS05.pdf
http://www.rolandus.com/uploads/CMS/Downloads/363/FXWS06.pdf
http://www.rolandus.com/uploads/CMS/Downloads/327/FXWS07.pdf
http://www.rolandus.com/uploads/CMS/Downloads/328/FXWS08.pdf
http://www.rolandus.com/uploads/CMS/Downloads/329/FXWS09.pdf
http://www.rolandus.com/uploads/CMS/Downloads/330/FXWS10.pdf
http://www.rolandus.com/uploads/CMS/Downloads/331/FXWS11.pdf

Cheers!
PiaKnowGuy

http://www.piaknow.com

With all due respect ... but if you're struggling to comprehend the Juno-D (a relatively simple "synthesizer") ... why on Earth did you buy an instrument/workstation 20x more complicated and feature-rich?

I hate to discourage you, but you may be in over your head. (Or just stay in patch mode ... )

My advice is to master the Juno-D first ... it will be easier, and since it's a Roland, your knowledge will carry over to the X ...

I've had mines almost two years, and I really feel like I'm just starting to get it completely ... and that represents hundreds and hundreds of hours spent in front of it practicing and getting to know it, using and compose with its features ...

the Fantom X is a silver beast ... like I said ... better tame your black kitty first (Juno-D) ...

Hi,

For live use I made a video how I do it.
You can watch it here:

http://www.picaja.be/video/fx_tut01.avi

It's 100 Mb...

Now for the "arp thing" to sync with the band. It's not that difficult.
It's called "tap tempo". As the band is playing press "shift+tempo" and press the tap button several times in sync with the beat of the song you are playing.

A better solution is to buy a boss fs5u so you can control the tap tempo with your foot.
http://www.picaja.be/images/fs_5u.jpg

Hi DJ,

Don't listen to Diametro I'm kinda in the same boat as you playing catch-up with my X8. The good thing about learning about the Fantom I find is that having mastered (and I use the term most loosely!) one area, it leads to the question, "Wouldn't it be great if it could..." followed by, "Ah, yes, it can."

The links above to the Fantom X Workbooks are good. I haven't bought the Tweakbook yet as I'm not sure what's in it so can't comment.

Another helpful resource is the instructional DVD sold by Roland. It's done by an Aus/Kiwi and costs around 12 pounds. It's over 2 hours long and he actually shows you what buttons to press, etc. It helped me.

All the best

jj

I own the FS, but the following suggestion will work for any Fantom.

Read the forum daily, or whatever, and print out answers to questions. Do a search of the forum and print out items that are useful.

I do this and have a folder full of answers. I use this folder more often than I do the manual (printed and electronic) or a video.

Dale

Hi djandrey_m,

My advice would be to take it one step at a time. Rather than worrying about all the things the Fantom can do, concentrate on what you want it to do for the songs you play.

If you're a pianist, can you play the arpeggios manually to keep them in time? I've found that easier than trying to get a band to stay at a rock steady tempo.

Ignore Patch Edit for now. You must have liked the sounds already there to buy the Fantom. Later, you can start to tweak the sounds to make them closer to what you really want, but do that later.

Performances are groups of up to 16 Patches that can be played together or split across the keyboard. People seem to use them in different ways. By and large, I stick to Patches, but for songs when I need two different sounds I have the split set up as a Performance. This lets me have Organ in the left hand and synth in the right, for example, so I can play both at the same time.

The Workshop manuals that PiaKnow Guy linked to are well worth a look.

Hope this helps a bit. Keep asking stuff here. There seem to be lots of folks who know lots about the Fantom & are willing to share.

Andy

Thank you thank you! You just said everything about where I am in figuring out my X6, too. Well, then there are at least two of us.

With mine, I do the 'peek and poke' approach until I am utterly stymied, then I look it up in the manual.

Nice to hear from you. I think that its pretty normal, and take it one step at a time, like he said.

-Russell

Bumpy,

My goal wasn't to discourage you ... but one of the reasons the Fantom X is so complicated is because there are many sections working as one (sound engine, sequencer, sampler, effects, audio tracks, RPS, controllers, etc.) ... Each section is fairly full-featured, and most workstations do not attempt to go as far as the Fantom X in terms of sound editing and audio production ...

... the Juno-D is MUCH LESS complicated ... I think you'd make greater and faster progress learning on the D (and get less discouraged) ... once you've conquered that ... then go Fantom X ... it's like the pot of gold at the end of rainbow ...

Hi djandrey_m

Welcome.

First,
I certainly found advice similar to that contained in previous replies very helpful, so I recommend it to you.

Second
I want to invite you to be kind to yourself, rather than beating yourself up for not being able to climb Everest in one giant leap.

Third
Are you sure that it's actually Everest you want to climb rather than some other peak?

Fourth
If so, how about taking it a bit at a time, and admiring the view on the way?

Enjoy.

you might try a DVD:
http://search.ebay.com/fantom-dvd

sometimes seeing helps a lot.

i just got a Juno G and i sometimes feel like i'm in way over my head... but i know that perseverance and fooling around and enjoying the view (nice one, drh!) will pay off soon enough, albeit in increments. some day, something big is gonna click, and i'll have gotten it mastered.

and i don't want to have given up in disgust the day before that would've happened and sell it for the $300 that i'd be fortunate to get for it by that distant time! talk about fantom pain.

good luck and have fun!

Another thing ... when I first got my Fantom X, I wasn't using the sequencing/audio tracks to make songs ... I was playing in Performance Mode (basically focusing on splits/layers) and re-sampling on the Fantom, then sending the audio into Cubase ... much easier that way (if you already know a DAW) and you'll spend more time using the Fantom in joy instad of frustration ...

later, when I felt I understood the Fantom better, I tried moving to all-Fantom productions ...

Thanks for all the replies. Usefull stuff in those links a couple messages earlier.

One question about tap tempo: i still find it hard to sync with the band:

When I match the tempo as close as I can, then start an arpeggio, the arpeggio stays right on for about 10 sec. Then either the band unnoticeably strays away from the tempo, or its me (probably because I didnt tap it accurately enough).

Any solutions for that?

Swap your band for robots?

Joking aside, those minute fluctuations in tempo will always occur when humans play together. That's why I suggested playing the arpeggios manually.

Enjoy the view ;o)