@@SuperPogu Sorta-kinda. It affects both the VCA and the VCF, making accented notes both louder and brighter for that particular step. Its something a lot of early attempts at 303-alikes (i.e. the MC09) would get wrong since they'd only boost the volume/amp on accented notes instead of both the amp and the filter.
==A FEW THINGS WORTH MENTIONING THAT AREN'T EXPLAINED IN THE DEMO== - There is no realtime recording of patterns. Despite being able to play the keyboard you can only step-sequence patterns. Bit of a missed opportunity IMO - Changing patterns is, sadly, as clunky as you see in the demo. There's no easy way to jump between, say, pattern 001 and 100 without cycling through each pattern individually with the pattern/octave up and down buttons. - There also is NO pattern chaining nor any form of song mode - Each pattern can only have a max of 16 steps. They can have less than 16, but no more than 16 - The step-sequencer is also a tad confusing at first. It's hard to explain in text, but in short the step that's flashing ISN'T always the step that the next note you press will be on. It WILL be the step that you can adjust accent/slide/gate time/ratchet on, but often the next note you press will be placed on the NEXT step unless a pattern is blank or you purposefully press a step to edit it. - There's a USB-C connector on the back, but its only for MIDI and interfacing with Donner's "Rantion MIDI Center" app. You can't power the B1 via USB nor via batteries, and it takes a 9V center-positive (for some reason) power supply. The USB also doesn't function as an audio interface - Changing clock source requires you to power off the unit and hold either C#2 (for internal), D#2 (for MIDI), C#3 (for USB), or D#3 (for Trig/Analog Sync) while turning on the power. MIDI channel is done similarly, but instead you hold one of the 16 sequencer keys/"white" keys while powering on the B1. This affects both the receiving AND transmitting MIDI channel. - Sync PPQ can only be adjusted via software. Same goes for having separate MIDI-in and MIDI-out channels, you can only adjust them individually via the app.
Dude, you knocked this review out of the park… while I wait for my impulse buy to get here I cruised in and your demo was out of this world and the content provided here in the comments just 150%. Stay awesome! Subbed!
Thanks for doing this demo! Was really curious to hear this when I heard about it and yours is the first demo I've heard. I don't have a real 303 to compare to but I don't think I could tell this apart from my TD-3. Even got the same little click at the start of a note. Just a better sequencer and onboard delay! Nice.
Sounds most excellent paired with a drumming machine. Better not to think of the Donner B like a synth - more as a bass rhythm monster! I know it has delay - I'm wondering what it would sound like through a tremolo effect. Could it do that kind of 'slicer' rhythm stuff?
That you did! "Murderous" is one of my obligatory 'program this into any synth with a built in sequencer' patterns, hah. Plus to be honest it does sound pretty rad as a distorted acid line IMO
How can one sync the B1 with a Pocket Operator KO (as Drum Machine)? I saw you midi the B1 with the drum pad of some kind. Combo with a drum machine makes a huge difference.
The bass synth sounds quite authentic and looks very nodern, I'm presuming it is based on analogue circuitry? It's choosing between this and the behringer tb-3 for me, tho the behringer is less expensive.
Just got one, but the power jack for the ac adapter has bad solder joints so it shorts out and goes on and off. Their customer service is lacking! No phone number and they will not accept a return without contacting them first. Email is pretty much it and I have waited all day on a business day and I am still waiting!
I'm trying to sync this to the UNO synth with trigger and the clock goes crazy when I push play. Can this be fixed in the app by changing the pulse settings?
In case you’re still wondering, I gave away my TD-3 and have one of these on order. The TD-3 never sounded right to me. But, even listening on UA-cam, this has a better sound to my ear. Is this a 303? Most would probably say no but I get more “303” out of this than I got out of the TD-3. And this is so much more direct to program and play. 😎👍🏼
I would love someone to put together a demo on this unit that sounded like a bass guitar. I've yet to hear anything that actually sounds like a bass. Does anyone have a link for this? Does the unit offer actual bass sounds and the people that post these videos skip that part, every time?
It's a 303 clone. No offense, but if you're expecting a 303 clone to sound anything like a bass guitar you're missing the point. That's kindof one of the key parts of the 303-sound. XD
@@NeapolitanHusky I guess I am missing the point. I am new to the synthesizer world. I am just guessing that a bass synthesizer should have a sound simaler to a bass. I like the farty quirky sounds these produce. However I can't seem to find anything that actually sounds like a bass. 90% of the sounds I hear in the videos sound like a high pitched keyboard. I dint know what the other unit is it's cloned after. I'm just trying to hear if this unit actually has some bottom. No offense taken. I just cantvwrap my mind around the bass module not sounding like the bass end of the sound spectrum.
@@LLJJEEYY Please understand the origins of the original TB-303. Roland designed it to be a substitute for the band's bass player if he didn't show up for a gig. They could program his notes into it, and have a "bass player" without the real bass player. So it never was meant to replicate the actual sounds of a real bass guitar, was only to throw in some temporary bottom end notes to keep the song alive. Well, it failed miserably at that, and there was a time when you could find them in pawn shops and second hand stores for close to nothing. But at some point, musicians in the techno/trance scene found they could make some good "acid" trance with them, and that brought them back to life... thank goodness!!! :D
I like it as a bass synth, as a rarity or a machine with an original design, but I prefer the KORG Monologue or the UNO Synth. --- Me gusta como sintetizador de bajos, como rareza o máquina con un diseño original, pero prefiero el KORG Monologue o el UNO Synth.
@@rafaelcatarino8372 no idea. How about most synths Korg is offering right now? The entire legacy of Japanese, American, British, German and other countries regarding synthesizers, including today? Some of the synths you really want, not just for fun or reminiscence but for their original sound, don’t even sport a single Chinese component, by chance? Like, what is not made in China? Everything, unless you’re in for cheap. At least I’m not aware of anything you couldn’t get from any other country, and I am aware of synthesizer builds explicitly not using Chinese parts.
It would be nice to hear what this synth sounds like with the resonance knob NOT cranked up. Aggressive, chirping acid techno is not to everyone's taste.
A LOT of clipping at the start of the video... Annoying to have to jump up and adjust levels. But somehow it sounds okay @ 3:25 forward when you decide to turn up the actual BASS which I thought this thing was for. I think it sound great once you figure out what you're doing with it... Anyways it'd be nice if people would stop with the "piece o' wood" backdrops
@@EnochDark If the "wood aesthetic" is such an issue dude, then I've got a game mat/card playmat with a sexy half-naked anthropomorphic dog dude. Could use that instead. Just sayin'
![somebody FINALLY did it... [Donner B1 review and tutorial]](http://i.ytimg.com/vi/Jrx_WJaS9hM/mqdefault.jpg)
finally someone who knows how to demo a 303 and showed the interaction between the accent and filter. sounds pretty good to me.
So is the accent basically a filter envelope?
@@SuperPogu Sorta-kinda. It affects both the VCA and the VCF, making accented notes both louder and brighter for that particular step. Its something a lot of early attempts at 303-alikes (i.e. the MC09) would get wrong since they'd only boost the volume/amp on accented notes instead of both the amp and the filter.
@Neapolitan_Husky thank you for that tidbit. I’d never been able to nail my own emulations and THAT is why!
Amazing how so many decades later, 303+drum machine still kicks. Great jam.
==A FEW THINGS WORTH MENTIONING THAT AREN'T EXPLAINED IN THE DEMO==
- There is no realtime recording of patterns. Despite being able to play the keyboard you can only step-sequence patterns. Bit of a missed opportunity IMO
- Changing patterns is, sadly, as clunky as you see in the demo. There's no easy way to jump between, say, pattern 001 and 100 without cycling through each pattern individually with the pattern/octave up and down buttons.
- There also is NO pattern chaining nor any form of song mode
- Each pattern can only have a max of 16 steps. They can have less than 16, but no more than 16
- The step-sequencer is also a tad confusing at first. It's hard to explain in text, but in short the step that's flashing ISN'T always the step that the next note you press will be on. It WILL be the step that you can adjust accent/slide/gate time/ratchet on, but often the next note you press will be placed on the NEXT step unless a pattern is blank or you purposefully press a step to edit it.
- There's a USB-C connector on the back, but its only for MIDI and interfacing with Donner's "Rantion MIDI Center" app. You can't power the B1 via USB nor via batteries, and it takes a 9V center-positive (for some reason) power supply. The USB also doesn't function as an audio interface
- Changing clock source requires you to power off the unit and hold either C#2 (for internal), D#2 (for MIDI), C#3 (for USB), or D#3 (for Trig/Analog Sync) while turning on the power. MIDI channel is done similarly, but instead you hold one of the 16 sequencer keys/"white" keys while powering on the B1. This affects both the receiving AND transmitting MIDI channel.
- Sync PPQ can only be adjusted via software. Same goes for having separate MIDI-in and MIDI-out channels, you can only adjust them individually via the app.
Dude, you knocked this review out of the park… while I wait for my impulse buy to get here I cruised in and your demo was out of this world and the content provided here in the comments just 150%.
Stay awesome! Subbed!
Reminds me of the Blade clubmusic after a while 🤔👍
Pattern 7 is actually THAT riff at 3:48
Thanks for doing this demo! Was really curious to hear this when I heard about it and yours is the first demo I've heard. I don't have a real 303 to compare to but I don't think I could tell this apart from my TD-3. Even got the same little click at the start of a note. Just a better sequencer and onboard delay! Nice.
Pur son ce clone de 303 ! 😮 La disto et le delay sont exquis
any new 303 is good news: more importantly is Donner have plans for more gear and they seem to be applying some nice little seq: touches for playing
That squarewave with delay😍
If Richard H. Kirk was still with us, he would be playing around on one of these I'm sure😎👌
Finally a decent demo! Kick ass!
I have one getting delivered, and I'm using this video as a reference, great job!🙏🏾✊🏾💚
Same as. Planning to use to add some bassline into my MPC recordings. Wonder if it can be hooked up to a pro 1
Sounds raw and good and simple. I'm gonna buy it if it ever comes to Europe.
Sounds most excellent paired with a drumming machine. Better not to think of the Donner B like a synth - more as a bass rhythm monster! I know it has delay - I'm wondering what it would sound like through a tremolo effect. Could it do that kind of 'slicer' rhythm stuff?
Did I hear Nitzer Ebb ?
That you did! "Murderous" is one of my obligatory 'program this into any synth with a built in sequencer' patterns, hah.
Plus to be honest it does sound pretty rad as a distorted acid line IMO
Murderous at 3:00. Cool stuff.
How can one sync the B1 with a Pocket Operator KO (as Drum Machine)? I saw you midi the B1 with the drum pad of some kind. Combo with a drum machine makes a huge difference.
Part of their pitch is ease of use of the sequencer… sounds pretty good though. Thanks 😎👍🏼
Nice demo, only discovered this synth, sounds great! I have a td3, love it to bits, so authentic, looks like I'll be adding this to my arsenal! 🤣🎹
We re stronger nooow
Much better nooow
Shot gonna shout...
:)
dang, unexpected. Great jam!
great , thanks
The bass synth sounds quite authentic and looks very nodern, I'm presuming it is based on analogue circuitry? It's choosing between this and the behringer tb-3 for me, tho the behringer is less expensive.
btw really dig the jam is wav somewhere to be dowloaded pls ?:)))
nice one
When wil it be available in Europe? Shipping costs, import feed and VAT are ridiculously high from VS to EU...
Nice video bro! Thanks!🙏🏻🙏🏻
Does arp function only offer sixteenth notes? How do I get eighth or quarter notes to arppegiate?
Just got one, but the power jack for the ac adapter has bad solder joints so it shorts out and goes on and off. Their customer service is lacking! No phone number and they will not accept a return without contacting them first. Email is pretty much it and I have waited all day on a business day and I am still waiting!
Great video!
Excellent demo!
I'm trying to sync this to the UNO synth with trigger and the clock goes crazy when I push play. Can this be fixed in the app by changing the pulse settings?
Killer!!!
Did I listen New Order?
Like!
Does it have a transpose mode?
Yes it does
Where is the manual?
Just get a second hand Roland tb3. I did at a great price similar to the price of this.
Question, what is better the behringer td-3 or the donner B1 ?
In case you’re still wondering, I gave away my TD-3 and have one of these on order. The TD-3 never sounded right to me. But, even listening on UA-cam, this has a better sound to my ear. Is this a 303? Most would probably say no but I get more “303” out of this than I got out of the TD-3. And this is so much more direct to program and play. 😎👍🏼
Greetings fellow furry :3
I would love someone to put together a demo on this unit that sounded like a bass guitar. I've yet to hear anything that actually sounds like a bass. Does anyone have a link for this? Does the unit offer actual bass sounds and the people that post these videos skip that part, every time?
It's a 303 clone.
No offense, but if you're expecting a 303 clone to sound anything like a bass guitar you're missing the point. That's kindof one of the key parts of the 303-sound. XD
@@NeapolitanHusky I guess I am missing the point. I am new to the synthesizer world. I am just guessing that a bass synthesizer should have a sound simaler to a bass. I like the farty quirky sounds these produce. However I can't seem to find anything that actually sounds like a bass. 90% of the sounds I hear in the videos sound like a high pitched keyboard. I dint know what the other unit is it's cloned after. I'm just trying to hear if this unit actually has some bottom. No offense taken. I just cantvwrap my mind around the bass module not sounding like the bass end of the sound spectrum.
@@LLJJEEYY Please understand the origins of the original TB-303. Roland designed it to be a substitute for the band's bass player if he didn't show up for a gig. They could program his notes into it, and have a "bass player" without the real bass player. So it never was meant to replicate the actual sounds of a real bass guitar, was only to throw in some temporary bottom end notes to keep the song alive. Well, it failed miserably at that, and there was a time when you could find them in pawn shops and second hand stores for close to nothing. But at some point, musicians in the techno/trance scene found they could make some good "acid" trance with them, and that brought them back to life... thank goodness!!! :D
where is the youth 😎
Sounds good though.
Seriously how many more cheap analogue synths do we need?? The market is saturated..... and this coming from someone with serious G.A.S.
I like it as a bass synth, as a rarity or a machine with an original design, but I prefer the KORG Monologue or the UNO Synth.
---
Me gusta como sintetizador de bajos, como rareza o máquina con un diseño original, pero prefiero el KORG Monologue o el UNO Synth.
This is very fascinating. Too bad it’s made in China, don’t wanna keep throwing cash at shady politics.
What's not?
@@rafaelcatarino8372 a lot of the most desirable things, actually.
@@Goth108 a Ferrari?
@@rafaelcatarino8372 no idea. How about most synths Korg is offering right now? The entire legacy of Japanese, American, British, German and other countries regarding synthesizers, including today? Some of the synths you really want, not just for fun or reminiscence but for their original sound, don’t even sport a single Chinese component, by chance? Like, what is not made in China? Everything, unless you’re in for cheap. At least I’m not aware of anything you couldn’t get from any other country, and I am aware of synthesizer builds explicitly not using Chinese parts.
303ではない。
Would sound better without that cowbell
It would be nice to hear what this synth sounds like with the resonance knob NOT cranked up. Aggressive, chirping acid techno is not to everyone's taste.
I mean... why else would you choose a 303 over any other monosynth if you don't want to make acid?
I saw guy mccaffer do a set with 2 tb303s and a tr909 and it didn't get very acidy at all
Sadly that thing is chinese…AKA: an f’ing gamble…who knows how long that will last??? Don’t buy that thing!!!
?
My guy, everything you own is Chinese, probably even the phone that you used to wrote the comment
A LOT of clipping at the start of the video... Annoying to have to jump up and adjust levels. But somehow it sounds okay @ 3:25 forward when you decide to turn up the actual BASS which I thought this thing was for. I think it sound great once you figure out what you're doing with it... Anyways it'd be nice if people would stop with the "piece o' wood" backdrops
Complain more about the free content
piece of wood backdrops? you mean a table hahaha, wtaf bruh: Complain about flowers and books meant to make people look wet, but a table?
@@Eli_B3000 why not? nothing has stopped anyone from complaining about mine...
@@ogasi1798 act like you aren't aware of other more notable reviewers who have made the wood aesthetic a thing... okay.
@@EnochDark If the "wood aesthetic" is such an issue dude, then I've got a game mat/card playmat with a sexy half-naked anthropomorphic dog dude. Could use that instead.
Just sayin'