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First off this is my second time buying this synth it's more of a groove box with keys but you can create your own grooves and add bass lines of your liking it's great i use it for all my style of music i play from Acid Techno Psytrance Synthwave Sci-Fi music easy to use so i highly recommend this synth for any level good leaning tool for beginners.

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I really like this synth. I started with the Arturia Microbrute about a year and a half ago and I think this is a great second synth for my low budget setup. I have enjoyed the pad/string sounds the most. The only change i would make would be the envelope, as I can't get as much variety with the single knob as with individual ADSR fades.

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While it may look a bit cheesy and feel a bit light and cheap, don't let that fool you. This is a serious powerhouse of a synth. The obvious selling point, at least for me, was the included set of classic roland drum kits (tr909, 808, etc) and they sound spot on. The step sequencer and recorder is very intuitive once you get the hang of it and also very capable. At first glance, you'll think this is 100% dedicated to EDM sounds and EDM sounds only, don't let that fool you. There are only a handful of videos online demonstrating the other possibilities and sounds, so I recommend doing a deep search or play one for yourself. The possibilities are really endless with this guy. You can edit nearly every parameter, in depth, but it does require quite a bit of menu diving. There are some knobs on board, which allows you to quickly and simply edit a sound, but to get into the nitty gritty, you'll have to dive in. One complaint I have is there aren't any attack, decay, release, or sustain knobs. Which I consider a necessity. They're here, but exist only deep in the menus. As for the presets, there are plenty. 256 to be exact. Space is also available for 256 user presets. The factory presets are mostly usable. There are a fair amount of dance and EDM sounds, but these can all be tweaked to your liking to evoke just about any kind of sound you need. Rompler and acoustic sounds are a plenty, as well as classic string and brass sounds. And they're all pretty decent and useable as well. I particularly like the string and Wurlitzer sounds but there really isn't a bad one in the bunch. Now. The analogue part. The addition that drove the hype above and beyond for this little beauty. Its good. But....that's about it. Which is a tad bit disappointing. It does have a sub oscillator to fatten up the sound. Which can also be edited heavily via menu diving. There is only a lowpass filter on board, which coming from pure analogue with multiple filters, feels a little limiting. Every time I plug this thing in, I give the analogue another try, and every time it falls slightly short of what I'm looking for. Like I said, it's not bad. But it's only just good. I mentioned the drum parts before, and they don't disappoint. Anyone familiar with Rolands classic drum machines will know enough to be sure that it's the real deal. While it's not an exact replica, it comes very close and is nearly worth the price alone. So there you have it. The JDXI is a powerhouse of a synth with a boats load of sonic possibilities and is one of the funniest machines I've gotten my hands on in a while. It won't replace every synth in your collection, and I certainly wouldn't reccomend it as a replacement for your analogue kit or as your sole analogue synth. But it would make an amazing addition to any collection and you should not, would not, and could not regret purchasing it.

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In the mini synth category, the Roland JD-XI is by and far a mean music making machine. I am a starter with synthesizers, but have been doing music for many years and my first reaction to this was immense satisfaction. The sounds and beats you can get out of this thing are limitless, and for me that is good enough. Everything works perfectly and the way it should to make great music, and to me all of the displays work just fine for what they are. Amazing instrument.

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A lot of people seem to hate this keyboard because of it's size and plasticky look. But it is a great little groovebox. The mini-keys, I prefer to, say the pads on Electribe. The supernatural sounds in parts one and two are quite good. In truth, the supernatural digital synths sound a bit thicker than the analog on part four. Don't buy this keyboard for the analog synth as this is actually the weakest link. The drums are really good and there are all of the classics, 909, 808, 626, etc. The patches are oriented toward groovebox/dance sounds. One gripe is too many preprogrammed patterns in the rom section. They are annoyingly generic. Don't get this keyboard to play classic tracks-you will likely be disapointed. Many sound editing controls are on the front panel such as the filter, but sadly no ADSR. So there is some menu diving, but it's not bad. The sequencer is super easy to use. So it the arpegiator. I havent tried the vocoder. For the money this is the best value in the current crop of groovebox/mini keyboards.

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We needed a small-ish groovebox/synth set-up via hardware,so we can build basic beats without using a computer,and this little powerhouse fit the bill...and some. We added/synced an Arturia Drumbrute Impact to our JD-Xi -- our creativity and song output has gone to a whole 'nuther level ever since. Intuitive,easy to learn,and loaded with great sounds,but once you get familiar with it and do some menu diving,you'll realize what a bargain this synthy groovebox is. I started with a KORG O1/W fd waaay back in 1992,so I do know a great synth when I hear or use one,so believe me when I say this is a quality unit. One thing,we were very pleased that Roland included the white replacement lettering templates; that red made me SEE red after a whole minute. Main thing is that even in '22 this is still a solid option for beginners or a second synth for budget minded musicians. The 808 kit sounds are killah when synced w our Drumbrute Impact,but wow there are so many options!

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Top Notch Patches! Mini Keys Feel Great! I had to buy a small lamp to see what I was editing. Their choice to make those red lights on all the time bugged me. The editing process is difficult. Still if you need a great sounding mini synth It really is the best Sounding one out there.

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It is a great starter synth. I have no previous experience with synths, but learning to experiment with sound on this thing is top notch. As I have no experience; the mini keys don't bug me, but I've heard some people complain about that. The gooseneck mic that came with mine did not work, but I contacted zZounds.com and they set up an exchange pretty quick with no problems. My only complaint is that I had to send back the entire instrument. But, that's only because they don't have spare parts for this in stock yet. It is brand new to the market. So I understand. Overall this thing is just fun to play on. I am a truck driver and this is perfect to travel with me anywhere.

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