The SP-1200 was THE drum machine & sampler combo of legendary status among old school rap and hip hop artists from the eighties and nineties. It is similar to today's Akai MPC samplers - it is a sampler plus drum machine. It has limited sampling s...
They ask him what gear he couldn't live without and he replies: "These days it’s so different because really all you need is a MacBook and it’s all there. But back in the day it was Akai samplers S-3000 which is the thing I made my first two albums on. Also I used an old E-mu SP-1200 as well." There is also a picture of him with his SP-1200 here: http://music.newcity.com/wp-content/uploads/2008/12/bonobosamplerinwoodsfinal.jpg
more*Nodfactor* [re-publishes an article](http://www.nodfactor.com/2010/02/07/still-lives-through-j-dillas-last-interview/) from a February 2006 edition of *Scratch* magazine where Alvin “Aqua Boogie” Blanco interviews J-Dilla. Aqua Boogie asks what equipment did J-Dilla start with, to which he replies “I started with the [SP-12](https://equipboard.com/items/e-mu-sp-12-classic-drum-machine-and-sampler) then moved to the SP-1200 and then shortly after that the [MPC-60](https://equipboard.com/items/akai-mpc60), then the [MPC-62](https://equipboard.com/items/akai-mpc60ii), then the [MPC3000](https://equipboard.com/items/akai-mpc-3000) and I’ve been on the MPC 3000 ever since then. I’ve tried other samplers but the 3000 is best for me for what I like to do.”
more“I got a chance to get tutelage from DJ Premier, have him try to teach me how to use the SP-1200, and show me how he scratches records, so the scenes of me doing DJ stuff didn’t look corny,”
more"A guy from our record company went to New York and got this for me for my birthday; it was a really good present. It's so nice, just for single drum hits."
moreAt 1:30 in this beat-making rhythm roulette video of 9th wonder, you can see the sp-1200 with a record laying on top of it.
moreAt 3:29 in this video, RZA says, "...I was at Easy Mo Bee's house, we were on Gza's first album and he had a SP-1200, and I'd never seen that in my life never knew what it was. It was 1987 probably." "Took about a year and a half before i finally got ahold of one....so i was about 19 when i got my first SP-1200..."
more"The original hip-hop drum machine. That is fat! I'm really into the hip-hop scene, and did a lot of research into the equipment they used to get that real heavy sound. A guy from our record company went to New York and got this for me for my birthday; it was a really good present. It's so nice, just for single drum hits." – Liam Howlett, from a [1996 interview](http://www.soundonsound.com/sos/1996_articles/sep96/prodigy.html) with Sound On Sound.
more"Danger Mouse also loves his vintage E-mu SP-1200 Sampler/ Drum-Machine. The SP-1200 was THE drum machine & sampler combo of legendary status among old school rap and hip hop artists from the eighties and nineties," states [this article](https://digitaldj.wordpress.com/2008/07/08/the-sound-of-danger-mouse/).
more"The SP(1200) for drums and for the loops the (AKAI S)950. That’s something that Large Professor put me onto (the AKAI S950). I just liked the snap of it. For me… I was always into the big drums with the tin like smack of it" ~ Q-tip
moreIn [this Dj Quik interview](http://www.complex.com/music/2012/04/dj-quik-tells-all-the-stories-behind-his-classic-records/born-and-raised-in-compton) with Complex he tells his rise to modern day legend from his humble beginning on the SP and cassette “I got an SP1200 drum machine and a 4-track Tascam recorder, a little cassette recorder. I went from making mixtapes to getting a drum machine and producing my own songs. After about a year on the SP1200, going through different tape formulations. Just listening to the way frequencies in my voice respond to certain tapes, I figured I was in there."
moreIn this Pic on Dan's Twitter, he shows off his many machines including an SP-12. Dan says “Yeah it all starts with the drums sometimes.”
moreAd Rock uses an E-mu SP-1200 and this is a photo of his model. There is also proof of it on this https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ad-Rock
moreUsed on *People's Instinctive Travels and the Paths of Rhythm*, as stated by recording engineer Bob Power in this November 8, 2016 *Wax Poetics* interview. > Also, back then, MIDI was in a very primitive state. MIDI is the language that computers, synthesizers, and samplers use to speak to each other. It was extremely primitive at that point. Q-Tip was sequencing on an SP-1200, and Ali had an Alesis eight-track MIDI sequencer and an Akai S950. Sampling technology was very primitive. The S950 had maybe a second and a half worth of memory. Putting together those complex, elaborate constructions was so difficult. It took a lot of time. We had to do things bit by bit because of the undeveloped memory for samplers at that point. We had to be creative in the way we approached things. People say we used twenty-four tracks, but we really had twenty-two tracks to deal with because you needed to print a synchronization code on one track and use another track as your guard band. Because samplers would only hold less than a second worth of sound at one time, we ended up putting little bits of things across different tracks and combining them later.
moreWhat about drum machines? You have a handful… "The EXS24 is my go to for drums but from time to time I'll bring out the EMU SP1200 to sample bass notes. I did actually use my Korg Minipops 7 on the breakdown of one of my tracks because it has pre-programmed patterns. I also love my Akai MPC3000, because it was my first ever drum machine."
moreAt 0:28 in this video Alan Braxe introduces the SP 1200. He says, "I think it's a fantastic machine. Really easy to use."
moreMarley marl uses the E-mu SP-1200 in songs such as LL cool J's Mama said knock you out and many more!
moreIn this photo posted by Epworth on his Instagram profile, the E-mu SP1200 can be seen.
moreThis picture shows Lord Finesse and his SP-1200. He also released an instrumental album named The SP1200 Project: A Re-Awakening.
moreIn this picture that Dj Evil Dee posted to his Instagram, he shows off some off his classic gear (including the SP-1200) and writes this, "#tbt #throwbackthursday WHAT YOU KNOW ABOUT THE SP1200, SP12 TURBO & THE AKAI 950 ???"
more"I've done so many tracks with this...back in the early 90s this is the box I did everything on," Brown says, at 4:36 in this video.
moreAt 01:01 in this video Del shows points at the corner of his studio: "I've got SP 1200 right here, sittin up here you know"
moreDj Lethal can be seen talking about this sampler in an interview with The Archivist.
moreIt is used by Roni Size, Todd Terry, Freddy Fresh, Daft Punk, Phil Collins, and The Prodigy .
moreIt is with the utmost respect for the UZN, its visionary founder and subsequently each and everyone who positively contributed to the beautiful thing called Hip Hop that I humbly come to you today by means of this letter drafted by a trusted friend of mine according to my own wishes and stipulations due to the fact that lucent one to one communication especially in times of my personal distress never was nor will be my strong suit. Having said that I heavily hearted weighed in every aspect that ultimately culminated into my verbal outburst at last week's event in Almere (Netherlands) where Hip Hop at one point had become a one man's show and I as a witness inadequately called out my for my brothers and sisters to not only step forward on stage to jointly denounce such a disgraceful manifesto of the ego but to defend that what historically never was meant to be a celebration of just one. And regardless of the fact that my heart and love for the UZN and Hip Hop in general are undisputed and regardless of the fact that I still feel lost and abbandoned I have to offer all of you my sincererest appology for my act was untactful and in hindsight unworthy. Therefore I wish to annull my membership forthwith but in my own way will continue to vigorously support the culture in peace as I have done on day one pushing 30 years. Sincerely Martin Marsoeki jr. ( SOEKIakaDRC ) Private Explanation Summary Made By : DyaLogue
more"12 Finger Dan & B-Base aka Soulbrotha have carved a niche for themselves as a dope production and turntablist duo from Hamburg, Germany. As close protégés of producer icon DJ Premier, the veteran beatsmiths drop the boom bap filled EP "The Golden Era Isn't Finished", exclusively using the classic SP1200 beat machine." -Promotext
more"It's the most recent addition to my studio, but its immediately become my favourite."
moreThe SP-1200 was THE drum machine & sampler combo of legendary status among old school rap and hip hop artists from the eighties and nineties. It is similar to today's Akai MPC samplers - it is a sampler plus drum machine. It has limited sampling specs: 26.040 kHz and 12-bit resolution. However the dirtiness of that sound is great for hip hop and house music. They say it sounds like "old vinyl"... It features groove quantizing and a disk drive for sample storage. As an upgraded version of the 1985 SP-12, the SP-1200 focused on its coolest feature - sampling. The preset drum sounds of the SP-12 were omitted, leaving room for up to 32 user samples of your own custom sampled and edited drum sounds.
Although this machine was originally released in 1987, E-mu has reissued them again and again due to popular demand. They continued producing them until they ran out of the SSM filter chips they used, around 1998. It was just too legendary to give up as it was THE beat machine for old-school rap and hip hop! In 1997 a final reissued model was released with a cooler looking all-black case. With the SP-1200 it's easy and fun to grab those sliders and tune or tweak your sampled drum sounds all around! It is used by Roni Size, Todd Terry, Freddy Fresh, Daft Punk, Phil Collins, and The Prodigy.
My pops had this sampler back in the days and he taught me how to use this, I've have so many beats created on this legendary machine!
The legendary SP1200, this is a very big piece of Hip Hop's golden era history.
I love it, it's great for makin rap music on, specifically old school rap
Loading
I grew up with my dad/uncle's drumulator (still have it)... I am envious of your SP-1200, its a drumulator ons teroids! The old E-MU stuff is so underrated these days, I don't know why, it sounds so great.
@jimmarchil No Doubt.