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moosers
Published on 03/18/11 at 12:16
The E-Mu SP12 is a classic drum machine and sampler that was an innovator of it's time. I've only used the SP12 in limited use to date, as I only recently got to mess around with it for the first time at a band's home studio that I just started working at. I've really only used the SP12 as a drum machine, but it also has the 12 bit sampler which is awesome to have as well. The drum machine itself has a variety of preset drum sounds that are alterable to a degree. The SP12 has probably been heard by most of you reading this as it's been used by a lot of well known artists in the past since this was first released in the mid 1980's.
UTILIZATION
If you're familiar with drum machines in general you should be able to get by pretty easily with the E-Mu SP12. It does have a lot going on and for me there's a bit of a learning curve since I'm not the most experienced with analog drum machines. However, those who are will certainly have an easier time than I learning it as there doesn't seem to be too much out of the ordinary going on here. I don't know what the manual might bring to the table here...
SOUNDS
The sound of the E-Mu SP12 will definitely be recognizable as it's the type of sound heard from other drum machines from the same era as well. However, it is unique in that it's one of the first sampling drum machines and you can sample whatever you want to throw it into the mix. The preset sounds are cool for a vintage drum machine, but the sampling aspect is really what makes it versatile. I've mostly used the preset sounds but I'm hoping to get some more experience with the SP12 and get more involved with sampling my own sounds. So while the preset sounds are cool, but the flexibility of this comes with the sampler.
OVERALL OPINION
I don't know how hard it would be to get your hands on the E-Mu SP12, but I would imagine you could find one somewhat easily if you're really after this specific model. Of course by modern technology this is kind of a relic, but it can still bring a lot to the table and can be a real blast to play around with. I don't know what kind of price this would command, but if you're a collector of vintage drum machine/samplers or are just looking to get your first, the SP12 is definitely a cool one to have if the price is right.
UTILIZATION
If you're familiar with drum machines in general you should be able to get by pretty easily with the E-Mu SP12. It does have a lot going on and for me there's a bit of a learning curve since I'm not the most experienced with analog drum machines. However, those who are will certainly have an easier time than I learning it as there doesn't seem to be too much out of the ordinary going on here. I don't know what the manual might bring to the table here...
SOUNDS
The sound of the E-Mu SP12 will definitely be recognizable as it's the type of sound heard from other drum machines from the same era as well. However, it is unique in that it's one of the first sampling drum machines and you can sample whatever you want to throw it into the mix. The preset sounds are cool for a vintage drum machine, but the sampling aspect is really what makes it versatile. I've mostly used the preset sounds but I'm hoping to get some more experience with the SP12 and get more involved with sampling my own sounds. So while the preset sounds are cool, but the flexibility of this comes with the sampler.
OVERALL OPINION
I don't know how hard it would be to get your hands on the E-Mu SP12, but I would imagine you could find one somewhat easily if you're really after this specific model. Of course by modern technology this is kind of a relic, but it can still bring a lot to the table and can be a real blast to play around with. I don't know what kind of price this would command, but if you're a collector of vintage drum machine/samplers or are just looking to get your first, the SP12 is definitely a cool one to have if the price is right.