Nine of the pads also have dual 'shifted' functions - six are used to select modes of operation, and the other three select tape save/load functions. The 12 instrument pads, located to the right of the control buttons, are perhaps a little too small - I can see some people hitting the wrong pads by mistake. Tempo, Level, Bank, Voice or Accent gives a set of related Pattern and Song programming functions. Pressing Shift in conjunction with any of the numeric keys. Most aspects of the DR550's operation are controlled with the buttons located on the bottom left of the front panel: Start, Stop/Continue, eight numeric buttons, Tempo, Level, Up/Down, Shift, Bank, Voice, Accent. To the right of the LCD is a large volume knob. Amongst other things, it includes a 1 x 16 grid to aid programming in step-time, and gives a clear indication of which of the six modes of operation is selected at any time (Pattern Play, Pattern Write, Song Play, Song Write, Pad Edit, MIDI Setup). Rhythms and adequate by anyone's standards. Similarly, whilst the LCD display on the DR550 is not as large and useful as those of many recent Roland drum machines, it's a good deal better than on previous Dr. If you're a cheapskate like me, you'll fill the machine up with six regular non-alkaline batteries, find that they only last about eight hours, then give up and use a suitable transformer - which is what you should have done in the first place anyway. This is not an oversight, for the DR550 can be run either on batteries (hi-tech buskers take note) or mains power. No power supply is provided, although the rear panel does include a 9 volt DC input. Physically, it resembles the R8 and R5 in a matt black and grey, rounded-edges sort of way, but on a smaller scale. There are 64 preset rhythm Patterns, plus 64 user Patterns, all of which can be used in eight Songs. The DR550, not surprisingly, concedes an awful lot to its bigger Roland brethren in terms of programming features, but it nevertheless offers more than its direct ancestors - it's the first Boss machine to allow real-time Pattern programming. Given the praise that was heaped on the R8 when it was launched, including not a little from my own review in SOS, I am very impressed that Roland have made the same quality of sounds available on such a cheap machine. Its 48 internal 16-bit PCM drum and percussion samples appear to be drawn from the Roland R8/R5 sound library (internal and card), and the DR550 sounds every bit as good as those machines - I wasn't able to conduct a side-by-side comparison, but I doubt that in a blind test anyone would distinguish the R8 from the DR550 if they were playing the same sounds. The DR550 lacks refinements such as separate outputs, velocity sensitive pads, or even a very substantial case come to that, but in the crucial area of sounds it is outstanding. Rhythm represented many people's first introduction to programmable drum machines, and although there have been other rhythm boxes bearing the same name (but different numbers) since then, never has the distinction between 'professional' and 'budget' beat boxes been as blurred as with the new DR550. It sets a new standard for affordable drum machines, and if an 'affordable drum machine' is what you're after, you'd be totally crazy to buy anything else before hearing this one.įor those who aren't too clear about the relationship between Boss and Roland, it's basically this - Boss is a division of Roland, and Boss products are generally cheaper, good value, relatives of Roland goodies. Rhythm's sounds, and its facilities, that £200 is definitely peanuts. Given the choice, number and quality of the new Dr. The thing's just too damn good! Ordinarily this wouldn't be a problem, but right now it is, because nobody in their right mind is going to spend hard cash on the two ageing beat boxes that I'm trying to sell when they can buy this for under £200. A quick run through the demo songs stirred something in me, and once I'd spent a couple of minutes tapping away at the drum pads to audition the sounds, the feeling blossomed with full force: I was as mad as hell, and I still am. It didn't take me very long to decide exactly how I felt about the new Boss Dr.
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