Analogue Solutions unveils Series 700, a recreation of the Roland System 700

British manufacturer Analogue Solutions has introduced the Series 700, a large-format analog modular synthesizer that reproduces the circuitry, layout and physical dimensions of Roland’s System 700, first released in 1976. According to Synthtopia, the system is now in production, with orders taken directly by the company.

Analogue Solutions says it rebuilt the circuits from the original schematics, changing parts only where components are no longer available. Custom knobs and slider caps, along with specially ordered switches and potentiometers, are meant to match the look and feel of the 1970s instrument.

The Series 700 comes in six blocks: a main synthesizer block with three VCOs, a ring modulator, a noise generator, multimode and low-pass filters, two VCAs and dual envelopes; a VCO expansion block adding six more oscillators; a three-channel, 12-step analog CV sequencer; a filter and VCA block; an interface and mixer block with four multimode filters; and an effects block with a two-channel phase shifter and a two-channel audio delay. Buyers can order the full system or build it up block by block, though individual loose modules are not sold.

The main addition to the original design is a basic single-channel MIDI-to-CV converter, aimed mainly at syncing the sequencer with modern MIDI gear. An optional keyboard based on the Roland 701, with four channels of polyphonic CV, MIDI in and out and velocity CV output, is in development, and its release depends on demand.