Machinedrum vs. Microtonic vs. Drumatic

nebulae · Post by **nebulae** » Mon Jul 07, 2008 1:29 pm

Microtonic is fantastic! Basic, yes, but what it does, it does well! Also, low CPU means that you can easily chain a Saturator or a CamelPhat after it, and you get entirely new worlds of sounds. It's my go to drum synth when I'm doing electro, house, and tech tracks.

Kodama · Post by **Kodama** » Mon Jul 07, 2008 8:19 pm

I think if I bought a UW now, I'd be quite disappointed once the LD II came out for a few more $$$.

But, the full specs aren't out on th LD II as of yet, so I could be wrong...

kuniklo · Post by **kuniklo** » Mon Jul 07, 2008 11:11 pm

machinedrum pros:
* very flexible, particularly the UW
* great user interface & sequencer
* lots of fun

machinedrum cons:
* expensive
* sounds hard & digital by default
* requires cabling, midi sync, saving audio etc (compared to a plugin)

Overall I love mine but it's a really a luxury. I could be happy with drum racks + Microtonic if I didn't have it, although I haven't found anything software that's truly a replacement for the UW features. If you're sick of sitting in front of a computer all the time it's a great way to work out ideas away from a screen and a mouse.

Kodama · Post by **Kodama** » Tue Jul 08, 2008 12:05 am

I think it's kinda crap that the Machinedrum sequencer - while using automation - is about as powerful as an Electribe sampler in that you have to change your working soundset to change patterns.

Having it always save changes automatically sounds like a pain also...

kuniklo · Post by **kuniklo** » Tue Jul 08, 2008 12:29 am

Kodama wrote:I think it's kinda crap that the Machinedrum sequencer - while using automation - is about as powerful as an Electribe sampler in that you have to change your working soundset to change patterns.

Only if the patterns use different kits.

Tarekith · Post by **Tarekith** » Tue Jul 08, 2008 1:20 am

Enter Classic mode....

Kodama · Post by **Kodama** » Tue Jul 08, 2008 7:02 am

Tarekith wrote:Enter Classic mode....

Which removes the automation feature...

kuniklo · Post by **kuniklo** » Tue Jul 08, 2008 2:50 pm

The electribes work in the opposite way, actually. The "kit" is saved as part of each pattern. This is nice in a way in that you don't have to worry about messing up patterns that share a common kit, the way you do with the elektrons, but you do have to copy the "kit" around from one pattern to another if you want to change it.