Wikipedia

Roland TR-808

TheRoland TR-808 Rhythm Composer,commonly known as the808,is adrum machinemanufactured byRoland Corporationbetween 1980 and 1983. It was one of the first drum machines to allow users toprogram rhythmsinstead of using preset patterns. Unlike its nearest competitor at the time, the more expensiveLinn LM-1,the 808 generates sounds usinganalog synthesisrather than by playingsamples.

TR-808
The TR-808 front panel: a black box with rows of colored buttons and dials.
TR-808 front panel
ManufacturerRoland
Dates1980–1983
PriceUS$1,195
£765
¥150,000 JPY]
Technical specifications
Polyphony12
Timbrality12
Synthesis typeAnalogsubtractive
Storagememory32 patterns, 768 measures
EffectsIndividual level, tuning,attack, decay,and tone controls for some sounds
Input/output
Keyboard16 pattern keys
External controlDIN syncin/out

The 808 was a commercial failure, aselectronic musichad yet to become mainstream and many producers wanted more realistic drum sounds. After building approximately 12,000 units, Roland discontinued the 808 after itssemiconductorsbecame impossible to restock. It was succeeded by theTR-909in 1983.

Over the course of the 1980s, the 808 attracted acult followingamong underground musicians for its affordability on the used market, ease of use and idiosyncratic sounds, particularly its deep, boomingbass drum.It became a cornerstone of the emerging electronic,danceandhip-hopgenres, popularized by early hits such as "Planet Rock"byAfrika Bambaataaand theSoulsonic Forceand "Sexual Healing"byMarvin Gaye.

The 808 was eventually used on morehit recordsthan any other drum machine. Its popularity in hip-hop has made it one of the most influential inventions in popular music, comparable to theFender Stratocaster's impact onrock.Its sounds are included with music software and modern drum machines and it has inspired unlicensed recreations.

Development

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The TR-808 is a piece of art. It's engineering art, it's so beautifully made. If you have an idea of what is going on in the inside, if you look at the circuit diagram, and you see how the unknown Roland engineer was making the best out of super limited technology, it's unbelievable. You look at the circuit diagram like you look at an orchestral score, you think, how on earth did they come up with this idea? It's brilliant, it's a masterpiece.

—Robert Henke,musician and co-creator ofAbleton Live[1]

In the 1960s,drum machineswere most often used to accompanyhome organs.They did not allow users toprogram rhythms,[2]but instead offered preset patterns such asbossa nova.[3][4]In 1969, theHammond Organ Companyhired the American musician and engineerDon Lewisto demonstrate its products, including an electronic organ with a built-in drum machine designed by the Japanese companyAce Tone.[2]Lewis was known for performances using electronic instruments he had modified, decades before the popularization of instrument hacking viacircuit bending.He made extensive modifications to the Ace Tone drum machine, creating his own rhythms and wiring it through his organ'sexpression pedaltoaccentthe percussion.[2]

Lewis was approached byIkutaro Kakehashi,the president and founder of Ace Tone, who wanted to know how he had achieved the sounds using the Ace Tone machine.[2]In 1972, Kakehashi formed theRoland Corporationand hired Lewis to help design drum machines.[2]By the late 1970s,microprocessorswere appearing in instruments such as theRoland MC-8 Microcomposer,[5]and Kakehashi realized they could be used to program drum machines.[6]In 1978, Roland released theCompuRhythm CR-78,[5]the first drum machine with which users could write, save and replay their own patterns.[6]

With its next machine, the TR-808, Roland aimed to develop a drum machine for the professional market, expecting that it would mainly be used to createdemos.[7]The engineers conceived a "drum synthesizer" with which users could program drumsequencesand edit parameters such as tuning,decayand level.[8]Though they aimed to emulate real percussion, the prohibitive cost ofmemorydrove them to design sound-generating hardware instead of usingsamples(prerecorded sounds). Kakehashi deliberately purchased faultytransistorsto create the 808's distinctive sizzling sound.[9]The chief engineer, Makoto Muroi, credited the 808 voice circuit design to "Mr. Nakamura" and the software to "Mr. Matsuoka".[6]

Sounds and features

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Various patterns
Various patterns played by a TR-808
Accent trigger
A recording of the TR-808, with the accent trigger used in a musical context
Cowbell trigger
A recording of the TR-808, with the cowbell trigger controlling the sequencer of aRoland JX-3Psynthesizer
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The 808 imitates acoustic percussion: thebass drum,snare,toms,conga,rimshot,claves,handclap,maraca,cowbell,cymbalandhi-hat(open and closed).[10]Rather than playing samples, it generates sounds usinganalog synthesis;the TR in TR-808 stands for "transistor rhythm".[11]The sounds do not resemble real percussion,[3][7]and have been described as "clicky",[7]"robotic",[9]"spacey",[4]"toy-like" and "futuristic".[3]Factdescribed them as a combination of synthesizer tones andwhite noisethat resemble "bursts coming from theBBC Radiophonic Workshop"more than a real drum kit.[10]InMusic Technology,Tim Goodyer described the cowbell as "clumsy, clonky and hopelessly underpitched".[12]

The 808 is noted for its powerful bass drum sound, built from asineoscillator,low-pass filterandvoltage-controlled amplifier.[13]The bass drumdecaycontrol allows users to lengthen the sound, creating uniquely low frequencies thatflattenslightly over time, possibly not by design.[13]The New Yorkerdescribed the bass drum as the 808's defining feature.[9]

The 808 was the first drum machine with which users could program a percussion track from beginning to end, complete withbreaksandrolls.[14]Users can program up to 32 patterns using thestep sequencer,[6]chain up to 768measures[15]and placeaccentson individual beats.[6]Users can also set thetempo[6]andtime signature,including unusual signatures such as5
4and7
8.[16]The 808 includes volume knobs for each voice, numerous audio outputs and aDIN syncport (a precursor toMIDI) to synchronize with other devices.[6]Its three trigger outputs can synchronize withsynthesizersand other equipment.[17]

Release

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The 808 launched in 1980 with alist priceofUS$1,195(equivalent to $4,419 in 2023).[10]Roland marketed it as an affordable alternative to theLinn LM-1,manufactured byLinn Electronics,which used samples of real drum kits.[10]The 808 sounded simplistic and synthetic by comparison;electronic musichad yet to become mainstream and many musicians and producers wanted realistic-sounding drum machines.[7][10]According to many reports, one review dismissed the 808 as sounding like "marching anteaters", though this likely referred to machines that predated it.[16]Contemporary Keyboardwrote a positive review, predicting that it would become "the standard for rhythm machines of the future".[14]

Despite some early adopters,[10]the 808 was a commercial failure[15]and fewer than 12,000 units were sold.[18]Roland ended production in 1983[3]aftersemiconductorimprovements made it impossible to restock the faulty transistors essential to its design.[9]

Influence

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Marvin Gaye – "Sexual Healing" (1982)
"Sexual Healing"(1982) byMarvin Gaye,an R&B song that helped popularize the 808
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Though the 808 was unsuccessful, it was eventually used on more hit records than any other drum machine[19]and became one of the most influential inventions in popular music.[7][20]By the time Roland discontinued it in 1983, it had become common on the used market, often selling for less than $100 (equivalent to $306 in 2023).[10]Its ease of use,[7]affordability and idiosyncratic sound earned it acult followingamong underground musicians and producers,[10]and it became a cornerstone of the developingelectronicandhip-hopgenres.[4]

CBC Newscredited the first use of the 808 to the Japanese electronic groupYellow Magic Orchestrain 1980.[21]The first records to feature the 808 were released the following year: the Yellow Magic Orchestra albumBGM[22]and theMonitorssingle "Nobody Told Me".[11]In 1982, the AmericanR&BartistMarvin Gayereleased the first hit single that featured the 808, "Sexual Healing".[4]Gaye was drawn to 808 because he could use it to create music in isolation, without other musicians or producers.[9]

808 samples are common in music software, and it has inspired numerous unlicensed clones.[3][23]Flavorwirewrote that the 808 is now so ubiquitous that "its beats are almost a language of their own", with sounds recognizable even to listeners who do not know what drum machines are, and so "you also notice when somebody messes with them or uses them in unusual contexts".[24]In 2019,DJMagwrote that it was likely the most used drum machine of the preceding 40 years.[8]

Hip-hop

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The 808 has been described as hip-hop's equivalent to theFender Stratocasterguitar, which dramatically influenced the development ofrock music.[25][26][27]It was used by pioneering hip-hop acts includingRun-DMC,LL Cool JandPublic Enemy.[9]The 808 bass drum, in particular, became so essential that Hank Shocklee of theBomb Squadproduction group declared that "it's not hip-hop without that sound".[9]The New Yorkerwrote that the "trembling feeling of [the 808 bass drum], booming down boulevards in Oakland, the Bronx and Detroit, are part of America's cultural DNA".[9]Even after the 808 fell out of use byEast Coast hip-hopproducers in the 1990s, it remained a staple ofSouthern hip-hop.[10]

The rapperKanye Westused the 808 on every track on his 2008 solo album808s & Heartbreak,[28]whichSlatedescribed as "an explicit love letter to the device".[7]The New Yorkerwrote in 2015 that the 808 was the bedrock of the modern "urban-youth-culture soundtrack", particularly intrap music,and had influenced a new blend of dance andretrohip-hop that "embraces and fetishizes... street music from the past".[9]

Artists pushed the limits of the 808's limited pattern storage; according toSlate,"Those eight-bar units became veritable playgrounds for invention and creativity."[7]Artists manipulated the bass drum to produce new sounds,[7]such as on the 1984 single "Set it Off", in which the producerStrafeused it to imitate the sound of an undergroundnuclear test.[9]The producerRick Rubinpopularized the technique of lengthening the bass drum decay and tuning it to different pitches to createbasslines.[20]TheBeastie Boysused a reversed recording of an 808 on their 1986 track "Paul Revere".[29]

Electronic music

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In 1982,Afrika Bambaataaand theSoulsonic Forcereleased their single "Planet Rock",which used the 808 to create" strange, futuristic "percussion that was popular in clubs.[30]The track influenced the development of electronic and hip-hop music[24]and subgenres includingMiami bassandDetroit techno,and popularized the 808 as a "fundamental element of futuristic sound".[4]According toSlate,"Planet Rock" "didn't so much put the 808 on the map so much as reorient an entire world ofpost-discodance music around it ".[7]

The British electronic group808 Statetook its name from the 808 and used it extensively.[10]808 State'sGraham Masseysaid: "The Roland gear began to be a kind ofEsperantoin music. The whole world began to be less separated through this technology, and there was a classiness to it—you could transcend your provincial music with this equipment. "[3]With the rise ofrave culture,a precursor toacid house,the 808 became a staple sound on British radio.[4]In the early 90s, the Japanese composerYuzo Koshiroincorporated samples of the 808 in his soundtracks for theStreets of Ragegames.[31]

Pop

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The 808 was used extensively in pop.The New Yorkerwrote that it triggered "the big bang of pop's great age of disruption, from 1983 to 1986", and that its "defiantly inorganic timbres... sketched out the domain of a new world of music".[9]According toSlate,it was instrumental in pop music's shift from conventional structure and harmonic progression to "thinking in terms ofsequences,discrete passages of sound and time to be repeated and revisedad infinitum".[7]

The Argentine artistCharly Garcíaused the 808 for all percussion on his second album,Clics modernos(1983).[32]In the 1984Talking Headsconcert filmStop Making Sense,the singerDavid Byrneperforms "Psycho Killer"accompanied by an 808,[33]stumbling against its "gunshot" -like sounds.[34]The drummer and songwriterPhil Collinsfound the 808 useful forloopingrhythms for long periods, as human drummers would be tempted to add variations andfills.[20]Whitney Houston's 1987 single "I Wanna Dance With Somebody (Who Loves Me)"makes extensive use of the 808.[35]

Other artists who have used the 808 includeDamon Albarn,Diplo,Fatboy Slim,David GuettaandNew Order.[4][36]It has been referenced in lyrics by artists including the Beastie Boys, Beck,Outkast,Kelis,TI,Lil Wayne,Britney Spears,Beyoncé,R KellyandRobbie Williams.[4][10]Its bass drum has been used as a metaphor for a heartbeat in songs by artists includingMadonna,RihannaandKesha.[10]

Successors

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The TR-08, a miniaturized 808 reissue released in 2017
The RD-8 Rhythm Designer, a clone released by Behringer in 2019

The 808 was followed in 1983 by theTR-909,the first Roland drum machine to use samples. Like the 808, the 909 influenced popular music, including such genres astechno,houseandacid.[15]

808 samples were included inReBirth RB-338,an earlysoftware synthesiserdeveloped byPropellerhead Software.[37]According to Andy Jones ofMusicTech,ReBirth was "especially incredible" as the first software emulation of 808 sounds.[37]It was retired in 2017 as Roland said it infringed on its intellectual property.[37]Roland has included 808 samples in several drum machines, including itsGrooveboxesin the 1990s.[15]Its TR-8[30]and TR-8S drum machines, released in the 2010s, recreate the sounds electronically rather than through sample playback.[38]

In 2017, Roland released the TR-08, a miniaturized 808 featuring anLEDdisplay, MIDI andUSBconnections, expanded sequencer control and a built-in speaker.[39]Roland released the first official software emulations of the 808 and 909 in 2018.[40]In 2019,Behringerreleased a recreation of the 808, the Behringer RD-8 Rhythm Designer. Unlike Roland's TR-08 and TR-8S, which use samples and virtual synthesis to recreate the 808 sounds, the RD-8 uses analog circuitry.[41]

See also

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  • 808(film)– a 2015 documentary about the Roland TR-808

References

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  1. ^Walmsley, Derek."Monolake in full".The Wire.Retrieved6 January2017.
  2. ^abcdeWolbe, Trent (30 January 2013)."How the 808 drum machine got its cymbal, and other tales from music's geeky underbelly".The Verge.Retrieved16 January2017.
  3. ^abcdefBeaumont-Thomas, Ben (6 March 2014)."The Roland TR-808: the drum machine that revolutionised music".The Guardian.ISSN0261-3077.Retrieved16 January2017.
  4. ^abcdefghAnderson, Jason (27 November 2008)."Slaves to the rhythm".CBC News.Retrieved16 January2017.
  5. ^abReid, Gordon (November 2014)."The history of Roland: part 1".Sound on Sound.Retrieved16 January2017.
  6. ^abcdefgKirn, Peter (2011).Keyboard Presents the Evolution of Electronic Dance Music.Backbeat Books.ISBN978-1-61713-446-3.
  7. ^abcdefghijkHamilton, Jack (16 December 2016)."808s and heart eyes".Slate.ISSN1091-2339.Retrieved16 January2017.
  8. ^abJenkins, Dave (1 February 2019)."Roland TR-909: The history of the influential drum machine".DJ Mag.Thrust Publishing.ISSN0951-5143.Retrieved14 September2019.
  9. ^abcdefghijkNorris, Chris (13 August 2015)."The 808 heard round the world".The New Yorker.Condé Nast.Retrieved16 January2017.
  10. ^abcdefghijkl"Everything you ever wanted to know about the Roland TR-808 but were afraid to ask".Fact.The Vinyl Factory.16 January 2014.Retrieved16 January2017.
  11. ^abValle, OV (13 February 2014)."TR-808 drum machine flashback – Roland U.S. blog".Roland US.Retrieved16 January2017.
  12. ^Goodyer, Tim (November 1986)."Beat Box Chic".Music Technology(Nov 1986):70–71.
  13. ^abReid, Gordon (February 2002)."Synth secrets: practical bass drum synthesis".Sound on Sound.UK: SOS Publications Group.Archivedfrom the original on 15 February 2004.Retrieved25 November2015.
  14. ^abContemporary Keyboard,Volume 7, Issues 1–6,1981: "The Roland TR-808 will undoubtedly become the standard for rhythm machines of the future because it does what no rhythm machine of the past has ever done. Not only does the TR-808 allow programming of individual rhythm patterns, it can also program the entire percussion track of a song from beginning to end, complete with breaks, rolls, literally anything you can think of."
  15. ^abcdReid, Gordon (December 2014)."The history of Roland: part 2".Sound on Sound.SOS Publications Group.Retrieved3 January2016.
  16. ^abWerner, Kurt (29 November 2015)."The Roland TR-808 and the tale of the marching anteaters".Ethnomusicology Review.Retrieved16 January2016.
  17. ^Suzanne, Ciani (1982)."Riding the new waves".DB Magazine:32.
  18. ^Marsden, Rhodi (15 December 2008)."Rhythm king: the return of the Roland 808 drum machine".The Independent.Independent Digital News & Media Ltd.Retrieved16 January2017.
  19. ^Wells, Peter (2004),A Beginner's Guide to Digital Video,AVA Books, p. 18,ISBN2-88479-037-3,retrieved20 May2011
  20. ^abcLeight, Elias (6 December 2016)."8 ways the 808 drum machine changed pop music".Rolling Stone.Retrieved16 January2016.
  21. ^Anderson, Jason (27 November 2008)."Slaves to the rhythm".CBC News.Retrieved16 January2017.
  22. ^Jones, Mikey IQ (22 January 2015)."The Essential... Yellow Magic Orchestra".Fact.Retrieved24 August2017.
  23. ^Warwick, Oli (8 April 2017)."Attack of the clones: Is Behringer's Minimoog a synth replica too far?".Fact.Retrieved30 November2018.
  24. ^abHawking, Tom (16 January 2014)."10 great songs built around the 808".Flavorwire.Archived fromthe originalon 8 July 2019.Retrieved16 January2017.
  25. ^McKee, Ruth; Grierson, Jamie (2 April 2017)."Roland founder and music pioneer Ikutaro Kakehashi dies aged 87".The Guardian.Retrieved6 April2018.
  26. ^Baldwin, Roberto (14 February 2014)."Early hip-hop's greatest drum machine just got resurrected".Wired.Retrieved4 January2016.
  27. ^Richards, Chris (2 December 2008)."What's an 808?".Slate.ISSN1091-2339.Retrieved16 January2016.
  28. ^Greene, Jason (22 September 2015)."The coldest story ever told: the influence of Kanye West's808s & Heartbreak".Pitchfork.Retrieved16 January2017.
  29. ^Kaufman, Gil (24 May 2012)."Beastie Boys' Adam Horovitz Talks MCA Death".MTV News.Archived fromthe originalon 23 May 2014.
  30. ^abBeaumont-Thomas, Ben (14 February 2014)."Roland launch new versions of the iconic 808, 909 and 303 instruments".The Guardian.ISSN0261-3077.Retrieved16 January2016.
  31. ^Dwyer, Nick (25 September 2014)."Interview: Streets of Rage Composer Yuzo Koshiro".Red Bull Music Academy.Retrieved20 January2024.
  32. ^Daza, Baltasar (3 July 2020)."Cuando el mundo tira para abajo: Charly García y la historia de Clics modernos".La Tercera.Retrieved17 April2022.
  33. ^Hamilton, Jack (5 December 2012)."Select-a-Rhythm".Slate.ISSN1091-2339.Retrieved21 March2018.
  34. ^Zacharek, Stephanie (17 September 1999)."Stop Making Sense".Salon.Retrieved21 March2018.
  35. ^"Roland TR-808: The drum machine that refused to die".BBC News.21 March 2014.Retrieved19 January2016.
  36. ^Kreps, Daniel (15 October 2014)."Phil Collins, Pharrell praise 808 drum machine in new doc".Rolling Stone.Retrieved16 January2014.
  37. ^abcJones, Andy (27 November 2017)."Rewind: Propellerhead ReBirth RB-338 - the first soft-synth emulation".MusicTech.Retrieved14 November2020.
  38. ^Truss, Si (23 May 2018)."Roland TR-8S Rhythm Performer review".Music Radar.Retrieved13 November2019.
  39. ^"Roland unveil Boutique SH-01 & TR-08 and AIRA sampler".Sound on Sound.8 August 2017.Retrieved26 September2017.
  40. ^Wilson, Scott (25 January 2018)."Roland is releasing official software versions of its 808 and 909 drum machines".Fact.The Vinyl Factory.Retrieved21 March2018.
  41. ^Sherbourne, Simon (January 2020)."Behringer RD-8 Rhythm Designer".Sound on Sound.SOS Publications Group.Retrieved27 November2020.

Further reading

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