The Best Grooveboxes for Beat Creation and Live Performance
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The Best Grooveboxes for Beat Creation and Live Performance ยท Source: Thomas Evans / Unsplash
Sometimes, taking a break from your DAW can be the creative breath of fresh air you need. We’ve selected some of the best grooveboxes for beat creation and live performance to keep the ideas flowing.
What is a Groovebox?
Before it was first used by Roland in 1996 to market the MC-303, the term “Groovebox” simply referred to a standalone drum machine, sampler, synthesizer – or a combination of the three – with its own sequencer onboard. This instrument design concept initially emerged through instruments like the EMS Synthi in the early 1970s.
However, it wasn’t until mainstream music became more loop orientated, that more grooveboxes began to populate the market. Notable instruments like the Roland MC-202, the Linn 9000, the SC Studio 440, the E-mu SP-1200, and the AKAI MPC had a profound effect on modern music.
Their intuitive interface design placed music production tools at the fingertips of many artists that no longer had to rely on expensive studios for that first creative spark. Grooveboxes have certainly evolved over the years, becoming both more affordable and versatile with audio interfaces and extensive connectivity options.
Novation Circuit Tracks
The Novation Circuit Tracks is a battery-powered standalone groove station with far more power than you’d expect in its price range. At the core, it’s an eight-track sequencer with an eight-track internal mixer equipped with two inputs.
You have four drum channels, two synth channels, and two additional MIDI channels for sequencing external instruments. It may look simple, but the Circuit Tracks has parameter automation, trigger probability, and pattern mutate. Which are features you’ll find in units almost twice the price.
It may not have an audio interface or DAW integration, but it’s compatible with the Novation Components cloud platform, which adds some useful management features.
Novation Circuit Tracks
Novation Circuit Tracks
Polyend Tracker
If you’re looking for something a little off the beaten track, the Polyend Tracker could be what you’re after. The verticle spreadsheet-style beat programming isn’t for everyone, but it can produce a different scope of results compared to traditional step sequencers.
The Polyend Tracker is an eight-track monophonic sampler with a large screen and an interface that gives you an overview of your sample selection, note values, and other per-step parameters like most trackers.
Overall, it’s a new-school piece of gear with an old-school sensibility. The audio output is a little clunky sounding, but you can easily export stems via microSD. It also has incredible MIDI sequencing capabilities for controlling other instruments, so at least it plays well with others.
Polyend Tracker
Elektron Digitakt
The Digitakt remains one of the finest groove-based instruments ever designed, with a multitude of ways to approach music creation. So, if you use a sample-based production workflow, this is certainly a great option.
As a standalone one-shot sampler, it has one of the best-sounding engines on the market, and the versatile sequencer makes it easy to create unique patterns.
The Digitakt is also an audio interface and is compatible with Elektron’s powerful Overbridge software. This makes it easy to get sounds in or out at the start or end of your session.
Elektron Digitakt
Elektron Digitakt
AKAI Professional MPC One
With a legacy reaching back to the mid-80s, the MPC One brings together features from the X and Live versions in a more compact and affordable package. If your goal is to create music outside of a DAW, the MPC One does this almost too well.
So well in fact, that it ends up feeling rather DAW-like in its approach. There’s no denying the power of the MPC One as a standalone music creation station, but features like paid plug-ins are bound to raise a few eyebrows.
The result is that the modern MPC range will always polarize opinions. Either you completely love it, or you use something else.
AKAI Professional MPC One
AKAI Professional MPC One
Roland MC-707
The MC-707 Groovebox is Roland’s modern flagship in the longstanding MC series. Rather than attempting to cram every DAW feature available into a single standalone unit, you get an intuitive enough workflow to easily turn pattern jamming into songs.
Besides the sequencing and arrangement tools, the main drawcard is the Roland sound. With the ZEN CORE sound engine, you have access to a ton of Roland synths and drum machines to bring into your tracks.
The screen interface is a little small and clunky, but this comes with the territory for a lot of Roland gear. So don’t forget your menu diving goggles for this one.
Roland MC-707
Roland MC-707
More about grooveboxes:
- Polyend Play
- Elektron Syntakt
- Roland MC-101
- Roland MC-707 and MC-101 Editors
- All about grooveboxes
- Everything vintage
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- Novation Circuit Tracks: Novation
- Polyend Tracker: Polyend
- Elektron Digitakt: Elektron
- AKAI Professional MPC One: AKAI Professional
- Roland MC-707: Roland
what about the Mschine Plus?
Gotta pick the best groovebox that suits your needs. Been using an MC707 every day since the release date in late 2019. To me, it’s a magic machine, the best thing Roland have made. Synth, sampler, sequencer, 8 track but with internal sampling that lets you bounce tracks onto a drum pad, so it can play a lot more than 8 tracks once you’ve sussed how to use it. Back up at ยฃ1000 now, at one point you could get them for ยฃ700. Downsides, no sidechain compression, no pitchbend wheel (but you can use the knobs), each tune loads as a Project and takes 30 seconds or so, so you’d have a gap between tunes if using live as your main hub. Other than that, a real classic Roland instrument.
The best groovebox on the market today without doubt is the New Zealand Synthstrom Deluge.. and it doesn’t even get a mention…