Hi guys, is it worth to change from tr8 to Mashinedrum UW? I have possibility to buy it very cheap and I’m thinking about that.
Very different beasts! Neither is better per se, depends on what you want. For basic, pounding techno drums the TR-8 is hard to beat for the money.MD can approximate that too, but it shines at different things.
Tr8 is very limited in my opinion comparing to MD, MD have more sounds plus I can put drum samples into it. What about Audio in? I want to connect there Tb3, so it will be possible to use some filters or sidechain on incoming audio signal?
The tr8 is simple, quick to use and to the point, it sounds great if you like 808 & 909 sounds and is prosbably the most “instant” of the modem dance oriented drum machines. The machinedrum is a LOT deeper though.
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The MD includes input (INP) machines which allow you to gate and low-pass-filter sound that arrives at the MD’s audio inputs.
You can also sample the audio inputs (if you have the MDUW hardware version) into a small amount (2.5 MB) of sampling memory.
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I recently sold my TR-8 and bought a MD UW MK1 for just 100,-- more on ebay.
Now I can sequence a Volca Bass and route it in the Inputs (INP Machine) with my MD, have a PAD sampled as well as a bassline and do all that techno stiff and filterimg as well as delay and reverb with Plocks where I want.
Compared to the MD the TR-8 is very limited.
To exchange the TR-8 against the MD was a great step forward.
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It’s not even close, especially if you’re considering the UW. I have both and actually use the UW to sequence the TR-8 on occassion. The TR-8 is great at the sounds it provides, but you can’t sequence other things, can’t sample, there’s no p-locks, LFOs, and there are many more synthesis capabilities in the Machinedrum.
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the machinedrum is a machine you marry. there is lots of paperwork involved, you have to constantly pay it attention, sometimes it has really great and beautiful moments and sometimes you hate it for all the work required… plus its getting old.
the tr8 is the fun piece on the side. Its extremely easy to work, its only does 1 or 2 things… but god dam it does those things well.
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Then I think I’d prefer to marry the tr8.
Then I think I’d prefer to marry the tr8.[/quote]
Very good point 
You’ve made a good choice. I have both, but the mduw is really more versatile.
As said there is really no comparison. Being an owner of a non-UW MDMKII, I find the TR-8 to be a nice addition to my OTB drum setup. Between the MD and the TR-8 I’ve got it all covered really. The basic, classic sounds from the TR 8 and the weird and wacky from the the MD : )
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So you can sequence the tr8 to have 64 steps and p-lock the steps that you are sequencing the tr8 ? If this is true, you may have opened a whole different way of using the tr8.
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Yep, the TR-8 responds to nearly everything, the kit sounds are on different notes, it responds to velocity, and most of the front panel controls (tunings, decays, even the overall reverb and delay levels) respond to CC. It’s pretty sweet to sequence from MD (and even more so from MM).
It doesn’t do pattern or kit switching over MIDI, which is kind of dumb, but you can really get a lot out of manually sequencing it. There’s a MIDI implementation chart for download on Roland’s site.
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MD UW:
CTL-AL + RAM-A + ROM-A
twist/warp entire pattern, record, play back off-beat …watch time fly.
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I don’t know why i didn’t do this much sooner!
OMG! I hadn’t thought of sampling the CTR-all fiddlings!!!
PROJECT!!!
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could you please explain further!!! with RAM-A you mean RAM-R1?
i thought you meant that but i got confused with RAM-A definition…