Roland J-6 Tutorial | In-Depth Overview!

[@WaveBits]

Link for Roland J-6: amzn.to/3CVgUst (Amazon Affiliate)

[@vasil3089]

get an NTS-1 as well

[@IsshmanGarcia]

PRO TIP:Each step has its own preset, but if you want to change the preset for a given step: 1. Press Pattern button. 2. Select the step(from sequencer) you want to change. 3. Press Sound button. 4. Select ANY sound from the 64 provided presets. 5. Press Pattern button. You now have the sound you want in the selected step slot. You're welcome.

[@stoneysdead689]

I'm 2 years old and have spent life making music the old fashion way- this is a game changer. That said- because I'm finally getting into all the current technology and electronic music in general- I say that about once a week. Seems like every few days someone shows me something that makes me be like "This changes everything."

[@ImFreezerBurnCompared2Cool]

You seem pretty musically intelligent to only be 2 yrs old

[@stoneysdead689]

@@ImFreezerBurnCompared2Cool LOL- 52.

[@IsshmanGarcia]

FYI: Hold Shift button with Filter(for Resonance- without shift is cutoff frequency), with Envelope(for Attack- without shift is Decay), with Delay and Reverb(for timing settings- without shift is non synced).

[@HotStrange]

Great to know you have control of resonance and decay. That adds a lot considering there’s only 64 presets

[@maikvanrossum]

@@IsshmanGarcia timing vs non-synced…? I was thinking no shift is simply Feedback for Delay and Reverb.

[@MikeJayMusic]

This does quite a bit more than I had thought I understood. I'm usually on the fence about Roland pricing, but they've done something special here, comparatively speaking. Thank you

[@dr.greggeddins1723]

You really are making a positive difference in many peoples’ lives !!! I was not going to purchase this until I saw you demonstrate most everything it does. Keep doing what you do my musical technical teaching friend !

[@WaveBits]

Wow, thank you for your comment and feedback, I try to put as much valuable tips and insight with each video. So it feels great to see comments like yours. Enjoy the J-6! 😃

[@IsshmanGarcia]

FYI: Shortcut to change step length in Pattern/step sequencer mode( instead of menu diving and going to "Beat" setting ) is to hold down Pattern button and turn Tempo/Value knob so you can change on the 🪰. Bzzzz!

[@patrickgregitis4521]

You’re the goat for that

[@andybside]

Nice. Thanks a ton.

[@BD-zg7is]

THANK YOU!

[@themorningstar8122]

These are some of the best tutorials that I have ever watched easy to understand And listen to thanks 🙂

[@crittercamproductions]

I'm just starting out with electronic music, and picked up a J-6 today. Your video was tremendously helpful to me, thanks!

[@sechabatheletsane9784]

How's the journey going😊 I'm starting out with music when I get it this weekend.

[@crittercamproductions]

@@sechabatheletsane9784 Having a lot of fun with my tracks and music. Hope you enjoy your J-6 as well!

[@theofuqua2599]

I was thinking about buying this to add to my synth family. I watched this video, love the in depth features you showed, then ordered it. THANK YOU!!!!

[@vectorhold6489]

Dude, yes. Thank you. 11:35 was what was driving me nuts. Couldn't figure out why the sequence wasn't looping. Lol. Huge help.

[@delmeteor717]

Your Roland Aira videos are excellent. Really made using my J6 and T8 so much more enjoyable with your clear explanations of diving into the menus.

[@StrillLife]

Thanks for this tutorial. I didn't know how to access all these features or even save a pattern. This was very helpful.

[@david_pilkington_music]

Great Video, thank you. Personally I think that this unit is the best out of the J-6, T-8 and S-1. The integration with Ableton live is impressive. You know your gear !

[@digitalninjatools5670]

Thank you so much for this - best j6 tutorial I've seen by a mile!

[@Raku777]

Thanks for sharing. It is a good overview and I like how you demo-ed the interface between a DAW and the unit, showing a very full utilization of the J-6.

[@cjoules3235]

That’s helpful thanks. Is it possible to program different lengths for individual steps?

[@bobclark5360]

Thank you. Would you believe you are the only one I found actually demonstrating how to use the J6 with a DAW.

[@enphour7960]

Great in depth tutorial of J-6. I just got mine a few days ago, and I love the Juno sounds and chord function. I hope to start building patterns next.

[@davehyper7835]

OMG 16:42 reminds me of a track on the Fantazia First Taste album. I love this little thing and you've just helped my buy one! Many thanks for this excellent tutorial.

[@rochefsky]

GREAT video! Easier way to insert rests I think is to just un-light any notes. in the step... so no notes are present.

[@palomiarhs]

Great video! The only one which mentions the fact that, when using the J-6 with your DAW, you can use it to record the sounds it comes with, besides using it as a controller for other VSTs. Thanks a lot! Keep up the great work 😉

[@PeterJoslynHarris]

Thank you so much for this! I've been really struggling with how to use this thing.

[@WaveBits]

Definitely, it takes time. I’m still learning all the nuances myself, but it’s a joy to explore!

[@vonbarfuss]

You’re the best J-6 ,,how it worx‘‘ teacher so far 😊!!!

[@IsshmanGarcia]

I forgot to let you know I learned alot from your tutorial. Great stuff.

[@alexanderscott6332]

Thanks so much for this, it has to be asked, will you possibly complete the set and do a S-1 video?

[@CatGPT_]

bro.. you're doing gods work with this tutorial. much love

[@NicolasMelis]

best tutorial about the J6 i found on youtube! thanks

[@zzrwood]

The J-6 is also a class compliant midi/audio interface which means it works on iPad/iPhone with GarageBand and other mobile DAWs like Cubasis, Drambo, etc. This makes the J-6 and any iPhone a pretty capable and very portable setup. Ironically, the only DAW it has an issue with is Zenbeats - it doesn’t sync properly…

[@WaveBits]

Can’t wait to try the J-6 with iOS eventually!

[@9877joseph]

That's hilarious

[@rorz999]

@@9877joseph classic Roland! 🤦‍♂️

[@englishiowa]

This was hugely helpful! I'm loving my J6 but hadn't really cracked the "recall sound/chords that I dialed in" and you've really shown how easy it is. +Subscriber!

[@henryblanchard4166]

Hi. Awesome tutorial. Can you change the beat between steps in a single pattern? Say 6 steps with 1-3 in “4 time” & 4-5 in “2 time??

[@sodiumlights]

excellent video, cheers. Stilllll waiting for 'em here in the UK:(

[@sodiumlights]

Great video, thanks. Hope they add what note/chord is being played via display.

[@S_e_a_n]

Wow amazing tutorial. The best I’ve seen for the J-6. Thank you for the post! Cheers

[@WaveBits]

Thanks for that, definitely! 👊🏻

[@BrandInman]

Great video, thank you! I really learned a lot about this little guy from watching. Nice work!

[@EchoKraft]

Your videos are awesome man! Thank you so much for sharing this tutorial. I haven’t hooked mine up to a keyboard yet. Curious would it play chords if I connected it to my Deepmind 12 ?

[@WaveBits]

I don’t know much about Deepmind 12 but I think you can trigger any synth that recieves MIDI input with the additional MIDI cable you can buy

[@9877joseph]

Very crispy sounding! I want all three! I honestly hope that they stay with this form factor. Subbed!

[@bobclark5360]

Can I control the J6 with my Novation LaunchKey 37 which a midi out and USB?

[@buddingsignal]

thank *YOU* very much for this. very helpful. the j6 sounds great and has so much to offer.

[@damelos4039]

Amazing video! Well done, easy to follow. Kudos to you and THANK YOU SO MUCH!!!!

[@enjo2258]

many thank's for your awesome work. thumps up

[@oliverdepauw5663]

Picked one of these up to mangle it with a mood mk2 - really excited to dive in and make some crazy sounds with it - i plan on using a 3.5 to /4 inch male trs cable to link them up and i’ll probably add an expression pedal to the mix- should be a fun build

[@BD-zg7is]

amazing video you have no idea how helpful this is!!! THANK YOU

[@matthatson]

Great tutorial thank you, I’m still getting to grips with the J-6 and your video is really helping me 😊

[@Fimpiekijke]

Very well explained,thanks !!! And also good comments and tips in the further comments community 👍

[@jackhoad9182]

Hey great video! Ableton recognizes my J6 as an audio device and I can record audio no problem. It also recognizes it as a midi device but can't seem to trigger midi notes/information. Any tips on how to solve this? Thanks!

[@scorpionleader1967]

How many sequences can you store? How do you recall them?

[@helenbrown8016]

Thanks, you really help me get started

[@leewightman8619]

I just got mine few days ago it sounds so good..iv had the t8 for about 6 months that's amazing too iv not used them together yet .. definitely getting the s1 and might grab the e4 ..I just wish Roland made an aira sampler how dope would that be

[@itaydagani1704]

great tutorial, only one issue with this synth there is no way to use automation to change even the limited params of the synth so come on Roland, in 2022 every hardware or software synth has midi cc to control the synth parameters, give us a firmware update that allows us to do the above.

[@hernanvergara9313]

Thank you. Great tutorial, including the T-8 one. Keep them coming please. Cheers 👍🏾

[@technodrone313]

j6 + microfreak is super nice. it also pushes td-3s pretty well

[@specialk1287]

How do you connect them? I have the right cords but I can't get them to talk to each other 😭

[@technodrone313]

@@specialk1287 i think theres a bug with the midi ports. i use it over usb.

[@specialk1287]

@@technodrone313 USB to USB on the microfreak?

[@technodrone313]

@@specialk1287 to a daw.

[@jaguarvssnake]

Thanks so much for this ! Just one question: what is the “record” button for?

[@fakefirmware]

While it's playing a sequence you can record noodling with the filter cutoff delay time etc to liven up your pattern

[@rexcellencemagee6729]

I swore to myself I wasn’t going to get one of these! My iPhone has pleanty of chord apps! But since got Komplete Collectors I think it will come in useful!

[@Sarahbuildsstepsequencers]

Does it have the capacity to store things you create into memory for later recall?

[@WaveBits]

Yep! Explain Saving Patterns at 15:52 in the video 👍🏻

[@snidedj]

Amazing, thank you for your in-depth tutorial.

[@subspeciez]

How do you change the velocity per step? I had this figured out months ago but I haven't picked it up recently and can't remember.

[@andybside]

Thanks for all the great info, my man.

[@Studio_4to1]

I just can’t seem to play two patterns back to back. Any idea? Great video! Cheers

[@djmikejolly]

Great video, but could you please add some instructions as to how to get midi and audio from the J6 into Logic Pro X as I've just bought a J6 and can't figure it out for the life of me! Many thanks.

[@danielguerralopes]

Is it possible to make a chord sequence making chord changes on the second eight note of a beat? I really loved your videos about the Aira Series. Thank you very much!

[@80iesDude45]

the Synthwave weapon, love it!

[@kubaswiercz]

great tutorial!! I have a question - can you set up different durations for differetn steps? Like: step 1 has 4 beats, step 2 has 2 beats, step 3 has 8 beats, etc.

[@Pilts82]

Can we do this live? I don't do computer recordings but rather play love. Will this work when connected to PA system or amp? Does it generate drums or beats

[@snowboard360]

Great video…I’ll feel more confident in using this now…have you done any of the other units they have done in this series?

[@narsil8756]

Great Tutorial! Thank you!❤

[@luctussi]

do u have a tut for the s1 too? ur tutorials r awesome

[@RaquelFoster]

Let's all just take a second and appreciate how tight this close-up is, and I don't see any dust. Must be some kind of positive-pressure clean room situation where you need to go through a series of airlocks.

[@WaveBits]

Haha, I try 😅

[@realdougdouglass]

Excellent in-depth overview. Thx!

[@petercourt-hampton5679]

Thanks for the tutorial. Very helpful. How can I see what notes are being played in any of the factory preset patterns?

[@WaveBits]

Hey Peter, I don’t think there’s a way to do that (that I’m aware of). You could always using a plugin like Mixed In Key Studio Edition to try and decipher the notes used if you connect the J-6 to your computer and receive audio input with a DAW

[@bartjanc]

Just record the midi in a daw and look at it?

[@pameladolin929]

can you sequence be saved as a standard midi file on a USB Drive on the back of the unit? TYVM your video's are awesome!

[@JohnWarehand]

Really helpful - thanks very much.

[@orregomusic5850]

Good job Bro, the best of life for you.

[@taisilva5101]

, can i choose everykind of chords, out of scale etc? Thanx

[@Drumsdude123]

Thanks! Some suggested that Roland Mc707 chord functions can be compared to this small device.. kipping in mind that's in 707 all the pads nobs are much more handy... What do you think?

[@JeffMyers-ir3pn]

Great video. Learned a lot. Thx! J

[@CleanStepSystems]

What's the main difference between the J6 and the JU-06A? Does the JU-06A just provide additional sound sculpting capability? It looks like the JU-06A also has 64 preset sounds (like the J6), so I'm assuming that they are the same sounds as on the J6. Does the J6 do anything the JU-06A can't do? I believe the JU-06A has a sequencer, arrpegiator, and also has a chords function. Wondering how the two units compare, because I have heard that the new S1 Aira Compact can do almost everything that the SH-01A can do but also do additional things the SH-01A can't.

[@bobclark5360]

Hi. I m having a terrible time with the Roland web site, manual and finding any detail. about integrating the J 6 into my Daw. Some Success with Abelton but Logic or Bitwig no luck. I find this thing is buggy, poorly documented on how to use it and so far you're the only one that actually describes how to use the device. Do you use it in a daw and how? Thanks. Good content and very helpful!

[@MrSlipstreem]

If you already own a Korg NTS-1, there's an awesome custom oscillator that emulates the J-6 sound and some of its functionality very nicely. And it's free. 😉

[@ipadmusichacks]

Great Video! One of the best that I have seen on YT! Is the J-6 audio over USB? It doesn't look like you have an audio cable just the USB cable? Thanks! Just saw the end of the video!! Thank you so much! lol

[@WaveBits]

Yep! Both Audio and MIDI over USB

[@karl.weaver]

Noobie with J-6 question, how you choose between minor/major chords etc?

[@MusicZeroOne]

Thanks, the copy tip was particularly helpful.

[@Rucava1]

7:00 "yeah, that sounds cinematic" :)))

[@nodoze123]

Thank you for this review!

[@Howdy606]

Great vid. Can the sequencer play long chord washes for atmos stuff?

[@stuartgonsal8443]

Why in the chord sets (PDF), does each set have 12 chords listed horizontally? I would have expected there to be the typical I, II, III, IV, V, VI, VII chords (i.e. 7 in total) & to trigger these using the 7 x white keys only and not use the black keyboard keys at all. And looking at the PDF, how do you know what key each of the 4 rows is in for say 1 Pop, horizontal row 1 of 4 in total? For example, the far left chord is E4. Does that mean the key is E major given this is the I chord?

[@adamelos]

Thank you for this video. I have a few questions, though if someone could answer, please? 1. Is the DAW app a Roland one, or do you use something else, please? 2. If it is a Roland DAW, does it work as a fully functional one. What I mean is, can I add and record tracks from other instruments ( + vocals) to create a song? Pardon my ignorance, but I'm not too familiar with all the software and stuff. Thank you in advance for answers.

[@JohnWarehand]

He was using Ableton.

[@manslaughterinc.9135]

The biggest limit I've run into with the J-6 is that you can't change Genre with the Midi Program Change command. That means you have to stop what you're doing to change to the next genre. Probably fine for some people, but kills it for the workflow I am trying to create.

[@BenHall289]

I think this will be my next piece of hardware. Easy chords for house paired with my Digitakt, Cycles and dreadbox typhon. I’ll probably use the typhon as an effects unit mostly by routing the j6 through it.

[@nodoze123]

Awesome tutorial!!

[@bartjanc]

Can the styles&variations and chord mode be used when inputting notes by midi? For If i wanted to use a different sequencer, but still make use of all the J-6 has to offer/add to it.

[@filipzawadzki9424]

I just thought about how to achieve Juno plucks cheaper than original to incorporate into my deep house music and here we have a great deal. I will connect it to my original JX-3P by MIDI and see where it brings me.

[@WaveBits]

True, enjoy!

[@Rafix-drummer]

Thanks for the video. you are a champion👍👍👍

[@eFiddle]

Nice demo, I have subscribed to your channel. I have been using J-6, I have found some pattern I saved, could not recreate all state as I saved, even it had all parameters saved to backup.

[@karl.weaver]

Easy subscription, thank you.

[@lucasmosching8983]

Can i use the J-6 and its Chord functions to midi control the S-1? As a non Musican i would love to use the advantages of the J-6 but still be able to tweak the thing out of the S-1.

[@Random-pf3ne]

Great video! Is there a way to change the length of a individual step? Thanks

[@WaveBits]

Yes, you can! I show it at 11:51 in the video, really useful way to customize your patterns 👍🏻

[@Random-pf3ne]

@@WaveBits Thanks for the reply. Maybe I’m missing it, but let’s say steps 1-3 are the same length and I want to do a turn around and have steps 4-6 to be shorter, is there a way to do that. Sorry if you already explained this. Thanks

[@WaveBits]

@@Random-pf3ne No, unfortunately. Just the duration of all the steps equally. It would be cool if that was possible though.

[@Random-pf3ne]

@@WaveBits Bummer! I’m still having lots of fun with it. Thanks

[@KitCatStudio]

Really helpful Tnx! Couldn’t find the answer to this: how can I change the length of individual steps? Say first four steps in 4 beats per measure and have the last two shorter like a half of the bar… possible? I think it’s really impotent and couldn’t find it anywhere

[@MortChud]

It can't do this and it makes this synth semi-useless.

[@sodiumlights]

update essentials please Roland 1) it displays what chord is being played 2) you can cycle through chords from root note

[@AlexLaptschenko]

Thanks for your explanation of that E-Balalaika from Japan without any Rocket sience 😂