I know this is not really LP related… But I am looking at something to accompany my LP… Locally I found a Roland Juno 60 in great condition for 750$… But I’ve also thought about grabbing the DSI Tetra…
I always trust the opinions of people here.. generally just trust the opinions of Moog lovers… y’all know where it’s at. So just seeing if I can get some advice or opinions on the pros/cons of these 2 great synths?
Thanks a lot as always.
Steven.
I’ve owned both, they are both fantastic polysynths. Juno 60 is considerably less manueverable in the modulation dept, but it does have that noisey, warm, sloppy chorus in it that is nigh impossible to recreate. I ended up selling this as I didn’t want to deal with repairs, but they are actually pretty easy to fix from what I hear, so not a bad investment in the least. No MIDI, but you get PWM modulation, which the 106 is lacking.
The Tetra: Holy balls it’s incredible, everyone should own one. TONS of modulation, 4-part multitimbral synth craziness, sounds awesome. Some people say they don’t like the new Prophet sound, but I think it’s great, and the editor is very easy to use. USB MIDI doesn’t work well though, use the MIDI I/O.
Here’s a couple demos I made for the Tetra:
http://soundcloud.com/ctrlshft/tetra-bass-demo
http://soundcloud.com/ctrlshft/tetra-4partmultis-demo
Hmm your right about the maintenance issue. I feel that way about buying any used vintage synth.. if it’s been polished up and works perfectly, than its fine, but any less than that makes me and my wallet cringe. I’m not that guy that would pop the back off and try and fix it myself, I’d most likely have to pay a ton of money to someone who only knows half of what they are doing to repair it.
The Tetra definately has that one sealed. Brand new. No doubt. But the Juno 60 definately has that wicked sound to it.. everytime I hear a demo or vid of it so far, I’m hearing something I want.
$750 sounds a bit steep for a Juno 60. Has the seller replaced the Lithium backup battery recently?
If you do get the Juno 60, here’s a link to a webpage that contains links to download the default factory voice banks (A & B) that can be loaded into the synth, just in case. The page also has instructions on how to do it.
http://www.synthmania.com/juno-60.htm
Merry Christmas!
Bob
I concur, I paid 465 for mine 4 years ago. Vintage analogs have gone way up in price acrossed the board though, I got my MS-20 in 2004 for 825, it’s about twice that now last time I looked. Chalk it up to a resurgence in interest with analog synthesizers. Moog and DSI have really changed awareness I think. 
Way steep on the 60. I would say $550 tops. If it has been fully serviced recently a bit more maybe. They can still be found for $400. No midi on the 60, but you get a nice set of keys. I have not played a tetra, I looks way sweet though. I would geuss the 60 would provide more instant happiness; while the tretra has lots of depth with a weak interface. Also the tetra may have bigger balls.
Yeah I would def say any Juno 60 that much should come with a one year/10,000 mile warranty! 
Juno 60 does have midi, there’s a roland and a Kenton DCB to MIDI converter to add midi control. Its a great synth no doubt..somewhat limited but for bread and butter sounds, its just fantastic for the price.
I wouldn’t pay anymore than 5 bills for one though.
the New prophet sound is quite meek in comparison to old analogs. It’s just weak and mickey mouse. The mono version with the sub osc sounds a bit better to me but still, theres way better out there. As far as features the DSI stuff is CHOCK FULL. so u can realize a lot of interesting sounds, but as far as sounds that require warmth and balls or punch, projection and roundness etc. Its just not there.
Do you have a stage II?
You might really appreciate an upgrade, and then couple that with the CV out mod.
Im suprised more people aren’t immediately reccomending the tetra.
You might also consider the doepfer Dark Energy, soon to be supplimented with the Dark Time Sequencer. They really resemble the Foogers (I suspect they lurk these forums looking at our designs.)
Eric
while it’s definitely more aggro sounding, and less buttery moog sounding, the rest of that is just not true.. the envs are punchy as hell and you can definitely get warmth and balls, you just need to dial down the features to something closer to what a monosynth uses to make those sounds. Anyone who has actually programmed with the Tetra should be able to attest to this.
$750 is mega steep for a Juno.
I’ve got the 60 and the 106, and a Prophet '08, though I’ve only messed with the Tetra in the store.
If you want the polyphonic stuff to compliment the LP, the Tetra’s decent but it might be wise to save up for a Prophet rack. Or, get a Juno, but not at that price.
I dug the Tetra, but it wouldn’t be my first choice if I wanted to play chords and stuff, that’s all.
Yeah that’s about twice as much as I paid for my 60. If you buy a 60 keep change spare because there will be on going costs! Also, you can’t travel around too easy, they’re massive and heavy!