Up for auction is a very nice Roland D-5 which was released in 1989. The Roland D-5’s has very inspirational and functional features such as the Chase Delay, Arpeggiator, Harmonizer, and Chord Play effects. The possibility to load up D-10, D-110, and D-20 sounds into the Roland D-5 is also great. Never mind the lack of effects or sequencer. This old synthesizer from the legendary D-series packs a punch with some very interesting features. The reason Roland has made a re-issue of this serie with the now available D-05 says enough! The Roland D-5 is not a workstation but more so of a live synth or simply a great set of keys to lay down some interesting tracks with. The Roland D-5 is also a fantastic synth for electro and synthpop oriented music, but not for getting any sort of realistic sounds. If one is interested in starting a New Wave band in this new 20xx decade, then the Roland D-5 should fit the bill nicely. In fact one could even look upon it as a secret weapon that no other would dare touch…..at least that’s what I get from the other reviews I read. To me, one aspect of great music is being different. I say grab the Roland D-5 and make something great with it! This could be said about any synth really but some more so than others. The D-5 seems to be that type of synth. The Roland D-5 has 12-bit samples and 12-bit DAC’s that I really like. In my opinion, the Roland D-5 is much like the Yamaha DX7mkI. They both are 12-bit and they both have zero effects. You need to add effects which should be easy in this day and age. By no means am I suggesting the Roland D-5 is better than the DX7 nor do I wish to make a comparison here, but both require additional “flava” added to the sound otherwise they can be rather dry just on their own. With effects, the Roland D-5 sounds great. A few of my favorite preset sounds are A25 Tapped Piano, A27 Sweeten Piano, A33 Big Ol’ Brass, A41 Warm Str Fade, and A71 Melodic Koto. Again, you MUST think of the Roland D-5 as an electro oriented synthesizer and not some sort of Yamaha Motif “ish” realistic instrument. Sure there are a few realistic sounds, but most are very synthetic and wonderful to think of using for synthpop or electronic oriented music. As a person who grew up in the 80’s, I am a big fan of that 1980’s New Wave sound and even that of the early 90’s. In fact as I mentioned the Roland D-5 was released in 1989 which was a great year for dance music. One of the interesting things I found out about the Roland D-5 is that many of the presents combined with some of the effects notably the chord play, give me sounds similar to the dance group 2 Unlimited which had the hit “Get Ready for this” in 1991. I find with some synths I migrate to playing a certain style of music simply due to the presets and functions they contain. I found myself playing A LOT of Rave style music on this Roland D-5. If you’re into 2 Unlimited, check out the Roland D-5 and you’ll know what I mean. ( Note that I have no idea what 2 Unlimited actually used for their hits. I’ve heard they used samples but I could easily get similar sounds with the Roland D-5 now. Cool! ). The effect functions on the Roland D-5 are one of the main reasons to buy it. The Chord Play is simply awesome. You hit the Chord Play button and with your left hand you finger a chord. With the right hand you play notes and this outputs chords with different root notes that you play with the right hand. Finger a C Major chord triad or play 5ths and then switch on Chord Play. Right there you will have something very close to 2 Unlimited if you use a SAW patch. Or, play diatonic tenths with the left hand ( stretch those fingers ) and then play the roots with the right hand and you’ll be getting that Lady Ga Ga, Katy Perry, and Ke$ha oriented sound. If you are learning to play the keys, you can also use the Chord Play Function as a learning tool to see how chords go together. Play some Minor 9ths and Major 9ths in the left hand. Then play some roots in the right and you’ll discover some outstanding chord progressions especially for getting that Neo Soul sound. Then turn off Chord Play and continue playing the chords with the left while you solo with the right. Great stuff! The Harmony function is awesome for working with Octaves, 5ths, or anything really. It’s very musical and like Chord Play can help you discover some great chord melodies. Back in the late 80’s and early 90’s Rave and House music used a lot of those piano chord movements in songs. The Korg M1’s piano sound was instrumental with that sound. With the Roland D-5 it’s super simple to test out various progressions and it’s incredibly useful. There’s even a piano sound kind of similar to the M1 piano sound if you wish to crank out some 90’s oriented progressions. Chase is like a Midi delay and it works very well for adding spice. The D-5 Arpeggiator is also excellent and sounds can be edited while it’s playing. The arp can also be Midi’d out which is cool. Indeed the old D-5, D-110, D-20, and D-10 sounds can sound dated, but it’s with these additional features that you can breathe new life into them. Sure the D-20 sequencer also might be great, but I think I prefer the D-5 with it’s unique effect functionality. Again, much like the Yamaha DX7, the Roland D-5 has a ton of sounds available around the internet. By adding effects you can achieve a very modern electro sound. The functions like Chase, Harmony, and Chord Play are not easily found on modern day synths. Working perfectly! All buttons and keys , mod/pitch wheel 100% working like new. Some minor scratches here and there, see pictures. The little cap that should be on the volume slider is missing. Totally no problem to use it without the cap! Specs : Keys: 61 SOUND SOURCE: LA Synthesis MEMORY: Patch: 128 Timbres: 128 Internal Tones: 64 Rhythm Set: 1 85 keys (C1 to C8) Preset Tones: 128 + 63 Rhythm OPTIONAL RAM CARD: M-256E Duplicate of internal Optional Card Library: PN-D10 card series 1-3 MIDI: 1 Zone Control Additional Functions: Key Transpose, Tuning, Chord Play, Harmony, Chase Play, Arpeggio, Split and Layer functions, MultiTimbral Mode, Performance Mode DISPLAY: 2 x 16 LCD backlit OUTPUTS: 2 – 2 1/4″ L/R , Headphones (stereo 1/4") , Hold Pedal (Sustain), MIDI in+out+thru, ROM card slot DIMENSIONS: 97.8 (W) x 27.9 5(D) x 8.4 (H) cm – 38-1/2″ X 11″ X 3-1/2″ WEIGHT: 6.6 kg ACCESSORIES: Original Roland AC Adaptor(included) Owner’s Manual(pdf)