Roland JV-880

The JV-880 is not the easiest module to learn how to navigate and operate, however once you get familiar with the user interface and the button-punching schemes it becomes fairly manageable. Editing and tweaking would be done a lot faster with the assistance of a software editor. Presets are just plain fantastic for the most part, there are a FEW stinkers - most of these being INCREDIBLY OBNOXIOUS (and generally useless) sound FX patches. The manual is yet another run-of-the-mill Roland manual with very poor Japanese to English translations in a lot of places.

The JV-880 sports 28-note polyphony although it should be taken into consideration that the synth engine uses anywhere from 1 to 4 parts (waveform samples), meaning if there is more than one part used, it effectively reduces your polyphony (IE - if 2 parts are used then you divide 28 by 2, giving you 14-note polyphony, etc.). This can become a problem if the JV-880 is your sole sound module, although the actual waveforms are so good I RARELY have to use more than two parts when creating patches. The JV-880 is 8-part multitimbral, has a complete bank of drum samples (and drum sample rhythm editor), and a very good set of musical waveforms ranging from acoustic samples to synthesized analog waveforms. The effects processor can do reverb, delay and chorus (you have to choose either delay or reverb - it can't do both at the same time). One 8mb waveform expansion card can be installed, and there is a patch data card slot as well as a 2mb waveform data card slot. The JV-880 has good MIDI implementation, can do up to 8 channels at once, and the module responds to MIDI velocity and channel aftertouch.

The sonic prowess of the JV-880 is by far its strongest point. The acoustic instrument patches are all very good; some of the best ones are the guitar with the chimes, muted trumpet, strings, and flutes. There are also some very cool analog synth sounds, ranging from leads to pads to strings. One of the best things to this synth engine is the fact that Roland included voltage controlled filters and two independant LFO's per part (allowing for up to 8 per patch). The LFO's can be made to modulate a lot of things, and they also can pan around the stereo field, providing for some very spacious and dazzling timbres. The delays sound really good, the reverbs are good but tend to sound grainy with longer tails; the chorus is very well thought out and flexible. One caveat here: when the JV-880 is put into 4-output mode the effects processor is cut off, period. A bit on the lame side, but nothing outboard processing couldn't cover. Since the tonal parts can be made to only kick in at certain velocity levels, etc. when creating patches, this allows the JV-880 to become VERY reactive to your playing (a very good example of this is the aforementioned guitar with chimes patch). The rhythm section has some of the best drum samples I've ever heard packed inside any sample-playback synth, newer modules included. The JV-880 is useful for ANY kind of music, plain and simple.

Never had any problems with mine - wouldn't think twice about hauling a JV-880 to a gig.

I have no idea since I've never had to call Roland for any of the equipment I own that's made by them.

The JV-880 is probably one of the best all-around synth modules ever made, despite the limited polyphony. Even though it's now considered an older model, it still stands very well against newer synths, Roland's own Super JV line included. I got the first JV-880 ever shipped to the town I was living it at the time and I loved it so much that I now own two of them. I would highly recommend this module to anyone looking to augment the synth energy in thier studio - the JV-880 can be had for under $400 these days and there is absolutely nothing that sonically compares in the same price range. The fact that the JV-880 will accept the newer Roland expansion cards just simply allows it to stay up-to-date - this thing won't go stale. It would have been nice had Roland included the voice expansion option in this unit like the JV-90, but then again, that's why I got a second JV-880. 'Nuff said.

I like the ease of use as far as overall, however, the ease of editing a patch is rather difficult. With special terms like p-env T1=00 T2=00.. You get lost pretty quick, however, after practice, the ease of patch editing increases. The manual does suck. I used it once to find a patch number when creating a performance. The sounds however sound rich and extremely good!

The JV-880 is 28? note polyphony but each patch can and usually takes up four notes. Midi is great however polyphony is a problem. I specialize in house/techno/industrial music and don't have a major problem, however, when using a pad or strings, large chords get a little heavy. I never used an expansion card, but, I know they are good sounding and very worth the money. There are only two special effects.... Chorus and Reverb... Both can be weak or VERY strong. I have made cool sounds out of both. Also, a place where I find the JV-880 falling is the ability to save your work. 2/3 of the sounds are non-writable (ROM), and 2/3 of the performances are the same.

Some instruments are beautiful and realistic. Like: Pipe Organ, Jazz Organ, Piano, strings, pizzacatos, DRUMS, muted guitars, and a gaziliion others... On the other hand, synth sounds are incredible too. I love the sounds I have created for my techno tracks.

Always able to depend on it. I even throw it around a bit but it does not stop working. I would never need a backup with it.

Never had to deal with Customer Support.

I love the JV-880. It was the first instrument i ever used and the only instrument I will never get rid of. Definitly worth it's weight in gold. I would purchase this product again and have thought about buying a second one. Writing music is extremely easy. The JV-880 is never encumbering to the creative train. However, I wish it had more expandiblity for less dollars.

The presets are great. Roland offers a wide variety of excellent acoustic and synth sounds. Editing is nearly impossible without a good computer vbased editor. I must agree with Joe, the manual is no good. The only use I had for it is looking up a patch chart to find a certain sound. Now i know the sounds and I no longer have use for the entire manual.

Effects are limited to reverb and chorus if you can find them, Expansion cards are great!!! Each one runs about $330 US but are well it. They come in a wide variety of catagories (orch, paino, world, dance, etc.) The front panel also has a spot for a PCI card that allows the addition of sounds to play with. A spot for a ram card is also available. I reccomend it for storing sounds and allowing a psuedo GM format. Internal memory only allows for 64 user defined sounds the card allows 64 for a total of 128. A must have.

Acoustic sounds are very relisitic. Three drum kits are great except the snare sounds are only good for erase-like drums. (i like the sounds, but would like a more realistic snare) Sampled 808 drums sound almost perfect and easy to manipulate. All the sounds are of top quality. This is great unless you are trying to peice together an 8 part song. the sounds do not blend together without a lot of maniplation. Don't get me wrong, this is one of the best sounding synths I've heard.

Never had a problem with it. It is racked and ready to go.

Never used it.

I love this module. It sounds great when paired with a warm instument. The sounds are great and the expansion cards are even better. I am happy with the price i payed new and I think that at the used price, it can't be beat.

The presets are very much what you would expect. The JV-880 is basicly a rack-mount version of Roland's somewhat popular JV-80. Expect to spend about an afternoon figuring out how to set all the parameters for multi-timbral operation. This isn't General MIDI, but if you're going to go this far, you probably don't need General MIDI anyway.
As with most (Roland) rackmount units, all editing must be done from the front panel with eight lamp button mode selectors, two cursor keys, and one dial. This sucks, but is commonplace. A computer based patch editor always helps with any synth. Thankfully, the JV-880 has a large "edit buffer", which can really empower a good patch editor.
The manual has obviously been translated from another language. The system exclusive/MIDI implementation section of the manual may as well be a photocopy of the handwritten notes of the engineer. If anybody can tell me what a "-30 keyfollow" is, or how many Hz there are in an LFO set to "12", I'd love to know, because the manual sure as hell isn't telling me.
Thankfully, this is a relatively straightforward synth. Otherwise it would be completely impossible.

The loser at Sam Ash will tell you it has 28 polyphonic voices, and this is true. However, each patch can use up to four of those voices, and an average piano patch takes two or three of them. I'm a hobbyist and I maxed it out on the first day. 28 is fine for a lead synth, but with the words "Multi-Timbral" right up front, it's far too little.
The JV-880 has two builtin effects, Reverb and Chorus, but they don't work when you use the sub-outs (did I mention the sub-outs?). I'm not a good judge of effects, yet, but I've tried them both for a while and they do lend something good to the sound. These effects are done after synthesis. During synthesis there's this "Frequency Cross Modulation" effect that distorts the sound as well. It's OK, if you're into that sort of thing. Also, you can randomly detune a voice for double+detune effects without using up one of the two LFOs.
The JV-880 can have it's waveform memory expanded by adding an expansion board (unscrew the top) or card (slot on the front panel). You can also expand the patch memory with a card (second slot on the front panel). Neither of the cards are PCMCIA compatible, although similarly sized. Most JV-880 owners on the net I've talked to buy the POP expansion board and not much else.
Being a rackmount synth, the JV-880 does not transmit any MIDI data, save for system exclusive bulk dumps. It can be programmed to respond` to twelve modulation sources, although the controller numbers for those sources may not be modified within the synth. If you need to map lip flapping to volume - within the synth - you're out of luck.

The sounds in the wave table for the JV-880 are beautiful and well- chosen. I have only used it as a hobbyist, so I cannot comment on which types of music it excells at. However, I can say that there is an impressive selection. Also, the twelve modulation sources and some fancy patch programming can get some really good variations happening. After several sessions I was able to control highly textured sounds.

The JV-880 has not failed me yet, but I've only had mine for a handful of months.
If you're a paranoid gigger, there's a memory protect switch that will stop you from overwriting anything in the synth without smacking the ENTER button several times.

I have not attempted Customer Support from Roland. I'm a little scared to, given the alien nature of the manual.

I'd buy it again if I were in the same situation I was when I bought it. Now I have more of a budget for this sort of thing, so I'd either go for a JV-1080, or a full-blown sampler.
I love the ugly little sounds I can make with it. I hate the deep green color of the ugly little LCD, and just about everything in the manual.
I view this as the worst synth in my rig, which isn't to say that it's bad. It actually sounds quite nice, but everything else I own must out-perform it, or I send it back. So, I guess, instead of saying "worst" I should say "standardest".