New Documentary – Roger Linn: The King of Drum Machines

 

To be honest, while LM was a 80's milestone, I always preferred the Simmons real pads, and its analogue fat sound (speaking of SDS V).

 

Roger Linn is the king of MPE for me. Love my Linnstrument 128. Super workhorse..

 

Roger Linn about Drum Machine Sounds

The Linn LM-1: The Drum Machine that changed everything

 

This picture says so much about how previous generations get upset at the emerging technologies in the music industry.

His work gave creative minded people a new tool, and instead of just fearing it, they used it to invent whole new sounds, genres, and subgenres.

What some saw as a threat ended up expanding what music could be.

 

Some good quotes to think about in this current version of music evolution with all the hate towards AI.

Rogers Quote about prince "He was able to take things and see value in them that other people didnt see"

"Did anyone ever think in the invention of the vinyl record that someone would be scratching with it? No way, right? All you can do is take your best shot at predicting the future, but usually you're wrong. And who tells you what the future is? The artist! and that's the purpose of the artist and culture - to predict the future, before everybody else."

I can relate to his speech at the end about helping create the brush. And the artist can use it in any way they want! The creative uses are what shape the future!

 

I also found this pic of me using my orig MPC the other day.

 

GForce Software IconDrum Sound Demo - LinnDrum Plugin | SYNTH ANATOMY

The GForce IconDrum pays homage to the legendary Linn drum machine revising the concept for today’s digital age. The IconDrum provides a bridge connecting the iconic sounds of the early 80s with the creative possibilities offered by modern rhythm creation methods.

Authentic Sound—Immerse yourself in the vibe of old-school drum sounds, recreated and refined for pristine clarity without losing their classic digital warmth. The IconDrum brings you a rich library of 100 authentic sounds, each carrying the soul of the original machine.

Limitless Creativity—Aligned with its innovative feature set, the IconDrum’s sleek and user-friendly interface invites everyone, from beginners to experienced producers, to engage, experiment, and create sounds that are timeless and span a multitude of musical styles.

Link: www.gforcesoftware.com/products/icondrum

How To Create Modern Drum Sounds And Synths From A Vintage LinnDrum

In this video, Dom Sigalas shows the straightforward workflow of creating custom drum sounds with the Backbone VST virtual drum instrument by recording a classic LinnDrum drum machine in WaveLab and using Backbone to create a hybrid multi layer snare sound. The 1980 Linn LM-1 was the first drum machine to feature digital samples of drums (including kicks, snares and hi hats), succeeded in 1982 by the massively popular LinnDrum. Dom shows how easy working with drum samples is in Backbone, using the Decompose function to separate the tonal and noise element of a LinnDrum snare, then adds punch, changes the speed, formant and works with layering sounds to create a big, modern snare. Dom then demonstrates Backbone’s amazing capability as a synthesizer for drums by turning a cowbell sample into a dynamic, polyphonic instrument.

 

Last edited: Sep 7, 2025 at 7:56 AM

The original MPC60 was a stroke of genius and a hell of a lot of engineering talent. Much respect.

While it wasn't the only influential sampler or a workstation, it's still something that a lot of things aspire to in it's sound, it's usability, and it's immediacy, the whole works.

Thinking about it... most ways of visualizing a rhythm box are either the 4x4 grid of the MPC or the 16 button row of the 808. Any newcomer most likely defaults to these, and that's not a small thing.

 

The KING

Btw. best Linndrum emulation in plug-in format is undoubtedly the one from Alyjameslab, Vprom 3 like that's really good. He did for sure some circuit emulation stuff for that one, sounds really authentic

 

Thats dope! I love how early Memphis cassette rap beats and artist like Tommy Wright III used drum machine cowbells as a instruments to form their genre. Then in recent times that birthed modern Phonk music. Multiple generations using a sound created for a single purpose in a new way to be the "backbone" of a new genre!