Beat Thang rhythm generator now out at Best Buy
updated 09:30 pm EDT, Tue July 19, 2011
3,000 original sounds, 65 effects in one box
R&B and hip-hop producer Dallas Austin and his Rowdy Electronics store have teamed up with Nashville-based hip-hop artist Aja Emmanuel to produce what he calls "the music machine of the future," dubbed the Beat Thang. Loaded with over 3,000 original sounds, hundreds of pre-existing loops, patterns and beats and sporting 65 digital effects along with sampling, editing and mixing capability, the unit offers keyboard-based music making on an impressive scale.
The Beat Thang is exclusively available from Best Buy, and features a 3.5-inch color video LCD screen to allow for easy customization and compatibility with Macs and PCs alike. The unit has already won raves from high-profile artists such as P. Diddy, will.i.am and legendary producer and American Idol musical director Jimmy Iovine.
Not only does the unit come crammed with pre-made sounds and the ability to record new ones (uses SD cards for storage), but users can reverse, reverb, delay, filter, compress and adjust the EQ among many other manipulations.
The Beat Thang weighs about the same as a laptop and features a rechargeable battery for use almost anywhere, but is only available as a limited edition of 1,000 units at present. The machine will retail for $1,500. A "virtual" version (software only) will eventually be released and retail for $100 (does not include the large sample library).
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Joined: Jul 2011
$1500? YGKM
For less than 600 you can get native instruments "the machine" and a traktor x1 controler and use the extra for a cheapy keyboard, all with midi and be decked out to make music. So they're saying another 900 and you get portability? HA! I'm pretty sure the electronics in there aren't more than $200 wholesale.