Boss DR-5 Drum Machine

Bought this machine for $50 used. I was tappin out beats and jumpin between tracks in the first ten minutes. As with ANYTHING it takes a while to learn how to compose a good song. If it was simple to make a beat on the machine, everyone would be calling themselves a producers. Just stick with it, it will pay off.

The synths are really good sounding. The on board memory is a bit low, but if used with the Free software dr5edit you can download and save your work to your computer. A sequencer in the machine too?? YUP! and it works really well too. The pads could be more velocity sensitive, but still you can tap out about five beats a second

The instruments are deadly real. I've played drums since i was 12 years old. The drum sounds are not clipped, they're the full spectrum, with reverb right where it needs to be. They are dangerously life-like sounding. I like the Funk2 kit. It's got a real "Stevie Wonderish" funk guitar with nice drums too.

VERY DEPENDABLE. WOULD GIG WITH IT.

It this baby was stolen, I would be heart broken. Then i'd buy a new one and feel whole again :) Used with dr5edit, it is unstoppable. Works well with Cakewalk too.

If U can read, U can use it. Definatley get the manual. Editing is easy after U get the hang of it. Would prob be easier w/ keyboard instead of pads. BUT Im a guitar player so its great that its layed out like a guitar. Great for doing demos and practicing, takes time but what doesnt when it come to sequecing

19 sounds at once, I use it to practice as backing band, & use it for recording. I can only record one track at a time so I will add the kick, then go back and record the snare, ETC, its cool cause since its quantized it will always line up and keep time and feel. Havnt looked into expansions for it, not needed right now, but I have heard and read that U can add external stuff, memory, storage,ETC

I have an audio/music background. The thing I like it U can create sounds that are variations of the sounds already there. Example.theres only one tamorine sound, but obviously U need standard accented tamborine to add to a song. so by playing w/ the volume, pitch and decay times U can create that sound. Looks like the guys that built this knew its limitation but put in resources to expand the uses. most sounds are nice, some are cheesy, some are like "WHA??" but for 150$ used cant beat it

No probs at all, I've known people that have had them long time, no probs

never dealt w/ them

INVALUABLE practice tool, great for recording demos, havnt used live. would prob use a mini disk if I ever needed tracking live just for ease of use. best $150 I ever spent, thinking of buying another as backup. GET IT!!!!

I found this machine pretty easy to use, which i consider pretty good for someone who hadn't used a drum machine before. It took a while to investigate and implement the nuances, but thats to be expected with any piece of equipment.

I basically bought this because the drum sounds impressed me (especially the old 808 etc.) but learned to love the rest. The only thing that annoys me still is the waste of memory that the pre-programmed stuff takes up. I've never used them in ten years and thought the space could be better utilised (for me!!). I am a keyboard/guitar player so, once midied to keys, i felt i could get the most out of the unit. Stil program drums on the 'fretboard' though, just seems easier.

As with any sound module/drum machine, there are going to be sounds you never use in a million years. This one is no different. I must say that i have heard guys with thousands of dollars worth of gear that i thought sounded inferior to the sounds that this unit has. I've had this unit for a long time, and i've learned to manipulate the sounds to my own liking. Using the 'accents' when doing drums makes all the difference. I find the rhythm section (drums and basses) to be oustanding. I can understand guitarists that don't play keyboard not getting as much out of it as myself, as the sounds program so much better when midied and played thru the dr-5 instead of on the 'finger board' pads.

I don't gig with it anymore, but i did for a long time and the dr-5 takes a licking and keeps on ticking. It got dragged through pubs and clubs for years and didn't skip a beat. The limited memory made me investigate other possibilities however (having to do up to 50 songs a night), so i record everything to my boss br1180cd recorder and then dump that onto minidisc for gigs. So now my dr5 doesnt leave the house.

In ten years i've never had a problem with the unit, but i'll soon have to get some of the buttons fixed as they are sticking and the wheel is getting very sensitive! (the patterns change if you put too much pressure on the area around the wheel).

If the dr5 was lost or stolen, i'd be shattered. Familiarity has not bred contempt in this case. I'd get another one in a heartbeat.
It's reliable and basic (a complement) and does everything i need it to do. It's served me well through 10 years of bars and made me sound better than i thought i could. If only boss would come to the party on a new model with media card (at least) and a touch more memory....but in the meantime, i'll stick with what i have.

Having a little experience with Roland / Boss products, I find this device not at all hard to master.

It's really a drum machine and midi sequencer, with the extra External Pitch control so you can play midi instruments with your guitar. Monophonic, okay, but I was surprised at the tracking speed and accuracy. Really. I actually use this onboard function for programming and it definately works.

The internal sounds are okay, both drum and instruments and it's nice to be able to change pitch and decay settings for the drum sounds. I still like Alesis sounds better - as I like my keyboard instruments better, so I stack sounds using the Dr 5 as a midi sequencer. The pads on my Dr 5 are velocity sensitive, and there seems to be sufficient memory for the full range of song programming.

The guitar fretboard interface is great for recording parts. That's the "ease of use" part. But you definitely need to spend some time with the manual, because each pad is used for multiple functions, and there are lots of menus and scrolling. It is pretty, easy once you learn how, to copy patterns and songs, switch kits, assign sounds to pads, and sequence songs, but it's not intuitive.

It has a lot features for the price and size. The sounds I need are good (drums, percussion, bass, piano, electric piano, organ). It has quantizing for ease of recording. MIDI in and out. Tuner. Enough polyphony for me. Can play guitar through it, but no effect onboard.

Lack of storage is a problem, but it would cost a lot more if they added storage, no? Would have been nice for BOSS to include a software package to back up/edit on a PC (like they did with the BR-8). It had to buy one from a third party to make the unit truly productive. Also bought a MIDI Data Filer to get around the storage issue when playing live (I use two Dr-5s, each with half a set on them). Believe me, even though there's slots for 20 songs, you'll run out of memory way before you get to 10. Again, it would cost a lot more if they added a memory solution.

No surprises here. The usual mix of good drums, bass and keys, together with the predicatably awful MIDI sounds like brass and distortion guitar. Why is that damn brass ensemble sound the default on all MIDI units? That sound is why people cringe when they hear the word MIDI. If you want a simple backing machine, that sounds like a small combo behind you, this is a good one. I use it for jazz and Latin.

Bought an old used one and it works fine.

They were very helpful when I had a problem with my BR-8.

While the unit has limitations (memory, slight learning curve), this thing makes a great sounding back-up band. I think they stopped making this one because it's too much of a MIDI device for most guitar players, and probably most guitar players would prefer a simple drum machine with onboard storage, to use for practiucing, not performing. AS a self-contained unit, the lack of storage works against it.

But if you're not opposed to getting DR5Edit software you can back up everything to your PC, and you can also port MIDI arrangements to the DR5 from programs like Band-In-a Box. If you get MIDI Data Filer, you can store as many songs as you want and just change out the songs between sets.


The DR-5 is a great machine, but you need other software/devices with it to really be productive with it.

I've tried to use the EXP PITCH in order to control the dr-5 sounds by my guitar, but I think it's no working. The only sound that is issued is the original guitar sound. For example, I don't know how to use
the guitar to play piano sounds. I've reviewd the manual several times

The Dr5 wasn't the easiest drum machine for me to get the hang of immediately, but once I did, it was worth the effort. I think almost all of the preset voices sound great...a lot better than many other units in this price range. There isn't a whole lot of patch editing capability, but you'll probably find that not much is necessary. The manual is sufficient, although I struggled somewhat with the chord feature.

I wish it had a little more polyphony, as I like big, rich chords. If your music is more sparse, you'll fine it's quite adequate. Reverb would also be handy, though the voices are so rich and vibrant, it might sometimes get in the way. My favorite part is the 4 track sequencer. At first I thought 4 tracks might be a limitation, but instead, I've learned to whittle my arrangements down to the absolute minimum requirements (percussion, bass, lead, and accompaniment) without a bunch of unnecessary clutter, and my sound has benefitted greatly because of it. I used this unit to create an album of classical tunes, reinterpreted as pop-jazz ("Blue Danube", "Fur Elise" etc.), and you can hear what this machine sounds like in action by picking up a copy -- it's called "Classy Cool" and it's about $10 at http://hometown.aol.com/motionizer/page47.html

My favorite voices are the basses and of course the drums/percussion. If you use nothing else, you'll use these. They're really great. But I wasn't disappointed with any of the sounds. It's probably best suited for rock, pop and related styles. The distorted guitar sounds are absolutely stunning.

I had one bad experience, where it lost it's memory on me and ruined a song I was working on. But that was probably my fault, because I was operating it outdoors in the winter, with near-zero temperatures. You don't want to do that. Other than that, it's been very well behaved.

I've never contacted them, and hope I won't have to!

I intend to buy another one of these, just so I can have more tracks. I would like to be able to use the 4 built-in tracks for basic parts, and then put horns and strings down on the other machine, and MIDI them together. (As you can see, I haven't fully given up on my love of big productions). It is definitely worth the price. To create my "Classy Cool" CD, I used this machine for the backing tracks, and then I played lead (a stereo grand piano patch) on a Casio keyboard. Together, they sound brilliant, just like a live combo. Hear for yourself! http://hometown.aol.com/motionizer/page47.html

The presets sound very good, especiall funk/jazz/soul with keyboards. I like the standard and brush drum kits a lot. With very slight random volume change on the volume output or with a mixer fader, and elso the tone pots on the mixer, the drums lose the repetitiveness and come alive. Guitar patches don't sound natural, but i haven't seen natural sounding guitars on any synth, even on a 1200$ synth i recently owned. The strings are ok, as with any other synth. I love the arrangement of the pads as on a guitar neck, I can play anything on them. Even things i can't pla on the guitar or the keyboard. Patches are easy to edit, but there aren't many editing options as in a regular synth. However, i don't like editing patches anyway. I like the manual, but because this thing is a bit more complex than a drum machine, it has a synth module and a sequencer, so there are more things to explore (if you wish anyway).

I remember it's a total of 19 sounds f polyphony. It's more than enough for drums + 3 channels of accompaniment. It doesn't have reverb or chorus, but the patches have a decay function that behaves the same as reverb. Keys are not pressure sensitive, but there are buttons for different accent levels, so it's not a big problem. The sequencer is very flexible. I learnt sequencing on this baby. Then i found other sequencers hard to use, and i continued to use the sequencer on the DR-5, even when i had an expensive Roland synth with a sequencer on it. The sequencer doesn't support pitch bend, but i find pitch bending on a synth sounding unnatural anyway. You can enter notes directly with a guitar, i donT2 use it, because the pads are very friendly and more versatile than even a guitar or a keyboard. I would like more pattern and song space, or a means for extention with smart card or disk drive.

The instruments i like and need (keyboards, strings and brass mostly) are realistic enough, but of course not as a real instrument. I don'T like sampling emulation of real instruments anyway, so it does the job for me. Some patches, especially standard drums and acoustic guitars were better than the ones on my 1200 USD Roland synth. It suits rock/pop/fusion/soul. It reacts to velocity, if it's played with a velocity keyboard or guitar input, the pads have accent levels, no velocity. i don't remember if it reacts to aftertouch.

It's very reliable. Only the data dial needed cleaning (which is an easy task) after years of use and abuse.

It was and is still the only gear with similar features and it's still in production after many years since it's introduction. I've been using it for more than 7 years. I would like more patch/song storage options like smart card or disk drive interface. Also, velocity sensitive pads would rule. I would also try the Yamaha (SY-something) sequencer before buying again, if my DR-5 were stolen. However, i still would want another DR-5 because i love the arrangement of the pads like a guitar neck. Superb convenience for a guitarist. My guitar and music skills advanced with trying different fingerings and ideas on this instrument.

El manual de instrucciones es completo. En Espa?a te dan 2: uno en ingles y otro en castellano, cosa que se agradece.
El funcionamiento a fondo de la unidad es un poco complejo de aprender. No pq en si sea dificil, sino pq al haber tantisimas funciones has de estarte un buen rato con el manual consultando dudas. No obstante cuando ya lo dominas es fantastico y facil.

Muy bueno. 1 pista de bateria y 3 de instrumentos. Muchos kits de bateria e instrumentos y sonidos muy variados. Interface amiga con los guitarristas (se visualiza como un diapason). Posibilidad de 3 niveles de dinamica para el ataque de cada nota. Posibilidad de pitch shifter para "afinar" al gusto cada elemento de la bateria!!! Posibilidad de ajustar el decaimiento de cada golpe de la bateria!!! esto es fantastico... hace que los platos suenen y suenen con un decaimiento mas natural que en la mayoria de cajas de ritmos similares. Control absoluto de todo... puedes hacer casi cualquier cosa que puedas imaginar. Los limites son tu creatividad

Bueno... este modelo es del a?o 93. Algunos sonidos obviamente han quedado superados por el inexorable paso del tiempo. Hoy en dia la tecnologia permite cosas mejores... pero igualmente esta bastante bien y algunos de los sonidos que saca esta cajita son francamente buenos. Si le a?ades algo de reverb desde alguna unidad externa (yo lo hago con un holy grail) suena mucho mejor. Los sonidos de piano, organos y vibrafono estan muy bien... algunos sonidos de sintes tambien... lo peor las trompetas y cuerdas... pero claro... ya se sabe... los vientos y cuerdas suelen ser el talon de aquiles de estas cosas pq son muy dificiles de sintetizar. Resumiendo... no esta nada mal.

La compre de segunda mano... y esta impecable. El tio la uso mucho... pero es dura. Construccion solida. Botones de calidad.
Aunque el chasis es de plastico.

Nunca he necesitado el soporte tecnico de BOSS. Pq nunca se me ha estropeado nada. Eso es debido a la calidad de sus productos.

Es una herramienta muy buena para componer y para estudiar. Tambien da la talla para el home studio y hacerte tus maquetillas. Igualmente nunca sustituira una buena bateriatocada por un bateria de verdad de verdad ni un buen teclado tocado por un buen teclista, pero de hecho tampoco lo pretende.

Had mine since 1999. Very easy to use. I actually composed something within the first hour of use. I have it hooked up with a dr-550 now.

Fantastic sequencing. Wish it had even two more tracks

Wish it had more sounds

Has skipped a few times during song play back.

Do they exist for a perfect product?
I dont think i'd have to call them re DR-5

If I cant afford a good synth I'd buy two used dr-5 just for the track.