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Description

Unleash your creativity with the Roland MC-303 Groovebox, a compact and user-friendly instrument that combines some of Roland's most iconic synth sounds and beat machines all in one package. Versatile and portable, this Groovebox is your ticket to exploring a wide array of genres, from jungle to house to acid, making it an ideal companion for musicians on the go. Its powerful combination of 40 synth basses, 12 kit sounds, and 35 synth lead sounds ensures a robust and fun creative experience.

Key Features:

  • Compact, user-friendly design
  • Features Roland's iconic synth sounds and beat machines
  • Versatile, catering to a wide range of genres
  • Portable, perfect for musicians on the move
  • Includes 40 synth basses, 12 kit sounds, and 35 synth lead sounds

Product specs

Brand Roland
Model MC-303 Groovebox
Finish Silver
Year 1990 - 1998
Made In Japan
Categories Grooveboxes
Analog / Digital Digital
MIDI I/O MIDI Input, MIDI Output
Polyphony 28 Voices

FAQs

What is the polyphony of the Roland MC-303 Groovebox?

The Roland MC-303 Groovebox has a polyphony of 28 voices, allowing you to layer multiple sounds and sequences simultaneously for complex compositions.

Does the Roland MC-303 Groovebox have MIDI capabilities?

Yes, the Roland MC-303 Groovebox features MIDI Input and Output, enabling integration with other MIDI-compatible equipment for expanded control and sequencing options.

What kind of sounds does the Roland MC-303 Groovebox offer?

The Roland MC-303 Groovebox provides a variety of sounds including drum kits, basses, synth leads, and pads, making it versatile for genres ranging from techno to hip-hop.

Is the Roland MC-303 suitable for live performances?

Yes, the Roland MC-303 is designed with live performance in mind, featuring real-time controls and a sequencer to create dynamic live sets.

When was the Roland MC-303 Groovebox released?

The Roland MC-303 Groovebox was released between 1990 and 1998, making it a classic piece of gear for electronic music production.

Anonymous Animal 2

Anonymous Animal 2

Roland MC-303 Groovebox Tutorial

Video thumbnail for Roland MC-303 Groovebox Tutorial by Anonymous Animal 2

Roland MC-303 Groovebox Tutorial

Anonymous Animal 2

Anonymous Animal 2

Video thumbnail for Roland MC 303 Promo Video (1998) by Perfect Circuit

Roland MC 303 Promo Video (1998)

Perfect Circuit

Perfect Circuit

Video thumbnail for Bad Gear - Roland MC303 - Worst Groovebox Of All Time??? by AudioPilz

Bad Gear - Roland MC303 - Worst Groovebox Of All Time???

AudioPilz

AudioPilz

Video thumbnail for Roland MC 303 Video Owners Manual 1997 by King Skullie

Roland MC 303 Video Owners Manual 1997

King Skullie

King Skullie

Video thumbnail for Roland MC-303 Groovebox: Crap or Classic ? by Estuera

Roland MC-303 Groovebox: Crap or Classic ?

Estuera

Estuera

Video thumbnail for Roland MC-303 Groovebox - My Custom patterns by tiergrinder

Roland MC-303 Groovebox - My Custom patterns

tiergrinder

tiergrinder

Video thumbnail for Roland MC-303 Groovebox (1997) demo and review by Woody Piano Shack

Roland MC-303 Groovebox (1997) demo and review

Woody Piano Shack

Woody Piano Shack

Video thumbnail for Roland MC-303 // Quick Start Guide & First Impressions by Harry Vincent

Roland MC-303 // Quick Start Guide & First Impressions

Harry Vincent

Harry Vincent

Video thumbnail for Roland MC 303 Groovebox Initial Thoughts by The Daydream Sound by The Daydream Sound

Roland MC 303 Groovebox Initial Thoughts by The Daydream Sound

The Daydream Sound

The Daydream Sound

Video thumbnail for Roland MC-303 Groovebox by tiergrinder

Roland MC-303 Groovebox

tiergrinder

tiergrinder

Reviews

PROS

  • Packed with vintage and iconic sounds like 808, 909 drum patches

  • Intuitive menu and easy to navigate after initial learning

  • Offers a broad palette for retro and contemporary music styles

  • High-quality effects surpassing those of competitors

  • Excellent arpeggiator for breaking out of rhythmic monotony

  • Versatile functionality, from drum machine to synthesizer

  • Affordable, offering great value for a range of sounds and features

  • Portable, allowing for music creation in various settings

  • Supports multilayered sound creation for complex arrangements

  • Stereo 1/4-inch outs ideal for DJ setups or standalone performances

CONS

  • Filters, while effective, are described as thin and could be improved

  • Manual time sync is cumbersome and outdated

  • Becomes obsolete quickly, though still holds nostalgic value

  • Sequencer is challenging and frustrating to use

  • Limited sound bank can constrain musical expression

  • Factory presets take up space, limiting user pattern storage

  • Designed with a focus on specific music styles, which may limit versatility

  • Lacks the option to save multi-presets, complicating workflow

Owner Insights

We analyzed real musician discussions from forums and Reddit to find what players love, question, and tweak about Roland MC-303 Groovebox.

Features and functionality

  • The MC-303's loop at the end of real-time recording is a unique feature that's less common in today's grooveboxes.

    Source
  • The MC-303 offers 16384 GM/classic samples with synth effects like LFO, filter, and envelope, along with classic Roland rhythm sounds (606, 808, 909).

    Source
  • Owners highlight the MC-303's ability to function as a sequencer with 8 tracks, despite lacking MIDI CC control changes for LFO, cutoff, and other parameters.

    Source
  • The MC-303's plate-style reverb is highly praised for its quality, offering a distinct sound that enhances its tonal palette.

    Source
  • The MC-303 relies on chaining loops together, with limited space for user-created loops, which can restrict creative flexibility.

    Source
  • The MC-303's sounds include a General MIDI set paired with the Techno Expansion board, offering a diverse range of '90s EDM and techno synth sounds.

    Source
  • To save a new tempo, hold SHIFT + FUNCTION, press 14 & Enter, then press 15 & Enter.

    Source

Mods and upgrades

  • The MC-303 can be set to send MIDI out to another synth on the same channel by using the Out Assign setting (SHIFT + Pad #14).

    Source

User experience

  • Some owners emphasize the MC-303's potential as a central piece in a MIDI setup due to its easy-to-operate sequencer and arpeggiator.

    Source
  • The user interface is considered complex and less intuitive, with significant menu diving required, impacting ease of use for sound design and sequencing.

    Source
  • Users report frustration with default BPM resetting to 120; workaround involves a specific button sequence to save desired tempo.

    Source

Comparisons

  • The MC-303 is often compared to the Quasimidi Rave-olution 309, which some feel delivered what the MC-303 should have achieved.

    Source
  • The MC-303's engine is based on the Roland JV-series, specifically noted for its 28-note polyphony, comparable to JV-880 capabilities but less than JV1080's 64 voices.

    Source

Use cases and applications

  • The MC-303 shines when used with external instruments set to different patches, notably enhancing its role in larger setups.

    Source
  • It's possible to create a full live set using the MC-303, as demonstrated by users who successfully perform without a DAW.

    Source

Setup and maintenance

  • Manually adjusting BPM is necessary after each restart unless the correct save process is followed.

    Source
Add

4.0 out of 5

Based on 13 Reviews and 71 Ratings

5 star
4 star
3 star
2 star
1 star
inaki_arrizabalaga_alunda

Great rompler.

Yes, this was my first groovebox, a kind of module with workstation functions in a box.

I use this machine to make rhythms, also to play 7 sounds at the same time for a multilayer result to play the same notes, I save these sounds as songs because it doesn't have the option to save multi-presets.

It has a drum section with 8 sounds and then it has 7 more tracks for bass keyboards and effects or percussion, 348 sounds in rom.

The machine has good FX quality, the filter is a bit thin, but it does its job well, it's not bad, but it could be improved.

Probably the rompler with roland's most famous sounds.

Preferred Settings + Usage:

drumkits section and FX

giorgiojannis

It was great, it is great

And I'm a proud owner of this first groovebox, since 1997. Acid samples, techno presets (perhaps too much) now outdated. But programming was a breeze, I had hundreds of hours of fun with this big little machine. Cut-off on every single track was a pleasure.

ecco_aqua

90s in a box

This thing is mad fun to program. all the sounds in it will take you back to the 90s. only real draw back is that its loaded with uneditable preset songs and only gives you 50 patterns to fill so 1 live performance routine is pretty much the extent of what can be held but that can be stretched thanks to the 8 parts per pattern

welchimusic

Iz OK

Somewhat limited sound bank, but for an analog step sequencer and and old schooly interface, not bad. Manual time sync sucks.

jesse_cian_fawcett

A fun piece of gear

I haven't gotten as much out of this unit as I'd like so far, but it's a fairly capable digital sampled synth with some analogue-modelling features. Combination drum machine and synthesizer, which is nice if you're short on mixer channels.

cos_mozz

Killer Bass

The best digital bass you can get for the price and the filters still sound fat

michael_barakat

really fun instrument

Making music is easy on this thing. cheap. sounds good. borderline hilarious. It's the year 2015... ditch your laptop and roll over to a party with one of these and you will get some serious attention.

qasio_christian

It's a very versatile machine due to its functions and sound bank

It's a very versatile machine due to its functions and sound bank, but at the same time very limited to certain styles of music.

This review has been translated automatically into English. See original
nitewurx

was mind blowing when it came out

became obsolete not long after but still a fav

Z

A fun piece of vintage gear with classic drum machine sounds

This is a fun piece of a gear. "Vintage" now... but still has that classic drum machine programming and sounds

Artist usage

Add artist
See how Koichi Fukuda uses Roland MC-303 Groovebox

Koichi Fukuda

Guitarist, Keyboardist

Static?X

...
Verified via YouTube

ulrich stated that the synths on wisconsin death trip where programmed by koichi on this groovebox which was purchased during pre production

See how Vladislav Delay uses Roland MC-303 Groovebox

Vladislav Delay

Music Producer

...
Verified via Trashaudio

In an interview with Trashaudio, Vladislav Delay mentions that the first piece of equipment he used was the Roland MC-303 Groovebox.

See how Pat Mastelotto uses Roland MC-303 Groovebox

Pat Mastelotto

Drummer

King Crimson

...
Verified via Patmastelotto

"The midi out of the TD10 and D Drum3, and Notron sequencer went into an MX8 midi patchbay, this allowed me the speed of direct analog input to the V & D brains, but the flexibility to route and merge anything via midi. Additional midi sound sources I used were the Alesis DM pro and an Emu Audity 2000 (the audity was never used on the record). I could also access my samplers, an old Kurzweil K2000 and a Roland S760, plus sounds in realtime from my beatboxs, an MC303 and a Tribe ER1. However for this Crim record no beatboxes were used. ProjeKct X is a different story....beatboxes survived!!!"

See how Leon Bolier uses Roland MC-303 Groovebox

Leon Bolier

Music Producer

...
Verified via EDM Charts

"Right now I am using Cubase 8 with a lot of plugins – somewhere in this studio I still have a Nord Rack 2x, Virus TI, Dave Smith Mopho, Roland MC303 etc laying around but I don’t really use those no more.."

See how Manuel Göttsching uses Roland MC-303 Groovebox

Manuel Göttsching

Guitarist, Keyboardist

Ashra

...
Verified via Ashra

In Manuel Göttsching's Studio Roma, the Roland MC-303 Groovebox is featured as part of his music production setup, as detailed on the Ashra website.

See how Martin Rushent uses Roland MC-303 Groovebox

Martin Rushent

Music Producer

The Human League

...
Verified via Soundonsound

A Roland MC-303 can be seen in Martin's studio (fourth photo).

See how The Magician uses Roland MC-303 Groovebox

The Magician

Music Producer, DJ

...
Verified via Photo

This item can be seen in this Instagram picture, uploaded by The Magician himself.

See how David Gray uses Roland MC-303 Groovebox

David Gray

Singer, Guitarist

The Venus in Furs

...
Verified via Google Books

David Gray: A Biography - Google Books Result https://books.google.com/books?isbn=0857120522 Michael Heatley - 2009 - ?Music

Babylon's bass line, taken off a Roland MC303 groovebox, was also simplified in the verse, allowing a shift from rhythm to melody. “It becomes more light-hearted,” explained engineer Polson, adding “It's nice to have some musical relief after the chorus has been banging away.” If old-time David Gray fans were looking for a ..

Also:

https://www.mixonline.com/recording/david-gray-375552 The “drawing board” consisted of Gray's electric and acoustic guitars (Martin, Lauden and Gibson), an Electro-Voice D257 microphone, a 4-track, an Akai S3000 sampler and a Roland Groovebox synth. (“About half the sounds on the album come from the Groovebox,” Gray explains.) Without a recording contract or a proper studio, Gray and his drummer and sometime bassist Clune began “messing around,” without any intention of making an album. “I was writing a lot of stuff, all kind of miserable, trying to get something going again, trying to find out what I was doing,” he says.

See how Redman uses Roland MC-303 Groovebox

Redman

Rapper

Method Man & Redman

...
Verified via YouTube

The Roland MC-303 Groovebox is confirmed to be part of Redman's home studio setup, as seen at the 2:21 mark in his MTV Cribs episode titled "Redman's Staten Island 'De La Casa'" from 2001, provided by MTV Vault on YouTube.

See how Ulrich Wild uses Roland MC-303 Groovebox

Ulrich Wild

Music Producer, Audio Engineer

Deftones

...
Verified via YouTube

In a video titled Static-X "Push It": Inside the Song w/ Ulrich Wild - Warren Huart: Produce Like A Pro on YouTube, at the 25:20 mark, Ulrich Wild, a music producer, mentions using the Roland MC-303 Groovebox, which was brought to the studio by one of Static-X's guitarists, Koichi Fukuda, during the production of the track "Push It".

See how Eric Persing uses Roland MC-303 Groovebox

Eric Persing

Keyboardist, Composer

...
Verified via Spectrasonics

Eric Persing has had a unique and influential relationship with Roland Corp for two decades. He started as a product demonstrator in 1984, showing some of Roland's first MIDI instruments. He quickly became involved in the R&D side with Roland Japan, earning the title "Chief Sound Designer", and began contributing his design ideas, real-world studio experience and sound design expertise. Persing's skills have left their mark on countless classic Roland instruments.

He is the originator of many legendary Roland sounds that have become part of the vocabulary and lexicon of musical sound. These include the Factory D-50 sounds such as Fantasia, Soundtrack and Digital Native Dance, a majority of the JV/XP/XV series Classics, all the Factory JD-800 sounds, the original Juno "Hoover" sound and thousands of others.

Here is a partial list of the Roland instruments that Eric has contributed his sound design, sampling and design consulting skills:

Juno-106 Alpha Juno 1&2 JX-3P JX-8P JX-10 Jupiter 6 Super Jupiter D-50 D-550 D-110 D-10 D-20 D-70 MT-32 U-110 U-20 U-220 Sound Canvas JD-800 JD-990 JV-80 JV-90 JV-1000 JV-1080 JV-2080 XP-10 XP-50 XP-60 XP-80 XV-3080 XV-5050 XV-5080 Fantom JP-8000 JP-8080 S-10 S-220 S-50 S-550 S-770 S-760 S-750 MC-303 MC-500 MC-505 VP-9000 MSQ-700 MSQ-100 MKS-20 MKS-30 MKS-50 MKS-70 MKS-80 R-8 R-5 DR-660 DR-770 R-70 V-Drums V-Drums expansion board SRV-2000 DEP-5 RSP-550 R-880 SRV-330 SE-50 SE-70 VS-880 VS-1680 SR-JV series expansion boards SRX series expansion boards Sound Canvas Project series CD-ROM libraries Archives series CD-ROM libraries Composers series CD-ROM libraries

See how Kelly Bailey uses Roland MC-303 Groovebox

Kelly Bailey

Composer, Music Producer

...
Verified

"I do almost all of my music work out of my studio at home. Ok, here goes: I use a pair of Adats, a Soundcraft Ghost for mixing, a bunch of outboard Symetrix and Lexicon processors for dynamics and effects, and an Eventide Ultraharmonizer DSP4000 for pre/post processing and vocal effects. For keyboards I use a mix of older and newer stuff. I have an old Prophet 5, a Casio FZ-1, a Roland MKS-50 with a programmer and an Oberheim Matrix 6. For newer gear, the Roland JP-8000, MC303, and the Novation BassStation are nice for creating new sounds quickly. I also have a little Korg 01/wR with a software programmer that can be coaxed into making some fat sounds (no analog filter tho). I'm pretty religious about not using presets, so I really favor the more programmable synths.

A lot of the recording and arrangement happens inside a PC; I run Logic Audio 2.5 for digital recording, post-processing and midi arrangement. I use an Audiomedia III card for digital transfers to and from a Tascam DA-30 dat. For guitar I use my trusty Les Paul through a Marshall half-stack, with an Oberheim Echoplex on the fx loop. "

Genre Usage

Based on how artists on Equipboard use this gear, it is most commonly found in the following genres.

Used With

Based on how musicians on Equipboard use Roland MC-303 Groovebox, it is most commonly used with the following gear.

Community setups

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keyhead

keyhead

Gear IQ 126

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dylan_a_santos

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Gear IQ 56

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