hello
daft place to ask this question probably, but can anyone give me fairly unbiased advice on this please, especially if you have had either of these in the past:
i have a Roland SH101 and Roland SH09, both mint, both very good. i was going to sell one or the other, but then i thought i might just sell both and get a Voyager. i can’t afford just to buy a Voyager without selling these.
i know the Voyager has patch memory and midi control but would i be missing out on anything from the Rolands? i ask because whilst i was comparing the SH101 and the SH09 it struck me that although they are more or less the same layout they do sound quite different. is the Voyager fatter than both of these?! would getting a Voyager open up my musical (monophonic) world?!!
thanks
ted
Selling synths to buy new synths is always tricky, because no two sound alike. I got rid of my Novation Bass Station when I bought my Voyager, and I kind of regret it. The Novation’s filter has the capability for some really gurgly, degraded gritty sounds that I just can’t get out of the Voyager.
Keep in mind that if I HAD to sell the Novation to get the Moog, I wouldn’t have thought twice about it–I LOVE my Voyager more than any piece of gear I’ve ever owned. I just regret having sold a synth I didn’t really need to sell just because I assumed there was no need to have two mono analog synths.
Hi there. I’ll try to be as unbiased as I can. I think it’s a good idea to sell these two for a voyager for a few logical reasons. First, the two Rolands have only one vco each so right away rich swirling timbres are almost impossible to get unless using some pwm and even then it won’t match a 3 slightly detuned vcos patch.
The modulation possibilities on the Voyager are much more versatile than on any of the two Rolands. So you could enjoy discovering new sounds never heard on your Rolands before.
One thing missing on Voyager would be the arpeggiator of the SH-101. Not a big deal since the voyager is MIDI equipped and can be played by other synths or PC software.
Don’t get me wrong here, the Rolands do sound great. But they have a Roland sound, which could be described as mellow, controlled, well mannered, even when the filter is pushed into self-oscillation.
The Voyager has a typical Moog sound, because of the shape of the waveforms of the vcos, the behaviour of the Moog Ladder Filter, and could be described as creamy, full, sometimes aggressive, silly.
In fact, the Rolands and the Moog would complement each other well in an analog synth set-up. But having to choose between those, I’d personally go for the Moog.
But just to be clear, if you had a Roland System 700 and were thinking of selling it for a Voyager, I’d say NO.
My 2 cents on it.
Would you end up regretting the choice to get rid of the Roland synths? Do you still use them both, and would you still see yourself using them in the future? Ask yourself those kinds of questions. If you think you would still be using them down the road, you should hold on to them and save for the Voyager. If they are just collecting dust, then it would be alright to let go of them 
You will be endlessly pleased with the Voyager. It has yet to disappoint me.
I still use my JX3-p along with the Voyager. The fact it is polyphonic helps some, but the filter of the Roland is very different than the Moog and I like and use both sounds.
Personally, I’d sell the SH09 and save up the rest of the money up for a Voyager. You can use your 101 as a keytar bass and they do have a certain techodaft chic to them.
I myself would not go for an Old School Voyager as I like all the bells and whistles the others have. You already have machines without MIDI, do you need or want more? That said, I can get a new OS for around 2175 USD. Other Voyagers tend to be around 2500-2800 used. (Although deals can be found!)
YMMV
I haven’t played the '09, but I have the 101 and a Voyager.
Totally different beasts. Like the others say, the Moog excels at creamy, fat bass and complexly modulated leads/FX etc.
The 101 sound, IMO, can’t really be beat for “acid” sounds, i.e. that Roland square-wave bass which goes to really reedy PWM. The filter is useful/effective, and if you’re technically inclined you can add mods to it.
I personally have it running sequences/arps (while I finish my MIDIBox!) and play Moog bass underneath. The parameters are really easy to edit; it’s kind-of like my “old school” synth. 
thanks very much for all your replies, all very good and interesting 
i like the SH09 for its super deep bass - especially using the invert envelope (i think that’s what it is, its not in front of me right now), although the sound possibilities are a bit one-dimensional i.e. it makes about 3 sounds, but they are all good. and yes, the SH101 has this twangy thing going on which is very nice, but actually i’ve also got a Jupiter 6 and i find that makes very good Roland acid twangs too!
one thing, would you say that for deep rounded heavyweight bass that the voyager is The King of the synths?
I have an SH-101, and I have spent some hours on the Voyager. My first reaction: The 101 will sound much more thin than the Voyager but it does have the arpeggiator as mentioned already.
I think the Voyager far surpasses what the 101 can do, but the 101 is a beast that is known for a very specific range of sounds. The range is tweaked to the point where almost any of the settings will sound good. The Voyager has a much greater flexibility, but doesn’t automatically sound fabulous no matter what setting. That being said, I think the Voyager can make many more wonderful sounds than the 101 could ever make if you have the patience to tweak and learn. The presets counteract this and offer patches that sound good as a starting point (as well as offering a way to save your work). The 101 is CV and Gate where as the Voyager offers a vast amount of interfacing options and can work with a modern computer studio or an analog mad scientist studio just as easily. Combine it with the expansions and you have CV In/Out that make it very modular. The Mooger Foogers add even more abilities, so your setup can always be extended and it will offer way more possibilities.
I haven’t played on the SH-09, so I can’t help you there.
I personally want to have at least one or two synths from every major manufacturer. I have come to understand that each of these filters have their own approach and personality that add to their sound. I wouldn’t sell both of your Roland Synths to pay for a Voyager, but I can see how it would greatly expand your studio and sonic pallete. I don’t envy that choice, good luck.
used to own both a 09 and 101, they definitely held a place in my heart, the 09 especially, that thing is a bass machine, classic roland filters. 101 is unique too as it’s like a 303 and a 09 kinda smashed together in terms of it’s filter sound.
all that said though, I’d get a Voyager in a heartbeat over both of them. Voyager can do much more, sound similar (to the 09, less the 101,) and have more cv and audio inputs/outs than the two combined.