Boss DR-550 Mk2

I inherited this from a buddy of mine who got a Dr-660. The mkII is an amazingly good little machine. The presets are all quite good, though a bit limited on the "ethnic" side... Not alot of editability, although the Color and Accent can add a nice human quality if used right. Mine did not come with a manual ( thus the score of 8 for Ease of Use ) -- there are more features hiding in there that i can't quite figure out on my own ... i feel like i am missing about 10% of what's available...

Plenty of polyphony. i am not even sure if it's 16 or 32 voices, but i have yet to utilize anywhere NEAR that... No built in effects make it kinda dry, but you can just as easily run it through an external unit. MIDI IN only kinda limits it to being at the end of the chain, but since the sequencer isnt that awesome it's no big deal. Definitely want to use something else to sequence this box.

Realistic and accurate sounds. 91 of 'em. the 808 and 909 kits are its primary sets, but i think every sound on this machine carries its weight. Great heavy industrial sounds abound in it. Non-velocity sensitive pads allow for an easy XoX feel, or you can add some color and accent for a human feel.

Haha. mine looks like it has been in a war, and still works perfectly. Only downside is that it runs on batteries, so if you aren't sampling your sounds or patterns, you want to MIDIdump them ASAP. if the batteries run out from leaving it on accidentally you're done. If you DO remember to turn it off when you are finished, the batteries last a LONG time. i have had a set of batteries last 3 months in it.

never called about this machine.

If it were lost or stolen, i'd get something else. BUT -- to the beginner, this is an EXCELLENT tool. easy, quick, PORTABLE, and built quite tough. Definitely a straight-forward machine. Perfect mor my taste... I am keeping mine till it dies.

Some presets are useful, like the simple
backbeat, bossa nova and jazz patterns.
These beats are non-user editable, although
they can be manually reproduced in user patterns
with variations. Editing user patterns (64 in all)
is simple, pattern drum voices can be changed
on the fly. The manual i read was for the MKI.

Polyphonic & mono sound options. No built
in effects, although drum voices can be textured
slightly with the "color" variable in each voice.
No expansions , MIDI in only, but look,
if you want the original TR-808 and TR-909
voices, this is the piece.

The units stongpoints are the TR-808/909 sound
sets. The jazz, rock, latin, african and other preset
patterns are a good start, and have a decent feel. They
should give the user and idea of the possibilities.
Non-velocity/aftertouch sensitive. The unit will not
"flam", however, or simulate a human player nuiance.

Dependable, although my radio shack power
connector come out easily. Would use on gig
but would not let it out my sight.

They sent me a manual for the DR-550 MKI.

Again, it's got the TR-808 snare and bass,
the rimshot, cymbals, shakers, all you need.

Extremely easy to use. Patterns can be created using both step and real-time methods, both of which are simple to accomplish. The manual is pretty strait forward and contains several sample rhythms to practice with. If you didn't have the manual a few of the button combinations would be hard to figure out, but overall it is very easy to start making beats instantly.

Not sure of the polyphony off hand but i believe it is pretty good for this little machine. there are no built in effects and only MIDI in. i only use the MIDI in to sync the dr550 to my keyboard. you can store up to 8 songs at a time, with 256(i think) measures per song. you can only store 64 patterns which can be limiting. i usually make long and complex songs which use up most of the available patterns. you can chain songs together, which is quite useful for long songs and for suddenly switching tempo.
the biggest problem with this machine is the method of saving songs. you must save the song/patterns onto an analog tape. it sounds like binary code noise. doesn't seem to reliable and you cant tell one save from the others because they all sound like noise. you can perhaps save this to a computer but i only have a 4 track.

there is a good variety of drum sounds, heavy metal, industrial, rap/hiphop, latin... probably good for any style (i don't play every style so it is difficult to say - but i have never found it lacking in the sound department).
you can change the levels and tone of the sounds slightly which is great for adding variations.

it seems pretty reliable. i've banged mine around a bunch and still operates fine.
i wouldn't worry about reliabilty at a gig, but i don't think that i could use it at a gig because of the method of saving songs. i would have to bring a tape deck along with me and spend two minutes between each song trying to load the next song's drum, hoping it works.

never dealt with them.

if it were lost i would probably seach around for better a better synth/drum machine, perhaps an electribe, but if you find it cheap and used go for it!
i have been using it for about 2 years with my shitty yamaha synth and haven't had any problems musically with it.
i wish it had some built in effects and more memory - but i guess that is what the newer drum machines are for.
definately good if you're on a tight budget and can find it used.
my only complaint is the method of saving songs, otherwise it is a pretty valuable tool.

Like all drum machines the preset patterns are terrible, i recommend deleting all the presets the second this machine is bought. i bought my dr 550 second hand without a manual, it took me about 2 months to work out and understand all of the features but it is a very user friendly machine.

Decent features for the price

good sound quality, has 92 sounds, quite a few are unusable but most are pretty damn good.

needs to have batteries in it at all times, otherwise everything is lost when power is switched off.

i would definitley buy it again, a great basic drum machine, much better than the original dr-550