Roland D-10: it's everywhere! (almost)

The first ‘real’ synthesizer I ever used was a Roland D-5 – it blew me away. Inevitably, the D-5 was soon stolen from our school and replaced by a D-10. I used this synth for various projects until I left school in the early 90’s

The D-10 isn’t the poor man's D-50 as its name would suggest; the two were very different machines. In fact it is a shame the D-10 has the ‘D’ prefix at all. The D-10 was a kind of early multi-timbral ROMpler that Roland began to perfect with the JV series in the 90’s. Even though it wasn’t much of a synthesis tool (changing the presets would incur a severe reprimand at our school) the D-10 had some nice sounds and was easy to operate.

Many years later when I had left school, I bought a second hand D-10 as it was familiar and, by then, cheap. Yet, I never really heard the D-10 presets on records and found I couldn’t quite get the sound I wanted from it (I was listening to lots of dance music in the early 90’s). I assumed the D-10 was just too ‘cheap’ for professional musicians and that I needed something more modern. I parted company with the D-10 around 2001 and haven’t missed it at all.

However, in recent years I am hearing the D-10 everywhere. Electronics’ “Lean to the inside” is almost completely Roland D-10 presets (actually a D-110 in this case) and the song "Idiot Country" features the Jamisen sound. 808 State used it for the lead sound on ‘In yer face’ and used various other sounds less prominently on their "Ex:el" album in 1991 (lots of Korg M1 and D50 on there too). The title track from Tangerine Dream's album "Lily on the Beach" features the drums and the preset HarmoPan and there are several other presets scattered around the album.

The most prominent use of the D-10 is probably by Mike Oldfield; his album “Earth Moving” features the D-10 on almost every song. Listening to the track “Innocent” I realise the drums, bass, and various other bits are all D-10 presets. I am at a loss as to why I never noticed the use of these sounds before.

The D-10 will never be a classic, but it was used by recording artists and there is evidence to prove it. So a synthesizer I dismissed as terrible (but one of few I could afford) is undergoing a re-appraisal.

Where is my phone? I need to look at my eBay app.

 

UPDATE MARCH 2023 - I've added a couple of other tracks I have noticed feature the D-10 and I have also recently acquired a D-110