For the record, how old were you in 1987-88?

@@Barber747 I was 15-16 years old.

@@Barber747 why do you ask?

@@madness8556 just wondering outta curiosity, that's all

@@Barber747 I've been into synths since I played on a DX7 and Jupiter 8 at a family friend's wedding in 1987 when I was 15.

You are so lucky I'm probably the same age as you and would be like a little kid if I owned one today ✋ Enjoy!

_"how lucky can one be"_ All that + robot legs.

Bought mine for 55 euro with one broken key and 3 memcards really! , Fun fact was when it came out in 87 i was buying all the analogs you could get instead as they we're dirtcheap then, any of the analogues even the little mono's go 10 to 30 times the price of a used d50 now , i was right in not spending the 2000 euro newwprice of the rapid ageing d50 then!

if you include the 90s as well, I would also add the Roland JD-990 ;)

@@timmbrockmann959 Fair enough. That one is a mighty fine digital flagship as well. The kind of greatness that Roland hasn't produced in a looong looooong time..

D70 all day

I could say the same thing about the Ensoniq ESQ-1. It is still a VERy 80's sounding synth. We can get by with that. I hope that you keep stretching the parameters of the D-50. (However, it didn't have the amazing capability of the onboard sequencer that was on the ESQ-1).

@@bandfromtheband9445 True, the ESQ-1 (and also the Mirage too, even thou it's a sampler) are 2 more very distinguishable digital Synths with such a charismatic unique sound. I'd still love to have an ESQ-1 in my instrument section as well. Maybe one day.

done the same, I will argue for that every home needs a D50

I know how you feel. ;-)

We all hear you

@@digiface Well, I hate not being a kid, and I hate the 21st century ways. If I could be young again, and things such as cars, music, tv shows, films and some of the fashion would go back to how it was in the 80's, I would be happy. Living a second childhood in an 80's style utopia would be my heaven. Just throw in high speed internet, modern computers and KZfaq in there too (and yes I know they didn't exist in the 80's but there the only things out of the 21st century that matter to me) and I'd be set for life.

@@CoolDudeClem It wouldn't be 80's though, with the internet. Especially with things like youtube :p

SAME🎯 retro music is like time travel for me_before this & that happened_but id still rather know what i know today_can go back in time & do it naively all over again_so id rather use this wisdom & reintroduce these sounds of the naiive generation today_w/ a modern twist_& that will enhance their lives_which will in turn save my life_then i can start having my own kids & do it all over again_its my only reason to continue living thru all of this reset agenda ♟

Many thanks for saying!

I don't think Porcaro did the CPU programming to make it crunch through the numbers in the LA synthesis engine.. ;-)

Espen Kraft Obviously, but it was his concept.

@@deastman2 Source for this story?

@@looneyburgmusic It was some interview with Steve... might have been in connection with Spectrasonics, or for the anniversary of the D-50. Can’t quite recall exactly. It wasn’t this interview, but here’s a different version of that story: www.kvraudio.com/interviews/continuing-a-family-tradition-an-interview-with-steve-porcaro-36653

The 1983/1984 Kurzwiel K250 also used the sampled attack plus synthetic decay method. Still sounds great to this day.

SKYLINE SYSTEMS i loved every second of that patch!

Cheers!

I freaking love how the D-50 and D-05 look like they came straight out of an '80s sci-fi movie.

Me too

Yes - the D-50 has the longest envelope times - like no any other synth. And its 6 stage TVA envelopes are much more flexible than the most standard ADSR envelopes. And with 4 partials, 6 LFOs, 2 pitch envelopes, 4 filter envelopes (TVF), 4 amp envelopes (TVA) you would find everything to generate large and evolving ambient pads.

Try once a Ensoniq SQ80 ;)

it’s a fucking envelope beast. my secret weapon along with the mighty mks50. btw the only preset I’ve ever used is patch 37 soundtrack...

@@pthex_2859 I'm not ashamed to admit I mostly use presets when I'm playing around and only done my own patches for special projects. I was surprised when Espen said he prefers the on keyboard controls for editing. I'd kill for a PPG.

@@MrVinylistic Don't forget on board effects :) It makes track ready sounds all by itself.

Thanks! :)

No you'd need to include the DX.

@Chicken George Ahh you’ve got it upside down.

Thanks!

"mysterious" It's just an old subtractive synth.

Sweet! :)

Cheers!

Sweet!

Thanks! Fire it up :)

@@EspenKraft it's 25$ a month I better fire it up more often!! But you get almost all the synths Roland made. It's quite good, but not quite as good as the real deal I'm sure!

Well, I have access to Cloud as well and the sound of these are superb no doubt. Nothing beats playing the real thing though, I admit to that. ;-)

We get D-50 sounds in modern Roland keyboards like the Fantom. You're not really missing out on much. D-50 is basically an inferior Fantom. Mediocre EGs, rubbish filter, limited LFOs and modulation options, no mod matrices, only a square wave and a sawtooth wave for regular synth sounds, the irritating limitations are easy to hit. With Fantom, MC-707, FA-06, and so forth, your imagination is much more the limit than the synth. Not as much as, say, Kontakt and Massive X, but as far as it gets with Roland gear.

The Juno 106 commands a lot more money these days, but that doesn't necessarily means it's "better" than any other synth. Collectors drive up the market prices. The synth that makes you the most enjoyment is the one to keep. ;-) Although nothing is preventing you from having BOTH!

Many thanks! :)

Roland JV, XP and XV are also awesome digital pad machines as are most Korg synths from the M, T, I, X Trinity and Triton series. I also love Ensoniq VFX and TS series as well as Kurzweil K series.

@@madness8556 Man those Ensoniqs, ESQ-1 too.

@@HenritheHorse I lusted over the SQ80 when it was released and then also over the TS10 a few years later. Ensoniq made fantastic instruments but they did have reliability issues at times. I loved using a Kurzweil 2000 whilst studying music at university 30 years ago. That's an amazing digital pad machine that can also sound decidedly analog. The Novation Supernova series and Yamaha EX5 were also great digital machines for creamy sounding pads.

Many thanks Adam! :)

That would probably be Chappel's.

Many thanks Mike! If you want to check out more of these sounds you can go here, this is my patch bank for the D-50: thepatchbay.co.uk/product/roland-d-50-32-retro-patches-for-synth-pop-synthwave-italo-disco-electronica/?description=true

Sweet man! :)

Many thanks David! :)

Many thanks! :)

Congrats!

Many thanks! :)

Thanks! Yeah, I guess I know the programming routine on the synth itself too well.. ;-)

11:30 I love that sound...

Been advertizing this video for a week now.. ;-)

Sweet, thanks! :-)

Thanks!

That's great to hear. Thanks. We need our little escapes these days. ;-)

I have all 3 synths you mentioned - 2 x D50, 1 x JD990, 1 x TG77. I use them all the time together with many other synths and modules. Beautiful machines that never lost their charm. Cheers!

D-50 and SY77 we're my first two serious synths, and complimented each other well. Still have the D-50.

Thank you! :)

Many thanks! :)

@@EspenKraft Anytime mate! 👌 :)

Thanks! :)

Congrats Graham! :)

Cool. That said, I would recommend the D550 rack over it because it's MIDI is way faster.

how much are they worth? I still have mine from 1991 and wouldn't mind unloading it.

Thanks! Congrats on the purchase :)

I can imagine! I know a lot of churches that had the D-50 as part of the house band/choir etc. Thanks! :D

The D-50 clearly can't make the kind of sounds the M1 could. It's also doubtful the M1 could make some of the sounds of the D-50. So probably a good combo. I had the CZ's for my digital analog VA sort of sounds, and my FB-01 for FM sounds along with my M1. Exploring D-50 sounds more now via soft synth options.

Many thanks Paolo! I admit to being a little cheeky with the title and I knew it would stir up some controversy. I know it isn't a VA synth per definition and that's why I nuance my words both in the voice over as well in the video description. Since the D-50 has so much to give in the structure 1 and 2 with its "oscillator" synth engine only I just wanted to point out that I personally think it IS the king of VA synths (the true VA synths). I'll probably change the title now that it has made my point, sort of... ;-)

I'd go with the Waldorf Microwave as the first real VA synthesizer. Especially if you had an Access Programmer gizmo.

SynthMania and Espen Kraft congratulating each others, love it ! You guys are both legends, thanks for sharing your knowledge

@@secretelitemusic A wavetable synthesizer is not considered as a VA synth.

Show us your thousand page thesis on the subject.

Thanks! :)

Thanks for watching! :)

Awesome, thanks! :-)

Many thanks man!

Cheers!

I'm building a time machine @ (dj.digital01) Instagram

Thanks Sam! :)

"The PG-1000 is a nightmare to me" Ive never used one but Ive heard that. Can I suggest an app for iPad called PatchBase. coffeeshopped.com/patch-base Now...be warned, its expensive, but utterly amazing. It stores sounds and lets you edit every parameter from your iPad.

Its news to me. I’ve seen this synth before but i play guitar mostly so i didn’t pay much attention, glad this dude made the video, i gotta get one now! Somehow i had this feeling i had to watch this video and that something good was in it... strange, hmm? He even says “i am the eighties”, that’s my line!

@@pinkglow2402 I am glad that I could help. You can get the vintage synthesizer or the modern-day do5 from Roland. it's a very small form factor and has all the wonderful sounds of the d50. You can hook it up by MIDI. Take care and have a wonderful time.

I think the big problem with the PG1000 is that it only allows access to 1 partial at a time - I've heard stories of people who have connected 4 PG1000s to their D50 but can't see how that can be done - so unless you have near photographic memory, it really doesn't help THAT much, although having said that, it is still nice to be able to alter sounds with such immediacy. I agree though that it is confusing to use and I sold mine, along with a D50 (both in excellent condition) for less than £500! I kept my other D50 though and it is through expmenting with that, 1 partial at a time, minus the PG that I've started to become more comfortable with programming the D50. It's currently the synth I mess around with the most and I own a number of "classic" analogue synths. Personally, I consider most of the D50's original preset sounds to be really rather horrible and dated sounding but there are a few absolute classics, of which my favourite is definitely Glass Voices. It's one of those pad sounds where it is almost impossible to hit a bad note, which is always a good thing when your playing "skills" are as execrable as mine! BTW; d'you want to sell me your PG1000?!

Thanks!

you are joking right?

Tack så mycket! :)

Blessed are the children of synthesizer loving dads

Thanks! :)

Many thanks! :)

Many thanks James! :)

I was always more a Yamaha and Korg fan .

@@CraigScottFrost Sounds like a winning combo. Also sounds expensive. But flagship gotta flagship. They should shoot for a Kronos-killer, and what you've described sounds like the sauce they'd need for it. Don't forget the D-Beam lol

Thanks!

Thanks! :)

Many thanks! :)

you could call it a digalogue , it is also the last era where roland made quality hardware , these things can survive a serious bump or drop, at this point all big manufacturers apart from yamaha wanted to ripp off the PPg effect at that stage without copyright infringement , SCI did it with a facsimile vector synth (basically to mimic wavetable movement n a 4way automateable mixer through analog filters) as did the d50 , they were workarounds but they wanted to sound like PPg s for a larger market

Cheers!

Have one for sell

Thanks!

Also a great synth. I have two of them. Totally different than the D-50. The CZ’s excel at reproducing traditional analog synth sounds from Moog, Oberheim, ARP, etc. Especially good at lead sounds.

@@classicarcadeamusementpark4242 Yep, I still take care of my CZ-1. A couple years ago, I took it apart and applied some white lithium grease to all the keys because they were sticking a bit. Plays nicely even at its old age.

Thanks Jan! :)

Espen Kraft I’m disappointed to say, I no longer have any of them now. I must admit that the Roland keys were my favourites. I particularly had a love for the Alpha Juno 2. How is your new job going? I’m happy to see you’re still finding time for a video or two.

IF I go along with he new job I'll start June 1st. I haven't decided yet on what I'm going to do.

Espen Kraft whatever you decide - tillykke med!

That's an awesome setup for a live performance! Do you have any music I can listen to?

Thanks! :)

Many thanks! :-)