Roland AX-Synth

The Roland AX-Synth is a keytar that is manufactured by Roland Corporation, and was released in late August 2009. This modernized instrument builds on the features of its predecessor, the Roland AX-7. The most notable change is the addition of an internal synthesizer. A UV Black-colored "premium" model called "Black Sparkle" was released in September 2010.

Features

The AX-Synth extends the keyboard to 49 keys (from the AX-7's 45) and also adds dedicated V-Link functionality to control audio and video onstage. It runs on 8 AA batteries or an external power source. It has 264 built in tones, 128-voice polyphony, and a 3-character LED display. The AX-Synth also has all of the AX-7's stage performance functions such as the touchpad-like pitch bend ribbon, expression bar, sustain switch, and volume control knob, all on the upper neck of the instrument. As with the AX-7, there is also a proprietary "D-Beam" interface, made up of infrared sensors that detect nearby motion.

The AX-Synth also has a wide variety of sounds. Many are synthesised, however, there are many samples of real sounds, from brass to a 'Jazz Scat' sound; this varies depending on the velocity with which the note is played, as seen in "Funky Keytar Duo". The AX-Synth has been often criticized for the large size of the keytar (as seen here dwarfing a large framed Roland rep "Roland AX-SYNTH keytar DEMO") which was necessary to contain all of the sound generating hardware vs. the sleek stylings of previous Roland Keytars like the Roland AX-1 and Roland AX-7.

Roland

Roland (Frankish: Hruodland) (died 15 August 778) was a Frankish military leader under Charlemagne who became one of the principal figures in the literary cycle known as the Matter of France. The historical Roland was military governor of the Breton March, responsible for defending Francia's frontier against the Bretons. His only historical attestation is in Einhard's Vita Karoli Magni, which notes he was part of the Frankish rearguard killed by rebellious Basques in Iberia at the Battle of Roncevaux Pass.

The story of Roland's death at Roncevaux Pass was embellished in later medieval and Renaissance literature. He became the chief paladin of the emperor Charlemagne and a central figure in the legendary material surrounding him, collectively known as the Matter of France. The first and most famous of these epic treatments was the Old French Chanson de Roland of the eleventh century.

Two masterpieces of Italian Renaissance poetry, the Orlando innamorato and Orlando furioso, are even further detached from history than the earlier Chansons. Roland is poetically associated with his sword Durendal, his horse Veillantif, and his oliphant horn.

Borderlands (video game)

Borderlands is an action role-playing first-person shooter video game that was developed by Gearbox Software for PlayStation 3, Xbox 360, Microsoft Windows and Mac OS X. It is the first game in the Borderlands series. The game was released worldwide in October 2009, with the Mac OS X version of being released on December 3, 2010 by Feral Interactive.

A sequel, Borderlands 2, was released worldwide in September 2012.

Gameplay

Borderlands includes character-building elements found in role-playing games, leading Gearbox to call the game a "role-playing shooter". At the start of the game, players select one of four characters, each with a unique special skill and with proficiencies with certain weapons. The four characters are: Roland the Soldier, Mordecai the Hunter, Lilith the Siren, and Brick the Berserker. From then on, players take on missions assigned through non-player characters or from bounty boards, each typically rewarding the player with experience points, money, and sometimes a reward item. Players earn experience by killing both human and non-human foes and completing in-game challenges (such as getting a certain number of kills using a specific type of weapon). As they gain levels from experience growth, players can then allocate skill points into a skill tree that features three distinct specializations of the base character; for example, Mordecai can become specialized in sniping, gunslinging with revolvers, or using his pet Bloodwing to assist in kills and health boosting. Players can distribute points among any of the specializations, and can also spend a small amount of in-game money to redistribute their skill points.

Roland (train)

The Roland was an express train that ran in Germany. For part of its existence, it was also an international train. Introduced in 1939, suspended during World War II, and reintroduced in 1952, it was operated in Germany by the Deutsche Reichsbahn Gesellschaft (DRG), the Deutsche Bundesbahn (DB) and the Deutsche Bahn (DB), respectively.

When running internationally, the train was also operated by the Swiss Federal Railways (SBB-CFF-FFS); between 1969 and 1979 its operators included the Italian State Railways (FS).

The train was named after the statue of Roland that was erected in the market square (Rathausplatz) of Bremen, Germany, in 1404 and has since become a symbol of that city. The Roland depicted in the statue was a Frankish military leader under Charlemagne.

Over the years, the termini, route, classification and formation (consist) of the Roland varied significantly. However, in view of the train's name the route always included Bremen Hbf, in Bremen. When introduced in 1939, the Roland was a Fernschnellzug (FD). After its post-war revival in 1952, it ran as a Schnellzug (D). After about 1956, it was a first-class-only F-Zug.