Roland D-20: Quite a lot better than you might think. The nostalgia factor is strong in this one.
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- čas přidán 3. 07. 2024
- The Roland D-20 is not really the most exciting vintage 80's synth around is what the internet might have led you to believe. It usually gets discarded as a lesser D-50 or even a 'generic midi box'. In reality the D-20 actually sounds very nice, especially if you are looking for that late 80's and early 90's nostalgia factor.
Chapters
0:00 Intro
1:09 Factory presets demo
6:40 Creating a track using the D-20: Roll the drums
7:41 Digital warmth. Programming the D-20
8:56 80's style Fretless Bass
9:10 Dreamy nostalgic lead
9:55 The finished track
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I fondly remember the flight of the bumble bee demo song on my D20. What an incredible synth.
The built in demo songs were great. I also liked the big band song.
👍👍 me too
me too
I loved Mergatroid too
2:57 I think it's called Spacious Sweep which is used in the Playstation 1 boot sound effect.
PS1 intro was composed of D50 sounds IIRC. However both synths can share same patch.
@@B1SCOOP no English speaker.
IIRC???
@@lucobek8821 "If I Recall Correctly"
In 1988 I asked my parents to buy me this synth with the promise that I will never outgrow it. Well, 2021 and I lived up to the promise! I have used it for the past 10 years as a midi controller but, regardless, I still use it! I turned it on last month and the screen shows yellow squares and there is no sound. I am afraid it died. I might try to open it up and see if changing the battery will do the trick. If not, that D-20 has been there throughout my entire musical journey. I tried my best to hide the awful sounds by running it through guitar amps, guitar pedals and anything that could hide the digital sound and it actually did the job well. I had to be creative and it taught me so much despite it being a late 80s digital keyboard. Let's see if I can get it going again....as a midi controller.
Sorry to hear. My Dad bought his D-20 new when they were released and it's still going strong - as a MIDI controller. So it's been around my whole life, the sounds are always gonna sound chessey or at least dated to me. Always hated the piano sound. New workstations may have more polyphony & parts, but they're pretty much the same thing going on as the D-20, with all the updates time and technology progress has given us. I really enjoyed exploring every bank of every card he had. I can accept that I'm soured on it because if you grew up with these sounds when they weren't even current anymore, you'd get bored of it after like 25 years. One thing i agree with the video - it's not NEARLY as difficult to wrap your head around the programming as it seems initially. I sampled Warm Pad Fade & Harmonicity into my MC-909 groovebox, those are always good. Agreed sound around 8:30 is very warm & nice. I shouldve tried PROGRAMMING it myself more, like I did with every subsequent synth I crossed paths with.
I'm in the same boat! Bought my D10 back in 88 and used it for a number of years. Now, the battery died and I need to restore the sounds (I can play it using expansion cards). Doesn't seem hard to do based on videos here on youtube. I'm planning to resurect it and my old Mac+ to show my kids all the old tracks I worte back in the day. :)
@@EricTheDane You should absolutely go after replacing dead 'PRAM' batteries in 80s electronics lest they eventually burst or leak corrosion over the motherboards - it really is easy, its like doing a watch battery.
Have you tried squeezing the pins that hold the CPU in place? I'm sure there is a tutorial for that somewhere online. It helped my D-10
@@carlgeorgbiermann2915 This is usually the cure for the problem. Strange but simple.
Takes me back to High School... Saved for a D-20!
I lusted over the D20 as a teenager in 1988 up until I got the chance to borrow one for a couple of days from a local music store. My gear lust very quickly turned into frustration and disappointment once I realised how convoluted the user interface was and that the sequencer could only store one song at a time. The owners manual was completely useless and I returned it to the store very glad that I didn't buy it. Not long afterwards, the Korg M1 was released and I saved up a bit more money and splurged on a Korg T3EX which I ended up using for over 25 years! The D20 certainly had some great sounds, but it was a big step below the richness of its big brother, the D50. Your video is fabulous and you demonstrated the D20 beautifully. Keep up the great work buddy.
To me, this D-20, as well as the D-50, sounds "alive". I don't know why exactly this LA synthesis has this unique character ... maybe something about little detunings? ... but it's got something so special. Just "real" or "in the room". It does not sound "in the box". And yeah, then the expression "analogue [sic!] warmth" really makes sense.
Very nice demo of the D-20 and great 80s sounding track at the end! I restored a D-20 which was dirty, out of battery and had a few dead keys, now it works like a charm. I compared it soundwise to my D-50 and decided to keep the big brother and let the little brother find a new home! If I hadn't the D-50 I would probably have kept it.
You really made it shine! Great work as always💙
Thanks for the trip down memory lane! D10 was my first every proper workstation , before that all I had was home keyboards and a TR505 drum machine. D10 was a real game changer for cash strapped college students like me - no cheap PC and free vst options back then. Went past the cafe yesterday that my dad took me took me to before I bought it in 1988(?) , think he was trying to make me wait 30mins more than necessary to get me even more excited about getting it! Still like the blocky bass and snare drums. Made some fairly convincing analogue synth sounds with it. Used it for techno, house and new beat tracks at the time. Some of the buttons stopped working eventually after 10 years...then again someone did spill their beer on it at a party.
Less is more, you're right. I had the chance to get one of these but suddenly "a wild Dx7s appeared", I did not hesitate.
Very nice video as always.
Really great video! Thank you for sharing this workflow on the D-20. Your tune is really enjoyable!
I am learning a lot about musical production! Thanks for your videos, and keep up the good work!
Jonas making some of the best music of 2021.
Thank you for this! I really enjoy the trips down memory lane.
Very cool. The song is wonderful and I love the video you created for it. The vintage synths are great! Cheers!
I enjoy your videos very much! You give me inspiration for my own musical journey. Keep up the good work. 😊
Amazing video and incredible song!! Thank you for this great content!
I really like the sounds and the track you composed. It clearly shows what you can do with a given instrument and its possibilities. Geweldig man!
Another great tune, your videos inspire me. Thank you
This was my first synth as a teen! Brings back lots of memories. Thank you for making this video
Very nice demo on the Roland D-20. The D-20 was an somewhat overshadowed synth that deserves some sunlight. You did a good job.
That warm pad sound you created is beautiful.
yeah it is typical Estuera sound, love it :-)
Very cool track! That bass sound is amazing.
My first synth .... my d20 died a few years ago , i ' m watching this video waiting for the delivery of its little rack brother , the d110 !
Man that piano is unbelievable!!
I'm pretty sure I've heard it in at least few Italo House tracks.
@@Blahdnb The organs crop up all over the place too.
@@Blahdnb Very possible, but as is the case with The Happy Monday's "Step On", it is more likely the Roland piano you heard was from the Roland U-220 or U-20 RS-PCM module/keys of the same period.
Awesomely well done. Love the warmth to the pads you created. That distinctive D20 drum sound in the fill. Great work.
Gotta love those slightly crunchy drums 😁
You did a fantastic job displaying a lesser known synth from the 80's. Man that track sounds great!
Where is the ❤ button when you need one. In my humble opinion, this is the best example of a perfect video. Very informative but keeping the talking to a minimum. Then a fantastic track at the end. Great job!!!
I bought a D-20 at a flea market for $5 back in the mid 90's, I freakin loved that thing! EDIT: My bad, mine was a D-10, it didn't have the floppy drive but it was still awesome.
Supper nice custom made sounds & track!
The only video took our attention to make a full soundset.
I definitely love that lucious pad at 8:24. Sounds very good... Not the type of sound that one would expect from a D20 which was originally marketed tp reproduce natural instruments. BTW Great track at 10:06... You rejuvenated the D20.. ;-)
Pretty cool reminds me of frankie knuckles the whistle song
Nice use of this synth! You seem to have retained that warm dreamy atmospheric feel of trance of ~20 years ago!
IMO, one of the best of your tracks made for CZcams. Main melody sounds simple but so soulful.
I agree
The pads are simply gorgeous!
Very good. I had a d10 many years ago which I later sold, but before I did, I bought a D-110 and a PG-10 to keep some of the good sounds I got. You can get a very good sound from this synth knowing how to program it.
Good demo and a nice track! 👍
Some very great sounds on that synth, even today
This machine would be great for happy hardcore... Had this synth a long time ago, wonderful machine.
The D10 was my first polysynth, I loved it and produced some great music with it.
Cool synth, it's easy for many of us to under-rate synths when we don't put in time, effort or good fx. Also wanted to say I went through your songs on beatport and really love the song travels. I even reconstructed the melody to study with decoda, cubase elements and scaler 1. I'll definitely put that on one of my playlists where I put the best songs I can find
Beautiful track.
That's nice review, thank you
Zoals altijd, super gedaan ...
Thanks for this video! I'm a techno producer and stumbled upon a roland D-10 couple of weeks back on a flee market and bought it for 30.- Since then i'm using it in various ways, mostly for pad-sounds! An absolte nostalgic miami vice synth!
Well done
Great video and a beautiful track. I have a D-10 (same sound engine but without the sequencer) that has been banished to the attic for decades. You made me actually consider bringing it down and give it another chance.
I also had D-10. Full of great sounds and drum sounds are excellent! My D-10 lost it’s battery power later (I think) and all the patch names were gone. Some of them I could remember by numbers and sounds were still there. I also had a memory card with my own patches but it was dead after years. It was with me many years still but I didn’t use it - now I can’t understand why. But I gave it to a friend who collects old music gear like this.
substitute for the d50 NO
another fantastic animal YES
LOVE MY D110
Excellent track 👊🏽
This synth is super cool! I should probably buy one used someday.
My very first keyboard. Loved it.
that thing sounds amazing. super warm, hnnng
I owned a D20 when they first came out, and later when I picked up one for a short time. It was a great synth, only issue was polyphony really, and as long as you knew how to play with that, it was golden. The sequencer was easy, and it worked I also had an M1, yep sort of similar level. I think the D20 was overlooked, worked professionally for me for several years. Oh yes and I always ran mine through an Alesis Quadraverb plus at the time.
Smooth song!
Nice to see another video about the D-20. I came across your channel and subbed immediately.
Thanks and welcome ! :)
very cool digital warm pad sound
Absolute beast!
The Roland D-20 was the backbone of my early '90s electro band... Diving Near Atlantis.
I remember I had to play sample loops on my Mirage while I loaded the next song on our set list from a floppy.
My go-to technique was to pitch-bend the percussion track up by an octave to create the desired 'less organic/more electronic' sound.
Hearing those presets brought me right back!
I did something similar pairing this with an EMAX. We played videos on stage or a guy who was with us for a while would play all these tape loops. Eventually I moved to a Sony Minidisc for the main tracks to eliminate loads and played over the top.
The "digital warmth" patch you created is SO CLOSE to being a late 80s Macintosh boot sound!
I just enjoy your vintage synths videos 🙃
+1 here... :)
I still have the rackmount version in my synth rack Roland D-110. I obviously time to revisit this!
Ok I'm sold
I still have mine under my bed, bought in 1990 and took me 12 months to pay off for it. I bought it for the lush, realistic string samples, plus the built in sequencer. Helped me get ideas down fast. Lovely piece of kit and still my favourite keyboard.
Awesome video as ever man!
I made a soundtrack for a College video on one of these in the 90s - went in with very low expectations, but ended up really loving it - super versatile and great value synth (particularly if you choose d10 / d110 versions at current prices).
Yes indeed. The D-10 and D-110 will do the same sounds. The only difference is the sequencer but nobody will need that in 2021 I guess :D (I certainly don't)
It also really surprised me in a positive way. I initially loaned it from my friend just for the challenge of it but in the end it didn't take that much work to get it sounding really nice.
@@Estuera There are great 3rd party sounds for these
@@Estuera I wonder if the D to converters are the same for D20 D10 and the D100
I'm quite sure they are actually.
About time I blew the the dust off my D20. Thank you!
The dust on the one I loaned almost seemed glued on. I hope yours is a bit cleaner.
this was great.
Another great video Jonas! The D-20 sounds quite similar to the JD-800 which I never got to own, but I have recently picked up as a model expansion for my Jupiter Xm. My friend had a broken D-10, perhaps we should have fixed it!
It is actually a fun synth - super 80s vibe - you can't really get realistic acoustic sounds - but the tones are still appealing
It;s like D-50...Adjacent
Nostalgie quand tu nous tiens...
Beautiful musical atmosphere, it is true that the D-20 does not have to be ashamed of its big brother the D-50 !
Thank you once again Jonas for this sharing !
Merci :)
Mike oldfield used the d-10/20 extensively on his “earth moving” album. Like really extensively lol
Indeed the D10/20 drums are all over that album and are so recognisable.. I had a D-10
So underrated, I know I'm comparing apples to oranges but I honestly like the sound of my Roland D5 over my yamaha DX7s, I wish they hadn't discontinued the D-05 module. Its ridiculously expensive now. Might as well just buy a d50. Loved the video.🎉
I was looking forward to this video. Nice to see someone squeezing something really nice out of one of these babies 👍😁 Excellent work!
It is possible with some “will” to create some techno/rave like kicks with the synthesizer engine without using the samples. I have both a D-20 and a D-110 and will never sell them.
Agreed. I might be creating some rave and tech stab samples before I give this synth back to its owner 😁
That would be very nice 😁
Toffe track geworden!
Just go to show that you can create a really nice track without a lot of gear. Great stuff 👍
That’s a natural d20. Awesome.
I use the d-110 for backgrounds and it still works!
i like it !
That digital warmth... ^_^
One thing that has particularly drawn my attention on the D-20/D-110 is the presence of a Ring Modulator, especially if set it to Structures 2 & 10 ; very interesting results can be obtained that way.
My D20 had sadly died, created some awesome tracks in my youth......and who can forget Demo Track 7 - Mergatroyd and also 1 of the sounds....think it's B52 (Soundtrack) - really dreamy ❤
The 80's and 90's will never die... especially the Synthi Instruments! Thanks for sharing this video! - If you want you will find some Productions on my channel which were made with Pendands of Arturia, Roland Cloud, NEXUS 3 etc...
Very very nice. Again (I've already told this in a comment to another video of yours): I am totally not into dance music but it's most interesting what you squeeze out of your equipment at hand; this time the D-20. I also heard the D-20 is far not as good as the D-50. But well ... now that I hear the sounds this synthesizer provides I have to say It's a great combination of bread and butter sounds which combine nicely in the mix. Thank you again for this video (and all your other videos). All the best!
I think that's the thing indeed with this synth. I doesn't seem very exciting at first but once you start writing a track you discover all the sounds fit very well and the final result becomes more than the sum of the parts.
Nice video! I own my D-20 since 1993... one of these days I'll decide to fix a pair of dead keys and make it work again!
Hi Jonas. Thank you for your video. I really love pad and drum sound of D-20. And also I am sure you can make some music just any click voice. Great skill thank you 🙂
My 1st "professional" synth, I used it for many years for accompaniment in my band After Hours. Gave it away when I got a Roland A37 (still using that) and went soft synth. Missing it though!
Lovely Content sir! Can't wait for you to check out a Korg Z1/Prophecy and maybe a Yamaha An1x/Cs6x"Pleaaaaaase".....Btw Roland updated their Zenology Pro Vsti with the JD800 engine. Keep up the awesome work man you ROCK!!!!!
You have worked wonders with that damn old D-20. It was my first synthesizer and I've loved it as much as I've hated it… I hated it because it was so cheesy and outdated at the time. And it was all I had to make music for a long while… I knew it inside and out and still today I can instantly recognize it in a song. Guess it can shine again now that synthwave is around and lo-fi sounds are trendy. I still have it lying around, just in case ;-)
yeah this is by far the very best thing I've heard multitimbral created on a D5/10/20/110. I can't get down w the drums still (but what can you do about that?) but the melodic sounds WOAH, nice programming
Problem in the late 80:s/early 90:s is that when I owned a D-10 (which is a D-20 minus the sequencer), I couldn't use anytihng but the onboard reverb. It didn't have multiple outputs and in addition to that many of us couldn't afford anything more than a crude 6-channel mixer and almost no outboard effects (Which still only could be applied globally on all the sounds getting out from the D10).
And we didn't have access to multitracking DAWs (only Cubase Midi Sequencer on the Atari ST or similar).
So when you bought a multitimbral Synth like this, what you got out of it with effects and all was really important.
And in that sense it was hum-drum. Not really bad, but nowhere near a D50 or the likes.
You did a great job with this song and the effects helps a lot!
The D10/D20 is still limited to certain type of sounds/Songs. I'm not a fan of the type of "harsh/hard" drum sounds that was popular at the time like in the D5/D10/D20 or the M1.
That's a fact. Nowadays a synth like this is quite nice as it offers some quite nice sounds and everything it doesn't do you can fix with outboard fx or plugins. And obviously multitracking it is quite easy now.
I can totally understand how frustrating it must have been when it was still new.
The same experience I had with the MC-303 when I got it in 98, although I actually figured out how to use it multitimbrally. Still didn't solve the problem of only having one stereo output.
Luckily nowadays we can have the best of both worlds, combining these synths with the power of the modern DAW.
I had one in 89, but couldn't get my head wrapped around it. I had previously played an Alpha Juno 2, and was missing the warmth. 33 years later, I just received a D-10. I understand more now, and look forward to seeing what it can do. It needs tact switches and a good cleaning, of course. Will also rebuild the power supply and refurbish the key bed.
Your final track is great and really brings out the best of this synth. I recall a situation standing in a music shop next to a Roland D-10, asking the shop assistant about a certain info inside the official Roland brochure which stated that these machines had actually 63 drum sounds. I was wondering how you could play 63 sounds on just 61 keys. He explained to me that you have to use the pitch bender in order to reach the other two drum sounds! :-)
Or simply transpose the keyboard ;) I guess that assistant didn't have his coffee break yet :D
Really great intro to a nice synth! Your dedication to create a full track is fully admirable!
(Please just rub some cotton swabs + alcohol on such vintage gear to further elevate our appreciation!) ;-)
It's quite dirty indeed. It's not mine so I only did some superficial cleaning when I got it. Only after seeing the video footage I noticed it was quite bad. Usually the lights aren't that bright here and I'm not looking at it from 10 cm height :D
Oh, this pad sound reminds me something of Satin Jackets. So warmth )))
1:21 ahhh so that's where tango got the sound for timebomb!
D-20 very nice!
Great to see the D20 in action again. Thanks, this was my first synth ever. and i get an MC50 for free if i buy the D20... Hahaha, sold!
I had it and sold it, As I have the korg M1 and de D50 and find the sound better of the Korg and D50. also the DX7 sounds in its presets already much better. but its wurth trying the get a butifull song as you did. Congratulations. You proved again that it is possible to get a nice song with for example a casio toy organ ;-)
The D20 has a huge nostalgia-factor for me. It was my first synth back in 1989 in my teenage years. I used the sequencer a lot although de D20's polyphony was limited.
I had the D110 in the same year, it served me well and I sold it in the early 90s but got the exact same unit I sold given back to me a couple of yrs ago for free with all my late 80s patches still intact, I personally still love the sound of these, same with the K1 and Poly 800, all have that lo-fi 80s sound.
Same here! My first synth as a teenager until my beloved D-20 got stolen. I miss it dearly
i made a couple of tracks using almost entirely a d50 added with some dexed sounds and tr drums samples
I used to own one, this one and the Siel DK70 where my first synths.....getting old.
I had bought a Roland D-110 last year and I really ought to use it more. I love LA synthesis, but I seem to only use it on its own. I've yet to use it alongside other synths and in other productions
I does have a character that meshes quit well with other instruments in a mix so I would certainly try it if I were you.
@@Estuera that's the plan. But for starters, I kinda wanna make a whole synthwave EP with it (plus effects) because I haven't really heard much of it in a full on production, always stuff that is rather light on effects and isn't multitracked at all. I like using it as a multitimbral synth, don't get me wrong, but you can really bring the best out of it when you only use one part at a time and record it into your DAW. A little extra time and effort really helps with getting more professional quality sound out of your lower-end synths in general, not just the D-10/20/110. It's the only hardware synth I own, but nevertheless, I think some synths that some tend to dislike can still sound great if just used well
that rim shot and the cowbell in the left channel. Sounds like a reversed tone in there as well. 11:10. That visual of the clock and time were perfect
Either way, ❤🎉
If you can get your hands on the D-70, don't hesitate to try it. Better than the more known D-50 and JD-800. Why? The D-70 has the rare filter chip that you find in the S-770. Only hw sampler connoisseurs knows this little secret. The D-70 op sys takes a little time to learn, but the 4 assignable jump buttons do the trick for fast navigation. And the AT keybed is nice as well as the 4 midi sliders.
I had one....it was beautiful...sounded incredible