Roland TR 8 Tutorial Sound Design 

VisionQuest Sound That is very nice of you and it means a lot to me! I really like your videos, too man! That "In the Air Tonight" demonstration is brilliant, I think everyone should watch it! Thanks and greets from Germany! :)

Magdalene Malesytcki What a nice comment, thank you! :)

Well, I've had my ups and downs with the TR 8 myself and wasn't always so convinced about keeping it but it's a great live tool for spontaneous jams. Rather limited but still quite capable and fun. Thanks for the nice words, much appreciated!

Thanks for watching and leaving such a great comment! 😊

JOE BJORNSON Thank you! I really appreciate it! 😃👍

That's great, thanks a lot for keeping me motivated! :)

oldcharon Very nice of you, thanks for watching! :)

Thank you, makes my day! 😊

Das freut mich, vielen Dank! :)

As long as you have enough room for it. You never know, might discover a long forgotten true gem in the closet someday... Thanks for watching!

Sounds good ;) thank you!

I just bought it and watching this vids for a week now :) realy useful

Thanks for watching and leaving such a nice comment!

:D Hahaha... yes, it really helps to spice things up quite a bit!

Through sidechain

wait scatter picks up your voice? I thought it didn't scatter the audio going through it?

Thank you so much! It's quite remarkable what the TR8 is capable of despite being so limited. Btw - check out flams as a substitute for a missing programmable roll function! I wish it had just a little more functionality and sound of the TR8S but can still provide endless fun. Tunable cowbell, additional kick drum in the low tom channel with the 7X7 expansion... I've been playing a lot with just the TR8 and a TB3 lately and it's a great combo!

Thanks for watching!

Thanks for the nice feedback! 😊

Glad you like it, thanks for the comment! :)

You're welcome! Thanks for watching! :)

I'm a huge fan of the Prodigy, so that's a great compliment, thank you! :)

LousyFacelift whit the other kick distorsion change?

GoodModeOn The kick I used for this is instrument number three for the bassdrum track. It's an 808 kick with longer decay time and gate time is set to around three to four o' clock. You can use other kick sounds for this but I like the long fade out time. The distortion comes from instrument number eight for the delay section. If you want to hear it throughout the pattern you should activate all the steps for the delay in the sequence.

Danke für die Anregung! Für gezielte Fragen auf Deutsch zur TR 8 bin ich aber hier natürlich auch immer gerne zu haben. Grüßööh! 😊🙏

Thank you! 😊

Very nice of you, thanks for watching! :)

hristuppiteitinu I used my Korg ESX as a preamp for my microphone and plugged it into the TR 8. Then TR 8 out straight to the line in of my camera. Thanks for watching! :)

Ahh, clever. Thank you!

Chris Dillon Vielen Dank! :)

Mike Hinkediker Bursztyn Thanks a lot! :)

The MC-505 is an amazing workstation for all types of genres of electronic music and includes a far more complex synth and sequencer concept. The TR 8 is in a totally different category, it's a (rather simple) drum machine for those who want a more authentic sounding emulation of the classic Roland machines TR-808 and TR-909. If you don't already own other synthesizers to accompany the TR 8 and want something to write complete songs with you made the much better choice with the MC-505.

@@LousyFacelift It's certainly a little mind boggling trying to figure out all the button configs, but other than that I just love this machine. Perfect for House music

Trevor Gordon Yeah, it isn't so easy to use that's for sure but it really pays off to learn this thing because it does it all in one box and it sounds really good! Have you seen my videos on the 505?

@@LousyFacelift For sure bro, that's what brought me to your channel. Helped a lot - especially the Wave section to make your own drum kit. That was very useful! The instructions are utterly useless just like for everything back in the 90's! haha. I used to have this machine in 98' but due to my age and impatience, never got around to really mastering it nor using it much. Now, it's a completely different story. I could spend all day on this!

Trevor Gordon Glad to hear, thanks! 😊👍

Adjusting the boost level of each instrument is actually possible even without the 7X7 upgrade. Just make sure step key 3 is illuminated in boot mode like I explained in this video: ru-vid.com/video/%D0%B2%D0%B8%D0%B4%D0%B5%D0%BE-V1wlJe82VmI.html You then need to hold down [KIT] and turn the tempo dial to adjust the level setting. I still recommend the 7X7 upgrade though because it adds many more high quality sounds to the TR 8 and also the flam function which is not available otherwise.

@@LousyFacelift 120€ is a lot for a student, but i cant put my mind off this expansion...aaaaah 🤔

@@TheYannickOne Yes, it's a lot, I agree... Maybe you can test it somewhere to see if it's worth it for you. The sounds are quite nice imho and I use the flam function a lot but maybe they also included that in the latest upgrade even without the expansion, I'm not sure... Another thing I use a lot - You can load a short 707 kick in the low tom part, so you can have it together with a long decay 808 bassdrum in the same kit.

@@LousyFacelift i installed the 7x7 a few days ago. the standard version in comparison feels like a weak demo. thanks for the advice

@@TheYannickOne Good to hear, thanks for the feedback and have fun making beats!

The effects are hardwired to the main outs, so unfortunately it's impossible to create a drone sound and send it out via one of the assignable outputs. It should work with dry signals though, only you would have to chose a sound with a long decay time to really hear the ducking effect. Check out the channel "Sound Art Elevation" the guy is demonstrating some excellent pattern examples. But as a general rule to find out where you want to place the steps for your beats - focus on the downbeats and the highest resolution of steps (fastet notes) to find out which scale you want to use. It's a good idea to place a kick on the first step most of the time.

@@LousyFacelift Thank you for your response. Sorry, completely forgot that the effects are only in main out - keeping all of the manual in memory is a bit challenging at the very beginning ;-) And thanks for the suggestions. The Sound Art Elevation channel looks great :-) By the way, with "downbeat" you mean slow tempi? or the first beat of a 16-step bar?

Andreas Ihle The downbeats are the illuminated white steps in a scale. When you're using scale three for sixteen steps you get one full four fourths measure and when you count through, the downbeats - one, two, three, four - are on steps one, five, nine and thirteen.

@@LousyFacelift Thank you again very much. Now it's clear :-) Thank you also for your suggestion re the Recording.de workshop - very helpful and I am sure that this will be a good start for me to further get into it :-) Thanks again for all your explanations and exciting and inspiring videos!

Andreas Ihle Thanks for the nice words and for watching my channel! Have a great day! 😊

2 or more patterns you mean? In this case - no, not possible, sorry, one pattern only.

Evilimpulse89 Thanks a lot! :)

You get individual outs over USB, so you don't need a mixer for the TR 8. Just plug its USB out directly into your computer and configure the daw software so that all channels are recognized.

I don't remember but I think the open hats are on 5 and 13 in this pattern and maybe also on 1 and 9 together with the closed hat which gives you an additional hi hat sound when you use the 808 hi hats. When you hold down and instrument button while placing a step you get a purple colored step and softer hit for that note. Notice I'm on scale four for this pattern for 32th notes, the default is scale number three for a 16th note resolution. Thanks for the question!

The effects are hardwired to the main output left and right, so the instruments that you want to apply effects to must be routed to the main output.

@@LousyFacelift thanks a lot for help, it works!

Filip Zięciak That's great! Good to gear it works now!

Kero Salem Moin! :) Roland benutzen für ihre Aira- und Boutique- Serie eine Technologie namens ACB für "Analog Circuit Behavior". Dabei werden analoge Schaltkreise digital errechnet und somit, anders als beim Sampling, das Klangverhalten eines analogen Instruments, inklusive auftretender Artefakte beim Bedienen der Regler, mit den dazugehörigen gegenseitigen Auswirkungen beim Verändern verschiedener Parameter, nachgebildet. Die Ergebnisse beim Klangschrauben sind daher deutlich authentischer als beim Arbeiten mit Samples. Es gibt sicherlich noch ein paar klangliche Unterschiede zwischen ACB und rein analog, z.B. im Verhalten einiger Hüllkurven, aber die sind meiner Meinung nach minimal und analog bedeutet nicht immer automatisch besser. Ich bin zum Beispiel, vom Sound her, kein großer Fan des Arturia Drumbrute, der zwar rein analog ist aber, wie ich finde, deutlich dünner klingt als die TR 8. Für mich ist die TR 8 auf jeden Fall ein sehr gelungenes Instrument mit hohem Spaßfaktor. Sie besitzt Vor- und Nachteile gegenüber 808, 909 usw, vielleicht teilweise nicht ganz so viel Punch, dafür viel bessere Klangformungsmöglichkeiten, die wirklich lebendig und "analog" klingen. Vielen Dank für den Kommentar und viel Spaß beim Musik machen! :)

LousyFacelift Danke für die hilfreiche und schnelle Antwort! Peace✌

Kero Salem Gerne! Für weitere Fragen zur TR 8 bin ich immer zu haben. Alles Gute! :)

I think I had a small mixer with a dynamic mic connected to the external input of the TR 8 going into the line in of my camera. You can hear the scatter affecting my voice between 12:50 and 13:10 in the video.

@@LousyFacelift yeah I heard it. Do the delay and reverb (and anything else?) affect the ext input as well?

No, the input cannot be routed through the reverb and delay, it's really just the scatter.

@@LousyFacelift ok. thank you!

sean j Actually I'm not sure if I was only using the 808 and 909 sounds but as far as effects this can all be done with the standard version. I would still recommend getting the 7x7 expansion for the additional sounds and functions though.

Thanks ,, i appreciate all your tutorials and look forward to more :-)

aliasghar907 Hi! The difference is with the update you can no longer switch scales by simply pressing the scale button, which could often happen by accident. You now switch scales by holding the scale button while turning the tempo knob which I think is a pretty good idea. I like it better this way.

LousyFacelift. i know but when i turn on in boot mode, the scale setting is not available..that is..nothing happens when i press scale button and the option is not available for me to use the safer setting.. i thought perhaps the 1.2 update somehow maybe took away this extra feature from 1.1 update.. otherwise i would love to use this feature or turn this setting on same as yourself.. i turn my tr8 on while holding 14 and 16..-and yet the setting for how to change scales is missing/absent!

aliasghar907 Ah ok, I understand now... seems strange though, sorry but I don't know. I didn't think they would take a useful function away in a newer update. Maybe that was just a "teaser" in 1.1 to get more people to buy the 7x7 expansion but that's just a guess...

Samuel Blondell Press INST, then go to the delay section and press STEP, then select instrument eight by pressing step key eight, press BD and select instrument three (step key three) for the kick. Next press TR-REC and place notes for your kick. Press STEP in the delay section again and activate all the steps from 1- 16. Press KIT and hold down the STEP key in the delay section and make sure that the button under the fader for the BD channel lights up, that's how you assign individual instruments to the effects. Make sure you have decay cranked up for the kick and adjust the level, time and feedback of the effect in the delay section to your liking. That's it. :)

Vøltaire Official Yes, no problem: The TR 8 can be switched to either 808 or 909 mode, in 808 mode the closed and open hat placed on the same step will make a different sound, in 909 mode the hats cut eachother off. In boot mode make sure TR-REC is unlit (808 mode) before pressing START/STOP to enter play mode. That's it! :)

thank you very very much, as simple as that, you're really helpful

Vøltaire Official My pleasure! Have a great day :)

one more question when starts my tr8 in boot mode I can select the 8 bottom as well, do you know what is the feature on this bottom if i turn on?

Vøltaire Official This feature came with the 606 update. It also has to do with the hats. When pad 8 is lit the OH channel will be unlit as if it was muted and changing the settings on one of the tracks will influence the other one as if they were really just one instrument.

You cannot load samples into the TR 8 but you could use it as a controller for an external MIDI instrument. There is a dedicated controller mode, next to a global off setting but this will disconnect the controls from its internal sound source - hold down [LAST STEP] and turn the scatter dial until you see "Ctrl" in the display for controller mode, "OFF" is the global off setting and "ON" is what you need to make it play its own sounds again. In controller mode you would have to make sure the external device is set to the same MIDI channel and the instruments send out the right MIDI note messages to trigger the external sounds you wish to use. There is also a mode in which you can use a dedicated instrument part to trigger external sounds - in instrument mode select a part and press step key 16 - but I haven't tried all these functions yet and I cannot say exactly how they work also because much depends on the settings in your external device which could be anything.

Salvador Cartas Thank you very much! :)