Review: Roland Aira Series (T-8, J-6, and E-4)

You might not believe it, but if you're older than 19, you can probably identify exactly what a classic, high-end Juno synth sounds like. If you're craving that vintage sound, you can still find it by haggling with weirdos on Craigslist and repairing ancient circuitry, but it will cost you in money, time, and possibly aggravation.

Not any longer: Small, affordable, rechargeable, and portable, Roland’s new Aira synth line includes the T-8 drum machine, J-6 synth, and E-4 vocal processor. You can sync them up without a laptop to perform live or use them with an audio interface to record classic-sounding hits. Together they cost less than a Macbook Air.

The democratization of music production gear is nothing new. Top 10 singles have been crafted in bedrooms and home studios for decades, and producers like Finneas are making hits with gear that costs as much as a single day's studio rental did in the early 1980s. The Aira is just the latest line to step into the land of old-school synths, drums, and vocoders for less than the price of a Walkman off eBay.

Roland Aira T-8

Photograph: Roland

The T-8, J-6, and E-4 come in compact plastic cases with orange, blue, and pink backs. A small USB-C port behind each synth acts as a charging port (you can get about four hours of battery life if you want to take these off-grid) with 3.5-mm midi in and out ports beside it.

On top of each unit are two 3.5-mm sync ports (in and out, for pairing with other units in time) and mix in-and-out ports for sending audio through all three units without a mixer. It's a nice touch that lets you play them all at once. On the upper right of each unit is a volume knob, which is small but oddly satisfying to turn.

Below that, they become their own distinct digital instruments. I won’t get into how to use them (Roland's excellent manuals and a few YouTube videos will take you further than I can in a few hundred words), but here’s what they do.

The T-8 acts as a 32-step sequencing drum machine, much like the classic Roland 808 (read: Kanye West’s favorite drum machine) but with more sounds. It has controls for bass drum, snare, hi-hat, toms, and hand claps. You can also add a bass or keyboard line. If you like the sound of ’80s radio beats, you’ll find those here, as well as more than enough tuning and customization features to write EDM, indie, hip hop, pop, and other beats with ease.

Roland Aira J-6

Photograph: Roland

The J-6 is essentially a compact version of Roland’s iconic Juno synth. You can step sequence different lines, create chord progressions, and mess with envelope filtering until you find the perfect sound. Pair that with the E-4 vocal processing unit, which includes harmony and pitch adjustments as well as a vocoder function, and you'll be making your own Drive soundtrack in no time.

You can also use each individual instrument on its own: for example, if you need to add a synth to your analog drums or a drum machine to play with your guitar. I spent the better part of my first week with the Aira line messing with atmospheric vocal sounds, arpeggiated synths, and classic krautrock drums. They sound impressive, with a ton of fidelity for tiny, portable instruments. It's shocking how close they sound to “real” vintage synths.

But you'll have the most fun when you chain them up, either via midi cables or the “sync” in and out ports. Using the sync ports along with the “mix” in and out ports, you can daisy-chain the units without an outboard mixer or digital audio workstation and hear them all at once. It makes it very easy to jam, which aids in songwriting. Using these three synths, a Bluetooth speaker, and a guitar, I was able to brainstorm song ideas down to the drum beat, all without having to use more than my phone as a recorder.

In the demo below I got a bit more advanced, making a drum beat, Juno chords, and vocal chain separately then combining them on the recording, which let me sweep through sound options and filters more readily. Creating a song like this one—live, and without overdubs—would be easy thanks to the T-8 and J-6’s ability to record and play back loops.

The E-4 vocal effects processor is the one I struggle with the most to find sounds that are actually usable and not just atmospheric. That said, it works effectively as a basic mic channel with reverb thanks to Roland’s excellent DSP and the inclusion of an accessible slider for reverb. I also like the pitch control, which can turn you into a giant troll or tiny pixie depending on where you tilt the slider. One annoying thing? The unit has only a ¼-inch jack for a microphone, which means you’ll need an XLR adapter if you want to use any standard studio mic.

Roland Aira E-4

Photograph: Roland

You’ll also need a surprising amount of cabling (not included) to get all these elements chatting with one another and with a computer to record. If you buy more than one unit you'll need an assortment of 3.5-mm cables, and if you want to record you’ll need to adapt the stereo 3.5 mm to whatever your audio interface uses. I got RCA to ¼-inch adapters and used an old RCA cable from my iPod days to split it to the left-right signal on my PreSonus interface.

But picking up some extra cabling and adapters is a small price to pay for these songwriting tools. I love that I can throw these in a backpack and take them anywhere—even into the woods—to find some musical inspiration. Couple that with a portable recorder and a decent pair of headphones, and you’ve got yourself a tiny digital studio that Phil Collins would have admired in 1982.