The BEST and WORST sounds on the Roland Aerophone AE-20 Wind Synth

I just got mine from UPS today. I was amazed at how easy it was with fingering. I had some other synth years ago and it was such a PIA to try and play because the fingerings didn't match well at all to a sax. From what I can tell so far, the only learning curve will be with the octave keys and setting up which sounds to put in the favorites so it's a quick and easy switch while on a gig. Love it so far!!!

Great presentation on the instrument, great playing 👏 👏 👏 I laughed so hard on emojis on the sax sounds. I already ordered one, now I'm more impatient.

I'm no IT guy, but what backing tracks do you use through your phone? I tried some through the computer but I really need to be able to use headphones.

Concur on the sounds. What did you feel about the fingering on the 20 and 30, the same? Really glad I listened to your Yamaha review.

Have the sax sounds improved over the past year?

Where's your neck strap?
unbelievable to see someone whos been playing and teaching as long as you have play a wind instrument with a neck. Really hurt your presentation.

I want one but instruments are all so expensive!

Is it true it's just like a autotune

Hello, I want to learn to play a sax-like instrument, but I don't care about learning to play the acoustic one: do you think the aerophone is a good pick? I really like the saturation sound & glissando on classical saxes, I wonder if I can do that with this one.

Like all the sounds

how ae-05 compare to this one play wise ? (looking for cheap way to get one )

Taking lead!❤

This video is just great !! 😄😄

Sorry to say this and thanks for your efforts, but playing a whole lot of sounds with a funk track is completely unhelpful. For a start you are not playing many of the "natural" sounds in the context of their sonority (eg: playing funk licks on an oboe sound). A proper run through would be to lose the hideous funk backing and just play the natural sounds in a way that is sensitive to their respective timbre and typical use. I have to say the synths sounds are absolutely terrible. You could buy a cheap Yamaha keyboard and have hundreds of more believable sounds than those you demonstrated. Maybe it sounds better with more in context playing.

That’s funny 😄

Do you ever post sheets for the music you play? That's a nice little diddy. I'd love to learn it.

It is clear that each person will have their preferences and some are more successful than others.
But each sound must be chosen according to the context and must be practiced according to the way it was programmed.
For example you don't seem to like "Sentimental Ld" too much but listen to the sound that served as a reference and how it was used by Michael Brecker in his EWI interpretation of "In A Sentimental Mood" on the "Magnetic" disc.

WOW those soft leads really shine!

Fantastic video and I wholeheartedly agree with your assessment of all of the sounds but as a brass player who was considering one of these, I think the un muted trumpets and trombones unfortunately deserve the same ratings as the saxes. The muted sounds are awesome and I think the euphonium sound is actually the best of the brass sounds but the trombone is not so great 😂

Clarinet one doesn’t sound half bad actually😮

Completely disappointed with the sounds and draggy nature of the EWI-5000 so I’m thinking of giving this a whirl

as a non wind instrument player you're probably coming down a bit hard on the SAX patches as you're real sax player..
i think in context of a recorded mix the AE-20 sax sounds would work pretty good.

I saw a guy playing this at an Open Mic in San Diego yesterday, and it was very cool!!!!

Pretty great stamp of approval - "I'm keeping it!" Ba ha ha!

It just sounds like a 🎹 what’s so great about this that I missing that I couldn’t do with a keyboard an toms of plugins

i can imagine a 80s jazz fusion band using this

ae20 not piano ?

Probably because you're a sax player..you hate the "sax" sounds? LOL

🔥🔥🔥👍🏿

why are they so expensive???

Based on your recommendation and your review of other products, such as EMEO and the Yamaha, I’m going to give this a try. My dog gives me such a hard time when I practice. I have to put in the garage. So let’s see what kind of deal Sweetwater can give.

So which digital sax has the best sax sound patch then? Almost every sax player on yt says all these digital sax has bad sax sounds. I breaks my heart, really want to have on of these instrument that sounds great sax though...

I have an AE-20 Aerophone . Can you give me an idea on how to develop a vocoder patch ? Unlike the AE-10 Aerophone it does have the vocoder patch.

Hey Jay, great video, great information.....I'm not sure about this instrument.

Wait are those sounds linked up with what you are playing because they sound different for my aerophone?

Oh - yet another reason why I love my wind synth is because I can play ANY song in MY favorite key! Just hit the magic "Transpose" button and I can play everything in the easy-to finger keys! Woo-Who... (yes - I know I am a whimp!)... : )

Another great video - Jay... and thank you for playing the emulated "acoustic instruments" , because as I said in a message below, I actually use the Roland to perform in a cover band, and I am not about to learn to play a "real" flute, French Horn, harmonica, trumpet, muted trumpet, violin, etc.
I hang my head low to you and your typical audience members and admit I am too much of a whimp to even play a "real" sax (for the reasons I mention below (inadequate embouchure, dry reeds = squeaks and shrieks!)... so I just do the best I can with the on-board sax sounds (admittedly not very good)... but I am hoping that - like so many things - these wind synths will continue to improve with time...

Thanks so much, now i know, what kind of that it's have)

I don't see why you don't like the sax sounds. Obviously the real thing sounds better because it's real but sometimes people want a faker or more synthetic sound

Thanks for the comprehensive review and your unvarnished, honest views Jay. The lack of sales pitch is very refreshing! I am looking for a practice instrument with sax fingering and your reviews of wind-synths have opened my eyes that these have really moved on in the last few years and have become so much more accessible to aspiring musicians!

I am a sax player and picked this one for a try. Loved the fact that it opens up to so many sounds (I am a bad keyboard player) Synth sounds are fun and opens up to a lot of new ways of playing imho. I agree Sax sounds are terrible, I loved the muted trumpet or pan flute! Any reed instrument cannot really compete when you know how to play them. This is not a synth sax it is a synth for sax players! Love it I need to buy one soon!

I have EWI 4000, added (bought) patchman sounds, and even not impressed.. Artifical, like eat tofu meat instead of real meat.. So you have to consider, this is not a sax, this is synth.. In comparison with real instrument, it is defeated..
So, silencing sax is practically not possible.. So my solution: I started play trumpet.. 😊.. And trumpet is possible easily to silence (still hold properly hight and low sounds) or to buy silent brass from Yamaha, and it really works.. Extra benefit: you breath is improving a lot, your mouth muscles as well.. Just it takes time to learn.. And longer then sax. Learning curve in comparison with sax is..long..I was able to play higher tones just after year+.. But how easy is now to play sax! 😉 Like without any strength, instrument play itself.. And now I switch instruments, why not..

That was quite the hold/elevator music-athon.

Sorry… just sounds like a keyboard. All the nuance and timbre of the individual instrument lost in electronic bollix

Didn't like any of the sounds. It sounds like a keyboard and I only like keyboard sounds that more analog sounding like pianos and organ. I liked a couple of the sounds you played on the emeo. One reminded me of a trumpet.

How difficult is it to play the riffs you played throughout this video? I will get one if the riffs you just played are easy because I want to jam out just like you in this video. Maybe I can play for my family also.

Am I the only one that wants realistic winds sounds with a headphone jack, and everything else is a waste of my time? There's literally thousands of keyboard synths to make beep sounds with.

Hw can I get my own in Nigeria

Every sax player out here going “ yep, sax sounds suck”… even my wx-5/vl70m can’t do a passable sax sound. I still love my AE-20 for the wind synth sounds.

You sound great well played