11 thoughts on “Roland Jupiter-80 Artist Impressions

  1. That was interesting. Nice knowning what Lady Gaga’s keyboard playing think of it.

    For the other 99%, here is my own artist impression:

    If I go to Sweetwater and let them split my bill into “three easy payments” that still would come to $1,166.33 per payment.

    (One payment of the Roland Jupiter can buy TWO of the new Casio synths. Even if the Jupiter sounds great–and it does!–does it sound THAT great?)

  2. Stevie Wonder has a keyboardist? I get that many artists who write for keyboards dont actually play them (Gaga) but Stevie’s pretty profecient on his own. I suppose bigger is still better….

    1. The Jupiter-80 is SO good at imitating other instruments that when Stevie’s producer puts a band together for Stevie, they TELL Stevie they hired a guitarist and a horn player and a bass and really it’s just a couple of guys with Jupiter-80s.

      (Sorry.)

  3. Oh Roland, I know you lost “it” a long time ago, but this just seals it. Please stop making shit for instruments and derivatively branding them with your previous successes.

      1. Yeah, there’s a reason the Pros, say, Snooki and Kim Kardashian makes thousands of dollars to appear in clubs every weekend and we do not.

        But that reason has more to do with manipulation and mind games than it does with any quality metric or skill set.

        1. Ok lets see , in one hand we have Roland the creator of–>
          1972 – Roland TR-77/TR-55/TR-33: Roland’s first products. TR-77 is known as an updated version of Ace Tone Rhythm Ace FR-7L.[3]
          1973 – Roland SH-1000: Japan’s first commercial keyboard synthesizer.
          1974 – Roland EP-30: The world’s first touch-sensitive electronic piano.
          1974 – Roland RE-201: The renowned space echo machine, one of the most popular tape delay-based echo machines ever produced.
          1974 – Roland SH-3A: Monophonic synthesizer.
          1975 – Roland System-100: Roland’s first attempt at a modular synthesizer.
          1975 – Roland JC-120 Jazz Chorus Guitar Amplifier: A two channel, 120 watt amplifier equipped with two 12-inch (30 cm) speakers, built-in chorus and vibrato effects and a 3-band EQ per channel, renowned for its super-clean sound and durability, it has remained in production for over 35 years.
          1976 – Roland System-700: Roland’s first professional-quality modular synthesizer.
          1976 – Roland DC-50 Digital Chorus: An analog chorus ensemble similar to Boss CE-1 Chorus Ensemble|Boss CE-1.[3] Some collectors assume that it was also supplied as OEM product, Multivox CB-50.[4]
          1977 – Roland MC-8 Microcomposer: A groundbreaking digital sequencer. Roland’s first product to utilize a microprocessor.[5]
          1977 – Roland GR-500: Roland’s first commercial guitar synthesizer.[6]
          1978 – Roland CR-78: A user-programmable drum machine.
          1978 – Roland Jupiter-4: Roland’s first self-contained polyphonic synthesizer.
          1980 – Roland CR-8000
          1980 – Roland VK-1: Roland’s first attempt to clone the Hammond B3.
          1980 – Roland TR-808: One of the most popular programmable analog drum machines; its distinctive analog sounds, such as its cowbell sound and its kick drum, have become pop-music clichés, heard on countless recordings.
          1981 – Roland TB-303 The Bass Line is a synthesizer with built-in sequencer manufactured from late 1981 to 1984. It had a defining role in the development of contemporary electronic music, particularly in acid house.
          1981 – Roland System-100M: Semiprofessional modular synthesizer, successor of System-100.
          1981 – Roland Jupiter-8: Roland claims this synthesizer put Roland in the forefront of professional synthesizers. A successful 8-voice programmable analog synthesizer after the hugely successful Sequential Circuits Prophet-5 and Oberheim’s products.
          1982 – Roland Juno-6: Roland’s first synthesizer with digitally controlled oscillators. (Released later in the same year was the Juno-60, a similar model but with the addition of patch memory for storing sounds.)
          1982 – Roland G505 – G202: The 3rd generation of Roland electric guitar synthesizer controllers. These Strat-style guitars came with the matching GR-700 and PG-200 pedal boards, which also work as a regular guitar effector as well as a MIDI synthesizer bank.
          1982 – Roland SH-101: Monophonic synthesizer designed to be worn hung around the neck with a strap, with an optional modulation attachment that protruded like the neck of a guitar.
          1983 – Roland JX-3P: First Roland synthesizer to support MIDI.
          1983 – Roland Jupiter-6: Second Roland synthesizer to support MIDI.
          1983 – Roland MC-202: (MicroComposer) is a monophonic analog synthesizer/sequencer. It is similar to the TB-303 and SH-101 synthesizers, featuring 1 voltage-controlled oscillator with simultaneous saw and square/pulse-width waveforms.
          1983 – Roland MSQ-700: The world’s first MIDI-compatible sequencer.
          1983 – Roland TR-909: An extremely popular drum machine during the early 1990s, the sounds of which (particularly the kick drum and open hi-hat) are still essential components of modern electronic dance music. The world’s first MIDI-equipped drum machine and Roland’s first to use digital sample playback combined with analog sound synthesis.
          1984 – Roland MKB-1000 and MKB-300: The world’s first dedicated MIDI controller keyboards.
          1984 – Roland MPU-401: Interface for connecting MIDI-equipped devices to a computer.
          1984 – Roland MKS-80: Rack-mounted 8-voice analog synthesizer, commonly used with the MPG-80 programmer unit.
          1984 – Roland Juno-106: Very popular programmable (128 patch memory locations), digitally controlled 6-voice analog synthesizer, with MIDI and the ability to transmit button and slider information through SysEx.
          1984 – Roland TR-707 and Roland TR-727: A pair of popular drum machines, the TR-727 was essentially the same as the TR-707, except it had Latin-style sounds. The TR-707 was used extensively in the early days of house music and is still used in non-Western pop music around the world. The TR-727 is still used extensively in polyrhythmic non-Western pop music.
          1985 – Roland Alpha Juno: Two analog polyphonic synthesizers, the Alpha Juno 1 (JU-1) and the Alpha Juno 2 (JU-2), notable for their ‘Alpha Dial’ that simplified the user interface.
          1985 – Roland Octapad: A set of visually distinctive electronic drum triggers.
          1986 – Roland JX-10: One of Roland’s last true analog synths.
          1986 – Roland RD-1000: Roland’s first digital piano to feature their SA Synthesis technology. One notable user of this is Elton John from 1988 to 1994.
          1986 – Roland HS-80: Same as the Roland Alpha Juno 2 (JU-2), but with built-in speakers. Branded as “Synth Plus 80.”[7][8]
          1986 – Roland S-10: Basic 12-bit sampler and keyboard combo. Sounds were stored on QuickDisks and it was capable of sampling up to 6 seconds of sound. It also had rudimentary analog filtering and ADSR.
          1986 – Roland MKS-100: Rack Mounted version of the Roland-S10 sampler.
          1986 – Roland MC-500: stand-alone sequencer and midi recorders. There’s 4-track recording in real or step time and 16 midi channel multitimbrality, a dedicated rhythm track, a built-in 3½-inch DS/DD Floppy disk drive with 100,000 note capacity and a large LCD screen.
          1987 – Roland D-50: One of the popular digital synthesizers in late 1980s; Roland’s first all-digital synthesizer implementing its Linear Arithmetic synthesis (a form of sample-based synthesis combined with subtractive synthesis). The D-50’s descendants include the D-5, D-10, D-110 (rack unit), and D-20 synthesizers.
          1987 – Roland MT-32: Also using Linear Arithmetic synthesis, it was supported by many PC games in the late 1980s and early 1990s as a high-quality music option until support shifted to General MIDI sound cards.
          1988 – Roland U-110: Roland’s first “rompler”, the U-110 was a rack module based on Roland’s large sample library and contained good representations of acoustic instruments. Designed to compete with E-mu’s Proteus line, the U-110’s successor U-220 found its way into many professional studio racks of the day.
          1988 – Roland E-20: Roland’s first entry into the auto-accompaniment keyboard market, going head to head with Yamaha and Casio. The E-20’s descendants include the E-70, E-86, G-800, G-1000, G-70 and the current E-80.
          1988 – Roland MC-500mkII: Successor to the Roland MC-500, with Turbo software. Now with 8 tracks of recording, 100,000 note capacity, real-time track muting and more. Storages on 3½-inch DS/DD Floppy disk drive.
          1989 – Roland W-30: A sampling workstation keyboard (DAW).
          1989 – Roland D-70: 76-key synth. Successor to the U-20. This synth combines the U-20 ROM with improved D-50 filters.
          1990 – Roland HP-3700: Roland digital piano.
          1990 – Roland MC-50: is dedicated sequencer similar to the popular Roland MC-500 series. It featured 40,000 note capacity, up to 8 songs, 8 phrase tracks, a 3½-inch DS/DD Floppy disk drive, separate rhythm track and temp tracks, 32 channel MIDI and FSK sync.
          1991 – Roland SC-55 Sound Canvas: The world’s first General MIDI synthesizer.
          1991 – Roland JD-800: Digital synthesizer with analog style interface.
          1992 – Roland JV-80: A sort of simplified JD-800; spawned a whole family of synthesizers based on it’s architecture.
          1992 – Roland DJ-70: A DJ sampling music workstation and synthesizer keyboard that featured the first scratch wheel pad. Storages on 3½-inch DS/DD Floppy disk drive.
          1993 – Roland MC-50mkII: Successor to the Roland MC-50. Equipped with slightly advanced features for editing and general use. 40,000-note internal capacity, with the built-in disk drive, you can store approximately 150,000 events on a 3½-inch DS/DD Floppy disk drive.
          1993 – Roland JV-1000: Sort of a combination of the MC-50mkII and the JV-80.
          1994 – Roland RD-500: The RD-500 is a professional digital piano with 88 weighted keys, 121 high quality sounds and built-in digital effects.
          1994 – Roland MS-1: 16 bit AD/DA conversion, First portable digital stereo phrase sampler[citation needed], with R-DAC (Roland Digital Audio Coding).
          1994 – Roland S-760: 16 bits Digital sampler with resonant filters.
          1994 – Roland JV-1080: aka Super JV-1080, a 64-voice synthesizer module. Used on more recordings than any other module in history[citation needed], the JV-1080 boasts a full range of acclaimed Roland sounds, as well as four expansion slots.
          1994 – Roland JV-90: 76-note expandable synthesizer.
          1994 – Roland AT-70: The first Roland’s home organ, “Music Atelier” and its little brother AT-50.
          1995 – Roland XP-50: Based on the JV-1080, it was Roland’s first music workstation that featured their MRC-Pro sequencer.
          1995 – Roland VG-8: The world’s first guitar modeling system.
          1996 – Roland VS-880: Roland’s first digital studio workstation providing recording, mixing and CD-mastering.
          1996 – Roland MC-303 Roland’s first non-keyboard drum machine, sample-based synthesizer, and sequencer combination bearing the now-generic term Groovebox. Featuring a full 8-track sequencer.
          1996 – Roland XP-80: 64-voice music workstation.
          1996 – Roland AT-90: The highest model of Roland’s home organ “Music Atelier” and smallest brother AT-30.
          1997 – Roland VK-7: Groundbreaking Hammond organ clone, which introduced the “Virtual ToneWheel” physical modeling technology.
          1997 – Roland JP-8000: Roland’s first virtual analog synthesizer. It’s technology was more similar to conventional PCM synthesis, such as in a JD-800, rather than the virtual analog synths of today that digitally model the behavior of analog oscillators.
          1997 – Roland V-Drums: Digital drums incorporating silent mesh drum heads that realistically reproduce both the natural feel and sound of acoustic drums.
          1997 – Roland JV-2080: 64-voice, 3-effects-processor, 8-expansion-slot synthesizer module.
          1997 – Roland AT-80: Top-class home organ in Roland’s home organ.
          1998 – SP-808: Table-top sampler, multi-track recorder, and effects processor.
          1998 – Roland MC-505: Successor to the MC-303 with a more powerful synthesizer and sequencer.
          1998 – Roland JX-305: Similar to the MC-505, but with 61 keys.
          1999 – Roland AT-90R: Successor models. AT-60R, AT-80R, and AT-30R.
          2001 – Roland AX-7: Successor to the AX-1. A keytar noted for its aesthetics and design.
          2001 – Roland AT-90S: Successor models. AT-80S, AT-60S, AT-20S and AT-10S.
          2002 – Roland MC-909: Successor to the MC Groovebox series and also the flagship to all MC Groovebox series machines, featuring a full 16-track sequencer, SRX board upgrading, Built-in larger LCD Display Screen and built-in sampling. Supports 1 SRX Expansion card.
          2002 – Roland AT-15: Baby of the “Music Atelier” home organ product range. And AT-5.
          2003 – Roland V-Synth: 24-voice analog modeling synthesizer.
          2004 – Roland Fantom-X: Music workstation and professional synthesizer expandable to 1 gigabyte of sounds.
          2004 – Roland AT-90SL Atelier: Successor models. AT-80SL, and AT-60SL.
          2005 – Roland Micro Cube: Roland’s first portable amplifier. Allowed for AC adapter or battery use. Seven input effects, delay, and reverb options.
          2005 – Roland Fantom-Xa: Entry-level Fantom-X. The A stands for access.
          2006 – Roland MC-808: The latest MC-series, featuring a full 16-track sequencer and 512 MB more memory, and double the polyphony of the MC-909. First MC Groovebox series with motorized faders and built-in sampling, no Velocity sensitive pads, no SRX board as an add-on as seen on MC-909.
          2006 – Roland SH-201: Roland’s first affordable analog modeling synthesizer.
          2006 – Roland Juno-G: Entry-level workstation based on the Fantom-X.
          2007 – Roland MV-8800: Successor to the MV-8000. Production station with 24-bit sampling capabilities. Has new built-in color LCD display.
          2008 – Roland Fantom-G: Music workstation with onboard graphical MIDI sequencer.
          2009 – Roland AX-Synth: A keytar, successor for the AX-7. The most notable change is the addition of an internal synthesizer.
          2009 – Roland AT-900: Roland introduces the AT-900 and AT-900C, the next generation of Atelier organ consoles, successors to the AT-90S and AT-90SL.
          2011 – Roland Jupiter-80: Flagship performance synthesizer, combining Roland’s SuperNatural acoustic modeling technology with a virtual analog engine.
          2011 – Roland AT-350c: A Combo version of the “Music Atelier” home organ product range. Can be coupled with any of Roland’s MIDI pedal keyboards to make it a complete organ.

          And then we have you the creator of nothing .

          Hmmm ,I think i’m gonna go with Roland on this one .

  4. The problem with the JP80 is the price, not the Jupiter name. Roland has clearly explained they did it because of what the original JP8 was supposed to be like: a keyboard emulating real instruments.

    For what it is, it’s actually quite good – and fun and inspirational to play. But the purpose of a $3500 “performance keyboard” that boasts realistic oboe sounds is just so daft – when in real life are you ever required to ever break into a wicked oboe solo. Sure the opportunities for sound mangling must be quite expansive, and the layering is insane.

  5. when you say “you” I’m assuming you mean “us” I.e. The people who have actually bought Roland’s gear over the years? And in a sense funded and contributed to their successes? I’m sure any large instrument manufacturer’s marketing department would tell you that your customer base’s opinions, brand loyalty, and sense of brand ownership are worthless, and you can just bring out any old crap and everyone will just lap it up, right? Get a grip!

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