Following the death of Roland’s founder Ikutaro Kakehashi on April 1, Reverb has decided to pay tribute to some of the ways his most famous invention, the TR–808 drum machine, has evolved. Be sure to read our tribute to Kakehashi.
When Roland released its TR–8 drum machine a few years back, many were amazed by the fact that it didn’t simply approximate the TR–808 and TR–909 drum machines, but sounded exactly like them. Given the price of the real ones on the used market, this kind of access was a godsend for the average performing musician.
With its digital interior, Roland was also able to pack some extra features into the box on the sly. There’s a whole realm of hidden settings that, with the correct click of a few buttons, can spit out a random sequence, pan individual drums, and give the TR–8 a sweet new lighting scheme.