The Rossum SP-1200 is a modern reissue of the game-changing E-mu drum machine from the ’80s that revolutionized hip hop and electronic production.
The Rossum SP-1200 Drum Machine Reissue Is an Updated Take on a Legendary Machine
E-mu Systems released the SP-1200 drum machine in 1987. It had an inherently lo-fi sound that hip hop and electronic producers took to right away; that’s due to its 12-bit resolution and 26.04 kHz sampling rate. The SP-1200 has often been compared to the sound of vinyl recordings because of the bass/treble attenuation from the low resolution and sample rate.
Dave Rossum co-founded E-mu Systems. He’s also the designer of the machine, and has painstakingly duplicated all of the analog and digital electronics of the original units. The new Rossum SP-1200 machines sound virtually identical to the classics. Dave Rossum took great care to emulate the circuit board and components that made the first SP-1200s so special.
Apart from some necessary modern improvements, the current generation of Rossum SP-1200s are essentially 1:1 recreations of the iconic originals.
The E-mu SP-1200 Changed Hip Hop Music Forever
The E-mu SP-1200 is one of those rare instruments that had the power and influence to singlehandedly shape an entire genre. It gave producers the ability to flesh out nearly complete arrangements in a portable box, which was a first for the time period. Purely from a practical standpoint, the SP-1200 gave artists the ability to create outside of an expensive studio. You could compare that to today’s digital recording techniques which have given everyone the ability to record — anytime, anywhere.
It’s not hyperbole to say that a drum machine changed the course of hip hop history. The sound of the genre’s golden age, from the mid ’80s to mid ’90s, is largely attributed to the SP-1200 drum machine.
So What’s New?
Greater Memory & Extended Sampling Time
The original machines had a 10-second sampling time. Despite being a limitation, many of the SP-1200’s shortcomings were chalked up to being part of its sound and charm. The choppy samples from many early hip hop records are associated with the drum machine’s limited sampling time. New Rossum SP-1200s double the sampling time to 20 seconds.
More Input/Output Features
One of the biggest additions to the new drum machines are filtered and unfiltered channel outputs, as well as a new sample input monitoring inclusion.
Bye-Bye Floppy Drive
Floppy disks are a thing of the past. These new units swap them for SD cards. If you happen to own an original SP-1200, the latest iteration actually comes with a floppy disk containing modified software to transfer data from the original units to the new one.
What Did They Keep?
Apart from a handful of modern revisions, the current SP-1200s are virtually identical to the old ones, down to each individual component. You might say that Dave Rossum kept the most important part of the SP-1200 intact: its undeniable sound.
Final Thoughts: The SP-1200 Reissue Provides an Authentic Take on a Beloved Classic
Rossum SP-1200 drum machines are sonically indistinguishable from the original E-mu units. They’re also incredibly expensive, occupying a rather niche market. Presumably, fans of the original machines will have nothing but love for the current recreations. However, cost and relative scarcity will likely keep these out of the average bedroom producers’s hands.