TUOC012m / TR-808 Manual Set Replicant

ROLAND TR-808 RHYTHM COMPOSER COMPLETE MANUAL REPRODUCTION

 

Until about a year ago we were not aware of the beautiful manual set which shipped with the Roland TR-808. Never even seen one. After restoring more than seven of them and not actually having one of our own, we lucked into one for our spaceship and there was much celebration.
Of course everyone says "I know how to program an 808" and we imagine you probably do, but we became curious: What's the difference between manual mode, and pattern mode? How do you really program a whole song? Can you do just A and not B, or can you do B and not A? What's the fill in section all about? Great questions which for a seasoned XOX programmer were never going to be asked. So we got even more curious about the owner's manuals, the clear overlay which came on it new, and the mythical factory presets and how that even worked.

 

There are many PDF versions of these documents available for free online. There are even people reprinting many of the vintage manuals from service bureaus and selling them on eBay. We agree that a printed manual is a document which makes learning much easier than a digital file (it's so nice to be far from the tablet, phone or laptop when working on music) but there's also something unimpressive about laser prints, and kinko's spiral bound booklets. Not only don't they look nice, but they fall apart fast, and then it's all a waste. So we got even more curious about the size of these manuals, the weight of the paper, and why we'd never actually seen a whole set.

The TR-808 Manual Set includes:

A. The Introduction
A full size manual with mostly images, quickly walking the user through how to get started using the 808.

B. The Owner's Manual
A full size, much longer booklet with a complete description of all operations of the 808.

C. Rhythm Notes
This is a horizontal booklet of the actual charts for the rhythm patterns and intro/fill ins which shipped programmed into the 808. It also offered a couple of blank pattern sheets at the end.

D. The Quick Start Card
A small card with reference to all the functions of the TR-808, meant to be kept under the instrument for a handy quick guide to jog our memories as we go for some actions which we may not perform all the time.

 

NOTES
THIS IS A LIMITED EDITION RELEASE
50 sets have been painstakingly produced. Great care has been taken to reproduce the original documents, going so far as to choose a printer in the UK to get the best possible results, going through several rounds of prototypes, paper stock, and everyone involved has gone above and beyond to make these 50 sets as lovely, accurate, and durable as possible. That said, once these are gone there will be no more. This is not a release for all time, it is a gift, produced and distributed at a loss, for the love of the TR-808, and in the service of you (the musician.)

 

TUOC-012m Roland TR-808 Manual Set Replicant

LIMITED EDITION - 50 TR-808 Manual Set Replicants
Currently there are 0 remaining.

SOLD OUT

This was a limited run, and they have all now been spoken for, packed and shipped. Thank you so much for supporting independent projects, and our interest in replacing what appears to us to be missing from this world, and restoring good things into good hands.