Roland - TR8S

[Flexinoodle]

*cant post images here anymore* ?

 

Looks cool, costs too much.

These will be nice in ten years when they are £150.

[danswift]

 

https://djmag.com/content/roland-release-new-aira-tr8s-drum-machine- watch

 

Here you go Flex.

 

Hehe..I had to end up quoting my own post to add the link for some reason.

[Flexinoodle]

 

 

https://djmag.com/content/roland-release-new-aira-tr8s-drum-machine- watch

 

Here you go Flex.

 

Hehe..I had to end up quoting my own post to add the link for some reason.

Yeah the forum is mashed up at the minute lol

[DJ Rock Well]

Maybe this one is better and if you like this sort of thing, fair enough. But...

 

When the previous TR8 came out there was a Sonicstate review that included a comparison with the original machine ad I could honestly hear a clear difference (in favour of the real one) on my laptop's puny built in speakers! I've honestly got better 808 samples on my computer and apart from the hands on controls and variations of a dedicate unit, shouldn't it be making the sounds better than a sample pack you could have on any sampler or computer?

[broma]

I guess now you can load better 808 samples than the ones that come on it

[kebzer]

Its a hefty little piece, and def an upgrade from the previous one (especially the 8 outs & loadable sounds).

 

I would never compare it to the original 808, not even vs recorded samples from the 808. The og 808 & 909 are a million miles away from this, cause they actually construct each sample on point, not playing it from a ROM chipset. I've only experienced the 808 live once, and I can only say one thing: it doesn't have a headroom limit. The 808 body builds as much as your monitors / soundsystem can handle. This is the true difference with recorded samples.

 

Still, this TR8s is a great addition for quick sketches or nice 808 boom additions.

[Jam Burglar]

The other thing I hear about the 808 is that the originals don't all sound alike (supposedly Adrock had one that had crazy low bass). I could also hear the difference in those youtube demos comparing a real 808 with the reissue, even on really crappy headphones. The real one sounded like it had a lot more body.

 

Also, I've heard the compressor/settings you run them through plays a pretty big factor. I can see that. I've got an Oberheim DX and it will put my mixer in the reds without sounding loud. I've borrower a compressor from a guy I know and pushing the kicks through that compressor definitely lets you get more volume without redlining. I can see how compression on those big 808 kicks could be a huge factor.

[DJ Rock Well]

Sadly, I've never heard a real one in person. This is particularly annoying as I know somebody with a mint one, have a studio with a pretty decent sound system in it and said friend frequently visits without said drum machine (Ed you twat!).

 

I always thought the main variation of old analogue kit now was the life it had (or had not) lead. Although it makes perfect sense that there could be variation between units from new - some analogue synths were definitely affected this way.

 

And processing is definitely a big part. For instance, pretty much all classic era Miami Bass (once you get past the mid-80s era where it was more a regional version of electro) was made from the 808 being fed into an SP-1200 which I'm sure added all sorts of bit crushing, saturation, etc, etc. And that's before you account for things like early SP-1200s being prone to overheating and Miami being in hot arse Florida. Interesting to hear about your DX too... although any drum will sound louder with a bit of compression or limiting, I've found that analogue drum machines often create one hell of a sharp attack. It's part of the sound and why they cut through a mix so well, but it will definitely spike levels unchecked.

 

 

The other beef I have with many classic drum machine sounds is that when they appear in soundware and in software presets these days, they've usually been 'modernised' somewhat - hard compression, brightening up with EQ, etc. Some of them sound so brittle and harsh too my ears. Interestingly, I have the sound library Harry Love made of all the classic drum machines he'd got to sample over the years. The concept was simple, just the original machines recorded straight into a computer through a good anaolgue desk and decent interface... no 'special sauce'! Many of these sounds, even as samples, quickly illustrate how much these classic sounds get meddled with. Kits like the 808 sound so much better than any other version I've got or heard.

[danswift]

Sadly, I've never heard a real one in person.

 

I had one in the mid 80's ..it was cool but I became bored with it after about 6 months and ended up trading it for a drum kit instead.

 

They're over hyped machines and not worth the high prices that they command in todays market in my opinion..far from it in fact.

[Jam Burglar]

Sadly, I've never heard a real one in person. This is particularly annoying as I know somebody with a mint one, have a studio with a pretty decent sound system in it and said friend frequently visits without said drum machine (Ed you twat!).

 

I always thought the main variation of old analogue kit now was the life it had (or had not) lead. Although it makes perfect sense that there could be variation between units from new - some analogue synths were definitely affected this way.

 

And processing is definitely a big part. For instance, pretty much all classic era Miami Bass (once you get past the mid-80s era where it was more a regional version of electro) was made from the 808 being fed into an SP-1200 which I'm sure added all sorts of bit crushing, saturation, etc, etc. And that's before you account for things like early SP-1200s being prone to overheating and Miami being in hot arse Florida. Interesting to hear about your DX too... although any drum will sound louder with a bit of compression or limiting, I've found that analogue drum machines often create one hell of a sharp attack. It's part of the sound and why they cut through a mix so well, but it will definitely spike levels unchecked.

 

 

The other beef I have with many classic drum machine sounds is that when they appear in soundware and in software presets these days, they've usually been 'modernised' somewhat - hard compression, brightening up with EQ, etc. Some of them sound so brittle and harsh too my ears. Interestingly, I have the sound library Harry Love made of all the classic drum machines he'd got to sample over the years. The concept was simple, just the original machines recorded straight into a computer through a good anaolgue desk and decent interface... no 'special sauce'! Many of these sounds, even as samples, quickly illustrate how much these classic sounds get meddled with. Kits like the 808 sound so much better than any other version I've got or heard.

 

Here's a good little clip of CJ Moore talking about Paul C running the 808 through DBX 160s. CJ starts talking about the compressor settings, then it cuts to Breakbeat Lou, then CJ goes back to talking about the compressors again.

https://youtu.be/beHPZE5ikVw?t=20m8s

[Flexinoodle]

 

Sadly, I've never heard a real one in person.

 

I had one in the mid 80's ..it was cool but I became bored with it after about 6 months and ended up trading it for a drum kit instead.

 

They're over hyped machines and not worth the high prices that they command in todays market in my opinion..far from it in fact.

Sold mine and bought samplers, got about ten times more than i paid for it, used the samplers about forty two billion times more than the few "Hey look its an 808" outings lol, my DR660 kicked its ass up n down haha.

[kebzer]

Its true that the 808 doesn't worth anywhere its commanding price right now (north of 2k). The exact same applies also for the SP1200. Both are extremely limited machines, capable of doing only specific things. If someone can afford them, then they are a great addition to any studio, but mos def a novelty.

 

One thing a lot of people misunderstand is that we are talking here about machines with 20+ years of abuse. That was the problem with my SP1200, so I had to let it go (it commanded a lot of expensive repairs all the time). Especially the 808 had differences from the factory, as it was hand-assembled with major variations on the qualities of the chipsets & analogue circuits installed. This gave it an additional value, as practically no 808 sounds the same like another one, but you can also imagine the nightmares coming from hand assembly...

 

Internet always creates overhype and these 2 are a great example of that. I was losing my sleep until I got an SP, then I tried making my first beat on it and felt like I was in a time trap, with all the sour little surprises that await (e.g. no decimal points for BPM, overheating, rock hard pads, humongous size).