Roland Jupiter 8

The last software update for the JP8 was version 3.1 (Which is what my one has)

Manual is good.
Factory presets has some useable sounds

I know the JP8 looks like a straightforward synth, but some reason i cant program the bugger. Most of the presets sound warm and full ....but when ever i stick it into maunal mode i always get a bloody weak thin sound! I cant figure out what it is i must do in order to tap into the jp8's powerful sound. Ill go into more detail in the 'sound' section.

Despite my programming inexperience I feel that this synth will become easy once the penny has dropped.

Mine has no midi...but ive heard i can use an external sequencer or get a rerofit. Ill do this when i get the money. This synth has some really nice features 1) very cool arpegio 2) dual and split modes make for interesting soundscapes (If only i could program it) 3) 8 note polyphony is about as good as it got with these old classic analogs. This synth gives off so much heat i get a little worried it may catch fire.

OK the factory presets have some very FAT warm sound. The trouble is no matter what i do i just cvant seem to pregram any heavy thick basses or sweet mellow pads. I know this synth is bloody cool sounding. I can program my Pro-One and mono-poly no problem.

I can program damn weird sound fx but thats about it. Could someone do me a big favour and email me or submit the settings in a reveiw for basic fat basses and pads then i can use these as a point of reference from which i can make my own sounds.

With the saw tooth's i just get thin pale sound and the pulse waves just sound muffled...wtf am i doin wrong plz help!!! I try and use the lfo modulation to fatten sonud as well as detune oscilators but it aint working.

No probs

No support

This synth is bloody cool to look at whilst your playing, built like reinforced tank. It looks simple to program but youll probably get weird unsatisfying results at first. I have no doubt that once ive unlocked the secret to programming the jp8 it will reward me with sonic sweetness (As some of the factory presets would indicate)

I hope i never have to sell this synth....if I did id probably be unable to financially replace it....but at least i could say that ive owned a jupiter 8.....not many can say that.

The Jupiter 6, Jupiter 8 and Prophet 5 have got to be the most easy to program yet powerful synths ever made. The JP8 brings a smile to my face everytime I use it.....because I KNOW I can program killer sounds out of it! The whole surface of the front panel is populated with sliders, knobs, and bottons. An absolute pleasure.

Great 8 note polyphony (Which was good for 1981) which has the flexibility of being layered, split or stacked in unison for instant heart-attact inducing sound. The most most classic sounding oscilators ever heard by mankind (Thick, warm), the most classic analoge arpegiator (The famous Random mode), 64 patch memory storage (Very cool!!!), beutiful sounding filters (Smooth, warm, sharp and gritty all at the same time), great modulation possibilities (By todays standards somewhat limited but very useful none the less). No onboard midi but retrofits are possible should you need to do that (The one I have has no midi and It really doesn't bother me)

Overall really brilliant implimentation of features.

Hmmm it sounds buzzy or nasal? I kinda see why some reviewers may say this about the JP8. When I first got the JP8 I was quite suprised by the way it sounded. The JP8 has an incredibly distinct tonal characteristic and no matter how thoroughly you program the synth, you will always hear that 'tonal characteristic'. I believe that it is this tone which sets the Jupiters apart from all other synths. The JP8 has the ability to go from super smooth/silky to an incredibly bright/gritty almost distorted kind of sound.....just FANTASTIC!

Describing the sound of a Jupiter 6, 8 is so difficult. Follow these links if you wish to listen and get some idea as to how they sound. Like me you will probably initially be suprised, but dont worry that soon fades into jaw dropping respect! Let me stress to you that these clips are really the tip of the iceberg of a Jupiter's power. The 'buzzy/nasal' characteristed (as some people describe it) is in evidence. Does this characteristic bother you?

http://artists.mp3s.com/artists/432/jetboy_junction.html

http://www.techno-house.info/Jupiter8/

So who has used the Jupiter 8? well these top pop acts have (Info from www.synthmuseum.com)

Damon Albarn of Blur, Aurora, 808 State, Alphaville, Banco de Gala, Barclay James Harvest, Steve Beresford of Frank Chickens, Katrina Bihari, Boris Blank of Yello, Blue Nile, Michael Boddicker, Dave Brock, Arthur Brown, Richard Burgess, The Cars, China Crisis, Vince Clarke, Dave Clayton, Cocteau Twins, Colourbox, Martin Cooper of OMD, Lol Creme, Miles Daves, Deacon Blue, Depeche Mode, Devo, Thomas Dolby, D.Ream, Spike Edney of Gueen, Electribe 101, Electronic Dream Planet, Guy Fletcher, John Foxx, Frank Chickens, Russ Gabriel, Steve Gray of Sky, The Grid, A Guy Called Gerald, Jan Hammer, Paul Hardcastle, HIA, Liam Howlett, Human League, Paul Humphreys, It Bites, J-M Jarre, Howard Jones, Journey, Charles Judge of Giorgio Moroder, Brian Kehew and Roger Manning of The Moog Cookbook, Mark Kelly of Marillion, Adrian Lee, Geddy Lee, Thomas Leer, Patrick Leonard, Mike Lindup of Level 42, Stephen Luscombe of Biancmange, Mick MacNeil of Simple Minds, Nick Magnus, Marillion, Meat Beat Manifesto, Ministry, Moby, Motiv8, Mulligan, Chris Newman, Steve Nieve, William Orbit, Orbital, OMC, Peter Oxendale, Alan Pasqua, Steve Porcaro, The Prodigy, Nick Rhodes of Duran Duran (including the random arpeggiating in the song "Rio"), Rhythmatic, Andy Richards, Pet Shop Boys, Ian Ritchie, The Rockets, Shriekback, Simple Minds, Robert Smith of The Cure, Belouis Some, Tim Souster, Startled Insects, Paula K. Stentz of Rumors of the Big Wave, Swing Out Sister, Switzerland, Talk Talk, Tangerine Dream, Tears for Fears, Rod Temperton for Michael Jackson (Thriller), Ultravox, ian Underwood, Tony Visconti, Jessica Zaccaro of See Spot (SF 79-80), Wang Chung, Kim and Rickie Wilde, Nick Wood, Jezz Woodroffe

Listen to their music and you'll hear the JP8 all over it!



With the sound of the Jupiter 8 in your mind, go check out nearly all 80's pop music, sit back and laugh!

Possibly one of the best built synths ever made. High quality build and superior quality components gives the Jupiters a LONG lifespan. Would I gig with it?...NO, because I respect it too much to abuse it in that way. There are very few JP8's left in the world now. As of 2002 it was estimated that only 1200-1350 (Out of 2000 ever built) were still in one peace. If you have one.....look after it! If you wish to get one.....be patient, I had to wait 2 years before I found one!

These synths are almost as reliable as brand new synths today, I wonder if the same would be true when Novas, Virus, Nords reach 22 yrs old.

I never dealt with Roland regarding my Jupiter 8. But I have a biased veiw and think Roland are great! So I give them 10 hehe.

I make electronic dance music, film soundtracks and pop music. In my opinion the JP8 (And JP6 for that matter) are an absolute nessecity. Combine Stunning looks, stunning sound and reliability and you are left with an absolute classic synth.

The Jupiter range of synths are probably the amongst the easiest synths in the world to program/operate. Nothing gets in the way of your creative dreams.

Great keyboard action, no built in effects, patch memory storage (64), midi retrofits are recommended. A killer arppegiator and the oscilators and filters are legendary. What more do you need?

How the hell does one describe the perfect analogue sound? Lets just say that this synth nails it.

You love classic early 80's synthpop sounds. The Jupiter 8.

You love early 80's Hip-Hop. The Jupiter 8.

You love 80's music? The Jupiter 8.

You love those ripping underground dance/rave sounds of the late 80's early 90's? The Jupiter 8.

You Love undeground Trance of the mid 90's. The Jupiter 8

Lets face it.....anyone who was anyone throughout the 80's and 90's used a Jupiter 8. The top producers in the world today use them. End of story.

My 2 JP8's has never gone wrong. Spare parts can be found on Juno synths, 808 drum machines, korg poly 6 etc etc. Parts are pretty widespread beleive it or not. The Roland gear and particularly the JP6 and JP8 are built to a phenominal standard. They rarely go wrong. Finding spare parts should not be of a real concern...in any case a good repair company should have ample supplies of the most common components.

1981 this synth cost $8995. I think its pretty safe to asume their level of customer support reflected this.

Phonomenal, distinctive, beutiful and legendary.....ladies and gentlemen the JUPITER 8 has entred the building. Get the picture?

There is no way on earth you can get such a powerful sound with such ease. This is what all those 'Virtual Analogs' try to recreate but fail.

My JP8 has no midi retrofit. I just use mine with an old Roland MC-4 sequencer.....bloody cool!!!!!!

For an old analog, 8 note poly is great! No built in effects. Powerful sounding oscilators. Superb filter and Envelope sections.

Unbeleivable electronic sounds! Sound effects are awesome. Basses are just so classic (Remember those bouncy basslines in 80's music....well this is it!) Leads and strings are the best in the world.....to sum it up this is genuine dance music heaven (All genres benefit when you use one of these monsters). Very clear sound quality. The JP8 has an immediate pressence within your music. I just love it.

Built like a tank. Parts are widespread. My JP8 has never gone wrong.....its still got at least 25 years in her (JP8's have a life span of around 50/60 years!). Enough said.

Roland UK still offer support for this synth!! They still supply parts for this synth, they give practical advise as to where to get it serviced etc etc. Bearing in mind this synth is 20 years old, I still feel comfortable that support, should I need it, is still available.

I just absolutely love everything about this synth. I love the way it looks, the reassuring heavey weight (23kgs) and the sound of it. Im so lucky to own one of these.....I'd never ever sell this girl.

jupiter 8 with groove midi interface ,every slider can be controlled by midi ,also bulkdumps possible

complete,

very natural poly pure analog synth
i can maybe only compare it to the andromeda,although i wouldn't swap it for one as it sounds "different"

i giged with it ,it even once fell for a meter. no problems. (stopped taking it with me however ,like it too much)

find a real good technician, NOT the guy of the locale music shop as these things are hightech. i found my way after some time ,you will

let's put it this way:
if sent to an uninhabited island and i could only take 1 synth with me IT WOULD BE THE JUPI !!

( with i guess as second the minimoog (monophonic) and third my crumar ds2(that's a synthesizer))

This synth is just sooooo easy to program. As is the case with all presets.....forget them and program yourself. With this baby anything is possible. The manual is very good.

For circa 1980/81 this synth kicks ass. Its VERY powerful. I shall not bother to regerjitate the list of features (Very Impressive List)...but I will say.... they are beutifully implemented.

This is a very electronic sounding synth. It sounds very warm and fat. Its capable of producing those 'BIG' sounds we know and love from the 80's. This synth is capable of the most lovely pads you will ever hear...utterly stunning! It also has the sharp, bitty edge that only the best analog polys can deliver. This synth hits the sonic spot BIGTIME!. Im feeling emotional...sniff sniff :)

Please remember to important facts when assesing peoples reviews of the sound:

1) Inexperienced programmers may use terms such as 'the JP8 sounds muddy' and 'not much variation...after a while it all sounds the same'

Whereas..

2) Experienced programmers will tell you the JP8 is unmatched for pure sonic brilliance, warmth of character and sonic variation.

Make no mistake...the JP8 phonomenal.

This synth is so well built it may even outlive you. It is as dependible as any other synth. Just bear in mind, VA's have their own set of problems - Snap, crackel and popping sounds + OS crashes. Keep your JP8 warm and dry and DONT abuse it! Be responsible....DONT GIG WITH IT!

Well at the time, the support was excellant...but now.....there is very little - Its over 20 years old now...its to be expected.

Well what can I say! Im still speechless.

The Roland Jupiter 8 ranks along side other great analog polys such as the - Yamaha CS80, SCI Prophet 5, Elka Synthex, Oberheim OBX-a.

The 70's & 80's was a great era for analog synths....great uplifting/happy synth sounds (Erasure,Eurythmics,Genesis,Human league,PetShopBoys,Depech Mode etc etc). The introduction of mass produced 'Virtual analogs' is NOT the answer. I like the sound of some digital synths and they do have an equally important role within a mix. But I cant help but feel sorry for the new generation of music makers who have to be force fed Nords, Virus's etc etc. In my opinion the 'over use' of virtual analogs within electronic music today is slowly killing the emotion/atmosphere of the music itself. Maybe this is why most modern pop/dance/trance etc etc sounds sooooo boring. What we need now is for more manufacturers to start producing real analogs once again....for the sake of a new generation of music makers.

^ At the end of the day this is just an opinion.

Long live analog.

The Jp-8 is very easy to use. It's really easy to get new sounds and really easy to change your existing sounds on the fly.

I don't know what the last guy is talking about. Come on, man. I totally agree with the guy before mr. 'anonymous'. You can't blame a jupiter-8 for not having midi or velocity sensitivity! Jupiter-8s are pre-midi and velocity sens was not a common feature then. That's like blaming a cat for not being a dog. The onboard apreggiator is great, it can be set to randomly select notes from the keys you're holding down, and if you get a MIDI interface for it you can make it clock to MIDI.

The sounds are beautiful! If you can't different and unique sounds out of it, that's YOUR fault, not the fault of the synth! I've owned one for many years, and I've never had a single complaint. Any sound I want, I can get it instantly. Sometimes if I want a certain sound I might have to EQ on my mixer or use distortion, but the quality of the sounds and the ease with which it can do a very WIDE RANGE of things are amazing. Great for Dance music! Also for rock!

I wouldn't use it live. If you take care of it though, it will take care of you. It's built like a tank. It's a huge metal monster. I've never had a single problem with mine. Never had to call the synth tech. It's a very solid and reliable synthesizer, for a vintage piece. If you aren't able to properly take care of a vintage instrument, buy some bad sounding new thing.

I'm going to put no opinion here, since it's a vintage classic and therefore is way past warranty or support. If you want a vintage instrument, you have to accept that it's harder to fix, you have to take it to a specialist in repair of analog synths. If you live in a city though, I don't think it's a problem

It's now a really expensive synth. I don't know if I would buy another if it got stolen. Maybe. I have been playing since the late 80s. I also have an Oberheim Xpander. These synths are much better than the new 'virtual' analog stuff. I have compared these to everything, and I always come back to the Jupiter-8 because it is flexible and beautiful sounds. It does a lot of different things if you program it well. If you just do the obvious things, maybe you think it sounds the same. Take more time with programming and use some imagination. You'll get different stuff, with no excuses!
It helps me make music because the sound quality is so nice that when I play it I can focus on the music itself. For example it can make me notice how good something sounds even if the chord is strange. Do you know what I mean? For example, a chord of music in a classical piece sounds really cool with the orchestra playing it. But if you play that same music on a Nord Lead, maybe it doesn't sound quite as cool. The tone of the instrument can make you understand what the composer wants to say with the music.

There is a knob and button for every parameter. But a manual is always nice.

No Midi (unless a retrofit/ or DCB converter).
Not velocity sensitive.
22+ years old.
No sequencer but has an arpeggiator.

Analog here. Good strings, Pads, basses, but after a while they all start to sound the same. Muddy.

Depend on it? Yeah right.
22+ years old you better know MusicTek's PH# when it goes down.

Roland does not have anything for the Jupiter-8.

Bought it used in 1985 and sold it to get a PPG Wave 2.3.
Never needed tuning unlike the MemoryMoog (nightmare!).
The JP-8 sounds great until you have it for more than 6 months and you notice all the sounds are the same.

Very easy to use, as everything is right in front of you. If you've ever used an analog poly before, you don't need a manual. Experienced synthesists can sit down and get great sounds instantly. Great layout for performance

8 notes of creamy analog perfection. Does not sound harsh. Maybe the person who thought the JP-8 sounds 'buzzy' was listening to a JP-6, I don't know. All I know is I've owned the JP-6, the MKS-80 (super jupiter rack), and the JP-8, and the 8 blows the other two out of the water. Though the JP-6 has more flexibility in cross-modulation and filtering, its weedy oscillators and so-so filter ultimately can't stack up to the Jupiter-8.

The 8 has smooth oscillators and filters, and can produce the most perfect tones I've ever heard from a polysynth. It's that perfect almost plastic sound that American synths never really went for, but this one nails it. The only things that come close in terms of producing polysynth textures this pleasing are Prophet Five and Elka Synthex. The build quality of a Jup-8 is better than the Five, so it breaks down far less. And it's less expensive and less rare than a Synthex. It doesn't use velocity or aftertouch, since it came out before these were ever available on a polysynth...while I could dock it 1 point for this, I don't think it's fair to slight it's beautiful perfect sound for features that were never included on a synthesizer of its vintage. I cannot stress how lovely, warm and wide this synth sounds. Watch out, you might start making 'new age music' because it sounds so smooth...

Very dependable if you get one that has been taken care of. Important to take care of your synths. Don't abuse them, leave them to gather dust, etcetc. I wouldn't bring it out on a gig, I don't think, since it is a vintage piece and such a valuable addition to my studio.

I love its sound quality, its filters and oscillators. Even taking the raw oscillators with the filters opened all the way up, sampling it and filtering it in software samplers, it still sounds far better than other synths. I've been in love with the sound of the JP-8 since it came out in my early teen years, and I listened to it on records by Devo and many other bands. I played a friend's JP-8 and it only deepened my desire to get one. Finally many years later I could afford to own one. I'm a happy, happy man. I would buy one again if mine were stolen. $2000 is not an insane amount of money to pay for an instrument of this caliber, especially considering its relative rarity.
I have been playing analog synths since 1983. I also own a Yamaha CS-15 (modest but excellent monosynth with multimode filters and external in), a SidStation (ataribleeps anyone?), and an SH-101 (nothing beats it for rez-bass!) Plus software. But we all know how weak most software synths sound in comparison to real electrons...

just as easy if not a little easier than the jv-800... definitely simple to use for anyone with working synthesizer knowledge...

features are pretty incredible considering this was made in 1980-1984... even today, I can't ask for a better synth for what I use it for...

absolutely perfect sound quality and variation... I use it for sound effects, which I build huge soundscapes out of, and then run on a CD while I play guitar - bringing the samples in and out with a volume pedal... the synth never really leaves the practice space...

I would love to use it for a gig if the rest of the band I play with didn't think live keyboards were silly... which they are for our brand of stoner sludge... but the jupiter is great for recording, for sure!

I have never dealt with Roland with this product, and when I have dealt with them, it was in the UK, not in the USA, so I can not really comment one way or another, other than they were very helpful in the UK...

I paid 200 dollars for this thing - and though I had to clean it pretty thoroughly, it is now in near mint condition... the old junk shop I bought it from even through in an ANVIL brand flight case that fits it perfectly, which would have run at least 200 used, so really, I got a pretty amazing deal... (especially considering I flight case everyithing right down to my pedalboard) I would have to say that satan was smiling on me at that moment when I found it under a pile of probably stolen car speakers and old computer printers in the dusty corner of the shop...