The FP-90X is the follow-up to the Roland FP90 and the flagship portable piano of Roland’s beloved FPX series and is without question one of the most powerful and capable all-in-one portable digital pianos currently on the market.
Continuing our series on the top FAQ for popular pianos, we ran the Google analytics to find out the top 10 Roland FP-90X FAQ
Whether you’re new to exploring the FP-90X or deciding whether or not to pull the trigger, our hope is that having these questions answered all in one place will be helpful. Check out our full digital piano review of the FP-90X for a more in-depth look at the overall performance of the FP-90X.
Let’s get started!
Top 10 Roland FP-90X FAQ
FAQ #1: How Much Does the FP-90X Cost?
Up first in our Roland FP-90X FAQ – the price.
In Canada, The FP-90X currently runs for $3,499.99 for the slab on its own (includes DP-10 damper pedal), and up to just under $4,200 if adding the KSC-90 wooden designer keyboard stand and KPD-90 3-pedal board. The floating 3-pedal unit RPU-3 is an option as well, as is the more portable KS-20X stand.
In the United States, you can currently find the FP-90X for around $2,500 for the slab, or around $3,200 for the entire bundle.
This does make the FP-90X more expensive than its main competitors, namely the Kawai ES-920 and Yamaha P-515, but the FP-90X justifies its heftier price tag with its more advanced key action, piano sound engine and speaker system (more on this under question 2).
FAQ #2: Is the FP-90X Worth the Money?
This is a great question because there are a number of very capable slab digital pianos that cost a lot less than the FP-90X, such as the Kawai ES-920 and Yamaha P-515 mentioned above, as well as Roland’s own FP-60X is quite a bit less. Here’s exactly why for some people, the FP-90X is absolutely worth the extra money.
First of all, Roland’s PHA50 action has a longer pivot length than the actions in the instruments mentioned above meaning it offers a deeper sense of control, plus it also offers a wood/plastic hybrid key construction for durability, a triple sensor, escapement and nicely textured keytops. Even if you’re a classical pianist, you’ll feel at home with this action.
The second reason is the PureAcoustic Piano Modeling sound engine, which is currently Roland’s most advanced sound engine and the same one they use in their top-of-the-line LX series home digital upright pianos. The FP-90X is the only portable Roland digital piano to feature this remarkable sound engine, which also happens to deliver limitless polyphony on acoustic piano tones and offers extensive editing capabilities like damper resonance, string resonance, and soundboard type.
Finally, there’s the speaker system. The FP-90X is equipped with a 4-speaker system with two mains and two tweeters for clarity, boasting a robust 60 watts of power that easily outguns its competitors. For gigs, you can actually fill a medium-sized with the FP-90X without the need for an external amp.
We should also mention the mic input, as well as the tactile equalizer with sliders as additional great value adds.
FAQ #3: When Were the FP-90 and FP-90X Released?
The original FP-90 came out in the fall/winter of 2016, and the newly updated FP-90X first hit North American store shelves during the winter of 2021.
Roland tends to average 4-year product cycles with their models, whereas some are updated faster, and in the case of the FP-90X, there was closer to a 5-year FP-90 run before its release.
FAQ #4: What are the Weight/Dimensions of the Roland FP-90X?
This is actually a really important question, especially if you’re thinking about the FP-90X has a portable, gigging stage piano. The overall unboxed dimensions of the FP-90X are a width of 5.2”, depth of 15.3” and height of 5.4”.
FAQ #5: What are the Differences Between the FP-90 and FP-90X?
This is a pretty important question for folks who might already have an FP90 and are wondering if the FP90X is worth the upgrade, or for people who might still have an opportunity on an FP90 so they have to choose between the two.
The first upgrade is a major speaker enhancement, with the FP-90X receiving a redesigned, upgraded speaker system. Secondly, the FP-90X also receives the new BMC sound chip, which delivers far more complexity to the PureAcoustic Ambience modeling engine and the SuperNATURAL engine.
Both pianos use the PHA-50 keys, so this stays the same, but the 90X includes the new My Stage feature, which offers a whole bunch of very nice Piano Designer presets.
Lastly, Roland has included a built-in USB audio interface, and this will come in very handy for those who need a fine instrument for some studio or production work.
The well-liked LCD screen, music rest and dual headphone jacks return from the FP-90.
FAQ #6: PHA-50 – Which Portable Models Have It?
The PHA50 was until recently Roland’s most advanced action (since usurped by the Hybrid Grand action) and is only found in a couple of models that could be considered portable.
The FP-90X is the only FPX series piano to feature the PHA-50, with the Roland FP-30X and FP-60X featuring the PHA-4.
The RD-2000 and FANTOM-08 are the only other portable options that feature the PHA-50, however, calling the workstation FANTOM-08 portable is using the term ‘portable’ loosely. All three of these pianos are quite heavy, and that’s a result of the wooden componentry in the PHA-50 – there’s really no way to keep the weight down with a wooden action.
FAQ #7: How do you Take Apart the Roland FP-90X?
*Disclaimer: Don’t do this! That’s the official answer because if you do take apart your FP-90X, your warranty will be voided should you ever have a warranty claim, and this is clearly articulated in the owner’s manual.
If you’re willing to take the risk, the innards of pretty much every Roland product are very well organized, so if you do open it up by removing the screws on the side, you’ll find that everything is well laid out and easy to service.
FAQ #8: How do you Connect the FP-90X to Bluetooth MIDI?
The first step to getting Bluetooth MIDI going on the FP-90X is to make sure Bluetooth is turned on. To do this, press the function button, and Bluetooth is the first option that pops up so toggle that to make sure it’s on.
From there, start the pairing process, and you can do so by holding the Function key, and then you can pull up the Bluetooth menu from your smart device and select the FP-90X.
The Piano Every Day app has recently been replaced by the new simply titled Roland Piano App, which is simply great as it allows you to navigate all the sounds of the instrument like grand piano tones, synths, e pianos etc. as well as control features like the metronome, touch sensitivity and playback while also expanding the specs of the piano to include rhythms and educational features.
FAQ #9: How Do You Connect the FP-90X to a Computer?
To connect your FP-90X to a computer, simply plug one end of a USB cable into the FP-90’s USB connector and the other end into your computer. This gives you both a MIDI and Audio connection
FAQ #10: What Digital Pianos Compare Well to the FP-90X?
It’s good to have an idea as to some of the other options you’ll be running into when deciding on an instrument. Surprisingly, there aren’t too many legitimate comparable options to the FP-90X. This is due to the fact that there aren’t too many instances where musicians find themselves in situations where a high-end acoustic grand-focused keyboard with speakers and a premium action are needed.
As a result, the FP-90X falls into a niche category as a portable keyboard capable of a high-end acoustic and electric piano experience, without the full array of synthesizer-like features one would get with a traditional stage piano.
That said, this category is growing, and as we mentioned earlier in this article, the main competitors to the FP-90X are the Yamaha P-515 and Kawai ES-920.
Casio enters this conversation now as well with the recently released PX-S6000 and PX-S7000.
Closing Thoughts
Thanks for reading and/or watching! We hope that this top 10 Roland FP-90X FAQ will serve as a helpful reference for you on your piano shopping journey.
