Quinn Posted January 14, 2005 Share Posted January 14, 2005 I got Ed's book "Bass Groves" for Xmas and am eager to start working through it, so it looks like I'll have to buy my first drum machine after more than a decade of bassdom. (I do own a metronome though, so please don't fine me!) I've searched the archives and found lots of mentions OF drum machines, but not much in the way of reviews. I know nothing of these mysterious machines. Criteria are as follows: reliable, simple to use, cheap! Which one(s) would you recommend? Thanks in advance - you guys always give me solid advice. My bands: http://www.myspace.com/aimlowkidmusic http://www.myspace.com/bobfrankandjohnmurry Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Steve Force Posted January 14, 2005 Share Posted January 14, 2005 I have owned an Alesis SR-16 for 10 years. Rock solid, and you can get a used one for around $100. Easy to program, with complete MIDI functionality. http://www.alesis.com/products/sr16/sr16_large.jpg Steve Force, Durham, North Carolina -------- My Professional Websites Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
zeronyne Posted January 14, 2005 Share Posted January 14, 2005 For your purposes, the SR-16 is the best bet, IMHO. There are a bunch of other worhty ones on the market, but in this case, why not go with an industry standard that is really affordable? "For instance" is not proof. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Quinn Posted January 14, 2005 Author Share Posted January 14, 2005 Thanks, Fellas. That's actually the one I was kind of leaning towards based on what little I've read. Originally posted by zeronyne: There are a bunch of other worhty ones on the market, but in this case, why not go with an industry standard that is really affordable?Can't argue with that, I think I'm sold! My bands: http://www.myspace.com/aimlowkidmusic http://www.myspace.com/bobfrankandjohnmurry Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jeremy c Posted January 14, 2005 Share Posted January 14, 2005 Originally posted by forceman: I have owned an Alesis SR-16 for 10 years. Rock solid, and you can get a used one for around $100. Easy to program, with complete MIDI functionality. That's definitely the one to get. Free download of my cd!. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mcbn Posted January 14, 2005 Share Posted January 14, 2005 Lots on eBay. You should be able to snag a nearl new one for under $100 shipped. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mike Bear Posted January 14, 2005 Share Posted January 14, 2005 I own a Boss DR-770. I believe this is the same one Ed has. I know Bass has one that's a bit newer now. The DR-770 has gone down quite a bit. The Alesis are good machines though if that's the price range you are looking for. I was actually just looking at that grooves book by Ed the other night. Probably pick it up. Mike Bear Artisan-Vocals/Bass Instructor Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
... Posted January 14, 2005 Share Posted January 14, 2005 Another vote for the SR-16. Those things just work. They are a solid piece of gear for doing what you want to do. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Quinn Posted January 14, 2005 Author Share Posted January 14, 2005 It's rare to find such agreement on this forum (or anywhere, really.) That gives me a lot of confidence in this purchase. I actually decided to buy a new one so I wouldn't have to worry about shipping and would have the warranty/manual, etc. Put one on layaway at GC and will pick it up tonight. Woo-hoo! Thanks again, Lowdowners! My bands: http://www.myspace.com/aimlowkidmusic http://www.myspace.com/bobfrankandjohnmurry Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gruuve Posted January 14, 2005 Share Posted January 14, 2005 Originally posted by forceman: I have owned an Alesis SR-16 for 10 years. Rock solid, and you can get a used one for around $100. Easy to program, with complete MIDI functionality. http://www.alesis.com/products/sr16/sr16_large.jpgI've had an Alesis SR-16 for a long time also...I'd definitely second the recommendation. I also have an Boss DR-5, which has drums, bass, keys, guitar, etc. sounds on it....however, the sounds aren't as good as the Alesis, and it's much clunkier to use. I can't vouch for the newer iterations of this gadget, they could be much better, don't know. If you just want drums, the Alesis is the way to go. Dave Old bass players never die, they just buy lighter rigs. - Tom Capasso, 11/9/2006 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
John Shepherd Posted January 14, 2005 Share Posted January 14, 2005 In the meantime of buying your drum machine, check this out: Hammerhead . So far, for my very simple beginner purposes, I haven't found reason to spend real dollars on a "real" drum machine. peace,john Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Seamy ALB Posted January 14, 2005 Share Posted January 14, 2005 Sr 16 is the way to go, Ive been using one for writing, practicing, programing songs and gigging for the last 11 years and even the power pack has stood up. http://www.facebook.com/pages/A-Little-Bitter/185235472447 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Someone Posted January 14, 2005 Share Posted January 14, 2005 Originally posted by forceman: I have owned an Alesis SR-16 for 10 years. Rock solid, and you can get a used one for around $100. Easy to program, with complete MIDI functionality. http://www.alesis.com/products/sr16/sr16_large.jpgI got one too.. It's great! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Quinn Posted January 14, 2005 Author Share Posted January 14, 2005 Got my SR-16 last night and boy do I feel stupid. I didn't realize I'd need to put it through an amp to use it, I just assumed it had a speaker. I tried plugging it into my eMAC so I could monitor it using Garageband, but I couldn't figure that out. Finally I just plugged it into a guitar amp, but I don't want to have to use that every time. Unfortunately, I don't have a PA in my apartment. What do y'all use as a monitor? My bands: http://www.myspace.com/aimlowkidmusic http://www.myspace.com/bobfrankandjohnmurry Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mcbn Posted January 14, 2005 Share Posted January 14, 2005 Do you have a home stereo? If yes I'd say plug it in via a 1/4" to RCA adapter. I used to have a little 4 channel mono (2 stereo) board hooked up to my stereo (Radio Shack, $20-30). It was great for just that purpose. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Quinn Posted January 14, 2005 Author Share Posted January 14, 2005 Thanks Nutt, that's a great idea Dang, this forum rocks! My bands: http://www.myspace.com/aimlowkidmusic http://www.myspace.com/bobfrankandjohnmurry Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ed Friedland Posted January 15, 2005 Share Posted January 15, 2005 Glad to see some of you guys going out and buying drum machines! Man's best friend. (They don't wake you at 6am to go pee). I personally use the DR770, I like the cymbals, and the fact that all sounds are tunable and (mostly) have nuance controls that allow you to change the "striking" point of the stick, or in the case of the hihat, how tight it is. It's very flexible, I wish they didn't load up half the memory with the largely useless factory presets. One or two of the Latin grooves are cool, but I don't ever use the other factory stuff. Anyway, the Alessis is cool too. I had the original Alessis drum machine, the gray one.. forgot the name. But it rocked, especially when it first hit, it was a groundbreaker. Now, time to get into programming! It's fun, like having your own personal drummer-in-a-box that will do your bidding (even if it's.....evil...) I call mine Vinny (as in Vinny Boombatz). www.edfriedland.com The Bass Whisperer Bass Whisperer TV Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dcr Posted January 15, 2005 Share Posted January 15, 2005 Not really a drum machine, but does anyone know of a good midi drum program for PC? It'd be nice to program a drum track with a mouse, & have it sound nuanced & natural. Does such a program exist? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
_Sweet Willie_ Posted January 15, 2005 Share Posted January 15, 2005 Originally posted by Ed Friedland: I personally use the DR770 Hey Ed, Is that the one that wouldn't do your bidding at the BP Live workshop? Peace. --SW spreadluv Fanboy? Why, yes! Nordstrand Pickups and Guitars. Messiaen knew how to parlay the funk. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dcr Posted January 15, 2005 Share Posted January 15, 2005 OUCH!! I can feel the luv all the way out here on the prairie! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ed Friedland Posted January 16, 2005 Share Posted January 16, 2005 Dr. Yeah, that's the one, he doesn't like to travel, gets cranky. www.edfriedland.com The Bass Whisperer Bass Whisperer TV Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mark Zeger Posted January 17, 2005 Share Posted January 17, 2005 Originally posted by dcr: Not really a drum machine, but does anyone know of a good midi drum program for PC? It'd be nice to program a drum track with a mouse, & have it sound nuanced & natural. Does such a program exist?dcr- Do you have a MIDI keyboard for playing drum samples? Programming with a mouse probably isn't going to give you something nuanced & natural. You need a velocity sensitive controller and drum samples that have layers. You could try a set of velocity sensitive pads like Akai MPD16 pads, which are USB as well as MIDI. For drum programs, 2 come to mind: Steinberg Groove Agent Native Instruments Battery Also, here is a source for MIDI drum loops to import into DAW/sequencing software: Keyfax Twiddly Bits I have a few of the Twiddly Bits discs and, in general, they are a good buy. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sir Ethelred Hedgerow-Hedg Posted June 8, 2005 Share Posted June 8, 2005 Can the Alesis be programmed note by note, as opposed to just in real time? I believe this is called 'step programming' but I aint sure. Bog visoko, a Rusija daleko Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PhilMan99 Posted June 8, 2005 Share Posted June 8, 2005 For those on a limited budget, you may consider starting with this easy-to-use free software: Hammerhead Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sir Ethelred Hedgerow-Hedg Posted June 8, 2005 Share Posted June 8, 2005 I got that, great bit of freeware. I like the layout too, like the old Tr-808 Bog visoko, a Rusija daleko Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Quinn Posted June 8, 2005 Author Share Posted June 8, 2005 Originally posted by The Very Rvd. Joe Grundy: Can the Alesis be programmed note by note, as opposed to just in real time? I believe this is called 'step programming' but I aint sure. Hey Joe, Yes, you can compose patterns step by step without recording them in real time. Here's the manual if you'd like more detail on this: http://www.alesis.com/downloads/manuals/SR16_Manual.pdf My bands: http://www.myspace.com/aimlowkidmusic http://www.myspace.com/bobfrankandjohnmurry Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Eric VB Posted June 8, 2005 Share Posted June 8, 2005 Hey Quinn, Just curious ... in what ways are you finding the Alesis superior to the MIDI drums in GarageBand? Did you ever get your SR16 to work with GB? Were you just going through the eMac's "sound in" port, or do you have a MIDI adapter on the eMac (assuming the Alesis has a "MIDI out" port)? I've been dinking around with GB drums a bit, but haven't played with all the "nuance" controls to make it sound less mechanical yet. I don't have a MIDI adapter to plug in my keyboard for realtime (yeah, I know these are cheap, but so am I ), so I have to mouse-enter every stinkin note! Even then I think it'd be more natural to have a MIDI pad to beat on instead. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Quinn Posted June 8, 2005 Author Share Posted June 8, 2005 Hey RBG, You asked some good questions and I hope a more knowledgeable user will step up to respond. In the meantime, I'll tell you what I can, but I've only been using my Alesis in the most rudimentary way, so far. I've put off diving into the features of either GB or the Alesis and have been focusing most of my practice time on simple click track exercises. I can't really answer your first question as I'm still a total novice with both GB and my Alesis. I never did figure out how to get my Alesis to work with GB. I was trying to go into the sound in port, as I don't have a MIDI adapter. The Alesis does have a MIDI out port, but I haven't tried using it. I just took the easy way out and have been using it with headphones. I agree that it would be preferable to program drum tracks with pads as opposed to using a mouse. That's about all I can contribute on this topic, take it away somebody... My bands: http://www.myspace.com/aimlowkidmusic http://www.myspace.com/bobfrankandjohnmurry Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
randy clay Posted June 9, 2005 Share Posted June 9, 2005 Quinn: If you're using the drum machine just to provide beats for you, and doing minimal programming, Garageband would probably been enough. Just take the patterns in the book and input them into GB. You can do the same thing in the SR-16. To get sounds in/out of Garageband, it really helps to have a hardware solution such as the Ozone. Check out Musicians Friend for a variety of options in that area. Or a higher end solution is Ableton's Live4. I downloaded a demo of this program and it RAWKS!!! You can create little snippets of drums, verse, chorus, bridge, fills, and trigger them on your typing surface, or from the keys of an Ozone or something similar. It is very flexible and lets you integrate audio drums and midi drums loops and the same file, and trigger them externally. So you can vamp on the intro, extend the solos, etc. If I could justify the expense, I'd snap that up in an instant. I'm trying to think but nuthin' happens.... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
groove machine Posted June 24, 2005 Share Posted June 24, 2005 I use the Zoom 123. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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