For this edition of Point Blank’s Friday Forum Live, they were joined by Cristian Varela, a global DJ and producer, to showcase some live DJ techniques using the Roland MC-707 and TR-6S.
Roland has added the Juno-60 to their Roland Cloud range of synths and plugins and as part of their PlugOut format for the System-8 synth. The classic poly analogue synth was used on countless early house records and remains a go-to for lush chords and arpeggiators. Its famous chorus sound is also modelled on the new plugin, with both modes and the third ‘secret’ chorus activated by pressing both buttons at the same time.
Roland has announced a new all-in-one songwriting and music production unit the VERSELAB MV-1. The new unit is designed to write, record, mix and arrange songs from scratch using the 16 pads, 16-step sequencer, XLR and line inputs for recording and built-in FX and plugins for mixing and creative tweaking.
Arturia has released a holiday gift in the form of the classic Juno range BBD chorus effect. The new plugin, called Chorus JUN-6, is a re-creation of the bucket brigade delay chorus effect that was present in Roland’s Juno range, including the Juno-6, which Arturia recently added to their V Collection.
The Chemical Brothers are auctioning off one of the touring Roland Boutique TB-03 bassline synths as part of a fundraiser for the #ILoveLive campaign, aimed to raise money for backline staff and stage crew during the pandemic. Simply donate £5 to get one prize draw entry, £10 for two and so on.
Roland has announced three new drum machines, two hardware and one software. The TR-6S is a small-format six-track sequencer that features sounds from the 808, 909, 707, 606 and more as well as FM synth tones. It features six faders and Roland’s famous TR-REC sequencer, with 16 steps and pads. It also houses FX, filters and LFOs.
Roland will celebrate the TR-808 drum machine's 40th birthday this year.
The Roland TR-808 Rhythm Composer, commonly known as the 808, was manufactured between 1980 and 1983, and the legendary drum machine has contributed to music from the likes of Beastie Boys, Marvin Gaye, and Public Enemy.
Roland has updated its AIRA TR-8S drum machine to add an FM synth, new FX features, a new reload function and more. The FM synthesis engine allows users to play a fully-functioning FM synth via external MIDI or via the sequencer, and users can use the morph control to shape the tones which can also be recorded and committed to the sequencer. Depth, ratio and feedback can all be automated, leading to wild and wacky FM sounds.
Roland and Korg have been fined £5.5m by the Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) watchdog for breaking competition law in the UK. The music-tech brands “have been fined for implementing resale price maintenance (RPM) designed to restrict retailer freedom to set prices online by requiring their musical instruments to be sold at or above a minimum price.” Retail price maintenance is when a supplier and retailer agree to keep prices at a certain minimum or maximum point, which can be designed to stop retailers competing too fiercely on price.
Download these free Kraftwerk drum samples as part of a tribute to Florian Schneider who passed in April. Symplesound founder Francis Preve has put the sounds together in Ableton Drum Rack format, as well as compiling them for Roland’s sample-based drum machine the TR8S and as simple WAVs for anyone to use. Called ‘Honoring Florian’, the collection is made up of synthesized and processed drum sounds.
