ROLAND may face some stiff competition in the arena of physical modelling synthesis these days, but in the '80s, the company made a huge impact in the world of analogue synthesis with its highly-popular Jupiter and Juno series of polyphonic keyboard synthesizers.

That machines like the Jupiter 8 and Juno-106, old enough (in terms of average technology life-span) to belong in a museum, are still highly regarded and zealously sought after by analogue aficionados is a testament to the abiding appeal of the flavours the Japanese company cooked up through some ingenious tinkering in its R&D kitchen.

So it makes sense that Roland should exploit the current craze for all things analogue in the world of techno music by repackaging some of its classic synth sounds in laptop-sized digital boxes.

And as far as digital do-it-all boxes go, the SH-32 is not only an immediate eye-catcher but also a cracking ear-popper. With buzzing lead synth pads and fat, farty bass lines, Roland's latest desktop synth impresses from the get-go.

Journey to the bottom of sound

Before you get the impression that this is just another nifty Groovebox (a Roland trademark, by the way) from a company that has mastered the art of compact impact, I should tell you that the SH-32 is not really a self-contained full-blast disco machine because it has no dedicated sequencer.

But it has a programmable 16 x 32-step arpeggiator that, when used with the Chord Memory function (offering 64 chord forms), lets you create the kind of sequenced parts that would be great for techno styles.

Input can be in step or real time and you can choose from 64 rhythm styles with tempos varying from 20 to 250 beats per minute.

The sounds on the SH-32 are created through what's known as Wave Acceleration Synthesis that boasts a total of 67 waveforms (in seven categories and including such new creations as Spectrum and Variable Noise) for the main oscillators, and 63 rhythm waves for rhythm sets.

These sampled synth waves, which apparently are superior to purely modelling-based analogue waveforms in terms of flexibility and polyphony, are channeled through two main oscillators and two sub-oscillators with pulse width modulation and sync capability. The oscillators can be sync-ed for ultra-fat mono patches.

There's a DSP effects section offering two independent processors -- the Loop processor which boasts 10 types of reverb/delay and the Insert processor that lets you choose various combinations from 35 multi-effects (compressor, distortion, pitch shifter etc, and "Groove" effects like Lo-Fi, Slicer and Isolator).

There are 128 patches and two rhythm sets in the Preset Memory, with the same number matched in the User Memory.

Connectors on the rear include stereo I/O jacks, MIDI I/O, a foot switch jack, headphones jack (stereo) and PSU jack.

Tool for the Cool School

The SH-32's retro styling -- lots of sliders and knobs and tiny LEDs that could light up a disco party in the land of leprechauns -- may seem a bit over-the-top at first, but once you get familiar with this amazing little fella, you'll realise that the layout is more about function than fashion.

After powering up, all you have to do is punch up some numbers -- displayed on an eight-segment, three-character LED -- and, whoa!, you're in serious techno territory.

These are monster sounds, with enough high-frequency razzle to cut through the muddiest of mixes and plenty of bottom-end rumble to shake the house.

And if you're the kind whose taste for low bass remains insatiable, you'd love the room-rattling subsonic boost that occurs when you engage the ultra-low turbo engine in the suboscillator section.

The sounds, which can be accessed in Patch or Performance mode, can even be given a more authentic analogue flavour (sort of detuned and somewhat unstable like old analogue workhorses) by playing with the pitch controls.

The Performance mode, which lets you put together four-part multitimbral layers, is especially useful if you want to bunch up chaotic sounds or re-create the bombing of Baghdad in your living room.

The arpeggiator doesn't offer the extensive features of a sequencer, but you can still create interesting rhythm patterns from the four banks of drum and percussion sounds and combine them with your own synth parts, arpeggios or programmed chord styles.

The drum sounds, which include samples from the classic TR-808/909 beat boxes (aren't people tired of these yet?), are tailored for the techno crowd so you can forget about using them to rock out or play the blues.

But if you're basically a synth buff not so sold on techno, you should think of the SH-32 as a synth module first. And in that area, it scores real big.

MIDI it up to your regular keyboard and you begin to see how powerful the sounds packed into the SH-32 are. Besides the killer basses and buzzing synth patches, you can dial up some really rich Junoesque strings and terrific sound effects.

And with the ability to play 32 notes at once and stack up four different sounds at once, you can conjure up everything from Wakemanesque mini-symphonies to Kitro-style New Age mood pieces.

Of course, you can also sound like Moby or Massive Attack, if that's the path you wish to pursue.

Can you live without it?

Synthesists and spin-jocks looking for classic analogue sounds won't be disappointed with what the SH-32 has to offer. And despite essentially relying on digital sound-generation process for its analogue simulations, this synth module refreshingly bucks the trend of standard modelled-analogue synthesis by offering massive polyphony and creativity-enhancing flexibility.

Features like the Subsonic mode and four-part mulitimbral capability also make this an attractive tool for beefing up bass parts in recordings or building real-time synth layers in live performances.

And thanks to the incredible array of sliders and knobs, tailoring sounds to your needs is a breeze.

PROS: Classic analogue sounds that are amazingly thick-flavoured; excellent front-panel layout; timbres can be altered in real-time; the Subsonic mode is a killer feature.

CONS: Groovers would wish a dedicated sequencer had been worked into the design; lack of input for external audio will put off amateur remixers.