Tatsu Ishikawa
Software Synthesizer Interface Design JE-8086 by The Usual Suspects2026
 Interface redesign for JE-8086, an open source software synthesizer that emulates the legendary Roland JP-8000 and JP-8080, famous for their iconic SuperSaw sound, through reverse engineering the original DSP processor for bit-accurate chip-level emulation—meaning the sound isn't just similar to the original, it's perfectly identical.

While the original interface follows what most music production plugins do—a skeuomorphic approach mimicking classic hardware—I aimed to bring contemporary design language to the field with minimalJE, focusing on clarity and usability while respecting the original hardware aesthetic. Working within the plugin's RmlUI framework, minimalJE uses contemporary typography, colour palette, and clean spacing for greater immediacy. The logo was redrawn to reflect the new name while preserving the distinctive character of the original letterforms.

minimalJE is available to download here. Learn more about the JE-8086 synthesizer at The Usual Suspects.
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