Vintage Synth Explorer

Roland • D-50 / D-550

The D-50 is an all-time favorite digital synth that's still just as popular today as when it first came out in '87. Once Roland's hottest digital synth, it competed against the Yamaha DX7, and was much easier to use. By joining 8-bit PCM samples with "LAS" synth-generated sounds, the D-50 is capable of unique and complex sounds. The PCM samples contained the attack transients, while the rest of the sound came from the Linear Arithmatic Synth (LAS) section which sounds very analog, with subtractive-style synthesis and low-pass-resonant filters. Built-in chorus and (for the first time) digital reverb are also included for giving your sounds space and life! It also has a joystick controller for real-time timbre manipulation. The D-50 was great for new and non-acoustic, percussive, ethereal and beautiful pads & sounds.

Roland D-550 Rack Version

Both the D-50 and D-550 benefit from the PG-1000 external controller which gives you very plain and simple slider/fader type control of all adjustable parameters of the synth. The D-50 includes MIDI on all 16 channels but because it is monotimbral you can only use one channel at a time. There is an upgrade which will give the D-50 and its rackmount version a full 16 channels of simultaneous MIDI multitimbral data communication. This popular synth has been widely used in all forms of music. Eric Clapton, Enya, 808 State, Jean Michel Jarre, Vince Clarke, Apollo 440, Eat Static, LTJ Bukem, Fluke, Information Society, Lab-4, Gary Numan, Rick Wakeman, Kitaro, Rush, Vangelis, Richard Barbieri, Boston and Nick Rhodes of Duran Duran are just a few of the many satisfied users.

VISITOR COMMENTS

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Posting Rules: Please keep your comments relevant! Do not post requests for help, do not use for sales, do not post unless you have something interesting to say about this instrument, or we may delete your post.

 

Eric

Posted 4 days ago

Apparently New order also used this.

John

Posted 5 days ago

I don't think the site is TRYING to be racist, but the one person who prolly put it together is just not into R&B. Big deal. Just send them an email and ask them to add it. Hell- I listen to mostly BLACK artists, but when I think about the synth movement through the lens of the vintage synth, yeah I think almost exclusively about WHITE synth pop artists, but it doesn't mean I de-prioritize my love of Herbie Hancock, SOS Band or Warp 9.

DownWithNWA

Posted 11 days ago

I think what exkeyboardplayer is trying to say is, vintage synth descriptions tend to leave out oh yeah um, the BLACK users of these synths. Thats what "diversity" means folks, BLACK. Be sure to include those black artists here.

Oh wait, it seems like vintagesynth's website is dedicated to people using synths in well, not black genres. sorry folks. R&B dont count here.

exkeyboardplaya

Posted 36 days ago

You failed to mention Teddy Riley, Al B. Sure, Dr. Fink, & DJ Eddie F as avid users of this piece. I'm starting to notice a trend here. And that is your listing of users tend to lack some diversity.

Daniel Fletcher of D a z z - S y n t h

Posted 37 days ago

If you like the sounds of the D-50.
try out the PG-1000 (Programer) whit the D-50 and you will see what it really can do... the sounds you can get whit the PG-1000 is so cool and impressive and awesome, so impressive you will cream "this is to cool for school"

D. Fletcher of D a z z - S y n t h

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