A Gearspace forum member, Connor Zheng, came up with this new design for an SR-JV expansion board that can load any image of either an existing or custom-made SR-JV board for Roland rompler synthesizers without the need for cables or additional interfaces. You literally do it using Wi-Fi. A similar product exists from Sector 101; however, this is, in my opinion, a more elegant solution as it does not require and of the cables or the pricy Sector 101 Programmer. Plus it is much cheaper. However, keep in mind with the SR-JV80 Wi-Fi you can not dump your existing SR-JV cards, you need Sector 101’s Programmer.
Roland’s SR-JV80 expansion boards were a game-changer for musicians and producers in the 1990s and early 2000s. Originally designed and programmed for JV-80 synthesizer and later post 1995 versions for Super JV series, these PCM-based expansion boards added a vast range of high-quality sounds, from orchestral ensembles to vintage synths and world instruments.
Each board focused on a specific genre or instrument type. Classics like SR-JV80-04 Vintage Synth delivered iconic analog emulations, while SR-JV80-02 Orchestral provided lush strings and cinematic textures. The SR-JV80-09 Session was a go-to for studio musicians, packed with versatile pianos, basses, and drums.
Though digital synth technology has evolved, these expansion boards remain sought after by collectors and nostalgic producers. Their distinctive character and warm PCM samples still hold up, proving that great sounds never go out of style.
Preparing The Roland JV-80 Synthesizer
I was actually the first to purchase this board, hence I ended up with serial number 0001. To avoid any embarrassing moments, I’ve decided to restore the aging power supply of my JV-80 to ensure all voltages are correct and to extend the lifespan of this uniquely sounding Roland synthesizer. Out with the old:
In with the new:
The battery was near its end of life, so it was replaced as well:
Testing The Board
I have a total of 5 SR-JV80 boards: Pop, World, Super Sound Set, Orchestral and Vintage. While waiting for the board to arrive, I’ve borrowed Sector 101’s card reader from a friend and dumped card’s contents into .BIN files. Kindly: do not ask me for these BIN files—I do not support piracy. If you want to dump your existing SR-JV card, simply borrow Sector 101’s Programmer card reader from someone or ask someone who has one to dump the card for you.
With the binary files available, it was time to insert this new card into my JV-80 and upload the fresh content. Of course, I chose the Vintage Card. Because now I will be having two, I can directly record both the JV-80 and JV-1080 at the same time and compare their sonic differences—of which there will be plenty due to their different filters and effect algorithms. Important thing to keep in mind, all of the pre 1995 SR-JV boards were designed and programmed exclusively for Roland JV-80 synthesizer which is why the only way to properly hear these cards is to have the actual JV-80 synth. On any of the later Super JV series they will sound different, in some situations even unpleasant.
I plan to do sonic difference test in the future as I own JV-80, JV-1080 and JD-990. Ideally, I would have a total of three Vintage Cards cards so that I could also test how this board sounds in all three (JD-990 can natively import JV-80 patches). But even with two, it’s not a problem I can record everything into MIDI and repeat the test once I place the card into the JD-990.
In any case, we will eventually know how this board sounds in all three synths. Fortunately, there is another dedicated bank just for the JD-990 on the Vintage board, so if you find the JV-80 patches to sound mediocre in JD-990, don’t worry—they weren’t programmed for the JD-990 to begin with and simply move to the JD section of the card.
It’s go time! I’ve connected to the card’s Wi-Fi using my phone and did some basic configuration, like changing the Wi-Fi ID and mode. These steps aren’t necessary—the card works right out of the box—but I wanted to tweak things a bit.
One thing I should point out, since I have a first-batch card, there was a small compatibility issue with the JV-80 and JV-880 (which likely affects the JV-90 and JV-1000 as well). A minor modification was required, which I performed. If you’re buying a card now, there’s nothing to worry about—the first batch is sold out, and the second batch has this issue corrected at the factory. You can ignore this section, but I’m mentioning it just in case someone ends up with a first-batch card. The fix was simple: desoldering one component and attaching a single wire.
Now for the moment of truth. I reset the card and connected to it via my phone, selected the Vintage Card binary I dumped yesterday, pressed upload, and patiently waited. After a few minutes, the board status changed—it was no longer empty. The Vintage Card was now in my JV-80!
Time to restart the card and power down the synth. A few seconds later, the machine rebooted, and the card worked perfectly. I’m now browsing the presets from the Vintage Card!
Where To Get The Card
At the moment of writing this the first batch is sold out. It would be best to reach to the designer via this link or ask folks at the Gearspace forum in this thread.
