The Jupiter-8, Roland's flagship analog synthesizer of the early 1980s is an eight-voice polyphonic synth and is considered one of the greatest synths of all time.
The Jupiter-8, introduced in the Autumn of 1981, is very user friendly as well as intuitive. Although it lacked the soon-to-be standard of MIDI control, later model Jupiter-8s did include Roland's proprietary DCB interface, and sported advanced features such as "Four On Four" and the ability to split the keyboard into two zones, with a separate patch active on each zone.
The Jupiter-8 was discontinued in 1985. 2,000 Jupiter-8s were manufactured.
Features and architecture
As its name suggests, the Jupiter-8 is an 8-voice polyphonic analog synthesizer. Each voice features two VCOs with cross-modulation and sync, pulse-width modulation, a non-resonant high-pass filter, a resonant Low-pass filter with 2-pole (12 dB/octave) and 4-pole (24 dB/octave) settings, an LFO with variable waveforms and routings, and two envelope generators (one invertible).
Noteworthy performance features include adjustable portamento, a hold function for making sound design easier, a versatile arpeggiator with DIN-sync and external analog clock input connectivity, assignable pitch-bender, instrument layer and split modes, robust load and save functionality for its 64-patch memory, a DCB port for attaching an external MIDI interface or other DCB-compatible device, built-in XLR outputs, and—in addition to legato and polyphonic modes—the Jupiter-8 includes a powerful unison mode.
A Z80 CPU was used for managing storage of patches, scanning the keyboard, display, and buttons, port handling, and taking care of the auto-tune function among other things. The VCOs were discrete. The VCF was based on the Roland IR3109 IC (also used in the Jupiter 6, MKS-80 rev 4, Juno 6/60, JX-3p respective filter circuits). The VCA was the BA662. The envelopes were hardware generated by the Roland IR3R01 chip (also in the Juno 6/60), and are much faster than software generated ones in the subsequently introduced Jupiter-6 and MKS-80 "Super Jupiter".
Reliability
Although it has been suggested that the Jupiter-8's tuning is unstable, this is only somewhat true of the earliest versions using 12-bit resolution for panel slider encoding and main control voltage generation. Later revisions, which employ 14-bit resolution, seldom require manual re-tuning, except in cases where the synth has seen some serious abuse (as baggage on a flight, for example). The soldered-in battery typically lasts ten years or more, ranking these boards among the lowest-maintenance of their generation. Most synthesizer service technicians will confirm the Jupiter-8 is built with much higher quality and endurance than its contemporaries made by Sequential Circuits and Oberheim. Compared to Curtis chips, used by these two companies, the failure rate of the Roland IR series IC's used in the JP-8, is almost unmeasurable.
In the present day
The wide range of sounds that the Jupiter-8 can produce, along with its sturdy construction, render it a venerable instrument even today. Units in good condition still fetch more at auction than most new synthesizers, suggesting that the Jupiter-8 will continue to be heard for years to come. The characteristic sound of the Jupiter-8 is heard extensively on albums from the early 1980s to the present day. It is considered in professional circles to be among the most versatile, intuitive, and musical synthesizers ever made. It is likely more widely used today than it was when in production, especially in diverse world of modern electronica subgenres - psy trance, goa trance, twisted house, minimal etc.
At the 2007 NAMM show, French music software manufacturer Arturia announced, and subsequently released a software Jupiter-8 called "Jupiter-8V". It is uncertain what effect this will have on the value of existing Jupiter 8's since more people will have access to this instrument at a much lower price than an original unit, not to mention that original units in good condition are difficult to find.
Additionally, the Roland VariOS will run a mildly successful digital approximation of Jupiter 8 using "Varios-8" software.
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