Members normthesamurai Posted May 30, 2007 Members Share Posted May 30, 2007 Hey I came across this little rack in a second hand store for a little over 100 bucks. Now being such a cheap unit I don't expect the world of it but I was wondering since I can't find many audio samples on the net: is it good for rock/ metal sounds - stuff like Dream theater, Symphony X, Stratovarius, Planet X sort of stuff? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members depulse Posted May 30, 2007 Members Share Posted May 30, 2007 Add another $50-100 and you'll get a D-550 instead. The "real thing" instead of a lo-caf diet version. The D110 was interesting at the time since it was of the first multi-timbral modules and it was cheaper than the D-50. But to keep the price down Roland simplified it a bit and it's not as full sounding as the D-50. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members cada7 Posted May 30, 2007 Members Share Posted May 30, 2007 Oh man! I tried this out for a while years ago, and although it did have a few interesting patches (which I predicted I would get tired of very fast), it was a BEAR to understand and set up. I would avoid it like the plague personally. Equates to the inexpensive cost of massive frustration. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members mrcpro Posted May 30, 2007 Members Share Posted May 30, 2007 Add another $50-100 and you'll get a D-550 instead. The "real thing" instead of a lo-caf diet version.The D110 was interesting at the time since it was of the first multi-timbral modules and it was cheaper than the D-50. But to keep the price down Roland simplified it a bit and it's not as full sounding as the D-50. Simplified it? The D-110 is absolutely the most complicated, most hard to figure out module Roland has ever made. We all struggled with it at the time because it was multitimbral (something the D-550 wasn't), at a time when there weren't that many around. And none that sounded this good for under a grand. I remember being on jury duty in the late 1980s, and taking that manual with every day. Then going home and pulling my hair out trying to get the #%!$&^* thing to work the way I wanted it to. Roland learned a lot from the D-110, and the subsequent JV line is much easier to use. If you haven't bought it, don't. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Sealed Posted May 30, 2007 Members Share Posted May 30, 2007 PC editor would help editing it.With good multi-FX, it will shine.Of course, there are many other good cheap synths around. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members The Real MC Posted May 30, 2007 Members Share Posted May 30, 2007 The D-110 has a horrid UI and horrid sounds. There is a reason they are found in pawnshops cheap. No one wants to buy them from stores or ebay! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members joxer96 Posted May 30, 2007 Members Share Posted May 30, 2007 Simplified it? The D-110 is absolutely the most complicated, most hard to figure out module Roland has ever made. We all struggled with it at the time because it was multitimbral (something the D-550 wasn't), at a time when there weren't that many around. And none that sounded this good for under a grand. I remember being on jury duty in the late 1980s, and taking that manual with every day. Then going home and pulling my hair out trying to get the #%!$&^* thing to work the way I wanted it to. QUOTE] Ha ha, sounds exactly like my experience with it. Still, I put up with the D-110 for a while because, as was mentioned, it was a relatively inexpensive multitimbral solution. And just to add to the fun, I sequenced it with an MC-300. Talk about a headache. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members cada7 Posted May 30, 2007 Members Share Posted May 30, 2007 BTW - same I understand with their little dedicated 'modules' like the 'bass and drums' etc. Those also cleared out of stores at cut-rate prices and made one particular friend very cranky. UI is a biggie for me for these kinds of devices. I own a Roland Sound Brush and it's practically hexidecimal in its approach to life. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Sealed Posted May 30, 2007 Members Share Posted May 30, 2007 The D-110 has a horrid UI and horrid sounds.There is a reason they are found in pawnshops cheap. No one wants to buy them from stores or ebay! I may be the last one in the world who keeps it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Markeyz Posted May 31, 2007 Members Share Posted May 31, 2007 The first keyboard I owned was a D-10, the keyboard version of the D-110 module. Traded it plus some cash for my first Rhodes. Don't regret it. A few extra points on the envelopes past ADSR and ring modulation give you some options, if you don't mind the menus. I might pay $10 for one now. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members mrcpro Posted May 31, 2007 Members Share Posted May 31, 2007 I may be the last one in the world who keeps it. Nah... I've kept mine too. When I was still using it regularly, I ended up ditching all the PCM waves and using it basically as a synth with saw and pulse waves only. Pulse width is adjustable but you can't modulate it with anything. The filter is unusual for Roland in that it's really dirty with tons of fuzz and grunge, and a screaming resonance. So if you finally decipher the OS it's possible to come up with distinctive analog-ish patches. You know, I really ought to dig that D-110 out of the basement... NAH! Not today! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members mate_stubb Posted May 31, 2007 Members Share Posted May 31, 2007 Ick. Soundwise the D-50 smoked it. The reverb was absolutely crap sounding, and you needed lots of reverb to obscure the basic samples, which were absolutely crap sounding. The UI was crap too. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members normthesamurai Posted June 1, 2007 Author Members Share Posted June 1, 2007 Thanks for all the replies guys. I think I'll hold off buying a module till I find something good Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members skuller Posted March 21, 2008 Members Share Posted March 21, 2008 i was given one of these recently. the sounds are quite usable! well, not the 'emulated' stuff (choir, etc..) but the synth stuff is great! made in 88, one of rolands first multi-timbral machines. up to 8 parts per patch, but it's limited cuz of it's 32 voice polyphony. so it's only like, one or two notes if you have some complicated stuff going on. i had to menu dive and switch all the parts to midi channel 1, because as a default each part of a patch is on a diff. midi channel. good for sequencer, but not for actualy playing! anyway, this thing is pretty cool. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members madprof Posted March 21, 2008 Members Share Posted March 21, 2008 i was given one of these recently.the sounds are quite usable! well, not the 'emulated' stuff (choir, etc..) but the synth stuff is great!made in 88, one of rolands first multi-timbral machines. up to 8 parts per patch, but it's limited cuz of it's 32 voice polyphony. so it's only like, one or two notes if you have some complicated stuff going on. i had to menu dive and switch all the parts to midi channel 1, because as a default each part of a patch is on a diff. midi channel. good for sequencer, but not for actualy playing!anyway, this thing is pretty cool. The menu system is not hard when you get used to it. It does take work to get somewhere but there are good synth sounds to be had from it. It IS more like programming a computer than normal though yes. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members OPEN OCEAN Posted March 23, 2008 Members Share Posted March 23, 2008 i also have it and sounds quite good for some bread and butter sounds...no big things in anyway... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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