Roland TR-707 Drum Machines

 
 
The Roland TR-707 is not exactly a feature rich machine. You cannot tweak the sounds due to the fact it uses PCM sampling. You can apply 5 variations of flam to the toms and to the snares ranging from no flam at all to a style that resembles a bubbling sound.
 

The shuffle feature produces a lively feel to what ever it is you are playing. Unfortunately you can only apply accent to each step of the 16 and not to each sound independently, however you do get two initial levels of accent which can also be controlled using a master accent slider, which helps you to control the accent in a very fluid and natural manner.

If you intend to use the TR 707 in a dark room you will need to get a grasp as to how the LEDs work as the LCD screen is not backlit. This will come with a little practice and you could always use a lamp to help you until you are familiar. The 707 could really benefit from the addition of Midi and Din ports.

You can configure a work around using the individual ins and outs but it is far from adequate. The ins and outs coupled with the volume sliders are extremely versatile though and you can adapt them for many uses.
 
 
The Tempo knob is far too sensitive, and sometimes it moves without even handling the unit. Taking into account that this machine is almost 25 years this is really only a minor niggle that can be lived with. This is a surprisingly great sounding machine especially if you are looking to create electronica style music.
 

It’s not as good as the 808 or 909 by any means and the sounds are not one hundred percent realistic. The sound of cymbal decay and the toms could be much better, but for the most part the sounds are actually pretty good. It can be used by itself, but where this unit excels is using the midi out for sequencing, and you can easily slave other machines with it. For the most part it is a good sounding product that performs very well.

 
DEALS ON ROLAND TR-707 DRUM MACHINES