Hello All. I’ve become a member here as I’ve just picked up a Machinedrum MK1 second hand. As there’s not much activity out there in terms of users/advice for the MK1, I thought this would be an ideal place for this.
I found a MK1 on eBay for a decent price, but I’ve only just come to realise some of the pitfalls of buying a 15+ year-old drum machine from Sweden. Firstly, I didn’t realise the power supply was so difficult to obtain (this was sold without one, though I may now have found a Chinese site for 6V AC/AC adapters - here’s hoping it doesn’t fry the MD!). In addition, I’ve also now just discovered that internal battery failure means storage of any drums / patterns will be an issue (and with a used MK1, I’d be surprised if the battery is still good at all).
So all of this brings me to ask whether - if going Elektron - I should have wised up and gone for a newer model, or if the Machinedrum is still a piece of kit worth having (and even getting serviced if it ends up requiring it)?
I’m a newbie to all things synth / electronic music gear and - after reading into drum machine reviews - The Machinedrum seemed to fit my need for something that can produce clean, Techno-sounding drums, yet get close to fulfilling a need for something more analogue / 808ish where required due to the engines (?) it uses to actually produces the drum sounds. Forgive the basic description: I’m still getting my head around the terminology. One review that stood out was Chris Carter’s review of it for SoundOnSound. I figured he’s someone that might know an interesting piece of kit when he sees it. The relatively steep learning curve of the features and user interface / programming doesn’t scare me too much as I’m looking to create something beyond basic beats anyway.