Can anyone suggestion a (cheap) drum machine?

jer989

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I had been thinking about getting a metronome to help me get my strums more regular (I think that I was born without whatever part of the brain controls rhythm!) -but then I thought that maybe for a bit more money a drum machine would be a better way to go (more versatile, and more fun to play along with).

My budget for this is pretty limited - maybe $50 or so - which definitely is going to something used. I was looking at the Zoom MRT-3 maybe (they only go for $99 new, about $60 used). Also available used are Zoom Rhythmtrak RT-123 and RT-234 for about that price (apparently these also go for $50-$60 used, but are a bit older). Anyhow - my criteria are that it's something that's relatively easy to use, sounds pretty good (I'm not looking for something that just makes cheesy 80's synth-like drum sounds!), and preferrably runs on batteries.

Any thoughts out there, are there any other units that you might suggest? Also, if anyone is looking to sell one, please PM me to let me know- maybe we can figure something out.

Thanks all-
-jer989

:cheers:
 
Good idea to check Goodwill (I have two near me) - maybe that'll yield something.

Just checked out the Stylophone- thanks for the tip - I watched the Youtube vid of it and it looks neat - I can't tell if it'd do what I need (at the very least provide a non-stop beat with an adjustable tempo). hmm....
 
It looks like the Stylophone would depend on you having a good sense of rhythm in the first place. That pretty much counts me out.
 
Dave-
That's a pretty cool video - I never would have thought that combining a synth and mountain dulcimer would sound anything less than ridiculous- it's quite the opposite though- they sound really good together! The Korg Kaossilator (great name BTW) - looks like it might be worth investigating - looks like used ones go for somewhere near $100 or so - but I'll add that to my list of things to consider, thanks!

-jer989

:cheers:
 
If you can find a used one, the Boss DR-550 Mk II is an excellent all-'round drum machine made through the 1990s. It runs on batteries or DC, has a headphone jack, line outs and a MIDI input. (And if you want cheesy '80s drum machine sounds, it does have some samples from the TR-808.)

That Korg gadget looks like fun.

--Mark
 
I think for your use software would be a better choice. It will play on any computer, Sounds awesome, and will cost you nothing!

You can get Propellerhead's Rebirth for free which will have all the classic 80s drum and bass sounds. There are also 100 other free programs., but rebirth is a great place to start. http://www.rebirthmuseum.com/index.htm. Great thing about Propellerhead's product line is that they try to replicate actual hardware. Makes everything easy to use.

I use Propellerhead's Reason for most of my drum programming. It is a more advanced version of Rebirth.
 
Blrfl-
(look, I pronounced it correctly!) - thanks for the suggestion about the Boss DR-550. It sounds a little bit electronic for my taste - but it is within my price range - I'll definitely look into that one some more - thanks again!

ps6000-
Thanks for the suggestion about using a PC based drum machine - I have played around with a couple of them actually (I run Ubuntu Linux on my PC at home - and have played around with a prog. called Hydrogen - don't know if it's Linux only or what). Anyhow - I was really looking for something that I could bring anywhere in the house (or outside on the deck in the summer) - so as to not be tied down to a computer (anyways, my kids always seem to want to use the computer right when I want to -- so that's another reason too). That said- I'll have to check out Rebirth as well just to see what it can do - esp. if it's free - no harm in trying that as well! Thanks!

-jer989
:cheers:
 
I use Reason, which is expensive computer software I wouldn't be able to afford except a friend gave it to me.

To try the whole idea out, there are free software drum machines. I'm pretty sure.

*googling it*

http://www.ordrumbox.com/

That kind of thing is fun, too, because you can make your own samples on the computer to use.
 
Doesn't get much cheaper than that, does it?

I've been writing software for 30 years, and there are still a lot of things that I don't think of doing on a general-purpose computer because you just couldn't "way back then." Go figure...

--Mark
 
You can run a lot of the drum machine software on older laptops. Get a laptop that costs $50-$100 install free drum machine software and you have a drum machine. Install free recording software and you have a mobile recording studio.
 
if you hsve a pc, not a mac then you can do a lot worse than groove agent, it is pretty comprehensive and easy to use it is not massively expensive but if you really cant spring to it i suspect you will be able to obtain it by other online means however Steinberg stuff is always tricky cracked cos of the dongle, not insurmountable but enough of a pain in the ass if you are not computer literate to make it annoying enough to buy.
 
Thanks everyone for all the great suggestions - I'm not sure what I'll personally end up using, but for anyone else interested (now or in the future) - here's the list of non-metronome solutions for those of us that are not only rhythm-impaired, but also cheap.... ;)


Hardware-based 'Drum Machines'
--------------------------------------------------

Zoom MRT-3 - (or MRT-3B, same thing, just w/ black case) - sells new for $99 currently, and a little bit less used.

Zoom Rhythmtrak RT-123 and RT-234 - both a little bit older than MRT-3, both sell used in the $50-$80 range currently.

Stylophone Beatbox - currently new for $25.50.

Korg Kaossilator - currently new for ~$150.

Boss DR-550 Mk II - available used in the $40-$60 range currently

Alesis SR-16 - available used in the $50-$90 range currently



Online (Free) 'Drum Machines'
--------------------------------------------------

Monkey Machine

http://ababasoft.com/music/drum_machine.html

http://www.keyboardmuseum.com/d_machines/vdrums.html



Software-based 'Drum Machines'
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Propellerhead's Rebirth - Free (Windows, Mac)

orDrumbox - Free (Windows, Mac. Linux)

Grooveagent3 - (Windows, Mac)

HammerHead Rhythm Station - Shareware (Windows)

Beatcraft - $40 (Windows)

PC Drummer - $49 (Windows)

Leaf Drums - $30 (Windows)

iZotope iDrum - $50 (Windows, Mac)
 
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