My opinion on the Juno-G

argomax,
I want to join in here. I'm very new to this forum and I joined because of my purchase of a Juno G plus some nice youtube clips that mentioned this forum. I haven't been here long enough to have made any friends or become a loyalist or anything like that.

From your self description I see that you've been playing Synths for many years and probably know your way around them quite well. I wish I had that amount of knowledge of the instrument. I also understand that you're no youngster and have been a part of the industry for quite some time. In many ways I share this part of the story with you, although in my case, it has much more to do with all things electric guitar related. Over the years I've helped buiders with amp design, pickup design, and effects related products. I've worked as a product reviewer, written multiple articles on everything from vintage guitar gear to head to head comparisons of current gear, etc. I also have over two hundred songs to my credit and have been writing and playing for 48 years. For many years I worked as an teacher of my main instrument and that's the perspective I'd like to take with this post.

I love Synths and have great respect for their place in the music world going back to the 1960's. I truly feel many classic songs would have never been given a second listen if not for the presence of the Synth in the mix. Hauntingly surreal, mentally absorbing, highly productive of mental imagery and provoking the depths of understanding to rise to the surface and reach out to their muse. Indeed the Synth, in many ways, touches and stimulates the listeners brain in the same way as pictures from the Hubble space telescope or deep diving probe feeds from the Mariana trench.

An instrument with that capability must, by necessity, be extremely complicated. We're not talking blow into one end and toots come out the other. On top of that the Synth is a product of the type of technology that never seems to take a break. Where pianos are pianos and guitars are guitars and drums are drums, Synths are an ever evolving / ever expanding source of musicallity. You Sir, have been there for a long long time and have received the benefit of growing right along with the instrument. Your experience cannot be bought.

I, on the other hand, decided to explore this avenue of music creation rather late in life. Now..........What do I have to work with? I have a firm understanding of music theory, history, instrumental technique, structure, and arrangement. What don't I have............a vocabulary of the digital age, a working understanding of computer terms and instructions, any type of experience with "Synth" terms used in manuals for the instrument. LFOs are something from another planet.

When I decided to explore Synth workstations, trying to find something that would allow the musician within me to get a handle on an instrument that plays with an entirely different set of values, rules, and terminology from any other instrument I've ever been exposed to, I found the Juno G to be the best "end zone" for my quest. It allowed for all the tones I was seeking within a simple layout. It divided and classified everything in an easy to understand tonal map. It allowed for someone with little or no Synth understanding to take a big step into the unknown.

My experience as a music teacher tells me that the combination of extremely good tonal delivery X an easily understood platform X the build quality of an experienced manufacturer is deserving of respect. I do understand how an expert who has had the opportunity to "grow" with the instrument might have a completely different viewpoint, but, for an old guitarist / songwriter who wants to add the sounds and presence of the Synthesizer to his musical endeavors, the Juno G is a gift from above.

yeoldsongsmith

argomax, please don't search something which is not in there.... also, try to accept what you have, not what you like.... as a musician of quite a number of years, i've learned that one instruments' weakness is another one's strength. the last new board that i had before the juno was the korg trinity pro... i owned korgs way back like M1 and wavestation a/d and x series... since the trinity, i find it quite harder to use than the M1 or Wavestation in terms of editing or what else... so the trinity is one giant step for me to a new dimension...of the same world (Korg)... now here comes the Juno G... with a USB connectivity, sampling, upgradable OS, sequencer, sonar LE, audio recording, expandable memory and tons more..that makes my head spin!!!... i may not be as knowledgable as you when it comes to products... but i can tell you i can love my Juno G like a wife...i have to know her more...for us to have peaceful music. all people are different...and so will keyboards....the truth of the matter is, It's HOW you use it... not all Juno G users use the board the same way...am i right?...i have no regrets of getting the Juno G...and like most people, they will have their own downside one way or the other... i respect your experience but i think you're not a seasoned musician... as you have said, you're a dealer....and that's totally different. from a musician.... a musician is all about the love and passion...whereas, the dealer is all about the money.... and i don't think no one will defy that universal truth... i don't even care if you backstab me for saying that.... i think, though, maybe you made a mistake of posting your claim about the G... you maybe didn't realize how many you have offended (well, i am) in this forum... you are not complaining but claiming to be like Mr. Know-it-all.... the people in this forum are G users.... and with your "dissing" remarks, you're making me think that you are telling us we are stupid.... if you don't like the G for yourself, THEN DON'T BUY IT ....if you have it and don't like it, THEN SELL IT....as you have done.... and it's all just a matter of preference my friend...nothing more, nothing less.

I believe my rants have been far better! LOL

For one they've been far more focussed on specific quirks and usually undeniable, just a question of how much you let issues irritate you.

Oh, please can we have an awards section for the best rant??? Apparently I've made more than a couple of hundred posts here now, so I know I have a healthy back catalogue!

Oh, and ArgoMin, I'm definitely more of a Burger King Boy, I carry 18.5st like it was 15st tops, and my eye sight is perfect, which is why my girlfriend is a 43yo MILF 13yrs my senior with a posterior that would wipe the floor with anything in any "Yo-Wikki" rap video!

Mmmmmmmm.... Posterior....!

it just breaks my heart to read how missing or poorly implemented features of roland products keep their users from creating grand musical masterpieces. oh, so sad.

in my case, i have long suspected that it was the lack of aftertouch on the juno-g that derailed my career as a rock star. (but i can see clearly now: it's the glasses.)

RobJuno, you're definitely a formidable contender in the rants-r-us event. besides, some observations of yours, such as, the whole patch chorus/reverb send mistery definitely saved me time.

nevermind the static, set your amps to 11 and rock on.

Artemiy. Please don't delete posts like these. The entertainment value alone makes them worthwhile.

Maybe you could have a separate category just for crazy people's rants.



B4D

hi Artemiy!! it's so nice to see you respect even offending or upsetting remarks... props to you...i just have one itsy-bitsy request if possible?.... i just want to know the original title Argomax put up in his post?... thanks in advance adn should you decline, you have every authority to do so and i'll respect it. thanks again!!!

No, sorry, I don't actually respect offending remarks. I support criticism in a polite, civilized and non-annoying manner, but anything beyond that is unacceptable here.

Artemiy,
i know exactly what you mean and you said it very well. i do admire your great patience.... always have a great day and thanks very much for your endless support.

Thanks!

WOW, I can't even believe someone would post that on a forum of G users. LOL

I've owned a ton of boards in my time and for the 770.00 I paid for it there is nothing that can touch it. It's packed with great features and the sounds are AWESOME!!

Personally, I think that what argomax says can be right or wrong, but one thing that I've noticed on this forum is that often, when somebody complains about a Roland product, some people soon start mocking him. It's strange that I haven't seen Roland Secret Agent (which I love!) in this thread yet!
Why Artemiy should delete the post I don't understand: I think that argomax has the right to say his opinions on the Juno-G and I think that the role of the moderator in a forum is different from the role of a censor, that is to say that the moderator must be very careful to delete only posts that are offensive or trolling but not posts where different opinions are expressed.
Who made the mistake? Roland that crippled the juno-g sequencer too much or argomax that bought the juno-g thinking that it would have the same functionalities of boards that cost 2X money? I think that, since the juno-g is an entry level instrument, its sequencer is adequate. But other people may think different! The sense of argomax post is clear: if you're a pro and need pro features, save money for the Fantom. This is an opinion, everyone has different expectations from things depending on his needs, his level and so on. He had high expectations that the juno-g cannot meet. But I think he has the right to post his opinions anyway.

with all due respect tompabes, i think argomax's post can not be valid as an OPINION....but rather a CONCLUSION... please don't get mad at me...but, if he said "DON'T BUY IT", could it be an opinion?... when he said "THERE REALLY IS NO SEQUENCER MENU", does it just stop there and nothing can be done to sequence music?...maybe he forgot the Sonar LE... which in my case is a great suppliment to the sequencer (for PC).... or if he said "Who's the guy who designed the OS and layout of this machine? Please send him back to stockroom or washroom cleaning, that's where he belongs.", has he done better?.... i hope (i really do) you won't feel like i'm arguing with you... i'm just trying to at least show you the other side (which is the offended side)...yes, offended but not hurt... i mean, i've been using the G for more than 3 years now and so far, i have managed to achieve what i set my mind to.... be it patch/performance creation, sampling sounds, sequencing, connecting PC's.... i admit, i really had a hard time figuring things out from the start but hey, we all learn as long as we spend more time with the thing... i have nothing personal against argomax.... it's just that (for me) i can't seem to understand people to expect more with what is intended.... especially at its price range....

but i think you got it right saying that argo's post can be right or wrong...who will ever know?... if only he had said he had trouble using this or that.... but it is always easier to say it in hind sight.... from my point of view, i too share your thoughts that everyone has the right to post their opinions.......as long as it is so. ...have a good day bro...

You could be doing something for 30 years but your opinion is a bit askew. I'm a computer reseller, it's the same idea, if I sell a Server to a client, say the DL360, it's a medium range server and it does what it's supposed to do. It's not a DL580, nor is it priced that way.

Different product, same basic principle, for $1,000 the Juno does a pretty awesome job, just look at the trade magazines, Keyboard Mag, glowing reviews, the competition from Yamaha and Korg? Not so as much but each has their strength and weakness.

As a distributor, you should know this, people must at least come to you and say "I want this to do this, that and maybe these features" and right off the bat know what price range the customer is looking for.

I'm thinking something else here is a motive, maybe you had a bad day, perhaps you just don't like that it's Roland, maybe it was the Screen issue, but bottom line is, with all your 30 years of knowledge, you can't possibly be expecting a $1,000 keyboard to do something that keyboards costing 3x's as much would do.

btw, I'm overweight, 229lbs, and eat at McD's occasionally

Weight can be changed, your opinion and ability to treat people with kindness even if you don't agree with them can be changed

It starts with respecting yourself, you need to respect yourself before you can respect others.

argomax,

You have to remember that the juno - g is the next highest platform, of the analogue Jupiter series.

It's the first workstation that came to life from the jupe series.

* seq . 03 - It's really more of a digital analogue synth than a workstation. ( UNDERLINED )

It's all about synthesizing the juno - g, to get the quality along the spectrum, etc/

I've owned mine for an estimate of 2 and a half years, and everything that you have pointed, is fairly taken, but the real thing is, you have to know how to use the machine. You can do anything on this machine. You just have to learn the trickery.

I like to do everything in real time. That's how i became a master at doing it. I am not being modest, just being honest. There are so many ways of getting around the fundamentals of the synth. I've discovered so many different avenues inside the beast and brought extraordinary sounds, that i haven't even::STOPPING HERE, NO FURTHER INPUT. There are a stack of ways of using automation also. A lot of head down and practice. Man i tell ya,,, if anyone ever stole my juno g, believe me at 100%. They would dearly regret it...OOOOOOWWWAH---___ ... Just lost my "cool" there a bit. .....................I am not crazy, I am a very placid and happy, person. Enough of my idiosyncratic behaviour. I'm just trying to point that, the juno - g, has hidden secrets and they are there to be uncovered. It's all up to the individual to unlock the secrets. The juno - g has the power to unlocking the sonic world and bringing to life. It's not easy, because if it was, everyone can do it. The bottom line is, creativity.