Vinyl Sim

If only we knew who programmed the DSP on the Roland SP-303. One day we’ll find out. One day we’ll meet them, shake their hands, and conduct a brief interview. Some questions we have in mind:

• Can you remember who programmed the 303’s fabled “Vinyl Sim” mode?
• Are you aware of just how bizarre that Vinyl Sim compression algorithm is?
• Did you know that Vinyl Sim’s huge, gritty sound defined the production techniques of a whole generation of beatmakers? J Dilla, Flying Lotus, Madlib, Madvillainy, etc.
• Have you seen this video of Madlib in 2007?

• Did you hear how the snare changes completely in the last 10 seconds of that clip?

It’s more than a coincidence that our Vulf Compressor does similar things to snares. And basses. And keyboards. Whole tracks, really. We can’t get enough of using VC on a good drum loop — before & after. An extreme example, true. Here’s something more restrained: VC on the intro to Vulfpeck’s “Cars Too.”

But we should be clear: Vinyl Sim does about 10% of what Vulf Compressor can do; Vulf Compressor was inspired by the work of engineers who, around the turn of the century, seemed to have happened upon (intentionally?) one of the strangest, vibiest compression algorithms known to man.

So pick up a copy of Vulf Compressor today. Then you won’t have to spend time scouring eBay for a used 303 that still works.