Is EM-1 the best option if you're going vintage Electribe?

apapdop · Post by **apapdop** » Thu May 07, 2015 8:13 am

I think the earlier Electribes are team players rather than Swiss Army Knives. They're just the thing for injecting a bit of character in a piece. But then again, with the ES-1, ER-1 and EA-1 MIDI'd together, you've got a powerful, quick and easy to use set up with balls to spare. If your music calls for that kind of attitude of course...

TechnoMusic · Post by **TechnoMusic** » Thu May 07, 2015 8:21 am

If you wnat drums and wierd analogish and FM like goodness and are an experimenter then the ER1 mk2 is the best (Ill never sell mine and I have an Elektron Analog RYTM), if you want to create more traditional full tracks then the EM is very good.

TechnoMusic · Post by **TechnoMusic** » Thu May 07, 2015 8:22 am

apapdop wrote:
Buska wrote:
thesigma wrote:I owned ( and still do) an es1 and ea1, always wanted and still do, the er1, I electribe just made me want the hardware more. I was never too interested in the em1, though I had a friend who got some good sounds out of it.

The ea1 is rather limited, no LFO, very basic only lpf, but it's good for bass lines, though in no way will it ever sound like a 303 if that's what you're after. You can get some good effects sounds out of it too, and it's still useful for sequencing better sounding synths.

I'd rather have an EMX1 than an EM1 and the price difference isn't going to be much nowadays. Of course this is just my opinion.
Ahh is iElectribe the ER1 cloned ? thats dope if it is...
The iElectribe for ipad is fantastic. Expands on the ER-1 and has a few tricks up it's sleeve that NONE of the hardware Electribes have.

Yeah its a great bit of software. But I still prefer my knobby hands on hardware ER1 MK2

brambos · Post by **brambos** » Thu May 07, 2015 8:23 am

circuitghost wrote:compared to what's out there today, two voices in a box the size of much more, I'm still on the fence.

Look at it this way, it's a lot of great functionality for a box the price of a Volca. And with the demand for the EM-1, you can easily sell it on for at least the price you bought it for.

Like I said, it's the workflow of the thing that won me over. This thing is creativity in a box; it has exactly the right knobs and buttons for the right functions in the right place. Drums are punchy, crunchy and powerful too. Biggest drawback in my opinion is that there are only 50 melodic waves. They are good.. a 'best of the late 90s' collection of synth sounds, but the selection is limited.

Still... if you're combining this with one or more other boxes anyway there's a lot to love in this machine. And in my experience it sits in a mix extremely well.

circuitghost · Post by **circuitghost** » Thu May 07, 2015 8:32 am

brambos wrote:
circuitghost wrote:compared to what's out there today, two voices in a box the size of much more, I'm still on the fence.
Look at it this way, it's a lot of great functionality for a box the price of a Volca. And with the demand for the EM-1, you can easily sell it on for at least the price you bought it for.

Like I said, it's the workflow of the thing that won me over. This thing is creativity in a box; it has exactly the right knobs and buttons for the right functions in the right place. Drums are punchy, crunchy and powerful too. Biggest drawback in my opinion is that there are only 50 melodic waves. They are good.. a 'best of the late 90s' collection of synth sounds, but the selection is limited.

Still... if you're combining this with one or more other boxes anyway there's a lot to love in this machine. And in my experience it sits in a mix extremely well.

You've talked me into it. Gotta try it now. Thanks for the advise.

circuitghost · Post by **circuitghost** » Thu May 07, 2015 8:33 am

apapdop wrote:I think the earlier Electribes are team players rather than Swiss Army Knives. They're just the thing for injecting a bit of character in a piece. But then again, with the ES-1, ER-1 and EA-1 MIDI'd together, you've got a powerful, quick and easy to use set up with balls to spare. If your music calls for that kind of attitude of course...

It always comes down to those balls, doesn't it?

apapdop · Post by **apapdop** » Thu May 07, 2015 9:18 am

circuitghost wrote:
apapdop wrote:I think the earlier Electribes are team players rather than Swiss Army Knives. They're just the thing for injecting a bit of character in a piece. But then again, with the ES-1, ER-1 and EA-1 MIDI'd together, you've got a powerful, quick and easy to use set up with balls to spare. If your music calls for that kind of attitude of course...
It always comes down to those balls, doesn't it?

Big 'uns...

Sclr · Post by **Sclr** » Wed Jun 03, 2015 10:34 pm

Sorry for the late reply. I just wanted to say i'm a big fan of the em-1. Its sound is just perfect imo. I have and esx which i use all the time and love and an em-1. I use them both to sequence other synths and samples and internal sounds. I have to say if one had to go it would b the esx. The main reason is the em-1 has a sound thats needs no compression or treatment. I agree about the synth parts waveforms being limited but they are very meaty. Very usable. And the chord parts are genius. The chord parts alone make me want to keep this thing. You get a TON of chords. That can be manipulated by the internal filter and amp etc. i'm not a big rompler fan but this thing is awesome. I had one years ago but i guess i had different tastes then and i sold it. I got another that needed repair cheap and i fixed it to flip for some $ and now i'm keeping it.

https://groups.yahoo.com/neo/groups/Kor ... /topics/76

roblabs · Post by **roblabs** » Wed Jun 03, 2015 11:44 pm

Damn this thread is getting me interested in picking one up! Where would you guys say the sound quality sits? Would you say between the emx and e2?

sl23 · Post by **sl23** » Thu Jun 04, 2015 5:43 pm

.....

thesigma · Post by **thesigma** » Thu Jun 04, 2015 6:13 pm

[quote="sl23" Why oh why do mfr's insist on minimal sampling time and extremely low amounts of memory? These days memory is far cheaper than when the es1 was released yet you'd be forgiven for thinking it's rarer than rocking horse sh*t![/quote]

AMEN!

Paega · Post by **Paega** » Thu Jun 04, 2015 11:53 pm

I did a big studio slim down recently and really regret selling my ER-1 MKII. If I can find a good deal on one again, I'll probably get one. Its a drum machine that sounds like itself. Whether or not that was on purpose I don't care. Its a wild little box!

Sclr · Post by **Sclr** » Fri Jun 05, 2015 9:20 pm

To me the em1 has a sound better than the emx. Imo its punchier and more raw. Its got a real analog feel to it. I only notice filter aliasing on very high notes or parts that clip due to how freaking low the bass can get. I try real hard not to hype this machine but its a winner. Of course it really depends on what you wanna do. I'm into old school detroit chicago new york miami techno electro etc. and for that it simply cannot be beat unless you pay out the nose for the original mpc60, dx100, cz101, 303, 101, 909 etc. plus try lugging all that gear around if you have a gig. The em1 plus a decent synth are all you really need imo. I dont know what the emx2 sounds like.

Sclr · Post by **Sclr** » Sun Jun 07, 2015 2:33 am

Em-1 VS emx2

https://youtu.be/tTXVgdPADpE

circuitghost · Post by **circuitghost** » Sun Jun 07, 2015 2:27 pm

Sclr wrote:Em-1 VS emx2

https://youtu.be/tTXVgdPADpE

Thanks. I'm really keen to get one now. Don't much care about features, if it can sequence and sounds good, I'm happy. This little fella paired with my ES-1 would be a nice vintage ETribe setup.

If only I could get one. They're hard to find.