Benefits of Using a Hardware Drum Machine?

Electronic Music Production // Dark Arts
Snarf
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Re: Benefits of Using a Hardware Drum Machine?

Post by Snarf »

I always start with my beloved drumracks in ableton, but to add some fairy-dust to the groove i normally record some live unquantized tempest hammering. It has that lovely wooden tone also=)

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Lost to the Void
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Re: Benefits of Using a Hardware Drum Machine?

Post by Lost to the Void »

WOLF! wrote: Currently I'm looking for a LXR to add to my setup because I do like drumcomputers.
I was tempted by this, but some new FM-ey drum machine is coming out, but I¬ll be fucked if I can remember what it is called?
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WOLF!
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Re: Benefits of Using a Hardware Drum Machine?

Post by WOLF! »

Lost to the Void wrote:
WOLF! wrote: Currently I'm looking for a LXR to add to my setup because I do like drumcomputers.
I was tempted by this, but some new FM-ey drum machine is coming out, but I¬ll be fucked if I can remember what it is called?
It's like a drum machine quiz ...
Doubledrummer?

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Lost to the Void
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Re: Benefits of Using a Hardware Drum Machine?

Post by Lost to the Void »

Yes yes, that's the cuntfucker.
Still no demos online.
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Lost to the Void
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Re: Benefits of Using a Hardware Drum Machine?

Post by Lost to the Void »

Actually I think I want a micromonsta too
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Southpaw
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Re: Benefits of Using a Hardware Drum Machine?

Post by Southpaw »

I like hardware drum machines, before I lost interest in music I had got through quite a few. The most modern one I had was the Machinedrum - which I really liked but then my tastes changed and I wanted a more raw/90's sound. That's just me I guess and not representative of the MD's potential which was incredible really.

I'm not sure of any specific benefits to having them or not because I think it can come down to something personal. I myself, really like the hands on speed with which I can just bang out various rhythms and copy them across several pattern locations with various edits and then just jam out a drum track with mutes, pattern changes and stuff. I'm talking primarily TR style sequencing, I still have an old Boss DR660 for instance which is a pain in the ass to make a kit BEFORE you start jamming but I do like that old box because of the way the sounds come across, it has some odd thing going on where you pitch a sound really far either way and it doesn't speed up or slow down. I dunno what they implemented in that but it's a very musical pitch algorithm.

For me, it has a lot to do with the sequencer, so im answering with that in mind more than anything. One of my favourite little boxes is the Korg ES-1 mk2 which isn't a drum machine at all but I use it as one. It's basically a 16bit/32khz sampler/sequencer that's a joy to use. I have tons of kits for it, self made and processed beforehand and it's a joy to just make beats on it, ridiculously quick to get good stuff going and has interesting efx to make quick fire sampling fodder. It has a nice character and I like the tone when you sample into it with added gain.

I'm using an MPC as well - which again, isn't actually a drum machine but I find it quite effective for House stuff - which I'm quite into as well but lately, I have been using it as a master clock for the other stuff and loading musical sounds into it which works well with the Korg and mixer plus efx. I have a few other bits and bobs which are sampler/sequencer thingies, more for their own character and the hands on thing for me but the main thing is that I can come up with musical idea a lot quicker than being soley ITB.

This is me ITB.

Find a kickdrum, sequence it, find a hat, lay down a basic pattern, load a synth, fuck about with it until I get a sound I like, make a pattern. Tweak A, B & C until it sounds good and then after about 4 hrs I know where Im going but by which time I'm so fuckin bored co's I've caned the original idea on a loop.

This is me with a few bits of hardware.

Get a kick going on the Korg and a basic hat pattern, grab a sound on the MPC, sequence it, filter it and get something going I like and within about 20 minutes, I can arrive at a much more developed idea than I can ITB.

I have less options to choose from but I find I push the envelope so to speak within the limits of the device and it forces me to be more creative.

It's not like I have bothered to make drum racks in ableton or to have any useful starting presets with stuff, so my ITB time is mostly taken up by sound design and I end up losing sight of an idea. The approach with hardware drum machines or sampler/sequencers feels a bit more personal to me and I seem to get in the vibe easier and produce more cohesive ideas.

I guess I'm going a bit off topic so to get more on point, I'm not sure that I'd see much benefit simply having a single drum machine and syncing it up to a DAW. For me, it's just gonna end up in the box as audio, prob chopped up in a drum rack so I can access more processing per sound and that means I'm just using the machine as a sound source. But when they're part of a few other bits and bobs and you have the option of sequencing away from a computer, it's a different experience and it can be enjoyable to have both options so you can fully explore what best suits your flow.
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bounduk
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Re: Benefits of Using a Hardware Drum Machine?

Post by bounduk »

Thanks for all the responses everybody, I really appreciate it. I think after reading through these, it's not so much the drum machine I need, just the ability to smash out stuff with a bit more ease. Think I'll give the push a go (although I desperately need to finally learn Ableton and rid myself of the shackles of Logic 9)

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Plyphon
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Re: Benefits of Using a Hardware Drum Machine?

Post by Plyphon »

I have a Push with Ableton (obviously) - and tbh it's great. Love using it, great to use in either note mode or sequencer mode. You can use Ableton entirely on the Push without touching a mouse if you so desire.

Use ableton's built in tutorials. they're great. I should finish it one day.


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