Yamaha RM1X. Plus you get a fantastic sequencer . It’s a win win 
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I’ve really liked sounds I’ve made with the Yamaha TG 55, the built in digital distortion is pretty filthy, want to say a few of its LFO features disappeared from the later TG series. It’s not the nicest thing to program though and annoyingly not midi cc friendly, never figured out how to control it more deeply than the mod section with elektron stuff, between the velocity and mod wheel it actually can be pretty expressive. You really want the iPad editor because it is much deeper and it has super deep envelopes and dual filters, a totally pain from the front panel. I have a SC 88 which is fun for those classic game sounds but you really rely on layering for any sort of creative patches, so much more limited. I thought I might use it multitimbral but its just enough of a pain that I would skip it if that is you goal. Even with just mod and velocity TG55 feels more “Plockable”. Go for a bigger roland rompler for a bit deeper editing.
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Best overall rompler: JD-990 w/Vintage Synth board. Pretty pricey these days, pushing $1k. Arguably worth it.
Best affordable rompler: Wavestation SR. With a proper editor all the awesomeness of a real-deal WS at your disposal in a 1U package. Got mine for $50.
Other cool romplers: Kawai K1/K4, E-Mu Morpheus/UltraProteus, Korg Trinity Rack, Kurzweil K2000/K2500, Quasimidi Technox.
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The Kawai K1 is a fantastic synth and I guess it’s technichally a ROMpler in that it uses sample waveforms, but it’s really its own thing so I’d definitely recommend learning more about it first to anyone considering one. They’re WEIRD (in a really good way).
Also
The case for hardware over software is a lot harder to make with ROMplers since the difference in sound is going to be pretty small and they don’t really offer much in the way of performance features, and most of them aren’t nearly as good a value as they were even 3 years ago. I do like them, though.
If you have the space, there were a lot of arranger workstations in the late 90s and early 2000s that are kind of under the radar. A few years ago I picked up a Korg i30 at a thrift shop for $50 and it ended up being my go-to for ROMpler stuff. It’s basically a Korg N1 engine but with a Triton-style touchscreen interface, 16 track sequencer, plus the whole programmable accompaniment is essentially a REALLY deep phrase sequencer/arpeggiator if you misuse it. You can still find them in the $200-$300 price range on eBay if you look, which is a fraction of what an N1 or even N5 costs but it has a much better interface and more features.
I think the Technics arrangers have always been pretty expensive used but they’re in their own separate universe and I don’t know much about them. In general, though, arrangers are descended from the organ world not the synth world (even though the distinction is mainly about interface, sequencing features and marketing since ROMplers showed up) and they don’t get as much attention from the synth world as some of them should, so it’s worth looking in to depending on your needs.
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Aren’t the MC101/707 loaded up with most of the classic Roland rompler sounds? Seems like that would be a great way to work with them.
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i’m a huge fan of RM1x, but the sound quality is certainly meh by todays standards.
(but if one is looking for certain lo-fi’ness — RM1x is a win)
yes, they are.
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i use the qy70 with the ot a lot and its a great pair
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I picked up an Ensoniq SQ1 Plus on a whim a few years ago. It was $7 at a thrift store. I hoped it was related to the ESQ1 (which I love) but really isn’t. It’s just a 90s rompler.
Turns out it’s great. Pretty editable once you figure out how the structure. Cold industrial sounds just pour out of it.
They’re going up a lot in price now which is pretty surprising to me. If you can find one cheap I’d recommend it. Good keys too!
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Excellent tip. Found a Proteus 2000 on the last day of 2020. For 100 Euro’s, still on firmware 1.x 
. Even without an expansion it offers a universe of possibilities. Absolutely love it.
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Back when they were easy to find for $40-$50 or less I’d recommend also getting a Yamaha FB-01 because they pair pretty well with the Octatrack (8 part multitimbral) and are good for FM drums, but it looks like the prices have gone up enough that they’re not worth it anymore (and I regret giving mine away last spring but not very much).
Finally hooked my K1m up to Digitakt for sequencing & into the Syntakt FX block last night and wow, this thing is a proper beast. Doesn’t sound like much noodling on keys, but integrated into the Elektron boxes it’s insane!
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I love the fishermana village music from FF8. That melody gets stuck in my head from time to time
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K1m … changing patch waveforms using the joystick live in SINGLE mode
… or MULTI mode… 
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Nostalgia is a hell of a thing. I’m 12 years old again.
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I had a Roland D110 for a couple of decades. You really need a software editor to make the most of it. I held onto it for it’s lofi charms, ring modulator and digital filter. Apparently this wasn’t really a filter at all, so you couldn’t filter the PCM sounds. So I would choose a JV1080 over a D110 and agree with the comments on value and worth of expansion boards. It is a proper synth, so still has something to offer.
For a similar sound world the JD08 looks to offer much easier programming, albeit limited PCM waveforms. If you could get one cheap I think this would be fun, owing to the ease of use.
I got rid of my Wavestation SR, as it wasn’t a good use of time. Programming is tedious and the lack of decent filters let it down, but better musicians than me rate it.
I see quite a few mentions for the Emu series. I think their marketing for the Z-plane filters was misleading, whilst the later Emu series had Z-plane filters, only the Morpheus and Proteus FX let you access all of the filter parameters.
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Proteus FX or UltraProteus?
Man I loved Z-Plane filters, especially in their samplers.
You’re right Ultra Proteus, not Proteus FX
Those Emu 1U units were very useful. I had a couple of them.
Recently got an Emu Ultra, so might see if sample/patch sets were ever moved across to the samplers.
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Apologies for further detailing the thread with guitar talk on HM Strats. My late 80s HM Strat is still going strong. Recently swapped-out the pickups for all Seymour-Duncan JBs and JB Jrs. Now it’s a proper HM strat! None of that single-coil weakness. 
They’re quite sought after these days.
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Hell yeah, that’s it!!!