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I bought this machine to run my studio songwriting sessions and live performances. I paid $150 for one on eBay. I have no interest in using a PC to make music. Instead of spending thousands on a computer and software - and then spending further thousands for proper MIDI hardware controllers - just to emulate old-school hardware approaches, I opted to go back in time to the way it used to be done. Of course, the RM1x itself came out in the era of grooveboxes, when manufacturers were trying to squeeze every function of truly old-school pieces into a single unit. Personally, I think this thing might have even been more popular if it had come with no internal sounds whatsoever. Its beauty comes from the fact that it is a fully mature MIDI device that gives absolute and total control over every aspect of electronic music-making. I have no opinion on the internal sounds; I never use them. This is a hardware MIDI control surface and editor. It is very interesting, reading through all the reviews of this piece through the years. A number of people understand this machine. Here are some highlights from other reviews:
"What people think of as this machine's limitations are just the result of peoples' lack of putting energy into what they're doing."
"If you have time to go through all job and edit tasks, you will be delighted!"
"A lot of people should really read the RM1x owners manual. It is really helpful for learning the RM's capabilities."
"Expect a week or two of trial and error, but once you come to grips with it you will be set with a really flexible piece of equipment."
"Initially I was expecting this to be another groovebox. Was I wrong. I have to say that this machine is rather intuitive and VERY deep."
"The RM1x is for programmers, people who want to get into the guts of the machine and come up with their sound. This machine is for the more serious musician."
"This box is for composers, people who want to write their own music. Read the manual. Study this machine. It's gonna take a couple of months to really learn it."
"The RM1x is probably the best hardware sequencer out there for people who need a live / improvisational sequencer...the mc-80 and qy-700 being more for people who fully compose a track first."
And then there are plenty of poor people who simply haven't taken the time to learn their equipment. They end up writing reviews like this: "Editing on the RM1x is a joke and pisses me off to no end...you can't really change much[!]..." That is just plain wrong, and based on a lack of understanding of the RM1x. Editing is deep and complete, and also very intuitive. Of course, if you're manually editing every control change of a 480 ppqn sequencer numerically, it's going to be involved. But the RM1x makes it as easy as it can be.
Some people do come around, though: "Well, I posted a review few weeks ago saying how difficult a time I had learning how to program the RM1X. Well, what a difference some serious quality time makes! For someone, like me, who is NOT a tech head, there is simply no alternative to simply hunkering down and spending four, five hours or more just exploring the machine. I finally did so, not just tinkering around for 10 - 15 min and giving up in despair. Remember I'm saying all this having learned just 1/10th of what the RM1X is capable of. Give yourself time to learn the machine. Read the manual, and practise, practise and practise." No truer words have ever been spoken!
Don't pay any attention to the opinions of people who have spent less than 100 hours concentrating on using this machine's vast interior architecture (including your own!). It is true - as noted above - that the qy-700 (and especially the mc-80) are the best and most serious hardware sequencers ever made for studio song production. However, for actually playing/writing music, the RM1x gives the easy control that is essential to making electronic music breathe. It should probably be the first piece purchased by the aspiring electronic musician.
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