Review: Roland TR-06

After Roland initially focused on scaled-down replicas of legendary polyphonic synthesizers like the Jupiter-8 and Juno-106 in the Boutique series, the first handbag-sized drum machine appeared in 2016 with the reissue of the techno classic TR-909, closely followed by the TR-808. With some time to spare, Roland has now also shrunk the TR-606 to boutique size. This might also be due to the revival of the legendary bassline triggered by Behringer‘s TD-3. After all, the TR-606 has always been a popular playing partner of the TB-303. On the other hand, Behringer also offers a replica at a very reasonable price with the TD-6, against which Roland‘s TR-06 has to compete.

Detailed Replica

Unlike Behringer‘s TD-6, Roland‘s TR-06 operates purely digitally. As with the other boutique devices (with the exception of the SE02), Roland makes use of Analog Circuit Behavior technology (ACB), which promises a faithful reproduction of analog circuits. In terms of external design, the TR-06 is basically a scaled-down version of the TR-606. Measuring 308 x 130 x 52 mm and weighing just over a kilogram (including dock and batteries), the small