A couple of things I noticed while I was doing that MIDI editing: First, the synth has a note range of four octaves. It's not velocity-sensitive. However, do you remember how in the sequencer mode there are accented and unaccented notes? If you send a MIDI note on a message that has a velocity greater than 96 it will send that out as an accented note, so it's sort of almost velocity-sensitive. Donner, one of the best-known companies for low-budget guitar pedals, is now making synthesizers. That’s interesting news. There is currently no sound demo of the B1 analog bass Synthesizer in the wild. Even without a demo, I’m pretty sure the sound journey is going in the corner of the Roland TB-303/Behringer TD-3. Okay. Enough about the App. Let's try to use this thing as a MIDI device. The first thing I'm going to do is set up an external instrument device in Ableton Live. And I'm just going to come up with a random sequence to test things out. Okay. Let's hear this. Arena 2000 is a floor pedal delivering effects, amp and cab sims, and a massive bundle of functionality and connectivity, all of which make it a prime contender for guitarists shopping in the booming entry-level end of the market.

Flexible and Versatile Music Studio at Your Fingertips】The B1 controller has MIDI IN/OUT interface connects the B1 to your external MIDI devices for sequencing or as a MIDI controller. Connect external sound sources using the 1/8” audio input. The 1/4" TS mono Main Out carries the main output signal. That said, while the B1’s sequencing offers extra flexibility, the synth engine itself is still as bare bones as any other 303-alike, and without features like a full amp envelope, additional oscillator or variations in filter mode, the sonic range is effectively limited to a single – albeit very desirable – style. Donner have optimized the sequencer of this synthesizer to be easier and more intuitive to use. Easily edit your own sequences with 128 sequence presets covering a range of musical styles, and 128 user programmable presets. Then, the signal flows into a filter with cutoff, resonance and depth controls. On the modulation side, you get a simple decay envelope. Also similar. Audio side, you get an 1/8” audio input for routing external audio in the synth as well as a 1/4″ TS mono main output. And almost forgot, there is also a big master output knob on the interface.

Discussions

This knob up here, the accent knob which we hadn't talked about yet, is actually going to determine how pronounced that accent is. Obviously, you don't want it too high, but it's a way of introducing variation.

Intuitive Step Sequencer】The sequencer is the key of the Essential B1. Instead of giving you one of the most complicated sequencers on the planet, we make it as intuitive as it can be. No need to be headache while programming your idea any more! There are also several live performance features while running patterns, to make the Essential B1 more playable. No tap write or realtime record, and no ability to record slides or accents in realtime, the TB-303 does not have some of these features but a lot of other clones do. let's turn the saturation on. Right now the drive is all the way down. I'm going to turn it up a bit. You can see it gets a little bit more aggressive. OK, not exactly a synth in conventional terms but given that it's coming from Korg and is a sequel to its NTS-1 build-it-yourself synth, it's certainly worth a mention here, even if the centrepiece of the hardware isn’t a synth engine but a 4-channel oscilloscope…

QUESTIONS & ANSWERS

This idea was of course a complete commercial failure and it was discontinued in 1984. so a few years after it was discontinued. There was a brief time when 303s could actually be found at pawn shops and thrift stores. As a result, it got rediscovered by the underground techno scene in Detroit and Chicago, resulting in an entirely new sub-genre of electronic music called the acid house in the mid to late 80s.