Ok.., I've had my new Roland Juno-Di since yesterday afternoon and have spent several hours on it already. Here's my thoughts on this new Juno.
BUILD QUALITY: Keep in mind we're dealing with a "budget performance synth", so the build quality isn't up to par with a higher end synth. However.., I was very surprised with the build quality. Compared to the previous Juno-D/Le IMO the build quality is equal to (and maybe slightly better) on the Juno-Di. From what I can see (and feel) I think the plastic on the Juno-Di is "thicker" and "stronger" than the previous models. Naturally this being a budget synth it would be a good idea (as with any budget synth) to get a case or well padded bag for it.
KEY ACTION: Best way to put it is just by saying it's a typical lower end budget action from Roland (I'm sure some of you already know what I'm talking about here)
FEATURES: This thing is a HUGE upgrade from the previous models. The tone generator is now 128 notes, and the patch set is based on the Fanton (supposed to have some patches from the Fantom G.., but I hear the Fantom X in here too). You get the USB file player (which is great to find a budget keyboad that has a built in MP3 player too). There's a mic input with a dedicated vol knob on the panel and one button access to the reverb. You also get a pretty decent Vocoder too. Keep in mind that the quality of the Vocoder output will greatly depend on the quality of your mic too (cheapo mic ='s a cheapo sounding vocoder). You're not locked to the vocoder presets either. You have access to the tone generator for the vocoder, and you can use any of the preset/user patches for your source on the vocoder. The input jack is a 1/4" jack too. There is a 1/8" audio input jack for hooking up anything you want to the Di (MP3 player, CD player, Drum Machine, Sampler, ect). However, you cannot run the incoming audio through the filters (I know people will be asking that question eventually).
COSMETICS: FINALLY! thank you Roland for bringing the Juno D series UP TO DATE. The new Juno-Di was given a complete cosmetic overhaul. The look of the Di now resembles the current Juno line (as it should too considering it is a Juno). It's very retro looking with the blue and red striping. The knobs look sharp with the faux chrome tops too. The screen is a HUGE improvement and looks SOOO much better than the previous model. Contrast is better, text is larger, more lines of text.., and did I mention it's MUCH bigger
SOUND QUALITY: This is IMO where the Juno-Di has done a complete turn around (for the better). This new Di sounds "nothing" like the previous models. We all know sounds are subjective.., but on the whole I think Roland did a great job, and it will be easy to fine tune these patches to personal taste. Here's what I was very pleased with. All the time I've spent on the Juno-D/Le (playing it and teaching locals how to use it) what I ALWAYS found with the older models is that regardless of what patch I was playing I found myself reaching for the controllers to adjust the envelopes, filters, and LFO's.
After spending several hours playing patches on the new Di I then realized that "not once" did I feel the need to reach for the controllers!!! That's a big "thumbs up" in my book. (understand this will vary greatly from one user to the next depending on the quality of your monitors)
The pianos sounded quite nice.., rich lush, and many to choose from. The EP's were smooth and down right filthy when needed and make great use of the MFX.
The guitars are a big improvement and are now using the COSM tech. Plus the Di now has velocity switched guitars too (it's about bloody time also!). The basses are GOOD AND PLENTY. Killer synth bases on this thing (the acoustic basses are good too).
The Orchestral patches are a big improvement. Even though Roland's not my favorite in this department this category on the new Di dances circles around the older model.
Brass is improved. Better quality brass patches.., and the saxes have IMO improved greatly. Some are even set to MONO play (as they should be).
Organs were also a big improvement. Many to choose from and to my ears they sound pretty darn good... Clavs were also quite good.
World sounds were pretty good too.., and there are some interesting world patches in there as well--not really even sure if they classify as world patches though.
Vocals/Pads are nice. Some really good textures going on in this category. The pads IMO are much more "ogranic" sounding compared to the previous models.
Synth sounds are pretty impressive. There are like 329 preset synth patches (not including the GM patches) and they too are a big improvement over the older Juno D's. Plus Roland finally set the pitch/mod stick on default to other controllers outside of bending and modulation. On some it opens up the filters ect.
Drums were ok IMO. This is probably the category I felt disappointed with. The drums aren't bad and they are certainly usable. However, Roland (who is well known for amazing multi layered velocity switched drum kits full of nuances and ghost notes) did not really use this much for the Di. Again.., the kits aren't too bad.., but my old trusty RS-70's preset drum kits are much better.
Roland did something VERY different with the new Juno-Di. It no longer handles patches the same was as it did on the previous models. The new Di handles patches in TWO modes now. Any patch consisting of a single tone or osc is handled under the patch mode. Split and Dual patches are handled under the PERFORM MODE now. The perform mode is nothing new or special. It's just the standard multi-timb performance mode you find on a synth/workstation. However Roland is now using this mode to handle split and dual patches. It assigns the upper tone to part one and the lower tone to part two. Not sure why Roland did this either.
Another major area that has changed is the patch modify (the amount of controllers available from the panel). How those controllers apply to the OSC has changed too (meaning they're a global edit-even if you're editing a dual patch). The Di's onbard patch editing has been reduced to that of a "quick edit". Numerous paramters that were available on the older models are not on the panel of the Di. I assume Roland's reason for this is that they're also hoping to use the Di to bring in more budding keyboardists and wanted to keep the panel and actual navigation as simple as possible. Roland did however look out for us more experienced players. They included a very good software editor that literally "unlocks" the Di's abilities. Using the software gives you SO many more patch editing options and shoots the Di's patch editing up to a pro level (So a big hats off to Roland for at least including this for us old heads who are more likely to dig into that).
What I am very surprised with his how much Roland has squeezed out of 64mb's of ROM. Not only what they did with 64mb's.., but what they manged to pull off with patches consisting of only a single tone/osc.
Overall.., I think the Juno-Di is a MAJOR bargain. Many speculated the price of this thing to be up to $800 too..., but you can get it for $699. With something like this you have to keep in mind that it's a budget model. When you look at what all this thing offers for the price and keep your expectations within reason it's a no brainer. This is going to be a huge seller for Roland.
Many out there (on other forums) have been trying to figure out where this Juno sits in the line up. well IMO this new Juno-Di is really more of a budget Juno-Stage. It shares more in common with it than it does the Juno-G.
Well that's all for now....
OHHHH one more thing... I forgot to mention the rhythm patterns. This is a really cool feature on the Di. The best way to look this feature is like a "kick ass metronome". Rather than having a boring CLICK CLICK you have rhythm patterns that are tied to the preset drum kits. What's really nice is that when you activate this feature the category buttons become (variation buttons). You have 24 different drum styles and each of those styles has a total of 6 variations. Plus it transmits the data out the midi jacks. You could use these patterns to record drum tracks in a seq app.
[This message has been edited by squeak_D (edited 08-06-2009).]
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