Its been a long time since last I sat down and wrote something for this blog, so I thought I'd write a little something about one of the machines I've last been playing around with.. The Korg ER1.
The Korg Electribe range of groove boxes still has a ot of creative potential despite the decade or so since they first hit the shelves... Yes they do.
I picked up my first (an ER1) one during 2001 at the princely sum of £325, which considering I'm still finding uses for it 13yrs later seems money well spent.
Out Of The Box Use :
What attracted me to it (and at the time there was also a choice between EA1 or an AN1X) was the sequencer layout and the soundset which features 808-esque kick. The ability to gate-in external audio sources was a handy bonus.
...I currently have two ER1s at my disposal, and an ES (second version), which can open up a small but interesting world of possibilities.
Its not typical for Electribe users to own duplicate machines, the tendency is to expand the pellet of sounds by adding new machines with their own character... But I REALLY like those hats and kick! And being able to layer hats on the fly (with their own swing settings) is great.
As a standalone unit I'll mostly use it to create a rhythm to sample, but I've also used it as a sound module when I really need that particular sound.
Unfortunately it's effects are universally-applied across all sound so render themselves useless in most situation. ..Unless using it as a fx unit.
On occasions where I've had a channel free I've found they can be used to create some really interesting sounds when making use of its audio in/out capabilities. - Audio Thru does what it implies where as there is also the option of gating-in sounds.
If you own one of these, and it hasn't already occurred to you, I suggest try using it as a midi-synced capable delay/ecco as part of your DAW.
It's good for achieving anything from live-teekable dub style echo, to bpm-synced delay with stutter. And if using it exclusively as an effects box there is the option of using it as a stereo effect OR employing pan and using the machine as a two source effect. - ring modulation can also be applied.
Other Creative Uses :
If happen to have a sound module with no built-in sequencer an Electribe (or something similar) works well entirely as a standalone sequencer, there are clear limitations to using it like this but there are workarounds... for example each of the machine's sounds can be assigned their own key (within the scale your working in).
In a 2+ groovebox situation ts also worthwhile playing around with the midinotes your machine is sending out to other devices as it often leads to amusing or interesting results ^_^
The rest of the Electribe range :
I'm not sure if my opinions run against the grain here or with the consensus of the Electribe community at large but here they are all the same..
From what little I can remember about the last time I layed hands on an EA1 the sound was okay, and from what I've seen of the later models they looked pretty exciting, but wasn't for me.
The improved effects of the later models are appetizing but the whole 'valve' thing is too gimmicky
As for the sampler range (ES_), They do the job... I've found them useful to create backing sequences, jam with, and act as a dedicated sound module (with fx) as part of a midi setup. Their native capabilities are limited but there is potential to create some usique sounds with them if your patient.
Saying that compared to newer samplers, apart from it's sequencer and the samples you put in them, Electribe samplers dont offer much.
The Korg Electribe range of groove boxes still has a ot of creative potential despite the decade or so since they first hit the shelves... Yes they do.
I picked up my first (an ER1) one during 2001 at the princely sum of £325, which considering I'm still finding uses for it 13yrs later seems money well spent.
Out Of The Box Use :
What attracted me to it (and at the time there was also a choice between EA1 or an AN1X) was the sequencer layout and the soundset which features 808-esque kick. The ability to gate-in external audio sources was a handy bonus.
...I currently have two ER1s at my disposal, and an ES (second version), which can open up a small but interesting world of possibilities.
Its not typical for Electribe users to own duplicate machines, the tendency is to expand the pellet of sounds by adding new machines with their own character... But I REALLY like those hats and kick! And being able to layer hats on the fly (with their own swing settings) is great.
As a standalone unit I'll mostly use it to create a rhythm to sample, but I've also used it as a sound module when I really need that particular sound.
Unfortunately it's effects are universally-applied across all sound so render themselves useless in most situation. ..Unless using it as a fx unit.
On occasions where I've had a channel free I've found they can be used to create some really interesting sounds when making use of its audio in/out capabilities. - Audio Thru does what it implies where as there is also the option of gating-in sounds.
If you own one of these, and it hasn't already occurred to you, I suggest try using it as a midi-synced capable delay/ecco as part of your DAW.
It's good for achieving anything from live-teekable dub style echo, to bpm-synced delay with stutter. And if using it exclusively as an effects box there is the option of using it as a stereo effect OR employing pan and using the machine as a two source effect. - ring modulation can also be applied.
Other Creative Uses :
If happen to have a sound module with no built-in sequencer an Electribe (or something similar) works well entirely as a standalone sequencer, there are clear limitations to using it like this but there are workarounds... for example each of the machine's sounds can be assigned their own key (within the scale your working in).
In a 2+ groovebox situation ts also worthwhile playing around with the midinotes your machine is sending out to other devices as it often leads to amusing or interesting results ^_^
The rest of the Electribe range :
I'm not sure if my opinions run against the grain here or with the consensus of the Electribe community at large but here they are all the same..
From what little I can remember about the last time I layed hands on an EA1 the sound was okay, and from what I've seen of the later models they looked pretty exciting, but wasn't for me.
The improved effects of the later models are appetizing but the whole 'valve' thing is too gimmicky
As for the sampler range (ES_), They do the job... I've found them useful to create backing sequences, jam with, and act as a dedicated sound module (with fx) as part of a midi setup. Their native capabilities are limited but there is potential to create some usique sounds with them if your patient.
Saying that compared to newer samplers, apart from it's sequencer and the samples you put in them, Electribe samplers dont offer much.
