Global InformationLinn 9000 information
| Linn 9000 | |
|---|---|
 Linn 9000 integrated digital drum machine and MIDI keyboard recorder. | |
| Manufacturer | Linn Electronics |
| Dates | 1984-1986 |
| Price | $5,000 US ($7,000 fully expanded) |
| Technical specifications | |
| Polyphony | polyphonic 13 voices |
| Timbrality | multitimbral 18 voices |
| Synthesis type | 8 bit Digital Samples / 11 kHz - 37kHz |
| Storage memory | 100 Drum Sequences, 100 MIDI Sequences - 10,490 notes |
| Effects | Individual level, pan, tuning for all sounds |
| Input/output | |
| Keyboard | 18 large (1.25 inch square) velocity and pressure sensitive rubber pads |
| External control | MIDI In, out and thru, Foot Switch x2, Foot Controller x1 (hi-hat), Sync Tone In/Out, trigger outputs x2, trigger inputs x6 |
The Linn 9000 is an electronic musical instrument manufactured by Linn Electronics as the successor to the LinnDrum. It was introduced in 1984 at a list price of $5,000, ($7,000 fully expanded) and about 1100 units were produced.[1]
It combined MIDI sequencing and audio sampling (optional) with a set of 18 velocity and pressure sensitive performance pads, to produce an instrument optimized for use as a drum machine. It featured programmable hi-hat decay, 18 digital drum sounds, a mixer section, 18 individual 1/4" outputs, an LCD display, 6 external trigger inputs and an internal floppy disk drive (optional).[2] The Linn 9000 had innovative and groundbreaking features[3] and would influence many future drum machine designs.[4] But chronic software bugs[5][6] led to a reputation for unreliability and contributed to the eventual demise of Linn Electronics.[7][8]
The Linn 9000 was used on many recordings throughout the 1980s, including international hits such as The Pointer Sisters' "Automatic", Divine's "You Think You're a Man", "Give It Up", "I'm So Beautiful", "Show Me Around" and "T Shirts and Tight Blue Jeans" and Rick Astley's "Together Forever".
The Linn 9000 would get a new lease on life when Forat Music and Electronics purchased Linn's remaining assets,[9] fixed all of the bugs,[10] added new features[11] and dubbed it the Forat F9000.
- ^ "Past Products Museum". Roger Linn Design.
- ^ "Specifications". Total Trash. The Linn 9000 Home Page.
- ^ "...the Linn 9000 remains one of the true innovative designs of it's [sic] decade". Total Trash. The Linn 9000 Home Page.
- ^ "Brothers, Sisters, and Cousins: Similar Drum Machines". Total Trash. The Linn 9000 Home Page.
- ^ "...but bugged by many OS troubles and technical issues". Polynominal.
- ^ "...it was plagued with operating system bugs..." Total Trash. The Linn 9000 Home Page.
- ^ Linn, Roger. "What Happened to The Linn 9000". Bobby Nathan's Keyboard Magazine. Archived from the original on 2015-01-08. Retrieved 2015-01-29.
What happened? We simply ran out of money and were unable to get more. Why? There were a number of reasons. The 9000 had technical problems early on and was expensive to re-engineer, manufacturer and service; we had strong competition; we had no investment financing; and we were experiencing all the classic 'growing pains' of a new business.
- ^ "one the most unreliable and buggy machine ever made, in fact this ground-breaking and expensive project bankrupted the Linn company". Polynominal.
- ^ "Then in 1986 Forat Electronics Corporation was born after purchasing Linn's remaining assets..." Forat Electronics - History.
- ^ "In the F-9000, all old software bugs of the old Linn 9000 are fixed,..." Vintage Synth Explorer.
- ^ "They [Forat Electronics] have since re-invented the Linn 9000 themselves and released the Forat F9000". Vintage Synth Explorer.