Like the OP’s Roland, my Yamaha yc88 has built in usb audio out. Everything has been working great. The iPad can easily handle whatever I throw at it.

I used to gig with a windows laptop, but never felt as confident with it as I do with the iPad.

Hello everyone! I would like to offer the most budget-friendly, in my opinion, connection option. I am a professional musician and work with Pianoteq in conjunction with Numa X Piano 73 and the new iPad Mini. The connection is also carried out with only one USB-C - USB-B cable, because Numa can transmit not only MIDI via USB, but also AUDIO. Therefore, one cable is enough for everything to work. This option is budget-friendly in price, but without any compromises. Because Numa has a fully weighted keyboard with fine-tuning sensitivity. And new iPad Mini has a modern processor and high performance with minimal latency. You can download Pianoteq from the AppStore and register it with your key. If 73 keys are not enough for you, then there is the Numa X Piano 88 option, but it will cost you more. I work with Numa X Piano 73, it is lighter and cheaper. Good luck!

P. S. The coolest thing is that the new iPad Mini sticks perfectly to the upper right part of the piano with magnets and does not interfere at all))
And you can turn off the iPad's screen to save battery - it will still work.

Just ordered this keyboard and I have a iPad Pro but will find a new mini soon ... It's all your fault that I am buying more things... all good ..thanks for the post!
I have been wanting to try Pianoteq out in the wild but have been using some of my Casio Privias' pianos which work well enough .. don't take my Casio PSX 7000 much  out as kinda heavy with the stand and all ... usually use the PSX 3000 .. keep a PSX 1100 in my baby Grand frame and ready just in case .. the Casio PX 560 stays at my main computer always ready ... Did I mention I love Pianoteq..no?... well I love Pianoteq!

iPad Mini sounds like a good solution to me.

Agreed. I started using Pianoteq 8 with my laptop and Roland UM-One MIDI interface cable and managed to whittle it down to an iPad mini and one USB midi cable.
Much cleaner and more portable setup. (nod to multiple device licensing!)

Downside: Individual note editing on the iPad mini is a challenge with the smaller screen but that's not something you would be doing in a live setup anyway.

Hello everyone! I would like to offer the most budget-friendly, in my opinion, connection option. I am a professional musician and work with Pianoteq in conjunction with Numa X Piano 73 and the new iPad Mini. The connection is also carried out with only one USB-C - USB-B cable, because Numa can transmit not only MIDI via USB, but also AUDIO. Therefore, one cable is enough for everything to work. This option is budget-friendly in price, but without any compromises. Because Numa has a fully weighted keyboard with fine-tuning sensitivity. And new iPad Mini has a modern processor and high performance with minimal latency. You can download Pianoteq from the AppStore and register it with your key. If 73 keys are not enough for you, then there is the Numa X Piano 88 option, but it will cost you more. I work with Numa X Piano 73, it is lighter and cheaper. Good luck!

iPad Mini sounds like a good solution to me.  For OP, many people not familiar with mobile devices think iPad and iPhone look small and unassuming next to a laptop, but any model from last few years has more power than OP's i5, some much, much more.  RD-2000 has same built-in USB Audio as described with the Numa X.

The portability friendliness of an iPad/iPhone is a big advantage for live gigging, I think.  iPad/iPhone have built-in battery and last a long time so can be used without a power source.  If you want to use a power source you can use either a portable USB charger or plug to wall outlet.  Plus iPad/iPhone are  small in size and weight.  Big advantages.

Coises wrote:

As for what to buy... it’s painful. Windows can fail at audio, and it can be hard to predict until it happens to you. There’s a Reddit post here that explains the situation. I would say the bottom line is that unless you can get a laptop that you know can handle audio — because someone else has already tried it — make sure you get it from somewhere you can return it. Personally, I haven’t had any bad luck, but I’m using desktops. And I know I could have fallen into the black hole of DPC latency that won’t go away, I just didn’t. Most of the time, persistence and patience will fix it. What I’ve read tells me not always, though.

So the dilemma is that Windows will let you work the same way as you do in your studio, but any particular machine might be problematic. An iPad is likely to be limited in what you can run at once. A MacBook could serve you both in the studio and on the road, but they’re expensive and you’d have to learn a new operating system.

I wish I had a simple, definite answer for you. I’ve been lucky with Windows machines. Some people aren’t.

Thanks for the thoughts.

I think I could go in several different directions. But... I figured there must be somebody out there doing what I'm proposing. So far, I haven't found them yet. When I search on YouTube, it basically wants to show me how great Pianoteq is. That's fine, but I already know it's great, I wanna see how they're using it in real life. Not so much info out there about that. And to be honest, it wouldn't even have to be Pianoteq, just examples of people using VST's for live performance.

In the studio, if a Windows machine decides to have a glitch at an inopportune moment, it's an inconvenience. Actually had one today. But a live performance needs to work, work well, and be very reliable all of the time. Nobody wants to sit and wait while a computer reboots or a program restarts. So the idea of live performance kinda takes the requirements up a notch at least in my mind.

Hi Bellyman,

I worked in a simple setup as you can see in these videos.
The first is a little documentary (explanation) and the second is the concerto.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=U-ufF06WWCc

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TofTO1gZ8ws&t=1838s

I played in a simple Casio px-160 linked via USB to my laptop (old i7 7th generation) throughout internal sound card which went to an amplifier with a full range speakers for this Grieg Piano Concerto with the Americana Symphonic Orchestra on November of 2022.

I belive with your RD-2000 would be just fine.

In my computer I have Linux (Debian OS) just because I love it, but you can use Windows I think without a problem.
Just take a look and see if this can help you in some way to make a decision.

Best Regards,

Fulvio

P. S. The coolest thing is that the new iPad Mini sticks perfectly to the upper right part of the piano with magnets and does not interfere at all))
And you can turn off the iPad's screen to save battery - it will still work.

Bellyman wrote:

larrycalame wrote:

For some time I've been using PTQ just at home, while gigging with a variety of digital pianos, most recently the Casio PX-S5000. My home piano is a Roland FP-90X, which I connect to my Microsoft Surface Pro to play PTQ via the Roland's built in USB audio interface. I recently acquired the FP-90X's little brother, the FP-30X, which also has a USB audio interface, to see how it would do at live gigs. After some EQ tweaks, I'm very happy with the result. Audio wise, I'm using the combination of the FP-30X's built in speakers plus a Roland BA330 stereo amp, which, believe it or not, doubles as my bench! Now I'm not claiming that this is the optimal setup, but in my experience, unless a live gig is a solo piano concert, in which the audience is silent, the subtleties of any digital piano are not likely to be heard and appreciated anyway. So for my situation (I play mainly in restaurants), my setup is quite good, with a minimal footprint and minimal setup/teardown time.

Thanks for the thoughts!

Ya know, it might be a more prudent idea to just do my best with the onboard Roland piano sounds for gigging (and to be fair, the German Grand Expansion pack has a couple of really nice ones, not up to the level of Pianoteq, but way above some of the awful piano sounds I've heard played by a few other locals) and leave the Pianoteq more for a studio and home setting. (My dear wife may not like that idea.)

The RD-2000 is a dedicated stage piano, literally made for live use. If you can find a setting that speaks enough to you, that’s the easiest option.

Otherwise if you need the pianoteq sound, you’re looking either at an iPad (no need to get the large ones) or a reliable laptop with a decent audio interface (not the built-in audio).

Windows laptops can be harder to deal with regarding latency spikes - you could get lucky or you could have issues and need tons of tuning.

A Mac laptop will just work and not even need an audio interface.

I have all 3 platforms FYI

I've been using my Microsoft Surface Pro for years at home, and for weeks in gigs without an issue. Without the keyboard it sits nicely on the music rest that comes with either my Roland FP-90X (home) or FP-30X (live). And it's thin enough that I can still put sheet music on the music stand in front of it - though as an ear player I rarely do so.

The RD-2000 is a dedicated stage piano, literally made for live use. If you can find a setting that speaks enough to you, that’s the easiest option.

Otherwise if you need the pianoteq sound, you’re looking either at an iPad (no need to get the large ones) or a reliable laptop with a decent audio interface (not the built-in audio).

Windows laptops can be harder to deal with regarding latency spikes - you could get lucky or you could have issues and need tons of tuning.

A Mac laptop will just work and not even need an audio interface.

I have all 3 platforms FYI

Thanks for the thoughts.

I do love the RD-2000, it's one of the purchases that I've made that I have absolutely zero regrets about. And I do really like having pretty decent piano sounds onboard, at least sounds appropriate to the venues that I play. I've had compliments, even.

Yeah... I'm kinda  coming around to the idea that I can't find anybody using Pianoteq live because so few do it. And the "why" probably relates to the complexity and perhaps reliability of it. I love the sound but practical is important, too.

Now... if the Roland were able to actually load Pianoteq as an onboard sound, that would be incredible! Technically, I suspect it is very possible. Will they ever do it? Probably not. I'd be surprised if they even would put their own Earth piano onboard. But hey, a guy can dream. 

Completely off topic, but as a former full-time piano tech, your username has me singing the Piana Boat Song in my head:

'Come Mr. Bellyman
Build me up a Steinway
Soundboard's set and the bridge is shaved down'

Apologies to Harry Belafonte

I used to love that kind of work! It's been a long time... (And it is, indeed, where the "handle" Bellyman came from. I do happen to have a bit of a bay window but not nearly the extra large bay window I once did.) Soundboards, bridges, pinblocks... that was my happy place. But now when I try to remember some of the finer details, they elude me.

larrycalame wrote:

For some time I've been using PTQ just at home, while gigging with a variety of digital pianos, most recently the Casio PX-S5000. My home piano is a Roland FP-90X, which I connect to my Microsoft Surface Pro to play PTQ via the Roland's built in USB audio interface. I recently acquired the FP-90X's little brother, the FP-30X, which also has a USB audio interface, to see how it would do at live gigs. After some EQ tweaks, I'm very happy with the result. Audio wise, I'm using the combination of the FP-30X's built in speakers plus a Roland BA330 stereo amp, which, believe it or not, doubles as my bench! Now I'm not claiming that this is the optimal setup, but in my experience, unless a live gig is a solo piano concert, in which the audience is silent, the subtleties of any digital piano are not likely to be heard and appreciated anyway. So for my situation (I play mainly in restaurants), my setup is quite good, with a minimal footprint and minimal setup/teardown time.

Thanks for the thoughts!

Ya know, it might be a more prudent idea to just do my best with the onboard Roland piano sounds for gigging (and to be fair, the German Grand Expansion pack has a couple of really nice ones, not up to the level of Pianoteq, but way above some of the awful piano sounds I've heard played by a few other locals) and leave the Pianoteq more for a studio and home setting. (My dear wife may not like that idea.)

The RD-2000 is a dedicated stage piano, literally made for live use. If you can find a setting that speaks enough to you, that’s the easiest option.

Otherwise if you need the pianoteq sound, you’re looking either at an iPad (no need to get the large ones) or a reliable laptop with a decent audio interface (not the built-in audio).

Windows laptops can be harder to deal with regarding latency spikes - you could get lucky or you could have issues and need tons of tuning.

A Mac laptop will just work and not even need an audio interface.

I have all 3 platforms FYI

'Come Mr. Bellyman
Build me up a Steinway
Soundboard's set and the bridge is shaved down'

Apologies to Harry Belafonte

For some time I've been using PTQ just at home, while gigging with a variety of digital pianos, most recently the Casio PX-S5000. My home piano is a Roland FP-90X, which I connect to my Microsoft Surface Pro to play PTQ via the Roland's built in USB audio interface. I recently acquired the FP-90X's little brother, the FP-30X, which also has a USB audio interface, to see how it would do at live gigs. After some EQ tweaks, I'm very happy with the result. Audio wise, I'm using the combination of the FP-30X's built in speakers plus a Roland BA330 stereo amp, which, believe it or not, doubles as my bench! Now I'm not claiming that this is the optimal setup, but in my experience, unless a live gig is a solo piano concert, in which the audience is silent, the subtleties of any digital piano are not likely to be heard and appreciated anyway. So for my situation (I play mainly in restaurants), my setup is quite good, with a minimal footprint and minimal setup/teardown time.

Thanks for the thoughts!

Ya know, it might be a more prudent idea to just do my best with the onboard Roland piano sounds for gigging (and to be fair, the German Grand Expansion pack has a couple of really nice ones, not up to the level of Pianoteq, but way above some of the awful piano sounds I've heard played by a few other locals) and leave the Pianoteq more for a studio and home setting. (My dear wife may not like that idea.)

Another hardware possibility for Pianoteq being played live could be an Intel NUC running Linux. Like the Mac Mini, there is a good bit of computing power there. I'd just need to figure out a screen (touch?) that would work well without feeling like I'm dragging the studio along with me everywhere I gig.

How about the new M4 Mac Mini?  iPad is more portable but also more expensive if to get the 12 inch model.

Might be an option. Are you using one?