Nod to The Legend · The gear · 1980
The Roland TR-808
Drum machine, a commercial flop that took over
Roland, led by Ikutaro Kakehashi, released the 808 in 1980 and stopped making it in 1983 after about 12,000 units. Its kick could ring out long and low, and producers turned that decay into a bass line.
Still heard: Trap, drill, Miami bass and half of modern pop are built on 808s.
Related legends
- The Pultec EQP-1A: Passive tube EQ by Pulse Techniques
- The SSL 4000 Console: Solid State Logic, founded by Colin Sanders
- Auto-Tune on "Believe": Andy Hildebrand, Mark Taylor and Brian Rawling
- The Sliding 808: Drill's signature bass
- Rupert Neve: Console and preamp designer
- The 1176 Limiter: FET limiter by Bill Putnam