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Average rating:
4.3 out of 5
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This is a nice synth. If you can be bothered to design sounds properly, you can tweak away using just the env, time and brilliance buttons (and alpha dial). Warm pads, warm bass, weird blips, white noise - it's like a Korg poly 800 that was built to last.
One thing else to mention, I know it's not a stage piano, but it has the nicest feeling key action, really solid, a real joy, a feel of quality, not at all plasticky. Really, I can't stress how good it feels. I have had to clean a few of the key contacts, but this was after many years of very heavy smoking and general neglect. The cigarettes may well kill me but the Juno 2 will live long.
It's never been a fashionable synth, well, not ultra-desirable, despite its lovely looks, sounds, and unusually good feel, so you can pick one up for £150. A real, original, analogue, polyphonic, full-MIDI synth for about a fifth of the price of its almost totally unprogrammable, massively limited mega-overhyped cousin no. TB-303.
Great.
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I just repaired an alpha juno 2 tonight and had a little chance to review the patch set. Nice Cello. Very nice and one of the most playable ever in an analog polysynth that I've heard. The transitions between notes are much less 'clunky' than say a JX series synth. SOmehow the brass sounds are less interesting than most and too tinny or something. But the organs are also top notch. And the piano is interesting as analog piano sounds go. Some cool video game fx from the school of oldness. :-) Overall I like the keyboard more than I recalled. The filters aren't as dynamic as some but do have a nice tonal transition on the resonance...unlike many. Bell sounds can be nice. However the guitar sounds are terrible...sounding like there is some digital overtone going on.
There ya have it. Certainly a great synth for the money if a person has time to alpha dial around to make changes! -Bob
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First and foremost I have to say this as a gigging musician...you should need no other synthesizer. I'm not going to explain the VCO's and such seeing as how it's already covered, but I am going to vouch for its near impeccable sound (despite the filters....) I am a vocalist and keyboardist for a Nashville based Prog/Metal band and the Juno is my PERMANENT top rack keyboard. I purchased it for $300 bucks used at an Alabama music store. Upon first dialing up Patch 1-5 I knew this was the lead keyboard of my dreams. It amazes me how something as warm and round as this synth is, can squeeze out such nasty, gritty tones. Dont even get me started on the basses...the Juno kills the Minimoog as far as that goes. Pads...breathtaking(Tweak the brilliance with the alpha dial for pads that seem to live on their own.) Despite what some others tell you, BUY THE MEMORY CARTRIDGE!! There is no way I could hold less than 128 of my own patches, and I believe anyone will feel the same upon hearing it. Now the bad part..NO REVERB? This isnt a tremendous setback for me(I run it through a Holy Grail Reverb petal) but it does lose points for inconvenience. Also, I wish there was more variety in the ability of the expression petal. Once again, no biggie. So, as I part, I strongly recommend this fantastic, great sounding, easy to use synth to anyone.
P.S if you are in the Nashville area, check the clubs to see me and my band, Cloud Forest, ripping on the Juno Alpha 2.
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Hi.
I have a damaged juno-2 and I trying to fix it.
I looking for the original juno-2 eprom code.
Somebody knows as I can get it?
bye.
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Great value analog hybrid. You really want a PG300 controller with it, unless you were raised on post DX7 synths and thinkt eh Alpha Dial is actually convenient (I suppose it could be worse). Best for lush, dark pads and general electronic mayhem. Presets are mostly foregettable. More of a tweaker's synth for sure. Wish it had some effects other than the chorus.
Just a note on the key repairs instructions by Mark below. You don't need to take all the springs off unless you want to do a major service on all the contacts. Just take off the springs attached to the keys that are playing up. Alpha Junos are notorios for B and C keys going off at full velocity or not going off at all, and I fixed all three of my dud keys by just removing them singly (though you may have to remove the ones either side, especially if you want to get at a black key.)
Mark says don't bother unscrewing the screws around the MIDI ports. DEFINATELY don't do this, and similarly leave the screws intact around the memory cartridge slot - otherwise you'll have an annoying time fiddling around trying to align these parts back up with their screw holes (you've got enough screws to worry about already).
The aftertouch cable at the left, I found easier to detach from the circuit board rather than the keyboard end. The other two KB cables I unplugged from the synth. Here's where they plug into the board. The aftertouch cable plugs in between these two. I'd already unplugged it.
http://img29.photobucket.com/albums/v88/lupercal/juno1.jpg
This is the 'plastic thing' he referred to on the underside of the keyboard, which you have to lift up. You can just lift it enough to jiggle the keys out, but if it comes completely loose it seems to have some adhesive on the back and sits back down again when you've finished.
http://img29.photobucket.com/albums/v88/lupercal/juno3.jpg
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