Doepfer

> I have a Vermona DRM1 drum machine which is controlled via external  
> MIDI. I use computer software to program the drums, but I want to  
> buy a hardware sequencer to do the job. I have no idea what to buy  
> - I have seen many products (future retro mobius, sequentix P3...)  
> but they are all waaaay overprice. I only want a simple 16 step  
> sequencer to make sequences for the different drum sounds.
>
> I have seen the MAQ 16/3, but I actually have no idea if this would  
> suit the job. I have seen videos on youtube of it working with  
> melodies, but I don't know if I can do drums... Is it suitable? Can  
> anyone tell me what to buy?

The MAQ gives you 3 rows of 16 steps via MIDI so you could play up to  
3 drum sounds at a time. Not ideal but not useless. You would be  
spinning a knob to get the drum you want or perhaps use a MIDI  
keyboard to get the right midi note or you'd add a rest for each  
step. Then you'd move to the 2nd and 3rd row if you need a second or  
3rd drum on the same step.  I have neither unit but I have the  
feeling it would be workable but not super fast to program and edit.

An 808 style interface where you could choose the MIDI note going  
out  (that's important!) would be ideal and most direct in my mind,  
not a simple knobby sequencer.  As I think you've discovered,  
unfortunately most flexible sequencers aren't cheap and unfortunately  
while I can think of a couple drum units that respond to MIDI, there  
aren't that many that a lot of companies find a demand to support  
them with affordable hardware (the fairly expensive Elektron  
Machinedrum could control it properly from what I know).

I don't really know anything about the DRM1 or the MAQ 16/3...

HOWEVER, from what I can tell, this sounds like a job for the electribe series!

For basic 808 style programming, the er1 will do the job, which you can usually find used for under $200 or for some added features you can grab a ESX (around $500 new last time I checked) which will give you the ability to change the length of the pattern to odd number of steps, etc... (as well as being a decent sampler)

With electribe you can definitely choose the midi note, so I think it will do.

Hope that is useful.

-R
--- In Doepfer_a100@yahoogroups.com, zaum <zaum@...> wrote:

>
> > I have a Vermona DRM1 drum machine which is controlled via external  
> > MIDI. I use computer software to program the drums, but I want to  
> > buy a hardware sequencer to do the job. I have no idea what to buy  
> > - I have seen many products (future retro mobius, sequentix P3...)  
> > but they are all waaaay overprice. I only want a simple 16 step  
> > sequencer to make sequences for the different drum sounds.
> >
> > I have seen the MAQ 16/3, but I actually have no idea if this would  
> > suit the job. I have seen videos on youtube of it working with  
> > melodies, but I don't know if I can do drums... Is it suitable? Can  
> > anyone tell me what to buy?
> 
> The MAQ gives you 3 rows of 16 steps via MIDI so you could play up to  
> 3 drum sounds at a time. Not ideal but not useless. You would be  
> spinning a knob to get the drum you want or perhaps use a MIDI  
> keyboard to get the right midi note or you'd add a rest for each  
> step. Then you'd move to the 2nd and 3rd row if you need a second or  
> 3rd drum on the same step.  I have neither unit but I have the  
> feeling it would be workable but not super fast to program and edit.
> 
> An 808 style interface where you could choose the MIDI note going  
> out  (that's important!) would be ideal and most direct in my mind,  
> not a simple knobby sequencer.  As I think you've discovered,  
> unfortunately most flexible sequencers aren't cheap and unfortunately  
> while I can think of a couple drum units that respond to MIDI, there  
> aren't that many that a lot of companies find a demand to support  
> them with affordable hardware (the fairly expensive Elektron  
> Machinedrum could control it properly from what I know).
>