the best vst emulation for roland tr 909?

[Jace-BeOS]

The 909 sounds don't really compare to a piano, guitar, singer, etc, do they? The fact that people specifically want 909-exact replication indicates that there's a specific sound character that is sought after. Those other instruments have great variety by comparison, yes? The more notably characteristic a sound, the more people find it has an "era", like the digital sample playing synths of the 90s, right?

Is it just a genre thing that makes the 909 & 808 sought after?

[ghettosynth]

The 909 sounds don't really compare to a piano, guitar, singer, etc, do they? The fact that people specifically want 909-exact replication indicates that there's a specific sound character that is sought after. Those other instruments have great variety by comparison, yes? The more notably characteristic a sound, the more people find it has an "era", like the digital sample playing synths of the 90s, right?

Is it just a genre thing that makes the 909 & 808 sought after?

I honestly don't even think that it's that, because, even in the genres where they're used extensively, there's little need for such specific reproduction.

[She Changed Her Mind]

I have heard there soon will be a VSTi for all Stradivari instruments. The plugin sounds even better!

[Uncle E]

Is it just a genre thing that makes the 909 & 808 sought after?

From a mix point of view, I think there's a lot of benefit of having the control one gets with synthesized drums. Same goes for bass. You could make the point that it's a genre thing that keeps people from NOT using synthesized drums.

[1wob2many]

What exactly is the draw of these sounds? Why aren't people tired of hearing them yet?

Thanks for that. No thread on software emulation would be complete without such a post.

The KVR forums should have an "instapost" function where you can choose from options such as:
"Try the demo", "Use your ears", "Why do people still want to use 303s?" and so on to save having to type it.

Apologies to Jace-BeOS. I'm not having a personal dig at you.

[Taifunk]

the tr 909 causes serious addiction problems . I tried all emulations possible but nothing was coming to my tr 909 , much less the samples do not cause the feeling that the real machine gives you. I finally stopped trying emulations and I focused on something that could replace and not to clone and found xoxos bong. Bong is not a clone but it gives me the sound and emotion that I wanted, like when I bought my third hand (fourth?) Tr 909. This is not to say that emulations of various developers are not valid , but I mean that should stop comparing and focus more on what we like. I tried DR 910 by MaxSynths and sounds great, the compressor on it is a good idea and I would say that is a beautiful pimped version,complimenti Max Drumazon is an excellent digital version has many more features than the original and the D16 guys make excellent vst..another excellent emulation is P9 in Orion I installed the demo just to try this, too bad there is no version vst beyond that I also think that something can be achieved with the fantastic freeware tools out there I think all of these are good substitutes but if not enough the best solution is to buy the original machine and keep it as an ornament and look ahead,even if...You never forget your first love this is just my opinion guys

[zerocrossing]

I love the sound of the 808 and 909. I didn't always, but to me it's now as classic a sound as a Fender Stratocaster or Model D.

I'll probably never own a real one though. Too limited and clumsy for me. What I can do with software and Push is just what I like. If there was a hardware drum synth I'd like, it would probably be RYTM. When I was looking at drum synth hardware I ended up with The Nord Drum 2 and a Korg Wavedrum. Very un-909ish choices.

[ENV1]

Best = Impossible to answer.

Anyway, theres also VR-08 by AliPapa. It started out as a straight 808, but has had 909 added since. The translation on the KVR product page is catastrophic to say the least, so heres the relevant details.

The free version is fully functional, with the following limitations:

Version 1.0.5.1
- 808 only
- Only 1 instance at a time
- Runs only at 44100
- Contains only the 44100 sampleset
- No individual outputs / 1 Stereo output only

Version 1.0.6.1
- As 1.0.5.1
- New features: Sample-Load Progress Display, LowMemory Message, Triggernote Assignment

Version 1.0.7.1
- As 1.0.6.1
- New feature: REAPER-style 10-second nagscreen on startup (Buy Pro/Continue Free)

Version 1.0.8.1
- As 1.0.7.1
- New feature: TR-909 mode
- State of 808/909 switch is not saved into presets/projects (parameters are, though)

Pro Version
- Samplerate from 22500 to 192000
- Samplesets 44100, 48000, 88200, 96000
- Unlimited instances
- 16 individual output channels
- State of 808/909 button is saved into presets/projects
- No nagscreen on startup

The plugin is only 49 bucks, so it may be something to consider. Sound quality is good, personally i find it excellent. Only downside is that a complete loaded sampleset eats a good chunk of RAM, which might constitute a problem on machines that dont have it in abundance. (The combined 808/909 44100 set is 633MB.) However, each slot can be individually disabled, which will give you some of the RAM back in case youre starting to run out. Download here. This package can be activated after purchasing, i.e. no need to download again if you decide to go Pro.

[Taifunk]

I love the sound of the 808 and 909. I didn't always, but to me it's now as classic a sound as a Fender Stratocaster or Model D.

I'll probably never own a real one though. Too limited and clumsy for me. What I can do with software and Push is just what I like.

I completely agree with what you wrote!

[Uncle E]

Best = Impossible to answer.

Too true, because there are even differences between 909's. I've owned around 10 of them and they all sounded different. Someday I'll make a sample set out of my current one because it's the best sounding of them all.

[arkmabat]

Double.

[arkmabat]

Err the Roland groove whatever. Forgot the name...

D-50 ?

Yes D50.

Interesting about the pre-1990s law. That would explain why older sample-based synths can be sampled and sold by other companies. Worth looking in to. HollowSun was the one who said 909 cymbals were copyrighted, but then, he sampled other sample-based synths and made them for sale. Huh.

[ghettosynth]

Err the Roland groove whatever. Forgot the name...

D-50 ?

Yes D50.

Interesting about the pre-1990s law. That would explain why older sample-based synths can be sampled and sold by other companies. Worth looking in to. HollowSun was the one who said 909 cymbals were copyrighted, but then, he sampled other sample-based synths and made them for sale. Huh.

AFAIK, he always asserted that he secured permission for anything that he sold and I have no reason, other than (my state of) being a dyed in the wool cynic, to believe otherwise. That said, he was always quite aggressive, as many sample vendors are, in asserting that copyright reigns supreme with all things sample. The reality is a bit more balanced and we've seen several cases push back somewhat on the bright line rule.

For fun, since I actually need to setup an old eprom reader for other reasons, I might pull the roms out of my 909 and tell you if there's a copyright message in there. That is one of the prerequisites for samples from that point in time, IIRC.

[MachineClaw]

What about UVI Beat Box Anthology? there is a clone 909 in there. anybody try it?

what about UVI Urban Suite? it has prime8 which looks like a 808 clone, anybody try it? does it have 909?

UVI claims that they recreated these emulations to match the originals, though I think most companies claim that.

[Uncle E]

What about UVI Beat Box Anthology? there is a clone 909 in there. anybody try it?

what about UVI Urban Suite? it has prime8 which looks like a 808 clone, anybody try it? does it have 909?

UVI claims that they recreated these emulations to match the originals, though I think most companies claim that.

The participants in this thread seem to have a leaning against sample-based options like these. I can understand why but it might be a while before we see any synthesized versions that sound as much like the real things as sample-based versions do.

Personally, I use sampled 909 kicks and Drumazon for everything else. The TR-909 kick distorts a lot and that's part of what makes it sound so big. Most synthesized versions seem to me to be too clean. Also, from a mix perspective, I prefer to have a single sampled kick and I don't want it to sound different on every hit.