Don't forget: Roland had three separate MIDI implementations in the Juno 106. In a mode designed to let one J106 keyboard to control a connected duplicate via the sliders, it passed SYSTEM EXCLUSIVE messages. Once software sequencers gained the ability to record these SYSX messages in real time, the Juno 106 became the first MIDI keyboard to offer programmable filters!!! I still have my original Juno 106, purchased immediately after it was released in '84. I paid around $1200 for it, as I recall. That synth got me a LOT of gigs, and continued to serve me for decades to come. And in a stroke of good luck, I never had to replace a voice card.
I had another DCO synth - the JX-3P. It wasn't immediately as programmable, but if you patiently changed one parameter at a time, you had a dual oscillator synth with full midi and 32 memories that didn't go out of tune. Back in the days when even midi-ing one keyboard to another was experimental, I had someone else's Yamaha DX7 providing the attack, while the JX-3P did the analogue. It sounded faboulous in the studio and i haven't been able to reproduce that combination since. So I was delighted to find it included in the Roland System 8
@Jeff Black Roland System-8 = Jupiter 8 + JX3P + Juno 106 + System 8 engine An incredibly underrated machine that can also house PLUG-OUTS of the SH-101 + SH-2 + Promars + the entire System 100. ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
Layering analog with digital is always a good idea, two different characters blending nicely together. It’s also worth doing it on drums with a 909 type kick for the body and sampled kick for the top part and attack.
I remember the JX-3P. It had this chunky joystick that triggered a slight OCD of mine. I do recall it making nifty sounds like a jet fly-by that made it more endearing, over time but then, having dived headlong into prog, I only had eyes for a Hammond B-3. :) A music student at the community music store, I took various machines home on loan, including the Juno 106 & Korg PolySix & Poly61. Of those, I most appreciated the Poly61's ease of use, but I preferred the PolySix, for twiddlability. I liked the Juno, but for some reason, it just didn't click with me.
The chorus actually has three modes. If you press both mode I and II simultaneously it will combine the two to a third mode as a fun easteregg. Thanks for the video
I have both a Juno-106 and an MKS-50 (rack-mount Alpha Juno). I can tell you that the filter on the A-Juno series is completely different from the 6/60/106 line -- for one thing, it's not self-oscillating, and it drops in volume and gets thin as you turn up the resonance. That being said, if you are good at programming it from a software VST controller, it makes great sounds and the addition of velocity and aftertouch makes it much more "playable." It has a lot of oscillator features with additional waveforms that were not found on previous Junos. I really like having both, honestly.
I bought the Juno 6 when it first came out. A poly synth for about $1000! It kept me off the streets for a few years - I reckon I teased every sound the thing could make out of it and had a bunch of fun doing it.
Thank you soo much to do these documentaries! For me this is pure gold since I love synthesizers and work in the electronic field. History is what everyone needs to look at to fully understand what we should move forward to in the future.
I'd wanted a Juno ever since the first edition came out when I was in school, but never could scrape together the money and spousal approval at the same time. When Cherry Audio unleashed their DCO-106 plugin, I fell all over myself buying it. For thirty clams, I can finally, all these decades later, scratch my Juno itch. Happiness is. 😁 Now to get the GP-10 and the laptop talking to each other so I can trigger the thing from my guitar.
What a lovely video. I found it because I recently thought about buying a used Juno-6 just for fun, having owned one several decades ago. To my total shock, these used synths now go for the same price as a modern day Oberheim. Unbelievable. 30 years ago people were literally giving them away. Not joking, I found a Polysix in the dumpster once. And bought a Prophet-600 for 100 dollars. Still beat myself over the head for not buying more stuff back then (and for selling all of my remaining analog synths in 1997). Anyway, the Juno is a lovely sounding machine. This video brought back many memories, thanks!
Thanks J B - yes I know - prices on Juno's are crazy these days - I've owned a few 106's, 60's and 6's and sold them all for fractions of what they cost now.
It strikes me as the telecaster of synth-keyboards -- simple but brutally effective. Loved the synthwave track near the end -- especially since it does not abuse the sidechain effect.
Great video about the history of the Juno line. I love the old footage and advertising that you have. It's cool to see how these instruments were presented when they were new. I have a Juno-6 which I recently upgraded to have midi. The new controls gives me an additional envelope for the filter as well as unison and portamento modes among other things. Such an amazing and timeless synth. I can't wait to be exploring the sounds on it for the years to come.
I decided to go for the Juno-60 some years ago and just now heard about the Epoxy problem in the 106 the first time in your video! Wow. Today I played it again after longer time and it was instant magic again. The sun comes out when playing it. I cannot describe how wonderful the oscillators sound when PWM and Pitch modulated. It ist just so different then other synths. Roland really have a feeling for good sound and sweetspots. Also the design of the 60 is my personal reference how a synth design has to look like - Just look at the logo alone and the beautiful font type! Just pure hyper-space-astro-retro-S#x ! :D
Oh so cool. I love the 60. Had one back in the 90's and let it go for far too little. It really did have a charm and always sounded so funky as it was just slightly out all the time - all the components warm up and it's total magic.
@ghost mall unfortunately not...the bucket brigade IC's have been mostly replaced by low cost digital equivelents.. and definitely not pin compatible...the early chorys/delay chips were definitely ahead of their time but the signal path in essence was the equivalent of sending your audio thru a 1000 fets and holding caps which created noise and loss...add the chorus effect which modulated the carrier added to the noise by moving the noise thru the spectrum (hence the swishing)
I never thought of the tuning pot on the back as a way to keep the instrument "in-tune". I figured it was so we could tune relative to the guitarist, who I found (at the time) was not willing to tune their guitar(s) to the keyboard guy...
Awesome documentaries you are posting here on RUclips !!! I wrote and recorded my 1st solo cd...Psycho Bitch(available on iTunes,spotify,etc..) in its entirety using my Juno 60 !!! such an amazing synth !!! J.J. Alemany
great video! nice storytelling btw. My dad got a few synths along the years, to this day, but after several ~come&go~ whith his DX-7, he keeps the dream of having a Juno 60 (but i think he maybe will go for a newer version tbh) synth waves from Brasil!
Was also my first 'real synth' and also had the sequencer thingy but never really got to grips with how to use it. Ended up getting a MIDI retrofit kit for the keyboard (was scary opening it up and making the three MIDI socket holes in the case with a QMax punch). Regret selling it of course, but I put the money towards a multi-timbral Roland D10...and that's when the Atari computer based sequencing started happening and I never looked back.
Had the Tubbutec-66 Mod installed on my 60.....really opens up the synth: Details: Midi in- and output. Can output key presses, arpeggiator, Powerarp and chord memory. Additional play modes: Polyphonic, Duophonic, Three-Voice, Two Monophonic modes, Chord Memory and Polychord. The Mono- and Duophonic modes feature adjustable fatness Portamento for all play modes with adjustable speed and behaviour Powerarp: A powerful sequencer that includes breaks and note lengths and can be triggered by the arp clock, trigger, midi clock or midi trigger. Features various direction, transpose and random modes. Two additional filter LFOs: A triangular LFO with a frequency of up to 2.2kHz and a S/H style LFO with various clock sources. A second ADSR for the filter. Detuning. Turns your Juno into an organic analogue synth. Alternative tunings: Select from a range of non-equal tempered tunings or upload a custom scale. Midi filter, pitch bend, arp and portamento control. ...and NO, I don;t have any affiliation with the company......I'm a happy owner/user. The detune function alone makes it all worth it. ;)
By the way, I failed to mention on my previous post: this video is an excellent historical record of the development of this machine. It's thorough and detailed but keeps moving and doesn't get bogged down with arcane knowledge that only delight academics. Thank you.
@@johnnymorgansynthdreams been watching many of your videos. You do good work! I particularly enjoy the histories of many of these awesome older analog synths!
Juno 106 was my first programmable synth (bought Ensoniq Mirage first) - had used a Prophet V in college, love the Juno’s simple and logical programming. Regret selling it - but bought a JV880 with the vintage synth expansion and was able to reprogram my favorite patches and so it seemed extraneous … ugh.
I had a 106 as my first synth when they originally came out, but I didn’t know enough about synthesis to realize what was causing my dissatisfaction with the unit and why I couldn’t get the sound qualities I wanted from it. Fast-forward to today and I realize it was the lack of a second oscillator set.
My first poly was a juno6. I bought it for 300§ new in a sale when the juno60 hit the market . I used it for a couple of years until the Ensoniq esq1 came out and immediately sold the Juno and got the esq1. 3 oscillators with 32 waveforms ,compared to 1 oscillator with 2 waveforms was a no brainer. I still have the esq1. Now I can appreciate the Juno sound but back then every sound sounded The same because of the ( great) chorus. Now I wish I had kept the juno6 ( the only synth I ever sold and ironically commands the highest dollar now) but it seems I was very fed up with it back then
Such a great video, you reallly deserve more recognition. I unfortunately never was able to play a real juno synth but I still love the sound. Altough i've got the ju o6a wich is amazing btw, it's like the 60 and 106 in one. One day I would like to get a real one! A man can dream
Great video! I'm a long time digital audio workstation user and I've always had questions about the bigger more complex synthz from before my time! Wld love to see a video like this on the ASR-10 and the sampling synths of the 90s!
@@johnnymorgansynthdreams Thanks for the answer -- I own a 60, never owned a 106 -- but what happens if you push I and II at the same time on a 106? Amazing video btw!
I sometimes wish roland would make a modern analog verison of a Juno. For now we can just stick with with the digital options. Softube's Model 84 is pretty damn close to the point that it wouldn't make a difference in a mix.
I love the arpeggiator on the 60, which I used like a moving sequencer pattern on the fly!...hearing a friend's is what sold me on it, which I bought in 83 for $1250. I think, but it was so instrumental (pun?) in my developing musical imagination. Cheers
Me too! I play it with both hands over the whole keyboard. There are ways of playing a simple arpeggiator spontaneously over five octaves that give a lot of joy.
Nice job (as always)! I still own my original Juno 60 (bought new in 1984). Back in the 1980’s, I paired it with a Juno 106 & Yamaha DX-7. A few years ago, I acquired the ‘Sequential REV2’, which also uses analogue duel DCO’s. Though it has more of the classic Prophet tone, it can achieve many of the classic Juno sounds, etc, and can even create binaural patches (which have to be heard to believe). Otherwise, I recently acquired the T.C. Electronics ‘JUNE 60 version 2’, stereo chorus emulation peddle, which is a stunning emulation of the coveted Juno chorus (minus all the background noise of the original).
I love theJuno-60 - regret selling mine now although at the time it made sense. I actually remember making my own DCB - DCB cable in the 90's so I could hook it up to an Roland OP-8 and MC-4 was a crazy setup.
Chris I've been curious about the v2 - I know the original June60 came out sounding nothing like the Juno (though not altogether dissimilar from a 2-button Dimension Chorus, but that's another story) and I was wondering how the version 2 stacked up. Glad to hear you like it.
One or two musicians in the 70’s and pre ‘82 had DCO’s fitted to their synth gear, so it’s really a case of manufactures being convinced by spending cash, catching up and reaping the sales.
I love your little mini-documentaries. Thumbs up! I noticed a small factual error in this one: it is actually the Juno-106, not the 60, which has a bass boost via the HPF slider.
Something is missing in this documentary. You did not mention about Roland MKS-50, the rackmount sound module version of Roland Alpha Juno series. It need to be mentioned like you did with Roland Jupiter-8 video where MKS-80 was mentioned. I suggest that you need to update this JUNO documentary again, instead by adding MKS-50 along with Alpha Junos, update about Roland Juno-X, the digital reborn version of Roland JUNO-106.
Fun fact: Juno 6 and 60's were basically worthless until 2012 or so when the Minerva mod came out. I bought 30 or so of them and have never paid more than $200 for one, down to getting a few for free. 50-100 was the going rate forever because everyone wanted the 106 for its full MIDI spec, the 60s always sounded much better to me though so I hoarded them. When Laszlo Kovari released that mod I started restoring them all and modding them and flipping them on Ebay from the midwest usually to LA and NYC. I personally drove the price record from $500 or so up to $1900 which was when I stopped finding them all the time for cheap, and now they are legends thanks to the whole synth resurgance thing going on and they have blown up even further. But as recently as like 8 years ago a stock 60 was still only a 2-300$ synth in great condition. They weren't legends- they were the shitty version of the 106, which always sold for 4-600 from the late 90s through 2014 or so when the masses started turning on to analog synths again. Nice video- all accurate as far as I am aware.
No joke, the 60 sounded much better. I'm kicking myself now for never picking one up in the early naughties, the lack of midi wouldn't have concerned me. It probably would have made me a better keyboard player =-P
I got a 60 in 2013 for 500 and now they are going for 5000! lol Mine needs a service but I am keeping it and getting a Kenton midi to Dcb. Also have a Jx3p in great condition.
On point. Bough my juno 60 for ~200USD around 2008, used it with a trigger from the TR-626 for a while, then had it modded by Laszlo himself with the Minerva kit and been using it with MIDI ever since. Fantastic upgrade.
the 80017 modules had good and bad lots and I believe the actual issue is contamination leading to dendrite crystals Once you remove the coating they ofte work again; particularly ones that are just noisy... 2 days in acetone
These are great synths, but one huge limitation they all share is that they only have 1 DCO per voice, and I don't think you mention this in your video. The chorus helps fatten the sound up though
Understood, but using mine was wonderful for creating meditative/scenic music soundscapes (see my comment above). I partnered it with my ARP Odyssey, which had all the beef I could possibly require : )
Imho the biggest limitation of the Juno 6 was the lack of Patch Memories. The Juno 60 remedied that but the Juno 6 should never have been released to market.
Juno 60 was my first polysynth. A shame Roland took the arpeggiator off the 106. I ended up selling mine because the chorus was just too noisy for recording purposes.
One thing which dampened any interest I might have had in getting a Juno during my early 20s is how you couldn’t do oscillator tuning a la the Oberheim models (think the Styx song “Miss America”). That’s something Roland did partly tackle on the Alpha Juno and MKS-50 models with chord memory and voice stacking. It’s like a give-and-take situation; you would lose the front panel editing capabilities and gain more of the sound-shaping features you would prefer to have. (That’s also why I’m thankful to have owned all three of the JX-10, JX-8p and MKS-70 at different times.)
I largely figured that out when I finally read all the info I could scrounge up about the Juno line, @@johnnymorgansynthdreams. It is almost as if Roland wanted one musician to get every single product they ever built or something.
Where does the JX series fit in the Juno and Jupiter lines (JX3P JX8P JX10 SUPER) Bottom? Middle? It's not the top, I know that's reserved for Jupiter. Why did Roland introduce a third line of Synth? Can you do a doco on the JX line?
Good Idea - I might do a doc on the JX line. The JX's are interesting as they actually all differ quite a bit through the years. The JX-8P and the JX-10 are definitely similar, but the JX-3P is quite a bit different in sound and design.
I always preferred the sound of the Juno-6/60 to the Juno-106. I have no scientific measurements to back this up but I've always felt like the Juno-106 sounded way too clean for my taste. It might just be that the Juno-6 and Juno-60 that I owned were semi-broken compared to the 106:s I played but I always prefer a slightly unpredictable result ;). The progression of Jupiters to Juno-6/60 to Alpha Juno ticked all the boxes for me. The Alpha Junos were ultra clean but that was part of the appeal. The original Juno series were supposed to be slightly warmer and have a slightly more muffled sound and the Jupiters, well, they're the Jupiters so that doesn't compare but that's certainly a lot warmer sound. The 106 was a bit redundant in that progression in my opinion but clearly it has a lot of love from a lot of people :).
@@johnnymorgansynthdreams I went for the MKS50 simply because I reckon the Alpha Juno keyboard mechanics aren't that great and a rack module would do the job just fine. (although they are not identical feature-wise) Just get a PG300 and you're in business ;).
@@tomahzoouldn’t be more wrong about the Alpha Juno keyboard. I have an AJ2, and it’s one of my favorites synths in terms of playing feel; I use it for my main midi controller often times, when I’m not using the keystep for the arp and sequencer ability. The AJ2 has velocity sensitivity, and it’s semi-weighted and gives nice playing resistance and control to go along with the volume dynamics. It’s nothing like the cheap, light as a feather, clicky original Juno key beds. And with the 5 octaves and reasonable price, the AJ2 is arguably one of the best value vintage, analog poly-synths you could buy today; or one of the best value synths, period. But the reason I bothered to comment was simply because of how wrong your assessment was in terms of the playability of the keyboard. Make no mistake: the keyboard is one of its strengths. When I want THAT classic Juno sound, I use my Juno 6. And I do prefer that sound quite a bit; it never gets old. But in terms of playing complicated parts that I need to midi into my DAW in order to edit, duplicate, and automate … I use the AJ2. If you find similar prices … and you probably would … get the full keyboard. And … not for nothing … didn’t Espen Kraft do a video or mention that he thought the rack version maybe sounded a little different/not as good? Or he at least alluded to the fact that some think that? I don’t have any experience with that, but you might want to look into it if you haven’t already pulled the trigger. Edit: We’ll, that was a waste of time. My bad. I just re-read your comment and saw you already had the Mks-50. I’m an idiot. Enjoy your synth, I guess?
I own a Juno 60 and have had a Alpha Juno 2 in my home studio for many years. I agree about the 106 and Alpha Juno sounding more 'clean'. From a technical point of view I believe the reason for this has to do with the precision of the digital clock in the DCO circuitry. This was 'improved', made more precise in the Juno 106. This made the tuning of the oscillators across the keyboard range to be more precise, but also made it more 'dull' sounding. There might be other slight changes I'm not aware of that also contribute to it, but I believe this is the main reason for the difference in sound. The Alpha is the cleanest or weakest sounding, but this is more because of the different filter chip I think. It is a lot more flexible though with it's 7 stage envelope and several additional waveforms including options like having pulse width modulation on the Saw and square wave at the same time, for that nice 'hoover sound'. 😅
Nice work on this video. However, the Juno’s single osc/ADSR means it can never reach the warm and bandwidth of the Prophet-5, OB’s, Jupiter, etc. in fact, as DCO poly synths go, the Kawai SX-240 kills any Juno.
Hey good video. OK so the tuning on the back of the Juno, that’s not the same type of tuning as oscillator tuning calibration. It was an immediate way to tune the Juno sharp or flat to other instruments without having to menu dive just reached over and attenuated the knob until you were in pitch with the rest of the band or other instruments. I don’t think it was Roland actually being clever trying to hide it I think they put it there intentionally to be easily accessible without accidentally whacking it, on the front deck of the UI.
@@johnnymorgansynthdreams All in all man I think your video is amazing and I think your narrative skills are really strong There’s so much content to cover when you’re doing historical/documentaries. .. if you look at what the founder of Roland had to go through and all the personal health challenges that he had, he almost didn’t make it to where he did it it’s amazing that we even have the products today. What a boss! The founder of Yamaha very similar story. I wish I had a suggestion to give here right now on some content for you because I think you are perfect for so many different things. I’ll keep watching your videos hopefully something will come to me. The amazing world of synthesizers! Good job brother keep it up :-)
A coworker just GAVE me a Juno-106. Seriously. As far as I can tell, it functions 100%. It sounds a LOT like the Korg Poly-800, but is much easier to program, since all parameters are controlled on the panel.
So great - the Juno-106 is a classic. Hope you enjoy it! Don't leave it turned on for long periods of time to preserve the voice chips from burning out.
@@johnnymorgansynthdreams Thank you so much for that advice! I work at a college, and I have a few keyboards in my office--the others are an Ensoniq FIZMO and and Access Virus KC. Students stop by and play around with them. At home I have a Korg DW-8000 and an Ensoniq ASR-10. The Virus is probably the most fun to play. The FIZMO is a seriously weird synth, but unlike the Virus, the vocoder is REALLY easy to use. (I've had the Virus for over five years, and still cannot figure out how to get the vocoder to work on that one.) I had a Korg Poly-800 many, many years ago. I seriously miss it.
Don't forget: Roland had three separate MIDI implementations in the Juno 106. In a mode designed to let one J106 keyboard to control a connected duplicate via the sliders, it passed SYSTEM EXCLUSIVE messages. Once software sequencers gained the ability to record these SYSX messages in real time, the Juno 106 became the first MIDI keyboard to offer programmable filters!!! I still have my original Juno 106, purchased immediately after it was released in '84. I paid around $1200 for it, as I recall. That synth got me a LOT of gigs, and continued to serve me for decades to come. And in a stroke of good luck, I never had to replace a voice card.
The Juno 60 was my first synth ever! Thank you for the memories!!
I didn't know that Jeff - that is awesome.
I had another DCO synth - the JX-3P. It wasn't immediately as programmable, but if you patiently changed one parameter at a time, you had a dual oscillator synth with full midi and 32 memories that didn't go out of tune. Back in the days when even midi-ing one keyboard to another was experimental, I had someone else's Yamaha DX7 providing the attack, while the JX-3P did the analogue. It sounded faboulous in the studio and i haven't been able to reproduce that combination since. So I was delighted to find it included in the Roland System 8
@Jeff Black
Roland System-8 = Jupiter 8 + JX3P + Juno 106 + System 8 engine
An incredibly underrated machine that can also house PLUG-OUTS of the SH-101 + SH-2 + Promars + the entire System 100.
⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
Layering analog with digital is always a good idea, two different characters blending nicely together. It’s also worth doing it on drums with a 909 type kick for the body and sampled kick for the top part and attack.
@@intnrmri Pro-advice, thanks
I remember the JX-3P. It had this chunky joystick that triggered a slight OCD of mine. I do recall it making nifty sounds like a jet fly-by that made it more endearing, over time but then, having dived headlong into prog, I only had eyes for a Hammond B-3. :) A music student at the community music store, I took various machines home on loan, including the Juno 106 & Korg PolySix & Poly61. Of those, I most appreciated the Poly61's ease of use, but I preferred the PolySix, for twiddlability. I liked the Juno, but for some reason, it just didn't click with me.
you guys would love the D-50 Linear Arithmetic style sound
The chorus actually has three modes. If you press both mode I and II simultaneously it will combine the two to a third mode as a fun easteregg. Thanks for the video
I was just thinking about that--yes it sounds like a rich vibrato
only on the Juno-60, not on the Juno-106 (as pictured in the video).
Also it goes into mono annoyingly. At least mine does!
I have both a Juno-106 and an MKS-50 (rack-mount Alpha Juno). I can tell you that the filter on the A-Juno series is completely different from the 6/60/106 line -- for one thing, it's not self-oscillating, and it drops in volume and gets thin as you turn up the resonance. That being said, if you are good at programming it from a software VST controller, it makes great sounds and the addition of velocity and aftertouch makes it much more "playable." It has a lot of oscillator features with additional waveforms that were not found on previous Junos. I really like having both, honestly.
Thanks for the info Shayne. I'vs been thinking of getting an A-Juno - I had an MKS-50 in the 80's and really loved it.
Apart from looking like a home keyboard, I love the Alpha Juno's. I actually prefer the sound over the 106.
I bought the Juno 6 when it first came out. A poly synth for about $1000! It kept me off the streets for a few years - I reckon I teased every sound the thing could make out of it and had a bunch of fun doing it.
My first synth ever was the Roland D-10, I never had the pleasure of owning a Juno series, but this docu was very nice to watch, thanks.
Thanks Rayder
These videos of the classics synths are pure gems here on YT. Thank the algorithm that brought me here!
Thank you soo much to do these documentaries! For me this is pure gold since I love synthesizers and work in the electronic field. History is what everyone needs to look at to fully understand what we should move forward to in the future.
WOW. I love your attention to detail and coverage of the Juno line. Thanks!!!!
I'd wanted a Juno ever since the first edition came out when I was in school, but never could scrape together the money and spousal approval at the same time. When Cherry Audio unleashed their DCO-106 plugin, I fell all over myself buying it. For thirty clams, I can finally, all these decades later, scratch my Juno itch. Happiness is. 😁 Now to get the GP-10 and the laptop talking to each other so I can trigger the thing from my guitar.
The DCO was a game changer. Although I didn't realize it at the time it was key (ha, ha) to what brought me into synths.
First synth I ever touched, back in 1988 high school music class. Instant amazement to a 12 yr old.
What a lovely video. I found it because I recently thought about buying a used Juno-6 just for fun, having owned one several decades ago.
To my total shock, these used synths now go for the same price as a modern day Oberheim. Unbelievable. 30 years ago people were literally giving them away. Not joking, I found a Polysix in the dumpster once. And bought a Prophet-600 for 100 dollars.
Still beat myself over the head for not buying more stuff back then (and for selling all of my remaining analog synths in 1997).
Anyway, the Juno is a lovely sounding machine. This video brought back many memories, thanks!
Thanks J B - yes I know - prices on Juno's are crazy these days - I've owned a few 106's, 60's and 6's and sold them all for fractions of what they cost now.
Amazing channel! Great voice & narration skills!
Super educational and a great synthwave tune you composed there!
Fantastic content! Watched all the other episodes as well.
Very informative and overall very well put together. Keep em coming!
Thanks!
It strikes me as the telecaster of synth-keyboards -- simple but brutally effective.
Loved the synthwave track near the end -- especially since it does not abuse the sidechain effect.
Thanks Brian. I definitely agree on the telecaster of keyboards reference - good one.
Great info/video. I have a 106 with kiwi upgrade to do but got to fix those voice chips first.
Great video about the history of the Juno line. I love the old footage and advertising that you have. It's cool to see how these instruments were presented when they were new. I have a Juno-6 which I recently upgraded to have midi. The new controls gives me an additional envelope for the filter as well as unison and portamento modes among other things. Such an amazing and timeless synth. I can't wait to be exploring the sounds on it for the years to come.
Thanks RunFaster - That Juno-6 with midi is an excellent instrument. I love the sound of the Juno-6 filters.
Thank you so much for this. I absolutely adore this synth and had a wonderful time watching this.
Thank you Matthew
Great video, I'm loving this series. I have a JU06a module, and that's as close to one of these as I'm probably going to get.
I want to get the JU-06A as well - it's really good.
I have a Juno 106! (The Roland Cloud software version, that is.)
I always preferred the sound of the 60 over the 106, and now I know why! Thanks!
I've placed both side by side and the 6/60 sounds a bit phatter and stronger. 106 is pure 80's hifi sound just a bit thinner.
I decided to go for the Juno-60 some years ago and just now heard about the Epoxy problem in the 106 the first time in your video! Wow. Today I played it again after longer time and it was instant magic again. The sun comes out when playing it. I cannot describe how wonderful the oscillators sound when PWM and Pitch modulated. It ist just so different then other synths. Roland really have a feeling for good sound and sweetspots. Also the design of the 60 is my personal reference how a synth design has to look like - Just look at the logo alone and the beautiful font type! Just pure hyper-space-astro-retro-S#x ! :D
Oh so cool. I love the 60. Had one back in the 90's and let it go for far too little. It really did have a charm and always sounded so funky as it was just slightly out all the time - all the components warm up and it's total magic.
The Juno 60 is what got me into synths.
My first synth was a Juno-60 (Aug. 1985).
Such a good first synth!
Cut my teeth on these in the 90s when they were cheap as chips. The Juno 106 was my first learning path into programming synths. Awesome video!
I know - I've owned, fixed and sold many 106's they were so common and cheap! Such a great simple synth to learn on.
Brings back great memories as I used to design this stuff...and yes, the Panasonic 300x delay/chorus chips were far better than the Reticon devices
@ghost mall unfortunately not...the bucket brigade IC's have been mostly replaced by low cost digital equivelents.. and definitely not pin compatible...the early chorys/delay chips were definitely ahead of their time but the signal path in essence was the equivalent of sending your audio thru a 1000 fets and holding caps which created noise and loss...add the chorus effect which modulated the carrier added to the noise by moving the noise thru the spectrum (hence the swishing)
splendid and informative mini-documentary. your voice is very ASMR, splendid for the stoned and drunk state of mind i'm currently residing
I never thought of the tuning pot on the back as a way to keep the instrument "in-tune". I figured it was so we could tune relative to the guitarist, who I found (at the time) was not willing to tune their guitar(s) to the keyboard guy...
That too!
My first polyphonic synth purchased new in 82.
Awesome documentaries you are posting here on RUclips !!! I wrote and recorded my 1st solo cd...Psycho Bitch(available on iTunes,spotify,etc..) in its entirety using my Juno 60 !!! such an amazing synth !!! J.J. Alemany
Very nice video, especially with the technical details on the chips. I had a Juno 6 back in the early 80ies.
I have a Juno DS, absolutely fantastic keyboard for the money, the legend lives on!
Historical note: On January 29, 2022 I became subscriber number 3.35K plus me.
Thanks for the great vid. Had a Juno 6 for many years but I got lazy. If I had bought the 60 instead I would probably still have it.
great video! nice storytelling btw. My dad got a few synths along the years, to this day, but after several ~come&go~ whith his DX-7, he keeps the dream of having a Juno 60 (but i think he maybe will go for a newer version tbh)
synth waves from Brasil!
Thanks for sharing!
Great job.
Was also my first 'real synth' and also had the sequencer thingy but never really got to grips with how to use it. Ended up getting a MIDI retrofit kit for the keyboard (was scary opening it up and making the three MIDI socket holes in the case with a QMax punch). Regret selling it of course, but I put the money towards a multi-timbral Roland D10...and that's when the Atari computer based sequencing started happening and I never looked back.
Had the Tubbutec-66 Mod installed on my 60.....really opens up the synth:
Details:
Midi in- and output. Can output key presses, arpeggiator, Powerarp and chord memory.
Additional play modes: Polyphonic, Duophonic, Three-Voice, Two Monophonic modes, Chord Memory and Polychord. The Mono- and Duophonic modes feature adjustable fatness
Portamento for all play modes with adjustable speed and behaviour
Powerarp: A powerful sequencer that includes breaks and note lengths and can be triggered by the arp clock, trigger, midi clock or midi trigger. Features various direction, transpose and random modes.
Two additional filter LFOs: A triangular LFO with a frequency of up to 2.2kHz and a S/H style LFO with various clock sources.
A second ADSR for the filter.
Detuning. Turns your Juno into an organic analogue synth.
Alternative tunings: Select from a range of non-equal tempered tunings or upload a custom scale.
Midi filter, pitch bend, arp and portamento control.
...and NO, I don;t have any affiliation with the company......I'm a happy owner/user.
The detune function alone makes it all worth it. ;)
Cool song at the end.
Thank you, that was a pleasure to watch.
Great video
Amazing documentary.
Got a few of those mentioned
Love them all.
By the way, I failed to mention on my previous post: this video is an excellent historical record of the development of this machine. It's thorough and detailed but keeps moving and doesn't get bogged down with arcane knowledge that only delight academics. Thank you.
Thanks Nelson!
been waiting for this one!
Best synth Channel 💯💯
Love your channel and these films! And your music!
Thanks Tony - much appreciated!
Excellent video!
Glad you liked it!
@@johnnymorgansynthdreams been watching many of your videos. You do good work! I particularly enjoy the histories of many of these awesome older analog synths!
Awesome video Johnny
I adore my Juno, I have the Juno X, Its like having all of the Juno's in one spot.
Fantastic analysis!!
Thoroughly enjoyed! As well as the other synth vids...great work.
Excellent and informative 😊
Juno 106 was my first programmable synth (bought Ensoniq Mirage first) - had used a Prophet V in college, love the Juno’s simple and logical programming. Regret selling it - but bought a JV880 with the vintage synth expansion and was able to reprogram my favorite patches and so it seemed extraneous … ugh.
Phenomenal and quite educational!
I had a 106 as my first synth when they originally came out, but I didn’t know enough about synthesis to realize what was causing my dissatisfaction with the unit and why I couldn’t get the sound qualities I wanted from it. Fast-forward to today and I realize it was the lack of a second oscillator set.
My first poly was a juno6. I bought it for 300§ new in a sale when the juno60 hit the market . I used it for a couple of years until the Ensoniq esq1 came out and immediately sold the Juno and got the esq1. 3 oscillators with 32 waveforms ,compared to 1 oscillator with 2 waveforms was a no brainer. I still have the esq1. Now I can appreciate the Juno sound but back then every sound sounded The same because of the ( great) chorus. Now I wish I had kept the juno6 ( the only synth I ever sold and ironically commands the highest dollar now) but it seems I was very fed up with it back then
Nice! Quite enjoyable. I am at 6:24 want to throw props for the under-rated Poly 800 Mark II.
I haven't yet had a chance to play the hardware versions but the Roland Cloud is a good compromise.
I love my Roland Juno-60
Such a great video, you reallly deserve more recognition. I unfortunately never was able to play a real juno synth but I still love the sound. Altough i've got the ju o6a wich is amazing btw, it's like the 60 and 106 in one. One day I would like to get a real one! A man can dream
The JU-06A is great - really no need for the real thing - Thanks for checking out the channel!
Great video! I'm a long time digital audio workstation user and I've always had questions about the bigger more complex synthz from before my time!
Wld love to see a video like this on the ASR-10 and the sampling synths of the 90s!
great suggestion - I was thinking something Ensoniq next
I just saw your Roland sampler videos they are really good too I like how u played alot of the sounds so they cld be easily sampled!
thanks for that history lesson!
Wow, That was impressive information.
one of the best inventions people ever made ever.....
I miss my Juno 60. I had one in the 80s
hi ctually the Juno 60 has 78 patches you just have to hold down the five bank while pressing the one or two banks love my juno60!
That is interesting - I did not know that and owed one for years
it goes til 98, the 8x and 9x patches are nonwritable I think
@@johnnymorgansynthdreams Also, it has 4 chorus modes: I, II, I AND II, OFF
@@Andronty Yes - The 106 only does 1 and 2 though which is odd. Thanks for the correction!
@@johnnymorgansynthdreams Thanks for the answer -- I own a 60, never owned a 106 -- but what happens if you push I and II at the same time on a 106? Amazing video btw!
Some bastard brought a 6 or 60 to my school and played it for us.
My name is Tom and I'm a synthoholic.
Sweet!
Great video 👍🏼
Thanks 👍
Great video, super interesting :)
I FOKKIN luv this channel :)
Glad you enjoy it!
I think the latest Juno X will become the cataclysmic apparatus of them all to be reckoned with.
The Juno-X looks really good.
Keep it up Johnny!
Chorus can be I,II and I+II. Three settings nonetheless
Although not on the 106, which is odd.
Top vid as always 👌
I still have my Juno 6 I bought for dirt cheap in a thrift store in the early 90s. Nobody wanted that in these times.
They sure want 'em nowadays! I was in my favorite used-gear dealer earlier this year and they had a 6 and a 60, for $2k and $3k respectively. OUCH. :D
@@mrz80 I saw a 60 for 5k just now
I had a Roland Juno 6 in the late 80s and loved it for strings. That chorus was so fat and irreplaceable.
This is a great channel i subscibed !!!
Thanks for subbing!
I sometimes wish roland would make a modern analog verison of a Juno. For now we can just stick with with the digital options. Softube's Model 84 is pretty damn close to the point that it wouldn't make a difference in a mix.
The 6 also has the fully adjustable, continuous LPF. The 106 doesn't have the arpeggiator, though it does have MIDI and more patch memory.
I love the arpeggiator on the 60, which I used like a moving sequencer pattern on the fly!...hearing a friend's is what sold me on it, which I bought in 83 for $1250. I think, but it was so instrumental (pun?) in my developing musical imagination. Cheers
Me too! I play it with both hands over the whole keyboard. There are ways of playing a simple arpeggiator spontaneously over five octaves that give a lot of joy.
and portamento !
Nice job (as always)! I still own my original Juno 60 (bought new in 1984). Back in the 1980’s, I paired it with a Juno 106 & Yamaha DX-7. A few years ago, I acquired the ‘Sequential REV2’, which also uses analogue duel DCO’s. Though it has more of the classic Prophet tone, it can achieve many of the classic Juno sounds, etc, and can even create binaural patches (which have to be heard to believe). Otherwise, I recently acquired the T.C. Electronics ‘JUNE 60 version 2’, stereo chorus emulation peddle, which is a stunning emulation of the coveted Juno chorus (minus all the background noise of the original).
I love theJuno-60 - regret selling mine now although at the time it made sense. I actually remember making my own DCB - DCB cable in the 90's so I could hook it up to an Roland OP-8 and MC-4 was a crazy setup.
Chris I've been curious about the v2 - I know the original June60 came out sounding nothing like the Juno (though not altogether dissimilar from a 2-button Dimension Chorus, but that's another story) and I was wondering how the version 2 stacked up. Glad to hear you like it.
@@VinceWhitacre The June60 version 2, is very close to the famous Roland one (minus the noise). I have mine connected to my Moog Sub-37.
One or two musicians in the 70’s and pre ‘82 had DCO’s fitted to their synth gear, so it’s really a case of manufactures being convinced by spending cash, catching up and reaping the sales.
I love your little mini-documentaries. Thumbs up!
I noticed a small factual error in this one: it is actually the Juno-106, not the 60, which has a bass boost via the HPF slider.
Oh - ok - I'l lee if I can correct this - thanks
My 60 has a sub-oscillator to a square wave with a slider(!) addition which added a lower octave...VERY useful
Something is missing in this documentary. You did not mention about Roland MKS-50, the rackmount sound module version of Roland Alpha Juno series. It need to be mentioned like you did with Roland Jupiter-8 video where MKS-80 was mentioned. I suggest that you need to update this JUNO documentary again, instead by adding MKS-50 along with Alpha Junos, update about Roland Juno-X, the digital reborn version of Roland JUNO-106.
Fun fact: Juno 6 and 60's were basically worthless until 2012 or so when the Minerva mod came out. I bought 30 or so of them and have never paid more than $200 for one, down to getting a few for free. 50-100 was the going rate forever because everyone wanted the 106 for its full MIDI spec, the 60s always sounded much better to me though so I hoarded them. When Laszlo Kovari released that mod I started restoring them all and modding them and flipping them on Ebay from the midwest usually to LA and NYC. I personally drove the price record from $500 or so up to $1900 which was when I stopped finding them all the time for cheap, and now they are legends thanks to the whole synth resurgance thing going on and they have blown up even further. But as recently as like 8 years ago a stock 60 was still only a 2-300$ synth in great condition. They weren't legends- they were the shitty version of the 106, which always sold for 4-600 from the late 90s through 2014 or so when the masses started turning on to analog synths again. Nice video- all accurate as far as I am aware.
I know - I bought and sold many myself - I think I sold my 60 for about $400
No joke, the 60 sounded much better. I'm kicking myself now for never picking one up in the early naughties, the lack of midi wouldn't have concerned me. It probably would have made me a better keyboard player =-P
I got a 60 in 2013 for 500 and now they are going for 5000! lol Mine needs a service but I am keeping it and getting a Kenton midi to Dcb. Also have a Jx3p in great condition.
On point. Bough my juno 60 for ~200USD around 2008, used it with a trigger from the TR-626 for a while, then had it modded by Laszlo himself with the Minerva kit and been using it with MIDI ever since. Fantastic upgrade.
well done
TAL has a nice , free VST that imitates the Roland chorus fairly well, imo...
the 80017 modules had good and bad lots and I believe the actual issue is contamination leading to dendrite crystals Once you remove the coating they ofte work again; particularly ones that are just noisy... 2 days in acetone
ps i have a good lot in my 106 and a mint 6 also i like a lot..plus some mks30's that also use 80017 modules and are more ike jx3p otherwise
These are great synths, but one huge limitation they all share is that they only have 1 DCO per voice, and I don't think you mention this in your video. The chorus helps fatten the sound up though
Understood, but using mine was wonderful for creating meditative/scenic music soundscapes (see my comment above). I partnered it with my ARP Odyssey, which had all the beef I could possibly require : )
Imho the biggest limitation of the Juno 6 was the lack of Patch Memories. The Juno 60 remedied that but the Juno 6 should never have been released to market.
i have a yamaha psr s710 and its professionol
Juno 60 was my first polysynth. A shame Roland took the arpeggiator off the 106. I ended up selling mine because the chorus was just too noisy for recording purposes.
One thing which dampened any interest I might have had in getting a Juno during my early 20s is how you couldn’t do oscillator tuning a la the Oberheim models (think the Styx song “Miss America”). That’s something Roland did partly tackle on the Alpha Juno and MKS-50 models with chord memory and voice stacking. It’s like a give-and-take situation; you would lose the front panel editing capabilities and gain more of the sound-shaping features you would prefer to have. (That’s also why I’m thankful to have owned all three of the JX-10, JX-8p and MKS-70 at different times.)
I think that's the thing with Roland - they are always giving and taking way features at the same time. It was never a linear path with them.
I largely figured that out when I finally read all the info I could scrounge up about the Juno line, @@johnnymorgansynthdreams. It is almost as if Roland wanted one musician to get every single product they ever built or something.
Where does the JX series fit in the Juno and Jupiter lines (JX3P JX8P JX10 SUPER)
Bottom? Middle? It's not the top, I know that's reserved for Jupiter.
Why did Roland introduce a third line of Synth?
Can you do a doco on the JX line?
Good Idea - I might do a doc on the JX line. The JX's are interesting as they actually all differ quite a bit through the years. The JX-8P and the JX-10 are definitely similar, but the JX-3P is quite a bit different in sound and design.
What song is being played around 10:40 sounds damn amazing
Just a song I wrote for the video
I always preferred the sound of the Juno-6/60 to the Juno-106. I have no scientific measurements to back this up but I've always felt like the Juno-106 sounded way too clean for my taste. It might just be that the Juno-6 and Juno-60 that I owned were semi-broken compared to the 106:s I played but I always prefer a slightly unpredictable result ;). The progression of Jupiters to Juno-6/60 to Alpha Juno ticked all the boxes for me. The Alpha Junos were ultra clean but that was part of the appeal. The original Juno series were supposed to be slightly warmer and have a slightly more muffled sound and the Jupiters, well, they're the Jupiters so that doesn't compare but that's certainly a lot warmer sound. The 106 was a bit redundant in that progression in my opinion but clearly it has a lot of love from a lot of people :).
I still want to get and Alpha Juno-2. I had an MKS-50 for many years and liked it a lot - yes it was super clean. Great 80's synth
@@johnnymorgansynthdreams I went for the MKS50 simply because I reckon the Alpha Juno keyboard mechanics aren't that great and a rack module would do the job just fine. (although they are not identical feature-wise) Just get a PG300 and you're in business ;).
@@tomahzoouldn’t be more wrong about the Alpha Juno keyboard.
I have an AJ2, and it’s one of my favorites synths in terms of playing feel; I use it for my main midi controller often times, when I’m not using the keystep for the arp and sequencer ability.
The AJ2 has velocity sensitivity, and it’s semi-weighted and gives nice playing resistance and control to go along with the volume dynamics. It’s nothing like the cheap, light as a feather, clicky original Juno key beds.
And with the 5 octaves and reasonable price, the AJ2 is arguably one of the best value vintage, analog poly-synths you could buy today; or one of the best value synths, period.
But the reason I bothered to comment was simply because of how wrong your assessment was in terms of the playability of the keyboard. Make no mistake: the keyboard is one of its strengths.
When I want THAT classic Juno sound, I use my Juno 6. And I do prefer that sound quite a bit; it never gets old.
But in terms of playing complicated parts that I need to midi into my DAW in order to edit, duplicate, and automate … I use the AJ2.
If you find similar prices … and you probably would … get the full keyboard.
And … not for nothing … didn’t Espen Kraft do a video or mention that he thought the rack version maybe sounded a little different/not as good? Or he at least alluded to the fact that some think that?
I don’t have any experience with that, but you might want to look into it if you haven’t already pulled the trigger.
Edit: We’ll, that was a waste of time. My bad. I just re-read your comment and saw you already had the Mks-50. I’m an idiot. Enjoy your synth, I guess?
I own a Juno 60 and have had a Alpha Juno 2 in my home studio for many years. I agree about the 106 and Alpha Juno sounding more 'clean'. From a technical point of view I believe the reason for this has to do with the precision of the digital clock in the DCO circuitry. This was 'improved', made more precise in the Juno 106. This made the tuning of the oscillators across the keyboard range to be more precise, but also made it more 'dull' sounding. There might be other slight changes I'm not aware of that also contribute to it, but I believe this is the main reason for the difference in sound. The Alpha is the cleanest or weakest sounding, but this is more because of the different filter chip I think. It is a lot more flexible though with it's 7 stage envelope and several additional waveforms including options like having pulse width modulation on the Saw and square wave at the same time, for that nice 'hoover sound'. 😅
Nice work on this video. However, the Juno’s single osc/ADSR means it can never reach the warm and bandwidth of the Prophet-5, OB’s, Jupiter, etc.
in fact, as DCO poly synths go, the Kawai SX-240 kills any Juno.
Hey good video. OK so the tuning on the back of the Juno, that’s not the same type of tuning as oscillator tuning calibration. It was an immediate way to tune the Juno sharp or flat to other instruments without having to menu dive just reached over and attenuated the knob until you were in pitch with the rest of the band or other instruments.
I don’t think it was Roland actually being clever trying to hide it I think they put it there intentionally to be easily accessible without accidentally whacking it, on the front deck of the UI.
True - good point. yes of course DCO's didn't need calibration anymore, but I think putting the tuning on the back was a first
@@johnnymorgansynthdreams All in all man I think your video is amazing and I think your narrative skills are really strong
There’s so much content to cover when you’re doing historical/documentaries.
.. if you look at what the founder of Roland had to go through and all the personal health challenges that he had,
he almost didn’t make it to where he did it it’s amazing that we even have the products today. What a boss!
The founder of Yamaha very similar story.
I wish I had a suggestion to give here right now on some content for you because I think you are perfect for so many different things. I’ll keep watching your videos hopefully something will come to me.
The amazing world of synthesizers! Good job brother keep it up :-)
A coworker just GAVE me a Juno-106. Seriously. As far as I can tell, it functions 100%. It sounds a LOT like the Korg Poly-800, but is much easier to program, since all parameters are controlled on the panel.
So great - the Juno-106 is a classic. Hope you enjoy it! Don't leave it turned on for long periods of time to preserve the voice chips from burning out.
@@johnnymorgansynthdreams Thank you so much for that advice! I work at a college, and I have a few keyboards in my office--the others are an Ensoniq FIZMO and and Access Virus KC. Students stop by and play around with them.
At home I have a Korg DW-8000 and an Ensoniq ASR-10.
The Virus is probably the most fun to play. The FIZMO is a seriously weird synth, but unlike the Virus, the vocoder is REALLY easy to use. (I've had the Virus for over five years, and still cannot figure out how to get the vocoder to work on that one.)
I had a Korg Poly-800 many, many years ago. I seriously miss it.