Roland Juno-106

It's very easy to use if you know what you're doing.

It has 6 note polyphony and I like the keyboard, the keys anyway they feel very strong and are easy to play. There's chorus and you just push the buttons for either of the 2 and you've added chorus! No. The only MIDI capabilities is that it has an in, out, and thru. There isn't pressure or velocity sensitivity. But you can simulate velocity sensitivity with the EG. No sequencer.

You have to create sounds and they aren't very real sounding. This synth works great for dance and techno type stuff, just think 80's. The chorus is alright but I wish there were more effects. This synth is static. There is no velocity or aftertouch.

the only bad thing about this synth is that if you accidentally hit one of the bank or patch keys before you save your sound into memory then you loose it and have to start all over again. I wouldn't use it on a gig because of this very reason and having to find your sound again in the middle of the song. That would be terrible!! But it is very reliable, trouble shooting isn't too tough.

If it were stollen or lost, I would definately get something else just because now newer synths are starting to bring back old analog sounds. I have a Yamaha keyboard and a Casio keyboard and software on my computer. I've been playing with the Juno 106 since January 5th 2004. So two months. I love the 80's sound I hate that it's so limited in the sound creation area because the sounds don't sound real and there's no way to make them sound real. It helps right now for making music because the old analog sound is coming back into style.

very cool analog synth with one DCO (digitally controled oscilater), stable tuning. The presets are good for showing capabilities, but it's an analog synth with lots of sliders. What is there to do bbut play with them and program more and better sounds?

very easy to save your own patches, only requires at max three simultaneous key presses. no menus! Yay!!!

Manual is a typical japanese spot translation, but it is still better than current Roland manuals, which are just flat out anti-good.

This is perhaps one of the most straight forward pieces of gear I have ever used in my short experience playing with synths.
It has 6-note poly, only one oscilater, and extensive midi functionality (especially for 1985 anyway). It does send out sys-ex data for all the front pannel controls, which is really nice!
It also has Unison Mode, which stacks all polyphony to every key press. You can do all kinds of fun things with this, especially hard-hitting punchy agressive sounds and weird filter oscilation sweaps.

No built-in sequencer or arpegiater.
Has a built-in chorus, kind of noisy but characteristic and warm. I have out-board effects but I use it's built-in noisy chorus anyway, just cause it sounds cool.

I have ran this synth through various effects on my Digitech Quad IV, and the synth's extensive coolness plus effects are a really nice combination. But even so, it is still cool without effects.

The presets are good for showing off it's env/filtering capability, and there are some useable ones, but of course it's an analog synth, therefore it must be played with.
No rom in this unit, so there are no factory presets, just 128 patch memory locations, which can be saved via midi sys-ex or through the on-board tape interface.

Works well with, of course, retro stuff, since it was made in the 80's, also good for trance/techno, and progressive rock, and anything requiring experimental sounds.

The keys are not velocity sensitive, and there is no aftertouch, but you don't really need it for the synth. Would be kind of nice for the midi out though.

At the time of writing this review, I've only had my Juno for about a month, so I can't give a good opinion, but so far nothing has happened.

I would trust it on a gig, but then I probably wouldn't gig with it anyway. I would probably use something like my Motif6, which of course doesn't compare in any way to the juno as far as sounds, but that's just me. I will keep the Juno in the studio.

this is my first piece of Roland gear, and I've never dealt with their support. they don't support this keyboard now anyway.

this keyboard is probably worth more than I payed for it as far as I'm concerned.
I have had experience with a few analog synths before -- Arp Odyssey, Arp 2600, Korg Poly, etc. none of which I actually owned.
They all have their strong-points and weaknesses. I find that This is by far the easiest analog synth I've ever worked with. Of course it ould be nice if there were a couple more oscilaters so that pulse width could be put on another LFO, for example.
One thing I do miss in the Juno is, since there is only one oscilater, you can't detune like you could with the Arp 2600.


Juno inspires me to create music and can be fit in all kinds of mixes.
I use it in combination with a Yamaha Motif6 and an Ensoniq TS-12.

If it were stolen, I'd definitely get another one. They're not too hard to find since it was so popular.

People can argue that there are better analog synths, which is fine since it's true. But, as this is my first analog synth, I guess I'm a bit biased. I love this thing! There's nothing I can think of that's *really* bad about it.
If you want a start on analog synth programming, this is a good way to go!

Easy as it can get to program, as fast as it gets. The potamento modulation section is a bit Roland-weird, but u get used to it. Presets are OK, but you should be able to do better quite quickly.

^ note poly was considered good back then in 1984(hehe)The DX7 cost a lot more. At the time, and analog poly such as this was considered a budget alternative to a pro synth like a DX7. How things have changed! Second hand values for a 106 will be easily double a DX7 or more. I think the Juno sounds more precise than a Jupiter 8, but has a similar sound, abeit only on Oscilator per voice versus the Jupiter 8's 2 Osc per voice. Personally, I prefer the laser acurate sound of the 106 to the Jupiter. To me the Jupiter doesnt sound "that" great. Sure its one of Roland's best. Just like the Juno. I have sold off my Juno now for the similar Roland JX-8p. The JX-8p's more reliable, and has 2 OSc per voice. JX-8p's have the sound I'm after, nice and warm, yet accurate sounding analog.

Personally, I prefer the laser acurate sound of the 106 to the Jupiter. To me the Jupiter doesnt sound "that" great. Sure its one of Roland's best. Just like the Juno. I have sold off my Juno now for the similar Roland JX-8p. JX-8p's have the sound I'm after, nice and warm, yet accurate sounding analog. I don't like the "fuzziness" of the Jupiter sound. The JX-8p sounds similar to a Jupiter 8 but more refined. There are no sliders on a JX-8p, but u can edit via a computer or the optional PG-800 slider box that connects to it. The JX-8p was used by Jarre, Kraftwerk and Vangelis- if it was good enough for them its good enough for me. Its all over the George Micheal "Faith" album, doing basses, leads, pads and strings. (He used the JX-10)

It has reoliablity problems dur to thr failing custom chips Roland used. A Roland JX series is a better bet for reliablity. A Jupiter 8 is a worse choice!!

Roland blows chunks!. Get an independant to do your work if u want to stay finicially secure.

Bit overated, easy to use, has that roland sound, better second hand Roland's Around (JX series)

very hands on.easy to tweek the shit out of these dinky(dicky?) sounds.patch bank is ok,i have a lot of my own sounds stored.i have no
manual but what i didnt know i got off the net...

for an old school thing,the action is ok,good enough....
no trouble with midi(i hook mine up to an atari 520 cubase!and play drum loops to it-good practice!)BUT one problem........

realistic?well sort of.i find i can(here comes that word again)tweek it til i find something i like.
the PROBLEM i have is..........

a lot of people have a production fault in their 106,i heard about 20-40 per cent.the fourth voice shits itself,and if like mine,continually.this prob can be rectified if taken to the RIGHT person.if you live in sydney,dont go to any place in dee why.....

i dont wanna talk about phase eng. in syd,aus.!!!!

all junos stand up with their classic sound and design.i still hear lots of 106 in music im sure.
although i only use it in electro-groove type of stuff,i also use it as sound effect for shitty relaxation music that i sell to hippies,and in my AV work which is varied....go juno!!
i am looking for a 60 though,coz its bottom end is fatter i think...... j

The presets sounds pretty good. Basses, pads, leads, sound fx, percussive, good sweeps and rinky dinky synth sounds. All knobs baby, no LCD's just hands-on manipulation. There is a patch editor available but I use it mostly to save patches and load them in when needed. The manul is a breeze and look carefully to find out the little tricks.

Polyphony is 6 and the keys have a good feel. It has a chorus effect built-in with 2 different choices-prett basic. There aren't expansion cababilities in this thing but you wouldn't need them anyway. It has MIDI in/out/thru and you can manually tune it from the back. There are these "tape, load, save" inputs/outputs that I've never needed but are apparently another method of saving presets to cassette in some way. The joystick is great and you can use it for the LFO, filter or pitch bend.

Synth sounds. No fake oboes or banjoe samples here. Just warm 80's synth tones of any sort. The sounds are produced from DCO's so they're not as warm as a true analog axe but they sound great anyway. This is great for new wave, electro, The Who, cheesy ambience and quirky music.

It's really reliable except I trashed mine in a drunken fit at a show and had many costs to pay after that. It doesn't take a beating but if kept safe it will work very well. The sliders are a bit flimsy and it's n ot that solid so keep it in a case.

They don't support these although Roland does still sell the unique power chord that fits this unit.

I would not buy it again if stolen as I'd like to get a true analog poly synth that's a little meaner. I've had this thing for years and it has come in handy but just not in as many situations as I'd like it to. If you want a weird, spacey synth with all around patches then get this thing. It is very unique and pretty popular nowadys. I wish it was velocity sensitive so I could use it as a controller. Other things I play are Hammond, Rhodes, Harmonium, Clav, lots of pedals, farfisa, MS-2000 and stuff like that.

A truly nice DCO analog orientated synth with only 1 oscillator and a sub-oscillator a la Juno-6 and Juno-60. Quite revered among a lot of synth users, with all the sliders for creating your sounds there and then and not having to trawl through menu after menu, ah! the days of analog versatility.

Although I downloaded and put the original factory patches back into this synth, they do sound rather weak, but once you start tweaking those sliders and shaping your own sound then it becomes better. It's good for rock-bottom speaker shaking Bass sounds, sound effects and the odd-lead either with portamento or in Unison mode for extra power. There is no aftertouch or velocity, nice keyboard feel, keys are very tight and not loose.

Well after owning this little gem, she is beginning to exhibit the signs of old age, especially with custom IC VCA/VCF filter chips, with this fault esp. in Poly Mode-1 use lose a note (every 6th note) when u play the IC's cycle through and one drops out, hence the dead note, a lot of Juno-106's have this problem, and it's a shame too, a lot of them are now being sold or bought up for spare parts to keep other Juno-106's alive. How many of you Juno-106 owners are experiencing the same problems out there.

Roland were quick to put me onto a specialist engineer outside the company who knows all about the problems with the custom IC's Roland used for the Juno-106. If you open up your Juno-106, you will see on the left-hand side of the main module board just behind the bender/keys, six black resin encapsulated cases, these are the custom IC's put into the Juno-106 (these are the cause of these problems) but did not put them in the Juno-6, 60, 3P, 8P or 10P (odd)

The Juno-106 is a nice synth to have, to use and to own, but with these custom IC filter chip problems, and there is no more available from Roland, cause they don't have any left in the company, soon a lot of 106's will be sold for spare parts etc. What a waste for such a much liked synth such as this. If you are not aware of these problems, try searching the net on the subject, try Delatronics, they have information on this subject. My Juno-106 has done me a great service, and is getting old, so it's time for it go, sadly...

I'm a guitar player that loves to dabble with anything that makes weird nosies. Compared to the other toys I own or have owned int he past this is the easiest piece of synth gear I have ever owned. Compared to some other keyboards I own (Yamaha DX-21, Akai K-1, Korg EA-1, Roland MC-303 and a few Roland and Zoom drum machines) this is far and waya the easiest. I easily found the manual online. Compared to current Roland manuals, or should I say "phone books" this manual is easy to understand. Recent Roland manuals are ridiculously cryptic and confusing. If you need to watch a 3 DVD set to use a piece of gear I'm not interested.

This has been covered ad nausem. I give it a 7 for features. It is by no means Mini Moog or Nord Lead but for the price it can't be beat. Compared to the plastiky boards of today in the same price range its very well made. The only thing on mine that disspoints is the chorus. Mine is much to noisy to use. Instead I am running it through an old Mutronics Phasor and while not the same as a chorus it ads a nice leslie type effect similar enough to make up for it and mimicks a leslie quite well for the organ type patches.

Ok. I have lusted over an analouge synth for many, many years. The only analog type synth I have owned is an Korg EA-1 and a Nord Micro Modular. Nothing quite has the dirt and phatness of a true analog synth. The bassses on the 106 can truly rumble the fillings out of your teeth. Organ sounds are passible as are the leads. Pads are not its strong point. This thing squishes, bubbles, spirts and oscilates like I dreamed it would. If you want strings and pads get a DX-7. If you want thunderous basses, windy noises, portamento sweeps and other strange noises unique to this machine you can't go wrong.

I got mine a few days ago. Other than the super oisy chorus everything seems to work fine. Be careful with it and I bet it will work at least another 20 years. If I gigged with It I might throw the electribe in the bag as a backup but I don't so I won't!

Never dealt with them, but they seem to be cool. I've ordered a few video manuals and the all arrived correctly and fast. I will add that I have had great experiences with both Yamamha and Korg in terms of getting manuals before the days of the interenet. Most recently I called Korg to get a manual for a Vetax product that was made before Korg owned Vestax. The manual was not availabe online and a CS rep hunted one down and Fed Exed me the manual free of charge. That's great service!!!

I don't understand all of the poor ratings this synth gets from some people calling it overhyped, thin and boring. Try a Yamaha DX-21 then call this boring!!! To me overhyped would infer that there are BETTER products available for less money. I will not argue that there are better analog synths out there, of course there are. This was a BUDGET synth at the time, not a flagship. What else can you compare this synth to that is as easy to use, sounds as good, has MIDI, looks cool, is built well, easily supported with spare parts and service AND costs less than $500.00 in mint condition. Get yer hands dirty and tweak those presets!! This synth is anything but boring and thin. I feel a lot of the negative reviews are from people wishing to justify their exspensive and rare synth collections. This happens a lot in the vintage guitar effects market in which I have a lot of experience. If I had $10,000+ in gear I would dis this board too, its too cheap. Remeber what this synth costs and compare it accordingly and you will find it to be an overall great value and phat sounding tool.

If it were lost or stolen I would find another. They are not rare.
Again I am not a synth player by trade but love the sound of analog basses and synths in general. This has helped me vreate some new songs and ideas immediately with the shorted learning curve of just about any piece of gear I have ever owned. That's all one can ask for from any piece of gear!!

An absolute doddle to use

All the necessary features.

Fabulous sound.

A unique feature - the stable DCOs goig through a VFC mean that
very stable metallic sounds can be made when the filter self oscillates.
Makes incredible Rhodes type sounds.

Own it 16 years - never one issue

never needed

Perfect! Only 1 oscillator and sine wave LFO, yet I'm still
discovering new sounds on it 16 years later - it invites
innovation. Get one!

The presets really didn't impress me, I went through every single one and none struck me at all. It wasn't until I started making my own sounds that this thing came alive. The manual for this is long and detailed, but I honestly haven't looked at it at all. Making your own patches is super simple, you just hold down write, and then hold down the new preset number and voila!

This is my first synth, I really know nothing at all about synthesis, I'm a guitar and piano player that wanted some ambient textures and synth sounds. There is built in chorus, and I guess everyone says it's kind of noisy, but the noise is very very subtle. I believe it's MIDI compatible, but I have not used it. No on board sequencer.

I couldn't get good sounds that would mimic strings, rhodes, piano, but I was able to get some very warm, crazy ambient tones out of it. It works well for me, and I play atmospheric instrumental music in the vein of Stars of the Lid, Windy and Carl, The Album Leaf. There really isn't any velocity or aftertouch, but I haven't found that to be a problem with this synth. For the price, this thing is a 10.

It honestly doesn't feel very solid, it's plastic and from the 80's, so I'm afraid that a drop onto hard ground will shatter this thing. However, it hasn't given me any problems whatsoever yet, so I think that as long as I take care of it, it will serve me well in the long run.

If this were lost or stolen, I'd probably do more research before buying another synth. I feel it is definitely worth the price I paid. I was looking for a synth to add texture to my sound, and this thing did that and more. I love the sounds and versatility, I don't like the fact that it doesn't have weighted keys or aftertouch or better string/rhodes/piano sounds. But this is a synth, and that's not what it's made to do. It definitely has inspired me to write more music and expanded on my sound. If you are looking for a great first synth, this is it!

Easy as it gets. Fiddle with the sliders, hit the keys and listen to what happens

A synth that needs a host of onboard effects can't be much of a synth. The Juno has a basic chorus and half the time you don't even need this - subtlety being part and parcel of the programming

OK. i have heard so many times that the 106 is overrated or only does a few sounds well. Sure, it is great for pads, strings and bass. BUT...you can get a hell of a lot more from this synth. The slightest movement of a slider can transform a sound. Try programming your sounds in the mix and you will see just how powerful this thing is. You can fit it into any musical mix. It may lack the character of older analogues but as a workhorse it is unbeatable and always useable. You can get some fantastically subtle sounds too - something often overlooked.

Built in the early 80's . I have bought technology in the last year that is more unreliable.

Don't need it

It's great. I also own a Jupiter 4 and an Arp Axxe. The Jupiter is capable of some inspiring sounds and on occasion aural madness. The Axxe is much more limited but just as quirky. The Juno however is always there. There is always something to be gained from this synth and even if there wasn't it still provides rock solid goodness that can't be replaced by virtual analogues. Too many people have done too many good things with it for it to be denied. Believe the hype.

Very easy to use interface, without a doubt!
Editing is extremely easy--no need for a manual!

6 voices, but only ONE friggin oscillator!!!!
Good MIDI for it's time....

May I have everyone's attention please????
THE JUNO IS A NICE SOUNDING SYNTH, BUT EXTREMELY OVERRATED OVERALL!!!!
OVERHYPED 1,000%..

Guess what folks, Akai produced a synth the same year, in competition with Roland's Juno-106, called the AX-60...

THE AX-60 BLOWS AWAY THE JUNO..
FIRST OFF, IT ALSO HAS ONLY ONE OSCILLATOR, BUT IT'S A VCO (NOT A DCO)

It is much more punchy and aggressive than the Juno.
And, since not many people know about the Ax-60, the price is right: $250 - $300

You can't go wrong..
Forget about the overhyped Juno, go for the AKAI AX60

(if anyone want's to offer some response regarding this synth, you can email me at: SPAZZOID@KIMBAKAT.COM

GOOD

OK

OVERRATED!!!!!!!

I used a Juno for 5 months to record an album a couple of years ago.
It served it's purpose, but looking back, I could have used something more punchy and Agressive, like a PROPHET-5 (which is my current synth)

A two Oscillator synth like a Prophet-5, Oberheim OB8, or the 3 oscillator memorymoog will easily knock a juno INTO FUCKING OBLIVION---Don't beieve me, then go to my mp3.com page to hear some of my trax: http://artists.mp3s.com/artists/360/quadrant_77.html

In conclusion, if you're pressed for cash, get an AKAI AX-60...

Or, if you have the $$$$, and want the BEST, and want your music to sound extremely warm, fat, punchy, exciting--then buy a PROPHET-5

Its a warm and wide analouge sound

Its a classic example of programming a synth - the easist ever, but not the most simple. With all the controls and buttoms on the panel, in order, its a true joy to program it. The bets ever!!

6 voices, its ok. And MIDI!!!

had a Juno60 before - maby a little bit fater but just a hair's-breadth from. And Juno60 lacks MIDI

Its a analouge synth and sounds good. With only one DO per voice its fantastic. The chorus can be set on two modes or off, and is noicy but warm.

Some times the tones can flip a little bit when pressed. My modulationwheel is ragged, but can use it with another MIDI-keyboard (A-80)if needed

As ever with Roland: Pay and be happy.

I recently asked Roland about how to do when Im soon move from Sweden (220V) to USA (110V) with the Voltage. They gave me solutions for every Roland unit I have, including the Juno106 - worthy of imitation Roland!

I need this synth - so let it be!

Please visit my Juno106 page at www.soundofmusic.se

As easy as they come, if you know anything about programming analogue synths.

It is surprisingly versatile for a 1 OSC + Sub.polysynth. The chorus is not clean sounding, but still great for fattening things up when needed. 1 env, compared to the jupiters 2 env, but a faster attack, giving a punchier bass than the jupiters! Some claim it sounds thin, I say this is not at all the case. It's all in the programming. I've programmed a sound in unison that sounds very much like the bass in Pet shop boys'original, first version of "West End Girls". Nuff said.

Some claim it sounds thin, I say this is not at all the case. It's all in the programming. I've programmed a sound in unison-mode that sounds very much like the bass in Pet shop boys'original, first version of "West End Girls". Also great sweeps, beautiful tremelo-like sounds & lfo stuff+ all kinds of analogue blips, and, even gritty stuff(heres where the chorus comes in handy). The Donald Duck of synthesizers. The world just wouldn't be the same without it.
I have a couple ofsynthesizers
and I've messed around with quite a few(incl. Jupiter 8, Prophet VS & other both rare and common stuff) but none of these could
ever replace my 106. This is one of my all time favourites, I quite frankly couldn't live without it. Add some good reverb to the sound, and you will love it.

Weighs about 10 kilos, very well built. No problems with mine so far.

Never needed it.

If you're making music, what you should be looking at is not the original price orhow rare the synth is, but go for the thingsthat matters; sound, programmability and reliability. This is IMHO one of
the best synth ever produced.
I do recommend you try before you by,though.
Like all champs it has it's own special sound.

The 106 is extremely easy to use, you turn the synth on and within seconds are making great trancy/atmospheric sounds. Presets suck but they are meant to. The also easy to understand althoiugh I doubt one would have to refer to it much.

Ok this synth soesn't have velocity or aftertouch but who cares when synths sound this good it really doesn't matter. Six note poly is the minimum you would need for electronic music(YOUR NOT MEANT TO PLAY IT LIKE A PIANO). Midi is nice and straightforward. Nice. Oh by the way the synth looks shit hot also.

The Juno's are the best sounding synths out there, I also have the Juno 60 and both sound different, but just as nice. Use these synths to create warm sweeping pads or funky bass lines. These synths are the Kings of trance.

As the 106 is so simplistic theres little that goes wrong with them, the junos are built like tanks.

Crap customer support but then again if you look after your Juno hopefully nothing will go wrong.

If someone stole it I would break the fuckers legs, If i sold it I would break my own legs!

I Was the proud owner of the all-time classic Juno-106 Polyphonic Synthesizer from june 1985 up until 1999. And the only reason why I had to give it up is because I needed a powerful multitimbral Synth. I'm Still nostalgic. It was my first keyboard, a dream machine Synthesis Rookies just getting started on the road of Modern Music. It was so easy to use that it became the basis of my synthesis knowledge. I can work and edit almost any Synth machine thanks the 106's logic, simplicity and beautiful texture.

One of the first Analog Synths with MIDI interface. In their time and context keys were great, only six voices in polyphony but very suitable for that particular board. Don't forget we're are talking about an excellent although basic keyboard. Of course no sequencer (not with six voices anyway), no expansions possible other than tape-memory-dumping (very slow and poor) but also one of the few available things at the time. It had 128 patch memories divided in two groups A/B. No built in effects other than a preset Chorus I and II for wave enhancement. Very well built, it lasted me 14 years without a scracth. When I think about it I gets me real sad. Although I was paid a very good price. With that money I was able to buy a JV-1080!

The 106 is a Quintessencial Analog Synth therefor one can only expect analog sounds. I turned upside down searching its every parameter and frequency. Like I've said before It's real beauty. I made soounds that I never would have thought possible in that synth. I suppose that's the reason why it's still very much appreciated and it's worth so much.

Absolutely, in 14 years of use I never Had a glitch. It's an instrument that was ment to last.

N/A. Never needed it

absolutely. I'd try to get another one. There many available, specially in the pristine conditions mine was in

very easy to use. everything is laid out for you. i dont have a manual...bought it at a pawn shop. you can always find one on-line.

the keyboard is built like a tank. unlike the plastic roland and korgs of today. this baby was built in 1984, so no sequencer or sound cards. this synth sounds great and modulation is easy. i love the enveloping filters and DEEP bass. dont worry about eFX get a sub woofer to really here how powerful it is. also, the 1st juno to have midi and one of the 1st rolands to have midi. its a analog synth with digital sliders. something cutting edge back then.

this synth wasnt made for traditional musik. has a new wave, kraftwerk, or pink floyd sound. mainly used for retro and electronic sound. great for techno, trance, and jungle. jungle producers like dara and deisel boy uses it for its deep dirty basslines. underworld, moby, and fatboy slim also use it. you could also use it for goth or spacey rock sound. very versitile. in the 80's bands like the cure, depeche mode, and human league also used it. sooo basically, if youve ever heard all the artist i've mentioned...you know how it soundz like. i'm happy to own it and love how it sounds. deffinately a electro studio top 10 list.

you can count on it and play live with it. its a vintage synth so personally i would never drag it on stage. mainly for studio use.

never dealt with roland for my juno. other roland products there customer support is pretty bad.

i traded in a lousy yamaha synth for it at a pawn shop. got it for a steal for 225.00 after trade. its an overall perfect synth for electronic performers. sounds strong and very full. wonderful teXtures. it was made in 1984 and about 44,000 of them were made. so if you can find one buy one!!!

Silders or buttons/switches for every parameter and a pretty simple architecture: analog sound design couldn't get much easier I'd say. This would be an excellent first synth to learn something about analog synthesis.

See reviews below for the specs, not much point in restating them. But here's a little tip: if you're a bit technical, you could use a program called Bome's Midi Translator to translate the sysex generated by the sliders to normal midi-CC's so that you could use the 106 to tweak softsynths etc.

Just about everyone has a Juno and there's a reason for this: it just sounds very tasty. In spite of its simple architecture the range of sounds is still impressive, it can sound quite agressive and technoish but also very musical. Nice warm basses, floaty pads, bleepy fx, even some gabberish leads, it's all in there, and you can tweak any parameter in real time of course, even recording this as sys-ex.

I also have an MKS-50 (basically a Juno 1 in a rack) which has a more advanced architecture for a wider range of sounds, but it sounds quite different from the 106, more digital and bright, and the filters are *very* different for sure, I like the 106 filter very much but I can't say the same of the MKS-50. It's easier to fit an MKS-50/Juno 1/2 in a mix than a 106 but the latter is warmer and more analog sounding. Apparently the Juno 60 is even warmer than the 106, but unfortunately it doesn't have midi so you'd need something like a dcb-to-midi kit as well.

Great sound, easy to program and all parameter/slider changes send out sysex.

This was my first analog synth, and I wish I had bought it years ago, that would have saved me from the frustration of dealing with softsynths... I now have a little studio with mostly analog gear; if you want analog, get analog and leave all those virtual plastic toys for the kids.

Damn easy to use, IMHO. My dad bought it when I was at the age of about 6. Years after I started playing keyboards and therefore became interessted in the thing. And again some years after I first saw other synths and I was quite shocked.

On these other machines, there were no sliders for each parameter and all was quite complex. I love the ease of use the Juno 106 brings.

There are some great presets but one can create really nice sounds after some trying.

The manual could be better but it's ok.

In brief: Usage is the easiest I know

It has 6 voices polyphony and a unisono mode that creates really fat sounds, especially when combined with the portamento function.

The built-in chorus is noisy but it is what gives most pad-sound presets their character.

There's no sequencer and no arpeggiater. The latter is what I sometimes miss.

MIDI-features are really fine, every motion of every slider/knob can be transmitted via sysex to another Juno or to a sequencer.

There's only one DCO, you might think. But this is not that true, the DCO in fact is 4 DCOs, one for sawtooth, one for square, one for sub-square (one octave lower) and a noise generator.

The LFO can control DCO (both frequency and square pulse width) and VCF. The ENV-generator (unfortunately only one...) can control VCF and of course VCA (which can be also switched to "gate")

The filter can be easly brought to resonance. It then creates real killer-sounds.

The keyboard is simple, no touch response or aftertouch. Well, image living in 1985 and buying a relatively cheap synth... what would you expect?

In brief: All features are great. But compared to sate-of-the-art synths there's a lot of stuff missing.

The sounds are really cool! Of course, there are no realistic instrumenst but one can program fat bass sounds or aggressiv, noisy stuff.

The best pad sounds I know. Really soft but not thin.

Touch response and aftertouch is what I miss, therefore only 8 points.

It never showed any probs. Some sliders and a key had a defect (reason: spilled coke into it, my fault.) but with some special cleaning spray they where up and running again after 2 minutes.

The volume knob sometimes cracks. Turn it around some times and it will be ok.

Never needed support, so no rating.

If it where stolen I'd shure try to get another one. No other machine I know lets me make my ideas become a sound path this fast.

Compared to some virtual anlogue Yamaha stuff, it's absolutely perfect. My Korg Poly61 sounds quite thing compared to it.

I wish it had a midi-syncable arpeggiator.

I love it. I definetly do not hate anything on this machine.

To anyone who thinks about buying this thing: They are quite expensive on Ebay Germany. Better try to get one someqhere else. About 700 DM including a flight case should be ok.

Fairly easy to use. Presets are nice, but not great. However it's a lot more fun to mess around with the sliders and knobs yourself anyway. And it's easy to store your own sounds.

You can make some GREAT sounds with this machine, and even though it sounds good on it's own, don't be afraid to run it through some external effect devices. I've had great results, with old guitar pedals such as the Boss ME-10, Boss FT-2 and an Octaver. Also tryed to run it through some of the effects from the Yamaha A4000 sampler, Roland VS-1680 HDrec and a Yamaha Promix 0; again with great results. Tip: OD can really crank up some of the leadsounds!!!!

Even though it's old it's solid. I've had no problems so far.

I have no idea, since i've never needed any support on this synth.

If it was stolen I would definetly try to find another.

It's very nice and easy to program. I think many of the presets are not so good, lots of better make patches yourself. Manual is good and comprehensive.

6 voice polyphony is enough, expect for my Jarre-style pads.. It has very analog noisy chorus, which is great. There are MIDI In, Out and Thru, it had the most complement MIDI stuff when it was released. It doesn't have seq, or arpeggiator, like Juno-60.

It doesn't have many realistic instruments.. More like technobasses and ultracool lead sounds and brass + nice strings. It is excellent choice for techno, electro, ambient, dance and trance. It doesn't have velocity or aftertouch, but that is ok for me.

It works always. Of course I can use it on a gig without backup!!

Never had to.

I wouldn't let it get stolen. It is extremely worth what I paid. I've been playing piano/synths for 7 years and music is one of the most important things for me. I have a analog-modeling Yamaha CS2x and I'm going to buy Roland TR-606 drum-machine.
I love allmost all things in it. I don't HATE anything in it. I hate the people who declare it's digital or something. It is analog, just digitally CONTROLLED oscillator! My favourite trance patches just give me inspiration for melodies and this is a great synth and one of the most loved and used synths. Check all the professional users of Juno! Gotta go play my own..

I wish all synths still had a dedicated knob or slider for every
parameter. Even many of the new modeling synths use some menu
driven or multipurpose buttons. The 106 is easy to program, and a
great first synth if you want to learn how to program an analog voice.

The original factory presets do a good job of showing the different
sounds you can make with a 106, but you really ought to program your
own sounds. Back in the day, you didn't want to sound like anybody
else. Today a lot of people cop out and use presets because programming
is so complex.

The manual is a spotty translation (like many Japanese manuals even
today), but does a good job of telling you all the ins and outs of the
106.

6 voice,
Global LFO/mod rate and portamento
1 DCO (digitally controlled oscillator - stays in tune better than a
VCO, but sounds much nicer than a lot of the gritty modeling synths
made today) - Saw, Pulse, Sub osc, Noise.
1 VCF (24dB resonant LPF, limited HPF, with LFO, Envelope, and Keyboard
modulation)
1 ADSR Envelope

Built-in chorus with two speed settings. Very noisy, but has a unique
sound that you can't accurately duplicate on any modeling synth I've
tried.

Can store 128 patches internally, and you can back them up via MIDI or
the old fashioned way (to cassette).

The 106 was one of the first synths that had full MIDI implementation,
and it was really impressive for its day. It's kinda tame by today's
standards, since it's not multitimbral (all 6 voices use the same patch).

No on-board sequencer. Roland used to make an add on one that matched
the 106 cabinet and attached to the front panel with magnets. I
haven't seen one of those in over 15 years, though, and I'll bet
they're tough to find. Use your computer to sequence your 106.

The 106 voice isn't as complex as many of the more expensive vintage
analog synths (or most of the modeling synths for that matter). The
single oscillator and single envelope per voice make it's sounds
simpler and less fat than a Prophet 5, for example (Can't do a swept
sync with a 106. Can't detune two oscillators to fatten the sound).
However, that makes the 106 much easier to learn. The 106 may not be
the fattest, but it still sounds very good. It has better low-mid
range "balls" than some of the gritty and tinny analog modeling synths,
and the 106 is great for pads and analog organ sounds.

The keyboard feels great, but isn't weighted and does not do velocity
or aftertouch. I like the Roland joystick for modulation, but I know
others who greatly prefer Moog style wheels. You can always control
the thing with your MIDI sequencer anyhow...

I've had mine since it was new, and it's built much more solidly than
most synths made today. The case is mostly metal, and the bottom is
wood. The original battery is still going strong after over 15 years!

The sliders are a little noisy from the years of dust and buildup, but
they still work fine. I've had to replace one of the packs inside when
one of the voices lost its sub oscillator. Parts are still pretty
available since so many 106s were made.

Roland stands behind their stuff, and authorized service folks have
been great about parts.

I don't use my 106 as much as I used to, but I'll always be a fan.

Just grab a knob or a slider.

6 voice polyphony. Keyboard is a really light synth nonweighted keyboard and quiet. There is a Corus effect with two settings - one deeper than the other. No expansion or sequencer. The Keyboard review I read Ions ago said it was the first DCO synth with polyphonic portamento (like I use that on every song!). It has three poly modes. Mode 3 is entered by pressing both poly buttons which layers all 6 VCOs...in today's lingo that traslates into Phatt!

It's a synth. Digital OSCs through analog filters. It does synth stuff. It's from 1983/4. Adding external effects makes it very useable. Does synth stuff fairly well. It's not a Jupiter 8 or an OB8. Pretty organ sounds and strings. Nice sweeps, basses and other synthy stuff. Sends all its knobs and slider data in real-time over MIDI.

All units had a design defect that causes their voice or filter chips to fail. Don't let a tech replace just one chip when it goes bad - replace them all, or you will be back to the tech soon. I replaced chips in 1984, 1987, 1999. Roland apparently has a plentyful supply.
On the otherhad, I played live at a gig in '86 on the beach in Florida. It was 150 in the shade. It blinked out after an hour and we revived it with some ice in towels.

I take it to the guy locally and he fixes it. We're on a first name basis;-)

I bought it new circa 1983. Other than the darn chips going out, I like having it around. I use it musically often for three purposes (1) bass sounds (geez my monitors dude!), (2) Filler in a song, like a pad that you don't really hear, but it's there, and (3) Organ sounds that are very plain. It's got other uses like for techno, but that's not my rhelm. Good as a pad behind a quality sampled piano, and I can play for hours.

The easiest synth I've ever used. Presets are simply ridiculous but at those times a must for a commercial unit. The manual is useless so an editor (unless for storing patch sets).

Few things it does but it does them very well. Quite a noisy unit but it is part of its unique sound so it doesn't matter for me. The battery system forces you to look for battery replacements that are sometimes hard to found. 6 voices poyphony and a cool midi implementation : everything on the front panel can be sent and received by whatever sequencer that accepts sysex.

Cool and unique sounding. The poy 1+2 mode changes the unit into a 6 voices unisono monophonic synth capable of FAT and weird things. Excellent and fun for blirps and blurps it can become very evocative in basses, pads and leads with the help of a good reverberation buddy. The ketboard is pure cold cheap plastic, but it looks so cool to me :) ! Noisy but charming chorus onboard.

mine is 16 years old and works quite well though suffering oldness.
beware of battery system.

Hard to find help for a grandpa.

It's fundamental for me. There's always room in my mixes for a juno track. I own a Q, a Pulse, two Electribes and a couple of other synths and I make IDM like stuff and it fits perfectly with his sweet sound. Whis it had an arpeggiator, but you can always use an external one

Very easy to use, thanks to the sliders. It's a matter of minutes before you find yourself doing interesting sound. I hate new digital synths because I'm frustrated each time I want to change a parameter.

Good amount of features (midi/sysex/ease of use...). It's a shame it's not velocity sensitive but really it's not that important.

My first impression was that the sounds could be very limited but I was wrong. With a bit of tweaking and with the help of some external effects you can can thos monster sounds or those soft and warm sounds for your ambient tracks. In comparaison, I also own an AKAI AX73 (analogue synth with digital controls) and I can say that th 106 sounds a lot better and warmer. Don't let me say what I haven't said: the AX73 is capable of very good sounds too!

I got it second hand (one key is not working but it's easily fixable) at only $100 and until now I don't regret this buy. It seems like this synth is done to last years and years.

Overall, a very nice synth. I recommend it to everyone as this synth
can produce various (warm pads or lead) sounds that you can use in almost every electronic music style.

Simple control panel. I've not heard the actual factory pre-sets, so i can't comment on that. If you can't figure out how to edit this w/o a patch editor, sell it. Don't have the manual, but you probably only need it to see what the different MIDI setting switches in the back do.

Polyphony is 6 voices, typical synth keyboard action. Only effects are built in chorus. Off, I, II, that's it. Kinda noisy, but adds some dimmension to the sound. When it came out, it the most complex MIDI system to date. Velocity ignorant keyboard, no aftertouch.

Decent brass sounds & string sounds. Other than that, it's all zips, zaps, squeels, sweeps, & mdoulations. Suits techno & hip-hop the most. Noisy chorus. Most people react to their synths, not the other way=o)

They're built like a tank! I've never used mine to play live with yet, but i would if it came up.

never dealt with Roland

If it were stolen or damaged, i would buy another one for sure. I've been doing techno for 4 years now. I own the following gear, & love it all, but the juno cannot be replaced. SH-101(red), TB-303, TR-606, TR-626, TR-707, TR-727, TR-808, TR-909, Juno-106, FR-777, Yamaha TX-81Z. It's closest relative is the Jun-6/60. But they have a slightly different sound.