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55.000 Products
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30 Day Return Policy
Roland's Jupiter-Xm is a state-of-the-art keyboard synthesizer that wants to be more than just a reissue of the famous Jupiter-8. With the latest Zen-Core sound generation, sounds of numerous classics like Jupiter-8, Juno-106, JX-8P, SH-101, XV-5080, RD-Piano, TR-808, TR-909, CR-78 are available. Zen-Core technology is able to precisely reproduce the characteristics of original instruments and combine them with others.
The compact 37-key lightweight (4.4 kg) impresses in the studio as well as on stage with its small footprint and can be used anywhere thanks to its battery operation (8xAA). Internal stereo speakers with twice four watts, outputs for headphones, XLR and jack as well as a comprehensive computer connection via USB including audio transmission leave nothing to be desired in terms of connectivity.
The clearly laid out user interface with its many knobs provides immediate access to all sound-relevant parameters. In just a few simple steps, you can create your desired sound in the Oscillator, Filter, LFO, Envelope and Effects function groups. Depending on the selected synthesizer model, two LFOs and three envelopes are available that are pre-wired to the Pitch, Filter & Amp targets. Of course, sounds can also be layered: combining a beautiful piano from the RD-2000 engine with a radiant Juno string results in an orchestra like combination. The musician will soon notice that Roland has invested a lot of energy in the implementation of polyphonic sounds. The memory contains over 4000 sounds and over 90 drum kits. If the need for more sounds has not yet been met, the sound stock can be expanded via the constantly growing online platform.
To add the finishing touches to the sounds, Roland has added some powerful effects. Different types of distortion, reverb, delay and modulation effects can be adjusted to your taste. This is where the presence of the microphone input becomes apparent: the Jupiter-Xm also contains an integrated vocoder.
The Jupiter-Xm has a five-track sequencer that also manages the sounds. The i-Arpeggio (Intelligent Arpeggiator!) turns out to be a true creativity booster, orienting itself on your playing, as well as phrases and beats, which always create suitable melodies, accompaniment patterns and rhythms. Of course, these phrases are adaptable and changeable. Also part of the Zen-Core technology are the scenes, which contain 256 "total states". Assigned sounds, effect settings, patterns, i-arpeggio patterns, slider programming; all this is included in a scene.
There is a lot to get to grips with when you first buy a Jupiter Xm, but with time to experiment you’ll find it is packed with features and the sound engines are amazing. So many to choose from and all can be edited with the panel controls even during a performance.
A small drawback for me was the number and size of keys, but the possibilities really open up when you pair it up with a full size controller. The menus take some getting used to, but I find it a very creative instrument to play. It was expensive for an amateur musician like me (pros are more likely to go for the full Jupiter X), but considering it’s 7 or 8 classic Roland synths in one I’m very happy with it.
