Conference napalm::commusic_v1

RE < Note 943.0 by AQUA::ROST >
    
>    I don't know if Dan Eatond's new personal name is intended as a

	Er, that's Dan Eaton (ahem).

    There's been a rack mounted drum machine available for at least
    a year or two, but I can't remember who makes it (probably Roland
    given the "styling" of the package that I recall).
    
    It has "Digital Drums..." on the front.
    
    	db

    There is also that expensive 16-bit sampling drum gimmick which
    they announced at the last NAMM.  It looks like two slots high,
    and is in the same vein as the TX816, where you can add as many
    cards, up to 8, as your wallet will stand for.
    
    Not what you were talking about, but I thought I mention it.
    
    Steph
    

    re: .3
    
    ...bleeve that's made by Forat.
    
    Edd

    There are several rack mount drum synths available.  There's the
    Roland DDR-30, the new Forat that Edd mentioned, and there's a thing
    called the Wendell and the Wendell Jr. (which holds 2, count'em,
    2) samples.  The DDR-30's at least 2 years old by now, so I'd expect
    Roland's got a new one in the works.
    
    Rack mounted MIDI drum synths are the wave of the future, now that
    sequencers are getting their acts together for percussion parts
    and drum pad to MIDI interfaces are proliferating.
    
    len.
    

	Are these all drum SYNTHS or drum MACHINES?  (i.e. the difference being
the on-board sequencer...).  Are there any rack-mount drum *MACHINES*?

	For that matter, are there any low-end rack-mount sequencers?

	Dan

    Currently, the answer is no to both questions.
    
    Unless you consider rack-mountable as ``sitting conveniently on
    top'' or that an S550 (with the sequencing software update) is
    ``low-end''.
    
    Oh well.
    
    Steph
    

    
    Re: .7
    
    Actually, the press release that prompted the original note here
    said that it was a drum *machine* i.e. on-board sequencer, and that
    it was rack-mount.  
    
    

    re .0, .8 - yes, it's the Korg DRM-1, and it was my understanding
    that it's sequencerless.  There's also the Roland DDR-30, which
    has been around for some time.  The DRM-1 does considerably more.
    Roland needs to get off its corporate bum and do something real
    quicklike, or I'm liable to retire my TRs 707/727/909 in favor of
    something like the DRM-1 (or maybe if I save my pennies, the Forat).
    
    len.
    

	Well, I finally saw one - in a magazine, that is.  The Korg DRM-1 is
indeed a drum machine - i.e. it's got a sequencer.  But the ad says its a
real-time recorder, though - not the kind of drum machine we're used to...

	As an aside, I just thought I'd mention a couple of other racked drum 
modules that don't get mentioned too often...

	Korg MR-16 	-	A surprisingly handy unit.  The sounds come from
Korg's first two digital drum boxes (non-MIDI) - the DDM-110 and DDM-220.  This
means that the basic kit is fair-to-poor as far as sound quality, but the latin
percussion stuff is quite good.
	This unit looks a bit sophmoric in that it has a silk-screened 
representation of a keyboard on the face that is responsible for telling you 
which keys trigger which drum (i.e., there's no way to play the drums from the
front panel).  But it has some GREAT features:

	MIDI !!  (IN and THRU, can use any MIDI channel)
	Individual Outputs on almost all drums (except for a few that share)
	Individual stereo image panning on each drum (i.e., entirely assignable 
		to anywhere in the two stereo outs, if you choose to use them)
	Individual output volume on each drum

	The disadvantages:

		As said before, not the best kit sound...
		Recieves only two velocity levels
		Takes up three rack spaces

	I believe they are out of production.  I got mine for $99 at E.U. 
Wurlitzer's in a blow out.

	One nice thing about the pre-assigned keys for triggering drums is that 
they match exactly the ones on the other drum box (TR707) I had (and had fed 
into my sequencer).

	AND THE OTHER...

	The Roland MKS-7 Super Quartet	-	This one, I believe, is out of
production, too, but is a neat little unit (2 rack units high).  It has four
'blocks' that are independant of each other, and can be assigned to different
MIDI channels.

	1)  Rhythm Block - This is the reason I entered this one here.  The 
rhythm block is the basic kit from a TR707!  A rack-mount 707!  Unfortunately
there's no separate outs like on the 707, and no individual volume per drum.
But the sounds are there.

	The other three blocks are based on a Juno 106 architecture, with 
velocity sensitivity added in;

	2)  Bass Block	-	A mono voice, with 20 pre-set sounds to choose 
from.
	3)  Chord Block	-	A 4-voice polyphony synth with 100 pre-sets to
choose from.
	4)  Melody block-	A 2-voice polyphony synth using the same 100
presets as the chord-block.

	The chord and melody block can be combined to give you a six-voice 
synth.  The unit can be transposed up or down an octave on each block and has
a mini mixer on the front panel for mixing the stereo or mono outputs.  You
can also use individual outs - one for each block - and these can be used in
conjunction with the mono/stereo outs.

	A nice little unit for JUNO 106 lovers (like me).  Multi-timbral, 
velocity sensitive, and you get the drum machine, too!

	Dan