Top 3 Reasons Why I love the: Roland SE-02 | Sound Demo / Mini Review 

Agreed from another old man (54). Roland never disapotied me. With Juno-6, JP-8, TR-909, SH-201 in my owner history... and now JP-X and SE-02 Roland still inspires and fits my workflow. SE-02 delivers brutal EDM basses at a no-brainer price. THANKS ROLAND!

Awesome! Congrats! 🙌 Yeah, it's pretty incredible how much synth is packed into this thing. 😎 Enjoy. 👍

+Ramon Solorio Great point! :) I would like to try out the A-01 one day... Maybe when I have extra cash to blow. Lol It looks like a useful tool plus cool synth engine. Thanks for watching this video :D

littleBIGsynths if you’re out in LA feel free to stop by the studio! instagram.com/p/BSCXEXphw0S/

+Ramon Solorio Cool, man! Thanks for the invite! :)

+murahachibu You will definitely enjoy this monster of a synth. ;) Thanks for the reccomendation. I have also been considering a digitakt... we will see ;)

Thank you very much! 😁

@@littleBIGsynths You're welcome. Keep up the great work!

+agentmirv Totally! :D 3 VCOs stack up to make full, fat sounds. The song mode is a pretty cool feature as well.... It's a cool way to change it up from the usual 16 step patterns ;) Glad you enjoyed the video! Thanks, for watching. :)

+Haut Strange Awesome, man! You will enjoy this synth with out a doubt! I'm glad that I could help with your decision. ;)

+Valdis Krebs Thank you very much! :) I'm thinking "Top 3 reasons: Korg Volca Keys" next. ;) It was my forst synth... and its one of the few Synths I have never even considered replacing. Love that little synth. :D

Thanks for watching. 🙂 Yes, this video is a couple of years old now and I do remember being upset about those shots but not having the time to reshoot them. Lol😔 I've been slowly figuring out videos tricks along the way though. Haha and getting a bit "better". Thanks for the tip! 😉👍

+RemixSample Thank you! :) I'm glad you enjoyed it.

+Mitch Gurowitz Thank You! :) I'm glad you enjoyed the video. I tried to keep it simple, but with as much useful info as possible. ;)

+Jared Nichols Thank you! :) I love my JU-06! ... But I got it at the original price of $299. The JU-06 and SE-02 are two totally different animals, but at the same price point, I would most certainly go for the SE-02! The SE-02 has a lot more features for you to enjoy... You won't regret it. ;)

+Arrayzable Thanks, man! :) I Always appreciate your feedback. Glad you enjoyed the video.

+Andrew Brooks Thanks, man! :) Yeah, this little synth is sooo awesome! It is a bit more expensive than the usual boutique synth... but you are getting 3 real analog VCOs, lots off extra connectivity options, great sounding filter, a built in delay, 2 envelopes, a multiple Octave pitch tracking filter, a XMod section, a flexible step sequencer, etc etc etc... Lol Pair this thing up with a great keyboard like the Keystep and you have yourself a very capable and powerful synth at your fingertips. ;) hahaha and it will only occupy an itty bitty amount of space in your setup! Totally worth the money IMO ;)

Andrew Brooks £500 is a snip for this!! Or would you prefer to go spend £3500 on a Minimoog model d reissue? This does everything the Moog can do! Seriously? You think this is too expensive? It’s pure analog! So I don’t mind spending the extra £150 ish rather than remortgage my house for a Moog! ✌🏻

I agree with you Duke, it's just £500 I don't have at the moment... and sometime we have to prioritise where our money needs to be spent.

Andrew Brooks fair enough mate. But go oooooooooon.....treat yourself! Your a long time dead! 🕶🎶✌🏻

Once again you are not wrong...but I've done rather a lot of "treating" myself over the last few years and there is a limit. I suspect that this little box is going to be around for quite a while. It will be a massive success for Roland and they won't want to ditch it in a hurry. When funds allow I will get one and I know I will love it. But I also want a Eurorack system and a Prophet Rev2 and a Big Sky and a pair of Genelecs and new cabling and my boiler is playing up and my car needs new tyres and the office chair I'm sitting on is falling to bits etc. See what I mean? When I've bought the damned thing I'll let you know! (It might be tomorrow...)

+TheSleepover Thank you! :) Chvrches is cool. Lol The SE-02 is a beast of a synth in such a small package... you will surely enjoy it. Good luck on the new album. ;)

+John Irby Thank you! I really appreciate your feedback. :) ... and thanks for subscribing!

+Hugh the Musical Engineer Thank You! :) Yes! Get one! Lol It's an awesome little synth.

+Adamski Ajull Awesome! :D Thank you very much!

+Edgar Moreno haha :D That's great! Thank you very much! :)

+Machiwoomiapoo Thank You! :) Yes this boutique is a must have! It is super awesome. The boutique form factor is great... no need to sacrifice space for big sounds. ;)

Well, I took the plunge. Here's my first tune with the SE-02. :) Let me know what you think. :) ru-vid.com/video/%D0%B2%D0%B8%D0%B4%D0%B5%D0%BE-DsVDku3bZI4.html&ab_channel=Machiwoomiapoo

+filthXpig Yeah, man... Like the rest of the boutique line, these things are pretty darn small.. and this synth is no exception especially considering the amount of knobs on this little guy. Being a 1 knob per function type of synth, naturally, the knobs are going to be tiny and somewhat close together. For many, this may be frustrating to fiddle with, but I have no issues with it. I have actually grown accustom to tiny controls like that of the Korg Volca series or Teenage Enigineering Pocket Operators. You can always map everything to a controller via CC if the knobs are unbearable. Lol I had the Minitaur for awhile and I really loved it. One of the main downsides for me was the Octave range. :/ Great bass and mid range tones, but nothing high enough for lead sounds. I traded the Minitaur in for a Dreadbox Hades.... it has a better Octave range, mini jack patch bay, 2 sub Oscillators, and was a bit cheaper. I know Moog released a new update for the Minitaur that makes it even more versatile now though... which could make me consider one a gain one day. Overall though, I feel like the SE-02 has a far greater range of sounds and flexibility than the Minitaur.... so you could definitely have both, each with their own strengths. ;)

Oh, man! You have no idea! You gotta hear one for yourself in person.... it is amazing! 🙂

Heyhey cool...! Roland made a great come-back with all the new "old" synths, Ju-06, jp-08, tb-03, tr-09, sh-01... And Aira series, System-1 etc... As soon as I find a case full of money, I buy them all :)

+VTOLKits Thank you! :)

+fatdog records Thank You! :)

+riamiwovideos I agree! :) I love it. Lol

+TooSlowTube Yeah! It is pretty darn small. Lol Don't be fooled by its toy like size... there is a monster sy nth inside this thing. Lol ;)

Thanks! 🙂

Thank you! 🙂 Yes. The SE-02 sequencer can sync with other gear either as the master or slave. No problem. 👍

Yes, I believe it stores 128 patches

@@bewareofrats 128 patches per bank, and it has 4 banks, so 512 patches and 128 sequences

@@alvaroaprr It has only 1 user bank.

@@javiceres Yes sorry...you're right

+Christopher Farrell Totally! :)

It's not the size that's the problem. Its the closeness together.

Thank you very much! 😊👍

I've never experienced any latency or lag whatsoever when using CV commections instead of MIDI. It's just as quick and responsive, if not more. 👍

+Haut Strange Both synths seemed very promising since the beginning... ultiimately I decided on the SE-02. I really love the boutique form factor... and it seemed to offer a lot more features for the money. What I do really like about the Behringer D is the patch points. It's always fun to cross patch semi-modular Synths. So what is leading more towards the Behringer?

littleBIGsynths Yeah I do love the patch storage on the SE02 and the sequencer looks fun. I have the new Boutique d05 and it honestly has the funniest sequencer I've ever played. If that one is anything like it, I'm sure it's fantastic. The main things that have me leaning towards the Model D is price, patch points, and slightly larger knobs. It's a tough choice as both sound amazing. One on hand you get a sequencer, analog delay, and preset storage, and on the other you get patch points and a lot of similar features for $200 less. I may end up going with the SE02 just because it'll play well with my d05. Who knows haha. Edit: I also love that the Model D is eurorack compatible as I'm looking to build a small modular rack as well.

Me as well. Plus the se 02 knobs are SO close together.

+Martin Garro Thank you very much! :) I'm not too familiar with the OP-1, but I believe it is able to sync with the Pocket Operators... which means it should be able to sync with the SE-02. (In theory) lol

Hahaha I've never heard of that band before. But I just listened to one of their songs and o can totally hear what you mean! Lol 🤘😜

Thank you very much! ✌😁

I could certainly do a tutorial video on this! It should be fairly easy to do. I will work on it real soon. 👍

littleBIGsynths Great! I’m really looking forward to it!

Working on the video... should be up in a few days. 🙂 Stay tuned!

littleBIGsynths Awesome! Thanks so much!

+Ramon Solorio The song is just a free song I found on RU-vid, called "we're finally landing" by HOME. ;) Yeah, I totally forgot about my soundcloud account. Lol I am going to add a bunch of new stuff there asap... It's been awhile. :)

+biegalex Thank You! :) I found the song on youtube... it's titled, "HOME - We're Finally Landing". (Synthwave from Royalty Free Planet) Glad you enjoyed the video. :D

I believe it does... but I would have to try it out to be sure. 🤔

Shows up in Ableton Live 10 as "SE-02". Should work in any DAW.

+Hidden Octave Thank you! :) Yes. The MIDI out also works as a midi thru by default. This is a very useful feature. It makes it easy to chain multiple synths together without the need of an external THRU box. ;)

+Stashy All of the delay sounds are from the SE-02. The Reverb sounds are from a Boss RV-6 Reverb pedal. :)

littleBIGsynths can you use the volca to trigger the se02 sequencer? Or are you using it the other way around?

+Paddy Carser +Paddy Carser Hey! For best results, it's best to use the SE-02 as the master clock to sync the Volcas. You can use it the other way around and still be synced, but the Volcas will run all 16 steps while the SE-02 only complete 8. Hope that makes sense. Lol :)

littleBIGsynths Yeh I get you! I'll have a play around with it, thanks

+Paddy Carser sweet! Yeah, if you use the SE-02 as the master... you can adjust the sequence scale from 1/16, 1/8 or 1/4... each will give you different results for syncing volcas

I absolutely love mine. I actually sold my Moog Sub 37 and used some of the funds to buy the SE-02 and I do not regret it whatsoever. I'd love to get a 2nd one.

I believe you are referring to the Behringer XENYX 802 👍

+OrganGrindersSwing Thank You! :) You know what... I'm not actually sure. Lol I will have to look and see. Lol Studio Electronics is in the USA, Roland is Japanese, but... it could still possibly have b3en manufactured in China.

Hi! The song is, HOME - "We're Finally Landing". 🙂👍🏻

Thanks!@@littleBIGsynths

Yes! Bass from the SE-02 and the lead melody is from the JU-06. 😉👍

+Anthony Papavassiliou Hey! Cool! The SE-02 is great! :) Congrats. In order to hear the Volca through the SE-02, you have to: Create a 16 step sequence with 1 long sustained note. (16 steps TIED together). This will open the sequence gate and allow the audio to pass through. From there, you can apply delay, filter, feedback, etc. This seems a bit complicated, but as soon as you learn your way around the sequencer... it will be much easier. Check out my tutorial on "How to use the Audio Input on the Korg Electribe 2". Different device... but similar concept. ;)

Thanks a lot! I'm going to try that ^^

+Anthony Papavassiliou Cool! :) I also forgot to mention that you should also turn down the levels down on all of the Oscillators so that you hear the external input sounds only.

Hello :) So I tried to do what you said and it was a semi success: I could not fill the 16 notes and make them tied (I don't know the synth very well yet) so I found a workaround by limiting the sequence to 1 note at low tempo + glide. So thank you haha! What I can say from this experience is that I'm actually a bit disappointed by the sequencer: I wish I could play naturally with my keyboard while it records. I wished too that when the clock is sync with an eternal source I could modify the rhythmic scale. I don't like that much either to use the SE-02 as an effect box since it is quite limited and you cannot really use it like you want at the same time (better to use an effect pedal with the volca then ^^). That being said, the synth in itself is totally awesome and I'm currently controlling it with my Beatstep Pro for the sequencing and it is perfect like that ^^

I've got an SE-02 paired with a JX-03. good combo so the newer JU-o6 will be a great combo.

JU-06 or SH-01a would both be great for that synthwave sound I'm sure. 👍 I have both and I friggin love them. I have the JU-06, but there is a newer (JU-06a) version that might be worth checking out as well. 👍 Thanks for watching. 🙂

​@@littleBIGsynths Whoa, thanks for the very helpful reply. I'll def. take a look at them. I'm in the middle of researching my first synth, luckily not in hurry, so yeah. I really want to get into the whole NewRetroWave Movement, reviving the sound of the 80s, where people weren't afraid of cheesy and catchy melodies.

Yeah, no problem at all! 👊 I totally feel you on the cheesy melody thing. Haha I am a sucker for a good melody. Lol Yeah, I have a few jams with those 80s vibes. You should check them out. I tend to use Volcas for most of my jams, but I will also occasionally use the SH-01a and JU-06 as well. Check these out. You might enjoy them. Let me know what you think 🙂👍 ru-vid.com/video/%D0%B2%D0%B8%D0%B4%D0%B5%D0%BE-eblefoDDAzM.html ru-vid.com/video/%D0%B2%D0%B8%D0%B4%D0%B5%D0%BE-MJekTp6T7tQ.html

@@littleBIGsynths Yes, this exactly! Those tracks of yours sound so awesome. I might actually get myself a Volca keys as a very first synth and start from there (KORG-DS10 on the Nintendo DS is still awesome, for what it is, but time to get into the real stuff). Btw. stumbled upon this Gem recently, could be up your valley: Lama - Nineteen Ninety Three (1983)

The sound coming out of a synth really depends on the sound designer using it

No. The Volcas arent equipped with MIDI OUT. 😕 Would have been cool though lol. Thanks for watching. 🙂

+Daniel Rios It's a cool "free" song that I found on RU-vid. I think it is called "Home- were finally landing".

I would buy it instantly!! (if from a reliable seller).

Yess!! I'm still using mine, 3 years later... and still blown away with the sound. This is a monster analog synth with a tiny footprint. 👍

HOME - Were finally landing ru-vid.com/video/%D0%B2%D0%B8%D0%B4%D0%B5%D0%BE-eGigHoRQATs.html 👍

Yes. However, 1 note per step. Therefore 16 steps per each individual sequence. But, you can have 8 (i think) different sequences tied together ("Song Mode", IIRC).

+dave concepts Sweet! :) How ya liking the D-05?

I love it....soo different...over 380 patches a mean....and the seq also good :)

+dave concepts Totally agree. :) Great value for the money... and doesn't take up a bunch of space. ;) lol

The sounds are phenomenally phat!! 😄👍 ... but you would have to play one for yourself to experience it. Videos dont always do them justice. Lol

littleBIGsynths thanks,yeah youtube can't be a reference really but a good starting point.

BOTH!!!! 😎 lol Honestly, they are both pretty different. I own both and they both have their own characteristics that make them unique. The SH-01a is a great synth with a nice and simple interface. It also has a poly mode, so you can play chords.... so if you want chords or layered melodies, then for sure the SH-01 has an advantage in that aspect. However, if you dont really need polyphony, the SE-02 is totally a more "powerful" synth in my opinion: 3 VCOs, 2 envelope generators, cross modulation, flexible sequencer, on-board delay, drive/feedback circuit and so much more! Besides, you get REAL analog goodness... 😉👍lol

+o c It has glide (portamento), linear and exponential. It also has a key retrig for the envelop and the LFO. ;) It's a very handy little synth.

+The surreal McCoy This thing pack a a major punch with a way smaller price tag. ;) Try one out on some good speakers... You won't be disappointed. Lol This thing shakes walls haha