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Sign upSynthesizers, BPM, vocoders, mixing, choruses - how the sound works under the hood.
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The Mirage made keyboard sampling attainable through a $1,695 price and strict limits: 128 KB, two banks, a two-character display and a physical disk library for working musicians.
1980: the Linn LM-1 - the first drum machine with samples. That same year the Roland TR-808 - analog drum synthesis. Fairlight CMI, Emulator II, Akai S900 and MPC - four instruments, four relationships between sound and rhythm. A difference table and practice in Italo Disco, hip-hop and synth-pop.
1977: Didier Marouani and Space release "Magic Fly" (UK #2). 1985: Koto records "Visitors" and critics call it spacesynth. The two terms are often blurred, but the eras, geography, vocals and instrumentation differ. Five real distinctions using Space, Koto, Laserdance and Rofo.
February 1, 1983: Dave Smith connects a Prophet 600 and a Roland Jupiter-6 with a MIDI cable. In four years, MIDI will transform studio production: synchronization, sequencers, multi-timbral rack synthesizers. From the Atari ST to General MIDI - how one standard rewrote music.
1984: E-mu Systems releases the Emulator II at $7,995 - an 8-bit sampler with SSM2045 analog filters. Peter Gabriel, Pet Shop Boys and Depeche Mode preferred it over the $30,000 Fairlight CMI. A breakdown: architecture, sound library, 15 recordings and comparison with the Fairlight.
1980: Roland TR-808 at $1,195 - analog synthesis, no samples. Oberheim DMX at $2,895 - digital samples in EPROM chips. 80s drum machine samples: what is legal to use, and what is a gray area. A breakdown of synthesis vs. recording, EPROM copying and sample packs.
1985: Koto releases “Visitors” - a fully instrumental track with a sample from “Thriller”. A year later Laserdance records “Humanoid Invasion”. Spacesynth - a subgenre of Italo Disco without vocals, with a synthesizer melody replacing the voice. A breakdown of the genre: Koto, Laserdance and track structure.
May 1976: Salsoul releases "Ten Percent" by Double Exposure - the first retail 12-inch single, 9:43 on the A-side. A breakdown of groove physics, the extended mix structure (intro, break, dub) and three classic maxi-singles by timing: Ten Percent, Piano Fantasia's Song for Denise and New Order's Blue Monday.
First half of 1981: Musicaid releases the Simmons SDS-V - the first viable electronic replacement for acoustic drums. The hexagonal pads become the visual symbol of the 80s. A breakdown of the module architecture, the origin of the pad shape and the specific songs - from Spandau Ballet to Prince, Phil Collins and Silent Circle.
1980-1985: four drum machines - the Linn LM-1, Oberheim DMX, Roland TR-808 and TR-707 - set the sounds still recognised by ear. We put them on one pattern and compare the kick, snare, clap and hi-hat. Three ways to get a drum sound - sample, analog synthesis and hybrid - give three different characters. A blind test: how to identify a machine from one hit.
1993. 2 Unlimited release 'No Limit' - six weeks at #1 in the UK. The structure is simple: rap verse, female chorus, break, modulation. We break down the Eurodance formula.
1983. Milan and Munich studios built italo disco rhythm from a kick and a clap on 2 and 4. Three drum machines - the TR-808, LinnDrum, and DMX - gave three distinct clap timbres. A breakdown of timing, layering, and reverb.
How a home-organ rhythm box with waltz and bossa nova reached Blondie and Phil Collins sessions: CR-78 programming, WS-1, combined presets and a careful TR-808 comparison.
Why does one kick suggest a TR-808 while a short snare points towards a sampled machine? A practical guide to sources, envelopes, tuning and processing without myths about magic warmth.
1983: the Roland Jupiter-8 arpeggiator creates the movement in Italo disco. Seven patterns from simple UP to vector on the Prophet VS. We break down rate, sync, octave range and the interaction between arpeggio and bassline on tracks by Savage, Gazebo, Ryan Paris, Raf and Fancy.
1985: Roland releases the TR-707 - the first drum machine with only PCM samples. 8-bit, plastic sound, MIDI and individual outputs. A machine considered a cheap 909 replacement became the rhythmic foundation of early house and Arabic pop music.
1983: Italo disco relies on the TR-808, LinnDrum, Oberheim DMX and TR-707. 16 steps, kick on every beat, clap on 2 and 4. We break down eight rhythmic patterns from space disco (110 BPM) to Eurodance (140 BPM) with step grids and reference tracks.
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