Analog Bass Synthesizer and Sequencer, Donner B1 Controller with 128 Patterns, Saturation & Delay Effects, LED Display and MIDI IN/OUT

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The slide implementation is not by default set to legato playing, it can be set by holding the lower F# on keyboard whilst turning on power though, but it should really be automatically on, it does remember the setting though, so after setting it isn’t an issue. Random Note Generator & Set Sequence End Step were added in V1.0.1 firmware update, but not so many users know. To enter SONG MODE, please ensure your ESSENTIAL B1 is not playing any PATTERN ( PLAY/STOP = STOP), then double press PATTERN button to enter SONG MODE.

It also a built-in distortion/saturation to add spice to your sounds and a tape delay effect. Each effect can be turn on and off individually with a switch. The effects circuits are probably from their pedal series. I like the sound of the slide and ease of creating gated emphasis in rhythmic patterns in conjunction with the timing of the delay.PAD G#3: In SONG MODE, this PAD is used to turn ON/OFF the GLOBAL TEMPO. When GLOBAL TEMPO = ON, the ESSENTIAL B1 will ignore the TEMPO of each PATTERN and will run all the PATTERN as the GLOBAL TEMPO.

Depending on where you live, the time it may take for your exchanged product to reach you, may vary. Now that we've got our pattern, we can save it. For example, I'm going to save this pattern. By hitting Save here, it blinks and it asks me to basically choose a slot to save it to. I'm going to say Slot 4. Hit Save. It blinks again and now it's saved to slot 4. If I go to 4 and hit play, there's my pattern. Here's how it works. The first thing you do is hit the Record/Edit button and that gets you into Record/Edit mode. Then if you've got a pattern loaded in memory, it'll show up here. Like it does here.Control Buttons: UP and DOWN, TRANSPOSE, PATTERN, TEMPO / TAP, PLAY / STOP, CLEAR, WRITE, BAR, SIGNATURE, DOTTED Let's look at the next dimension. There's Ratchet here, which is kind of cool. It allows you to hit a note two or three times in rapid succession. Once I've got my pattern playing, I can switch patterns and it will wait till the end of the pattern before switching. So it's not like it's going to suddenly switch you to another pattern. In this way, you can kind of build up songs. And your set would consist of switching between different patterns. Being the upgraded model from the DDP-80 launched in 2022, Donner DDP-80 Plus digital piano upholds a minimalist design that blends well with the aesthetics of modern homes but also makes more thoughtful improvements in details, including a keybed cover, high quality metal wares, the adjusted tilt angle of the stand that makes a more compact digital piano. Featuring an 88-key graded hammer standard keyboard, DDP-80 Plus replicates the touch and sound quality of a traditional grand acoustic piano. Removable pedal stop, Stereo Surround Speakers, and USB MIDI Connecting, all bring you a better playing experience. The synth has front panel and rear panel connections. On the front, you have an aux in, headphone, sync in and syc out. At first I thought “oh cool modular patch points”, but I was wrong.

There're several different dimensions you can actually change. For example, all of these right now will have a gate length of four. Gate Length is how long the note is. Let's say that we wanted the first note to be a bit longer. What we would do is we would hit Gate Length. 4 is the sort of middle value that means that the note is 50% of the length. 8 is the highest. So as we've already said the B1 is an analog mono synth and it takes its inspiration from the classic TB303. If you don't know what the 303 is, here is a one-minute history. The J-6 Chord Synthesizer is arguably a more curious proposition - it blends a Juno-60 synth engine (presumably the same one as you’ll find in the Boutique JU-60a) with a chord sequencer. 100 chord sets are included, with each enabling you to trigger chords and create progressions using the built-in keyboard. You can also dial in variations (arpeggios and guitar-style playing, for example). Of course, you could just use the J-6 as a synth though beyond choosing the sound itself, editing is limited to filter and envelope controls. The general idea is to tell people that our products are full of potential and will be getting even better via firmware updates. We are glad to hear from our users, and provide synthesizers that musicians and sound designers truly love and glad to use. Instructions on SONG MODEFor the price it is great! Construction feels solid enough, and it sounds very nice. There are a few small issues which stopped me giving 5 stars which are related to it being a TB-303 clone, which I will go into below, but I will preface this by saying that it delivers its own nice take on the acid sound. This unit is slightly easier to program than the original 303 but pretty similar. All the patterns are 16 steps or less. All notes are entered using the step sequencer. There's no live recording mode or anything like that. One positive thing to note is that devs actually care about this product and have released several firmware updates not just to fix bugs but to add new features. The most recent update gave a song mode – something that I’ll probably never use but it’s reassuring to know that Donner care enough to keep updating this after the sale.

The Donner B1's performance capabilities have been upgraded, allowing musicians to trigger GATE LENGTH, ACCENT, RATCHET, SLIDE, and HOLD functions in real-time. These added functionalities enhance live performances, enabling performers to adjust these parameters on-the-fly and create dynamic musical expressions. If you want to reload the original pattern, hold PATTERN button for about 2 seconds. HOW TO UPDATE THE FIRMWAREThere's also of course a delay. I'm going to turn this off and we can explore the delay which is right here, a little hard to hear but you can hear the sounds getting a little bit bigger. That sounds pretty cool.