New Synth: Roland Sh-4d

The Lounge Other Gear
#528

To be fair, we do not have any proof that these machines were not developped by these people but left unfinished.

Ess hinted at a 7th machine radically different from other 6 machines almost making it into the Model:Cycles. For all we know they might have worked on a bunch of machines that never made it into any box…

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#529
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#530

I concur. FWIW, Roland should do a Boutique version of the Alpha Juno.

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#531

I’d buy ten of those before I bought one of these.

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#532

Anyone know if the rhythm track on the Sh4-d can be used to sequence synths with polyphony or is just the Tone midi tracks for that? for example if I want use a Polyend Play for drums instead and hook up another Synth to the Sh-4d and sequence a 5th synth via the rhythm track?

#533

You can technically sequence an individual rhythm tone as polyphony. Each can be enabled, but I’m unsure if you can play it polyphonically from midi. And each time can be basically an FM synth. My understanding is you have to manually change the pitch.

#534

Cheers for that, thats a shame, would have been cool to be able to hook up another synth and sequence polyphonically on the rhythm track without sacrificing a tone track for external gear

#535

Thanks Cuckoo for the fun demo! This thing really sounds good, which is surprising for the usually terrible YouTube sound quality, it will probably be more impressive in person. The menu diving seems a bit of a headache, but the quick playability and knobs to tweak makes up for that. Did anyone read if the arp can swing?

#536

The arp has a shuffle parameter.

#537

100% this.

And it’s actually only some select commentators. Spamming opinions and starting unnecessary debates. It’s best to just not engage. It’s not worth it. Same thing happened on the 404 thread for a bit. Then it dies down.

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#538

Oi! I ordered one. Needed a small synth and have no complaints with Rolands sound, ever. So am happy to have this. I wish Roland would implement an Elektron-style sequencer. Or Elektron would make a synth that I like the sound of, cause the Elektron sequencer is the best. But, I will fair just fine with Rolands sequencer on this. And having all that drum kit, what 14 tracks? Im in. Perfect for what I need and not too pricey

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#539

It seems like pairing this box with a Digitakt could end well—DT for the samples and sequencer, Roland for the multitracked polysynths.

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#540

ReDominator VST/AU - AUDIOREALISM VIRTUAL SYNTHESIZERS does fill some of the gap!

In the kindest approach there, I can get (for the sake of anti-GAS) being fussy to the end of not buying stuff, at least. Whatever keeps people from rolling a joint/having a few pints and shopping.

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#541

Very true. I’m planning on an sp404mk2 pairing. Feels like too much Roland :joy:

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#542

Pretty “uninspired”. The cheese is running high in this one. Maybe that´s what they wanted him to showcase?

Oh, that would be great! Just checked the manual:

For the signal source, you can use internal signals like the LFO, as well as external MIDI signals like control change messages.

I guess you´d have to browse the mod source list in order to find out which CCs are supported, probably CC 1-127, Pitch Bend and Aftertouch?

Alright, welcome SH-4D, Octatracks new best friend!

#543

You are right - the Octatrack and the SH-4d might be a dream team - together with a SSL BigSiX and some sound processing outboard. Big sound on a small footprint.

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#544

The list of effects and tone shaping possibilities is always amazing!

One 3-band tone eq and one multi-fx per part+four send effects (Roland calls them pattern effects)

List of multi effects:

EQ, Mid-Side EQ
Isolator
Low Boost
SuperFilter

Filters:
Multi Mode Filter
Step Filter
Enhancer
Exciter
AutoWah
Humanizer

Phaser:
Phaser
Small Phaser
Script90
Script
Step Phaser
Multi Stage Phaser
Infinite Phaser

Flanger:
Flanger
SBF-325 Flanger
StepFlanger

Chorus:
Chorus
Hexa-Chorus
Tremolo Chorus
Space-D
CE-1
SDD-320
Juno Chorus

Modulation:
Ring Mod
Tremolo
AutoPan
Slicer
Rotary
VK Rotary

Drive/Amp
Overdrive
Distortiom
T-Scream
Fuzz
Tone Fattener
HMS Distortion
Saturator
Worm Saturator
Guitar Amp Sim
RD EP Amp Sim
Speaker Sim

Comp/Limiter
Compressor
Mid Side Compressor
Limiter
Sustainer
Transiend
Gate

Delays:
Delay
Mod Delay
2 Tap Pan Delay
3 Tap Pan Delay
(Oh I wish I wouldn´t have started writing these down…)
4 Tap Pan Delay
Multi Tap Delay
Time Control Delay
Tape Echo
Mid Side Delay

Looper:
DJFX Looper
BPM Looper

Lofi:
Lofi Compressor
Bit Crusher
Phonograph

Pitch:
Pitch Shifter
2 Voice Pitch Shifter

Combi:
Overdrive+Chorus
Overdrive+Flanger
Overdrive+Delay
Distortion+Chorus
Distortion+Flanger
Distortion+Delay
Overdrive/Distortion+Touch Wah
Overdrive/Distortion+Auto Wah
Guitar Amp Sim+Chorus
Guitar Amp Sim+Flanger
Guitar Amp Sim+Phaser
Guitar Amp Sim+Delay
EP Amp Sim+Tremolo
EP Amp Sim+Flanger
EP Amp Sim+Phaser
EP Amp Sim+Delay
Enhancer+Chorus
Enhancer+Flanger
Enhancer+Delay
Chorus+Delay
Flanger+Delay
Chorus+Flanger
JD-Multi

Chorus (Send):
Stereo Chorus
CE-1
SDD-320
Delay
Time Control Delay
Delay+Tremolo
2 Tap Pan Delay
3 Tap Pan Delay
Juno Chorus
JV Chorus

Delays (Send):
Stereo Delay
Time Control Delay
Delay+Tremolo
2 Tap Pan Delay
3 Tap Pan Delay

Reverbs (Send):
Intregra 7 Reverb
Warm Hall
Hall
GS Reverb
SRV-2000
SRV-2000NL
GM2 Reverb
Gated Reverb
Shimmer Reverb

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#545

I don’t agree with this. It’s definitely not productive to shit on the synth because it’s not everything you would ever want. I think it’s good that it’s more focused than say the Jupiter XM and thus allows for better UI and controls.

But I think it’s important to think about what problems might occur in specific use cases, like @djst has done here. He didn’t say it’s a bad bad instrument and Roland is shit. He invested a lot of time reading the manual and summing up the workflow. And ended up on the imo realistic suggestion that people should buy it if they want a multitimbral synth but not necessarily if they want an all in one box sequencer to sketch songs on.

That’s a valid point that‘s important to many Elektron users, who might be quite interested in whether you can use this thing like an Elektron or not. Nuanced, use case focused discussions like that are the main reason I visit this forum. It‘s worth a lot more than hyped Youtube videos.

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#546

Thx for sharing this. Really puts it into perspective when comparing that to other gear or trying to decide on what might work. Appreciate it. :black_heart:

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#547

I’m sure I’m part of the group of “select commentators” you’re referring to. We’re exploring a new piece of electronic music gear in an electronic music gear forum, and I’m here because I’m interested in it and trying to determine if and how this might suit my workflow. The closest I’ve gotten to a “debate” was when @Elek_dude_98 tried to point out that the behavior I found problematic with the way the SH-4d handles pattern isn’t a real problem, where my response was simply that that’s his opinion and I have mine. I’m not here to debate. Yes, I tend to engage deeply because it’s part of the learning process for me. I’m that guy that literally reads an entire manual to determine whether a feature will work for me or get in my way. You don’t need to engage with my or others’ commentary, but writing it off as spam isn’t particularly nice.

Calling it entitlement is a bit silly. I’m sharing my perspective and learnings because I think it can help others determine if this is the right device for them. Understanding how the sequencer works in great detail can help you figure out if this will work as a standalone sketch pad, or if it’s more of a standalone groovebox. Understanding whether sound presets reset on pattern switches can help others determine whether they’re interested in live performances or studio noodling. Both are perfectly fine use cases: everyone’s journey and priorities will be different, and knowledge is power. With a deeper understanding of how a piece of gear works, it’s much easier to determine whether it’s right for you or not.

So, again, feel free to ignore my comments, and even share with others your strategy for how to not engage with it if you feel the need to. But please be nice and don’t write it off as spam because I’m genuinely trying to help spread knowledge to help people determine whether this is the right device for them (and me) or not.

To summarize my findings about the SH-4d, here’s my take on it:

  • It may be the best multitimbral synthesizer released in a long while. It should work well both in the studio and on stage.
  • It’s not Roland’s most advanced sound design-oriented synthesizer, but it’s optimized for immediacy and making more complex sounds available to more people. It seems to be following a trend that the Syntakt and Minifreak are also following of prioritizing immediacy over depth. A dramatic contrast to that would be the MC-101 Zencore synth engine, which is technically deeper, but infinitely harder and less fun to tweak.
  • It looks to be a great song sketchpad, with lots of creative features like interesting physical and traditional arps, plenty of effects, and an unusually quick and capable sequencer.
  • The workflow is optimized for sound design and live synth performance. It’s probably ideal when sequenced externally in a live situation, where the interface is used purely for shaping the sound, not sequencing aspects like muting drums etc. And due to the knobs (instead of endless encoders), I imagine that it’s best used when one of the parts is the main focus for the live performance, eg the lead sound, so the knob positions actually reflect the actual parameter values.
  • It’s not an ideal standalone full-song groovebox due to the way the pattern and sound preset management works, the lack of pattern chaining, and the fact that sequencer performance features are tucked away in menus. This is clearly a multitimbral synthesizer first and foremost, with the sequencer being there for sketching and to support the immediate workflow of going from an init patch to a song idea.
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