Roland TR-8 AIRA Firmware Update 1.1: New Features, Review & Instructions (1440p)

Published on Jul 29, 2014 massivebeatzz

Roland Aira's on eBay

"So Roland finally released its first firmware update for the TR-8 (and the rest of the AIRA product line) adding many awaited features to the highly praised TR-808/909 drum machine emulator.
What's new in update version 1.1 you ask? Quite frankly, A LOT!

••HOTTEST NEW FEATURES :
-Manage your kit and pattern library with easy backup & restore over USB
-Edit both A and B parts without stopping the sequencer
-Lock the content of a pattern so you experiment with it without changing
-Scatter will enable for one cycle and then automatically disengage

••MIDI MATURES AT LAST:
-MIDI velocity is variable by the accent setting
-Local On/Off and MIDI Controller modes determine how MIDI data is sent and received
-Select kits using MIDI control change messages.
-Scatter On/Off, Type and Depth can be controlled via MIDI control change
-Record patterns in real-time from external MIDI devices.
-Disable sending of all MIDI messages
-Toggle whether or not TR-8 responds to PLAY/STOP messages

••WHAT ELSE?
-Customize kits by adjusting the gain of each instrument to suit your individual style
-Rolls are now easier to engage, offer more control, and sound better overall
-Alternate unlatched trigger mode engages only while “On” button is held down (really?)
-Get back in the groove by instantly starting a pattern from the top

••OMISSIONS?
There's two main ones in my book:
-For once being able to copy part A over to part B (or vice versa) of a Pattern is one of the most popular requests I found listening to forum discussions (and my personal #1). Indeed, making modifications of something that already works by copying & tweaking the copy is just second nature to most of us.
-Second, being able to change the sampling rate of the audio interface part (via USB) to something other than 96khz, such as 48khz and 44.1khz is needed. Building multiple (up to 14) audio tracks from the TR-8's streams will weigh in heavily on HD space and bus bandwith. And frankly, sometimes an existing project is already running at a lower sampling rate, so down sampling would occur anyways. Reduced latency might be another benefit of it!
Though it's wonderful to know that the internal SR is 96khz (big thumbs up for that) it's time to allow some flexibility in DAW mode!

••Conclusion?
Great to see that ROLAND is indeed taking user requests to heart, and - so far - not making it a "you bought it - we're done now" kind of product (abandonware). Lots of new features and fixes, so current owners see their investments protected, and potential buyers will get a cutting edge device when they buy! Way to go.

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