Korg ER-1 Electribe

seems intuitive and pretty easy to make good sounds (only have had it a couple of days)

re: erasing entire patterns (= patches for those not in the er-1 jargon yet).

Simply leave one pattern blank (as a preset, say the last pattern in the D bank). Write the blank pattern to the one you're trying to erase. Zap. All data is gone.

good blips, bloops, etc. I've made some cool ambient drone things already (similar to GAS). Seems fairly flexible.

very easy. just about bliss to work with cant really imagine anything much easier. as usual presets are bad. but you dont buy things like this for presets. it is a drum synthesizer. you buy it to make sounds nobody else has. ive owned three and never had much interest in the manual. if you cant figure out off the bat how to use this then im also guessing you bought this to make cliche 808 and 909 beats with which in that case you should do yourself a favor and just stop making what you call music and others call crap and go back to selling drugs at your local university.

not sure about the poly id guess its the ammount of instruments. id hope anyways.the psuedo delay is blah, you can make some flange and chorus with it but unless you feel its useful then it really doesnt matter. id hope you wouldnt buy this for the delay. i personally like the 606/808 style step sequencing. which is about all id want from those machines. but your listening to someone who wasnt happy about the use of 909 samples for hihats. i wish they wouldve gone with minipops hihats or compurhythm ones. i love the simple synth edit knobs on top. its great. im pretty much completely happy with the features on here the only one i wish it had was seperate outs but i know the price of this thing would be about ten times as much.

ok im sorry but why the **** would you buy this for 808/909 sounds? ive read some of the reviews and man is that stupid. thats like using a moog for 303 sounds. the parameters on the 808 and 909's were very simple you couldnt change the occilator or modulate it. 808s and 909s wernt big on editing sounds. you could vary it up a lil bit but thats about it. they were big on punchy snares and crisp hihats and phat kicks. and for having such a friendly sequencing interface. there is litterally tens of machines out there that can emulate or have samples of those sounds. its almost a standard with all electronic instruments nowadays. so why would you buy a instrument called a rhythm synthesizer for that? i bought this because i wanted the ability to have rhythmic synthesis without having to buy a handful of va's or monophonic analogs. im thrilled it doent do 808 or 909 sounds good. i have a novation d station for that and to be honest i barely use it because im so sick of those sounds. i got it for punchy analog drums but am just so tired of the roland sounds and you cant edit enough to get away from that. theyve been so overly used its pathetic. but i can get exactly what i want with this. sounds that nobody else really has used that much. and thats great by me.

my first one had a bad power jack. my second one i just traded to get a synth. the first one was in horrible shape when i bought it used. there fairly sturdy considering what they do. im pretty sure you could drop this and an machinedrum on concrete and the odds of the er1 still working would be much greater. im all about reliability, when it comes down to it it can sound like heaven. but if it has parts that cost an arm and leg to replace and its not very reliable i wont get it for cheap even. this is why i dont own moogs anymore and wont come near arps with a ten foot pole. well the originals anyways. ive heard the lil phatty is a lil lame though.

couldnt say. ive owned 3 poly800's 3 er1s one ea1 none of which have ever broke down. the polys had horrible midi issues but it was a different time, midi was new. and all of them were treated bad.

well i bought this one because when i traded my other they were in pawnshops all over, i figured id just get another down ther line, this was in 2002. shortly after they started to vanish. i never didnt like these i think theyre a great instrument for those who want to make music. but if you just want cliche techno sounds stick to a mc303 and especcially dont complain about how they dont sound like the real thing. because god knows hearing that line isnt getting old. i sold all of my analog gear off because of that. im tired of the cliche sounds. went all va.they have already become pretty damn overused. if you gonna do that you might as well just take other peoples music and play it. in other words stick to being a dj.

This thing is dead simple. I actually bought an EA, fell in love with the dinky lil sequencer, and found the ER for the equivalent of about $30US. What a bargain!

Its a drum synth/ sequencer designed for electronic music for very little money. To expect this thing to be loaded with features would be unfair unless I was laying out large cash. Still, there was room for improvement i a few departments like a few more real synth parts.

Awesome! Still V/A, but unless ou're a real purist with very expensive taste, this thing is more than expressive enough! Its not going to give you any real sounding drums because it was not desiged to sound realistic. It was designed to be a drum synth, and it does that quite nicely. Listing that as a weakness is really pointless! You might as well mark it down for not being able to make a realistic guitar sound,
Its a synth, not a sampler!

Haven't owned it for long enough to comment. I can say that the pots are not surface mounted and feel very flimsy. With my clumsy hands, its staying in the studio!

Support? Waaahaha! This is Africa, its cheaper to order aother 2 than get anything repaired!

It would be replaced! I've been making dance music for 4 years, I own a Virus B, Novation Supernova2, A Korg ER and EA. My bigger synths absolutely destroy the korg EA, but I use the sequencers of the korg EA to handle sequencing, while the ER is wired into Ableton as a drum sequencer for various vst's. The synth sections do add a different dimension to the big V/A's which is nice, but the sequencers are bloody magical! Great way to get hands on instead of mousing in stuff which I find makes me lose creative momentum. If you can pick one up for a bargain I'd say go for it! It has already surpassed my expectations.
The ER an EA remind me of why I fell in love with synths to begin with, so even though I have larger synths, I find that they detract
from the actual sequencing. I prefer to come up with stuff just using the ea, and then when the idea is down, plug in the bohemiths to get the synth sounds needed.

Extremely easy to use.. Plug and play indeed.. I love it. That's what it's all about, to create music right away.

4 synth that creates your hh, kick, blips , bloops. THere are also some sampled crashes, hh and open hh.

There is a delay fx section and it will record your knob movements too but that's a different story. Still, fair enough to me.

I bought the Waldorf Attack software and I don't like it the functions. The ER1's sound is what I after because I make electro Kraftwerkian/JOy Electrickish type beat instrumentals. THis is my main drum machine these days. It sounds good for Electro (aka Freestyle Electro)

Yes.

For 75.00 dollars this is a dream machine that I dreamed in 1992 when Techno was alive and well.. Now you can own the dream.

Now create those blips.

This unit was very easy to use and had almost no learning curve

No upgrade potential, does have on board sequencing.

Sounds great, many possibilitie. No velocity or aftertouch features.

I have had mine for over 2 years, and during that time, it has lost patterns beyond #25 on several occasions. (ex. A24= sounds good, A25+ = a constant ringing sound and patter lost)
I dont use the midi-in, but I use to control my EA-1, and also my alesis qs6.1.

I have seen other people with this problem, but no support from Korg on the matter. If anyone else has had this problem or knows what triggers it, I would love some input.

Also, the jacks on the back go bad very easily.
I have a maxikorg ( Late 70's 2-voice analog synth) and is still functions. It seems KORG was better 20+ years ago.

Horrible.
No advice, the item is no longer manufactured, was under $400 U.S. and is therefore unimportant to them.

I would not buy this product again, I became very attached to it, only to have years of work lost due to an inability to be able to dump the patterns I made from it.

Very easy to use. Has the typical 808/909 method of programming.

Four oscillator based sounds. Four PCM samples. Delay, Low Boost.

This is in response to the lenghty review below that indicated you should just buy an 808 and some off-board effects. Considering that an 808 and a delay unit alone will run you about $1200, you could actually pick up 8 or 9 ER-1's for the same price.

This little beast can do some amazing things. In fact, I think that in 10-years this little machine will be sought after the way that 303's and 808's are sought after now. I've used this machine at some club gigs and it really shines. The last gig I used it at, the bottom end on one of my sounds shimmied glasses off the tables.

It is not designed as a comprehensive analog synth replicator, but given the small number of parameters to tweak, the range of sounds is spectacular. And hey, If you've got $400 you can buy two or three of these things and string them together.

For all of those people who compare this unit (unfavourably) with the sound of an 808 or 909, keep in mind kids that this unit, when purchased used, is about 1/10th of the price of these other units.

Give it a try, you might be surprised.

All Electribes have a very simple and intuitive user interface, with dedicated illuminated buttons for percussion parts and for steps and common buttons for most other parameters (shared between the different parts).

You can start playing with it as soon as you take it out of the box and plug it in, but I would recommend taking a look at the manual while you're at it.

The features can be found in the Korg site and on additional non offical websites. Korg have cut down functionality to the necessary minimum while putting an emphasis on playability and tweakbility.

You can tweak the sounds live, record knob movements hook it up to your midi setup (in, out and through. The ER can provide midi clock or be slaved to an external clock).

More expensisve drum synthesisers pack features as individual outputs, dedicated knobs per voice etc. Given the price, this unit rocks!

It has it own sound. I read a review here on site where somebody described the sound as plastic/ bubble gum :-) I tend to agree. It excels at squelchy acid tones.

The sound quality per-se is not so great. The lower end (bass sounds) is a little week and the overall the ER has a tinny/ metalic appeal to itbut what it lacks in sheer sound quality, though, is recompensated in tweakability and the vast range of possible sounds. You are well encouraged to route the sound through a fuzz/ distortion pedal and experiment with it. Some compression would probably do it good.

For a tiny unit at this price level (and by any standards) it is simply a joy. I love love my ER mk II. It's a modern classic. I chose this (and the EA mkII to boot) over the move expensive EMX.

Some of the presets are quite nice, some too cheasy. I would recommend creating your own sounds (with any synthesiser, not just the ER).

Aluminum faceplate, wobbly knobs, cheap but OK inputs and outputs.
This unit is cheap so the nice hardware has been traded off against functionality and affordability.

I would certainly depend on it on gigs. Just make sure you have a nice case to carry it around and that you don't spill any booze over it.

I haven't had any problems with it so I cannot state my opinion on this issue. It would also depend on the the territory/ local distributor.

A modern classic. These units are extemely versatile, playable, tweakable and fun. I have enjoyed (and still am, a year after having bought it) mine thouroughly.

This review refers to the Korg Electribe R mk II.

I own the ER-1 mkII

It's very easy to use and ships with a very good manual. The presets are of varying quality, but it's when you start programming your own pattern the magic begins...

Everything is great, with a few small exceptions:

1. I'd like individual effects for each drum part. I do like it when you have a delay module on the main mix and then alter the delay time, but I'd like to do so individually with the parts. But maybe, that would ruin the simplicity (which is a plus in this machine!) of it.

2. You cannot ring mod the drum parts unless you have an external sound source. This sounds quite cool when you ring mod drum part 4 with a MIDI synched EA-1, but when it would've been better if the ring mod feature was switchable between drum part 4 x external audio and drum part 3 and drum part 4.

3. A few more waveforms would be good, since the sine and the triangle waves sound quite similar to each other. Once again, this would probably ruing the simplicity of this machine. With the modulations available you can create some complex waveforms anyway.

4. More PCM samples! Actually, the ones available sounds very good (especially when you increase their pitches), but I'd like to have a wider range of sounds.

This is its strength: the sound. Oh yes, it sounds so COOL! This is exactly the drummachine I wanted! I've made dance/trance loops, electro/synthpop patterns and even some hiphop drumloops and they all sound good! If you want it all to sound chaotic (but still cool), add some cross mod and delay and play around with the delay time. If you're a good patch programmer everything will sound like a dream. It's perfect for Kraftwerkish boings and smack sounds as its envelopes are very snappy and clicky (you know the lovely snappy sound of the pro one's envelopes? it reminds me of them...).

The ER-1 and the EA-1 makes a great couple and I use them synched together. They're meant to be used together and I really recommend you to do so too if you can afford them both and you think you need both of them.

Dependable? You bet. Sturdy casing (while we're at it, I just gotta mention that its bronze/red metal casing is really HOT!) and lovely knobs (even though they're plastic). The software is very well programmed and seems reliable (I haven't had any problems). I would definately use it on a gig without a backup.

Haven't dealt with them.

I payed 1100SEK (approx. $140) for it (new) a few days ago. They were sold at a clearance sale and I got the last one! Gosh, am I lucky or what?

I someone stole mine, I'd probably kill the one who did it and then kill myself. No, not really, but I would definately buy a new one. I'm a Korg fan (my gear setup only consists of Korg gear at the moment) and this machine hasn't made me dissapointed. Another amazing product of Korg!

It's very simple and fast to use and that's what I like the most about it. And, as a plus, it sounds good and is so fun to use! Buy one!

Win XP on an Intel Box, Mac OS X on my 2 G4's, and various Unix-derivants on my other Risc boxes.. doesn't matter since I haven't used any exclusive editor for each platform - AND - in opposite to the neat similar from Yamaha (AN200/DX200), it does NOT come with a packed CD & editors/goodies & pdf-manual - you are just getting a thin localized manual (but it covers everything, even twice (quick-guide & full)).

- The Preset sounds are showing off quite a bit of the flexibility this rather limited "va" & PCM -based DSP-engine can deliver.. Drum & bass, 4/4 techno, freaky electronica & stuff that belongs to the "cheesy but cool"-section are part of the preset patterns, which fill up almost all of the memory (IIRC at least 3/4 of the memory-patches are pre-loaded)... general these are LOUD, dancy, shiny, and max. about 1/3 is more delicate, detailed & nicely made.

- Editing patches:
Oh well.. it's quite nice, and delivers almost all advantages that you are most likely used from your copy of Rebirth-338, or the originals, with a few minor differencies.

VERY nice, is the thing that most likely pops into your eyes as being very flashy, it's the "parts" section on the right side, it's a group of dedicated buttons that allows you direct selection of each "instrument", and also *displays* the activity of each "instrument" during playback.

This is especially of good use when you are examining some of the preset patches, and want to modify one of the sounds, since the 4 VA parts can be whatever you program'em too - and there would be almost no other way to tell which part is generating the desired/disturbing sound.

The structure is definitely just simple as on any x0x-based machine:

You've got the SONG, which contains the pattern-numbers to be played & tempo-information (& some)

The PATTERN, which consists, despite of individual tempo-information (&some) of the

PARTS which hold
a) the settings for each sound (the "patches" if you want so)
b) the "motion-sequences" (basically a free-draft, single-shot LFO form)
c) the delay-effect-settings (tempo-oriented/motion-sequence/off, depth & time)


This all gets accompanied by a hand full of editing functions, which can be accessed via the shift button & the alternate functions, dedicated to some of the step-buttons


MAJOR FLAW:

-> There is NO option that I am aware of (with my firmware-version) which would allow the deletion/clearing of a WHOLE pattern at once...

-- So when you are just about to clear up a perviously programmed pattern-preset, in order to carefully construct your idea starting off with silence...

You will have to select
a) EACH PART's PATTERN,
b) select the CLEAR PART function utilizing the SHIFT-key & the STEP 11
c) then you have to "ok"/verify the operation by pressing the CLEAR-PART button(STEP 11) *again*...

and do this happily for each of the parts, which happen to be

4x VA
1x closed hi-hat
1x open hi-hat
1x hand-clap
1x "crash"-cymbal
and
1x accent

this totals 9 times for this part (points a,b,c) of the procedure..

but it isn't over yet..

THEN you have to

d)
de-select the cross-modulation & ring-modulation functions

to finally
e) re-adjust the whole sound-settings for each parts you want to use..


Now... this could be ALL solved with a click of a button if Korg would've implemented a "clear/initialize pattern"-function for the whole pattern...



The way I used to improve that is simply
- Holding down the SHIFT button all the time during the procedure, and the quickly alternating with the other hand between each part & the CLEAR PART function, similar way like in old movies when people jammed& pulled out a knife between their fingers in a speedy manner :-)

ANNOYING THING #2:

Each time you press one of the PART-buttons the respective sound gets triggered..

Now this is nice when you

----> 4 VA voices (in theory, and for simple cases it's 4)
- "4" PCM PARTS contain (OPEN/CLOSE HIHAT, HAND-CLAP & CRASH), so one might get tempted to name 4 PCM PARTS -after all each part has it's own pattern/sequence/part-button.

However, as the separation with the "," in the brackets might indicate, they have been set up in a way that NOT all of them can sound at the same time.. : means:

closed hi-hat & open hi-hat cannot sound at the same time.. ok - that makes sense..
but unfortunately this seems to be valid for the other couple as well.. for what reason ever..



ALSO please before buying please bear in mind that in order to create a GOOD sounding VA-snare-drum (808'ish) you HAVE to use 2 oscillators..

Likewise for (the completely missing) rim-shot, nice toms,etc..


THIS means:
When going for good sounds, this box delivers at MOST:
2x VA parts
and
2x PCM parts..

AND unfortunatelly the cross-modulation, which is the way to use more oscillators together when simply mixing it isn't enough, is ONLY possible for VA- voice 1 & 2..

The only option left for the other 2 oscillators is, beside simply mixing'em in parallel, to toggle on RING-modulation, which again is unfortunately bound to one of the other elements (PCM/IN IIRC) and is NOT possible between the 3 & 4th VA-voice..




----> The keyboard, as the step-buttons, and the function buttons, are quite good, the are almost completely directly illuminated, and well layed out.

Only one would wish seperate buttons for the editing functions, and maybe an extra memory for sound-patches & an extra 7-segment-LED-display for that *but* that goes to the wishes/expansion section..


----> The Effects present are a bit more than one might think on the first look or even after examining the manual..

The most obvious thing is the DELAY - it can be tempo oriented, or get modulated by a motion-sequence..


Controllable parameters are depth & time(/tempo-ratio)..
The best thing about the delay seems to be the motion-sequence ability .. You can slide through it from flanging-thin to canyon wide, which can give you awesome beat-doubling/tripling / bouncing effects, you can let it "dive in" & fade out using the depth-control (which seems to be something more than just the volume, I think it's a combination of feedback & volume .. maybe even some more)


So - you'll find out that the knobs of the delay effect contain control over many options at the same time...


SIMILAR can be found out about the "low boost"-knob in the upper right corner.. this knob is *fortunately* active for *all* the sounds - so no matter whether you are facing the PCM handclap, or the most flexible VA -synth, it's *always* active (what can not be said about all the knobs)


Cut short: It's a kind of a Filter (well duh, every EQ is), which operates as a bass-boost in one direction, and as a high-pass filter into the other..

Now don't get too excited, it's unfortunately *NOT* as massive in the high-pass direction as it is in the bass-boost direction..

I'd estimate a 3db - to 6db high-pass at max..

The bass-boost however is strong.

As a bonus - this thing gives you a distortion effect when you go past the 3'o clock setting (cranking it up to the max)

So you have:
-a bass boost
-a high-pass filter (w/o resonance increase)
-and can combine the bass-boost with distortion (grungy/fm-ish)

..and you could in theory modulate, for instance, distortion in& out with a motion sequence on the volume / or other - however I haven't tried it out yet.



----> Expansion:
Heh that's an easy one:
NONE
besides of maybe firmware-upgrades, which are highly desired..

I honestly hope someone will manage to hack that device if Korg is not going to be more friendly into that direction, in order to at least swap these horrible 909-like-samples out with some decent, clean 808 ones..

The DSP should be the same as used for their Oasys boards, as

- VA section (valid for each of the 4 voices):

1 oscillator, selectable waveforms: SINE, TRIANGLE (only..)
+ tunable in a wide range (though with the 39kHz sampling range - you will want to stay way beyond 16kHz ;-) - )

1 LFO - selectable waveforms: SAW,TRIANGLE,SQUARE, RANDOM, NOISE (tunable ! = a sample..), and "ENVELOPE" (simple an AD-envelope, or inverse ramp)

+ though it has a very nice bandwith (we are talking about 5kHz), it's routed to the main oscillator (as usual) - so you will never hear it directly/ can't use it as a "free" second oscillator.




QUALITY:

The section is "ok", unfortunatelly very thin (as there are no 2 flexible oscillators)
The worst things are
- it doesn't go "down" enough "per sai", you have to force the main oscillator to a lower frequency using the modulation feature..
So when using the main-oscillator free-running you are *very* limited

- the modulation control is the WORST
Sometime (I: most of the times) you are just occupied with fiddling around with the modulation knob around the mid ("0") setting to get the desired amount of modulation which is extremely finicky since you are getting massive changes with about just ONE step around "0".. meanwhile the setting on the rest of the scale - it's totally useless - unless you want to have it "ping" somewhere at the >5kHz or higher.

This could've be solved *way* better...maybe I will solve the problem myself if there won't be a firmware-upgrade in the near future.

PCM:

Well.. the samples are definitely 909-samples with all the disadvantages.. if you like the 909 - there's your chance to get the hi-hats & a similar crash.. however I'd recommend getting a 707 or alike when really desperate for authenic sounds - and if you want variations - go grab the Novation Drum-Station - way better sounding.

The hand-clap seems also very 909ish - which reminds me of another very annoying issue:

You can't control the decay-phase fine enough in order to give to very short claps.. it's just ONE step, that you have to fiddle out with that knob, that is inbetween "almost complete handclap audible" and "click sounds".. this is extremely bad - despite of the problem that the sample seems to start a bit earlier as the snappy part of the hand-clap begins.. so you can't make some short, really snappy hand-claps with it that way..


SOUND QUALITY PCM total:

Very present, somewhat low-fi-ish, but clean enough as long as you don't tune'em way down (remember - there is no "cosmetical" low-pass filter active/ not even an option)

Should be replaced with hq-808 samples, or simply more VA-voices in the next Eletribe R-mkIII IMHO

----> What Music for ?

Definitely standard dance 4/4 banging high-shiny stuff producers, as well as some kiddies just starting up, and even some brilliant electronic freaks will be happy - as you can unleash some of your creativity even with this tool.. but so you could with an DX200, Jomox xBase (used), and PC-edited: Micro-Q,Micro-Modular,PC contained: Creamware Pulsar, Korg Oasys..


Everybody that loves clean, punchy sounds, really fine resolution & very low and at the same time hi-fi-ish analog"like" bass drums should either go grab a used 808 & some nice multi-effects, or some other, recent unit at best..

I head the Alesis Micron features an onboard sequencer, and 8 voices plus a whopping DSP power in spare - it has extra drum-oriented pattern sequening helps & it should smoke this re-vamped DJ-tool anytime..

However - no intuitive directly visible step-sequencer..


Hip-Hopers will be, as usual, happy even with this tool, and alike could be for RnB guys & some hardcore-techno freaks.


Should be club suitable for any of those flavors.


----> Onboard FX quality is - despite of the flaws of the (desired) resonance, good - so all advertised effects are good. Distortion is ok too..


---

Can't give you an opinion here, since it's too new for that, but I've seen some dead ones floating around on eBay, though scarce, so they ain't foolproof as well, the flickering of the back-lightning LEDs I've notices could be simply due to the fact that the processor is controlling the LEDs multiplexed (as usual nowadays), and varies a bit in frequency due to the interrupts / or CPU cycles used during that, or the writing procedure in general - so I guess it's not a weak power-supply or alike.. this for the technical minded :)

Korg.. oh boy.. let's put it that way - they used to make good products.. back in 1970.. these were even solid.. last good things they've done were the Prophecy & the Oasys card, and the D16 HDD recorder.
The D16 was one of the most amazing examples (Oasys being another) how good & enthusiastic their support can be (one could almost start to love this company) - It's a marvel what they have included in the *free* 3.0 OS upgrade for the D16 recorder & how fast they've reacted on critics written in some mags..

BUT the Electribe series, as well as the MS-2000 are examples of very poor by-products which shouldn't see the daylight until they where really ready...which some of the products aren't even today..


Service -> Had the luck to now have to mess around with them..

Upgrades -> as long as the product was expensive, or they loved it out of one reason or another (mostly when a whole developer team was involved) - there were many - however - I am anxcious about the cheap Electribes (as for "throw-away" DJ-tools in general)..

However - for the now present raised price of 230 bucks (was 188 blow-out once, last year) - they definitely need to deliver improvements

I would not buy another one if someone would steal it - In fact I'd give him 5 bucks & tap him on the shoulder pittying him.

But since I am stuck with it, and music doesn't need to be made with the most "perfect" tools, and simple tools are easier for bringing through your idea, it will (have to) serve good.. in worst case, it will be a sequencer for my DIY-808&909 clone I have planned to finish soon

I love the step-sequencer, despite of the lack of pattern-erase, love bleeps & tight beats plus delay bounces & variations made with it, plus that it outputs sync, and also the notes.

I hate the 909 & alike trashy samples, the lack of real VA filters, at best for all voices, the lack of some controls for the PCM samples (you can't apply an LFO & alike), the fixed routing for Cross-mod & ring-mod, and the lack of a second Oscillator & separate envelope *per voice*, as this would just make this box worth calling itself a 4-part polyphonic VA equipped drum-box.

The sonical quality which is just about the one I had in my Quasimidi-rave-o-lution 309 is also not cutting any edge.


- I've chosen this one since I was lacking another sequencer, and a dedicated flexible drum-box (besides the 707 & a borrowed 909).

- As said many times :) already - I wish it would have
- Filters, since it lacks buttons it should be cut-off control up to 3'oclock & then raising resonance, or simply resonance added by menu
- 2 oscillators per voice + LFO, with dedicated envelopes (for snare-drum/toms/etc emulation)
- improved control-ranges for the knobs (especially modulation & AMP-decay)
- Motion sequence-memory which can record ALL the controls (by storing the movements sequentially & with noted knob number), one at a time - in one pattern.

- Individual outs for each part (at least PCM) in order to correct the horrible sounds & the lack of filter would be very desirable too.

Best would be removing all the PCM parts & improving+expanding the VA parts - being of same sonical quality & flexibility as the Waldorf Rack-Attack

- It helped out after intense tweakage even with more relaxed trip-hop, chill-out & @ some aggressive but rather intuitive electronic tracks so far. When I add the auto-filter with help of my external FX unit, it becomes even very nice from time to time.. however individual OUTs would be worth gold.



Overall - good for 909-addicted, loud music, and for some patient fans of electronica as me.. though it's not the last & definite drum-machine that I'll be buying due to the lacks..


You could get it if it's dirt cheap & you want a step-sequencer that bad.

Very easy to use step sequencer, and the manual is pretty good, although more tips on creating sounds would be nice to get you started. Editing patches is easy, just grab a knob and blast off. The knob reponse is a bit finicky, and matching values from pattern to pattern can be irritating. The over-sensitivity of the knobs and the anger this causes knocks this rating to a 7.

Limited features, but super for the price/performance ratio. It's really a sketchpad kinda box, but with a little thought, you can create some great tracks. The MIDI features are basic but good. The swing feature is super for giving the patterns a feel, and is conitinually variable from 50% (no swing) to 66% (swing) to 75% (ridiculous swing). The delay is the only effect, but it's 3 modes are quite nice.

Here's an area that needs a little clarification. Yes, this is a dance oriented box, BUT just because the demo patterns sound like the musak in an an ecstacy burnout ward doesnt mean you cant put your own brain to work. I have fooled people into thinking I had a drummer playing on tracks Ive laid down with this. And some of these people were not in the aforementioned ward.
If you want to create a fat, analog sounding kick, use TWO tone generators and don't tune them to octaves or fifths. Try something close to a third or a fourth (musical interval, that is) and make the higher pitch shorter in decay and clearer. Use a white noise-including waveform for the deeper of the two and make it decay a bit longer. The little decay of white noise sounds like snares addling along to the kick.
Layer your 'snare' in a similar way. Just nab some sounds from the other patterns.
Set the swing a bit over 50 if your pulling off straight rock stuff (try 54-58) and fills become livelier. Program creatively and you'll be surprised what this little box can do.
Oh yeah, and use the accent part ALL the time, dropping it out for effect. This gets your level up WAY over the self noise of the unit. (This is why all the demo loops are so loud and punchy. Check it out.

no prob so far

I love this unit and would replace it with another if it were to die or be killed during a attempt to match sounds between patches. I want to try out the other electribes now, but am happy with my ER-1. If the other ones are than this then I NEED THEM.
I prefer this box to a Roland or Alesis drum box in a similar price range because I am able to dial in some real and really odd sounding drums that surpass PCM samples by far.

Using the EA1 MkII.

This is a preposterously easy device to program, and I chose it primarily for that reason. The graphic step buttons make it ultra clear what's playing when, which is of great use to non-drummers.

Unlike some of the other reviewers, I found the manual clear and comprehensive.

Editing patches is also really easy, and there's a handy 'original value' light that tells you what a patch looks like when you've just changed patch but not knob settings. (The SH-32 could do with one of these.) That is, you twiddle your knobs and when you hit the patch's value it turns on.

Don't look to this fellah for effects, there's only delay. It's memory is also limited to only 16 songs, but you can dump info.

While I don't think the box sends MIDI velocity or pan controls, it is excellent for running other drum machines, which might be harder to program. I hook mine up to a Yamaha Motif to take advantage of its tasty drum samples whilst retaining the clarity of the step programming from the ER1.

Well, you're not looking for realistic sounds with this box (that's why you might want to let it play master to a drum box's sounds) but its synths are versatile and full-sounding. While its own sampled cymbals are a tad lacking, the things you can do with the oscillators makes up for it.

Looks dependable - it's pretty solid.

I've only had it a coupla weeks!

I would probably buy this box again although I may consider other drum machines now that I'm getting more of a feel for rhythm programming without the graphical help of the ER1.

It's alright, though the manual is sucky sucky. But it's easy enough to pick up on and teach yourself how to use.

I haven't picked up on the MIDI part yet, but it will pretty cool to work with if I do...

Works for goa trance or techno, or lame ravers, or rap of any sort if you use the presets. But you know what, even if you're a brainless "punk" you should still be able to find a good drummer who listens to misfits or whatever...it doesn't take that much brainpower...what I mean by that is this machine will never substitute for a nine piece drum set and my own two hands, especially not with my chosen category, ROCK.

It's cool if you want to use it at parties or to do some remixes.
But this isn't in any way teh pwn.

Read above comments, that's all I have to say really.

have no software to use it but its damn easey to program parts as well as patterns. i use copy paste etc to work faster. presets sounds arent that good its better to create your own or even edit existing ones. I particulary like to shorten up tyhe decay, dont like much long sounds.
manual is easy, but shpuld bring to you more triks, not only basic instructions

don like like most the global delay and little outputs
but what i havent read in the others reviews is about my favorite featur: audio in (x2). Is great to produce weird effects like akufen like, microsamplin from cd of music. i also use voice cd so someone is talking or singing while i play de elecvtribe. I also play in the audio in lots of classic an make kind of remikes. Too play etjhnic cd, making a very experi9mental noise and tension between analog noises and the ethnic ones

as you can create your own sounds, i think its quite versatile. You can use it to create samples and then the samples use in a sequencer,etc

nathing has happened yet in 5 months

hope never to use it

i love the ease of use and might buy it if it was stolen. other drum machines come with basslines, and that makes me a bit envious but i use it with my ea-1. i also have a computer with lots of programs and a master keyboard. i play along sometimes with friends or brother who owns some kor ms 2000 or roland mc 5050 or old gear like casio cz 101 an alesis mmt8, with wich we even made a record.

It's really easy to use! It's so easy, it's the only sequencer-based thingy that I've ever been able to use for jamming with a 4-piece band.

I am actually writing this because I want to know all that I can do with the midi functions. Does anyone know if it is possible to get some sort of larger light to show tempo (the led light is a pain in the ass if i start a song with guitar or vocals, then kick the er-1 in on-tempo)? If you know of a way to do something like this, so my band could have, like, a strobe light or something on stage that would give us the beat before we start, please e-mail me!

Fun, lo-fi beastie boys drums, steve miller-ish synth sounds.

Don't save when global button is on and you have "write protect" or something selected! It will ruin your presets! I fucked this one up a week before a show, so we decided it would be easier to program our beats into propellerhead reason and use a laptop. But the laptop wasn't real-time starting, weird knobby synth-sounding fun!

It's great for punk! It pisses off those who say "you need a real drummer and full stack guitar amps."

Im using the standard OS, I think is about time Korg make a new OS and perhaps update the DSP a bit. (see below) The presets are mainly standard drumbeats. (Techno, Rock, Rap, DnB) and some drumbeat effects. Some of them are very nice though. :) Editing sounds is a breaze. A patch editor however, does make a differnce, I use one for ER-1 and EA-1, you can find it at synthzone.com under the korg section. The manual looks like it was written by a lawer. But other than that, super easy to use. It gets a 10 because anyone can learn the basics of this in a matter of minutes.

There is 4 note DSP, 2 note gate input, and 2 note PCM polifoni. Its mighty easy to play simple beats with two or 3 fingers and record them, and you can fix your mestakes via step sequencer.
A onboard global delay is onboard, making the ER1 drowny, zappy, flangy, or just whacky delay. You can modulate the delay using motion seq. to achive a unique customized flange, or you can set a fast delay to put the drums out of phase in time, giving it a stereo comb filter effect. Kudos to Korg for making a global delay, it will allow users to put in new ideas of insparation, and frusterations! :)
How ever I beleive that there should be a part delay bypass function.
I wish the can expand this with a new OS and Updated DSP.(see below)
All voices are velocity sentitive, but does now repsond to standard CC#'s, you have to use Nrpns for over 40 parimaters.
The onboard sequencer is awesome, 16 step, 4 bars, swing, and quarter, double, tripliet time signatures. But i do have some gripes with the sequencer.(see below)

Nothing sounds bad about this at all, in fact I beleive the ER-1 will become a classic, soon we'll be seeing ER1 emulators (there are alrady products distributed and being developed with the insparation of the ER1, including myself).
This is a uniqe little monster, as there are to drum machines that sounds like this, and dispite the fact you can recreate the sounds on VA's using EG and LFOs on your Oscilators, its the Er-1s User interface and limited archetecture that makes it uniqe. And stand out of the bunch.
The bass is Bassy. The HH are 808ish wilst the CR and CP parts can be manipulated in the most remarkable ways. But because the pcm samples are somewhat dull (no other variants) I think Korg couldv stuffed an extra two or three PCM kits for HH CR CP parts, shame on you Korg.
The ER1 defenatly cries out loud, "More DnB Please!" This is the ultimate secondary (mayby primary) drum machine for DrumNBass! Also good for Hard Kicks and Bass rattling drops :)
This just as veritle as a Primary House and Trance Drum Machine.

Very dependable, never lost an grain of data in past 2 years I played with it (except once). I used it on neumerous gigs and it had its share of falling onto concrete ; the unit, not the box; when unloading from the truck. I would however periodicly backup data, when surge went out one time when saving and my pattern went Bie Bie, but thats a good thing, only that patern went out, and the unit didnt malfunction ( I dont think so at least!:-O
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If you are Doing DnB or Hard Trance, Please Get this Think, you will be Super Happy!:!

Iv ben playing with this for 2 years. I got a JX305, witch got some Nice Drumz, Alesis SR16 witch is totally underrated, and EA1 and JP8000(Well I dont own it, but sometimes Im lucky to brrow it)



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Now lets see what Korg seemlessly overlooked or forgot to put in the ER1.

I am a human with two hands and I want to do fast manipulations on multiple units and keyboards durring a live PA and/or DJ set. Somethings I simply cannot do fast enough in realtime on the ER1 so lets find some problems and possible solutions with the UI.

Mute Problems/Solutions-
Problem ... Normally you have to hold down tap and part button to mute it. (Its not that bad, but irratable sometimes) By doing this, I have to use my right thumb and pointing or middle finger to mute a part(s). However, I have to use my left finger on tap to do rapid/complex muting, but now I am un able to tweek my bassline and trigger my sampler in time with the beat, "OH WHAT TO DO!?!" I ask myself.
Sol #1 Well I ended up Spliting the ER-1 into 6 channels on my mixer via cross over, and muting on the mixer is more convienient for me. (It's my command station;) )(I'll address that later.)

New OS solution ... I think Korg should imlement ^SHIFT^ + TAP for MUTE ENGAGE, so you will be able to do single button mutes without MR.Tap button

Problem... I made 4 patterns in succession using the same 'kit', pattern 'A' in intro , 'B' is Main, 'C' is Alt Main, and 'D' is outro. I like the patterns I make, and switching between them. But now I want to mute out the HH and SD for the end of this song to slowly lead to the next. My B pattern has Thump Thump Thump Thump 4/4 kick whilst my C and D patterns had alternate Thumps and adding motion seq., going slower and faster, occasonaly skipping a beat.
But wait, now when I swich the patterns the Shares and HH kick back in when I dont wnat it to! Oh the agony! :( What is a young man to do in such a hostle environment?) I end up muting all but my ER1 input channels but one (left bass channel) on my mixing board and closing the delay on the er1 to achive desired result. I could hav just as easaly taped in the sequence manuly in time but now both my hands would be preoccupied, redusing the effecantcy I have while playing pads and loading new sequences on my keyboard, thats a damn shame...

New OS Solution ... Save Mute Pass fuction, allowes user to switch patterns, saving the previous mute setting on the new loaded pattern. This can be done by adding additional MUTE Engage settings on the Pattern edit part of the Er1 matrix menu. It will have an '0N1' '0N2' and 0FF setting. ON1 will allow save Mute Pass, while ON2 will do Mute Pass and disable part trigger/unmute when you push a PART pad while the sequencer is playing. This way you can select Parts and edit a parts rapidly without the sound going out of beat or sounding while pattern is playing. On the new beats you may simply tap 'Solo' and this will automaticly unmute all your parts. This will defeat the 'SHIFT+PART' purpose to select tracks untriggered.

Problem ... I need multi outs. I ended up Taking Two left outputs two right outputs (using mono spliters) and Head fone output into 6 tracks (I use 4 now). I made a crossiver for Low/HI Freq goes unto differnt inputs of the mixer, and paned the BD/PCM sampl on left, and pan SD and misc low freq sounds onto right channel on the ER-1.

New OS Solution... New global command, for output (L R) for 2 channel operation, and (4CH) for 4 channel operation. 4CH will disable the Main signal going into the Headfone output. By pressing and holding the Audeo input (next to main volume) Button, you will be able to rout the parts into the L/R or Headfone output by selecting parts LITEUP (L R out) or Dark (HeadFoneOUt), the cross delay secton will be disabled on the Headfone output and only output on the L R outputs. This will effectively g

Really easy to use as are the other 3 Electribe boxes.
programming patterns is pretty quick although there is no way of outright clearing a whole pattern. Instead you have to clear the individual parts. Tweaking the drum synth sounds is easy enough to. The knobs are pretty sensitive, but it's no big deal.

4 synth drum sounds + 4 pre made drum sounds (HHs, Clap, Crash). The synth drums are pretty cool, you can get some cool drum sounds out of it, but like was stated earlier it's hard to get realistic drum sounds out of it. The premade drum sounds are ok, but there's not much you can change about them. No effects, except a global delay. Great sequencer though. Also has audio in which you can tweak. Great option IMO. MIDI in/out/through. Also great motion sequencer to record know movements

Sounds are ok, but once again the pre made sounds will always sound the same. The synths are great for most kinds of techno. The global delay is ok, except it affects every part. there is no velocity sensitivity, but it has accents which you can tweak with the motion sequencer. So you can change the volume of the drums over the course of the pattern.

Will probably be reliable unless you drop it. Plastic keys could cause problems in the future, but otherwiese seems reliable

My roomate owns this and I've played with it. It's ok, but I wound up buying the EM-1. I think it's way better than this thing and it has a synth and effects. If you want a drum machine there are plenty of better ones. If you're looking for some funky drum sounds though, give this one a try.

No brainer: had it playing in a second and was editing patterns / sounds a second later. Haven't looked at the manual yet...

Okay, so it would be nice to have separate outs for each sound and effects for each part... but these units are selling for #189 in the UK at the moment, and that beats all the Boss beat boxes hands down... plus its got midi transmitting knobs on!

Well, I'm an old Kraftwerk fan and blow me if those guys at Korg aren't too! This thing positively oozes those blips and hi-qs from "Computer World", "Electric Cafe" et al.

I guess it's an an acquired taste, but I love it. I bought this for a bit of fun and to reignite my rhythmic juices and it has far surpassed my expectations...

If electro comes in big style, these are going to be soooo sought after.

Well, it's only been with me a little while and case wise, those knobs don't look too sturdy and i hate wall wart power supplies... time will tell.

Hmmm... I've dealt with Korg before regarding a Wavestation problem and they were less than keen, but that was old technology so maybe I'm doing them an injustice...

At the price I paid (new, by god) I'd get another one without thinking if this one got stolen. My remit was to have a beat box with XOXO programming and some retro style sounds. The MachineDrum seems overpriced (and overspecced?)the Boss DR series are a bugger to program and I hear the new lot are unreliable and I'm not throwing away money on a 909... I reckon Korg have got it exactly right with this one.

Simple to use, up and running in minutes. Presets sound alright but only one preset per pcm or drum sound, but the machine was designed for creating your own. Editing is simple, a matter of turning a few knobs. Manual is as good as needs be.

Hmm.... There arent any effects other than a delay which affects all the parts...very disappointing. There is a motion sequence recorder however, which can record realtime changes you make while the pattern is playing. Can come up with some good sounding loops using this feature.

The 4 PCM parts are tweakable via an 6-wave lfo, of which depth and speed can be varied. The other percussion sounds as well as the PCM sounds can be altered using the decay, pan and low boost knobs. The low boost knob simply adds more bass to sound, is nice for muting the sounds to an extent or to add absolute anarchy to a bassy sound.

With a bit of practice, one can come up with some great beats.

There are no expansion possibilities.

MIDI capabilities are good enough. The electribe can be used as a tone module, with the sounds triggered from a sequencer. I havent tried it with pedals or anything like that. Works fine for simple applications.

The machine sounds very analog and electronic, not at all natural. Sounds good if youre gonna use it for dance music.

If you are into analog, this is your baby!

No problems so far. Would use for a gig.

Never dealt with Korg.

If lost or stolen, would probably get another just for the analog drum sounds. Try and get one used. Might look at an electribe es-1 since you can sample your own beats??

Love the sounds, hate the lack of effects.

A nice little machine, good for coming up with new ideas.

It was easy easy easy to get a good sound with, but harder than shit to figure out how to save and form songs and whatnot. I eventually had the patience to sit down and read through the manual as I messed with it, and now it's really easy to do just about everything.

As many have said, the delay is kinda crappy. And the presets suck. I haven't found any use for the ring modulators, because they just sound like a nintendo game.

(continued from "features") Hell, the whole thing sounds like a nintendo game, which is what I was looking for! It's really fun. I am using the line out from my geetar, running it into the audio in. I'm having my vocalist play with knobs and mess with my sound as I play my normal-ish guitar. It makes a neat two-guitarist effect.

I haven't had it that long, and if it broke down I'd probably just get something with more features, maybe an alesis or something.

nope

This thing is like the Hammerhead Rythm thing in a box. Except this is more fun because you don't look quite as douchebag-ish at a gig with it as opposed to a big computer. I'm using it for our pop-new wave-metal-tori amos band while we search for a drummer.

Very easy to use

BUYER BEWARE

Right before a show I corrected a beat (about ten minutes before playing) and when I saved my correction, the machine erased the program being saved, as well as the next 25 programs - which constituted well over half of my two hour set. When I tried to save a working program to one of the ones which the machine had erased, the machine went ahead and erased the next 25. I now had no drums for my show. I lost a lot of work.

Theoretically, (according to the manual), one should be able to perform a midi dump of the data on the machine onto a computer, however, no suggestions are offered by korg as to what software should be used, and no software I had was able to recieve the midi data dump.

I must also add that on the ES1, (Korg's Electribe Sampler), completion of data backups onto a smartmediacard complete rather vaguely, and it is difficult for the first time user of the backup method to know for sure if the backup was succesful.

I know someone else who has had her ER 1 erase completely on her while saving something (she nor I touched the machine while it was saving). She began using only the ES 1 for her sets and that did the same thing. She reprogrammed the ER 1 and it erased itself completely again a couple of months after re-writing her set.

Some drum machines do this when a battery they might have runs out. Korg offers no reference to an internal battery in the ER 1 manual. I removed the base of the machine to see if it had a battery and I found none.

To summarise, the ER 1 sounds great and is easy to use, but I think that it not reliable enough for normal use. I have had mine for about a year and a half, adn I have to say that this is the greatest dissapointment I have ever had with a piece of equipment. To have important equipment fail right before a performance is quite embarrasing, and to lose months of work is even worse.

I live in Switzeland, the webpage is of no assistance (no contact info outside the US), noone answers the phone in Japan, and my warranty expires after a year.

Shit should work.

The presets sounds as expected--in other words, they are typical dance and nasty (as in bad) hip hop attempts. They're not worthwhile, but they do attempt to show you what the machine can do. Some of the more inventive ones take advantage of the Motion Sequencers well enough. But in this case, you're not buying this machine for its presets.

Editing patches is so simple you don't really even have to pick up the manual. We're talking about select an instrument, screw around with the knobs until you're satisfied with the sound of each one and then program them in a 16-step pattern. All the sequencing is typical of X0X boxes. You can arrange patterns into songs, etc. The manual does come in handy time to time and is well-written enough to get by if you're new to this kind of thing.

It has 4 parts percussion, 4 parts PCM, 2 audio ins, an accent part. That should be adequate for most, although I know people using up to 4 of these units in a loop.

It has global delay, which is a bit of a pain if you'd like to isolate it to parts, but oh well, not a huge deal. The audio in function has potential, but I've yet to figure out something interesting enough to use it with.

The motion sequencer is helpful, and is something I've come to rely on for taking patterns one step beyond.

Being able to create 256 patterns should be more than enough to work with. You can make sixteen songs made with up to 256 patterns. Considering you can record in tempo changes, that means each 'song' could contain as many as you can fit into 256, keeping in mind space to change tempo (1 or 2 patterns of space). Using the on-board sequencer is slightly painful compared to using a computer, but I find that it helps me edit myself nicely and is simple enough to use that I can leave a computer out of the chain for live performances. My one gripe is that you are mostly confined to using it for straight times--no 5/4 unless you force it. The one way around this would be to perform it 'live' utilizing the play and repeat from start functions, rather than building a song. Something I do time to time, although it means manualing changing patterns with the alpha wheel or pattern memory.

The low-boost on the unit gives it the bottom-end from hell--on the recordings I've done with it, it makes things kick nicely.

I have absolutely no problem with the sounds on this unit. I'm making experimental electro, in the vein of say, Solvent, Lowfish, Ladytron, etc. In this regards, I am very happy. Perfect shiny analog beats that can funk up to a weirdness with creative editing and playful use of the effects. Nothing here is out of this earth, but the unit has a good organic quality that makes it (granted, more onboard effects would be nice, but you could save money by buying this relatively inexpensive box and then finding truly highend effects to chain it into). I know people using it for the entire electronic spectrum (Dance, Techno, Industrial, Synthpop, IDM, hip hop) and a few using it for hybrids (one even is folk based, mixed up with acoustic guitars and a pedal steel). I believe it could be used with any musical style as long as the user leaves all their ridiculous preconceptions at the door. Your limits can often be your inspiration.

I've gigged with it and it hasn't let me down. I have no backup, so this is it.

The only thing I've noticed, as I've only had it for about a year, is that once and a while it does something funny. But it tends to be whenever I'm using the sequencer to write, not while it's just playing.

I've never dealt with the company, and hope I never have to do so.

I would replace it if anything happened to it, as it's integral to my setup--I use it as a master to an EA-1 and a Korg MS2000. I also use an Akai AX-60, but I leave it out of the chain.

I chose it because it held up price and sound wise when I compared it to everything else on the market at the time. I still think it's fantastic.

The presets are pretty much crap. Most are the stereotypical dance numbers with nothing really that interesting about them. Editing them isn't much fun either. There really is not a lot to edit with. Only a hand full of knobs (no sliders). If your not into dance music and need a medium priced beat box look else where!

Four voice polyphony is over kill to say the least. Too busy for me, Two voices would have been plenty. As far as the effects go (or lack of them) most are global, I hate how the delay is global! Again their isn't a lot to edit with, for cooler sounds I would run it threw a Sherman Filter Bank or something. The ring mods are ok, my breath wasn't taken away. I will give ti creidit on the sequencer, its pretty easy to use.

Boring and stale is how I would describe the sounds of the ER-1. If you need a beatbox to go with your Waldorf Q to make that next dancefloor diddy than this is your drum machine. The effects are crap and Korg knows it, people get real!

It is very dependable, I would take it to a "gig."

Haven't had the pleasure.

To me the ER-1 is a parody of a real beatbox. It has none of the features that I was looking for, it is defintly for the factory patch musician. If you have the money I would invest in a Jomox XBase09, or a Sequential Circuits DrumTracks. I love drum machines that are not XOX. This is just a cheap and bland beatbox.

Super easy to use. The manual is very helpful, easy to understand. (Roland could take some pointers here) The preset patterns really give you a good idea for what you can do with this thing and the "origional value" buttong lets you figure out what they're doing, it's great.

My favorite thing about this box, besides the sound, is that it has so many nobs and buttons. There isn't even an LCD screen for all those terrible menus and edit pages. You twist the knob and the sounds change. It's great!!! 2 monophonic parts, so you can have to completely separate monophonic lines going. It's not really polyphonic unless you detune the second oscillator to a fixed interval, but then you can only move around in thirds or 4ths or whatever. The distortion effect is really great, helps sounds cut through a mix very well. I actually am not a techno trancy person, I use this thing for flavor and color in a college age rock band. The tap tempo is a life saver here because the band never stays at exactally 117 BPM or whatever it is at the time. I can keep the tempo close with the tap tempo and then keep hitting start/stop with the huge stop and play buttons to keep the pattern in sync with the band while I do some organ or wurlitzer thing on the keyboard. It allows me to get way more sounds out of my corner of the stage. The delay is also great, simple but easy to use. The flange chorus is cool, I don't use it much though. You also get a ring modulator and a second oscillator for each part with a pitch offset so you can get the typical weird sounds with that. Also, there's two other oscillator effects-sync and decimator. Snyc aligns the two oscillator waveforms to get a similar but very different sound and the decimator basically makes the waveform boxy, so it has no effect on a square wave. It's cool to run a voice or something into the audio input and then process it with the ring modulator, sync, and decimator. You can get some really interesting, almost vocorder-like sounds. With midi, its also a breeze, I often program patterns into it from my keyboard. ONE HUGE COMPLAINT IN THIS AREA-THE EA-1 DOES NOT RESPOND TO SUSTAIN PEDAL MESSAGES AT ALL. So all those cool monophonic lines that seamlessly move about with the sustain pedal and portamento must be programmed, which rules out the use of this thing as an instrument for solos. So, I can't do any cheesy 80's shredding guitar wannabe leads. Maybe that's a good thing! Programming the patterns is quite easy, there's 3 modes. You can play them in while a metranome goes, you can program them in with the 16 step keys (my favorite way right now) or you can step record it, the hardest way. Also, there is nothing expandable about this at all.

Killer sounds! Like I said, I don't even use it for club stuff, I use it in a band with guitars and bass and drums and all, and its a dream. If anything, I prove that it is a very flexible instrument in many different styles. The Cutoff/resonance filter leaves a little bit to be desired, but it is still killer, still far better than a $300 box should have! I use it on most things I do and have been very happy with the resluts.

Nothing's ever gone wrong with it at all, its a pretty simple box. I have the gig bag for it on order just because I'm tired of taking it around in the box I bought it in. All the knobs make it something that I don't want to put anything else on top of and I really don't feel comfortable having it slide around in my trunk, though it would probably be fine. I'd recommend a bag or case or something for it, but I think its extrememly reliable, I would even consider a backup.

Never needed it.

Wonderful! I absolutely love it, I'm going to get an ER-1 soon as well and work some funky drum loops into my bands, I love these things. This thing is worth way more than $300, its the only way to go. Yamahah has one that looks like it has more features, but I don't really see the point after reading about it in Keyboard mag. I bought this as a way to get into the analog synth world cheap and I got way more.

Really easy to use.

Fantastic. Imaginatively designed, with an an endless source of new sounds. Plus lots of neat flashing lights.

The sounds are excellent - electro hell.

Very reliable.

I'd buy another one if necessary.

Presets generally sound very electronical. Maybe 5 or then patterns are rellly good. Pattern programming is very easy but in sound programming the knobs are to sensitive and you never know how will they change the sound before you try them. The manual is anoying when it repeats every time "stop the sequencer" before doing angything. In Cubase and FruityLoops you can do everything without stoping.

For this type of sounds polyfony (4+4) is an overkill. It sounds best when you use only 2 or 3 sounds at once at the most. The built in delay is global and not per part which is annoying. The pattern sequencer is excellent but the song sequencer is not. Try Fruityloops and you will know how a good song sequencer should look like.

Sounds are 100% club-dance. You will not be ashamed with these sounds. The best thing in this machine is how it reacts to your playing. This is the only type of drum-machine on which you can program patterns on the fly.

Dependable (all your patterns are stored even withou power)

I think the ES replaces it completly. It workes well as an addition to the autoaccompainmet of the Yamaha DJX and combined with the AXS softsynth. Love the programming of patterns, hate the programming of sounds. I would wish the ES had one or two parts as with the ER sythesizer.

This little machine is so easy to use, it's almost like a toy. The last person to review this obviously didn't look close enough at the machine. You don't have to erase every step to create a new pattern from scratch, because there is a "clear part" option that clears not only the part, but the motion sequence (if there is one) too. The manual is almost not necessary, unless this is your first time using something of this sort. The presets sound pretty neat, and give you a taste of what the box can offer.

There are a LOT of features that the ER-1 has... and most of them you will probably never use. Audio input (pretty much useless to me) tempo delay... a button you use to tap the tempo... motion sequence... the ability to switch between patterns at the press of a button... and song making capability... Very versatile...

This is where I really have a problem with the ER-1. Maybe I'm not using it the way it was designed... but it isn't really a stand-alone drum machine. There are about 4 drum sounds that you can use... and only 2 that you can use at the same time. The rest of it is a synthesizer you use to make analog-sounding drums... It does this very well... except if you want to make realistic or even semi-realistic sounding drums... you're basically out of luck.

I've had it for about a year and it never messed up once. However, the case is made of cheap plastic and I strongly think that if I accidentally stepped on it or something, it would crack very badly. It would work very well still... but it would look like garbage.

I've never had to deal with it... but that's better than needing to :)

If it were lost and stolen... I would probably buy the new EM-1. The EM-1 does all the realistic sounds I want. But the ER-1 is not for everybody... The really best feature about the ER-1 that I think is the way you can make a bassy pulse with lots of decay time. Not much else can do that so well. I hate how the Close and Open hi-hat use the same channel... so you can't play both at the same time... same goes for the Crash and H. Clap. The only reason I could see this comes in handy is if you want the crash or close hi hat to play a long sound but then cut off quickly instead of slowly... as normal use of decay would do. I wish it had more realistic drum sounds. But what you really need to consider is the price of this thing. For about 200 used you can get a little box that does so much... even if it's now what you really wanted.

The sounds of this box are, of course, it's main attraction.
They are digital wave forms and therefore sound a little frigid,
but, the expressive capabilities of the sounds far outweigh their
short-comings (at this price range). The only other boxs that
function like this are the X-Base or a 909/808 (Both far more
expensive). The ER-1 sells used at around $200-$250. For this
price, it is a wonderful sounding little box.
However, despite what other entries here suggest, this box is not
particularly easy to use. The interface is a little bizzare. It's
very easy to edit the drum sounds, and it's easy to modify the drum
patterns, but as far as creating new patterns, this box is a little
lacking. Without a manual, it would take you a year to figure out how
to write a pattern. This is because it's needlessly complicated
(not to mention tedious) erasing patterns and individual parts.
In other words, it's difficult to start from scratch.
For this reason, I would say the ER-1 was designed mainly for the
pre-set producer. But this is alright, because it only obscures the
ER-1's unique value.

The polyphony is great for a box of this nature, although,
it would be helpful if the ER-1 had individual outputs for
it's drum parts (this is a major drawback).
The Delay is useful in that it provides a Tempo Delay that will
automatically sync to the beat. However, as many have mentioned,
it only functions as a pattern delay and will not delay individual
drum sounds.
Another feature that would help this box is a more powerful
sequencer that could accept external data. Too bad.

Like I said this is where the ER-1 shines. It really does'nt have
specific sounds like a normal drum machine. In this sence, it's
more of a "rhythm synth." Great expression. Great clipped snares,
bassy snares,tinny snares, round basses, soft basses, electro toms,
bleebs, tones, blibs, zaps, etc. You know what I'm saying. It's for
Electro. Of course, you could combine that elecro drum sound with
any other form of music, if you were so inclined.
Velocity and Aftertouch and things like that are not really an
issue with the ER-1. It's not meant for that sort of thing. It's
really a pretty raw (as raw as digital can approximate) little
electro-box.

Yeah of course I would take it to performances.
I mean you don't want to spill your drink on it,
it's a piece of electronic equipment, but it's sturdier than
a HR-16 or a TR 707/606. That is, it's as solid as or more solid
than the average drum machine.

Overall, despite it's many flaws (it definitely has a lot of
flaws), this is a GREAT peice of equipment. I would definitly
buy it again. It is an irreplacable part of my set-up (unless I
wanted to hop on the $1000 909 band-wagon).

super easy, instant access to editing.

simple easy to use grid style sequencing.

enough features for creating interesting electronic percussion sounds and sequences. basic, but just enough.

four VA type percussion generators.

three sampled pcm hi hat, cymbal, and crash sounds.

good range for electronic type of percussion.

variety of modulation sources for pitch. controls for decay, amp...

time will tell, eh?

this thing is very cool. its refreshing to see a percussion synth that isn't *soley* based on sounding just like a TR-909 and that doesn't just rely on sample playback.

in my humble opinion, this is the best of the electribe boxes.

BTW, I believe the album which is described as having two electribe boxes drawn on the sleeve mentioned in the pior post is actually the artist Like A Tim, not Aphex Twin.

The manual isn't that impressive, but the machine is so easy it doesn't matter. After a couple of minutes I figured out how most things work and this is how I think musical instruments should be like!

There are no fancy extras on the ER-1, but the sounds that you can get out of this box are amazing. The sequencer is pretty basic, but good enough for live situations. It's really hard to complain about the lack of this or that, since the machine is so cheap and the over all sound is so good!

If you're into making music with an electronic feel, like techno or electro, the ER-1 is perfect. If you are thinking of buying, say a Roland Groovebox for some (sampled) 808/909 sounds, get the Electribe instead. The kick drums are incredible and so is the electro (think Kraftwerk) sounds. Even people like Juan Atkins (Model 500) and Orbital are praising this machine. It may have some limitations (the delay affects all parts, it has only two outs), but the sound is so good that it's bound to be a classic in a couple of years.

I've used it live with no backup and I haven't had any problems yet. I must admit it looks a bit fragile though (the knobs and the plastic casing...).

This is my first Korg gear and since I haven't had any trouble with it, I don't know if they are good or bad at this.

The best thing about the ER-1, is that it inspires me to write more music. It's like an endless source of inspiration. I must point out though that if I made, say retro pop/rock I probably wouldn't like it (I make techno/ambient type of music). I compared the ER-1 with Rolands MC-303 Groovebox, and I must say the Electribe are far more interesting and inspiring. It's perfect for someone who is a beginner and too good to resist for the pro. One last thing: I saw a record the other day where the ER-1 and EA-1 were on the sleeve (a drawing). I think it was released by Rephlex (Aphex Twin's label), but I'm not sure. Does anyone know about this record?

The preset patterns are pritty decent (Thats a first!) Just select your sound pad input your pattern sequence and BOOM you got a phat pattern. Knobs are plain and simples and many knobs share 2 or more funtions, but its all good. :) I remember playing this at the store and the thing actuly got my head bompin' thats whin I knew I had to get it.

Couldv had more features say' Indie outputs or FX Switch per part instaid of a glabal delay' and umm mayby have abilaty to do up to 16 bars instad of 4 and single fingered mute solo switch per part, and musical interval for sequencer instad of one frequency knob, but that wouldv just made unit more expensive (Mayby for ER-2 model?)
But the Advantages far outwiegh the disadvantages!:)' Make some nice BASSSS go rumble' and global dely is nice and usful for autopanning FX. You can make unit 2 indi outs by park panning then eather hard left or right so you can process 2 differnt sets of the ER-1 kit at the same time (Say Flange Kik and HH and reverb to Other parts liek FX Snare and clap)

Sinouid Bass is the best bass' but a Autopanned Sinoud Bass is evin better :) Can get some nasty kicks and Weird patterns with this thing and then some... Its up to you how it sounds...

256 Patterns is enough to keep me busy for a whiles' and never ever crashed on me.

never consulted with them...

Very good for the money stores are shelling it at $200-$300 now, better get one now before theyr all gone! If you want to hear the ER-1 beaten to death' chech out my music at http://www.mp3.com/miek and tell me what you think!
I make industrial Trance and Brum N Bass'

This little bitch is easy as hell to use. I can't really think of any other little bastard drum machine that's easier.

The uhh drums for it are really neat but a bit limited, for you can only run four fully adjustable drum sounds at once. The MIDI is really confusing but you can still figure it out as long as you're having lots of fun like having sex while doing it.

The sounds are a bit limited. It would be a lot better if there were moans and pleasure screams of women in it to add to the beat. A little "whack-smack" would be nice too.

I can depend on this as well as I can depend on getting a boner with viagra.

I love the customer support. I believe it is at 1-800-FUCK-YOU and the female operator was VERY nice...

If this little whore was stolen I would probably buy a new one. While I can bitch about the lack of sex sounds all day, I really like how capable it is of doing multiple things. It makes great porno music as well.

Easiest drum machine layout ever- if you played any insturment in your entire life you can pick up the beats within minutes.

Although i am still learning everything the features are great. I love the on board delays and Oscillator.

it doesnt put/out to much but that is what amps and mixers are for only 6Db's. Not really a problem for me. The sounds are great but you must be preared to play it loud and have all your full range speakers set up.

never failed yet but i wish the power cord was better connected

never used?

I was questioning the sales person at the Toronto music store about the MC-505 when he suggested I check out the ER-1. I never heard of it. I put on those headphones and started tweaking those patterns right there. I was blown away! I had no idea what I was doing but it all sounded soooo cool. Right off the bat I knew this was something I had to have.

This little box does a lot, especially compared to the price of other similar gear. It's up to the user to make it what it is....

I got into psy trance from TO's underground scene. I was a guitar rocker before hand. Guitar got boring as hell. This little box opened up my mind to new possibilities in sound creation. Its a wicked toy-play with it!

I've lugged this thing in a gym bag all over the place. It's light and portable. I can't believe something so small sounds so cool. If you aren't a complete moron and keep your drugged out and drunken friends away from it- than I think it should hold up well.

N/A - no problemo!

This box rocks. If you take the time to tweak it you can get wicked results. I skipped my college classes for 2 days to play around with it! Be curtious and use headphones if you have room-mates; the bass can be too much for some too handle at loud volumes. The MS 2000 is on the way soon.....

Very easy to use , had it all figured out in two hours.
Found software to edit it (not that s it s really needed)

Midi's up to scratch, poly's fine , sucks that the delay effects all parts.

Oh yeah midi thru is nice for a box this price.

-4 synth parts rock, samples are ok
-low boost is nice , adds distortion when cranked up
-this doesn t even need to be used for drums, makes very nice synth lines

Looks and feels flimsy
my 909's tougher hands down

dunno but the store i got it from would help out interface with the faceless corporate pigdogs

i d get another one if stolen , this machine truly inspires me

is is so simple. the pads give you the timing

it is great for the people thjat are looking for the sounds that cant be made with an average drum machine, or groove box

there is nothing to say, you make your own sounds....enough said

umm....this feature is not as good as i think it should be, but dont let this stop you from getting it

The Electribe ER-1 drum machine was the first of the series that I bought, and perhaps, the best in the Electribe series. For years, I have been a fan of Roland's TR-808, CR-8000, CR-78 etc., so you can imagine I'd dreamt up a wish list of feature which would have been nice to have in those machines. Nothing out there could match the sound quality and flexibility of the TR-808, not even the brilliantly implemented Roland R-8. The sounds were just too static, or too "sampled" for my taste. The Korg ER-1 changed all that. Even the presets were nice, which is about the highest compliment I can make about any machine. For months after having bought the ER-1, I still wasn't convinced this wasn't some cruel gear lust dream I would awake from staring at a (insert crappy drum machine of your choice here). Furthermore, being able to tweak, and re-tweak, and store the tweaks, and record the tweaking is the most amazing development since the invention of drum machines itself. I was also very happy to be able to use good old Roland-style step programming to make patterns.

I'm quite satisfied with the onboard polyphony, never having felt the need for more. However, I would have appreciated the inclusion of a "cymbal-hihat synthesis model" to make my own, but I guess Korg's choices for Hihats and the lone cymbal should please most 909 fans out there.

The synchro delay (also tweakable) is just right for rhythm patterns and I enjoyed being able to make the hihats ping-pong from left to right (or vice-versa). I also enjoyed the "bass-booster" feature, as it gives my sounds that extra bottom distortion guaranteed to shake the room.
Korg were very generous as far as Ring Modulators are concerned, allowing the user to both internal and external sounds with the units dual Ring Mods.
I was also surprised at the wide range of modulation capabilities found on the ER-1, especially since the EA-1 (synth) lacks a proper LFO.
I wish there was a way to control the volume settings for each part from the machine itself without having to select, but I guess for now, I'll have to live with muting and un-muting the sounds...

This box is not intended for recreating jazz brush snare sounds. It is ideally suited for Techno, Hip Hop, Dance, etc. I even created sound effects and textures for a 50's Sci-Fi movie parody using the versatile little beast.
This is the future of drum synthesis, with all the best elements of the past and an open mind for the future.
The purity of the ER-1 is such that I'm willing to say I haven't heard this nice a kick drum since the TR-808.

The ER-1 is very reliable live, and also quite loud.
I would only bring it to gigs along with earplugs.

I've never had to deal with Korg.

If my ER-1 were lost or stolen, I would run to buy another one. In fact, I think I'll go and buy another one right now so I can keep tweaking if this one breaks.

The presets are pretty basic analog stuff, nothing surprising really. They really lack the certain kind of "dick" and sound a bit cheap and toy'ish. The manual seems pretty intuitive, but that's what the ER-1's interface is too, so you won't really need the book. Just take the machine out of the box, make the necessary connections and start playing around with it. It's reeeeally easy. No stupid menu scrolling etc.

There are no effects to speak of. Just the silly global reverb. Dunno about the midi capabilities, and i imagine there's not much use for it either, as it has such a great internal sequencer. Well, you could use midi for timing if you'd want to go live, but I imagine that's about it.

The instruments are alright if you're ready to deal with almost identical drums in every song. This machine works well for techno kind of stuff, you can get goa bass drums outta it if you want to, but it ain't going to be no good for traditional drum+bass or anything else that requires real drum sounds.

Well, I bought mine used, and the paint has flaked off a bit from the buttons. The whole machine is terribly light weighted, and the knobs are like loose nibbles or something. It looks and feels like it's bought from a toystore, and unfortunately sounds a bit like that, too. I'd have to gig with this without backup, because no gig is important enough to pay another 1800 FIM for another one of these.

Haven't contacted them and not going to.

If this were lost or stolen, I'd buy something else. It's just plain silly that it can make only one kind of crash, one kind of hi-hat and one kind of claps. And they're the same stupid samples no matter how much you tweak the knobs, and that's very audible. Looking at the reviews people have written here, I'm ready to believe Korg bribed them in a way or another. This isn't half as good as I thought it would be. And i bought it based on the reviews people have written here. My final statement is: Unless you get this very VERY cheap, don't buy it.

Yes. It it pretty simple and straightforward. The preset patterns
aren't that useful, but you can copy good sounds from them. Changing
patterns while playing is easy, but the data wheel could be a bit
stiffer. Songs are easy to compose and the motion sequence is easy
too.

You can tweak the sounds quite a lot, but the results aren't always
that useful. Of course you can do weird sounds to ring modulate the
two audio input sounds. It has a built in delay that has a lot of
freak out potential to it. I have only one complaint about the
features. This thing can't do any 7/8 9/8 11/8 or things like that.

It does well with any dance/electropop or such. I suggest any ER-1
owners go buy themselves a distortion pedal, so you can do some
serious wild noise patterns.

It looks a bit weak. Only time will tell.

It it well worth the money though I might not buy it again.
With a couple of synths and this one you can do some great party
music. Tweaking it while playing live is a lot of fun.

intuitive-creative-amazing box
in 2 hours you learn what you need, and then yuo'll take your time to go into the sounds and create your own

10 parts + 2 audio in for processing external sounds <- this is great, i mean: with this function you can process external weird noises or melodies with the notes you put on the pads....xperimentation, pure!!!
the delay is global, no single for each part...it's great too: you don't buy an electribe R for real drum sounds, so the 'total' delay can give bizarres effects like Aphex Twin breaks...
the MOTION SEQUENCE!!!!!!! this is the beast: you can record your turns on the switches that will be reproduced cyclic with the pattern...AWESOME
the sequencer is classic xox groove pattern based...solid rock...not terrible things like an RM1-X, but really solid
remember that you can change every note you have put on the pads in real time when you are playing live, and also making motion sequences at that time...

i have to be honest: i LOVE the sounds of the ER-1, specially because you have to make your own, but if you'r looking for a tipical simil-realistic sounding drum box, you have to go away from here!
this box is perfect for tribalcore, tekno, elektro, hardcore, breaks, industrial, but ALL a bit xperimental...come on, you have to wake up and do your own thing and sounds!!!
you can create boomy kick sounds, 808 simil, long synth-drum sounds, noises, echoes tribal patterns, really good electro things...
the switches are really sensitive, so if you turn a little bit the kick sound, it can be tranformed into a square synth or a bell!!!
the box DSP based...at the end really simil-analogue, a sort of a more experimental Jomox one
again: forgot it for rock or simil and more important: TRY IT a long before saying it's crap...if you listen to it for 5 min in a store you'll never discover the big power of this machine

10 again: you can use it perfectly on live without any sort of problem

the support, i think, is very good...i mean: it's KORG!
but i've never been in the situatuion that the ER-1 had to be repared, so i don't give any point.

i use always my ER-1, it's my baby :)
i use also a Yamaha RM1-X that drives all, an ES-1 and an MS2000rack from Korg, an ESI2000 sampler + boss VF-1 and boss MT-2 effects...
i have to say that the ER-1 is the only one that seems to be immune to the effects: i put delays, distortions etc., and it sounds more punch with strange effects, but not really delayed and distorted!!!
it's xperimental also for this reason....(the modulation effects have a better resolution)
i really recommand this box to everyone who likes tekno and also sperimentation to his own audio material, and remember that, when you are playing live, you have to turn really soft the bass-kick controll: you'll burn the PA and make evrything else sound like plastic!!!

Really really simple to use. The manual can even be considered optionnal :o)
But waouh haw great are the sounds you create!

Of course it can appear to be a little bit limited, but huh it s a rythm synthesizer, not a dedicated synthesizer!!!
More seriously, the 4 percussion synthesizer parts are excellent, to create any kind of sound you want.
Great distortion also :o)
The inputs offer also a large panel of possibilities...I own my ER-1 since one year, and I just begin to use this feature :o)

For the 4 percussion synthesizer parts, I give it a 10, no problem.
But the MAJOR PROBLEM comes from the four PCM samples...
Why? Because in fact they share 2 voices :o((((
You cannot choose the samples :o((((
And above all the samples sound no so great... :o(
IMHO it s better to use another machine for hi hats, claps and crash.

I ve nerver had any problem, but huh the knobs do not seem to be very solid...

I don t know :o)

No doubt I would give it a 10 if you had you choice for PCM samples and if you had, let s say 2 more percussion ynthesizers

Very easy to get your head around

If you want to get analog sounds buy analog machines - if you want to create your own unique sounds - buy the Electribes

Excellent for live work

BUY THEM NOW !!!

Let me start by saying this thing is really cool. I use it as a drum machine to make novel, non-acoustic percussion sounds. I don't pay much attention to the preset patterns. The whole purpose of this thing is to create sounds/patterns rather than use the presets. The presets do serve as useful templates. Editing is so so easy and straight-foward.....creating sounds/patterns is really fun rather than a chore. The knobs/buttons are very self-explanitory. The menus are also easily understandable. The manual is actually very good and mercifully brief. I am usually anti-manual, but I actually recommend reading this one.

The features are pretty self explanitory. Basically, there is an oscillator with some other parameters (ie, decay, delay, etc) to help create a sound. The sound is then easily put to a pattern. Several sounds can be used to make a complex pattern. The patterns can be produced either via real-time recording or placing the sounds on the pattern template.....very simple. The MIDI capabilites are good. I have it slaved to my Waldorf Q internal clock, so whatever pattern is playing on the Q, the ER-1 tempo is automatically matched.

The sounds are very good.....It takes some tweaking of the knobs to really find the desired sound, but that is the fun of it. The sounds are very non-acoustic, though "normal" drum sounds are fairly reproducible......Good for industrial, techno, all that......If you are interested in true acoustic percussion sounds, I would recommend a drum machine rather than this.

Seems reliable. Had it about 2 months and never had a problem with it.

Don't know......haven't used Korg customer support yet.

If it were stolen, I would definitely buy another.....For its inexpensive price, it is well worth it. If you have neighbors you really hate, I definitely recommend it! Remember that this is more for sequenced percussion sounds....it is (thankfully) not a TB303. In a nutshell, I love the cool sounds and ease of use. There isn't anything I hate about it yet. I also own a Waldorf Q, Korg Trinity V3 pro X, Korg MS-2000, Future Retro 777 and a Roland JP-8000; the latter is being replaced by an Access Virus KB (have been on the waiting list forever).

The interface is similar to the Roland 808 and 909 boxes with some added functionality. Writing patterns and creating drum sounds is simple. No menus to wade through -- just lots of knobs and buttons.

The only effect that this machine has is delay, and it's global. It has no filter, but the oscillator and amp offer a lot of flexibility for editing sounds. I'm not sure how well this box handles MIDI data, but it's not like you're going to want to use an external program to sequence your drum patterns when you've got such a great hardware sequencer to work off of.

You can easily emulate Roland's 808 and 909 with this box, but it's made to do a whole lot more. If you're looking for synthetic drum sounds, this is the box to buy. If you're looking for realistic drum sounds, then get a sampling drum box. You aren't going to be doing drum 'n bass with this box.

The case itself is very sturdy, but I don't like the rubber knobs and buttons. With prolonged use, I feel that the paint would begin to chip off.

N/A

I returned this machine because it didn't suit needs. I didn't want to be limited to synthetic analog sounds. If that's what you're looking for, then buy this box. It's a like an 808 and a 909 in one box with the ability to make some really original, whacked out sounds. Great for generic 4-on-the-floor techno and anything else that requires synthetic drum sounds, but not so great for drum 'n bass and anything that requires quasi-realistic drum sounds.

Very simple, much like rebirth or any TR series. Would be nice to do whole pattern dumps instead of single sections, but with time you can get a lot done.

I'm psyched about the motion control over delay parameters. My main reason for buying this machine was the midi setup. I've had other machines that couldn't filter and responded to every channel, making it hard to do a live performance from scratch. The low boost and accent are pluses when used right. The only other thing that the ER-1 could really use is a patch reverse button...

Most of the sounds are analog modeling, and are what you make of them. The clap section could be a bit richer, but with the right pitch vs. low boost, you can make it sound like what you want. The Hat section is really nice, very realistic and characteristic of older vintage machines (these can also be pitch and low boost tweaked). I don't like the crash to much... for some reason it cuts off when you use it with a hat. I'm also thinking of buying an extra FX box to change cutoff and resonance.

Very reliable clock. Syncs perfect with my other gear. Played several parties and never had a problem

never dealt with it

I'd definately hit up my insureance for another if it was stolen. I'd buy it over and over again, but the real value in this machine is what patterns you've saved.

Really simple to use, especially if you've used a Roland TR-x0x or Rebirth. Editing over MIDI from a sequencer is a pit of a pain (NRPN nightmares). I've created a Logic environment for it, which needed 3 transformers for every knob (maybe it could be simplified by a Logic expert..)
Using it as a stand alone unit is pretty straight forward though.

It's biggest feature is the tweakability of it's sounds!
The built in delay is pretty cool, everything from long delays to those short comb-filter like metallic noises (ideal for Aphex Twin type beats).
Just about everything is controllable by MIDI (but could possibly be easier) - it can sync to an external MIDI clock (eg a sequencer) or act as a master for other things to sync to.

I'd say the sounds were aimed at electronic/experimental/dance music. I wouldn't reccomend it for realistic drum sounds.

The flexibility of sounds is great. It appears a little limited at first but after a little tweaking you can easily see what it's capable of. It has an LFO to modulate pitch which can easily get into audio frequencies for clangorous cross modulated/FM type sounds.
There's a ring mod that can be used on either synth parts 1&2 or synth part 4 and audio input.
It's also great for techno-ey kick drums, plenty of bass (there's a low-boost effect too that can be used to overdrive sounds if its pushed)

I agree with the other reviews - seems pretty light but sturdy enough.
I'd gig with it.

I'd like to see some nice freebies on the website: like .pdf manuals, sample sounds/patterns.
No idea what the support is like really though (only had it a week)

I'd definately buy it again, and I'm quite tempted by the EA-1 too.
Get all three and you could easily do a 1 man (or woman!) live techno act :)

The presets sound very cool, and there are a lot of them. But who buys these to use the presets? The presets provide some inspiration and spark, where these Electribes really shine is in the ease of use department. I have NO experience with this stuff. I just got my ER-1 today. I've played with it for maybe two hours. I made my first project trying to duplicate the sound of a track on one of my favorite DnB discs. I had it within a few minutes, all it took was reading the manual and experimentation. The manual is very helpful. It uses jargon in some places that a total novice (like me) might be confused by, but you can figure it out.

It's fantastic for what it is, and especially for the price. It sounds good, too. Some of the stuff is a little cheesey, but not enough to matter. When mixed in with good sounds and some creative playing, that cheese will be invisible to the ear. It has built in delay, as well as the tweaks for editing individual parts. I'm not relying on this thing having effects, I just need to generate some cool rhythms, and the ER-1 does that in spades. The MIDI stuff looks to be robust, but again, it's all new to me.

Most of the instruments and sounds are as realistic as any other techno sounds. When running the "vintage" rock and roll patterns, those are as convincing as any drum machine, like a Dr. Rhythm. But these things really shine in dance music, of course. Some of the DnB presets are fantastic. Great starting points.

It's light, it has no moving parts, it doesn't get hot, it's solid, the keys are soft rubber. I'd say it's dependable. Gig with it? That's not my intent, personally. If I had to for some reason, I wouldn't hesitate.

Korg's website doesn't have much other than advertising for this stuff. It'd be nice if they had some additional information, settings, etc online.

If it were lost or stolen, I would absolutely buy another. I've been using it for less than a day, and I'm already very upbeat about the potential this thing has. I'm mostly a guitar player, I bought this because I want to get experimental with industrial sounds. It fits the role perfectly. I will be adding the ES-1 as soon as it is available, and possibly the EA-1, though I don't know if I'll need it for what I want to do.

Presets are awsome and easy to manipulate. The manual is easy to read, even if you're a bit of a techno-phobe like I am

Built in effects are awsome. You can take a crisp drum sound and add boat-loads of delay until it's a slow, shuffling industrial beat. I love that shit. With companion peices like the EA-1 (analog) and the soon to be released ES-1 rythme sampler, this is an extremely versitile toy. Sequencer is a bit tricky, but much easier then the ones I've wresteled with in other drum machines

Always on, never off... Unless you overdo the depth and delay, everything is crisp and warm and otherworldly.

So far so good. I've had it for less then a month and haven't had a problem yet. Sometimes, when turning the dial between patters, it will skip two ahead instead of one at a time. I read somewhere else that another user had this problem... Definitely would feel comfortable without back-up.

If it was lost or stolen, I'd want the exact same thing as a replacement. This is so easy to use, so easy to combine with other players, so dependable, that I think I'd even choose this puppy over more expensive modles. I hear the ES-1 rythme sampler is coming out in America in early May. I'm gunna be first in line to get me one of those bad boys. Electribes rock.

So easy to use! Just select a part, turn a knob, place it where you want. I was suprised at the presets, really inspiring. There are a lot of just empty spots in the "D" bank with just a 4/4 kick. I first started by re-aranging the presets and changing the pitch & Mod. of the sounds. The manual isn't really needed, everything about it is right on the face of it. however the manual is a bit jumpy.

Not sure of the Polyphony, 8 I think... But there is a funny thing about it. It seems that the Hi-Hat closed/Open AND the Hand Clap/Cymbal share one voice. So if you try to put them both in the same spot only one will sound, usually its the Hi-Hat Open and the Hand Clap. But what do I know, I'm only 15!

2 Global Effects, and do I love the Tempo Delay effect. It gives a Metalic sound to the pattern (perfect for Drum N' Bass) Easy to use, just select one of the two effects and tweak the two knobs. No expansion capabilities.the on-board sequencer is awesome, and man do I love the Audio In!!! (it has two of them) otherwise the standard MIDI In,Out,Through

The snare sound is hard to master, but I have a little secret. I was trying to set up a snare sound and came across the best one I've ever herd an the machine (I use it almost on every pattern) it sounds like a "real" snare sound! Otherwise, you can get good punchy bass souds with a little practice. You can also get some pretty strange noises out of that little box. Remember its not a drum machine its a Rhythm Synthesizer. Thats where those who put down the ER-1 go wrong. It's not a like DR-770, or a DR-202! This is by far a Techno musicians dream machine, I know that its used by Expansion Union and Orbital. However if you want to hear both Electribes in action check out Expansion Union's CD World Wide Funk, Amazing.....
Oh yea, no velocity or aftertouch but the Accient function is cool

Seems sturdy, real light. metal bottom and face, the rest is plastic. Never dropped mine, dosen't look like it could take it too well in all honestly. Real low and sturdy won't move anywhere. And I do hit it pretty hard when I play live

If it were lost or stolen, I'd buy a new one in a heart beat. Worth the money by far!! Got it a few months ago, it was my first piece of "Real" gear, and I plan on using it for years to come. Love it to death. So easy to use, and the sound quality is incredible. I would take the electribes (ER--1 EA-1) over any roland X0X-box. I love the EA-1 so much I'm looking to buy two in the next month. To any Person looking to start making music, these machines are it !!!!

the basic programming is pretty self explanatory
programming the various philters might require a breif reading of the manual

again
its easy to use and sounds good
what else do you want

never needed it but this seems to be the average

The UI is quite simple and logical. I only had to look into the manual for the different patternnames. Best Interface on a synth i've experienced so far.

You have 4 synth-controlled drums, which can be tweaked from 909,808 kicks and snare into weird robotic voices. Additional you have 4 PCM Samples for Clap, HiHat and Crash. They can be tweaked a little bit as well by the Pitch, Decay and Low-Boost knobs. No expansions, but you have two nice Audio-Ins which can be routed through the synth-section. Haven't tried it though. Everything (knob-movements etc)can be sequenced with your faveourite Sequencer-Software. The on-board
step-sequencer is up to 4 x 16 steps long and easy on the fly to program. The built-in delay-effect, which can also be a tempo-delay is unfortunately only global. But great fun and usefull for example for dub but also for ringing sounds. For this price, good features which are reliable and do what they promise.

Ok. First of all the bad news. It's not a TR and the snare sounds suck. Second the good news. It's so to speak, "boombasstic". You can tweak wacky, weird sub-basses out of it, for D'n'B, but also punching 4 on the floor Techno kicks as well as nice vintage sounds. If you don't like none of them, you still can use it to tweak weird never heard blips and blops out of it. The variety is fantastic and the general sound is fat and fatter and fatest.

It never failed on me so far, since the week i had it. I bought mine s/h and the preowner used it for live gigs. So i guess it is reliable and good enough for gigs. Though the little cheap plastic case and rubberknobs gives you a different impression.

Never needed it.

I would always buy it again. S/h it is the best bang for your money you can get. I preowned an MC303 for about a year, which i got bored off, furthermore i will get soon a FS1r. Also i own a DB50, Logic Silver with ES1 and a MAM MB33, which i think will replace soon by a EA-1.
I don't like the sensitivity of the knobs, they react sometimes to much plus they could be more stabile and bigger. I love in general the sound (btw. the patterns are great, compared to Roland...) and that i can tweak every sound endless. It's lotsa fun in general using it. I compared it with a Novation Drumstation and Jomox Airbase99. I choose the ER1 because of the step-sequencer, the ability to sequence every knobmovement through MIDI, the superintelligent, simple interface and because it has it's own refreshing sound.
I wish it had more effects, usable independ for every drumsound, bigger, more stabile knobs.
It very much helped me making music in a sense that it supports me while the creative process instead of hindering me, like e.g. MCX0X or ReBirth or whatever similar.
I love this box. Try it out. If you like it as well, go and get it. Best bang for the lowest money.

This is a very easy and enjoyable instrument to use. It really is a rhythm synthesizer not a drum machine. The presets are decenly programmed by I can't imagine anyone buying this unit wanting to use presets, you're going to want to write your own patterns and create your own sounds. Sound creation is very simple, you have two waveforms to work with. They are physically modeled waveforms that resemble a sine and something between a saw and sine. You get a lot of mileage out of modulating the waveforms. This may sound simple and actually it is with one big caveat, the changes are huge and you can get an incredibly flexible sound out of these simple tools. Besides the synthesizer section there are sampled open and closed hi hat, crash and hand clap. They are there mostly to fill in rhythmic patterns. They can be manipulated but not to the extent of the four modeled drum sounds. If you've ever worked with a pattern based synth or drum machine you'll understand this almost instantly. If not it's still very intuitive. Should you need the manual it is decently written, a nice departure from Korg's usual confusing manuals.

With the four PM based sounds and 4 sampled sounds you also get two inputs that can be effected by the ER-1. Besides the flexible modulation (which only works on the PM sounds) there is a pitch control available to all sounds and a simple decay, pan, level and low bass control. These controls actually influence the sound more than one might think. The bass boost is interesting in sounds that are high frequency. It's a basic filter that appears to have a fairly high frequency level that gets boosted. Another important part of the ER-1's sound is the Delay section. You have three sections, straight out like a normal processor (good for dub effects or tight flanged ringing) and Motion Sequence mode where you can track the effects processing to the rhythm sequence which produces interesting effects that remain automated once recorded. There's also a Tempo Delay that allows the Depth and Time controls to function within the timing of the beat. That all you get by the way, Depth and Time, no additional features. This might sound restrictive but once you check it out you'll see that the ergonomics and function of this equipment is very clever. Instead of a million controls there are about 15 knobs or soft buttons to adjust the lion's share of all your sound programming. As a rhythm programmer it's about as easy as it gets and what's beautiful is you can tweak in real time, mute sounds, solo, whatever and not lose the original settings, or if you find you created something better you can save it. The rotary entry dial is laid out nicely and feels solid. You can save to 256 locations with rhythm sequences anywhere between 1 to 4 measures. This is similar to a hopped up TR series drum machine which is where the similarities end. It's not a rhythm programming powerhouse like typical drum machines, but if that's what you're looking for then this is not the place.

Although it may sound limited, and to a $2000 synth it is limited, but at it's price range it does a lot with sound and seems to make endlessly interesting sounds, from emulative (in a old school kind of way) to strange noises that would make for good sound beds as much as they would rhythms. The pads are not velocity sensitive, it's not meant to be played in realtime, even when it's running you are changing rhythms with a one measure delay before they take effect. Simple and easy to get the hang of. When programming the biggest changes tend to come from the modulation type of which there's six types mixed with Modulation Depth and Modulation Speed. Forget about traditional synths, you'll have to try these three knobs to get a feel for the machine and really you should try this out before buying. Too many people are hoping for a TR in the box solution and although you can do things similar it's not a replacement by any means. This is very much it's own instrument and taken for what it is it has a rewards that most inexpensive equipment doesn't. I didn't even mention the Audio In capabilites but they are impressive and worth experimenting with. If you dig messing up sounds you're probably going to be happy with this synth.

I read in other reviews that the knobs seem a bit flimsy. I agree to a degree, nothing I'd be scared of using at a gig. The unit is light but balances well on any reasonably flat surface. It has a very low profile which may not be suited to some. Personally, I prefer the low profile setup, it's out of the way and easy to access everything.

No experience so far.

I would replace this in a heartbeat. It's one of the most fun music making tools I have. It's addictive to play with. If you like changing and evolving rhythms this thing is fun, you can reprogram it on the fly (can't save while it's playing though.) Also, the number of tweaks and flexibility in sound make this a winner for someone looking for their own sound. You really can't compare it with drum machines as that's not the point to this equipment. I can sound like a vintage unit in it's own way but that is such a minor part of what this machine can do.

The sounds are pretty good for the price tag. There are about 256
preset patterns (you can write over all of them too) each with their own edited variation of the 4 DSP drum sounds. The PCM clap, crash, ch, and oh are not DSP generated so they vary by the effect and level settings. The little box is easy to program with dedicated knobs for all sound maninpulation and a grid menu system/dial for global settings (BMP, midi CH, ect). All in all this machine is very straight forward right out of the box.

I am assuming the poly is 8 note here, one note for each drum sound. The rubber buttons make me a little nervous since I remember the ill fated MMT-8 and they are not velocity sensitive by the way. I think they are meant for auditioning the sound and programming the sequencer only and not for banging live. The ER-1 has a built in delay that can sync to the tempo and 2 of the 4 DSP drum sounds are assoiciated with a ring mod, 1 mods another DSP drum sound and the other mods one of the external inputs. Currently there are no expansions/revisions that I am aware of. The unit operates on 1 user set midi channel (1-16). You can assign note numbers to each of the drum sounds to trigger an exteranl midi source on the same channel (ala TR-707). The sequencer is 16 step pattern based, patterns can be 4 measures long. You can link these up in song mode. In pattern mode you can record 1 knob movement per drum sound (motion sequence) and have this data be interperated as smooth or trigger and hold ( uses whatever the value is when a note on occurs ). You can record more knob movements in song mode for more complex motion sequences. I like the sequencer a lot. It is very easy to get a pattern going quickly and it is a snap to kill the volume and trigger a external sampler. The audio inputs can be used in conjuction with the sequencer to yeild a gated input signal along with the ring mod effect allowing great rhythmic variations of your original signal. This can be lots'o fun.

This is not to be used for realistic percussion sounds. It has a DSP analog feel all the way over. Sounds very punchy to me despite what others may say and the hats are 909ish. You can get some deep kicks ranging from the 808 boom to a distorted 909. In fact you can also make some fantasic bass sounds too, record pitch knob movements or make a second/thrid/forth copy of the sound with another pitch to sequence simple bass lines. The different pitch mods allow you to acheive some bizzare FX stuff to. Let's not forget the ring mod for metal clanks and robotic textures. Sounds much better then any of the PCM drum boxes out now, I say this because I have a sampler that I use for those types of sounds. I like the electronic only sounds you can get out of this box that you can't from static ROMplers (like the MC-303 or Boss DR-202).

I have never giged with it and it does have an el-cheapo plastic feel to the casing and knobs but I don't think there would be any problems as long as you don't drop it. Now my ASR-x has the right idea in this department, a solid metal case with pads that can take a beating.

I own several Korgs (WaveStation, S3, DSS-1, and DS-8) all of which have never given me one problem in the slightess, although most of these have a better build then the ER. So I can't comment on Korg's Support only to say my machines they built work great.

Considering what is out in the market right now for drum boxes and the going price of these new I would have to say it is a great bargin. You get very tweakable sounds and plenty of user pattern space (unlike the MC-303) that it is well worth the price. I was going to just buy this and sample the hell out of it but it is quite dynamic sonically. Worth keeping it as a sound source and saving me the sampling time. I really like TR drum programming and get a lot of bang out the the sequencer as well.

Super easy to use...editing is just turning a few knobs that drastically
change sound. The manual is easy to use and thorough.

it features sampled hats, ride, and claps...and four percussion synthesis sound banks
that you shape to what you want to hear (bass drum, snare, bass line, noise etc)...very versitile and extremely fun.
The best thing about these machines are the Audio Ins...there are two banks that if you hook a sound source to, you can punch
them in on the ER-1's sequencer and you will hear the sound source. Ex: I sample a simple melody in my SP-202 from a casio...time stretch the sample
and match the number of bars...sync them together and bamm! it's like having a hardware version of ReBirth. well, almost...the ER-1/SP combo has alot more possiblities!

The sounds are as good as you make them... Hard to get a good snare...but
you can. It's the hardest sound for me to find on the machine...well, that I like anyway.

yeah, it seems dependable. but I'm not a touring musician.

I also use an Akai MPC2000 and a Ensoniq ASRX-pro...the thing I love about the ER-1
is that it does things that these machines can't...and is completely use-able. You always gotta love that...it reminds of something I read once...A guitar player said that
he buys alot of guitars because every guitar has a few new songs to offer him...that has nothing to do with this, except that the ER-1 has
helped me write songs that I wouldn't make on my other machines.