If you want something to punch, try the MC-303. Easily the most disappointing piece of gear I’ve ever owned. 
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Hehe) yes I remember : ) at that time it showed up around I’ve already had Jomox 09 and Roland R8 and Synths… and just laughed at those poor guys who tried to made something with mc303
BUT
Some time ago I’ve seen a guy at the gig with it and some pedals and actually his stuff sounded quite good so again it’s a matter of many things
HOWEVER
What I’m afraid of is that TR8s still shares some heritage from its ancestor. I don’t know how to call it better, back in the dayz we called it “soap sound“
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Agree, and there are some Lo/Hi boost efx in Inst efx slots, they work more or less as eq…
Lack of proper ENV is hell, still fighting on TR8s fb group with firmware programmers and trying to make them implement proper envelopes (pitch and amp). Chances are really small, most of the crowd want fkkn song mode… but maybe after another 100 messages they will change their mind.
The MC-303 was a feature reduced MC-505, and the MC-505 was based on the JV architecture, according to internet lore. The Zen engine derives from the XV-5080, which is a vast superset of JV functionality. The MC-101/707 are thus distant cousins of the MC-303, but with much more flexible synthesis and a far far better sequencer.
I would guess that ACB derives more from the JP-8000’s VA than the rompling JV/XV line.
My own path to the TR-8s was:
- B* 808 & 909 in cart, ready to buy
- Listing my first batch of Euro on eBay, a potential buyer offered a TR-8s at a very generous trade-price
- Yes please, no need for two B* devices now
- Sounds good, sufficiently different from the MD to justify keeping them both.
It occurs to me that we may be disliking and liking the exact same thing about the TR-8s: it is very accessible and middle of the road.
On the positive side, I go to the TR-8s when I want to quickly pick a kit, make a beat, and start jamming with other gear. When I start with the MD, I end up spending the whole session programming a MD kit and test patterns. Which is fun, but not always my objective. TR-8s gets the job done, and if I want a more sculpted sound later, the MD is right there.
On the negative side, it’s somewhat lacking in passion and makes your music more like stuff that is already out there than different.
An even more extreme approach is what I’m doing now: sequencing on the MIDI side of my OT, but using those sequences to drive parts of a multi over on the Virus. I planned on doing something similar on the TX-802 and then TG-77, but again got lost in programming a single patch on those fun machines. The Virus is accessible enough that I can knock out several decent patches in an evening. It can never be as weird as a TG-77, but I also don’t need all of my compositional complexity in the patch.
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My suggestion would be to run any drum machine you have through the dreadbox kinematic. Makes anything sound mega punchy. Much simpler fix than constantly searching for a new drum machine. Listen @ 3 min mark.
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Actually sounds very nice on subtle settings! But it’s MONO! 
Good to have one anyway, but… Let’s attack the Dreadbox email to make em make a stereo version!
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Yes, totally make sense.
For me TR8s was also spontaneous purchase, I haven’t planned it and wasn’t so sure why I’m getting it… and yeah, I still looking for a way to make it sound “more personal” than it seems atm.
Maybe this “punchy” term here is also a psychological thing. Like when I just look at the unplugged 808 or 909 it’s already sounds punchy : )
But let’s keep our experiments going. One of the reasons I think its a keeper - it has super nice trigger outs. Works amazing with old sequencers, modular etc… Actually I have so many nice modular sound sources… Shame I don’t use them together with 8s.
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Personally, I don’t think of the MC-303 in a disparaging manner. I think it has its own raw, lo-fi sound due to the proprietary compression used on the samples to reduce file sizes and conserve memory. It sounds gritty and I’ve always really dug how Mount Sims, M.I.A., and Peaches made the 303/505 sound.
The TR-8S sounds like polished and processed classic Roland drum sounds to me. Roland drum sounds have always been the gold standard for punchy drum sounds in my mind. The TR-8S does not sound less punchy than the analog versions of the sounds it emulates imo. I actually think the opposite is true in certain regards.
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Any tool can be a hammer, but I dont use a hammer to cut things.
Make sense?
Accents, accent level, proper drum mix, compressor. = Punch you in the painful parts.
I’ll repeat the mantra of this thread, any drum machine can sound punchy, its how you use it that counts.
Blah blah blah twiddle twiddle noise
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I wanted to pick apart the OP a bit because this just doesn’t seem right to me. What do you mean by “it often just “disappears” from the mix and just adds mud”? This sounds like a mixing issue. Are you sure the levels you chose for the TR-8S were loud enough? Are you saying kick, snare, and hi-hat sounds from the TR-8S add mud? I can’t imagine how the 909 kicks, 808 snares, and 606 hi-hats the TR-8S produces would add mud to a mix.
Also, what do you mean by sounding “cheesy”? Are you saying it doesn’t emulate classic Roland sounds well enough? Why wouldn’t you use EQ and comp on the analog versions of the sounds the TR-8S emulates as well?
It’s subjective, yo. Our ears and the brain that processes our senses are quite particular.
what is “punch?”
Sounds like you have a great tool that does what you ask.
Are you worried there might be something more punchy and you are missing out?
Yeah, but OP likes the analog versions of the same sounds and the difference between them isn’t enough to turn something that sounds good into a muddy mix. If you have a track that sounds good with analog 909 drum sounds, I can’t understand how replacing those sounds with the TR-8S versions of the same sounds would make things sound muddy or “cheesy.”
Our expectations literally shape our senses. You don’t find same experience, and while i’ve only listened to demos and experienced live as an audiencegoer, I’m sure i probably wouldn’t have the same experience either.
But i also don’t gel with plenty of things that i know are objectively good, but i try not to beat myself up about it. If it doesn’t inspire, move on i say.
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So the issue is one’s own expectations then? That can be fixed by better understanding the situation and changing one’s perspective.
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Right, there was self-awareness of this in their earlier posts.
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Ah yes, don’t we all love to come to the forums to be told the only solution to our problem is time and practice when we clearly asked what we should buy next? 
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I like any excuse to buy new toys. The main thing I want to get at is the contention that the TR-8S sounds aren’t as functional as the analog versions of the sounds it emulates. I’d like for the OP to realize this isn’t true. I agree that the user experience can affect one’s judgement, but not liking the user experience is an entirely different subject.
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The “all drum machines can be punchy with the right FX/samples/etc” point is a bit Captain Obvious, no?
I think there is something to be said for machines that assert themselves and cut through straight out of the gate. And for this the LXR is insta-slap IMO.
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Dreadbox replied that they don’t have plans for stereo version and no desire to discuss it.
What we gonna do? use 2x of it? diy 2x into one case? would be interesting to see such an diy project.
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