OK, it’s been awhile since the last Fast Nerd ⏩ Finds! But here we are! Released in 1984 E-MU’s Drumulator was a predecessor to its more famous stablemate the SP1200.
EVEN THOUGH THE DRUMULATOR IS NOT QUITE AS FAMOUS AS THE E-MU SP1200, THIS ORIGINAL 8 BIT GEM STILL MANAGED TO FIND ITS WAY ONTO A FEW REALLY GOOD HIT RECORDS.
This being one of them…
Rossum & Wedge
Not 19th century pottery makers, but two visionaries (one self-confessed nerd) that found and developed E-MU – originally stylized as Eμ, in 1981.
Believe it or not Dave Rossum has gone on record saying they didn’t really make any money on their most famous creations. Which is startling considering the likes of the SP1200 (Sampled Percussion 1200) and the Emulator II were so influential.
E-MU were still relatively a fledgling company when the Drumulator came out. Having parted ways with synth manufacturer Sequential Circuits, and being unimpressed by the sound of the CMI Fairlight at the 81 NAMM show in Cali. Dave Rossum and Scott Wedge thought they could build a better sounding sampler themselves, and so they did, that is eventually, with the Emulator II.
Drumming up business!
You might have noticed the design convention between the Drumulator and the Emulator I. The EII and the SP12. Foregoing the convention for the SP1200 and the Emulator III.
Loaded with non-editable samples, you could still import samples via the 1541 5.1/4 floppy disk drive from Commodore.
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Hero image credit: electricity club.co.uk
In spite of VST’s being so ubiquitous, the age of hardware collectibles is surprisingly strong. E-MU hardware is particularly desirable, with the Drumulator regularly appearing on resell sites all over the world.
Hope you enjoyed this bite sized treatment of an important addition to the history of drum machines. Samplenerd.com now publishes a fresh article every two weeks! If so, share on your socials! Cheers 🍻