Been slowly moving toward a more minimal DAWless setup and I’m debating selling some gear. Current setup is:
• Roland TR-8S
• Elektron Digitakt
• Behringer Edge
• Behringer TD-3
• Roland SP-404MKII
Lately I’ve been feeling like the Digitakt kinda overlaps with both the TR-8S and the SP404MKII. The Digitakt can sequence everything, sample, mangle audio, perform live, etc., so part of me feels like I should simplify and just keep the Digitakt + Edge + TD-3 setup.
I mostly make hypnotic/hard techno, acid, industrial, and live jam stuff. I love immediacy and performance workflows.
My thought process is:
• TR-8S feels amazing for hands-on jamming and quick drum performance
• SP404MKII has awesome FX/performance tricks
• BUT the Digitakt feels deeper and more “complete” overall
At the same time, I’m worried I might regret selling them because maybe there are synergies I’m overlooking between:
• Digitakt + TR-8S
• Digitakt + SP404MKII
For example:
• using the TR-8S purely as a tactile performance drum machine while the Digitakt handles sequencing/samples
• using the SP404 as an external FX box/live resampler for the Digitakt
• separating duties so the Digitakt isn’t doing literally everything
I’ve seen a lot of people online say the Digitakt/TR-8S combo is actually amazing because one is more “brain/sequencer” while the other is more immediate and playable live.
I’ve also seen people say the TR-8S is unbeatable for live jamming/faders/performance, while the Digitakt is stronger for sequencing and sample manipulation.
So now I’m conflicted lol.
Would you sell the TR-8S and SP404MKII if you already had a Digitakt? Or do they each bring something unique enough to keep around long term?