There’s also D16 Group’s LuSH-101, Togu Audio Line’s TAL-Bassline-101, or their free version, TAL-Bassline. Roland themselves offer their software recreation of the SH-101 as part of the Roland Cloud subscription service. Today’s would-be 101 user can go directly to the source. Great for leads and not bad at sound FX, the SH-101 is most famous as a source for solid bass sounds and engaging sequenced passages.

Sequences could be transposed from the instrument’s keyboard. The intuitive built-in sequencer was a gem, allowing users to step-enter notes to be played back at the LFO’s clock rate. This composite waveform was plumbed through a squelchy, self-oscillating 24dB resonant filter that could be modulated by a single LFO, the lone ADSR, and the keyboard. Additionally, though it produced only saw, pulse and noise waveforms, they - along with the aforementioned sub oscillator - were accessed not by a switch, but by a mixer panel that allowed any and all to be mixed into a single, complex waveform. One would have expected a flimsy sound from this single-oscillator synth, yet the SH-101 sounded thick, full and punchy thanks to the inclusion of a sub oscillator. Roland SH-101Ī surprising hit at a time when digital synths were ‘the next big thing’, the SH-101 packed a ton of power beneath a plastic case that came in a choice of red, grey, or blue. If you’re on a tight budget, an online search reveals many free variants, the most (in)famous of which is likely to be Steinberg’s Model-E, one of the very first commercial VST instrument plugins. Needless to say, then, it’s been widely cloned in virtual form, most notably in Arturia’s Mini V, Native Instruments’ Monark and Synapse Audio’s The Legend, all of which have been around for yonks and come as close to the sound of the original Minimoog as one vintage unit might come to another! The Minimoog is among the most imitated synths in the world, with new knock-offs appearing even today. Moog recognised the attraction and eventually designed a dedicated bass synth - the Taurus - with a built-in set of foot pedals. Though designed as a simplified all-rounder capable of leads and effects, musicians the world over have gravitated toward the Minimoog as a source of bass sounds. Add to that two simple yet punchy envelope generators, and expressive left-hand controllers, and you have a recipe for some high-calorie, meaty sounds. Moog built the perfect storm in the Mini, with its three (slightly unstable) oscillators, legendary 24dB/octave transistor ladder filter and, crucially, the ability to route the headphone output back through the filter section for added drive.

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