In classic EDM production the TR-808 supplies the drums and the TB-303 supplies the bassline

Two Roland machines anchor the classic house/acid/techno sound and are the starter instruments in this beginner songwriting lesson: the TR-808 drum machine, used to program the kick/snare/hi-hat beat, and the TB-303 bass synthesizer (the source page mislabels it ‘TR-303’), used to generate the bassline groove. Free emulators of both are widely available. The lesson pairs them as a first production exercise — make a beat on the 808, a bass groove on the 303, then record the result. This is an orientation-level division of labour, not a claim that these two boxes alone define all EDM.

Examples

Supplement lesson objectives: ‘create a beat using a drum machine like a TR-808 emulator’; ‘create a short instrumental song using a groove from the TB-303 synthesizer emulator.‘

Assessment

State which instrument (TR-808 vs TB-303) you would reach for to program a kick pattern and which for a bassline.