Roland Juno-X

[3lu5iv3]

https://www.roland.com/global/products/juno-x/

What do guys think about this synth?
i think it's a fantastic synth.

[BertKoor]

The synth is probably better than the copy writer:

In 1984, the JUNO-106 built on the success of its predecessor with more memories and the revolutionary new MIDI interface.

Yeah, I have great memories of the Juno-106.

[Synth Master Jedi]

I see on ebay that Juno 106s are going for many thousands of dollars in some cases.

Back in the day, I used to own two Juno 106s. I owned them at the same time, and used both for midi sequencing, before DAWs were invented. The Juno 106 was one of the first synths I ever bought and it will always hold a special place in my synth heart.

However, I can tell you this; There is no way in hell that I would ever pay thousands of dollars for a decades old, used Juno 106 in 2022. Fat chance. I don't care how much money I had, I wouldn't do it.

I would much rather own a brand new Juno X, than a used and very old Juno 106.

The Juno X looks real nice. I really like how Roland decided to keep the classic design and add some new features to the synth, while still keeping the classic Juno 106 design, just making it slightly more modern looking.

I don't really have the room for more hardware in my small spot, but I'm liking the look of this Juno X a lot. I've always liked the simple and easy to program interface on the Juno 106. Synths have always been a tool for me to make music with, not to sit and fiddle with programming sounds for hours. If I hear a certain sound in my head that I want to try and create on a synth, I want to do it quickly, otherwise you'll kill the whole vibe.

As for the sound, I think that the Juno X sounds pretty good. I heard and saw a few comparison videos on youtube, and it sounded good to me, and that's all that counts as far as I am concerned. I have Roland cloud, so I know how their different stuff and engines sound, zenology, legendary etc.

If the sound were that much different than an original Juno 106, then you'd figure that I would definitely choose to own that, but nope, like I wrote previously, if I had to pick between the two today, then my money would go towards the Juno X.

It's not just about the sound, it's about the whole package, the presentation, the layout, the workflow. the age of the device etc., and I already know that I would feel right at home if I had one of these Juno X's sitting in front of me.

Who knows. Maybe I'll be in a bigger spot one day, and maybe I might get one of these Juno X's because I like what Roland did here.

[Uncle E]

It's great that it comes with 10 expansions. I assume these include model expansions, not just preset or sample expansions. The only problem I can imagine is that the Juno-X's limited interface might not be great for programming the Jupiter and other more complicated models, whereas the Jupiter-X's interface is perfect for programming almost everything (just slightly limited with the JD-800 model).

Sound-wise, if they nail the Juno-60, it's worth the money.

[kritikon]

Yeah - I had a quick look and it seems to pack in a whole load more than simple Juno emulation but with the limited Juno sliders - not sure how it can handle anything complicated. Just as well that it packs in a lot more as TBH the Junos were pretty basic compared to almost everything today. I have a soft spot for the look of it - nice design. I still have a 106 and an Alpha and...crap really - I wouldn't touch them with a very long barge pole nowadays. The Alpha actually did an awful lot more than the 106 and bags more character but a sadly non-resonant filter (strange design limitation IMO). JunoX offers a wide range of sound from the look of it. Still, it's a VA. Does it offer anything compared to some of the more powerful VAs out there? Great nostalgia though. What kind of price are they asking for a JunoX?

[Uncle E]

$1,999.99 USD and I didn't see anything on their site about number of voices. Jupiter-X is $2,799.99 with up to 256 voices. Jupiter-Xm is $1,599.99 with up to 32 voices.

[lfm]

Note that it states Zen engine, it's not analog reissue.
Who would anybody bother getting it for that money?

Seems Jupiter X is better choice with more digital emulations including this one.

Starsky Carr did comparison Juno and DeepMind and they were really close. But something about chorus on Juno as I recall that was special.

Again Roland is just repeating themselves and live on old merits. Now built on subscriptions and crap to make you pay again and again.

Prophet 5 Rev4 is a real analog anyway that is in demand.

[AnX]

Again Roland is just repeating themselves and live on old merits.

Sounds familiar....

Prophet 5 Rev4

Ah yes...

[lfm]

The only problem I can imagine is that the Juno-X's limited interface might not be great for programming the Jupiter and other more complicated models, whereas the Jupiter-X's interface is perfect for programming almost everything

Good point. Just a single set of envelope faders on Juno, kind of destroys the fun to work on sounds for Jupiter or similar.

[astralprojection]

I'm probably way out of line to ask but, why would anyone pay that much money, for something that is based on zen core? It sounds literally exactly like the software does. So that really means what you are buying is a glorified midi controller, that has a built in vst. At least that's how I see it.
Now I understand the appeal of hardware, both for hands on control but specifically the sound.
But these days especially zen core, they all sound exactly the same. So what you're buying now isn't for the sound quality...
Again, I fully understand why people seek different hardware synths, most likely it is for the sound they impart and how difficult it would be to emulate that specific tonality on software.
But this? Well I just don't get it at all.
Why didn't they make it a DCO synth like the other junos.. At least then they'd have sound as a selling point..
I don't mean to be overly critical, I just honestly don't get it, at this price point it seems completely ludicrous.

Isn't the system-1 also zen core? Can't you load the same expansions on that one?
Either way that's about 500 bucks. And had the same sound.

[Uncle E]

System-1 is ACB. It’s supposed to sound better than Zen Core. Trade off is voice count and none of the JD/XV stuff (which I love). Still, you’re right and System-8 is probably the way to go.

OT: I just bought a JD-XA. Real analog but very limited voice count. I’ll let you all know how it goes.

[lfm]

Isn't the system-1 also zen core? Can't you load the same expansions on that one?

It's a previous emulation that is more cpu hungy on System-8, don't remember name.

Not sure if optimizing cpu load for Zen affected sound, but more inclined to believe that System-8 is better, apart from just 64 preset locations.

Checking out Roland Cloud I think there are emulations for System-8 but not the same as for Zen core. 3-4 years ago I checked so don't remember if all are duplicated for both systems.

[D-Fusion]

[astralprojection]

ive seen that video, theres clearly a big difference, and that being the original does sound analog while the new sounds like any old software synth, still great, but not the same. so if its purely sound you want, then you dont have to spend all that money for the midi controller that is the juno-x, can just use any vst and program it the same way, and thats the same sound. the beauty of the old junos is their blatant analog sound, thats for sure possible to recreate using a bit of eq and saturation, but still it isnt the same thing. im no purist, matter of fact ive not own a single hardware synth yet. but had i had the money, theres a few i would get purely for the sound they impart. and that includes digital synths aswell.

[astralprojection]

System-1 is ACB. It’s supposed to sound better than Zen Core. Trade off is voice count and none of the JD/XV stuff (which I love). Still, you’re right and System-8 is probably the way to go.

OT: I just bought a JD-XA. Real analog but very limited voice count. I’ll let you all know how it goes.

aha, okay, i was under the impression it was also a zen core synth. the new roland lineup is crazy to me. why seperate ACB and zen core, why not just make it one and the same. its all software so it really doesnt make much sense to split it up like that. imo.