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Price payed: $140. I fell in love with 123 the minute I plugged it at the local music-shop. Maybe its nostalgia for the glorious days of early home computing, since the device reminds me a lot of ZX Spectrum... So, its a drum+bass sound sequencer, with 79 drum types and 25 basses. Theres a space for 99 of your own songs, but more importantly, there is a MIDI in so you can program the thing with PC or other sequencer. BUILD - sturdy enough, lighted rubber buttons stand a good pounding, my only concern is the durability of the print on them. But, I don't use it much for performance, and the print is stil intact after a year and a half of use.. SOUND - the sampling on the device is 33khz, but I can't really hear any shortcomings. The real drums sound real, electric drums sound electric, percussion is spot on, and everything is possitioned well enough so you just put it in the mix. The bass is surprisingly good, especialy the real bass sounds which surprised me at this price. USABILITY - MIDI in makes this an outboard instrument that I use in my Tracktion DAW as a basis for most songs. The sounds are variable enough for most purposes, the only thing lacking is a set with brushes, so jazz is a little neglected. There is a great implementation of GROOVE function that lets you trigger patterns live on top of current song that you programmed, so its great for live performances as well. No MIDI out though, so you can't export patterns or songs made in 123 to other devices, but that doesn't effect me, since I use PC as DAW-sequencer.
So, final verdict: + most sounds, including bass, are great and usable + Groove function is great for performing live - no brushes - no MIDI out
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