Another thread with questions about drum machines.

[myrrh]

So we have been using an old unnamed rhythm box with our band that is starting to fail...We also use a Boss DR-55
But need something with the possibility of more rhythms..

Any good tips on drum machines that dont require a lot of tweaking?
I like older drum machine better than new ones sound wise, so not gonna spend a lot of money on something new.

So a older, live friendly(contradictory?) and relatively simple drum machine.

Been looking into the Roland 606, that seems the most interesting so far..

[sonidero]

Roland 606 is an Electro staple so if you wanna make Electro go for it... Why not look for a newer/old Boss DR.??? They have the same sounds and you can program beats instead of just using presets... What are you gonna make with it???

[myrrh]

Mainly interested in that because of Big Black...

We´re doing something somewhere between noise, kraut with some influences from electronic music.

[space6oy]

606 isn't preset beats either. the old roland CRs are preset rhythm boxes, pretty sure the 66 is the only TR that is.

[sonidero]

Big Black used them cause at that time they were considered cheap crap and were in every pawn shop in town... The prices they go for nowadays don't justify what they are... Boss, Zoom, Alesis, or that new Akai would be worth looking into...

[myrrh]

Thanks, good to know about that 606.

The tr-66 seems nice!

Mostly interested in older analog stuff, but could you recommend one of the Boss,roland, alesis, akai ones?

[space6oy]

other than the mentioned rolands none of those are preset patterns. all have to be programmed. there are other cheap old preset machines out there though, i have one & forget who the hell made it, will get back to ya...

[myrrh]

We are also open to program stuff. I Just dont usually like the sound of most newer stuff.

[space6oy]

oh, gotcha... well none of the boss, alesis & akai are analog. the alesis SR-16 is a cheap one with some very realistic sounds though.

[sonidero]

The Boss DRs have all the Roland TR sounds built in... Alesis SR/HR-16, Akai XR-20 or a Zoom RT-SB would be ones to check out...

[myrrh]

I understood that they are not analog. Hard to explain Aesthetics/taste over internet...

I did not like how the sr 16 emulated a actual drum sound in the demo i saw, I want it to sound electronic, but not too perfect. More lo fi stuff. But maybe I could run a digital one through something to make it sound cooler.

Just looking at Mpc demos gives me a head ache.. Maybe back to watching ebay for rhythm boxes...

[Dr. Sherman Sticks M.D.]

electribe es1 is a good option and can be had for pretty cheap. load your own samples, kinda lofi sampler, 64 step sequencer, stupid easy to use.
the er1 is also another one if u want something w/ a synth engine instead for rolling your own sounds

if your gunna go preset rhythms, my favorite is the siel mdp40 or sometimes its branded as suzuki or even something else i cant remember at the moment.
dope dope rhtyhms with breaks/fill-ins/alternate patterns for each style.
the disco beat is a dead ringer for billie jean
its awesome, super fun and lofi analog drums.

[space6oy]

yeah i was gonna suggest going for a sampler instead if you're wanting lo-fi and don't mind programming. ES-1s have gotta be cheap, i have and love my ESX-1.

also far as the DRs having TR sounds, they're just emulations, it's not like they're the literal sounds of their predecessors. maybe dead on with the digitals (505, 626, 707 & 727) but not the analogs.

quick, digital versus analog, awesome! (kidding!!!)

[myrrh]

Maybe sampler is the way to go then.. Hmm a lot of thinking and demo watching the next days.

[sonidero]

Fuck a MPC and you can't go by youtube sounds you know that... There used to be a site that had all the old drum machines and you could play their sounds but I can't find it... Drum machines don't need to be analog to sound good...