At the 2012 NAMM Show, Roland and Fender announced the GC-1 GK-Ready Stratocaster guitar as one of the V-Guitar series, am electric guitar that can be directly connected to the GR-55 Guitar Synthesizer and VG-99 V-Guitar System.
Combining an authentic Stratocaster guitar and a special Roland divided pickup with a 13-pin output; the GK-Ready Stratocaster GC-1 can be used with both standard guitar equipment and Roland V-Guitar category products like the GR-55 and VG-99.
To harness this power, Roland developed the GK Divided Pickup, a special pickup that allows each of a guitar’s strings to be processed independently. Connecting a GK-Ready guitar to the GR Guitar Synthesizer or V-Guitar System opens up a world of options, including instant alternate tunings, transforming the guitar sound into another instrument entirely, and more.
To help identify and define these advanced products, Roland has created a new category called “V-Guitar” that will include all the 13-pin compatible products including VG-/VB-99, GR-55 and divided pickups, as well as the VG Stratocaster and GK-Ready Stratocaster.
The GK-Ready Stratocaster GC-1 takes Fender’s iconic and cherished guitar and builds in a Roland GK Divided Pickup and a 13-pin output for connecting to the Guitar Synthesizer and V-Guitar System. The instrument’s intuitive control panel also includes a knob and switches that allow the player to control various functions of 13-pin compatible devices directly from the guitar, as well as blend the guitar’s normal pickups with the GK-driven sound.
As a guitar, the GK-Ready Stratocaster GC-1 is a 100% authentic Fender Strat guitar. It features a solid contoured body, maple neck (with rosewood or maple fingerboard), three single-coil pickups with 5-way switching, a synchronised tremolo bridge, a 3-ply pickguard, and chrome hardware.
The GK-Ready Stratocaster GC-1 is available in a classic sunburst finish with a rosewood fingerboard, or a black finish with a maple fingerboard.
Distributed exclusively by Roland, the GK-Ready Stratocaster GC-1 will be available in March 2012. Details are available at the Roland site.
So this is just an exercise in nomenclature. These have been on the market for years, but now they “identify and define” them and it’s supposed to be big news? Am I missin’ something? I must be missing something.
Yeah, it’s like someone at roland felt the need to spend five really, really cheesy minutes hyping something they’ve had out for a while.
The older units had the older GK-2 pickup.
I use a GR-20 with a Les Paul Custom. Although having the pickup installed sound nice, I’ll stick with what I’ve got. And I’ll pass on the GR-55. Using the GR-20 and a Vox Tonelab EX, I don’t have to preprogram a bunch of sound combinations that I *might* use. That would just get too confusing. I just call up a synth sound and a guitar sound separately, and it’s just easier to deal with.