Agreed on Aira. They look like complete shit. Very toy like. But, importantly, they sound great. It’s just a shame the likes of the VT-3 and System 1 have some strange design choices and feature ommissions.
I really like the idea of the System-1 but why constrain it with that keyboard? Anyway, got my eye on this latest Roland with a little interest.
Nick @ Sonicstate.com mentioned in their last podcast that Roland have shown them a new product but that it wasn’t this. Obviously couldn’t disclose anymore due to the NDA (no doubt) but I wonder if it is a new synth or some expansion of the Aira line product wise.
I have to admit I don’t really love the look of the TB3 or TR8 but they do sound great. I’d still prefer a poly system 1 with full sized keys that could A) store a slew of patches and B) run multiple Plug Outs in Multi Mode simultaneously. In essence something that could be (for example) a 106, 101, SH-2, SH-7, Jupiter etc all at the same time.
@jonesy - if you miss the miniak I had an alesis micron (fore runner to the mini ak) and yeah great sounding - can pick them up for peanuts now, if you miss it they are less than £100 on ebay sometimes. bitch to program though XD
I like your idea. I’m admittedly kind of biased against Roland, but this kind of thing would start to look a lot more interesting to me. Four or five octave, full size keys… Heck while we’re dreaming, how about morphing between plug outs using realtime controllers in a single patch?
The ever excellent dorian concept makes the JD-Xi sound pretty good
hybrid groovebox in the right sense, not those giant dongle drum machines.
I hope there will be alternatives to the spectralis soon.
lol
Looks like Dolphin Music pulled that already. Damn. I would have been happy to buy it from them and pay shipping to the States for that price 
I’ve been wondering for a while what the next Elektron could be, as it seems like most anything else would step on the toes of their existing gear. The new Roland JD series has me really wishing for an Elektron style hybrid of analog and digital, as the JD-XI is essentially a keyboard groovebox. Of course, there is a chance that such a thing would infringe upon previous machines, but I think they could pull it off in a unique way.
I’ve been wondering for a while what the next Elektron could be
a serious sample ganular synth with PM would be totally logical and awesome. Something in between Omnisphere and the Nordwave.
I creamed my pants when I saw the Omnisphere 2 demo…
yes only thing that had me interested in software
also mutable Elements + Clouds + pressure pads in elektron format would be an instant buy.
Snap. Watching that omnisphere demo had me thinking about the granular possibilities of A4 + Shapeshifter + Clouds.
Have roland made anything beside the Boutique and Arias? Im curious what your experience is with Roland.
New jdxi, broke all the way through its 3 year warranty, mostly within a month or 2 of being fixed, now out of warranty and broken. Fa06, mod wheel broken within 1 year. Nasty plastic, horrible keys(jdxi) and generally cheap. When I bought them I thought the 3 year warranty was a sign of confindence in their product but in reality it must have cost them way more in repairs than the savings made on throw away components. It makes me laugh when I read phrases like modern day classic in reference to the jdxi, something has to stand the test of time to become a classic, I doubt many will last much past their warranty period.
I was naive when I made my purchases, memories of Rolands popularity when I was young lead me to beleive they were solid choices, wont make that mistake again.
Oh and they release updates with new features that override exsisting ones, with seemingly no clue, the jdxi needed transpose but the button combo was allready being used, and now you cant mute/unmute tracks whilst playing anymore, plain stupid!.
Just out of interest, what broke on your JD-Xi?
The transpose function, introduced in the 1.5 update to the JD-Xi, uses the shift plus octave up or down button or shift plus pressing a key.
Track mute/unmute still uses shift plus a track select button and therefore tracks can still be muted/unmuted whilst playing.
Mostly keys but the soft buttons are failing too, it had about 9 months of use before the first key went, then a month after it was fixed another key broke followed by another two at different stages over the next year or so. After the second key broke it didnt get used much so all in all it had about 1.5 years of gentle use
On a positive note it reinvigorated my interest in making music, just not with Roland gear.
Before I could hold shift with a finger on my left hand whilst playing with my right and drop a track in with my left thumb while still playing, now if I hold shift I can not play the keybed without changing key, not sure what octaves have to do with it?
