Boutique Synths

JP-08 not that great?

Log in Register
Advanced
Log in to reply

Re: JP-08 not that great?

17 Aug 2017, 14:44
Doubt it... to get a proper Jupiter sound you actually need 2 JP-08 modules to sort out its glaring polyphony problems! It's only a duo synth when using the dual sound, and the fact that it didn't allow splitting of the sounds really angered a lot of old sk00l purists. Ultimately the JP is just way too small (10mm slider travel? lol) to cram in all the features of Rolands most beloved synth. I think many people to this day scratch their heads to why they don't just remake a Jupiter that is actually analogue in its sound. The closest modern creation is the JD-XA, but again, 4 note polyphony on analogue really bums out purists (I'm ok with 4, but 2 is not acceptable).

As a result my JP-08 is a toilet synth, to make taking a crap more fun :D hahahaha

Re: JP-08 not that great?

18 Aug 2017, 19:08
Myrk- wrote:
As a result my JP-08 is a toilet synth, to make taking a crap more fun :D hahahaha


Umm, OK.

Re: JP-08 not that great?

29 Aug 2017, 16:09
Myrk- wrote:
Doubt it... to get a proper Jupiter sound you actually need 2 JP-08 modules to sort out its glaring polyphony problems! It's only a duo synth when using the dual sound, and the fact that it didn't allow splitting of the sounds really angered a lot of old sk00l purists. Ultimately the JP is just way too small (10mm slider travel? lol) to cram in all the features of Rolands most beloved synth. I think many people to this day scratch their heads to why they don't just remake a Jupiter that is actually analogue in its sound. The closest modern creation is the JD-XA, but again, 4 note polyphony on analogue really bums out purists (I'm ok with 4, but 2 is not acceptable).

As a result my JP-08 is a toilet synth, to make taking a crap more fun :D hahahaha
Well, considering the price, I think it would've been unreasonable to expect more. On the previous page, I posted the link to an editor that I bought & it makes all the parameters (even the hidden menus) easily accessible & actually, the JP-08 has controls & features that the original never had like extra waveforms on the oscillators & the LFO, stereo delay & chorus.

Yes, it does have limited polyphony but listen to those demos & hear everything else it does really well, including emulating the sounds of so many other classics that Daniel Miller had back in the day. Bases, leads, arps, stabs, effects, that's quite a lot actually!

See here for another great soundset: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IjpufV5tMyw

If you want a truly analogue synth then look at the price of a Moog like the Sub37 which I have & is only duo-phonic. For a full analogue 8-Voice synth, notice that the cost of DSI's synths reach around £2000 so when you compare £300, the JP-08 is a steal!

I always prefer to learn & know about the limitations of something so that you can move on & learn to use it for its strengths which is what I'm now doing with the JP-08. :-)

Re: JP-08 not that great?

3 Sep 2017, 15:50
Yes very true points. I guess what I'm getting at is that the JU gets loads of love (so much so it's sold out globally), and the JX is a wicked module which a lot of people really enjoy (strange considering the JX-3P was never a massive deal back in the day), but then Rolands best ever synth (heralded) turned to boutique doesn't get highly praised from what I see around, with many shops dropping and dropping its value to get rid of stock - it seems more just people accepting it's limitations rather than querying why a Jupiter is so constricted. Polyphony issue is more a problem for live musicians than studio as well - not sure how many people would attempt to play a JP-08 live though! :P

I'd loved to be proved totally wrong, but my ears just aren't hearing greatness from that module - at least nothing like the JU or JX (or even the VP!). I'll try fiddling more with cc93 (the JU chorus) to see if it richens up the sound more on some of the classic pads. The best sounds I ever came across was some company that gave away the original factory patches on the Jupiter 8 recoded for the JP.

← Back to Boutique Synths