Roland SH-09

Very easy to use, yet can still make interesting and powerful sounds.

This has everything a "little" mono-synth should have. Trouble is, it doesn't sound little at all! The external input and CV/gate control is a real bonus.

I haven't had it all the long, but I'm blown away by how good it sounds. So far I've managed to get the fullest basses and quirkiest effects you could imagine. I also tried plugging the headphone output into the external input - wow, no more Mr Nice Guy - Grungy + feedback heaven!

Mine has no issues at all. Built like a tank.

Hopefully I won't find out soon.

This is a great mono-synth that fits well into the modern studio. Each of the SH-series synths have their pros and cons...the SH-09 seems to have got the balance right.

The SH-09 is very easy to use. I have used loads of analogue monosynths but this one is really simple to understand.

This is an analogue monosynth from the early 80's. The keyboard is really clunky (like on the other early Roland's) but i think it feels nice. The keys are very off-white. There are no fancy extra's like an arpeggiator or sequencer and there is only one VCO, but don't let that put you off this little monster. The SH-09 specs look crap cpmpaired to the SH-101. Do yourself a favor and don't get an SH-101. I think one of the worst monosynths out there. It sounds as plastic as all the modern VA ####.

The SH-09 is THE best Roland bass machine out there. The sound is sooo fat and the PWM sounds massive. I think the bass on the SH-09 can sound similar tho the Jupiter-4/Promars at times. I have owned a Promars and the PWM on that sounds the same as on the SH-09. But i much prefer the SH-09 to the Promars. Its much smaller , sounds just as fat and the VCO goes down much deeper. The SH-09 sounds VERY different to the SH-101. I have had an SH-09 and SH-101 next set up to each other and what a difference! The SH-101 is an acid machine and has a much thinner sounding filter. The 101 shounds a little similar the the TB-303 and is great if you are making acid music. The SH-09 has that older SH sound and is sooo much fatter. If you want really fat basses get the SH-09.

The SH-09 is very reliable. Like most Roland products its really sturdy. It can drift out of tune if you don't let it warm up for long enough. I let mine warm up for 5 minuits so that it stays in tune.

I have never needed it.

If this was lost or stolen i would go mad. I have been throuh many Roland synths looking for the perfect bass sound and after a year of searching, i have found it. Every synth player should have an SH-09. Its a fat sounding little beast.

What you tweak is what you get...the knobs and sliders are laid out right in front of you, so if you get the concepts of how to create the type of sound you want, it couldn't get easier. Even if you don't fully understand the various parameters in analog sound creation, again, the tools are RIGHT THERE to tweak.

This category can be somewhat misleading. Compared to features of today's synths, the SH-09 can't compete... but take it for what it is: a stripped-down monosynth. If that's what you're looking for, then this board gets a 10... ESPECIALLY with the external input. Great for routing drum tracks (or anything else) thru and messing with the filter. Overall, playing-wise, it's obviously limited as it's a monosynth. But I think there's something to be said about working with the "limitations" of machines... for me, at least, it brings out a rawness, another type of creativity. From SP-12's to s900's to SH-09's, if you limit certain options, great things can happen in the studio, often by mistake.

You can get so creative with this board, from chirping birds to fat basslines and everything in between. I love it... it was just what I was looking for when I picked it up. Had a Roland Juno-60, Sequential Circuits Prophet-600, Korg microKorg at different points and they were/are all great, just different. I had to choose just one and I went with the SH-09. It feels "organic".

Made of metal and plastic. Mine's mint. Very stable in tough conditions, humidity, etc. I trust it everyday.

It's great that Roland has made every manual available on their website. For that, I give them a '7'.

If lost/stolen, I'd TRY to look for another in good condition... or I'd try to find another older monophonic synth, maybe a 1974 Korg minikorg-700s. I'm not into collecting older gear just to collect it (like some people I know). It's definitely worth what I paid-- "worth" and value are relative to the individual... someone else may not even be willing to put down $10 for it! I love its simplicity and versatility. I primarily work with samples (Ensoniq EPS16+ and E-mu SP12) and use the SH-09 for basslines or crazy sounds to supplement my samples, and for running sounds thru its filters. It's got a great sound and it completely aids in the creation of music. There's only ONE thing I wish it had: a standard universal power cable that I could detach. Sometimes it's awkward to carry it around and have a long "tail" always hanging from it! But seriously, I just wrote that for this review...I never think about it in real life.

The knobs provides top-dollar controll of all parameters, what more could you want?

Well.. it is a small 1 osc monofon synth, but if that's what your going for, then this is a dream!
I also built in the "midi-jack" from synhouse.com, and it is brilliant and good looking (almost looks like like the sh-09 was shipped with it)

It sounds SO fat, much nicer and fatter than sh 101 (i think). It's really amazing how much sound this little baby can produce

Never had serious problems with mine, although it was a bit detuned, but with a repair manual and a osc, it's no problem..

Having owned a M.Rogue, Korg Monopoly and S. Circuits Pro 1 I can say this baby is very straigt forward and fun
I got it for a song... I bought it to re-sell and ended up keeping it!

Fairly similar to the little Moog Rogue or an Arp Axe - only 1 vco but the sub octave rocks.
nice ins and outs and cool pitch bender... best intro synth if you want to become an analog addict..
As far as midi and such... plug it in and love it!

I dug the sample and Hold, white noise and super self oscilating resonance..
Great for soundtrack work.. every studio could use one... easily generated "phat" sonds

Mine had been dropped - had to replace the volume pot... side was cracked... guess what... it plays and sounds great... don't try that kind of abuse on a Sequential Circuits or Moog.. or Arp.. or etc.

N/A

if it were lost or stolen I would buy another (like I'll ever see another)
It's small enough to take along anywhere you need a mono synth (thanksgiving dinner at Mom's)
i wish it had another oscilator...
Very useful little tool. if you see one, buy it rookie!

this old, beaten-up analogue beautie has taken centre stage in what was supposed to be my MIDI-only studio. On it's own it has more bottom end than a weight-watchers meeting, pluged into an ART SGX 2000 it can sound like what ever you want it to sound, from searing tb303 lines to phat 101 to aliens conversing

one of the old mono-phonic keys from the early 80's, no built-in effects but new sounds are at your finger-tips. c-v conections at the back for MIDI-CV converter

the sh-09 is as expesive as you are. more suited to dance & techno but could be used for pop or rock

the old saying 'they dont make em like they used to' couldn't be truer. housed in metal caseing, not plastic. It can withstand knocks & bumps from regular gigging. You wouldn't need to take 1 as back-up but haveing 2 would be heaps more fun

have not needed customer support so cannot comment. manual can be downloaded from synthmuseum

hard pressed to find another one like it. found mine in a Cash Converters in Melbourne. this synth does what I want it to do & I have never had a problem with it.

this was my first synth and it was perfect. easy to learn on and loads of fun. great way to learn about analogue synthesis and it sounds great.

this little synth has it all [almost]. it is monophonic, but easily expandable. use a midi converter in the CV. five wave forms,input mixer is simple, but not as limitted as it first appears. my favorite features are the random function, and the EXT IN.

where do i begin? i use this synth almost exclusively for it's sound effects and i absolutely love them! it has one of the best random functions i've ever heard. the EXT input has many possibilitis. occasionally i even hook up a microphone [with an amp before the keyboard]. you can get some cool vocoder effects on this bad boy! hook this synth up to effects processors or pedals for even crazier sounds i.e. delay, phaser, what-have-you. try running a sweep generator through it. i am even going to experiment with running a drum through the input via a mounted trigger. this synth offers many possibilities. who ever said the sh09 was only good for basslines doesn't know what they're talking about.

it's pretty durable. i've dropped it once or twice and it still works fine. it is an old synth now and i want to keep it as long as possible so i baby it.

N/A, but i've never needed it.

if this were stolen i would probably turn into the hulk, but i'd probably try out some of the modern analogue synths before i looked for another one. for a monosynth this is definately a ten.

simple, straight forward and fun. best used for lead sounds.

monophonic, but is well able to be expanded via the cv/gate interface and the external filter in. 24dB low pass filter can self oscillate like mad and tracks well all the way up the keyboard. good array of modulation sources/destinations. PWM is mental! keyboard is nice and well sprung. ideal for solos!!.

the dogs bollocks. I love it madly!

fine, until I dropped my polysix on it and broke one of the faders! :-(
but it will live again, oh yes it will! other wise not a problem at all

roland must die

I am going to buy another. I learnt my analogue synthesis on this and I NEED a new one to look after. wish it had a built in space echo though (sigh). if you see one, buy it. (but only if I don't get there first)

Subtractive synthesis doesn't come much easier than this. Actually to be fair this was my first synth and I didn't have a bloody clue how it worked at first, but it has all the essential features of even the bigger synths (VCO, VCF, VCA, ENV, LFO) so it was a great introduction to synths. The manual has some wonderfully useful sound patches like chirping birds and show you how to hook it up to SA-09, RS-09 or even a CR-78.

One VCO, shared ADSR - doesn't sound too promising but you do get a proper 24dB filter with self resonance, sub osc and an external input.

OK, confession time. You can get some great sounds out of this, but I do tend to use it for basses - especially fab for that Mr Fingers-style hollow square wave early house bass sound. LFO has Sample & Hold for some mad random sounds. The ext input is great for messing with drum loops or as a kind of wah on other keyboards or even guitar.

Had this thing since 1980 and never had a single problem (I haven't even needed to clean the pots. Very stable tuning (especially compared to my Moog Rogue)

Long past its support by date.

I do love this synth, but that might be because it was my first synth. I actually use it more now via my MIDI-CV convertor than I used to as a teenager. If it was stolen I'd be mighty peaved for sentimental reasons, but I doubt I'd buy another to replace it.

The SH09 is a great little synth in that you can immediately dial up some great sounds. I find that as I became more familiar with it I was able to find new sounds that I didn't realise it could produce.

On paper the specs look a bit crap! Don't be fooled, although it only has one VCO (with sub oscillator), VCF and envelope it can produce amazingly Phat sounds.

The little mixer section enables the mixing in of an external input. Very useful for breathing new life into your other non analogue gear.

The sounds are great. You're left in no doubt that this is a Roland. It's a shame that this synth is usually only considered to be useful for baselines. Although it can certainly deliver in this area, the other sounds which it can produce are great. Have a good twiddle, add some decent effects and you have the most amazing, floor shaking, Phat++++++++++++ sounds.

As with any mono synth. It cannot do everything but what it does do it excells at.

I have never had any problems. I bought my first one around 1980. I have recently bought another one.... No problems with either one and very solidly built.

Incidentally, talk about maintaining value. The used one I bought a year ago cost me #25 more than the new one I bought in 1980!

never needed it!

I would buy another one. Besides the fact that it's a lovely synth It has sentimental value in that the one I bought in 1980 was my first synth (Aaaaaaaahhhhhhh).

easy, similat to the sh-101

monophoic, 1 Vco+sub, 1 Vcf, 1 ADSR envelope, cv/gate in/out, signal in,

the single sub oscillator has more punch then the 2 vco+ sub of the 101, in my opinion the sound of the sh-9 is similat to the sh-101 but has more punch, best for basses, noises, 101 is crap.

very stable for 1980

godd bass-machin, much cheaper alternativ to the overrated sh-101

It's as simple as can be.

monophone synth
no effects
to use midi, a cv-to-midi convertor is needed

It take few hours to understand well but when you get it, it's really fun to create sounds ! In fact it's quite quick & easy to reach the sound you want.

The SH-09 is a single VCO monophonic analog synthesizer with a 2 1/2 octave, 32-note (F-C) keyboard. Available waveforms are sawtooth, square, pulse (with pulse width modulation), or white noise.On the control panel to the left of the keyboard is a horizontal pitch-bend/modulation lever. On the back panel there is a main output, and the CV/gate inputs and outputs.

First, I must say that I'm not the kind of people who like to own real analog synths by fashion (I recently bought a MS2000 and my other synths are digitals) but I must admit that this thing give another dimension to my compositions...
Aaaah ! You can do anything with this small synth. Fat bass or tiny sound, all is there. I've also a MS2000 (korg) and a RD600 (roland) but when I'm looking for REAL analog sounds or a good filter effect(EXT IN)I use the SH-09.
MS2000 has nice sounds....but
SH-09 terrify you.

No Problem, you can count on it.

Forget about it (too old now...)

The SH-09 is not mine, a friend I'm working with lent me one. I'm wondering if I'm not going to sell my MS2000...