The first thing you should know about the Roland VB-99 V-Bass System is that it represents the extreme opposite view. The VB-99 is a souped-up modeling system that allows a player to bring along dozens of bass guitars— albeit virtually—including some with altered tunings, mixed string sets, and unusual pickup placement. Plus, there are synths, uprights, electric guitars, and synthy brass, organ, and string sounds. Paradoxically, while the surprisingly satisfying experience of having an armada of bass sounds at your literal fingertips makes a good case for the multi-instrument approach, you’re still using a single trusty instrument, provided that it’s one equipped with a divided pickup like the Roland GK-3B.
Most modeling devices capture effects and amps, but not instruments, and there are a few modeling instruments that cop the vibe of a variety of axes, but not effects and amps. The VB-99 goes for the trifecta in duplicate, with two independent stereo chains for layering, blending, or dynamics-based sound switching. That’s the second thing you need to know, but the third thing is that modeling is just the beginning of the VB’s list of distinctive charms. There’s the bass-to-MIDI function, which lets you use your GK-equipped bass to play external synth modules or soft synths on your computer. There’s its functionality as a USB audio interface. And there’s its unusual RIBBON and D-BEAM controllers, previously the sole purview of that geeky synth guy in your band.
After spending several weeks with the VB- 99, I can confidently say that it is absolutely the most advanced bass processor ever created. It simply does things that nothing else can.That said, a system like the VB-99 is a significant investment, more than just of hard-won gig money. It’s a commitment to a whole new way of getting sounds that involves modestly modifying your axe, getting to know a fairly complex product, and conceiving of how you’ll use it in your music.
THE FIRST THING TO CONSIDER IS THE VB-99’s form factor: how you would work with it physically. The console style presentation makes it well suited for desktop or amptop, with the all controls easily accessible and the 13-pin input jack conveniently positioned at the front of the top panel. To really work the VB into your live setup, you’ll likely want one of the optional accessories—the stand, rack adapter, or foot controller, and possibly the carrying bag—so factor that into your cost consideration. The big display is easy to read and navigate, but 400 presets can seem overwhelming. Thankfully you can easily assign your go-to sounds to the five buttons along the front edge, and there’s an option to limit the range of patches that you scroll through.
I grew to love the VB’s two independent blendable channels. It’s an innovative arrangement that inspires quickly constructed sonic combinations both curious and utilitarian. There’s an A button and a B button for each of the key sonic components—COSM BASS, POLY FX, FX, and COSM AMP—and pushing one enables or mutes that portion of the signal chain, while a second button mash accesses settings. The BALANCE knob mixes the A and B sounds, but you can also have your playing dynamics control the shift between A and B. That means you can kick in an overdrive sound—or an octave, synth, or any combination—just by digging in harder. How cool is that? The bright green BASS DIRECT button makes it easy to blend in your instrument’s natural sound whenever you want, which can be helpful with overdrives, certain synths, and other effects that might benefit from foundational bottom.
Sonically, the VB-99 certainly has something for everyone, human or alien. Sure, there are loads of trippy synth sounds with deliciously glitch-free tracking and impressive polyphony for wild double-stops and chords. But the real measure of a modeling gadget’s worth is in the meat-and-potatoes sounds. The Fender style instruments on the VB-99 sounded as round and beefy as they should, the Music Man offered chesty growl and top-end snap, and a handful of preset patches based around the RICK model served up cutting prog-rock snarl. It really felt like I had a selection of basses at hand. All of the bass models warmed with a switch to FLAT WOUND or sweetly thumpy BLACK NYLON strings, part of the unique and exceptionally groovy category of POLY FX, which govern string-specific sounds. POLY FX can get weird, but in a good way. You can mix string types, set separate EQ settings for each string, or put an octave effect on certain strings only. Option overkill? Maybe. Fun as heck? You bet, and it’s not hard to conceive of practical musical applications for such setups.
The arsenal of regular effects is deep and extensive. Everything I encountered sounded rich and realistic, from Mu-Tron-type autowahs to grinding overdrives and lush stereo choruses and tremolos. The amp offerings sounded good too; they aren’t as extensive as I’ve seen on other modeling devices, but I appreciated the inclusion of a couple of guitar amps. Everything is deeply editable, and parameters are assignable to a variety of controls, from the six function knobs below the display to the GK controller’s dial and switches.
I was less impressed with the richness and believability of the upright sounds, and some of the synths could use a slight cheese reduction. But if you’re not finding the sounds you want built in to the VB, you can always control sounds elsewhere via MIDI. Our guitar-playing friends—heck, even our accordion-playing ene- mies—have had MIDI access for years, but there haven’t been many products that convert the low frequencies of bass to MIDI successfully. Roland nailed it a few years ago when it paired its GR-20 guitar synthesizer with a GK-3B, and they’ve done it again with the VB-99. A MIDI cable from the back of the VB to an old hardware synth yielded nearly flawless tracking, and once we zeroed out the latency buffer in Propellerheads Reason 4, the VB’s bass-to-MIDI function did a pretty good job handling the synths, samplers, loop players, and drum machines in that program, both with a MIDIto- USB adapter and a USB cable by itself. This can be ridiculously fun, or just ridiculous: At one point I was controlling a different Reason device with each string, playing alto sax on the G string, piano on the A, and orchestra strings on the E, with specific notes on the D string triggering certain samples. In Apple Garage- Band, I recorded bass from the VB at the same time I played and tracked one of the program’s pianos. Meanwhile, I monitored everything through the VB-99, which worked so well as a computer audio interface, that I wished it had a XLR mic input jack.
In fact, much of my time with the VB-99— at rehearsals, during home recording, and just experimenting—was spent wearing a goofy gap-toothed grin. Yes, the bass and effect sounds were rich and useful, with filters and synths galore slopping on the hot fudge funk. But then there’s the distinct tone I got from pairing a slow-swelling string sound with a Jazz Bass’s snappy attack, and the unusual VARI bass model, which let me move the pickups to improbable places for particular harmonic sensitivities. The possibilities are plentiful.
BUT WAIT, THERE’S MORE
The D-BEAM is one of two wild controllers that Roland has deployed on its keyboards for years. Pass your hand or headstock through the invisible light beams, and the D-BEAM will dive-bomb the pitch, apply a sudden filter glorp, hold a note, or undertake some other assignable sonic surprise. The RIBBON CONTROLLER does the same things with a finger slide up and down a fourinch trough at the right-hand side of the console. I found this much less useful, as my fingers are usually occupied when I’m playing bass, and I couldn’t conceive of a comfortable way to employ any other appendage.
There are some exceptionally thoughtful things about getting around the VB-99, like the ability to save favorite settings and apply them within any patch. The deep editing and extensive customization possibilities can be confounding, too, as it’s not always easy to find what you’re looking for. The manual is dense and often unhelpful, and while the included editor/librarian software helps by letting you edit on your computer, it’s not exactly a cakewalk either. There were things I knew could be done but couldn’t figure out—like assigning parameters to the numbered function knobs, which, when touched almost always respond with PARAMETER NOT ASSIGNED. I finally found those settings on the last of nine CONTROL ASSIGN pages. I imagine Roland could make that easier in a software update, and maybe even preassign useful parameters to those six function knobs. I’d like to be able to use them to tweak effects, amp settings, or the tone knob of a modeled bass without having to dive deep into menus or spending time routing assignments.
The Roland VB-99 can do more than any bass gadget we’ve seen. You might conclude that that means it does too much for you, but I urge you to give it a try. Considering it’s sonic potential, MIDI implementation, audio interface ability, and delightfully deranged controllers, you’ll get plenty of boom for your bread. And you’ll have a ton of fun.
ROLAND VB-99 V-BASS SYSTEM
List $1,549; $1,799 with GK-3B divided pickup
Street $1,295 $1,395 with GK-3B divided pickup
Pros Extensive sound possibilities, intuitive setup, bass-to-MIDI, and unique controllers
Cons Editing and customizing can get complicated; optional accessories are likely a necessity
Bottom Line An innovative bass processor of unprecedented power.
ABOUT THE DIVIDED PICKUP
Although you can use the VB-99’s effect and amp models with regular bass pickups and a q" instrument cable, you’ll need a divided pickup for most of the VB-99’s coolest features, including all the bass models, synths, alternate tunings, bass-to-MIDI applications, and string-specific settings. A divided pickup sends a separate signal out for each string for independent processing. An elegant solution is a built-in divided pickup, like a piezo wired to a 13-pin jack as on certain Godin and Brian Moore instruments, but Roland’s magnetic GK-3B works very well and can be installed on most 4-, 5-, and 6-string basses in about 20 minutes. There are two parts to the GK system: The pickup itself, and the controller, which includes the 13-pin jack, a q" input for blending in your bass’s conventional signal, and a few controls.
The GK-3B mounting method involves less sticky stuff than its predecessor, the GK-2B, which I used during my October ’02 review of the Roland V-Bass. Instead of mounting the controller with two-sided tape, the GK-3B comes with a bulky but efficient metal bracket, to which you screw the controller prior to clamping it onto your bass. There was no trouble finding a spot for it on a Lakland Darryl Jones Signature 4-string, a J-style bass with a particularly petite body, but a couple of 6-strings posed more of a challenge. We couldn’t find a good position on an Ibanez SR506; the controller would have either covered up the Strat-style jack or obstructed my plucking arm. On a Spector Legend 6 there was just enough real estate to squeeze it between the bridge and knobs, though it dangled off the back a bit.
Unless you opt to screw the pickup itself into the top of your bass, sticky stuff is still required. Installing it (which should happen after you decide where to place the controller but before you mount it) first involves a simple adjustment to make sure it’s set up for your instrument’s string spacing—after all, a divided pickup is all about reading each string’s vibration discretely. Next you find a snug fit close to the bridge, then build up enough of the included spacers to raise the sensors to just the right distance from the strings per the included measurement tool. This was a little tricky on the Spector, which has a slight arch to the top, but the pickup worked just fine. On the Lakland, the pickup was a little too close under the G string, which played hotter than the others. No problem though: On the VB-99 I simply saved a “LAKLANDJ” system setting that included a G-string volume adjustment for perfectly even response.
The VB-99 also worked fine with piezo-pickup equipped Godin A4 and A5 basses, which have built-in 13-pin jacks along side the standard instrument output. The signal was hotter and occasionally less stable than with the GK’s, and more of these instruments’ semi-hollow flavor seemed to come through even when the BASS DIRECT was off. With any of these pickups, it’s a good idea to remove your phone from your hip pocket, as all were prone to picking up cellphone interference, which can lead to surprise notes ringing forth, especially with certain sensitive synth sounds.
TECH SPECS
Power DC 9V (Roland PSB-1U AC adapter included)
Input impedance 2.2MΩ
Digital conversion 24-bit, 44.1kHz sampling frequency
Jacks 13-pin GK IN; q" BASS INPUT and OUTPUT; left and right XLR SUB OUT; left/mono and right q" MAIN OUT; q" PHONES; RCA S/PDIF DIGITAL OUT; q" EXP PEDAL and CTL 3,4; USB; CAT5 Ethernet-style RRC2 connector for FC-300 foot controller, MIDI IN/OUT connectors
Controls PATCH/VALUE jog wheel with CATEGORY button; OUTPUT LEVEL; six function knobs and function buttons (F1–F6); V-BASS LEVEL; five DIRECT PATCH buttons; two CONTROL buttons; BASS DIRECT A and B; COSM BASS A and B; POLY FX A and B; FX A and B; COSM AMP A and B; MIXER A and B; DELAY/REVERB; DYNAMIC; CHAIN; CONTROL ASSIGN; NAME/KEY/BPM; D-BEAM with PITCH, FILTER, and ASSIGNABLE buttons; RIBBON CONTROLLER with PITCH, FILTER, and ASSIGNABLE buttons; EXIT; WRITE; PAGE left and right; BASS TO MIDI; SYSTEM; GLOBAL; TUNER; V-LINK
Options GK-3B Divided Pickup for Bass ($229), FC-300 foot controller ($399), PDS- 10 stand ($179 list), RAD-99 rack adapter ($199), CB-VG9 carrying bag ($149), EV-5 expression pedal ($99), BOSS FS-5U footswitch ($39.50), GKC-10 30-foot 13-pin cable ($69)
Display 240x64 backlit LCD
Dimensions 15r" x 8y" x 3h"
Weight 4.7 lbs
Number of patches 400 (200 preset and 200 user)
Warranty One year parts, 90 days labor
Made in Japan