Boom! MFB might as well stand for mutha-f****n-bass as far as this little 808 clone is concerned. Delivering serious, analogue fatness at what we would consider a frankly ridiculous price, the MFB-522 has to be one of the best value drum-machines on the market. With individual outputs for the kick, snare/rimshot, clap and hi-hats and individual controls for every parameter of every drum sound, you'll have as much hands-on control as you could possibly want. It's also small enough for you to sling in a laptop bag and perfect for live musicians who want a portable, compact machine to augment their drum sounds. There are some obvious considerations made to allow for the size of this unit, like the 3.5mm audio outputs rather than 1/4" connections and the small pots for controlling the drum parameters but once you've heard it, you really want care. For those amongst you who have a hankering for that classic TR808 sound but don't feel like dropping near enough 2 grand on a drum machine, the MFB-522 will be right up your alley. Recommended!
The MFB-522 is a drum-computer with a fully analogue sound engine that offers plenty of editing capabilities. It includes a step-sequencer with popular TR-style running-light-programming. Memory locations are available for 72 patterns as well as for 8 songs.
Available edit controls:
Bass drum:
The bass drum can be programmed in two different lengths per pattern. It also offers and individual output.
Snare drum:
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Noise
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Tone
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Level
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Rimshot
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Level
Snare drum and rimshot cannot be played simultaneously. However, they can be used in the same pattern. Both instruments share the same individual output.
Clap:
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Attack
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Filter
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Decay
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Level
The parameters allow setting the width and fullness of the clap sound. This sound also has its proprietary individual output.
Tom/Conga:
This sound source can be switched between Tom and Conga instruments. Sounds programming allows setting of three different pitches.
Cowbell
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Tune
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Decay
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Level
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Clave Level
Tune for Cowbell controls a detune-effect, while the pitch is set commonly with Cymbal and Hihat. Cowbell and Clave cannot be played simultaneously. However, they can be used in the same pattern.
Cymbal:
Tune sets the pitch for Cymbal, Cowbell and Hihat
Open/Closed Hihat:
Open and Closed Hihat cannot be played simultaneously. However, they can be used in the same pattern. This sound source offers and individual output.
The step-sequencer allows programming of 72 basic patterns plus 72 fill-ins. The latter being associated to the basic pattern memory location, resulting in a two-bar-pattern when using the fill-in. Patterns can be combined to eight songs that each hold a user-definable sequence of up to 64 patterns. In addition to the instruments, a global accent-track is available. When set, the corresponding step will be played with a higher or lower volume-setting in comparison to the standard level. The MFB-522’s sequencer offers three different steps of shuffling. A stereo output will carry all instruments minus those where individual outputs are in use (bass drum, snare drum/rimshot, claps and Hihat). Using the MIDI-In, drum-sounds can be played with a keyboard or external sequencer. Here, the sound sources act velocity sensitive. Finally, MFB-522 can be synchronized to incoming MIDI-clock.
The MFB-522’s dimensions are: 175 x 125 x 38/72 mm.
The unit need a power-supply AC/DC 12V 500mA unstable.
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