Peter Kuhlmann

11-Feb-02

The RS-505 was a dedicated synth. The RS stands for Roland Strings. Stand alone it produced a harsh, shrill sounding strings. You could set it for 1 or more violins or cello's. We ran it through an EQ to fatten it up a bit. It was not touch sensitive, but did have ADSR (Attack, Decay, Sustain, Release)control.

J. Scott McClintock

20-Jan-04

Weblink: link

As stated by many others on the net, the RS-505 is primarily a "strings" synth.
The string sounds (in their various configurations) can sound thin and spacious, to
downright muscular. It's got that unmistakeable "mid-to-late 70's" analog string
sound (I believe I've heard it (or one of it's close relatives) on alot of recordings by
the group Air). It has some rudimentary synth controls (for those who really want a
ton of bleeps and blips, this is probably not your machine) but there are definitely
some fun and unique sounds in there. It's not velocity sensetive but it has a pretty
full palatte of attack, decay, release controls as well as big polyphonic capability
(not very common on most synths of this era). A little known (but very cool) feature
of the RS-505 is the ability to use its sweet sounding chorus on anything you
choose via the 1/4" dedicated jack on the back (essentially using the RS-505 as an
outboard chorus processor). Sounds great for "analoging" newer synths as well as
guitar and bass.

Mine's a tank. Heavy and big and well made. Like any older stuff, pots get dirty
and pitch can very slightly, but , all in all, a solid machine. Mine has a tendancy to
"talk" to itself when left on for a long period of time (I've actually hooked a mini-disc
recorder up to the RS-505, left it on, let it chat away with itself and recorded the
whole coversation for use as samples or loops in various projects).

That's about all I know about it. I've never seen one (besides mine) in the flesh
(although the web has some photos). I do know that, according to a 1979 Roland
retail price guide, the RS-505 listed for a whopping $ 1, 895.00. I bought mine from
a vintage guitar & instrument dealer here in Ann Arbor, MI a few years ago for
around $300 and don't regret a penny of it. It won't arpeggiate your way into the
discos but it'll out Floyd anything in it's path.

Last added comment

J. Scott McClintock

20-Jan-04

Weblink: link

As stated by many others on the net, the RS-505 is primarily a "strings" synth.
The string sounds (in their various configurations) can sound thin and spacious, to
downright muscular. It's got that unmistakeable "mid-to-late 70's" analog string
sound (I believe I've heard it (or one of it's close relatives) on alot of recordings by
the group Air). It has some rudimentary synth controls (for those who really want a
ton of bleeps and blips, this is probably not your machine) but there are definitely
some fun and unique sounds in there. It's not velocity sensetive but it has a pretty
full palatte of attack, decay, release controls as well as big polyphonic capability
(not very common on most synths of this era). A little known (but very cool) feature
of the RS-505 is the ability to use its sweet sounding chorus on anything you
choose via the 1/4" dedicated jack on the back (essentially using the RS-505 as an
outboard chorus processor). Sounds great for "analoging" newer synths as well as
guitar and bass.

Mine's a tank. Heavy and big and well made. Like any older stuff, pots get dirty
and pitch can very slightly, but , all in all, a solid machine. Mine has a tendancy to
"talk" to itself when left on for a long period of time (I've actually hooked a mini-disc
recorder up to the RS-505, left it on, let it chat away with itself and recorded the
whole coversation for use as samples or loops in various projects).

That's about all I know about it. I've never seen one (besides mine) in the flesh
(although the web has some photos). I do know that, according to a 1979 Roland
retail price guide, the RS-505 listed for a whopping $ 1, 895.00. I bought mine from
a vintage guitar & instrument dealer here in Ann Arbor, MI a few years ago for
around $300 and don't regret a penny of it. It won't arpeggiate your way into the
discos but it'll out Floyd anything in it's path.

Add a review or comment