Roland SH-01A grey

Dont own any other Boutiques.. but own a MC202 and I think the SH01A, with its faders, is spot-on.

Very comparable with the MC202 dimensions. Find it very easy to dial in a lot of my go-to MC202 sounds. Also has the bonus of added polyphony.. so its easy to get a Juno106-ish vibe if you add some chorus.

Added feature here is that it acts as a midi to CV converter. Haven't seen anyone acknowledge that feature online, but its true.

Sequencer is simple to use. So good being able to store patches, as well as sequences.

Been thinking about getting a SH101 for a long time, but prices are just stupid. Looked at a few that all had issues.. dead spots in faders.. battery leak.. and given the amount TLC / future maintenance required, it just doesnt make sense anymore. Life is too short & this gives you that sound.

The tone is very good. It loves FX.. and sounds beefy with some saturation or overdrive. Filter is nice.

Build quality surprised me. Really good. Bought the K25M keyboard to go with it. Very sturdy. I would expect the dock unit to be similar. Recommended!

I never had the original SH-101 and I didn't even recognize its sound for a long time, but thanks to this synthesizer, I got to know it and fell in love with it. Only now I can hear how many of my favorite tracks use this sound. Even if there are some subtle differences in sound compared to the original, I am not able to grasp them.
The synthesizer has a solid construction. It can be powered simply by micro USB connected to a computer or by batteries. Even if you control it with external equipment, you can still use the PC as a power source. Very handy for me.
The sound module is very easy to use, but I had to get used to the system menu.
I've missed the era of analogue devices only, so I like to use features such as sound presets.
In general, I recommend it to people looking for a classic sound in a modern digital setting!

i did not own an original SH-101, so I can't really compare the sound, but this reproduction of the classic sh-101 monosynth has the sound characteristics I was looking for. The arpeggiator is really nice and straight forward, and can cold up to 100 notes, which you can store on the device. Great feature! The sequencer is also really great. Unlike the volca series from korg, the products of Rolands boutique line are not too small for my fat fingers to control, but it's still small enough to carry around in my backpack and take out on the train or something. Apart from the monosynth mode, you can also use 4 voice polyfonic mode or chord mode, which makes it useful for an ambient setup.
The knobs and faders are solid, build quality is ok.
The device is battery powered, or usb powered. Usb cable is not in the package, nor is there a possibility to use a power cable. That's the only downside i discovered so far. If you use it without a computer, you can only power it with batteries. And after 2 or 3 hours, my batteries are dead. That's a bit tricky for live use, or my batteries just aren't good enough...

Ayant plongé dans la musique électronique durant les nineties, les sonorités de la mythique gamme Roland (101, 303, 606, 909) ont forgé mon oreille et mes goûts. Il m'était alors évident, voire obligatoire, d'essayer le SH-01A, de m'aventurer sur les sentiers soniques des groupes qui m'ont marqué alors.

Et je ne suis aucunement déçu !
Certes, j'aurais préféré des prises jack 6.3 pour l'audio mais cela me semble être son seul défaut. La qualité est au rendez-vous pour ce boutique, réputé comme étant le meilleur de la gamme : l'interface est claire et suffisamment grande pour le format, le synthé a du poids, les potentiomètres répondent bien, le filtre sonne admirablement bien, tout y est.
Du reste, il aura toutes les qualités de l'original (hormis le fait que ce soit une émulation ACB, ce qui ne me dérange pas) et l'ajout d'une polyphonie quatre voix est plus qu'appréciable.

Le SH-01A est devenu la voix principale de mon setup et le restera sûrement pour longtemps.