Minimal Wave Records

Help! It seems that finding an affordable CR-78 is next to impossible, so I was wondering if anyone knows of the next best thing to get if I want authentic analog-sounding drum sounds? The Vermona DRM-1 looks like an option, but it doesn’t have a sequencer. Does anyone own any other drum machine that’s a good alternative?

Hi,

The Boss DR55 is a cheap alternative to the Roland’s CR78 sound. Is a very, very basic alternative with a small sequencer, but the bass drum and snare sound are close similar to the CR78 sound. Also, you can see the Roland’s CR8000. It have a quite similar programming, but the snare drum it’s too smooth.

Hi,

The Boss DR55 is a cheap alternative to the Roland’s CR78 sound. Is a very, very basic alternative with a small sequencer, but the bass drum and snare sound are close similar to the CR78 sound. Also, you can see the Roland’s CR8000. It have a quite similar programming, but the snare drum it’s too smooth.

Other alternatives:

Korg KR55
MFB 512 (not programmable)
Roland CR68 (not programmable)
Roland R8 MkII ( Digital sounds, but very 808,CR78,909 realistic sounds )

Awesome thanks! The KR55, DR55 and CR68 don’t have MIDI so it’s a little harder to integrate with my other new gear and the MFB is probably just as hard to find as the CR78, so those won’t work. I think the R8 might be my ticket. I was hoping for a new machine that’s still in production so it’s easier to find, but I think maybe the R8 might actually be common enough.

less_is_more - 16 May 2011 08:30 PM

Awesome thanks! The KR55, DR55 and CR68 don’t have MIDI so it’s a little harder to integrate with my other new gear and the MFB is probably just as hard to find as the CR78, so those won’t work. I think the R8 might be my ticket. I was hoping for a new machine that’s still in production so it’s easier to find, but I think maybe the R8 might actually be common enough.

There’s two R8 versions. The original one have a card insert for the different sound kits available. The MkII includes all the ROM card sounds in the internal memory. The obvious best option is MkII. You can also see the newest analog machines from MFB. There’s a lot of midi options in their products.

Regards,

Replicante - 16 May 2011 11:56 PM

less_is_more - 16 May 2011 08:30 PM

Awesome thanks! The KR55, DR55 and CR68 don’t have MIDI so it’s a little harder to integrate with my other new gear and the MFB is probably just as hard to find as the CR78, so those won’t work. I think the R8 might be my ticket. I was hoping for a new machine that’s still in production so it’s easier to find, but I think maybe the R8 might actually be common enough.

There’s two R8 versions. The original one have a card insert for the different sound kits available. The MkII includes all the ROM card sounds in the internal memory. The obvious best option is MkII. You can also see the newest analog machines from MFB. There’s a lot of midi options in their products.

Regards,

I actually bought an MFB-503 a few months ago and there’s a good bit of noise in the background that I hear is quite common with the new MFBs. It sounds pretty good except the noise is kind of annoying. Before I got the 503 I was considering getting the MFB-522, but now I have second thoughts because of the noise and how small it is. :(

less_is_more - 17 May 2011 07:27 PM

Replicante - 16 May 2011 11:56 PM

less_is_more - 16 May 2011 08:30 PM

Awesome thanks! The KR55, DR55 and CR68 don’t have MIDI so it’s a little harder to integrate with my other new gear and the MFB is probably just as hard to find as the CR78, so those won’t work. I think the R8 might be my ticket. I was hoping for a new machine that’s still in production so it’s easier to find, but I think maybe the R8 might actually be common enough.

There’s two R8 versions. The original one have a card insert for the different sound kits available. The MkII includes all the ROM card sounds in the internal memory. The obvious best option is MkII. You can also see the newest analog machines from MFB. There’s a lot of midi options in their products.

Regards,

I actually bought an MFB-503 a few months ago and there’s a good bit of noise in the background that I hear is quite common with the new MFBs. It sounds pretty good except the noise is kind of annoying. Before I got the 503 I was considering getting the MFB-522, but now I have second thoughts because of the noise and how small it is. :(

Yes, i know. This is the big problem on the MFB products. MFB 522 have a great sound, a little replica of the 808’s sound. Try to buy a CR8000 with a Dinsync to MIDI converter. It works fine and sounds great.

http://www.mfberlin.de/Produkte/Musikelektronik/MFB-522/mfb-522.html

I have a friend with this drum synth and he speaks highly of the sound - although I have heard mixed reports regarding the build quality so you might think twice about taking it live. The price definitely looks right!