Favorite boutique
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Yeah I love it! I didn’t expect this, but I actually love it with the ribbon controller as I cannot conciously think about what note I am entering, but with the scale enabled it can always sound “good” (I like techno and can’t really play keyboard, haha)
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Yeah love mine, I have it permanently connected to the Ext Ins of my Digitone, with one of the MIDI tracks sequencing it, sending an extra LFO, providing FX. Such a great combo!
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It’s a great little synth. Unison mode is seriously fat (too much so without some additional filtering sometimes). Actually sold my pair (had the red and blue ones, because they look nice), but I’m about to do the same with my JU-06A, but into OT instead. Midi arp! 
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I was considering the JU06A. But ive heard,read that its similar sounding to the SH01a. Is it? If Not, how is it different? I tried to compare by YT Videos of the JU06A with my SH01A, but i can’t Tell…
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It’s kinda similar. Hard to say exactly what the differences are, aside from one was meant to be a mono synth and the other was designed as a poly synth. I personally find the JU-06A fits in a mix better than the SH-01A when used in poly or unison modes - the JU-06A’s basic non-resonant high pass filter helps with that, for sure. The low pass filters are slightly different too, as are the timings of the envelopes, as well as the range of the SH oscillators being extended compared to the JU. Then it’s down to really subtle stuff, like dedicated portamento on SH, whereas it’s buried in a menu on the JU, etc etc. They’re pretty similar tho, as I say.
Edit: I forgot to mention the beautiful (noisy) chorus modes of the JU - they really are 80s nostalgia heaven!
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Thank you! Just saved me 399€. My ears were right, and i don’t need the JU.
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Does anyone know how to change the root note of the ribbon note input scale? Is the only way to do this to transpose? I love entering random patterns with the ribbon locked to a scale, it’s so good for random techno vibes as you don’t think about the notes at all!
Got to say I love this synth, was just playing with it for 30 mins on my headphones on the sofa, it has a surprising range for something so (relatively) minimal, while also pretty much always sounding great. Really playable and tweakable too.
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Oops! 
I was going to ask how it fares with the DN…it sure seems like even just a little push of reverb or delay and it could get real awesome real fast…
Thinking of picking one up if i can justify spending the cash during these crazy times…
Yeah, a bit of delay and reverb brings it to life for sure. I’ve been using the Soundtoys plugins and am very happy with how it sounds.
It’s a really great synth. I was also on the fence as I have other synths that can make the same kind of sounds (and much more) but in this case I find the limitations help with creativity. True one knob per function synth and pretty much every spot is a sweet spot. The additions for the Boutique let you take it to some pretty interesting places with the fast LFO, polyphony etc.
Also got to shout out the sequencer again. So quick and fun to work with, and you can trigger it from an external trigger which is really fun. I find the ribbon is actually a great way to input notes if you’re looking to make something slightly random sounding, disengages the “what scale am I in” etc part of your brain!
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It’s such a nice combination, definitely worth it if you have the cash imo. You get the digital FM from the DN plus the complementary analogue sound of the SH01a (well, it’s not really analogue obvs but to my ears it sounds very analogue), plus it has a pretty good MIDI implementation for sequencing from the DN. And yeah, the addition of reverb/delay/overdrive from the DN really adds to the magic.
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My left side of the mixer setup (I have a mid-sized setup with two, logically distinct sides for ease of use during live performance) is an SH01A running through a Timeline into the DN. Then DN through a TR8S for sidechaining and the master compressor. I have the SH01A being sequenced and modulated from the DN and the trigger out from the TR8S to do all of the awesome things you can do with the sequencer. It’s a fast, fun, and intuitive setup for me. It covers a lot of ground.
If you can swing the purchase, go for it. Great synth!
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okay… got one to pick up tmrw…
pretty solid sell from the community here…
Stoked
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Make sure to update the firmware:
And here’s a great supplement to the Roland manual:
http://sunshine-jones.com/sh-01a-the-missing-manual-a-users-guide-to-the-roland-boutique-sh-01a/
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Yeah, I constantly refer to that because I can never remember how the menus work on the 01A. I’ve even forgotten how to save presets a few times. 
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I hate it when I forget to push and hold the key in to save. Then you realize your settings are lost because loaded a patch instead of saving to it. I’m super mindful now when saving my patches. 
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This thing is pretty great…
I must admit that, although i LOVE my DN i dont understand FM synthesis, so having something that a little more base level is quite nice. Aside from getting a pretty strong line noise, it sounds great. Fun to play. Im having to reconsider my DN/DT/KS setup though… I just got the module, no keyboard, so im running KS into it, then audio out to DN for those master effects. I had my DT runing into the DN, but cant deal with the reverb that i want on the SH01-A on all DT tracks…
im sure i will figure something else out. I never really used the DN master effects on the DT anyways…
I may have a few questions down the line, but so far its been really fun exploring this thing.
Thanks for the recommendations, i do not regret the purchase.
T
Edit: Already dialed in some cool kick sounds (and im terrible at sound design) to sample into the DT. fuck yeah…
ReEdit: The line noise im getting is actully blowing the samples and they sound like caca.
hmm…
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I get some pretty bad USB ground noise if mine is powered over USB from my hub, is that what you mean? On mine I just power it with the USB cable from from a wall socket now.
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