Donner Essential L1 Synthesizer Review

video upload by Molten Music Technology

"The Essential L1 is Donner's take on the classic Roland SH-101. They've folded in a few extras and smartened up the interface but how well does do the whole synthesizing thing? Let's have a look."

Index:
Intro - 0:00
Overview - 15:15
Waveforms - 17:54
Filter - 22:26
Envelopes - 28:06
Modulator - LFO - 35:36
LFO Audio Rate Modulation - 36:34
Sequencer - 39:26
ARP - 43:28
External Input - 48:05
Conclusions - 53:41

Synthetic Heat - 64 hot new sounds for Roland SH-01A by Solidtrax

video upload by Solidtrax

";»[ https://www.solidtrax.nl/shop/synthet... ]«
64 new and magical #presets ‪@rolandglobal‬ #sh01a - These #sounds are suitable for ambient, house, techno, IDM and various sorts of electronic dance music genres.

This comprehensive synthesizer is based on the classic SH-101, but with some neat tricks up its sleeve.

All sounds are recorded dry, towards the end of each demo you'll notice the addition of some applied effects. What you're hearing is the raw output from this SH-01A; no EQ or dynamic tools have been applied unless mentioned. Drums are also from the SH-01A!

Effects applied are:
‪@bitwig‬ Chorus+, several Delays & Reverbs - amazing effects with loads of options.
‪@ValhallaDSP‬ ValhallaRoom and VintageVerb - so good!
‪@AconDigital‬ Verberate 2 - true gem!


Consider purchasing the sounds here: https://www.solidtrax.nl/shop/synthet...

Or read my review of it here: https://solidtrax.nl/roland-sh-01a-re..."

Red Roland SH-101 Monophonic Bass Synthesizer

Note: Auction links are affiliate links for which the site may be compensated.

via this eBay listing

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Donner L1 | Three Synth Sketches

video upload by Jay Hosking

"Please support my work on Patreon: / jayhosking
Three song sketches featuring the Donner L1 synthesizer.

00:00 - Ambient
04:38 - IDM-ish
10:48 - Video game music

Fair warning: Donner sent this one along for free. The only stipulation I agreed to was to post this link so you could find out more about the synth, and they would know that you came from my video:
https://datasink.rantion-admin.com/t/zy

It's hard to overstate how much this one appeals to me. A budget analog synth that sounds remarkably like my Roland SH-101, but has a triangle wave, second envelope, velocity options, stored sequences, MIDI, a removable keyboard, and a bunch more. The SH-101 is a simple synth, but it's one of my favourite subtractive sounds, and the L1 is the best modernized version of it that I've played. It's the kind of thing I wish Roland were making in 2025, and I would have bought it even if Donner hadn't sent it to me.

Here, I explore the L1 from a few different perspectives, showing off how I'd use it in making music, how it sounds on its own, with effects, and with other instrumentation.

Everything performed and recorded live to a stereo output, with EQ, compression, and limiting on the master.

Thanks for listening.

https://jayhosking.bandcamp.com"

XTRIKE - my 3rd oscillator is a SH-101

video upload by Mad Synth Engineer

"XTRIKE is Multitimbral. By using the loop machine via MIDI, the looper actually becomes a 3rd oscillator. Here, I'm sampling a Roland SH-101 and layering it on top of XTRIKE's internal synth. Play everything via MIDI and precisely tuning it."

Donner Essential L1 vs Roland SH-101, S-1 // Can you hear the difference? // Review & Tutorial

video upload by loopop

TIMELINE:
0:00 Intro
1:20 Overview
2:40 Build
3:40 I/O
4:30 Velocity
4:45 vs SH-101
5:10 Oscillator
6:50 PWM
8:15 Noise
9:00 Triangle
9:20 Ext audio
10:35 Filter
11:55 Laser beams
13:10 Key track
14:50 Envelopes
14:45 Legato
15:25 Modulator
17:40 Gilde
18:10 Bender?
18:50 Arp
20:00 Songs
21:30 Sequencing
23:20 Settings
23:40 KB32M
25:10 Odd hack
25:35 Pros & cons
28:55 Outro sounds

Additional Donner Essential L1 posts here

Superlative SB01 (Space Bee) :: Live Sequence :: Boss DM-101 :: Strymon BigSky

video upload by Harry van Mierloo

"Tweaking a live sequence from the new Superlative SB01 (Space Bee), with the Roland JX-8P singing along here and there and pepper & salt from the Boss DM-101 analog delay and Strymon BigSky reverb. Background noise is from the notoriously noisy JX-8P chorus, not the other devices..."

Superlative SB01 (Space Bee) :: Soma Cosmos :: Roland JX-8P :: Ambient live jam :: PART I

video upload by Harry van Mierloo

"This week I've received my Superlative SB01 (Space Bee)... after 6 years of patiently waiting! 😅 Super happy with it so far. Very beautiful to see and built like an American tank. Sound wise I cannot distinguish it from my SH-101 here. The SB01 actually sounds slightly better, probably due to the age of the components of my good old SH-101. And it's definitely a lot more solid and thinner than the original, due to the metal casing.

Instead of a full review or demonstrating all the classic 101 sounds that you find all over the internet already, I thought let's just practice a bit more with my ‪@somasynths‬ Cosmos and put the SB01 through it for some real-world sounds and live ambient, together with my good old JX-8P (always a great companion for 101 sounds).

All recorded in one take in Ableton, with a touch of salt from the ‪@strymon‬ BigSky.

Enjoy!"

Superlative SB01 (Space Bee) :: Soma Cosmos :: Roland JX-8P :: Ambient live jam :: PART II

video upload by Harry van Mierloo

"New day, new recording... With exactly the same setup as yesterday I've recorded another dark ambient jam, again with a primary role for the new Superlative SB01 (Space Bee), together with the Roland JX-8P through the wonderful ‪@somasynths‬ Cosmos.

This time I’ve managed to fix the video latency issue when exporting from Ableton, so video & audio should now be in sync. 😅

Enjoy!"

Superlative SB01 with Roland SH-101 - production unit 2025

video upload by Antony Fewster

"Very quick play around with the new Superlative SB01 (last minute thing, apologies for the lack of lighting and shaky iphone). SB01 sequenced by the Intellijel Metropolix, SB01 keyboard (running on internal battery) controlling external SH-101.
u-he uhbik 2 beta on delay duties.
Not the best quality lighting, nor does it (not intended) show the breadth of what this can do (I only had one hand free), but wanted share an initial take how this looks and sounds in a style I'm familiar with. I'm a fan."

Superlative SB01 filter mod

video upload by Antony Fewster

"Metropolix sending gate, cv and additional cv into the mod CV input of the SB01. Gives any baseline more movement and life - a really nice addition that takes it beyond the standard sh-101. Playing around with the filter and resonance for effect."

Red Roland Boutique SH-01A Synthesizer Sound Module

Note: Auction links are affiliate links for which the site may be compensated.

via this eBay listing

"Lightly used and fully functional. This is the limited red edition of Roland’s SH-01A—a modern digital recreation of the classic SH-101 analog synth, packed into the Boutique series format. It nails the signature basses, leads, and sequences with four-voice polyphony, built-in sequencer, and arpeggiator."

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Japanese Roland Synthesizer Ads

Note: Auction links are affiliate links for which the site may be compensated.

1978 Roland SH-1 Ad via this eBay listing

1974 Roland SH-2000 via this eBay listing

1976 Roland RS-202 String Synthesizer via this eBay listing

Roland RS-101 String Synthesizer via this eBay listing

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Custom Red / Silver Roland SH-101

Note: Auction links are affiliate links for which the site may be compensated.

via this eBay listing

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Voodoo Ray/A Guy Called Gerald - Novation Circuit version

video upload by Guinan

"Time for the first British acid house hit and another Hacienda favourite. The Manchester act A Guy Called Gerald blew up the Manchester music scene with his 808 and 303 tour-de-force. He's still making excellent music ‪@AGuyCalledGeraldTV‬ #voodooray

Everything you hear was programmed into the Novation Circuit and played ‘live’ straight out of the headphone jack into my phone. No extra effects or outboard gear are used during playback.

The ‪@IsotonikStudios‬ sound pack RB 303 by Yves Big City got me thinking about how capable the Novation Circuit could be for a blast of acid house. I hope this attempt gets close to the flavour of the original. • DEMO - RB 303 - Novation Circuit Pack by Y... [posted here]

‪@GyuBeats‬ has done some great video breakdowns of the track and is obviously a fan. Big thanks as he helped me track down some of the original samples. • Why Does VOODOO RAY Still Sound Fresh Today?

I also found the following website which is a fantastic resource of patterns for 303-soundalikes. It just had to be called Acid Tabs….. https://acid-tabs.com/303_patterns.ph...

I hope you like the track – drop a comment if there is an 80’s or 90’s track you’d like to see a version of.

Synth nerd details;
The 808 sounds are a mix of samples from Isotonik and a pack that is sometimes free called 808 From Mars.

The vocal samples are from a surprising source of an old comedy routine from Peter Cook and Dudley Moore. The ‘voodoo ray’ sample is actually cut from a snatch of Peter Cook saying 'voodoo rage'.

A key part of the track is the excellent singing of Nicola Collier. I didn’t have a singer to hand and I wasn’t going to impose my dulcet tones on the world. The ‘singing’ is therefore played on the Arturia plug-in ‘Augmented Voices’.

I hope it fills the gap for now and doesn’t detract from the overall track.

All samples are edited and positioned on drum pads then sequenced/played on the Drum 4 track of the circuit."

Voodoo Ray/A Guy Called Gerald (Circuit Tracks & Rolands Version )

video upload by Guinan

"'Say Hello To My Little Friends'…..

Something a little different again. This is a reworking of one of my earlier videos but with an 'acidic' twist. At the time there were comments wondering how it would sound with Roland synths rather than my attempts at recreating the sound using the internal synth engine.

I couldn’t resist the challenge, so the Circuit Tracks has some company in the form of a Roland T-8 and S-1 Aira. The T-8 is a drum machine based on a selection of classic Roland sounds, but it has the added bonus of a very good TB303 emulation.

The Roland S-1 on the other hand is a 4-voice recreation of the classic 80’s synth, the SH-101. An awesome synth in it's own right it's a great partner for the Tracks to use with one of the external MIDI tracks.

Both of these Roland originals were an essential part of the classic Acid House sound and the track, ‘Voodoo Ray’ so this seemed a natural Circuit Tracks project to rework. I’ll keep a separate playlist of any tracks with external gear to keep my main playlist Tracks only.

For this video I’ve copied the patterns across to the Midi 1 & 2 tracks, hooked up both of the Roland individually to the MIDI Out and Thru (setup in Advanced Setup to be individual MIDI Outs). Each of the Roland boxes are then fed into each of the Audio Inputs so they can be panned, level altered and have effects applied individually. Each of the Roland boxes are not using their own sequencers but are just being used as slave MIDI synths playing the patterns sent via MIDI from the Circuit Tracks. T-8 bass was set to MIDI Ch3 and S-1 to Ch4 to match the default channels for these tracks."

ROLAND S1 Tweak Synth DEMO & REVIEW

video upload by Woody Piano Shack

"Review and demo of the ROLAND AIRA COMPACT S-1 Tweak Synthesizer, a little battery powered machine emulating the sounds of the iconic classic ROLAND SH-101, but adding modern twists like a sequencer and polyphony."

https://woodypianoshack.com
https://www.patreon.com/woodypianoshack
Lesson packs also available for one-time purchase on Patreon.

Roland SH-101 w/ Nova Mods

Note: Auction links are affiliate links for which the site may be compensated.

via this eBay listing

"The Roland SH-101 Vintage Classic Monophonic Bass Synthesizer is a sought-after keyboard synthesizer known for its simple yet powerful sound. This one comes with the nova mods installed. Currently not working needs to be repaired. No power supply . Missing some knobs"

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Roland SH-101 into Ursa Major Space Station SST-282 vintage Reverb / Delay - MikeSynth

video upload by Mikus Pilatus

"What it says in the title ..
Such a cool effect - just repaired this for client so testing it out"

Superbooth 2025 Superlative Instruments SB01

video upload by Padawan Studio

"First impressions at Superbooth 2025"

Superlative Instruments Roland SH-101

ROLAND S1 - Musical Journey With Tiny $200 SH-101

video upload by MORE WOODY PIANO SHACK

"ROLAND AIRA COMPACT S-1 TWEAK SYNTHESIZER and YAMAHA PSR-SX920 ARRANGER KEYBOARD sounds demo.

WELCOME TO PIANO CLUB
New members-only video every week and instant access to the archives.

• Music theory and playing techniques
• Song breakdowns & piano arrangements
• Synth and keyboard tips and tricks
• Topics requested by members

Join the club here:
/ woodypianoshack

MORE WOODY PIANO SHACK:
https://woodypianoshack.com"

Roland SH-101 editor for the Tubbutec SH-1oh1 Modification

video upload by MrSynthmania

"Unlock the full power of your Roland SH-101 with the Tubbutec SH-1oh1 mod! In this video, we dive into the awesome Synthmania editor, showing you how to sync LFOs to MIDI clock, tweak the extra filter LFO, and take your sound to the next level. Grab it now at synthmania.de and start creating epic synth vibes!"

https://synthmania.de/2025/04/roland-...

"Standalone • VST3 • AU – for Windows & macOS

We’re excited to present our brand-new software editor for the Tubbutec SH-1oh1 Mod – the ultimate control center for all advanced features of the legendary Roland SH-101. With this editor, you’ll unlock the full creative potential of your synthesizer, right from your screen.

Why this editor?

The Tubbutec mod transforms the Roland SH-101 into a powerhouse – but many of its features are only accessible via key combinations or hidden parameters. This editor solves that: All settings at a glance, easy access, and perfect DAW integration."

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Red Roland SH-101 w/ Midi Mod

Note: Auction links are affiliate links for which the site may be compensated.

via this Reverb listing

"Electronically perfect, it comes with MIDI mod, allowing MIDI notes out from the onboard sequencer. Cosmetically it has some scratches on the left hand side, as shown in the photo."

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Roland Aira S-1 // A mini SH101 and so much more

video upload by Starsky Carr

"The Roland Aira Compact S-1 uses Roland's Analog Circuit Behaviour (ACB) technology to emulate the classic SH-101 monosynth from the 80s. ... plus a lot more, like 4 voice poly, delay and reverb, wave drawing, fast LFO, MIDI (obvs), poly sequencer with parameter locks, extra LFO shapes, and D-motion.

In this I have a play with a few of the factory sequences to give a feel for its range and play it alongside my vintage SH101 to see how close it gets."

Check with dealers on the right for availability.