Analog vs Digital Synths: Roland System 8 vs Prophet 6 - A Modern Classic vs Classic Emulations

great video as much as i detest roland and these days all things analog got some nice housey sounds out of the phrophet

Green >>> Red

He only used the system 8 engine and not the plugouts though. If he used the JP8 or the other plugouts it would maybe be a different outcome? The system 8 main engine sounds great here too though. I own one and love it immensely. Would never buy a p6 over the sys 8. Sys 8 covers way more ground and does it well.

For me I find it challenging to get a satisfactory consistent analogue sound from digital synths. That being said, I like how digital synths can compliment analogue synths. We don't drive cars designed for Grand Prix on public streets and the same can be said for synths. Digital gear is excellent for travelling and recording, but without analogue synths as a baseline it's not easy to make those micro mistakes that give new character to sound, um... something like that, I think we call all agree we are firmly rooted in the hybrid arena :)

I'm big fan of System 8 but, it will never, never find the attack of an analog synth. P6 has this raw (almost like some acoustic instrument) and present pluck sound at the first transient touch. That I can't get on the S8. Unfortunately.

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The Roland System-8 really is superb and possibly underrated but certainly under-appreciated.
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They both sound fantastic, IMO. The £1000 price difference should not be forgotten. That's a lot of money.

The system 8 is powerful, especially considering the price. But the Prophet sounds consistently clearer, thicker and deeper. And it should.

The system 8 is weird because u shouldn’t like it. Horrible colour and not enough modulation options but it just has that something that gets the job done. Maybe less is more or great layout. Who knows!

Roland is like a fine vsti... and the prophet warm and real synth! Pure and bright sounds 😍

No denying the Prophet and Oberheim polys sound the best but the System 8 is cheaper and gives you amazing analog emulation and I feel it looks lovely and sounds extremely good. I prefer the System 8 in the end.

The last pad is very nice! ;)

The Halloween machine 😂🙏🏻

System 8 ($1500*) vs Prophet 6 ($2900*).

Cost difference = nearly 100% more.

Is the sound 100% better?

Also - are you making money with your equipment? If yes, then perhaps the cost is justified. If one plays just for fun, or the occasional gig, maybe not so much.

If money is no object, just buy whatever sounds good to You.

(*Prices from major retailer site)

I really love those custom patches, is there somewhere I can download them for my System 8?

I get really bored of the ‘matured in oak vats’ analogue types and how companies like Behringer have poked their nose out of joint. It’s all about unaffordable elitism. I’m a pragmatist and The System-8 potentially gives me all Roland’s analogue past in one unit (if you include the available plug-outs). And you can buy wooden end cheeks for it if that floats your boat.

Yeahhh !!!! Who cares 👍🏻👍🏻
Back in the 90s it was new to play a VA synth .
But now it really doesnt matter anymore .
Technic rises and we‘re the servants

i feel like this represents the old saying "you get what you pay for". The Prophet sounds better but its also significantly more expensive.

Wouldnt change my angry mystique s8 sound for the p6. And it can sound darker in my ears while p6 much brighter when i spend 2 days with p6 depsite common belief i always felt prophets are marriage synths:p but im a roland addict so i might be bit bias :p

That System 8 got traded for the Darkstar TI2 Virus. Never went back

I have the Virus and Rev 2 and S8 The System 8 is just different. It has its place and I like the contrasting green with black and grey of the others.

Kick tutorial please :) If you find the time to

I forgot to add on a previous comment. Your videos are really helpful and entertaining because they're authentic. Cheers dude.

The system8 and system1 are both great sounding powerful synths. I don’t have a problem at all with the green leds, I actually really like them.

I'm thinking Jupiter X once I sell this CSGO skin...

I like your vids, and your dedication to the subject. Try to giggle less :p. Keep up the good work.

S8 mops the floor with the P6😎

I had a similar issue with the filter knob audibly stair stepping on my bass station. I noticed it didn't do that over midi from the sequencer. So I use a midi controller to play it live.

I spent almost 20 years developing synths for Yamaha R&D, and would have killed (at the time) for the power in the System-8. Having sat with a ton of synths of late, comparing... I have forked out for a System-8 (already had a System-1). IMHO it is one of the greatest synths of the last 30 years, and a worthy successor to the JP8/Juno106 etc. Owned a real JP8 and Juno 60 for years in the 90s, and the emulations are next to flawless, plus, with the green "dialled down" it's not as offensive :-). Great video Starsky, keep it up. Hopefully see you at Synthfest in Oct

You are a patch wizard! It sounds like the Prophet sounds had sharper attacks. Was the Roland unable to get there, or just some differences in programming?

I do love my green machine - the sounds are pretty awesome. The only thing I dislike is the lack of aftertouch. To be honest - I have a 106 and an MKS-80/JX-10 and can get very close to the original hardware as ACB is awesome, but there’s something about playing the originals if you already have them or they’re reasonably priced. If you don’t own originals or if they’re expensive to buy - the System-8 will easily get close to doing the job well. Fancy sharing your presets one day? 😉

Your patches remind me of Chum Drum Bedrum, haha.

With the Juno 60 and 106 being SUCH a big deal these days I would love to see a video where you try to do Juno on Rev2 and similar prices instruments. Can you get close enough to the Roland sound which to me had that more trebly/hifreq sound.

... maybe I just like the old stool... 😬

I suppose the key thing to ask is how do they sound in a real world mix?
P.S. I assume you do know you can change the green colour of the System 8 to whatever you like? 😎

I think the Prophet 6 sounds more alive. On some patches I can hear it more int the stereo field while the S8 sounds more flat.

I think the System 8 is all the more impressive, considering the lifetime key $129 price via Roland Cloud Manager. I kinda prefer the Prophet sound in a few ways, but I'm happy with my single voice Toraiz AS-1 (I could multitrack). System 8 would be a lovely compliment.

I love the Prophet 6. My fav synth of all time. Warm AND transparent! It’s pure money to me, worth every cent. Thank you Dave Smith, the gentle giant of the synth world!

The System-8 is so low on my list, it may as well not be there … I wonder whether the next gen of Roland devices will bring us an ACB (or analog?!!) Flagship synth to really get excited about (with a full-sized, 5 octave, quality keybed with [polyphonic?!] aftertouch?!!) … 🤔

Had both, the system 8 is more flexible and lets face it, you are not A+Bi'ng in a track so you will never know the difference, its important to note the original Jupiter 8 had a different filter to the prophet anyway and a different VCA gain stage. If Roland had a Prophet 5 emulation out i bet it would be pretty much bang on.

I’d call both of these virtual synths , the prophet has a lot more analog though.

You should def check out “Scott’s synth stuff” and his system 8 vs Juno vs Roland cloud comparison. He does a very good comparison and proves not only does the Roland cloud not sound like the Juno 8 , neither does the system 8 plug out.
In fact each one is different in ways that will make your head spin!

He also shows various oscillometric representations so you can see the differences or similarities.
The best thing to do rather than spend years and 10-20k on synths , but cheap airfare or drive to Fort Wayne Indiana , where you can go to the sweet water showroom and actually try every synth on the market .

One thing's for sure - even if it sometimes looks like they don't... Roland DOES know what they're doing (usually)! :) Still thinking about this one now that System-1 is discontinued. Just finally got a TB-3 and it's so much power packed into the form factor, I love it, really wish I'd gotten it new when it came out (loved the TR-8 and TR-8s, just was never 'sure" about the TB-3 since it seemed limited and on video it didn't look so nice, much different in person as many things are).

Wow! I love the green lights on my System-8. I even don a black and green suit whilst playing shows.

I own a system 8 and you have to squint really hard to tell the difference between the 2. I read a lot of hate about the plastic case and green lights and I don’t get it. When I’m onstage and ready for a knob ….. easy! It looks really cool from the audience seeing all that color.
And you can fall on the damn thing and get a good sound! And yes it’s super light and plastic. What’s the problem?
The system 8 will start increasing in value…..just watch.

Ok so ACB was changed for a weaker Zen digital sound Sh4d and Gaia 2 are not the gear what accualy you pay for. Deletes the reason to buy gear at all.

Trust me, you don't have 1500.00 to 2000.00 worth of difference between the System-8 and the Prophet. In a mix, it would be impossible to tell weather it's a Prophet or the System-8 period.

Same sounds

I can watch sound demos for days...
Or just one Starsky Carr video and completely understand the sonic capabilities.

After all my comments and searching....
I think I'm going to go for the System 8... I overlooked it because it was hecka ugly, and I thought it'd be really confusing with their reputation of Menu diving with all those knobs.
After looking into what the knobs are for and realising there's really not that much menu diving (plus 1,2,3 patch changing) and the bonus that it has 3 synths in one (plus a 4th if I do)

Should I not become weak and get that new snazzy looking black Minifreak.

I really need to get a polyphonic advanced synth to compliment my monophonic Moog.
I would prefer the Prophet 6, but hey, it's 2~ times the price. I just haven't found much of a reason to look at Roland because they don't give a vibe of what makes them unique. Moog has it. Behringer somehow has it. Sequential has it. Arturia has it. I don't know why Roland doesn't...