Roland MC-505

Insanely frustrating!
Had my 505 for a little over two months...all I can seem to do is bang on patch sounds and play with preset patterns.
The manual does more harm than good. Trying to edit a song is a fruitless endeavour.
It makes me sad, I read so many glowing reviews of this instrument and wanted it for so long but now I'm afraid it's going on the shelf in the closet never to be seen again.
Try before you buy.
If anyone knows a good tutorial PLEASE let me know.

If it were stolen I'd do more research for my next purchase.

I really like the Roland MC-505. It is so densely packed with features, it is a a little bewildering and I think that is what prevents many people from going deeper and playing with the basic feature sets.

Basically the unit sounds good, but it is tempting to merely play with all the presets.

If you dig deep enough, you can get get a wide variety of sound out of it to complement almost any kind of music.

My 505 had developed a bad lcd like most of them out there and this is why I am writing this review. Yes, you can replace it (as of 11/01/2008).

Also, it seems that the older 505's have plastic shafts on the pots and they tend to wear out and get wobbly. This doesn't seem to affect their use and performance. The replacement pots have metal shafts and should last longer. I think some were made with metal shafts, I would keep my eye out for one of those.

Although I applaud Roland for making parts available for the 505 after all these years, their customer service is beyond awful. If you order internal replacement parts they are non-returnable and they don't come with any service notes even when the replacement part is a substitution part and would require it. The replacement lcd screen is now a substitution part that is very different from the original screen. It is green and twice the thickness of the old lcd. Rather than being a 5 minute job to swap out the screen, it will take considerable time to install especially if you don't have the service notes on the replacement (and I think only Roland and their reps have access to this).

So I write this review in the hope that someone else planning to do this swap won't have to go through the pain I did of figuring out what to do. This is not a complete how-to as some of obvious steps are omitted like unscrew the case bottom.

1. the new screen mounts below the case not on top anymore
2. you will need to cut the opening and make it wider to fit the new screen. I used a nibbler and tin snips the metal is pretty soft be careful not to distort the screw holes.
3. you have to remove the output board to gain access to the opening.
4. the lcd screws in on the right and uses the supplied support on the left (oriented normally as if you were going to play it.
5. the clear plastic insulators are too small and you will probably need to use some tape to cover the ends of the lcd circuit board to prevent shorting on the metal case.
6. test the screen by hooking up just the power cable to the output board (bigger connector with red and white wires)
7. test fit the plastic screen (perspex?) to make sure the lcd oriented correctly. if the lcd is oriented to the left, you will have characters obscured by the screen.

If I had to do it again, I would say an hour as the case trimming takes some time with lots of trial fitting.

I think the MC-505 is totally worth it. It really can go beyond the trance/dance/tb-303 cliches if you take the time to figure it out. At its heart I find it to be very musical.

I wouldn't use it in a recording for String sounds, but it does have some really convincing Synth and Bass sounds.

Editing is a breeze. Knobs and sliders galore. A friend of mine (a drummer) who had never even touched a synthesizer hitherto, came over one night and started playing around with a Moog bass sound I had up. He got some awesome (non-bass) sounds going in just a few minutes. The manual is very concise... maybe too concise.

64 note polyphony, adequate for this box. There are some "stock" effects which are run-of-the-mill, but the "special" type effects like the Slicer are worthwhile. This box is not expandable. It does have an onboard sequencer which is fairly easy to use (read the section of the manual regarding the sequencer twice and you'll be a pro).

The Synths and Basses are good. The EP's are good too. The Clav's, Brass and Strings JV-880 quality. The D-Beam and novelty effects are fantastic. It reacts well to velocity and aftertouch (try the Moog Bass w/aftertouch).

I don't know if I can depend on it or not, but it's easy to fix. I bought it dirt cheap on Ebay because it had a bad POT (potentiometer, IE knob) and a faulty display. The POT cost $4 + shipping and the display had some bad solder points that took about 20 minutes to get to and 2 minutes to fix. I bought it initially just to add a D-Beam to my JP-8080 (they can be linked), but now I use it for sounds and even the sequencer occassionally. I play 70's progressive rock so I don't use the Patterns for live work, although I do find them interesting to play around with. I do use it live, but mostly as a D-Beam controller for the JP-8080 (for the "Filter Sweep" in Frankenstein... Looks cool to control it with the D-Beam).

I needed a potentiometer and I was able to get it ordered and mailed to me in a few minutes. I talked to a tech and he clued me in about the solder joints on the display.

If lost or stolen I'd replace it if I could get it for under $150, otherwise no. Is it worth what I paid, yes... but I bought a unit with what was perceived as a bad display and a bad knob and the case had been drilled out so it could be rack mounted (I actually rackmount it now too... Hey Roland, maybe the next MC should have the option). I love the analog-synth style controls. Very straight forward. All the digital era add-ons make it a wonderful machine for whatever you are doing.

ROLAND MC 505 REVIEW: MY OPINION
PRESETS(ABOUT 500) SOME ARE GOOD BUT THERE ARE SOME REALLY RUBBISH ONES TOO.
EDITING PATCHES IS EASY, THE MANUAL IS PRETTY MUCH OK.

ITS A 64 NOTE POLYPHONIC SYNTH WITH A 16 KEY MINI KEYBOARD WHICH DOUBLES UP AS STEP-WRITE ENTER KEYS (LIKE THE OLD TR RANGE OF DRUM MACHINES).
IT HAS REVERB, DELAY AND OTHER EFFECTS, PRETTY GOOD.
THE ONLY EXPANDABILITY ON THIS UNIT IS MEMORY STORAGE, WHICH IS 2mb OR 4mb SMART MEDIA CARDS (5v NOT 3.3v)
ON THE REAR IT HAS MIDI IN AND OUT/THRU AND MOST THE KNOBS AND SLIDERS TRANSMIT MIDI DATA.
THE ON-BOARD SEQUENCER IS EXCELLENT AND REALLY EASY TO USE, YOU CAN CREATE TRACKS VERY VERY QUICKLY AND SEQUENCE YOUR EXTERNAL MIDI EQUIPMENT!

YOU CAN MORE OR LESS CREATE MOST GENRES OF MUSIC WITH THIS UNIT.

IVE NEVER HAD A PROBLEM WITH ANY ROLAND PRODUCT AND THIS IS BUILT WELL, METAL CASE AND METAL CHASSIS AND RELIABILITY WISE I WOULD USE IT ON STAGE ANYTIME!

DONT KNOW, NEVER HAD TO CONTACT THEM.

THE SEQUENCER IS AS EASY AS YOULL EVER GET ON A SYNTH......IT HAS 6 AUDIO OUTPUTS, THE DRUM SOUNDS ARE REALLY GOOD, ITS TOUGH, THE FILTERS ARE GOOD, OVERALL ITS A REAL GOOD PACKAGE.

I bought this MC 505 when it first came out and assume that it's v1.0. The presets sound a little thin but fortunatly there are a lot of ways to fatten it up with the internal fxs. Editing patches are relatively easy, if you take the time to dive into it innitially. I don't use a patch editor. The manual has mistakes but bearing that in mine, it's a fairly good reference.

Many many polyphonus (is that a word?) ability. Fxs are easy to use. It accepts smart memory cards (no longer available - say what?. Chicklet keys but in midi mode, external keyboards allow for more expressions ie dynamics, after touch etc. The on board sequencer is easy to use (if you spend some time learning the basics).

Most sampled based synths have a thin sound. You simply can't compare a real string quartet with canned sounds. However, for what it is, it's okay...

I use mine as a back-up band. I program my own beats and sopatterns and play along to it. The nice thing about this machine, is that I can extend or shorten any song depending how it's going.

Fxs are fairly good and accessible on the fly.

See above comments for velocity and aftertouch.

General reliability is good. I've only had a couple of 'hiccups' since I bought it. However my pixel lcd screen started to go on me and I had to get it replaced ($300 repair). This apparently is a very common problem and used MC505 should be very aware of this. Apparently, it will go blank after time which makes it a real ***** to program without a visual aid.

It sucks when it comes to this machine! Roland Canada no longer make the replacement part for the LCD pixel issue, and had to adapt another kind of LCD for my replacement needs. On the one hand, it's kind of cool to have an LCD that is a different colour than most MC 505s (if not all), but it really should have only cost $100. It's the only Roland product that I've had issues with display screen.

However, aside from the price issue, Roland did fix it in quick time.

The procedure, if you have the replacement part, involves a snap in place ribbon and four screws mounting.

As a minor protest, I have decided to boycott future Roland products, at least for now (until at least I feel I've made up for the extra costs).

I would buy it again, if I was doinglive gigs on a regular basis (assuming my smart media card was still around as it has customized back-up info on it.

I've been playing and recording since 1979. I own Korg, Roland, Moog etc products.

I love the interface panel and as a side bonus, midied to other gear, the panels affect other synths etc. For intace, it makes a great multi-timbral midi mixer to such gear as the Korg Karma or EMU Proteus products.

I'm pretty happy with it in general. I think it will be a 'synth classic' especially if most lose their pixels and are trashed. Which will mean, those that are still working (like mine) will be sought by collectors!

Recently got it. Running on V1.04, the earliest version i guess. I'm on OSX Leopard and have tried various free MIDI sequencers (to update to 1.07) to no avail.

Straight off, the learning curve is quite high. You need the manual. Once you learn, there won't be turning back. Megamix is an important and easy to use live tool.

Due to the old software version, I get Rehasal, instead of Rehearsal.

Patching is EASY, but..

..I will update this once I get deeper with Patching ala Basslines vs Rhythm Composer.

8 once you get used to its perks.

Many LONG reviews written on this box, it deserves it. Truly a machine that lives up to its name.

Sad FACT 1 : TR recording mode updates only after the bar is finished. Click chiclets but it responds only on the next bar. Very frustrating.

Sad FACT 2 : TR recording mode will disable all other parts. Essentially making it a drum machine with next bar update.

Sad FACT 3 : I can't get Tap Tempo working properly. It just won't sync with pre-MIDI gear flawlessly. (1.04 related i guess.)

Happy FACT : Record mode is expected. It records everything so be careful tweaking, don't forget Rehasal.

8 as the other futures kinda makes up for the lack of a TR-Synth hybrid I was hoping it would be.

Sounds are alright right off the box, better with some tweaks, mega with a lot of tweaking and a good ear. Basically, tweaking is easy with all the knobs and minimal shifts. Tweaking is fun, seriously.

Sampler based, JV-1080 or 2080 can't remember. Comes with the plethoric sounds from Roland's various products. 909, 808, 606, 303, Jupiter, etc. etc. If it's not up to your standards, Tweaks are allowed. Not bad.Still searching for that Jupiter-8 arpeggio sound.

Preset Songs are boring.

8 as this box can really create some crazy sounds.

Physically reliable. Software-wise, not so. 1.04 perhaps, but Roland should make their products solid feeling at first go already.

7 as it doesn't feel that solid and direct compared with analog gear, software-wise, but hardware seems sturdy enough.

Probably will buy a backup if many gigs. And if a Patch corruption occurs.

Erm, filters wail a bit, not as extreme as an MS-20, but will wail and throb. Ask Roland about this and they will smile I guess.

I love everything there is to love about it.
I hate everything there is to hate about it.
Makes good partners with a Korg ESX-1, an MS2000 and any old TR, 909 preferably.
Sampler, Virtual Analog and an easy to use dedicated Rhythm Composer. And this Roland Jack of all trades, master of some. Very mobile, very easy setup, very Live Performance.

I'm not sure whether you can hook up two MC-505s and MEGAMIX them all together, now that would be sweet.

Thank god for MIDI.

Great! I love how easy it is to put together paterns. Some things take a litlle getting used to, but once you get the hang of it you can fly through it. I hit buttons so fast on this thing and it always can keep up.

I don't know much about polyphony, but aparently it has enough for me. Love the lft knobs and how you can easily record their actions to your pattern.
The Arp is great.
Expansion.. well that sucks because there is none. You can use smart media obviousl, but you can't add your own sounds. But it isn't a sampler.
The sequencer is fun and easy to use. I love it. How I work is I build a base pattern, save it, then make modified, extended, altered (ect ect) versions of it and save them as seprate patterns. Then you just link them together in song more and: disco!
The real time midi recorder is great, has a few little quarks. You get used to them and can work around them tho.

Here is the deal. When I first got it I tried to make it sound like something is wasn't. It isn't ever going to sound analog. It isn't going to sound phat or rich. Once I stoped fighting it, and decided to make use of it for what it is, I loved it.
It's a unique synth that has a cheap, dirty, sometimes low-fi sound. You can layer and tweak the sounds so they sound really interesting and intense, but not warm or thick.
People say it can sound like a toy, and I totally agree, but with the right amount of dedication to it, you can make INTERESTING, twisted crazy music.
Peaches, M.I.A., Bis. and Mount Sims all made huge club hit songs using this box alone. It's ditry sound is why it was such a hit in the electroclash genera, and I know it has just as much potential for future dance music.
It's all about creativity, and using it in the right way.

It has never crashed, but wierd stiff has happened from time to time. Random pattern changes, strange patch changes. Never lost data tho.
The LCD screen on mine is almost gone, but i can sill very slightly figure out what it's saying. This is common on the 505. I've spend thousands of hours on it, and bought it used, so it's been around the block a few times.

I love it, and I want to keep it forever. I want everyone to have one. I just sit in bed with it on my lap every night. Even if someone has a full studio, I think it would be a great sketch pad.

Wish I could add samples, or expand the synth like on the 909.

Overall if you are looking for a fun, easy to use, all in one on the go machine with an INTERESTING and UNIQUE sound, it's a great one.

I just got an 808, and I hate it. It sounds great, much phatter, but everything is done on a computer, not on the box it's self. It's more of a modual. It ruins the groovebox feature of having an entire setup in one. So I'll dtick to the 606, or maybe try the 909.

This was my first piece of gear that i bought after playing around with a friends mc-303 for 3 weeks. The 303 had a 2 week learning curve for me (no manual) and the 505 is much more advanced than the 303, so it took me about 2 months with the book to really get into laying down my own songs and patterns. Anyone who uses rolands know they each have their own operating quirks, but in my experience, the 505 is the easiest to learn outside of the 303 because of it's layout and manual. (good for beginners or software converts(me)..

The manual is very in depth (i think it's probably the thickest manual in the groovebox line) and although some of the translations can be a bit confusing, the info is there.. also, there is still some extra info to be found using google.. and a patch editor, i've downloaded it, but never used it.. the manual editing is so quick that software editing doesn't make sense to me, but i tweak by ear not by math so maybe it's useful to someone who obsesses over exacting details (i like to play music and make grooves with this, it's basicaly my drum machine + fills and extras)

Editing is a breeze! Most of the controls are only a knobs turn or a sliders push away, unlike the other grooveboxes that have a lot of menu browsing to get to parameters or knob assignments. Changing waveforms is simple, once you realize how to select your tones (roland's quirks) and how NOT to lose your progress while tweaking (stop and save often if you are spending lots of time editing a patch).. Realizing that some settings are saved via Patch Saves and some via Pattern Save was the one thing that bugged me the most in the beginning.. that's probably just a me thing tho. The manual explains this i think, i just use the manual for when i get stumped.

I've had this for 3 years now, and it's still the center of my setup.. This is my master bpm clock machine and it works nicely for that. I love how the system parameters and other edits are easily accessed by using the markings on the bottom with the keypad.. this is very quick and easy! I wish my 307 worked like this in that regard. so does my friend with the 909.. it's cluttery with lettering, but i want my synth to look confusing but be simple to operate, this one is exactly that.

features, well.. i'll try not to repeat the overstated... memory expansion is available, but as mentioned, hard to get those cards these days.. but you do need one! i filled mine up once and while trying to save a patch, the memory showed "full" and locked up my box... i had to do a factory reset and start over (i had no card)... talk about upset! a year's work and about 10 good song ideas gone.. lesson learned, get a card!

effects? yes. not "great" but some are very useable.. slicer, lo-fi, 4eq, enhancer are the ones i use most.. pattern delay and reverb are useful, i use those timidly when needed.. you can apply delay/reverb to any pattern (a pattern setting, not patch (see above) but the "special" effects you can only use one of (4eq/slicer/distortion, etc) so that's not too bad, useable with a plan in mind.. delays are really good if you tempo sync them.. long delays echo nicely, short delays will do some cool things too, especially on drums. the rest are "ok" and have special use if you apply them lightly, but they aren't the best features of this box.. also, lack of being able to use more than one effect in a patch is a bit annoying, and sometimes swapping patterns mid stream and changing efx between patterns can clash the timing, especially of the slicer with long tails (env. release).. which could be expected, but is limiting sometimes. i find if you don't use this box as "everything" you'll get exactly what you need out of it..

megamix function is exclusive to the 505 i think, and a very helpful one too. my buddy with a 909 was kinda upset that his doesn't megamix.. if you don't know, it's basically like a live play mixer that allows you to mix in specific parts from other patterns, and when the sequence loops back to one, the selected pattern part will play in place of the saved part in pattern.. a great live tool, and also helpful when you are fleshing out patterns in the studio and find something in another pattern that would work with a current idea.. just megamix in the part you want, resave (or save another copy of) your pattern and your work is done. no copy/paste, then reset all pattern parameters to match that original idea, all the settings of that part are changed with the megamix (a good thing)..

d-beam... not something i use.. kinda unpredictable for live use, the bpm control "could" be a cool trick.. but overall, i ignore this. this belongs on a 303.

i use a jx-10 76 key for my midi keyboard on this.. the jx-10 has aftertouch/velocity and great synth play action, and when writing parts into the 505 it saves my performance exactly as played.. can't ask for much more than that.. i don't mess with any 505 settings related to aftertouch/velocity so i dunno. i assume most will use an external keyboard on this anyway.

the #1 feature of this box that i see above most of the other grooveboxes, are the extra outputs! a total of 3 (mix/direct 1 & 2) stereo outs, which are great when you get into using external effects boxes (makes up for the lack of multi on board effects).. from what i know, most dedicated effects units are usually better than most of what you can find on board of any all-in-one synth box. so if you have the extra channels on your mixer, use em! one thing, when using direct 1 & 2, onboard reverb and delay are bypassed (again, hinting that external effects are the idea here).. sometimes, i run my bassline parts thru direct 2 and i can easily eq it independent of the rest of the pattern settings (expanding externally and outsourcing is the idea with the 505, imo) again, a great tool! also if you think in terms of mono, you could conceiveable get 6 mono outputs out of this setup (editing patch tones for left/right pans to send out separate im' thinking here)

my only complaint/extra want would be to have separate channels for the rhythm parts ie: separate kick channel, separate snare, etc.. but this seems to be a dying thing with gear.. most older drum machines without midi have this, and that's invaluable for applying effects to drum parts independently. (808 anyone?) again, i'm wishfully thinking of perfect world scenarios with this.. had roland included this, i think this 505 would be in every studio.

sequencer... straightforward.. i made a song with it on my first attempt.. make your patterns, save them.. then go in song mode and sequence them by looping and selecting parts to mute/unmute.. the sequencer is a breeze when playing live to tweak live and with certain settings selected, you can have the pattern return to normal after each loop or retain your on the fly tweaks.. again, this is up to you but you'll need to understand the play mode/loop mode and set them up specifically for what you expect.. the manual is good for that. editing? eh, i think that's a bit more tricky.. when i make changes, i start over from scratch and lay out my songs again.. if you make a song with a pattern, then change some of the pattern settings of the original (level/keyshift/reverb/delay/efx|outs) the song will not "update" to match the changed pattern.. think of the song as a one time arrangement (the time you made it) and if you make changes, lay out your song again. might be tedious for those that use short loops, but i usually work in 8 or 16 measure chunks. not overly tedious for me. also, i could be missing something here, it may be easier than i think to edit them, but i dont' waste time with that. kinda confusing for me that way. you may disagree and that's ok.

when confused or angry with this box, get the book and find out what you're missing.. chances are, the capability is in there you just need to tell the box what to do. love this box and it loves you back!

rating only a 7 because i think more effort would have made this thing a "must have" and with that kind of potential, half assed just doesn't make sense. but it's a strong 7.

hmm, this seems to be the love/hate part of this box.. many hate the presets, and i agree, most are shite but i look at presets as starting points on this thing (patch wise).. i don't know why they give you so many patterns that you can't delete out (roms) but if you think in terms of them being inspirations, they can be used/helpful at times.. i think they might be trying to show the different ways you can use certain effects in order to get certain results, ie: inspiring to a learner's ear type thing.. you'd be surprised what a little tinkering can do! i have a korg poly 61, and it's nice to work with because the patches are great out the box, but where's the fun in that? that keyboard i bought for the sounds, the 505 i bought for the potential. electronic music is discovery and experimentation for me, so the fun i get comes in originality and searching. this box almost feels like it was made for me, so i'm partial i guess. like i said, it's the first box i got, so i've heard these sounds a zillion times over (i spent the first year and a half i had it working for hours every day with it, making crap! but learning and having loads of fun with just this box).. making really intricate and complete songs is not going to be the strong point here, but making "grooves" and base tracks are where this shines..

some sounds are great, others not so much. basslines have potential, drums have potential, some pads are really good, some old skool acid leads are there to tweak on (those are not for everybody).. most people won't spend the time on this think to tweak out the surprises, but if you take the rise pad patch, and change waveforms on it, you will find the potential to make 10 new, distinct sounding patches from this one "preset" just by changing waveforms.. think in terms of "textures" when listening to presets, not the actual sound.. you can change the expression after you find the texture you like.. and if that sound doesn't work for you, try a different patch to start from.. tweak!! again, not a complete all in one answer for everything synth box but as a drum machine with added benefits, it's awesome! this is what i use it for, as i have a 307 that i use the same way, and i mix the two together basically.. using the strong points from each to make unique flavors..

i give my word in saying, that if you play with this thing long enough, you'll find some stuff that you can't live without (assuming you don't own the rest of the groovebox line or a 307). at least for techno/breakbeat/dnb/house/ambient uses.. don't knock it if you haven't put a full year's time of daily use into this thing, trust me. sometimes you need to become a bit bored with the sounds in order to find what you're really looking for.

also one last thing, this box will sound flat compared to your other gear (the 307 sounds better than this thing out the box, and cheaper) but i bought a $50 bbe sonic maximizer and i run my mix out thru that thing for a bit more *brighter* sound.. also, equing on your mixer will help.. with this in mind, you should be seeing a pattern emerge with my review... use this thing in a bigger context and use it as a tool, stretch out all the outputs, use your great mixer eqs, your effect boxes, your outboard reverbs, and you will make great things with this.. i compare this thing to Reason software Redrums with a synth added. no sampling, but you can sample with most anything else these days..

i give it a 7 simple because the sounds are not as diverse as a whole as i would like, and it doesn't give you a whole lot compared to what i get with the 307, but if you tweak it and use your brain in ingenious ways you can overcome many obstacles. potential!, potential!, potential!, although limited and requires extra pieces or external effecting for really diverse sounding music = 6. (personally for my uses it grades higher)

knobs react as expected when playing.. if you touch a knob and the original settings are radically different than the current knob position, you will hear a bit of sound bending but knowing this, you can easily do it in strategic ways/points as it is not a problem.. just use common sense, it's not a mind reader! operate it!

dependable? i think so.. i've gigged it a few times (maybe 5) once in swampy, humid air, once in 20 degree weather with ice on everything and it never failed me. i realize i don't have a monstrous setup when gigging but when i have gigged the only piece of equipment that ever failed me was... a laptop! this is why i don't use computers in performance settings, at least not in a dependent mode.

i have used it without a backup. but i play for free right now so i don't get nervous about it anyway.

never dealt with roland directly, although i will say the 505 has a good bit of online support from hobbyists and other users.. so that's good. i notice roland has been adding more downloadable manuals on their website so that is a good sign. never needed a repair but i would probably deal with a factory authorized dealer in town to handle any repairs anyway.

lost or stolen, i would cry! this is my first born, and still the center of everything i do. i would be lost as a person without it. i would love to have 2 of them just to see what i could achieve. but i have a 307 which is basically a better sounding module of 505 patches + extra and better effects. so the combo i use of 505 + 307 so far is a match made in heaven for me. they are both the main sequencing and my only drum machines thus far.. i feel i can use them in anything i do, so what more can you ask for?

it is very inspiring to work on, i love the abundance of knobs. this is what a synth should feel like working on it.. spontaneous. working is quick and easy once you get your gear legs under you..

i already mentioned the things i wish it had above.. a few things like i said, but you can't have everything. even if you have a pc with software you still have limits, so learn to work around them and try to be ingenious. what it lacks in sound diversity it makes up for in sequencing/midi potential.. i have no idea about any software tweaking via cubase or any of that, i don't use gear that way.. gear to me is an instrument, just like a guitar. a guitar is pretty boring by itself but add some flavor to it and you get things you never expected sometimes.. this is the idea here.

overall an 8 but a couple extra small details would have yeilded a 10 from me, i'm in love with this box sorry!

my current setup:
mc-505
mc-307
korg poly 61
super jx-10 (both for synth sequences, and as my main midi keyboard)
digitech rp6 efx pedal (first pedal, will def. be adding more)
furman power cond.
alessis compressor (rarely use)
bbe sonic maximizer
allen&heath xone 32 mixer (upgrading to full board in time, prob. mackie onyx)

laptop with reason for using malstrom synth and sampler, but not heavily used due to reliability issues

modest, yes.. but i keep expansion in my mind when buying gear. i buy what i like, not what's popular. i get satisfaction out of using stuff others don't like, if you're like me, this box is well worth $400 used on ebay. get one in good shape and treat it like you love it, it will love you back.

It was my first synth/groovebox/whatever ya wanna call it. I owned mine for almost 5 years, got it when it first came out. It is very easy to use, reading manual is a help, but you can manage without it. It's the easiest box to use out there.

This box has it all in my opinion, you got a drum machine, sound module, 8 track player, bunch of effects. It lacks expansion and that's why I sold mine. For drums this thing sounds nice and you can quickly change, hats, cymbals, drums, whatever you want, right there on the spot. When I discovered that this thing couldn't sample, I was very dissapointed. How hard would it be to add 4mb of sampling to this? I don't know, but it pissed me off, cause all the patches started to get on my nerves after a while.

I think this sounded great when I had it, I used it with my sp808 effects and it rocked with delay or enhancer. This is great for DnB, Breaks, Trance, RnB, HipHop, Reggae sounds. The drum machine on this thing is the best in my opinion. The other sounds are just outdated and too reperative.

Very reliable, never crashed by itself, only when running through Cubase, but I'm sure it was my fault. Very sturdy, but when you drop it from about 6ft, you may break some leds or bend the knobs, that's what happened to me. I sold mine after I dropped it and I sometimes miss it.

Roland, never had to use it.

Great machine, had to sell mine cause I needed the money, but now I miss it for the drums. Now I own Yamaha RS7000 and it's much better than mc505, since it has a sampler. But I think that presets on mc sound better than rs.

I'm using the latest version that was available on Roland's page, and since this product has been discontinued for quite a while, I doubt there's ever going to be a newer one.

It is a quite complex toy I've got here in my hands. The manual is quite thorough, but still fails to explain a few things and the interactions and their scope at some point. After a few weeks of playing with it, you'll know the things you need to know after using it for a bit...

Great stuff here. Both as a sequencer and as a groovebox, it really does what it is supposed to do. I almost exclusively use the sequencing functions to program my beats, and for everything else I use my trusted MIDI keyboard and a software sequencer. Not because the 505 wouldn't be able to do it, but because the software sequencer is available to me. I would, however, should all software sequencers be banned someday, be perfectly happy with the 505.

There are a lot of patches for the synth parts, not as many for the drum parts, but they'll suffice. I would have wished for a bit of sampler functionality, to get a few extra sounds in there, but well...

It even features a smart-media slot, but since in 2005 its hard to get those old 5V 4mb cards, I'll probably never be able to use it ;)

But all in all: a very good all-rounder, for basic synth sounds and grooves...you can write entire songs just with this one thingy, and nobody would ever notice!

The D-Beam is a fun toy, too, and makes changing certain parameters, or even improvising very flexible and intuitive.

Of course it is no "real" synth...it sounds the way it sounds. Good enough for me. Of course my Virus b kicks this one's behind when it comes to clearness and expressiveness, but to compare those two would be like comparing the a swiss knife with a small light on it to a MagLite.

The 505 is very very versatile thing, and it still sounds great!

One knob seems to have hat the "ghost" in it, but it hasn't happened in a while. I didn't even manage to kill it with OS updats gone wrong ;)

Never had to do with them.

Grat allrounder!

When I first got it, I tried and set my focus on reading the manual, but couldnt get though more than 2 pages without putting it down to play. I only used it now and then after that.

BTW this is where I got my maual,and some other stuff http://launch.groups.yahoo.com/group/groovalicious/

Preset pattens suck so bad they make me want to choke whoever programed them. I wish we couldg get rid of them! I mean, thnk of all that memory being used by such awful crap!

I love my groovebox because it's so simple to just get patterns going. After using the 505 for about 6 months I went and bought 909 and after a week of using it I went right back home to the 505. It's just simpler. I love the fact that you dont have to deal with a complicated or complex interface to do the things you want.

effects are alright. Not very extensive, but I use this for vintage style beats so thats not really a problem for me, but if I wanted really modern sounds I don't think these effects would do much.

expansion sucks. Smart cards arnt smart. But I have heard that you can use digital camera memory cards (not sure what kind)

Midi- An external keyboard is a must, although if it isn't velocity sensitive it sounds really quiet, and I HATE that because I HATE velocity sensitivity! Jest let me play without havig to pound.

Sequencesr is the best! It's fun and simple to program.

The instruments for the most part sound really lame. I hate almost all of the preset parches, and they all start to sound the same really quick.

I have heard from so many people about how great it is once you edit the patches and make your own, but honestly I don't get it. I have tried and it still sounds like the same crap layered on the same crap. I REALLY hate how all the tones that make up the patch don't sound like they are working together....they sound like a high pitched squeel layered on a low pitched buzz.

If anyone has any tips on editing patches PLEASE give me some airikwithana@hotmail.com

Never had any problems, although a line on the lcd is going out so I am guessing that the screen will go soon.

I tried to move on to the mc-909, and now i have both. I need to get rid of one of them, but I am on the fence because I love using the 505 waay more than the 909, but the patches and even tomnes to edit with sound soooooo horrable that it may not be worth it.
The 909 gives you so much better of a sound library to work with, weather editing or not.
The other thing abot the 505 that has my heart is it's size. I take it everywhere. It's my sidekick. I write on it in bed, sit on the floor, take it to parties... anything. The 909 is alot bigger AND more expensive so its not something I can walk down the street with the same way.
Overall the mc-505 is a great, fun, and usefull place to make music, but be aware that the patches are BAD (VERY VERY BAD), and unless you can figure out or learn how to make your own good ones using their limited tones, your gunna be frusterated.

mc 505 .
the presets suck u already know this, but tgere is like 10 good presets.

u kan make and edit your own.. if u have absolutly no experince with anything this machine will just piss u off because only techno will come out. i use it for hiphop and i hate the preset songs and patches, i have it reprogrammed nicely so it sounds dope. sumtime s like a tb 303 sumtimes like absynth sumtimes like reason it s a great machine hidden behinfd a lot of techno garbage so beware.

no velocity sensitivity on the the chicklets bummer.
if your midi remote keyboard is not velocity sensitive y'it will be very quiet compared to your chicklets. not many good midi features either in out and slave .

alot of features i figured out quite quickly . the best being the apregrator i think maybe the step sequencer for drums and the step editor for velicoty shifting drums for sick rolls and what not, its a great machine if there was a sampler it would be the best in the world to bad a mc 909 is so much money..

D BEAM , biggest waste of time ever . dont even bother i think imine is broken anyway . ha what a joke .. like everyone else says here its wack . ive used it to play invisible drums but i dropped my mc 505 when i was drunk so thank god the D BEAM is broken . it has alot alot of features but most are useless and the reverb sucks moose balls . the 4 band EQ AND distortion is prett good .
but all the effects can easily ruin your song if over done . ya know .

its alright if u want a RAW club sound the drums are alright a lil technoish nice kits , i do wish you could use more then one rhythm pack at wonce tho it would be nice im shure theres a way i just owned mine for a few months and figured the whole thing out without the manual so ya kno.. after a while it gets boring and the sounds start sound the same because u are limited to waveforms but that is no excuse a truly talented musiacn can find new way to make it sound dope .

like i read earlier and i agree f ully . IF YOU ARE TRULY TALENTED msuican YYOU WILL MAKE THE BEST MUSIC IN THE WORLD WITH THIS intrument.
i heard sumwhere sampling is for talentless people and i didnt beleive that till i owned a nd played a 505 because synthesizing is funner and more original but hiphiop is a sample based collective .

yea rock solid hard core got i t second hand and it rocks .. pixels are going tho makin me sad ,

never tried

if it were stolen i would get a mc 909.
i have been writing and composing music my whole life.
i own a yamaha psr 75 , casio mt 240 behringer eurorack ub 1220, and much more i dotn want to list.

i love that its a synthesizer that hides behind the worst techno in the world but if you figure it out its fucken GREAT . I hate the techno, really its so horrible it makes me want to die when it playys.
i wish i had a mc 909 groove box..

but a mc 505 and a dr sample 303
would be the same as a 909 2 gear is better then one ..
it helps me because i dont sample anymore i just use the sounds from my 505 .

i jerk off daily

Come on now. A little practice and you can wiz around on this thing. Manual is about as good as I've come across.

The 505 contains 3 features which make it so indespensable that I've come back to buy it 3 times. 1-Slicer. You can mess with gates all day long or use this effect in 2 seconds. A must have for trance. 2-Arpeggiator. I've had a half dozen synths and this is still my favorite. 3 or 4 patterns I've used exhaustively. 3-Megamix. Years ahead of its time and Roland leave it off the 909. Are you kidding me. I believe it is what inspired Ableton to make 'LIVE' which is essentially the same thing aonly with a graphical interface. If you've used it, then you know that 'Live' is a must have. Back in the day, I used megamix to play entire set's non-stop mixing progressively through my tracks. Awesome feature.

Old school. Sound cheesy next to a Virus. Still a number of usable preset patchs however, and a lot more if you program it yourself.

Great Brand new. Be wary of used units.

n/a

Hey, I've bought it 3 times and will not sell it again.

Could be easier - a knob doesn't do what it says on it. Firstly, you need learn to reassign knobs to their corresponding functions and that made even me reach for the manual. This thing is too configurable. Perhaps some 'assignable' knobs would have sufficed.

This thing has everything except a sampler - a minus these days but perhaps not back '98.

Typical techno sound is expected to be a little bit machine-like

Not broken yet but I have repaired it beforehand, though. <P>The potentiometers tend to become wobbly along with age. I recommend that all wobblers just open their MC-505s (on your own responsibility). Find the points of liberation and thus glue the potentiometers around the axis and the seams as well and add some tin (solder) to the solder sides of pots, too. If you glue the pots, please glue with Super Epoxy like I did. The glue takes only 5 minutes to solidify, which is enough time to fill and stabilize the seams but not long enough to get into the core of pots which would be a bad thing.<P>Another problem is the LCD display unit which may lose pixels with age. A new one (with everything, even a cord to the motherboard) only sets you back $35 and is easy enough to upgrade along with the ALPS potentiometers at $3 US each.<P>Once I did these unnecessary upgrades, mine was as new again. <P>Note: don't glue these potentiometers into the PCB board as it may cause the surface mounted components to come loose as you turn pots more heavily or bump the device. Also, making an illustration of MC-505 on paper and putting all the 40 or so screws on that illustration enables you to do the reassembly, too. <P>And I wouldn't gig with at all, because I just don't do that.

The customer support at least here in Roland Scandinavia is tops, and I would recommend contacting them to anybody here. Most parts are still available, LCDs, all ALPS pots, even free advices in self repairing the device.

I have to agree with those who say that it's too configurable. Perhaps 4-5 user configurable pots would have been enough for most special effects. Now I have to guess if resonance or cutoff might be working in each mode/song. Perhaps not everything needs to be user configurable. Sometimes it's like '9' on mobile phone's screen when you just wanted to suspend, go 'On hook'. <P>Of course, a sampler is missing but back at '97 memory & processing power was more expensive than now.<P>For a good effort and Roland's design crew (musically) ahead of its time I have to give a good grade. It's a good idea to hire the best musicians to work at the factory so everyone can play like a pro.

It's pretty obvious, but a manual can comme in handy sometimes

Loads of stuff

Some patches sound really old, but others don't so stop whining and use the good ones!

Everything works (and it had about 2 or 3 users before me). Beiing carefull never killed anyone.

no experience

I totally love it, it is a good investment if you have an electric piano or a keyboard. If can't work with a microwave don't buy it, but if you love electronics and making music, go and get it (it's not that expensice any more)

Ron sounds like he is having the same problem with his 505 that I did when I bought it (second hand $500 US dollars).

The problem was that random stuff would be inserted all over the place during step write, making it impossible to record anything with this method.

I documented the problem and sent my 505 away to the repair guys. They fixed it in about 1 day and returned it.
The problem was a faulty knob on the 505, I think it was dust related.

Anyway the customer support was fantastic, the guy even called me on my cell phone to explain the cause of the problem and how they fixed it. Note: I am in New Zealand.

I now use an Evolution USB keyboard and software synths for my producing. The MC-505 is good for messing around when doing live stuff.
I used to have a mc-303 but sold it. The MC-303 was crap until roland fixed all the bugs in the firmware. After that it was great. Much easier to learn and play (live) than the MC-505.
I could still easily lay down some cool freaky ambient stuff on the 303 even when I was completely off my tits. (just slow the bmp right down to 20)

The 505 is a great tool if you are not desiring a groovebox to use independently of other instruments. It is not a stand-alone synth, however, it is relatively easy to use and the manual is highly informative(I would say almost necessary). The presets are typical and I rarely use them. The editing patches are laborious to learn to use but once learned it is a worthwhile tool. I stronlgy urge that this is not a synth you could use to DJ a show without combining a keyboard (MIDI) or a backing live band. A much better stand-alone synth/groovebox is the Yamaha RM1x which can do virtually everything. You should look into the Yamaha RM1x(or higher Yamaha version grooveboxes) before purchasing a Roland product.

The features are cool but require patience and exploration in order to use. The effects are interesting but typical and tend to have the Roland-esque quality of misapplying themselves on a regular basis. MIDI is great and highly effective. The sequencer is much more rigid than that of Yamaha or Dave Smith products. The keyboard is buttons as opposed to keys, and that kind of sucks. It makes chords laborious work that has to be patched and sequenced together.

The instrument sounds are good, but tend to hover at a preset level of volume. It is a good groovebox for all music types as long as there is some accompaniment.

It's not very reliable and the memory cards are archaic and difficult to finds. Mine has begun to fall apart, not a good thing for such an expensive instrument.

Support is slow and ambiguous.

Anyone wanting to purchase A Roland synth/groovebox, should look into Yamaha and Dave Smith products first. They are much better in every aspect.

Hi. I'm Thomas...bla bla
I just solved a problem on my 505 and I wish to share my new knowlege.
It started sending corrupted midi knob messages (sending data in ''chunks'' ...not very smooth.8 values or so instead of 127).So i started to move settings around to see if it would unjam it and it worked...i set the local tx switch back to ''Both'' on all channels and now it's fine....

Musicians Unite against record companies!

I purchased the unit used on ebay back in 2000. I was fortunate to recieve a manual. At first i found the 505 fairly difficult and rather challenging to use. As far as the operation learning curve, i toughed it out and learned how to use it well. I feel that the manual is well written and very applicable. As far as the presets ( patterns ), i have no use for them. The patch editor is great but rather confusing if your editing a drum set and you want to change just for example: a bass drum's volume instead of the whole kit. On the whole I like it, and ive made some pretty wicked tracks.

The keybord action is great for laying down the beats, however because the keys are buttons its harder to do piano chords. ( I just piece together the chords.) Another interesting thing is that, when i lay down chords using certain instruments, i find that i have to lay the melody down starting at the third measure, then use the delete measure function to delete the first 2 measures thus placing the information i put at the 3rd measure to the first in order eliminate the phenomena of missing notes at the first measure. As far as midi goes, the 505 is the sequencer (brains) of my music operation. Its great when everything works ok. The onboard keys are not really pressure sensitve, however if you hook-up a keyboard to the 505 midi in port and and use the keyboard to play the 505 notes, then you can get pressure sensitive keys.

As far as the onboard instruments, the patches ( i only use a select few ). The Drums are great. I find it best when i make my own kits. The onboard effects are totally applicable to what i do. As far as reacting to my playing, I ofted change to different levels of quantitization to capture my accents. I mostly use the mc-505 to play its own sounds in combination with other drum machines and keyboards. The beauty of electronic music creation to me is the usage of several decient quality sounding machines to achieve an excellent track. I make some rock, Breaks, guitar instrumentals, and some really interesting music that you would find in a sci-fi flick.

Over the time since i first acquired the 505, ive filled it up with all kinds of data ( patterns, kits, edited voices ). The reliability factor has fallen. The unit changes voices on me when i change patterns. and the problem has gotten worse to the point where i cant make my tracks the way i want to with rhythm changes & all. (very important ). I've read somewhere that doing a factory reset / cleanout of user patterns would probably help me. I currently have 3 memory card that i use for the unit, im considering acquiring a 4th one or deleting one of the 3. My overall goal is to operate the unit with a clean user memory. I thing that since all my user memory is full, its causing me undesired operation.

Never tried it.

If it were lost or stolen, i would have no choice but to get another one. Reason being is that Creating music is my emotional/creative outlet, my retreat from the worlds bs. Also i know the 505 like the back of my hand, and its kinda the brains behind my whole music operation. The things i hate are the technical glitches that i ve encountered such as unexpected kit changes. All & All the 505 is a fine machine. Other gear that i own, SP808, Boss Dr 202, Alesis SR16, Yamaha psr 330, zoom 606 guitar effects pedal, boss guitar pedal, Fruity loops 3.4, wavlab, Yamaha 8-tr, Dell Laptop. Overall I helps me to accomplish the task of making music. I cant really compare the 505 to anything else right now. I hope to aquire the yamaha rm1x and have a kinda co-sequence setup for the composition of more sounds to a track and the combined 8track seq (505) andthe 16tr(rm1x) for a total of 24 sequenced tracks. thats about it for now.

Preset sound like preset
i'm not a preset user
Editing patche is easy
Would have prefered a more friendly
interface for live playing and editing...
(something like
the korg electribe)

Funny little machine to carry arround
and have fun
Use it to jam with friend (bass guitar...)
or to sequence other machine but the transpose fonction
on the 505 does not transpose the midi out???
the d-beam is cool
The realtime quantize is great for playing
with various groove

Preset sound like preset
but with it you can create nice sounds (layered sound)
and with a bit of work a good drum kit
Effect... i usualy play dry
dont like fx

Broke 2 knobs (reso -cutoff) put some carboard around the shaft
to stabilize them
Had some problem with the display screen
it died after loosing some lines
had to replace

Send the machine to Roland Us
took 4 to 5 weeks to repair (change)
the screen and change couple of knobs (pot)

It a multi purpose
PCM synth groovebox
depending what you are doing with it
it is great for creating groove and jamming

It is a fun machine...

Pretty easy to use unless this is your first synth. The manual really helps and so does the video.