You could get a Korg - Microkog (mini-keys but a huge fan base), or one from their 'Logue series.

 

I only have a Behringer Pro-1 which I rarely use these days, and I kinda want to sell it because I don't really use it and I need money for a digital organ build project and some guitar gear. But I definitely want to get a Pro-800 or a Deepmind and especially the 303 clone (don't know yet if I should buy the normal or the modded version) when the money is not so tight anymore. I don't really want to buy that much hardware, but at least one or a few analog synths are really nice to have, sometimes I'm really tired with VSTs and with hardware synths I often get different ideas and results than with plugins because of different workflow.

 

I would not get the roland. It's a digital clone that will be replaced with another digital clone as Roland have been doing for 30 years now. Also Roland has in general been terrible at maintaining product support over the years, not that it's important with this product but in general I stear clear of them if possible. Novation on the other hand has been great to update and keep their products supported and the bass station is a nice synth and dirtier then the sh101.

 

Notwithstanding your size and MIDI controller requirements, if I had to pick, I'd go Roland, Roland, Roland.

In case you're wondering, the SH-101 was my first synthesizer. So I'm quite fond of the little bugger. It's a lot more versatile than a single oscillator monophonic bass synth sounds it might be (it's got a sub osc as well, but the filter section does a stellar job).

I've no experience with any Novation synth or keyboard other than the reliability issues I've heard of (audio channels usually, but not only). No such issues with Roland gear - any of the lot - ever in my, or my peers' long experience owning them (Yamaha's got a similar reputation for building tanks - Korg, not so much).

You sound like you're limited by your budget - asking too much of a single keyboard ("it'll need not be any bigger than 1000mm x 36 mm which is the size of my keyboard pullout tray and also 100mm high" is mighty specific), so pick what you can afford, and live with it.

 

I have had issues with multiple Roland synths through the years. Lot of them are plastic with bad buttons. Especially in the 90s. Try and find a JP-8000 with buttons that does not need serious cleaning. Yes the original SH-101 was a cool mono synth and nicely build. But this was many many years ago. Roland has a proud legacy but the things they build and have been building for 25 years is not high quality hardware for the most part.

And yes the original bass station keyboard was also a plastic mess and yes even version 2 is plastiky and not amazing build but at least it's a analogue synth where the Roland Digital clone is just another clone. There has been so many Roland Digital clones over the years so would not waste my money on them. New will most likely come again claiming to once again be better making the last digitale clone obsolete.

 

Choose wisely, SH01A is a wise choice.

This bloke knows his stuff.

https://sunshine-jones.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/11/A-Users-Guide-to-the-Roland-SH-01A-v10Ha.pdf

 

Damn man, you're the first human I've ever heard of to have had any issues with their Roland synths.

This reminds me of a famous (long retired) guitarist who couldn't come near the (very expensive) console in the studio. The console stopped working when he was in the control room - and resumed working when he left. Simple as that. Maybe you've got the same voodoo going on with Roland (just kidding, it's likely just bad luck).

 

He definitely does. Cool guy too, I've bought more than a few bits of gear off him over the years hehe.

 

Yeah, sunshine jones wrote a great alternative manual to the Roland se02 as well... WAY better than what Roland provided.

 

do you want a mono or a poly synth?
id have a look at sequential FOURM, great at both

 

Most synths from the 90s and 00s where plastic things not really ment to last that long. So it does not matter if its Yamaha or Roland or Novation. And a tiny plastic SH01A is not going to be some magically long lasting product.

Try and find a Roland D-20 or MC-303, EG-101 or whatever plastic thing where the buttons are not a bit wonky by now. Its the same with most manufactures. That is just how things are. So when you take a cheap product like a SH01A that was never ment as a flagship or premium product dont expect it will last any longer then any other plastic gizmo.

About Rolands support of products like audio interfaces, grooveboxes, and other hardware + software solution. It has been bad, they have dropped product support quite fast compared to other companies, leaving products useless. So that is why i do not recommend Roland in general.

In like i said specificily with this one we are talking about a hardware that is a software clone of something in mini format. Roland has been cloning its analogue hardware in digital forms for 30 years now, always improving and making newer versions. So in that sense this is not anything special and will very likely be surpassed with another SH-101 digitale clone in the future.

If i personally HAD to get my first hardware synth that could send midi i would get something like a Deepmind 6. Its analogue, polyphonic, send midi data, is not overly expensive or bulky. .. and you could buy it for a resonable price used.

 

Yeah sure the Roland 'toys' maybe, you must have not used many of their professional workstations or rack products. Roland shit is almost bulletproof once you get past stuff like the proprietary ICs and whatnot they can't create anymore. Don't use it much anymore but my XV3080 is a tank, my SE boxes are still in use and will be until the day I die, my SRV-330 does what it should, my SDEs, and even my 30+ year old Boss pedals are still doing their jobs today, just like my SH-101 and the Juno 106 I sold to a friend are..

 

Yes things made in the 80s or solid rack 80/90s gear are fine but was that the question the guy asked ? No he asked about a dinky mini plastic entry box from Roland. And making more solid pro gear back in the old days was not a Roland exclusive. .. so you are like many others just derailing the thread with anecdotal personal stories.

 

Blimey, erm, er, well, my three Boutiques all have a metal facia, housed in a seemingly tough plastic. TR6S is housed in the usual tough Roland Boss plastic case, as was 707 etc.

I have them right in front of my PC, they all have a seq & arp, i trigger from TR6S, the faders are very sensitive, amazing to be able to tweak all those simultaneously on da fly.

If you do dance you have to do Roland. Period.

I can testify, you can get a huge chartbound sound solely with Roland stuff, couple that with the amazingly powerful Vienna Symphony stuff, unbeliveable what can be achieved with that on board too.

Sometimes folk, here, elsewhere, just repeat what they've read without ever having had hands on experience, I'm very very 'appy wiv my powerful little set up.

I would always go for Roland Yamaha Korg und Moog first, old or new.

 

I like using the AI for direct product comparisons, especially if you are looking at more than one possible product to buy. It will do a comparison without any of the owners' bias and other bs you always see get injected to the discussion. I have one of the two being compared so I will leave my opinion out of it. Besides the approximately $200 difference in MSRP, these 2 synths have enough few things in common, that it makes me wonder what the real decision making process here was. You can always factor in the resale/used market prices also.

Spoiler

Roland SH-01A vs Novation Bass Station II (straight comparison)

These two get compared a lot, but they’re built with totally different goals.

Core concept

SH-01A

• Digital (Roland ACB modeling)
• Recreation of the SH-101
• Designed to be simple and specific

Bass Station II

• True analog signal path
• Modern monosynth
• Designed to be flexible and wide-ranging

Voice architecture

SH-01A

• 1 oscillator + sub
• 4-voice polyphony (modern addition)

Bass Station II

• 2 oscillators + sub
• Mono + 2-note paraphonic mode

Sound character

SH-01A

• Tight, focused, classic Roland tone
• “Rubbery” basslines, very controlled
• Stays in a specific sonic lane

Bass Station II

• Bigger, more aggressive
• Can go clean, dirty, wide, or heavy
• Much broader tonal range

Filter + modulation

SH-01A

• Simple SH-101-style filter
• Minimal modulation
• What you see is what you get

Bass Station II

• Multiple filter types
• More envelopes, LFO options, routing
• Can get much more complex

Sequencer / workflow

SH-01A

• Classic SH-101 style sequencer
• Immediate and pattern-focused
• Very fast for acid/techno lines

Bass Station II

• Modern sequencer + arpeggiator
• More flexible but less “iconic” feel
• Better for general production use

Polyphony vs weight

SH-01A

• 4-note poly mode
• Can do chords and layered sounds

Bass Station II

• Mostly mono
• Stronger, thicker single voice

Form factor

SH-01A

• Small Boutique module
• Requires external keyboard (unless using K-25m)

Bass Station II

• Full keyboard synth
• Self-contained

What it really comes down to

SH-01A

• Focused instrument
• Designed to sound like a specific classic synth
• Limited on purpose

Bass Station II

• General-purpose analog synth
• Much more flexible
• Can cover way more ground

Bottom line

If you want:

• A very specific vintage-style sound and workflow → SH-01A

If you want:

• A versatile analog synth that can do a lot of different roles → Bass Station II

Honest take

This isn’t really a “which is better” situation.

You’re choosing between:

• a recreation of a classic
  vs
• a modern analog workhorse

If someone is stuck between these two, the real question is what role they need filled — not which one is “better.”

 

Prob with that is AI has no opinion on anything, it just reshuffles human opinions into a list of pros and cons, bit like we are doing here eh.

Really doesn't matter what you use, depends what type of sound you are after, nethertheless, some hardware is much better than some other hardware, but you don't nescessarily need the best to make great sounding music.

I'm a dance bod, so I'm Roland Boss fanboy for obvious reasons, plenty of other great stuff about, but i bought original Bass Station & hated its bland sound so sold it on immediately, bit plasticky with tiddly knobs too if i remember. Even so, if that's all I had, that's more than enough to get something decent going.

It's never the gears fault.

 

Last edited: May 3, 2026 at 10:21 AM