Here’s a shameless affiliate link to buy a plugin version of the Jupiter 6!! Spot my video of it too, it’s sort of a sequel to this vid! tidd.ly/3FdbYRf
I had experience with both the Jupiter 8 & 6 back in the 80s. The Jupiter 6 was never really considered inferior to the JP-8 back then (it had more modulation features than its predecessor, a killer arpeggiator, though less voices, and a more harsher filter), but it came out just when the world went crazy for the Yamaha DX7 - so it had no chance for staying in the spotlight that long. I still use the Jupiter 6 with a defective patch memory, but it proves how intuitive the beast still is to program. Sadly, the last batch of Roland's true analog synths (the JX-8P, Super JX and the Alpha Juno series) discarded everything that was so good about the JP-6. New users often overlook the fact that you can combine more than one wave per oscillator.
@@loreleiofthemist It sounds like insect mating call simulator 5000 lol. If you want glassy, shrill, irritating sounds its a beast tho for sure. It’s a great sfx machine but it’s not great as an expensive vintage synth. A modern Prophet 6 or OB6 or Rev 2 is a far better option at half the cost.
@@shane864 now listen here you uneducated steam valve. I have it i recently bought it. I will be as objective as a human can, I base my facts off of science and there will be no exagerations. You are very obviously taking the words of the general opinion as your own, but i highly suspect you haven't touched a single key of this violet-tinted keyboard. Also, you don't make music in studio. Because this synth, it's good. Now i said i'll keep this comment obejctive, and i'll stick to that, but in my humble opinion of music producer and physicist, it's a masterclass of a synth. You cannot tell me it sounds any harsh or distorted or cold, because it simply doesn't. The filter on low-pass is as gentle and well behaved as it can be and there are no bass loss, and the jupiter series is KNOWN for its bass. The resonance picks the harmonics like a jewelry-maker and while THAT makes it lose bass when it's high in the frequencies, guess what : it does as well on the jupiter 8. Bass is cool, but if you base your judgement on nothing but that, that won't take you far in the music scene, apart if you want all your mixes to sound like they're played on beats headphones (overdone mushy bass, no top-end). And in that category, the voltage controllable hi-pass filter can free up the frequency band allowing your bass to peak through undisturbed, and the band-pass option along with resonance, although it doesn't make "fat" tones like a prophet, that's not the point ! It wouldn't fit in a song ! That's bad and not useful ! The jupiter-6 filter allows you to play with the harmonics and take your sounds to space, that's what it does ! If somehow, even though it's the same as in the jupiter 8, you find the raw waves too sharp (that's because when the filter slider in all the way up the filter is turned off, unlike the jupiter 8), you add in a triangle, and boom, instant active bass boost ! It will sound as fat as a Juno 106 saw, as it has the same kind of curved slope on the oscilloscope. The high frequency mode of VCO-2 is absolutely useful, even if before buying the synth i didn'g think it was, and when you sync the high frequency VCO to VCO-1 and use the band-pass filter knowingly, you can pull out really convincing FM-like sounds with it ! I've been able to recreate the famous E. Bass 1 of the DX7 with it and several very good E. Pianos with it, no joke, it's amazing. It's warm and fat when you order it to, it's thin or space-sounding when you order it to, this synth is a well rounded piece of hardware, and should not be seen as a budget jupiter 8 but rather an improvement in both features and price of the jupiter series. Oh did i mention the pulse width goes through 0 ? You can make organ stuff with percussive tones by running the inverted enveloppe-1 into the pulse width modulation. The ability to combine waveshapes is often overlooked but very useful. Put on both VCOs tris saws and pulses (modulated by LFO-1) detuned, unison mode, unison detune to more than half, you can even add noise to take it a step further with this "tssss" glue that holds everything together and you've got one of the better-sounding supersaws. You can have up to 3 voices before the effect wears off a little. Again, saw on VCO-1, detuned VCO-2 to saw, square, triangle and noise, filter set to low pass, key follow and a bit of enveloppe 1 with short decay, now you can score blade runner. It's amazing how this synth has encouraged serendipity and served as a building stone for genres such as trance, techno, and experimental music.
Over the decades I have gotten rid of most of my vintage analog poly synths with the exception of the JP6 and a few others. It has sparkle that no other synth has.
I was confused about why you were doing a video on what I thought was a pretty normal polysynth, but man, you're getting some strange sounds out of it! Never knew it could behave that way.
Alex, that was amazing! Wow! I never realised just how great this synth is - I knew it was good (it's a f***ing Jupiter!) but I had no idea it could do what you made it do. FFFFantastic stuff!
I love that you show the uniqueness of the Jupiter 6; I’d never quite understood it’s place, whereas now I see it’s huge potential! I’ve made comments on other forums about why has there never been a virtual JP6 when there are a plethora of “JP8” virtuals? - I think your video perfectly demonstrates why it’s almost impossible to emulate the JP6 virtually…
I owned a Jupiter 6 from new and kept it until 2013. I had the Europa mod installed hoping that it would open up more possibilities but at the end of the day the sound is the sound. As we all know, it’s not a cut down JP-8. Nor is it a more feature rich Juno. They are all different sonically. For me the JP-6 never really cut it (and once I bought a 4 and an 8 it had to go) but in the right hands, in the right genre and with the use of effects it’s a very capable machine. Orbital built their sound around it after all.
I have an 8 and a 6. They are so similar but very different. Its not an equivalent but more of an extra. The JP8 is brilliant but in its own way... so is the 6. If i make a voice on the 8, i can soon make it on the 6 with something missing. If i make a voice on the 6, i can replicate it on the 8 but again, something missing or not quite the same. Its very hard to put into words how the 2 compare.
I love my JP6 to bits, but just learned a few tricks from your video I've never stumbled across myself - wonderful, thanks - this is officially now the best JP-6 demo!
When I get more money I plan to buy my own JP6 and install it on my setup alongside the JP8000 and MC303! That’d be great music producing equipment! The sound quality on your video is so good and the demonstration when I hear drop at 25:06 I really think you should do a live performance in front of people!
I used to own a Jupiter 6 when it came out, great synth built like a tank. I remember having a slight Jupiter 8 envy, but I kept it for 4 or 5 years and used it a lot. I had a DX7 too and they made a good couple.
I was fortunate enought to own a Jupiter-6 for a number of years and loved it for it's ability to produce unusual soundscapes, tones and dynamics (just like you've demoed here!). Sure, it can do excellent pads, a pretty good impression of a 303 and even a passable piano, but as a generator of really interesting sounds, that's where it's appeal lay for me. That, and it totally looks the business as well - so many sliders, coloured buttons and flashing lights; a real synth!
Well, I hadn't missed my Jupiter 6 (sold it 6 years ago when I moved abroad) ... until now!!! You certainly know how to get the most out of it. I loved it but got it in about 1986, when I knew a lot less about synths and didn't care for it as much as I could have, though I certainly used it. I remember making a track which scrolled thru the 8 presets of a whole bank, using the CV gate. It sounded F.A.B.! I wish someone, like Arturia, TAL or Cherry Audio, would make a soft version. I'm gonna suggest it! Always loved the colour-scheme. Really enjoyed your video and learnt a lot I hadn't known. Thanks!!! :)
Great demo. I have heard too many people saying bad things about the 6's sound, and I admit it can be a little thin at times but you showed the nasty side of it and that is why I love mine. One can get lost for hours getting all sorts of weird noises out of it, especially with the cross mod and sync.
It sounds like ass. If it had no value as a physical object I'd take any number of VSTs over it. It has absolutely nothing in common with the Jupiter 4 or 8 sonically and in fact when I got mine in the late 90's I thought I just sucked at synthesis for many years because everything I did sounded like shit. Then I got a Jupiter 8 and was like oh. It was just that shitty synth. The JP6 has sucked since they were $500, they suck now, and they will suck forever. More power to anyone that likes one- but any random subtractive VST shits on it.
I bought one this year with Europa installed. I've had so many synthesizers in my life and still do. I'm now seriously considering selling them all with exception of the Jupiter 6. Yes, I know that opening statement is a bit dramatic (and due to my GAS, unlikely) but the Jupiter 6 takes care of ALMOST everything I need and this is probably why people consider it a work horse. It blows my mind every time I play it, full of surprises. The detail in the most minute of parameter changes can throw your sound into an alternate state. I'd been working hard on modern synthesizers (good ones) but I'm sorry to say that the Jupiter dug them all an early grave within seconds. The only thing that a Europa Jupiter 6 could possibly improve on is maybe...just maybe, certain pads. Absolutely nothing wrong with it but I do have a penchant for JX-10 pads - the two different filter chips between the synths have different strong points. Lastly, I'd like to say that a big part of the enjoyment with any synthesizer is it's ergonomics, the Jupiter 6 is excellent in this regard - a sound designers dream. Don't compare a 6 to an 8, they're complete individuals - might as well compare a 4 to a 6, just as pointless.
I'm sure the Europa upgrade makes a huge difference. I found the sound of the JP6 disappointing, so sold it and replaced it with the Super Jupiter module. Selling all your synthesizer except for the JP6 is high praise for it. If I could keep only 1 synthesizer out of my collection, I'd pick my Waldorf Q--32 voices, 3 oscillators, stereo filter with multiple filter types, mod matrix, programmable arpeggiator and sequencer, 16 part multi-timbral, 4 effects at same time. It's like a mini-work station, but much less complicated. More like a play station.
@@wedream2 I think there's a lot to be said about the fluctuations and variations between one Jupiter 6 and another. A synth tech recently asked me if I wanted him to calibrate the voices and the filters in my Jupiter 6, to which I replied absolute not. There are also tweeks you can make to a Jupiter 6 to give it more bass etc. I don't know whether it's just my Jupiter 6 or whether it's just my preference for a particular sound but something makes me very happy with this piece of kit.
It's a cross-mod-monster. Bought mine in 1990 from a guy in Brighton, for £350, immaculate condition. One of the 3340 chips on the VCO-2 board blew about 15yr ago, still haven't got it fixed, - still, it makes a great mono-synth.
How do you get usable tones with cross-mod ??? I've not been able to successfully use the cross-mod in any meaningful way and always came back to syncing VCOs for uncommon/weird raw tones. I was thinking of doing the linear FM mod but i'd be permanently altering a piece of history
I used to have one of these. I bought it for 900 euros because the fine tune pot was a bit wonky. It was an easy problem to solve.. just a bit of resoldering of that pot's leg, and it wa back in business. I kept it for a couple of years, and really loved it;s sound.I couldn't resist the temptation of selling it for a good price (1500 euros) to help finance and Alesis Andromeda. Well the andromeda was an upgrade in the sense of it being capable of a bigger palette of sounds, but as far as mojo.. I'm not so sure. Later I sold the Andy as well and bought a Jupiter 80, sytem 1, and TB-3. Gues what.. I sold those after some more years as well, and bought a JD-XA and sytem 8. Those are staying.. well the system 8 is for sure. The JD-XA was supposed to provide the digital side of things, and while it sounds great, I don't use it as much as my other synths. Anyway.. all this to say that the Jupiter 6 really IS a great synth in it's own right. In some ways I like it more than the 8. It's more flexible. We can only hope that Roland decides to do a really cool ACB version of it. But even then.. there's nothing like owning the physical thing and having it in front of you to mess around with :)
Wow, geat demo! most barely do the 6 justice… By far the best I’ve seen. Definitely has a Very different sound from the eight… But personally I prefer it, due to some of its unique architecture.
Thanks for the video! I'm actually getting JP-6 next week. I already have MKS 80 rev4 but it has a VERY aggressive bass boost circuit and hence it misses the more polite side of JP-6 . So i figured out it is best to have both. :) EDIT: Doh! Silly me. I totally forgot I also have a JP-8
Haha, of all people I would expect you to have one of every one! Very interested in your thoughts on the difference between MKS80 versions. The first Roland poly I ever played was an MKS80, and I remember being amazed by it, it’s a part of why I bought the JP6 originally, but I never knew if it was a REV 4 or 5...JP6 didn’t seem to have that same quality. But to be fair, I’m not sure what that quality was. Memory is funny
Yeah MKS-80 is the king of 80's no doubt. Madonna, Hans Zimmer (has 4 of them), countless electro/freestyle tracks. That bass boost circuit was a work of a genius. It completely changes the envelopes creating natural compression and that tone... is just instant hit record sound.
That thing is amazing! Thank you for showcasing one of the giants of the 80's synths. I bought a Juno 6 back then and actually did those bell sounds (@ 16min) with it as well, it played beautifully across the entire keyboard. Stupidly I traded it in. But I did get a Juno 60 in the 90's for 250 DM! This thing will stay with me till I die. ;)
You know, now I've seen it demoed _properly,_ these sounds remind me of my Super 6 far more than the Jupiter 8 ever did (despite people making _that comparison_ all the time). Obviously the layout was self-evidently rather similar, and even also has a cooler-toned colour scheme, but those don't necessarily mean anything about the underlying sound. But some of the modulation possibilities you laid-out here are sooo much like sounds I've made while exploring mine. Lovely.
Alex Ball has said that he couldn't really find a way to make the JP6 sound "happy" per se, but I think many parts of this video have proven that that really can be done quite well, even with the synth's "tinny" sound quality.
Love listening to these crazy patches you’ve dreamed up! Great Sunday morning listening. I’ve been using mine since the 90’s as a pretty “normal” but flexible polysynth. Bought it because I mistakenly thought that Greg Hawkes (The Cars) had one. Never have been disappointed in the tone, was honestly surprised to learn of its reputation as being “tinny” or “icy”. Mine does seem to sound a little warmer than the one in this video. Probably no way that this could be because the filters are on chips, but hey - thought I’d mention it anyways.
I always found the "Jupiter 6" the most interesting of the Jupiter range. Except for the "mks-80" that one always intrigued me the most! But the "6" I just found so beautiful, especially aesthetic wise! With its blue and lavender color scheme.🎹🎧💫😵👌😎👍
MKS-80 is the first Roland poly I tried and I loved it - it’s also part of what made me want to try the JP6, but I never knew what revision 80 it was, always wondered if it was Rev 5
Now this is why I have always sung the JP 6's praises. I got shot down in a comments section for saying I preferred this to the 8 sonically so much more intresting. As you mentioned I really appreciate this for what it is. Having said that i would take this over a prophet 5 anyway. One of my favourite analog polys alongside the oberheim ob x not the (xa). Great demo , you just made my lust worse lol.
That nasaly raspy sound was what I loved about it. I prefer it to the JP 8. The JP6 was always a little bit out of control, and always sounded a bit pissed off, which is what you want from a synth. I would take a JP-6 as favourite after the only the OB-8. The JP-8000 was a in the same room, but was a little bit too much under control.;
@@AdamTheAd-vanc3d Being able to make your synth sound angry at A) you B) the wholeworld is a primary requirement for Me :) One of the best skilled at pissing off their synths is (IMHO) Rick Pier O'Niel heres a link ruclips.net/video/rT0Nf6NVdvQ/видео.html devils punch bowl part 2
I still have both. Bought the 6 new in 1983. Got the 8 a bit later when their prices tanked. They are both different and both wonderful instruments. In fact I’d say they are wonderfully different…
Surprizing how completely different the three old Jupiters sound! I recently bought a Jupiter 4 and it sounds absolutely stunning! I will probably never buy the 6 or the 8 because they're so expensive. The 6 also seems quite vulnerable, based on what Starsky Carr and others have stated, so I don't know if I will ever want to take that risk but it sounds truly unique! I think I like it better than the 8 but I can understand others who don't like it. It often appears harsh and thin but also quite complex and lively in a way that no other synth seems to offer. Overall I'm glad I went with the JP-4 though...
Starsky Carr's jupiter 6 seems very worn out and not in the best condition. He does complain about the size of the sliders but i've measured and they're the same size as the jupiter 8's. In fact, everything is the same size, except that the panel is taller because there are useless arrows everwhere on the jupiter 8's design, so the 6 is more compact without losing the scale nor the immaculate iconic design and colours. The buttons on my recently bought unit are fine, the knobs too, the filter does not go into self-oscillation (it ALMOST does but sadly no, i'd pay extra to have that) i only have to tune it once a day, and the digital stepping is barely present because i have the later 16-bit version. The digital stepping was also on the jupiter 8.
I LOVE the Jupiter 6,, but I doubt prices will change. It's already very pricy used for what it is, especially without the pedigree of the Jupiter 8. I just hope Roland does a Boutique version sometime soon as I don't plan on picking one up at current prices.
Nice demo, I've had a play with a couple of these recently... but think they were a bit knackered. Does your filter self oscillate if you have the oscillators off? - turn the PW to zero on both VCOs so they're not sounding and wrk the rest to full? None of them I've used have been able to reproduce what I think of as self-oscillation whereby the filter can play as an additional oscillator in its own right. They've all been able to tune to a note but can't play on their own. Weird question I know. But after playing 3 that don't self oscillate the way I expect I'm wintering whether there's a more refined definition of S-O whereby you can tune it but it won't play on its own. Just trying to figure out if the one I'm looking at needs more attention or is behaving as it should. Cheers :)
Normally the Jupiter 6's filter doesn't self-resonate, so the behaviour you saw on those JP-6s you tried is correct. There's an adjustment that calibrates the filter resonance's intensity which have to be set to a certain level as explained in the service manual, perhaps if you set it to have the resonance set at maximum level maybe the filter can self-resonate (don't take this for granted tho, it's just a mine guess). On my Jupiter 6 on the contrary, I set it to the minimum level of resonance, as a part of the "resonance hack" mod that I did some years ago to my synth. If you search on Google for "jupiter 6 resonance hack" you'll find a thread of mine on Gearslutz where the matter is being treated.
HOW DO YOU GET IT TO SELF-OSCILLATE I WANT THAT (also yes the PWM goes through zero, very useful when you want to create a perc organ sound, you can get enveloppe 1 to take the pulse through zero and it'll stop sounding while another oscillator continues to sound)
hey, I think this may be my old JP-6 (unless somone else had the bright idea to replace the bend section pots with old Juno slide caps.) I always wanted to do the res mod on it but didn't get around to it.
You know I never even realised that but indeed they were grey caps originally! I know some history on this one - where are you based/when did you own it?
@@mylarmelodies I was in Nashville at the time. Here is a video with it: instagram.com/p/B1HPuX-h981/ I had it for about a year but ran out of space in my setup for it.
Started watching the video and was rather distracted by the fact that I'm currently wearing the same watch! Nice to see someone else with excellent taste in timepieces : )
My J6 was purchased from a Gentleman here in LA who purchased his J6 in 1984 and right after his Band broke up. He never used it. It is like new. Not a scratch. This was 2017 and he sold it to me for $1800. ;)
Nice! I have only played one Jupiter 6 and that one belongs to our lovely friend Nick. I wanted to steal it but it wouldn't fit in my luggage back to California, and I figured he might notice it missing. But seriously, after the few days I got to spend with it, it kind of became my next "Must acquire some day" synth. I kick myself because I had an opportunity to grab one a few years ago, but I spent the money on an OB6. Can't complain about the OB6, but Jupiter 6s have steadily gone up in price and seem to be getting harder to find. Anyway, great video and I totally agree that this is a Dark Horse synth.
It's crazy that they don't do a boutique version of this. The newer boutiques have an increased voice count so no reason why we couldn't have 6 voices.
That's because they're using Zencore ABM tech for the newer ones, sacrificing authenticity for polyphony. If they did a boutique for the JP-6 it would be 4-voices, ACB tech. But, that would likely mean they'd have am 8-voice plug-out in the works for the System-8, which would be awesome.
Around 10:42 onward in that video segment sounds A LOT like Clock DVA's "Final Program" or "Bitstream" intro. I've theorized for years Clock DVA used the Jupiter 6 on a number of their albums.
This guy makes the most distorted, evil and dirty patches I have ever heard, but when he plays techno it's always so whimsical, floaty and athmospheric.
For me personally this is one of the best demos of what is special about the JP6. Many people will react to the synth, like its taking me where I do not really want to go sonically, it is not melodic like my JP8, JUNO 106 ... its not a rompler with the perfect acoustic guitar patch, how do I use this in my song mix? Right, its not that at all. For me though just listening to where it can go, eyes closed, its like a future soundscape, with all sorts of possibilities no one has considered before. Sound effects, sound creation, not always harmonic, not another really tired sounding synth patch from the past. Its way underrated by a lot of people. I have a JP8 and many other synths, when I eventually got the JP8, which I will always keep as well, I was really disappointed with it compared to the JP6. I got the JP6 when it was new, and the JP8 was entirely out of reach for me, but now, I think few non-modular synths can easily do what the JP6 can do, and I believe people who do not like it because it is not a 6 voice JP8, or a Juno are missing what makes it special.
Sounds amazing! How can you bear to part with it? Needs must I guess. Did I get the hint you are renovating a space at home for a new studio? Would love to follow your progress for that via RUclips.
I would LOVE one. The Super 6 has consistently blown me away when I tried it (have a few times so far) - it's got the 'JP8-ish classiness', but I wonder if it can do naughty, like the JP6?! I'll get one one day.
Roland filters are very good at, and are even copied for, their ability to pick out harmonics. See the Frequency Central System X Filter for just one example. What you are demonstrating at 11:45 is the filter emphasising these harmonics, and has no relation to digital filter zipper noise at all. If you use a filter that is capable of doing this BEFORE you you use a signal to sync a oscillator you can sync to overtones! Had the chance to play with a Roland System 100 and it did it too! It's a feature not a bug ;-) Thank you for this video, only now do I understand what makes this particular synth unique.
If you listen closely you can hear that there are steps in between the harmonic peaks. White noice into the filter would make the steps more apparent. Also thanks for the tip about syncing with a signal through a resonant filter. I'll definitely put that to use.
I was happy to read this, as I had always assumed that this was what was happening and I felt a little stupid when mylarmelodies said it was digital stepping :) . My 6 is not currently set up due to house rearrangements but I will have to listen closely, as warpigs330 suggests, with just white noise.
Yep it was the harmonic peaks reminding me of zipper noise, hence mentioning it then - not the clearest of me! It’s very subtle but you can hear the quantised stepping when you jiggle VCF
@@biggusdoggus yeah, I have a Jove and it grabs harmonics amazingly, but no stair stepping. Sometimes I put it's cv through a quantizer if I want a little of that stair stepped flavor.
@@warpigs330 The Jove sounds good, but I am still going to run white noise thru the filter to see if I can hear it stepping :) Maybe I can jam a Jove into my 6, as it is only a JP5 when in BPF/HPF modes :(
It looks and sounds like a cheap Jupiter, because it WAS a cheap Jupiter. That was my first reaction - disappointment. But one day I was just lost in a groove, twiddling knobs, and the 6 kept delivering suprises, again and again. I'd been using it wrong, trying to recreate sounds I'd heard, but not getting the same richness from the 6. Wrong! Get lost in the endless variations, and it delivers, every time. It blends well too, not over-dominant, and full of unique, ever-changing tones that you can't get from anything else. I kept it. There are now digital monsters that are far more powerful, but none are so immediate or so beguiling. That's what makes them expensive now - the immense range of sound, but all totally within your control.
@@oscargoldman85 You can also update the firmware to the latest version (REV. 6) by swapping the EPROM on the CPU board with another one with the new firmware burned in it. This will allow you to select the MIDI channel with the PROGRAM/BANK buttons for the upper part, and for the lower part it'll be automatically set to upper's channel + 1 (so for example if you set MIDI channel 1 for the upper part, the synth will enable MIDI channel 2 for the lower part). The EPROM on the Jupiter 6's CPU board is socketed, so swapping it with another one is an easy task, no soldering iron required.
This synth after 37 years is still amazing! I discover always new sounds and you can fly with no limits to your favourite planet of music. It's a Jupiter, the beautiful one...
I have both and I agree, the JP8 is a nice sounding synth, but compared to the JP8 honestly is is boring, most people are completely in the dark about the capabilities of the JP6, this video is a good demo.
@@haraldevensen9727 may i point out the differences between the 8 and 6 ? The JP-8 uses Roland's own VCO ICs which had some issues and were not cheap to make as their engineers designed the ICs without prior knowledge of how to make one. As a cost cutting measure, the JP-6 uses the same ICs as the Prophet-5, giving you the possibility to mix vaweforms on a single VCO on the JP-6, which is the reason why there are so many cyberpunk-looking LED buttons on the front panel instead of flickable switches and knobs of the JP-8. So now, a sound that would have required the Dual mode of the JP-8 if you wanted a sawtooth, PWM and noise, using 3 oscillators per voice, would now be achieveable with ONE oscillator. Both have Roland's famous and well behaved IR3109 VCF ICs, but they were implemented in series in the JP-8 which resulted in a normal sounding filter, switchable between 2-pole and 4-pole, with a separate HPF that's only used for EQing the bass, whereas the multimode filter design of the JP-6 forced the circuit designers to implement the ICs in a funky way (again, they didn't really know how to actually implement a multimode filter and came up with their own way), and basically the filter is now more "wild" and the resonance will give the filter a slightly more grimm sound. But people like it, so much that there are eurorack versions of the filter for modular synths. Haven't seen a eurorack version of the JP-8 filter. Another problem with the JP-8 is that the enveloppes and LFOs where voltage controlled, which means they were prone to detuning. Normally that's great, it's what warmens the sound, to have slightly off enveloppes and a very slightly drifting LFO, the problem is, this could get quite extreme, to the point where even with the "auto-tune" option, the LFO that was advertised to go as far as 40Hz would no longer get near that frequency, and the enveloppes would sound distinctly different if you waited long enough. That was rare but Roland recieved complaints (for a 3'000$ synth, that's understandable !) and the JP-6 now features digitally controlled enveloppes and LFOs, which add to the rigour and coldness. BUT, the LFO now goes to 100Hz, that's incredible ! Rarely seen in analog synths ! The cross-mod has a more linear behavior on the JP-6 which makes it more useful, but it goes farther that the JP-8 and it's more difficult to find really musical spots, again, adding to that dissonant dystopian quality. It can be modulated by enveloppe 1 on the JP-6 and stays stationnary on the JP-8. That's useful too ! I don't know why that wasn't a feature on the JP-8, and being an owner of the TAL J-8 VST, i thought it had the option.The arppegiator doesn't feature a random mode on the JP-6 (sad...) the Dual key mode is no longer present (that would reduce the polyphony to 3 voices !) which is really a bummer if you use the synth on stage, but with some planning and an idea of where you want to go, that's not a problem in the studio. Also note that VCO-2 on the JP-6 has a high frequency mode, and while that doesn't sound very special, you can get very convincing glockenspiel, vibraphone, marimba, xylophone, organ, clavichord, EPs sounds with this. Some minor improvements is that on the JP-6 portamenti and glissandi can be assigned to the lower, upper, or both panels, as well as arpeggii, whereas on the JP-8, only the lower panel was arpeggio capable and the upper panel only could have portamento/glissando. And, you can start an arppegio sequence from the top if you click the DOWN button first in UP&DOWN mode. What else... Ah ! Yes, the JP-6 doesn't have a sine wave, only LFO-2 is capable of generating one, but VCO-1 is capable of being tuned by half-steps like VCO-2 instead of only by octave like the JP-8. This helps with the cross-mod, as your key will change when you modulate that parameter. That's more for convenience than anything. And to finish, the JP-8 has stereo output, DCB (early MIDI but just for Roland products. Yes you can adapt DCB into MIDI), the JP-6 has very basic MIDI, but MONO OUTPUT ! I hope you can see by this long paragraph the improvements brought by the JP-6 to the Jupiter series, that really should make for a well-rounded synth ! To me, this synth IS better, at least in terms of capabilities, but the sound is as good as a JP-8, warm and fat when you order it, thin and cold when you command it to. Really flexible and I LOVE this multimode filter. I bought it one week ago. I have it. It's sitting 3m away from me, covered because i don't want the buttons to yellow-out with time cause of UVs. The knobs are still grey, that's rare, look at the state of their tint in the video !
All custom - I made a video about the Cherry Audio Plugin trying to recreate my own sounds from this video in the plugin, which if nothing else mean you can try the same thing by looking at the panel: ruclips.net/video/FjopEfzHFk0/видео.html
If only Roland added tracking on x-mod with there Jupiter 6/8 synths... I have an 8. I really love the sound of both (J6 has more sonic capabilities, but the 8 has much nicer envelopes and sounds a tad more organic, plus a much superior build quality). Nonetheless, great vid!
Here's the trick with the Jupiter 6: user xmod TOGETHER with inverted oscillator sync (VCO2 -> VCO1). Now you can make musical FM sounds that if heard without seeing the instrument they're coming from, you can easily mistake it for a DX-7.
why no Jump by Van Halen? Seriously though cool demo, was nice to hear the outer reaches of this synth. Maybe Jupiter was the wrong name/God/planet for it...Neptune would've been more appropriate! Another noteworthy user of Jupiter 6 is Larry Heard, it's on all his early stuff alongside the Juno (6 or 60 I can't remember). The compilation album Ammnesia (spelt that way) by Mr Fingers has Jupiter 6/Juno all over it and sounds great.
Hah, next time Andy!! Thanks for that, strongly agreed on Neptune. Mega big up your bad self too btw - would love to chat to you on the podcast if you're up for it sometime?!! x
Great synth. A different sound to the Jupiter 4 and Jupiter 8 but equally important. You could do so much with just those three. Orbital still take theirs live. i saw them in London a couple of years ago and could instantly recognise when it was playing.
Nick, he of SonicState, has one of these. Insane low frequencies! Obviously, I've lusted after a JP8, but then the JP6 is an absolute beast too. Can I come over for a sleepover sample party? :D
Here’s a shameless affiliate link to buy a plugin version of the Jupiter 6!! Spot my video of it too, it’s sort of a sequel to this vid! tidd.ly/3FdbYRf
To late, bought it already 😢
This is the synth that provided the music for Thomas the Tank Engine and Friends Series 1-2.
lmao
Do you mean Thomas Bangalter 😉
The lavender buttons is all the reason you need to love it.
I wish my Jove had this color scheme.
Definitely... same reason I have an irrational obsession with the Boss Dimension-C pedal
Industrial heaven
The Jupiter 6 is totally ACE! It’s like the Dark world synth of a Link to the past.
I had experience with both the Jupiter 8 & 6 back in the 80s. The Jupiter 6 was never really considered inferior to the JP-8 back then (it had more modulation features than its predecessor, a killer arpeggiator, though less voices, and a more harsher filter), but it came out just when the world went crazy for the Yamaha DX7 - so it had no chance for staying in the spotlight that long. I still use the Jupiter 6 with a defective patch memory, but it proves how intuitive the beast still is to program. Sadly, the last batch of Roland's true analog synths (the JX-8P, Super JX and the Alpha Juno series) discarded everything that was so good about the JP-6.
New users often overlook the fact that you can combine more than one wave per oscillator.
You def weren't active then. The 6 has always been trash. Listen to it here. It sucks.
@@shane864 it sounds incredible in this video, what are you smoking lol
@@loreleiofthemist It sounds like insect mating call simulator 5000 lol. If you want glassy, shrill, irritating sounds its a beast tho for sure. It’s a great sfx machine but it’s not great as an expensive vintage synth. A modern Prophet 6 or OB6 or Rev 2 is a far better option at half the cost.
@@shane864 thats valid tbh. i just really love the ugly industrial sounds it makes lol
@@shane864 now listen here you uneducated steam valve. I have it i recently bought it. I will be as objective as a human can, I base my facts off of science and there will be no exagerations. You are very obviously taking the words of the general opinion as your own, but i highly suspect you haven't touched a single key of this violet-tinted keyboard. Also, you don't make music in studio. Because this synth, it's good. Now i said i'll keep this comment obejctive, and i'll stick to that, but in my humble opinion of music producer and physicist, it's a masterclass of a synth. You cannot tell me it sounds any harsh or distorted or cold, because it simply doesn't. The filter on low-pass is as gentle and well behaved as it can be and there are no bass loss, and the jupiter series is KNOWN for its bass. The resonance picks the harmonics like a jewelry-maker and while THAT makes it lose bass when it's high in the frequencies, guess what : it does as well on the jupiter 8. Bass is cool, but if you base your judgement on nothing but that, that won't take you far in the music scene, apart if you want all your mixes to sound like they're played on beats headphones (overdone mushy bass, no top-end). And in that category, the voltage controllable hi-pass filter can free up the frequency band allowing your bass to peak through undisturbed, and the band-pass option along with resonance, although it doesn't make "fat" tones like a prophet, that's not the point ! It wouldn't fit in a song ! That's bad and not useful ! The jupiter-6 filter allows you to play with the harmonics and take your sounds to space, that's what it does ! If somehow, even though it's the same as in the jupiter 8, you find the raw waves too sharp (that's because when the filter slider in all the way up the filter is turned off, unlike the jupiter 8), you add in a triangle, and boom, instant active bass boost ! It will sound as fat as a Juno 106 saw, as it has the same kind of curved slope on the oscilloscope. The high frequency mode of VCO-2 is absolutely useful, even if before buying the synth i didn'g think it was, and when you sync the high frequency VCO to VCO-1 and use the band-pass filter knowingly, you can pull out really convincing FM-like sounds with it ! I've been able to recreate the famous E. Bass 1 of the DX7 with it and several very good E. Pianos with it, no joke, it's amazing. It's warm and fat when you order it to, it's thin or space-sounding when you order it to, this synth is a well rounded piece of hardware, and should not be seen as a budget jupiter 8 but rather an improvement in both features and price of the jupiter series. Oh did i mention the pulse width goes through 0 ? You can make organ stuff with percussive tones by running the inverted enveloppe-1 into the pulse width modulation. The ability to combine waveshapes is often overlooked but very useful. Put on both VCOs tris saws and pulses (modulated by LFO-1) detuned, unison mode, unison detune to more than half, you can even add noise to take it a step further with this "tssss" glue that holds everything together and you've got one of the better-sounding supersaws. You can have up to 3 voices before the effect wears off a little. Again, saw on VCO-1, detuned VCO-2 to saw, square, triangle and noise, filter set to low pass, key follow and a bit of enveloppe 1 with short decay, now you can score blade runner. It's amazing how this synth has encouraged serendipity and served as a building stone for genres such as trance, techno, and experimental music.
So far the best Jupiter 6 review across the internet. Congrats!
Over the decades I have gotten rid of most of my vintage analog poly synths with the exception of the JP6 and a few others. It has sparkle that no other synth has.
Came back here for some sanity after watching Starsky Carr’s JP6 video. You really show it off properly.
LMAOOOO
„To make Nick Batt happy“ 😂
I was confused about why you were doing a video on what I thought was a pretty normal polysynth, but man, you're getting some strange sounds out of it! Never knew it could behave that way.
Thanks and hah, yeah, I think every polysynth has its own vibe/things it's good at - the lesson here is dig deep and you shall be rewarded!!
Alex, that was amazing! Wow! I never realised just how great this synth is - I knew it was good (it's a f***ing Jupiter!) but I had no idea it could do what you made it do. FFFFantastic stuff!
I love that you show the uniqueness of the Jupiter 6; I’d never quite understood it’s place, whereas now I see it’s huge potential! I’ve made comments on other forums about why has there never been a virtual JP6 when there are a plethora of “JP8” virtuals? - I think your video perfectly demonstrates why it’s almost impossible to emulate the JP6 virtually…
Amazing collection of Vintages analogs synth & drums machine
ruclips.net/video/528DtHGIbgw/видео.html&ab_channel=LeonardLORM
ARP2600-POLYSIX-FULL ROLAND TR SERIE-PRO one-SH101- MC202-TB303-RE201 and more...
I owned a Jupiter 6 from new and kept it until 2013. I had the Europa mod installed hoping that it would open up more possibilities but at the end of the day the sound is the sound. As we all know, it’s not a cut down JP-8. Nor is it a more feature rich Juno. They are all different sonically. For me the JP-6 never really cut it (and once I bought a 4 and an 8 it had to go) but in the right hands, in the right genre and with the use of effects it’s a very capable machine. Orbital built their sound around it after all.
I love the way the video descends into a synth jam after going over the instrument. Loving the sounds.
I have an 8 and a 6. They are so similar but very different. Its not an equivalent but more of an extra. The JP8 is brilliant but in its own way... so is the 6. If i make a voice on the 8, i can soon make it on the 6 with something missing. If i make a voice on the 6, i can replicate it on the 8 but again, something missing or not quite the same. Its very hard to put into words how the 2 compare.
I love my JP6 to bits, but just learned a few tricks from your video I've never stumbled across myself - wonderful, thanks - this is officially now the best JP-6 demo!
When I get more money I plan to buy my own JP6 and install it on my setup alongside the JP8000 and MC303! That’d be great music producing equipment!
The sound quality on your video is so good and the demonstration when I hear drop at 25:06 I really think you should do a live performance in front of people!
Love my 6. She is a bad girl ⚡️⚡️
I used to own a Jupiter 6 when it came out, great synth built like a tank. I remember having a slight Jupiter 8 envy, but I kept it for 4 or 5 years and used it a lot. I had a DX7 too and they made a good couple.
Incredible synth, inspiration in it's purest form ... Love my Jupiter 6. 👍
I was fortunate enought to own a Jupiter-6 for a number of years and loved it for it's ability to produce unusual soundscapes, tones and dynamics (just like you've demoed here!). Sure, it can do excellent pads, a pretty good impression of a 303 and even a passable piano, but as a generator of really interesting sounds, that's where it's appeal lay for me. That, and it totally looks the business as well - so many sliders, coloured buttons and flashing lights; a real synth!
Lovely intro, some very delicate sounds. Definitely has that delightful vintage Roland sound.
Well, I hadn't missed my Jupiter 6 (sold it 6 years ago when I moved abroad) ... until now!!! You certainly know how to get the most out of it. I loved it but got it in about 1986, when I knew a lot less about synths and didn't care for it as much as I could have, though I certainly used it. I remember making a track which scrolled thru the 8 presets of a whole bank, using the CV gate. It sounded F.A.B.! I wish someone, like Arturia, TAL or Cherry Audio, would make a soft version. I'm gonna suggest it! Always loved the colour-scheme. Really enjoyed your video and learnt a lot I hadn't known. Thanks!!! :)
Great demo. I have heard too many people saying bad things about the 6's sound, and I admit it can be a little thin at times but you showed the nasty side of it and that is why I love mine. One can get lost for hours getting all sorts of weird noises out of it, especially with the cross mod and sync.
I have no inclination to make music, I just want to sit and make noise with a Jupiter 6 for hours and hours!!!
@@PoseidonDiver can't criticise you for that :)
@@PoseidonDiver It's a great way to spend any afternoon.
People hated the 6 because it wasn't the 8, yet it can sound so good.
It sounds like ass. If it had no value as a physical object I'd take any number of VSTs over it. It has absolutely nothing in common with the Jupiter 4 or 8 sonically and in fact when I got mine in the late 90's I thought I just sucked at synthesis for many years because everything I did sounded like shit. Then I got a Jupiter 8 and was like oh. It was just that shitty synth. The JP6 has sucked since they were $500, they suck now, and they will suck forever. More power to anyone that likes one- but any random subtractive VST shits on it.
@@syntheticmoment9994 why does it sound good in the video then
@@syntheticmoment9994 lol...ok
I have always said I would take this over a Jupiter-8 ANY DAY. It sounds amazing and it looks so goddamn good... Great demo. I want one even more now.
I bought one this year with Europa installed. I've had so many synthesizers in my life and still do. I'm now seriously considering selling them all with exception of the Jupiter 6. Yes, I know that opening statement is a bit dramatic (and due to my GAS, unlikely) but the Jupiter 6 takes care of ALMOST everything I need and this is probably why people consider it a work horse. It blows my mind every time I play it, full of surprises.
The detail in the most minute of parameter changes can throw your sound into an alternate state. I'd been working hard on modern synthesizers (good ones) but I'm sorry to say that the Jupiter dug them all an early grave within seconds. The only thing that a Europa Jupiter 6 could possibly improve on is maybe...just maybe, certain pads. Absolutely nothing wrong with it but I do have a penchant for JX-10 pads - the two different filter chips between the synths have different strong points.
Lastly, I'd like to say that a big part of the enjoyment with any synthesizer is it's ergonomics, the Jupiter 6 is excellent in this regard - a sound designers dream. Don't compare a 6 to an 8, they're complete individuals - might as well compare a 4 to a 6, just as pointless.
I'm sure the Europa upgrade makes a huge difference. I found the sound of the JP6 disappointing, so sold it and replaced it with the Super Jupiter module. Selling all your synthesizer except for the JP6 is high praise for it. If I could keep only 1 synthesizer out of my collection, I'd pick my Waldorf Q--32 voices, 3 oscillators, stereo filter with multiple filter types, mod matrix, programmable arpeggiator and sequencer, 16 part multi-timbral, 4 effects at same time. It's like a mini-work station, but much less complicated. More like a play station.
@@wedream2 I think there's a lot to be said about the fluctuations and variations between one Jupiter 6 and another. A synth tech recently asked me if I wanted him to calibrate the voices and the filters in my Jupiter 6, to which I replied absolute not. There are also tweeks you can make to a Jupiter 6 to give it more bass etc. I don't know whether it's just my Jupiter 6 or whether it's just my preference for a particular sound but something makes me very happy with this piece of kit.
@@LF0 My main complaint about my JP6 synth was the lack of bass with the LPF. The BPF and HPF were great for those kinds of sounds.
Thanks for this great Demonstration of this awesome Synth !
Love the 6. It has this metallic je ne sais quoi not so readily apparent in the 4 or 8, which are both great in their own ways ;).
I agree. The 4, 6, and 8 each have their own distinct personality. I want them all!
It's a cross-mod-monster.
Bought mine in 1990 from a guy in Brighton, for £350, immaculate condition. One of the 3340 chips on the VCO-2 board blew about 15yr ago, still haven't got it fixed, - still, it makes a great mono-synth.
3340 chips are back in production, get it fixed!!
How do you get usable tones with cross-mod ??? I've not been able to successfully use the cross-mod in any meaningful way and always came back to syncing VCOs for uncommon/weird raw tones. I was thinking of doing the linear FM mod but i'd be permanently altering a piece of history
I used to have one of these. I bought it for 900 euros because the fine tune pot was a bit wonky. It was an easy problem to solve.. just a bit of resoldering of that pot's leg, and it wa back in business. I kept it for a couple of years, and really loved it;s sound.I couldn't resist the temptation of selling it for a good price (1500 euros) to help finance and Alesis Andromeda. Well the andromeda was an upgrade in the sense of it being capable of a bigger palette of sounds, but as far as mojo.. I'm not so sure. Later I sold the Andy as well and bought a Jupiter 80, sytem 1, and TB-3. Gues what.. I sold those after some more years as well, and bought a JD-XA and sytem 8. Those are staying.. well the system 8 is for sure. The JD-XA was supposed to provide the digital side of things, and while it sounds great, I don't use it as much as my other synths.
Anyway.. all this to say that the Jupiter 6 really IS a great synth in it's own right. In some ways I like it more than the 8. It's more flexible. We can only hope that Roland decides to do a really cool ACB version of it. But even then.. there's nothing like owning the physical thing and having it in front of you to mess around with :)
Wow, geat demo! most barely do the 6 justice… By far the best I’ve seen. Definitely has a Very different sound from the eight… But personally I prefer it, due to some of its unique architecture.
Thanks for the video! I'm actually getting JP-6 next week. I already have MKS 80 rev4 but it has a VERY aggressive bass boost circuit and hence it misses the more polite side of JP-6 . So i figured out it is best to have both. :)
EDIT: Doh! Silly me. I totally forgot I also have a JP-8
Haha, of all people I would expect you to have one of every one! Very interested in your thoughts on the difference between MKS80 versions. The first Roland poly I ever played was an MKS80, and I remember being amazed by it, it’s a part of why I bought the JP6 originally, but I never knew if it was a REV 4 or 5...JP6 didn’t seem to have that same quality. But to be fair, I’m not sure what that quality was. Memory is funny
Yeah MKS-80 is the king of 80's no doubt. Madonna, Hans Zimmer (has 4 of them), countless electro/freestyle tracks. That bass boost circuit was a work of a genius. It completely changes the envelopes creating natural compression and that tone... is just instant hit record sound.
That thing is amazing! Thank you for showcasing one of the giants of the 80's synths.
I bought a Juno 6 back then and actually did those bell sounds (@ 16min) with it as well, it played beautifully across the entire keyboard.
Stupidly I traded it in. But I did get a Juno 60 in the 90's for 250 DM! This thing will stay with me till I die. ;)
Thanks and strongly agree - The Juno 60 is the last synth I'll ever sell!
The sounds you get in this demo make me want one of these so badly it hurts. Great job!
You know, now I've seen it demoed _properly,_ these sounds remind me of my Super 6 far more than the Jupiter 8 ever did (despite people making _that comparison_ all the time).
Obviously the layout was self-evidently rather similar, and even also has a cooler-toned colour scheme, but those don't necessarily mean anything about the underlying sound. But some of the modulation possibilities you laid-out here are sooo much like sounds I've made while exploring mine. Lovely.
Alex Ball has said that he couldn't really find a way to make the JP6 sound "happy" per se, but I think many parts of this video have proven that that really can be done quite well, even with the synth's "tinny" sound quality.
Love listening to these crazy patches you’ve dreamed up! Great Sunday morning listening. I’ve been using mine since the 90’s as a pretty “normal” but flexible polysynth. Bought it because I mistakenly thought that Greg Hawkes (The Cars) had one. Never have been disappointed in the tone, was honestly surprised to learn of its reputation as being “tinny” or “icy”. Mine does seem to sound a little warmer than the one in this video. Probably no way that this could be because the filters are on chips, but hey - thought I’d mention it anyways.
I hope Roland will remake it in the boutique series with some modernisation.
Thank You for that video!
I always found the "Jupiter 6" the most interesting of the Jupiter range. Except for the "mks-80" that one always intrigued me the most! But the "6" I just found so beautiful, especially aesthetic wise! With its blue and lavender color scheme.🎹🎧💫😵👌😎👍
MKS-80 is the first Roland poly I tried and I loved it - it’s also part of what made me want to try the JP6, but I never knew what revision 80 it was, always wondered if it was Rev 5
@@mylarmelodiesFucking awesome! That would be one hell of a video. If you ever manage to get a hold of a mks-80? I would definitely say it!
Sorry, I meant to say "see it".😵😅
Best Jupiter in the line.
The whole video made my brain smile
Thank you
😘😘😘
It's amazing Alex. Everything you touch, no matter which synth ends up sounding "Mylarmelodiesh...Mylarmelodieshy(?)" xD. Keep Doing what you do mate!
🙌
OMG. Hit that tune button on the right. I bought my JP-6 in 1984. It's still my favorite as well as my D-50.
Now this is why I have always sung the JP 6's praises. I got shot down in a comments section for saying I preferred this to the 8 sonically so much more intresting. As you mentioned I really appreciate this for what it is.
Having said that i would take this over a prophet 5 anyway. One of my favourite analog polys alongside the oberheim ob x not the (xa).
Great demo , you just made my lust worse lol.
That nasaly raspy sound was what I loved about it. I prefer it to the JP 8. The JP6 was always a little bit out of control, and always sounded a bit pissed off, which is what you want from a synth. I would take a JP-6 as favourite after the only the OB-8. The JP-8000 was a in the same room, but was a little bit too much under control.;
OMG - I just re read your comment and found you mentioned the Oberhiem as well (my mention of it was coimpletely co incidental).
@@oscargoldman85 Sounds like we have very similar taste 😊😊😊. If I want a polite sounding synth there is plenty of choice out there.
@@AdamTheAd-vanc3d Being able to make your synth sound angry at A) you B) the wholeworld is a primary requirement for Me :) One of the best skilled at pissing off their synths is (IMHO) Rick Pier O'Niel heres a link ruclips.net/video/rT0Nf6NVdvQ/видео.html
devils punch bowl part 2
Cool demo of this misunderstood machine.
NOW I WANT A JUPITER 6! THIS IS THE INSTRUMENT!
I still have both. Bought the 6 new in 1983. Got the 8 a bit later when their prices tanked. They are both different and both wonderful instruments. In fact I’d say they are wonderfully different…
great video
i loved the electro jam too, can i listen to you on spotify or smth??
Holy hell! Dreamscape machine!
"The amount of low-end that the filter can kick out is nuts!" So true ! I run a Boss CL-50 compressor / limiter at my JP6 output for this very reason.
Surprizing how completely different the three old Jupiters sound! I recently bought a Jupiter 4 and it sounds absolutely stunning! I will probably never buy the 6 or the 8 because they're so expensive. The 6 also seems quite vulnerable, based on what Starsky Carr and others have stated, so I don't know if I will ever want to take that risk but it sounds truly unique! I think I like it better than the 8 but I can understand others who don't like it. It often appears harsh and thin but also quite complex and lively in a way that no other synth seems to offer. Overall I'm glad I went with the JP-4 though...
Starsky Carr's jupiter 6 seems very worn out and not in the best condition. He does complain about the size of the sliders but i've measured and they're the same size as the jupiter 8's. In fact, everything is the same size, except that the panel is taller because there are useless arrows everwhere on the jupiter 8's design, so the 6 is more compact without losing the scale nor the immaculate iconic design and colours. The buttons on my recently bought unit are fine, the knobs too, the filter does not go into self-oscillation (it ALMOST does but sadly no, i'd pay extra to have that) i only have to tune it once a day, and the digital stepping is barely present because i have the later 16-bit version. The digital stepping was also on the jupiter 8.
I LOVE the Jupiter 6,, but I doubt prices will change. It's already very pricy used for what it is, especially without the pedigree of the Jupiter 8. I just hope Roland does a Boutique version sometime soon as I don't plan on picking one up at current prices.
It's a LARGE BOY
Big sounds demand big synths.
Size queen
Jk
Never mind the length...feel the girth - and this machine has girth, lady!
OMG - heavy as hell(!) - and worse with a flight case. 🤦🏻♂️🥵
My favourite retro poly. Not selling it ever.
Nice demo, I've had a play with a couple of these recently... but think they were a bit knackered. Does your filter self oscillate if you have the oscillators off? - turn the PW to zero on both VCOs so they're not sounding and wrk the rest to full? None of them I've used have been able to reproduce what I think of as self-oscillation whereby the filter can play as an additional oscillator in its own right. They've all been able to tune to a note but can't play on their own. Weird question I know. But after playing 3 that don't self oscillate the way I expect I'm wintering whether there's a more refined definition of S-O whereby you can tune it but it won't play on its own. Just trying to figure out if the one I'm looking at needs more attention or is behaving as it should. Cheers :)
Normally the Jupiter 6's filter doesn't self-resonate, so the behaviour you saw on those JP-6s you tried is correct. There's an adjustment that calibrates the filter resonance's intensity which have to be set to a certain level as explained in the service manual, perhaps if you set it to have the resonance set at maximum level maybe the filter can self-resonate (don't take this for granted tho, it's just a mine guess).
On my Jupiter 6 on the contrary, I set it to the minimum level of resonance, as a part of the "resonance hack" mod that I did some years ago to my synth. If you search on Google for "jupiter 6 resonance hack" you'll find a thread of mine on Gearslutz where the matter is being treated.
HOW DO YOU GET IT TO SELF-OSCILLATE I WANT THAT (also yes the PWM goes through zero, very useful when you want to create a perc organ sound, you can get enveloppe 1 to take the pulse through zero and it'll stop sounding while another oscillator continues to sound)
hey, I think this may be my old JP-6 (unless somone else had the bright idea to replace the bend section pots with old Juno slide caps.) I always wanted to do the res mod on it but didn't get around to it.
You know I never even realised that but indeed they were grey caps originally! I know some history on this one - where are you based/when did you own it?
@@mylarmelodies I was in Nashville at the time. Here is a video with it: instagram.com/p/B1HPuX-h981/
I had it for about a year but ran out of space in my setup for it.
Yep, Ace. The xmod and sync are almost as nuts as on the Mono/Poly (the 4 oscillator factor making it totally Knuts)
Started watching the video and was rather distracted by the fact that I'm currently wearing the same watch! Nice to see someone else with excellent taste in timepieces : )
It’s a workhorse timepiece for a workhorse synth!
Could you please list all the devices being used in the rack mount behind the keyboard? I’m interested in trying to set something similar.
My J6 was purchased from a Gentleman here in LA who purchased his J6 in 1984 and right after his Band broke up. He never used it. It is like new. Not a scratch. This was 2017 and he sold it to me for $1800. ;)
My missing Jupiter! Wouldn’t mind getting one. It sure sounds unique. Maybe one day :)
really nice demo. thank you
Nice! I have only played one Jupiter 6 and that one belongs to our lovely friend Nick. I wanted to steal it but it wouldn't fit in my luggage back to California, and I figured he might notice it missing. But seriously, after the few days I got to spend with it, it kind of became my next "Must acquire some day" synth. I kick myself because I had an opportunity to grab one a few years ago, but I spent the money on an OB6. Can't complain about the OB6, but Jupiter 6s have steadily gone up in price and seem to be getting harder to find. Anyway, great video and I totally agree that this is a Dark Horse synth.
Your bursts of ecstatic moans and sighs are well justified and echoed here.
orbital machine
It's crazy that they don't do a boutique version of this. The newer boutiques have an increased voice count so no reason why we couldn't have 6 voices.
That's because they're using Zencore ABM tech for the newer ones, sacrificing authenticity for polyphony. If they did a boutique for the JP-6 it would be 4-voices, ACB tech. But, that would likely mean they'd have am 8-voice plug-out in the works for the System-8, which would be awesome.
It wouldn't surprise me if they did a JP-08a that includes a switch that lets you do the Jupiter 6 too.
Around 10:42 onward in that video segment sounds A LOT like Clock DVA's "Final Program" or "Bitstream" intro. I've theorized for years Clock DVA used the Jupiter 6 on a number of their albums.
This guy makes the most distorted, evil and dirty patches I have ever heard, but when he plays techno it's always so whimsical, floaty and athmospheric.
Extremes are fun
Great demo of the Jupiter 6.
Thank you Mr Mylar for Sunday treats....👍👍👍
🙌
I love it sooooooo much! so much character!
For me personally this is one of the best demos of what is special about the JP6. Many people will react to the synth, like its taking me where I do not really want to go sonically, it is not melodic like my JP8, JUNO 106 ... its not a rompler with the perfect acoustic guitar patch, how do I use this in my song mix? Right, its not that at all. For me though just listening to where it can go, eyes closed, its like a future soundscape, with all sorts of possibilities no one has considered before. Sound effects, sound creation, not always harmonic, not another really tired sounding synth patch from the past. Its way underrated by a lot of people. I have a JP8 and many other synths, when I eventually got the JP8, which I will always keep as well, I was really disappointed with it compared to the JP6. I got the JP6 when it was new, and the JP8 was entirely out of reach for me, but now, I think few non-modular synths can easily do what the JP6 can do, and I believe people who do not like it because it is not a 6 voice JP8, or a Juno are missing what makes it special.
Thanks for sharing that, nicely put
Sounds amazing! How can you bear to part with it? Needs must I guess. Did I get the hint you are renovating a space at home for a new studio? Would love to follow your progress for that via RUclips.
I'd love to see how the UDO Super 6 compares to the Jupiter 6!
I would LOVE one. The Super 6 has consistently blown me away when I tried it (have a few times so far) - it's got the 'JP8-ish classiness', but I wonder if it can do naughty, like the JP6?! I'll get one one day.
@@mylarmelodies yes!!!
Roland filters are very good at, and are even copied for, their ability to pick out harmonics. See the Frequency Central System X Filter for just one example. What you are demonstrating at 11:45 is the filter emphasising these harmonics, and has no relation to digital filter zipper noise at all. If you use a filter that is capable of doing this BEFORE you you use a signal to sync a oscillator you can sync to overtones! Had the chance to play with a Roland System 100 and it did it too!
It's a feature not a bug ;-)
Thank you for this video, only now do I understand what makes this particular synth unique.
If you listen closely you can hear that there are steps in between the harmonic peaks. White noice into the filter would make the steps more apparent.
Also thanks for the tip about syncing with a signal through a resonant filter. I'll definitely put that to use.
I was happy to read this, as I had always assumed that this was what was happening and I felt a little stupid when mylarmelodies said it was digital stepping :) . My 6 is not currently set up due to house rearrangements but I will have to listen closely, as warpigs330 suggests, with just white noise.
Yep it was the harmonic peaks reminding me of zipper noise, hence mentioning it then - not the clearest of me! It’s very subtle but you can hear the quantised stepping when you jiggle VCF
@@biggusdoggus yeah, I have a Jove and it grabs harmonics amazingly, but no stair stepping. Sometimes I put it's cv through a quantizer if I want a little of that stair stepped flavor.
@@warpigs330 The Jove sounds good, but I am still going to run white noise thru the filter to see if I can hear it stepping :) Maybe I can jam a Jove into my 6, as it is only a JP5 when in BPF/HPF modes :(
37:05 Those cheeky little filter gurgles, pure delight!
It looks and sounds like a cheap Jupiter, because it WAS a cheap Jupiter. That was my first reaction - disappointment. But one day I was just lost in a groove, twiddling knobs, and the 6 kept delivering suprises, again and again. I'd been using it wrong, trying to recreate sounds I'd heard, but not getting the same richness from the 6. Wrong! Get lost in the endless variations, and it delivers, every time. It blends well too, not over-dominant, and full of unique, ever-changing tones that you can't get from anything else. I kept it. There are now digital monsters that are far more powerful, but none are so immediate or so beguiling. That's what makes them expensive now - the immense range of sound, but all totally within your control.
It does the crazy sounds quite easily, but with some finesse it l also does smooth sounds.
you make me buy this monster. i bought this yesterday 4.2k dollar . it's fantastic..
The best Jp-6 demo on RUclips! Is your Jupiter stock Midi or modded? I hear that the original Midi on the Jp-6 wasn't very well implemented.
from memory, it only received omni mode... although you can fix that with a simple midi filter.
@@oscargoldman85 Good to know, thanks!
@@oscargoldman85 You can also update the firmware to the latest version (REV. 6) by swapping the EPROM on the CPU board with another one with the new firmware burned in it. This will allow you to select the MIDI channel with the PROGRAM/BANK buttons for the upper part, and for the lower part it'll be automatically set to upper's channel + 1 (so for example if you set MIDI channel 1 for the upper part, the synth will enable MIDI channel 2 for the lower part).
The EPROM on the Jupiter 6's CPU board is socketed, so swapping it with another one is an easy task, no soldering iron required.
@@mima85 Love it.
I am now almost wanting to cry that I never owned a Jupiter 6
Ooofff, the cross modulated pad at 8:25 is haunting - love it! 🤤
The first few sounds you made with me makes me wonder if it was used to create the boot up sound for the original PlayStation
That was actually a Roland D-50.
ruclips.net/video/SpGiwyJaAJo/видео.html&feature=emb_logo
This synth after 37 years is still amazing! I discover always new sounds and you can fly with no limits to your favourite planet of music. It's a Jupiter, the beautiful one...
18:29 Some poo came out! 😱
...what a glorious way to soil myself. Great sounding synth!
😭 this just makes me so sad, because I will never own one. Thank you for sharing it though
I thought that, then I managed to buy one. Things change.
@@timmantle7154 Did you have to take it back?
@@marchangel7462 Still have it.
I used to think like that also, and I’m getting one tomorrow. If u want it , you’ll get it 💪
@@oscallator20 I WILL own a Jupiter 6. Thanks for your support.
Those in the know, know the 6 is better than the 8. 🎶🎹😎
Hehh. No chance. The 6 is very, very nice, though.
I prefer the 6 overall - especially architecturally.
I have both and I agree, the JP8 is a nice sounding synth, but compared to the JP8 honestly is is boring, most people are completely in the dark about the capabilities of the JP6, this video is a good demo.
@@haraldevensen9727 may i point out the differences between the 8 and 6 ?
The JP-8 uses Roland's own VCO ICs which had some issues and were not cheap to make as their engineers designed the ICs without prior knowledge of how to make one. As a cost cutting measure, the JP-6 uses the same ICs as the Prophet-5, giving you the possibility to mix vaweforms on a single VCO on the JP-6, which is the reason why there are so many cyberpunk-looking LED buttons on the front panel instead of flickable switches and knobs of the JP-8. So now, a sound that would have required the Dual mode of the JP-8 if you wanted a sawtooth, PWM and noise, using 3 oscillators per voice, would now be achieveable with ONE oscillator. Both have Roland's famous and well behaved IR3109 VCF ICs, but they were implemented in series in the JP-8 which resulted in a normal sounding filter, switchable between 2-pole and 4-pole, with a separate HPF that's only used for EQing the bass, whereas the multimode filter design of the JP-6 forced the circuit designers to implement the ICs in a funky way (again, they didn't really know how to actually implement a multimode filter and came up with their own way), and basically the filter is now more "wild" and the resonance will give the filter a slightly more grimm sound. But people like it, so much that there are eurorack versions of the filter for modular synths. Haven't seen a eurorack version of the JP-8 filter. Another problem with the JP-8 is that the enveloppes and LFOs where voltage controlled, which means they were prone to detuning. Normally that's great, it's what warmens the sound, to have slightly off enveloppes and a very slightly drifting LFO, the problem is, this could get quite extreme, to the point where even with the "auto-tune" option, the LFO that was advertised to go as far as 40Hz would no longer get near that frequency, and the enveloppes would sound distinctly different if you waited long enough. That was rare but Roland recieved complaints (for a 3'000$ synth, that's understandable !) and the JP-6 now features digitally controlled enveloppes and LFOs, which add to the rigour and coldness.
BUT, the LFO now goes to 100Hz, that's incredible ! Rarely seen in analog synths ! The cross-mod has a more linear behavior on the JP-6 which makes it more useful, but it goes farther that the JP-8 and it's more difficult to find really musical spots, again, adding to that dissonant dystopian quality. It can be modulated by enveloppe 1 on the JP-6 and stays stationnary on the JP-8. That's useful too ! I don't know why that wasn't a feature on the JP-8, and being an owner of the TAL J-8 VST, i thought it had the option.The arppegiator doesn't feature a random mode on the JP-6 (sad...) the Dual key mode is no longer present (that would reduce the polyphony to 3 voices !) which is really a bummer if you use the synth on stage, but with some planning and an idea of where you want to go, that's not a problem in the studio. Also note that VCO-2 on the JP-6 has a high frequency mode, and while that doesn't sound very special, you can get very convincing glockenspiel, vibraphone, marimba, xylophone, organ, clavichord, EPs sounds with this. Some minor improvements is that on the JP-6 portamenti and glissandi can be assigned to the lower, upper, or both panels, as well as arpeggii, whereas on the JP-8, only the lower panel was arpeggio capable and the upper panel only could have portamento/glissando. And, you can start an arppegio sequence from the top if you click the DOWN button first in UP&DOWN mode. What else... Ah ! Yes, the JP-6 doesn't have a sine wave, only LFO-2 is capable of generating one, but VCO-1 is capable of being tuned by half-steps like VCO-2 instead of only by octave like the JP-8. This helps with the cross-mod, as your key will change when you modulate that parameter. That's more for convenience than anything. And to finish, the JP-8 has stereo output, DCB (early MIDI but just for Roland products. Yes you can adapt DCB into MIDI), the JP-6 has very basic MIDI, but MONO OUTPUT !
I hope you can see by this long paragraph the improvements brought by the JP-6 to the Jupiter series, that really should make for a well-rounded synth !
To me, this synth IS better, at least in terms of capabilities, but the sound is as good as a JP-8, warm and fat when you order it, thin and cold when you command it to. Really flexible and I LOVE this multimode filter. I bought it one week ago.
I have it. It's sitting 3m away from me, covered because i don't want the buttons to yellow-out with time cause of UVs. The knobs are still grey, that's rare, look at the state of their tint in the video !
best synth ever
Thanks for this, are these your custom patches or factory Presets please ?thanks
All custom - I made a video about the Cherry Audio Plugin trying to recreate my own sounds from this video in the plugin, which if nothing else mean you can try the same thing by looking at the panel: ruclips.net/video/FjopEfzHFk0/видео.html
Thanks
If only Roland added tracking on x-mod with there Jupiter 6/8 synths...
I have an 8. I really love the sound of both (J6 has more sonic capabilities, but the 8 has much nicer envelopes and sounds a tad more organic, plus a much superior build quality).
Nonetheless, great vid!
Here's the trick with the Jupiter 6: user xmod TOGETHER with inverted oscillator sync (VCO2 -> VCO1). Now you can make musical FM sounds that if heard without seeing the instrument they're coming from, you can easily mistake it for a DX-7.
The 6 IS...GOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOD!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Killer Video - so glad i did not sell my JP6 with Europa Extension 😄👍
why no Jump by Van Halen? Seriously though cool demo, was nice to hear the outer reaches of this synth. Maybe Jupiter was the wrong name/God/planet for it...Neptune would've been more appropriate! Another noteworthy user of Jupiter 6 is Larry Heard, it's on all his early stuff alongside the Juno (6 or 60 I can't remember). The compilation album Ammnesia (spelt that way) by Mr Fingers has Jupiter 6/Juno all over it and sounds great.
Hah, next time Andy!! Thanks for that, strongly agreed on Neptune. Mega big up your bad self too btw - would love to chat to you on the podcast if you're up for it sometime?!! x
@@mylarmelodies definitely !! giz a shout :)
what a great vid.. thanks for making this.
memrmarbles me 😘
"you might ping your filters, but do you zing your oscillators?"
Great synth. A different sound to the Jupiter 4 and Jupiter 8 but equally important. You could do so much with just those three. Orbital still take theirs live. i saw them in London a couple of years ago and could instantly recognise when it was playing.
Nick, he of SonicState, has one of these. Insane low frequencies! Obviously, I've lusted after a JP8, but then the JP6 is an absolute beast too. Can I come over for a sleepover sample party? :D
One of the best if you ask me! :D
Make sample pack pleaaasseee 🙏🏼🙏🏼🙏🏼
35:41 was that plaid?