New: Roland Boutique SE-02 Analogue Synth

Roland have teamed up with US synth makers Studio Electronics to produce a new analogue synth, the first product in the new Boutique Designer series.

Enter the Roland Boutique SE-02 Analogue Synth. This instrument delivers a distinctly vintage sound that could only come from true analogue circuitry. The new SE-02 packs an array of programming options, high-quality knobs and switches and a uniquely creative on-board sequencer, all of which delivers massive tone and texture with expressive hands-on control.

The SE-02's monophonic engine features three oscillators, a voltage-controlled 24 dB low-pass filter, and a dual gain-stage amplifier. The oscillators have six different kinds of waveforms with the warmth and complex character associated with true analogue VCOs. What’s more, the VCOs are temperature stabilised with automatic tuning, so you get all the benefits and none of the downsides.

The SE-02 at a glance

As you can see from the photos, despite its small size, everything is hands-on and knob-per-function, with deep control and a logical, intuitive layout. To get started, you can choose from 384 expertly programmed preset sounds that cover a wide range of classic and modern tones. Tweak and modify these sounds or create something completely new, storing your own custom creations in the 128 available user locations.

The new Roland SE-02 includes a powerful 16-step sequencer to add motion and dimension to your sounds. There’s also all the connectivity options that you would expect, for example it can sync to external tempo via MIDI, USB, or trigger input, and per-step gate time, adjustable glide, tempo, and patch number are stored with each sequence. Creative performance features allow you to set shuffle, scale, direction, and first/last steps on the fly. Even synth parameters can be automated by sequencing changes—just press a step and move a control.

Connectivity options on the SE-02

Tone-wise, the Roland SE-02 is big and bold, with thick, rich lows and clear, vibrant highs—exactly what you think of when you imagine classic vintage synth tone. And while the SE-02 can create astonishingly great vintage sounds, it can do so much more. It has three types of cross modulation (XMOD), a ripping filter feedback loop, a tempo-syncing LFO with nine waveforms, envelope sweeping and inverting, oscillator sync, a noise generator, and a tempo-syncing delay.

Because it is part of Roland’s Boutique family, it fits in their K-25m or DK-01 accessory docks, so you can add an integrated 25-key mini keyboard as well as having various tilt options for easy access in a variety of live and studio situations. And as with other Roland Boutique synths, Chain Mode lets you increase the polyphony by connecting two or more SE-02 units together via MIDI.

The Roland SE-02 Analogue Synthesizer is available to pre-order now, just click here

Features of the Roland SE-02

• Size (mm): 300 x 128 x 46
• Discrete analog circuitry with knob-per-function interface
• Three voltage controlled oscillators with six waveforms
• Temperature-stabilized oscillators with automatic tuning
• 24 dB low-pass filter and dual gain-stage amplifier
• Three types of cross modulation (XMOD), feedback loop, and noise generator
• Tempo-syncing LFO with nine waveforms
• Tempo-syncing digital delay with bypass to maintain analog signal path
• Save and recall sounds with 384 preset and 128 user locations
• Musical and intuitive pattern sequencer with song mode
• Sequence notes, gate time, glide, and synth parameters
• CV, VCF CV and gate inputs, plus trigger in/out
• External Input for routing audio through the SE-02’s filter section
• Standard MIDI, USB-MIDI, and USB-Audio
• Create a polyphonic synth by using Chain Mode to connect two or more SE-02s together via MIDI