The first in a family of synths that essentially changed the synthesizer landscape forever, the Roland Juno-6 is a six-voice analog polysynth that, despite its single oscillator, shouldn’t be underestimated. It did, after all, lay the groundwork and serve as predecessor to some of the most popular synths of the ‘80s and beyond. In this installment of Funky Vintage, we explore some of the merits and features of the quintessential Juno-6.
Though its simplicity may deter some of the more experimental synth heads out there, the Juno-6 doesn’t lack for methods of changing up your sound. With a 24dB low-pass filter, a shared envelope filter, resonance that will actually self-oscillate, and more, it’s hard to call this synth a one-trick pony. Its arpeggiator function can be clocked either internally or using an external analog source — making sure to keep everything in your rig analog, if that’s your jam.
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Oh, and don’t worry about the solo oscillator. The Juno-6 offers plenty of ways to play with tonal variation and thicken up your sound on that front, like its three-wave configuration including a saw wave, square wave sub-oscillator, and square wave with pulse modulation, each of which can be blended together to your heart’s content. And with additional effects, like the LFO-triggered vibrato and the classic Roland chorus that will drop you right into a John Carpenter flick, you’ve got yourself an enormous range of possibilities, from big string sounds to thin, warbling notes.
Watch the video above to learn more about the funky Roland Juno-6 and to hear some of the classic synth sounds it can produce, and then click the banner below to shop for your very own Juno.
Roland Juno Synthesizers