With more and more computer based pieces of gear finding their way into the studio, it's time that manufacturers took a serious look at the user friendliness aspect of their designs. One area in which difficulty is often experienced is in the programming of drum machines and in particular, the chaining of sequences to make a song. That this process can be made far more logical is evident when you examine some of the home computer-based rhythm sequencers which utilise the greater display area of the TV screen to good effect. Take for example the MPC Programmer 8: this system allocates a number or letter to each bar or sequence of bars that you have programmed and these are then simply typed onto the screen in the order in which you would like them to play, with repeats being inserted at the appropriate points. This has the advantage that you can assemble a verse from the basic patterns and then give the whole verse a single character identity. If you make a mistake, you can insert or delete patterns using the cursor controls and you can see everything that you have done at all times rather than having to step through endless bars looking for an error. Once the verses, bridges and choruses etc are assembled, these themselves can be assembled in order, again with repeats where necessary, to form a complete song.

This procedure is far more in keeping with the mental processes that the musician employs to arrange a song in the first place, so why confuse the issue with endless button pushing rituals that detract from the creativity of the artiste?

With the advent of inexpensive LCD displays, there is absolutely no reason why a matrix display should not be employed to give this ease of operation to dedicated drum machines rather than just add-on sequencers, and so the musician who is currently refraining from embracing this new technology solely due to its daunting operating procedure will be able to make full use of such a system. Furthermore, the people already using drum machines will have their job simplified so that they can put more effort in to being creative.