Moby

The construction of 'Why Does My Heart Feel So Bad?' started with the vocals, which Moby had sampled three years earlier from a recording of a 1953 gospel choir. Once safe in the memory of Moby's sampler, in this case an Akai 3200

Following the piano chords, Moby introduced the main drum part, programmed on a Roland TR909. To complement the drums a sampled breakbeat taken from a hip-hop record was laid on top, with its tempo adjusted to suit the song's rhythm. Moby: "I never time-stretch really. I don't care about changing the pitch. If I have a drum sample and want it to be a little bit faster, I just speed it up and sacrifice the original pitch. I've never understood why people worry so much about maintaining the original pitch. If you slow it down the pitch gets lower, if you speed it up the pitch gets higher -- big deal!"

In the title of this video, Moby says the Roland CR-78 is the "best drum machine".

"...The item can be seen 4:15 into this video..."

"...The item can be seen 5:22 into this video..."

As I browsed through the sleeve notes on Moby's albums I noticed that the gear lists documented in the 1995 release Everything Is Wrong are almost identical to his current setup. Could it really be possible that this successful musician had no spare cash to spend on new studio gear during the last four years? "From Everything Is Wrong until now I've bought a vocoder and a new sampler and that's about it. On the one hand I'd love to get a bunch of new equipment, but on the other hand there's something to be said for working with equipment with which I'm comfortable. I'm thinking that at some point I will actually switch over and get a full Pro Tools setup and start doing things more in the computer, but for this record I didn't feel compelled to do that."

MOBY GEAR Apple Mac running Steinberg Cubase sequencer. Soundcraft Spirit 24:8:2 desk. Alesis ADAT digital multitracks.

SAMPLERS Akai S950. Akai S1000. Akai S3000. Akai S3200.

SYNTHS/KEYBOARDS Casio CZ101. Emu Proformance piano module. Oberheim Matrix 1000. Roland Juno 106. Roland Jupiter 6. Serge Modular Synth. Waldorf Pulse Plus. Yamaha SY22. Yamaha SY35. Yamaha SY85.

PROCESSORS Dbx 160XT Compressor. Eventide DSP4000. Soundlab Vocoder. Yamaha SPX900.

SEQUENCERS & DRUM MACHINES Roland TB303. Roland TR606. Roland TR909. Roland TR808.

OTHER EQUIPMENT Hafler Pro 5000 Power Amp. Technics 1200 turntables. Ibanez Electric Guitar. Fender Precision Bass.

In a user-uploaded photo from Futurecdn, Moby can be seen with a Roland XV-5080 sound module, highlighting its role in his setup.

In a user-uploaded photo on Futurecdn, Moby is seen with an Akai S3000XL, highlighting its role in his DJ gear collection.

A unit branded under Ampeg, an AR-1, was sold on Reverb.com in 2018 for charity.

This Ampeg AR-1 Rhythm Ace is part of the private legendary drum machine collection of Moby.

Vintage Ampeg Ar-1 Rhythm Ace drum machine. Great vintage sound with multiple buttons (Tomtom 1, Tomtom 2, Wood Block, Claves, Maracas, and Cymbol) and very simple installation you could create a unique original vintage sound.

Unit makes sound, but is not functioning correctly. Sold As-Is.

All items in Moby's Drum Machine Collection ship fully insured with delivery confirmation and include a signed and embossed Certificate Of Authenticity from Moby

In this photo posted by Moby on Instagram, you can see the main portion of his home studio setup. On his desk you can see the primary midi controller keyboard he uses, the M-Audio Axiom Pro 61. In the Instagram he says, "It's 95 degrees outside so I'm inside writing new wave songs."

Everything Is Right
As I browsed through the sleeve notes on Moby's albums I noticed that the gear lists documented in the 1995 release Everything Is Wrong are almost identical to his current setup. Could it really be possible that this successful musician had no spare cash to spend on new studio gear during the last four years? "From Everything Is Wrong until now I've bought a vocoder and a new sampler and that's about it. On the one hand I'd love to get a bunch of new equipment, but on the other hand there's something to be said for working with equipment with which I'm comfortable. I'm thinking that at some point I will actually switch over and get a full Pro Tools setup and start doing things more in the computer, but for this record I didn't feel compelled to do that."

MOBY GEAR Apple Mac running Steinberg Cubase sequencer. Soundcraft Spirit 24:8:2 desk. Alesis ADAT digital multitracks.

SAMPLERS Akai S950. Akai S1000. Akai S3000. Akai S3200.

SYNTHS/KEYBOARDS Casio CZ101. Emu Proformance piano module. Oberheim Matrix 1000. Roland Juno 106. Roland Jupiter 6. Serge Modular Synth. Waldorf Pulse Plus. Yamaha SY22. Yamaha SY35. Yamaha SY85.

PROCESSORS Dbx 160XT Compressor. Eventide DSP4000. Soundlab Vocoder. Yamaha SPX900.

SEQUENCERS & DRUM MACHINES Roland TB303. Roland TR606. Roland TR909. Roland TR808.

OTHER EQUIPMENT Hafler Pro 5000 Power Amp. Technics 1200 turntables. Ibanez Electric Guitar. Fender Precision Bass.

"...The item can be seen 6:48 into this video..."

Shown up close in this video at 10:39. It was later sold on Reverb.com in 2018 for charity.

This Korg MiniPops SR-120 is part of the private legendary drum machine collection of Moby.

The Korg Mini-Pops 120, also rebranded as the Univox SR-120, was the top-of-the-line Mini Pops model produced, with more features and presets than other drum machines from this series, such as the Mini Pops Junior and 35. It comes in two cabinet styles, a tolex road case or a wooden chassis. Apart from their appearance, both units are identical in every other aspect.

Serial: 790567. China/Aus power cable. Currently unable to test. US buyers be advised. Sold As-Is.

All items in Moby's Drum Machine Collection ship fully insured with delivery confirmation and include a signed and embossed Certificate Of Authenticity from Moby

PROCESSORS Dbx 160XT Compressor. Eventide DSP4000. Soundlab Vocoder. Yamaha SPX900.

"...The item can be seen 0:54 into this video..."x2

"...The item can be seen 2:33 into this video..."

As I browsed through the sleeve notes on Moby's albums I noticed that the gear lists documented in the 1995 release Everything Is Wrong are almost identical to his current setup. Could it really be possible that this successful musician had no spare cash to spend on new studio gear during the last four years? "From Everything Is Wrong until now I've bought a vocoder and a new sampler and that's about it. On the one hand I'd love to get a bunch of new equipment, but on the other hand there's something to be said for working with equipment with which I'm comfortable. I'm thinking that at some point I will actually switch over and get a full Pro Tools setup and start doing things more in the computer, but for this record I didn't feel compelled to do that."

MOBY GEAR Apple Mac running Steinberg Cubase sequencer. Soundcraft Spirit 24:8:2 desk. Alesis ADAT digital multitracks.

SAMPLERS Akai S950. Akai S1000. Akai S3000. Akai S3200.

SYNTHS/KEYBOARDS Casio CZ101. Emu Proformance piano module. Oberheim Matrix 1000. Roland Juno 106. Roland Jupiter 6. Serge Modular Synth. Waldorf Pulse Plus. Yamaha SY22. Yamaha SY35. Yamaha SY85.

PROCESSORS Dbx 160XT Compressor. Eventide DSP4000. Soundlab Vocoder. Yamaha SPX900.

SEQUENCERS & DRUM MACHINES Roland TB303. Roland TR606. Roland TR909. Roland TR808.

OTHER EQUIPMENT Hafler Pro 5000 Power Amp. Technics 1200 turntables. Ibanez Electric Guitar. Fender Precision Bass.

You can see the Apple Keyboard with Numeric Keypad on Moby's desk in this video

Sold on Reverb.com in 2018 for charity.

This Chamberlin Rhythmate is part of the private legendary drum machine collection of Moby.

The Chamberlin Rhythmate has been touted as the first drum machine ever produced in numbers. It's estimated that only ten were made by Harry Chamberlin in his garage back in 1949.

The Rhythmate uses a 1" magnetic tape loop read by a tape head that can be moved up or down to play back 14 separate drum patterns at a variety of speeds.

The Rhythmate has a built-in amp and 12" speaker. Essentially a tube amp.

Serial: 1176. Unit works! Preset 3 doesn’t make sound. Tempo knob has been snapped, but it still there and still works. Sold As-Is.

All items in Moby's Drum Machine Collection ship fully insured with delivery confirmation and include a signed and embossed Certificate Of Authenticity from Moby

Sold for charity on Moby’s Reverb shop in 2018.

This Shure Reverberation Mixer is part of the private collection of Moby.

Shure's M68RM Reverberation Mixer is a 1960's 4 channel analog mic preamp with Spring Reverb.

This is a nice vintage transistorized piece of gear, built to solid 1960's pro/commercial audio specs in the USA.

All items in Moby's Collection ship fully insured with delivery confirmation and include a signed and embossed Certificate Of Authenticity from Moby

A unit branded under Multivox was sold via Reverb.com in 2018 for charity.

This Multivox FR8L Rhythm Ace is part of the private legendary drum machine collection of Moby.

Vintage Analog preset drum machine, it sounds similar to more famous ROLAND TR-55. Later ACE TONE society became part of the ROLAND group.

Serial: 8-00442. Non functioning. Sold As-Is.

All items in Moby's Drum Machine Collection ship fully insured with delivery confirmation and include a signed and embossed Certificate Of Authenticity from Moby

Sold on Reverb.com in 2018 for charity.

This Ace Tone Rhythm Ace FR-20 Standing Drum Machine is part of the private legendary drum machine collection of Moby.

The Ace Tone FR-20 was released in 1966 and was a stand alone floor unit that the user controlled from it's top panel. It was similar to the FR-L products with 4 drum instruments and only 12 preset pattern buttons and 4 cancel buttons.

The user could still combine multiple patterns for up to 200 variations.

Unit works but but also has a constant pulsating sound. Sold As-Is.

All items in Moby's Drum Machine Collection ship fully insured with delivery confirmation and include a signed and embossed Certificate Of Authenticity from Moby

Sold on Reverb.com in 2018 for charity.

This Welson Super-Matic S12 is part of the private legendary drum machine collection of Moby.

Vintage analog drum machine with preset pattern rhythms and simple trigger pads.

No serial information. EU power chord. 220v. Buyer be advised. Sold As-Is.

All items in Moby's Drum Machine Collection ship fully insured with delivery confirmation and include a signed and embossed Certificate Of Authenticity from Moby

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In a photo of Moby's workspace, a Linn Electronics LinnDrum is prominently featured, indicating its place in his collection of drum machines.

In an article from Soundonsound discussing the recording of "Why Does My Heart Feel So Bad?" by Moby, it is noted that Moby's gear setup includes the Roland TR-808 Rhythm Composer. This drum machine is part of his extensive collection of sequencers and drum machines, highlighting its role in his creative process.

"...The item can be seen 2:37 into this video..."

As I browsed through the sleeve notes on Moby's albums I noticed that the gear lists documented in the 1995 release Everything Is Wrong are almost identical to his current setup. Could it really be possible that this successful musician had no spare cash to spend on new studio gear during the last four years? "From Everything Is Wrong until now I've bought a vocoder and a new sampler and that's about it. On the one hand I'd love to get a bunch of new equipment, but on the other hand there's something to be said for working with equipment with which I'm comfortable. I'm thinking that at some point I will actually switch over and get a full Pro Tools setup and start doing things more in the computer, but for this record I didn't feel compelled to do that."

MOBY GEAR Apple Mac running Steinberg Cubase sequencer. Soundcraft Spirit 24:8:2 desk. Alesis ADAT digital multitracks.

SAMPLERS Akai S950. Akai S1000. Akai S3000. Akai S3200.

SYNTHS/KEYBOARDS Casio CZ101. Emu Proformance piano module. Oberheim Matrix 1000. Roland Juno 106. Roland Jupiter 6. Serge Modular Synth. Waldorf Pulse Plus. Yamaha SY22. Yamaha SY35. Yamaha SY85.

PROCESSORS Dbx 160XT Compressor. Eventide DSP4000. Soundlab Vocoder. Yamaha SPX900.

SEQUENCERS & DRUM MACHINES Roland TB303. Roland TR606. Roland TR909. Roland TR808.

OTHER EQUIPMENT Hafler Pro 5000 Power Amp. Technics 1200 turntables. Ibanez Electric Guitar. Fender Precision Bass.