Years later, I think this still looks and sounds like a nice synth.

@jfphotoandlife8287

Жыл бұрын

Yes 👍🏻👍🏻👍🏻 l'ACB is very good !

@mcshafty1

Жыл бұрын

@@jfphotoandlife8287 I think so too. Some virtual emulations are very good nowadays and even more so when coupled witha solid hardware innterface like the Sysrem 1 and System 8. I think these machines really cappure the Roland "vibe" - though I'm sure many will disagree 😊

@jfphotoandlife8287

Жыл бұрын

@@mcshafty1 Because it is green in color, in a more sober color, they would have sold millions 😆

@thomaskolb8785

Жыл бұрын

Yes, I had one several years ago and foolishly sold it. Now I am trying to reacquire it 2nd hand, but they are really, really rare. People seem to stick to them.

@0x80O0oOverfl0w

Жыл бұрын

I've recently been looking at getting a synth. I've been looking at this as well as the Yamaha Reface DX. Also looking at all the various clones of the Roland classics.

23:17 - this was fixed in version 1.20 for anyone reading this now The lack of aftertouch was a huge miss to be honest, especially since there’s an unpopulated aftertouch ribbon controller port inside it - but it’s still an excellent synth.

That you can so thoroughly learn these machines and spit out quality vids like this is simply astounding! Kudos on another great job!

The great unsung synth of the past 10 years. Sonically beautiful, still being updated. If they would only put that ACB engine into a JP-X build quality case, with Zencore as well, they'd have the greatest synth on the market right now

for god's sake Nick make an ambient album!! Love that intro jam, great work

I came back to this review because since the release of the Sys8 I have NEVER heard a bad sound come out of this keyboard on KZread. Different designers, genre's, recording skills, all seem to get great sounds!

This video cost me $1600. I've had a System-8 for a year and it's still my favorite piece of gear in the studio.

@mattevans7884

3 жыл бұрын

@BlindGuyProductions I just scored one for £850....

@cylonik

3 жыл бұрын

@@mattevans7884 new? where from?

@mattevans7884

3 жыл бұрын

@@cylonik Not new but in absolutely mint condition. Boxed with all original wrappings. Couldn't believe it when it arrived! FB marketplace was on my side that day

@Charlyaraya

2 жыл бұрын

Hi, do you still recommend this after a year ? or should I go for the JDXA ?

@st0rmchild

2 жыл бұрын

@@Charlyaraya Yes. Still one of my favorite synths. The plugouts are excellent.

Thanks for another honest and balanced review. For my money, your reviews are the best around today. keep the good work up!

Sounds GREAT Nick! Thanks for the in-depth look at the System-8!!!!

I am not disappointed with the system 8. It is an unusual machine and I love it. I get all the best Roland Machines in one unit. Very Happy with what Roland gave me. Love your reviews. It shows me much more of what I have in my system. I have a classic synth to take with me in my journey.

I think Roland did a good job on it and just followed their own strategy. I had the chance to test it in a store for an hour or so and found it quite intuitive and fun to play. Lots of options. It's finally a worthy successor of the JP-8000 with a higher digital resolution.

@honeybadger2732

3 жыл бұрын

Interesting. I just dug out my old JP-8000 and am plain amazed by the modulation options. Its friggin insane. Will look at this..

Nick, you are the best! I really like that little bit you did at the start of this video. Your reviews via Sonic State are #1 for me. Thank You!

Only just venturing into the world of outboard synth gear and I could honestly watch your demos for hours and hours!!! Even gear that I have no intention of ever buying or that is miles out of my price range. I just love how knowledgeable you are and in depth and thorough your videos and the sounds you get are insane! Subbed :)

Great review Nick. I am absolutely loving my System 8. Agree with the point about decoupling the sequencer from an individual patch.

sonicstate is closing in on 100k hard earned subs! Can't wait to see the Arturia MatrixBrute review. Love this channel.

cowbell is nice, never have enough of it. Every synth should have one!

The intro you played was supper cool. This is why I’m buying this unit.

Great review as always thanks Nick.

Nice to hear you mention The Blue Nile in the review, Nick :) great review too.

beautiful review, sounds amazing

@johnlee4364

7 жыл бұрын

As always with Nick ... :)

sounds fucking beautiful IMO

Thank you nick for your honest review. You're the best!

Nick is so good at these. I'm looking at a used one and this is a thorough heads-up to the possibilities.

@st0rmchild

4 жыл бұрын

Nick's reviews are excellent, but have cost me quite a bit of money.

That sequencer + Nord style knobs would look absolutely amazing with all the lights moving around and all the numbers changing. Impressive board all together. Shame of the no after touch but aside from that this is an incredibly versatile instrument.

Yeessss please make an album!! ur always tossing in these sweet intro's, n we want more[=

Its a hard synth to appreciate without studio integration and your introductory points of it feeling like a coherent instrument do hold true. It has that lovely "Roland Sound" in spades and quite a few tricks up its sleeve. Never thought it would be my go too synth with some nice semi-modular analog, analog (both vco & dco) and Elektron kit in the studio but it is a lot of fun to use. So very odd assumptions and suppositions in many of the comments below but thanks for a well balanced review Nick.

Nick, It does work with the MX-1. Just need to ensure you have the latest MX-1 update. Ver. 1.05 I believe.

"I chose the Erebus because the colours match" I like the way you think.

this had me going over to nick batts bandcamp and damn that klang track give's me chill's

I love this synth!! The sound is amazing and a very big plus - it includes the Jupiter-8, Juno-106 and JX-3P! What more could a Roland synth enthusiast want? Oh yeah, you can download even more Roland vintage synths too 🎹🎹🎹

@jamesmacleod671

5 ай бұрын

The new jupiter 4 plug in sounds really good.

Been procrastinating about this synth since it came out. Kept thinking "wait for Nic's review". Watched the review this morning, bought a System 8 this afternoon. Thanks Nic! :-)

Great demo work mate !

Great points on performance mode and I totally agree.

What a beautiful sounding synth!!

@AscensionINC-zi1jz

2 жыл бұрын

Agreed!

Such beautiful sounds.

Definitely adding to our rig. It's complete.

I think it’s a perfect compliment to an actual analog synth like an OB6. I think the FM update and the purely digital sounds really give the System 8 its own voice. It certainly is high on my list as far as my “next buy” list.

Now THIS is what I call a gear review. Not like some other rather popular channel where every "review" is just a string of distracting animations before finishing a sentence. And at the end you're none the wiser. So yeah, subscribed 😄

The Fantom does something similar when you save scenes. When you edit any of the voices in a scene, it won't save your changes to them as part of the scene--you have to save the voices individually and then make sure that the scene uses the newly saved versions. It's a bit annoying in a synth this sophisticated. Incidentally, the Fantom also supports plug-outs, although it calls them "Model extensions". Currently, the Jupiter 8, JX8P, Juno 106 and SH101 are supported. Unlike the System 8, all are fully polyphonic (up to the Fantom's limits.) including the SH101. But you can run up to 16 of them (in any combination) in a single scene, split and/or layered (or layer them with any other Fantom voices from any other engine).

beautiful sounding synth, oh baby

15:50 Sounds so much like the Final Fantasy 7 soundtrack, it's amazing. The song from FF7 is 'Mako Reactor'

Nicely played Nick!

How does this compare to the JD-XA and which is best for multitimbral combis (coming from Korg Triton Extreme).

Under rated synth. It's a great instrument, as Nick says. I've a Rev 2 and a Virus and the System 8 stands its ground in my studio. It sounds fresh and has it's own identity.

phenomenal review

Love the little jam at the start

Did Roland fix your issues? Also, what would be an alternative to this synth within the same class?

Nice shout out to The Blue Nile! My favorite band, along with Prefab Sprout.

Sync of Delay - just hit the on panel tempo sync button - zero sub menu activity there Nick. This gives you the option of using synced or non synced LFO's and Delays with a tempo locked sequence.

@simonandsimon2352

5 жыл бұрын

was wondering about that too, thank you

How does this compare with the JDXA? Which is your favourite ?

sounding great

It does sound pretty good. The color and variation knobs on the osc are pretty cool. Unfortunate that there is only one lfo, and the condition parameter didn't do anything for me. The effects sound pretty average, but definitely increase the stereo image. The sequencer seems very capable, especially if they could implement an option to separate it from the keyboard. The patch system seems terrible. I think the high price is because of the vintage plug outs. The Aira range has something strange about the sound though, which is most noticeable on the TR-8. Almost as if they have already been put through a compressor. I definitely think a lower price would make this more appealing, but pretty good if you want a bunch of Roland sounds in one box.

I'd like a synth between the JD Xi and the JD xa. Any ideas what would suit ?

Question: Can I "sync" the System-8 with a Jd-Xi? Or a TR-8S? Like plug them in together? I'm a noob, just wondering about the possibilities here.

@WildernessMusic_GentleSerene

3 жыл бұрын

Any synth with MIDI 5pinDins that can send or receive clock (master and slave) can be synced to the same tempo, sequencers if available on the synth can also be started remotely from a master. Trouble is not all synths have full MIDI implementation for clock or program change. For example I have 2 Roland Boutiques that do not have a program change control, so that if program change is sent from a master synth the Boutiques would change patches, it made them unusable with that synth. You must download the manual for each synth you wish to sync and read the MIDI implementation charts to see if sync is possible. It is a long and boring process checking this out.

Another brilliant review Nick, thank you kindly. This is certainly a capable and malleable sounding synth workstation and deserves to sell. Though lack of aftertouch and being slightly overpriced is typical Roland, really.However, the moment Nick had the Erebus playing, I couldn't help but feel "nope, that sounds far superior". Anyone else Have a similar reaction?

14:00 I had no idea there was that much difference in the shape of waveforms on vintage synths!

The idea of removing the notes from a sequence to leave the automation animating away is a touch of genius! :) To sync delays... did you try the tempo sync button next to the tempo knob ???

Aarrghhh, finally this review showed me how to transpose a sequence with the unit as this info was missing in the printed manual. Nearly drove me crazy as i was all the time trying to find some button combination with help of the 'transpose'-button, thanks Nick! As I got the System-8 as a replacement for my loved but recently broken JP8000 I felt home right away at first sight, including the mess with saving performances/patches. Anyways, other vendors face this kind of issues as well, hello Elektron? Price is ambitous indeed, but the sound quality is out of question and it's really fun and straight forward to shape rich sound scapes with it.

@RobertSaintJohn

7 жыл бұрын

Make sure you go to the Roland website and get the additional "System-8 Reference Manual". -- goo.gl/Khl8vU -- It's 38 pages as opposed to the Owner's Manual 24 pages, and covers things like individual parameters, transpose, SD card, and the sequencer in much more depth than the printed Owner's Manual. Both have been updated as well, along with supplements for the Jupiter and Juno.

Great vid. Why are there no vids of its real time sequencer?

Does anyone know wtf AIRA stands for? I've got a system 8 coming this week and its bugging me.

Nick, why is it we use to have synths with 20 note polyphony and now we seem to getting synths that only can do 4 or 8. seems to me these synths could easily be 20 note polyphony but they artificially restrict them. yeah?

Can't save your edited patches? That's a deal breaker for me. That aside, Sonic State has become the go to channel for reviews. Well done Nick, love your show!

Beautiful intro piece. Could be one of those interludes on an early Depeche Mode album.

Is the Jupiter 8 Plug out the same as a JP-08 (which is only 4 note poly), sound wise?

@sonicstate

7 жыл бұрын

I can only assume so, cant think why it wouldnt be. Though the System-8 runs at 96khz so suspect it sounds generally better.

You forgot to mention one thing on the back on the synth: the power cord anchor, the horizontal thingy next to the DC-IN. You loop the power cord through it so the cord doesn't get yanked out and damaged.

I'm looking at one of these today. Need a synth for my live rig that's not a DX7..

OK, now that you've done the System-8 review, let's get to the most eagerly awaited Sonicstate review: the MatrixBrute !! ;-)

my one question with this synth: how smooth is the filter and is there any noticeable stepping?

Has Roland fixed the patch saving issue?

Nick, you should get your commission because I think you just sold one of these too me. Excellent demo and I loved your honesty. When your biggest complaint is being a few hundred over priced you know it's good!

Unrelated, but I'd kill to have a SAW2 style album from Nick.

@st0rmchild

4 жыл бұрын

Sign me up for that too.

I like honest reviews. Thanks.

beautiful intro!

Is there a desktop/rack version of this?

Which engine were you using for the opening music? Sounded incredible. Especially those low notes.

@sunilsolanki

7 жыл бұрын

Ooooops never mind. I just realized that the system 8 light was lit up rather than any of the plug outs.

@sonicstate

7 жыл бұрын

Juno 106 on the upper sound

Sounds as pretty as it looks....love Roland stuff

Is there a way to pan osc 1 to the left channel and osc 2 to the right channel at the same time

@WildernessMusic_GentleSerene

3 жыл бұрын

Something the Roland Gaia has always done and done well, spoiled me for most all other synths. 3 oscillators for a gigantic stereo image osc1 left - osc3 right - osc2 center.

3:58 on the System 1M they become polyphonic. i.e.: the SH101 is 4 voice polyphonic when System 1M is set to polyphonic. Does this truly not happen on the System 8 or was this an early firmware problem?

Plastic does not mean less solid. There are plastics stronger but lighter than steel.

@sonicstate

7 жыл бұрын

True.

@ewanstefani

7 жыл бұрын

Plastic does not shout 'flagship' though. I would expect more for the price.

@SPAZZOID100

7 жыл бұрын

Perry Pelican i have one. Build quality is quite flimsy. Sounds great though.

@station2station544

7 жыл бұрын

True...Plastic doesn't automatically mean less solid. BUT this one is less solid. Frankly it's quite crappy. There is one at my local reseller which has been on the floor for a few weeks and it's quite beat. And cheap. Sounds good though. But with so many good synths Ill get something different.

@SPAZZOID100

7 жыл бұрын

Perry Pelican in this case, the plastic is very flimsy.

They aught to have at least included after touch as a modulation source for people that had other midi keyboards or want to control it with things like push.

So what’s the difference between this and a Korg Radias, which I own? Why would I want another virtual analog or a replacement?

@Wagoo

4 жыл бұрын

It's like asking why you would want any other synthesizer. Unless they are closely related or very basic, then they all tend to sound unique in their own way.. their interfaces inspire you to explore new areas of sound, or play new things.. plus it's fun to have choices when you feel like some synth fun

@Sahara-ms6xb

3 жыл бұрын

You are both missing my point; why buy a virtual analog when you can now get REAL analog for the same price. If I wanted this, I would just get the plug-in. Can’t see spending the money.

Conditioner sounds like a sonic conditioner? For augmented or attenuated transients perhaps?

Great demo as always! Sounds really ok for being digital :) However, the mystery of modern japanese synth design continues ...

The System 8 sounds mint, easy to use, feels good and evidently can make FF7 sounds

It looks like you can use the third oscillator as an LFO on the mod section of the other two oscillators, so having only one LFO isn't so bad, or am I dreadfully mistaken.

@ewanstefani

7 жыл бұрын

As it's all just software anyway, I really don't understand why they couldn't have more than 1 LFO, even hidden as an option in a menu for the 'wild experimentalists'..

I think this was meant to be a live performance synth, which is why its made of plastic and slighty smaller and lighter than your average synth. Still built super solid though. Also, can you name any other poly synth with such a fast fully featured built in sequencer? That also offers real time recording and editing? The only other one I can think of is the minilogue. and this definetely is worth 3 times that and sounds much better. Plus performance mode, plugouts, this is a dope ass synth. That's where this synth shines, It's one of the greatest live performance synths ever

@SPAZZOID100

7 жыл бұрын

Ali Afkhami i have one. NOT physically solid. Flimsy plastic.

@solomonjenkins9505

6 жыл бұрын

i have two airas, the tb 3 feels a lil flimsy but the tr8 is rock solid

I always watch your videos when I should be making music....oh well.

@piscue

7 жыл бұрын

worth of meme?

@MrSNEAKFREAK96

7 жыл бұрын

victor piscue I don't understand.

@piscue

7 жыл бұрын

I consider that your phrase would be applied to one meme for that facebook synth memes group: facebook.com/groups/synthmemes/

17:00 gosh this sounds so good

the erebus as master filter is actually the smart addition, considering the digital filter, this is just what makes it sing smoothly. and i´d still use a waldorf microwave over most of todays analog synths when it comes to certain sounds.

@lookingforamuse

7 жыл бұрын

The digital filters are stupidly smooth on this synth and some of the best I have heard in a long time.

How sturdy is the knobs and sliders?? Anyone thanks !

Can someone tell me if it can be used as a midi controller with ableton?

@sonicstate

5 жыл бұрын

Not specifically Ableton. But I think you can turn off local control so that you can use it as a MIDI controller keyboard

Sigh, I've been looking for a digital synth for a while to compliment my analog and sampler. I really want to get those DX7, PPG, Prophet VS type tones. This seems it can get close but most of the demos I've been, much like the Nord Lead 4 and Prophet 12 demos, seems to focus on the traditional "analog" type tones. Does anyone have any demos of this thing doing FM pianos? DX7 type basses, or PPG bells or choirs? I do have my eye on the Prophet 12 but I feel like I'd rather wait until DSI comes out with a successor to it or a new Poly Evolver as the P12 does seem to be lacking some features (sequencer, effects etc).

@sonicstate

6 жыл бұрын

that's because it doesn't have the architecture for creating many of those sounds. You might need to look elsewhere

@EverettDudgeon138

6 жыл бұрын

I don't think there are any FM style keyboard synths on the market now are there? I know there's a few modules but I'd rather an actual keyboard based one.

@Wagoo

6 жыл бұрын

Some FM capabilities were just added to the System-8 in the 1.2 firmware update

@EverettDudgeon138

3 жыл бұрын

@Luke Seeing as my comment was from two years ago (prior to the OpSix or the System 8’s FM update) perhaps thorough reading might be the cause of your lack of comprehension. Might I recommend Hooked On Phonics?

Ok so I have to buy this machine now, great!

Does it cost much adding after touch?? Also the Korg Prologue hasn't got it! what the hell......

@st0rmchild

3 жыл бұрын

The Arturia KeyStep has aftertouch. It’s not the best aftertouch I’ve ever used, but it’s usable. So it can’t be that horrendously expensive to add it, even to full size keys. Roland should have included it in the System-8, but I guess they were trying to hit a certain price point.

I know it's fairly old now but I would have loved to have seen a review on the Roland sh-201 or didn't you take it seriously enough? There are quite a few user reviews already which are pretty good actually but I would like it given the Nick treatment

@johnroynon9784

3 жыл бұрын

I have the SH-201 and the System 8. The newly purchased System 8 has replaced the SH-201 in my live rig. Have read a LOT of criticism of the SH-201 but I have to say I love it. Easy access to parameters and a really gritty low-fi sound. I used to own an original ARP Odyssey back in the day and I wanted to recreate that hard-sync Billy Currie lead sound... I got pretty close with the SH-201 and I think its "lo-fi" character was a factor in that. A great little synth. I'm also a Jupiter 50 owner which everyone slated at face value but, again, if you are prepared to dig a bit deeper, it's an incredibly capable synth (3 oscillators, 3 LFOS per patch etc). Its architecture in terms of how sounds are structured and organised takes a bit of getting used to but I find it a great performance machine as the foundation of my rig with so much split and layering capability. So many people are quick to judge based on a handful of reviews. I borrowed a JP80 for a few months so, when a JP50 came up for sale at a bargain price in pristine condition, I grabbed it.

Awesome review Nick! The Performance Patch issue is too much for me. Very nice sound though :)

Ok you mentioned that the system 1 plug outs work on this, but will the system 8 plug outs work in the system 1?

@RobertSaintJohn

7 жыл бұрын

No. System-8 chipset is more advanced and updated, and the Jupiter 8 and Juno 106 plug-outs are not made available as downloads. They are part of the S8 firmware.

@PharoahsKingdom

7 жыл бұрын

Appreciate it man. I want to buy the System 1. (Which I probably well since it's $500) Also even though I like this System 8 so far, I torn between this and Elektron Analog Keys.

i like the green lights. i like the non-imposing menu, i like the sounds..did i mention the green lights?

@st0rmchild

3 жыл бұрын

I like the look a lot. Don’t understand the green hate. Most synths have red lights only. It’s nice to have some different colors in the studio.

20:14 I like how the caption with number four appears after.

Yea, I got it for $999 on reverb. Love it at that price. It's fairly niche.