TR-707 vs TR-909

Status
Not open for further replies.
I like the sounds of both of them. Though, the 707 you will find for less money than the 909. The sounds of the 707 are really good for making, like, house music, while the 909 is notable because it was the first drum machine the RZA had.
 
No doubt man. So that's it..only 2 responses on this debate?
 
AdamEly said:
Roland TR-707 VS. Roland TR-909
Pro's .. Con's .. what are your guy's thoughts?


completely different machines... they don't really have any relation to eachother for comparison.

It is like asking if you like "yellow" or "blue" better


although I will say that the 909 is kinda played out if you ask me... I haven't used mine for at least 7 years (probably more)


the 909... that is the classic house and techno machine... but a bit dated in my opinion now.
 
dvyce said:
completely different machines... they don't really have any relation to eachother for comparison.

It is like asking if you like "yellow" or "blue" better


although I will say that the 909 is kinda played out if you ask me... I haven't used mine for at least 7 years (probably more)


the 909... that is the classic house and techno machine... but a bit dated in my opinion now.
7 years, that's very interesting. So what do you prefer these days? All I produce is house, progressive and tribal techno but am software based. Just looking to get something to fatten my beats in the near future

I was under the impression the only real diff between the 2 was that the 909 was more synthesis based and the 707 was more sample based?
 
Last edited by a moderator:
AdamEly said:
7 years, that's very interesting. So what do you prefer these days? All I produce is house, progressive and tribal techno but am software based. Just looking to get something to fatten my beats in the near future

I was under the impression the only real diff between the 2 was that the 909 was more synthesis based and the 707 was more sample based?


I don't make house, progressive and tribal techno on a regular basis (but I am occasionally asked to work in those genres... I recently did something in a similar genre for MTV UK, to name 1 example)


I have a lot of drum machines... (including the tr-808, 909, 505, 707 and 727 and probably 15 or 20 others)

...most of them I use if i am looking for a stereotypical sound from a older sound (many older drum machines are very distinctive... like you would hear it and say something like "that snare sounds like the Michael Jackson Thriller album)


So I don't necessarily have a "go to" drum machine.


The sample based drum machines I find myself using more often are the sequential TOM and the Roland R8 MKII

But more often than that, I will use an analogue drum machine like the CR-8000 or any of the other ones I have


...or I will make sounds myself (which is what I do more often than anything)
 
I'd reccomment the Korg EMX-1. They retail for $500 new and they sound PHAT. If you're into making house, techno or really ANY kind of electronic music, it's basically the best drum machine you can buy.. except for an Elektron Machinedrum. (Which are twice the price...) I know a guy that performs using nothing but one Korg EMX-1 and two ESX-1's... the ESX models have sampling built-in. I personally think the EMX (the blue one) is more versatile though. As long as you plan on doing your sampling on the PC, stick with the EMX.

It's not worth the money paying for a *real* 808 or 909. They are horribly overpriced because of the nostalgic value, just like a TB-303. If you want REALLY good 808/909 sounds, get a Novation DrumStation. (v2 if you can find it) They are only like $200 and have full analog-style control over just about everything, like like on the original boxes. It also has a ton of outputs, which is great if you like to process your drum sounds differently.

For $700 or so you can get a Korg EMX-1 and a Novation Drumstation. That should pretty much provide you with everything you could possibly want.
 
Last edited:
SUPERBANANABOMB said:
It's not worth the money paying for a real 808 or 909. They are horribly overpriced because of the nostalgic value, just like a TB-303. If you want REALLY good 808/909 sounds, get a Novation DrumStation. (v2 if you can find it)


If you want the sound of an 808 it is worth the money. The drum station does not sound the same as an 808. Same goes for a tb303 (although I find the 303 a bit played out these days)


You can probably get away with 909 samples if you sample it well... but samples wouldn't cut it as an overall alternative to the 808 because there are so many sonic variations.
 
tr909 + tr808 king drum machines!!!!

I love the 909 and 808 roland tr machines best(them punchey drum kicks are the best!!!!)though i do like the 606 + 707 as well!!!!The 909 in particular just blew me away, such a meaty kick-drum(always has, but using one is the dogs b******s, especially 4 hard dance/hardcore!!!!).

May hardware like these gems live on 4 ever!!!!
 
The 909 and 808 were analog and really sounded great. They are the classics. The 707 was actually a 12 bit sample playback drum machine that didn't allow you to tweak the sounds at all. I actually owned one back in the '80s, and at the time I really wished it were a 9 or a 8.
 
yeah its funny that only the volume can be adjusted on the 707(as well as seperate outputs)suppose really its like a fancy 626 in a way(mind you, its got a few cool 909 samples)the 707 is a good alternative if your short on cash but in comparison to the 808 or 909 its a little bit pants.

Like the elektron, theres a good new machine!!!!
 
Last edited:
909! is the sound. You can find plenty of samples or emulators out there. Still a bit expensive for the drum machine.
 
Got an 808 and 909 but would like to get another 707 (my other one got stolen. :mad:) and circuit bend the fk out of it.
 
These days it's damn near pointless to buy a 808 or 909... there;s so many good sample packs of sounds that you can easily replicate having those bits of gear with just a sampler... They are nice drum machines, but why in the hell anyone would pay over $1000 for one is beyond me... The Jomox 888 and 999 are cool machines, but it's the same situation.. is it REALLY worth the money? I guess so, if you have deep pockets and must have all the new toys. To be honest, a Korg ER-1 mkII electribe is probably the best value in drum machines right now...
 
These days it's damn near pointless to buy a 808 or 909... there;s so many good sample packs of sounds that you can easily replicate having those bits of gear with just a sampler... They are nice drum machines, but why in the hell anyone would pay over $1000 for one is beyond me... The Jomox 888 and 999 are cool machines, but it's the same situation.. is it REALLY worth the money? I guess so, if you have deep pockets and must have all the new toys. To be honest, a Korg ER-1 mkII electribe is probably the best value in drum machines right now...

totally agree:)

I copped an er-1 mkII for 150$ and I'm not getting rid of it anytime soon!!
 
Status
Not open for further replies.
Back
Top