The Alpha Junos were a departure from their predecessor, the Roland Juno-106, as they replaced the dedicated controls with soft touch buttons and a single dial for programming sounds.

[4] The Alpha Juno synthesizers feature a multi-stage envelope design that includes eight parameters, encompassing four timing settings, three levels, and a key follow function.

It has the same synth engine and architecture, with some added features like 16 programmable chord memories, and the ability to store velocity, volume, panning, de-tune, portamento and other similar parameters within each patch.

[6] A factory preset called "WhatThe" became popular in jungle and rave music, earning the moniker "Hoover sound" due to its distinctive pitch modulation effect.

Early examples of the Hoover sound include "Dominator" by Human Resource, "Mentasm" by Second Phase and "Charly (Alley Cat Mix)" by The Prodigy, all released in 1991.