Help neede with Quasimidi - Raveolution 309

[michael00elder]

I saw there was a couple of post's on the forum regarding the Qasimidi Raveolution 309 and I take it there are a couple of owners on the Blackout so I just wondered if anyone could help us.

I just got one secondhand off Ebay and it's got all 3 expansion cards fitted, so it's supposed to have 3 Bass/Lead synths from mucking about on it so far, I just can't seem to get a 2nd or 3rd synth to work. The manuals pretty sh*t and I haven't tried using the thing with my controller keyboard yet, which it says you can use to program the second synth on Channel 6, but I'm just wanting to use the 309's sequencer to program the synth.
The manual for the synth expansion card is pretty vague, like I'm sure you'll know if you own one, but it seems to imply that if you use the 309's menu to change the settings from using an external input to one of the machines internal waveforms, then all you have to do is change the source to BASS, so when I go to record the 2nd synth, I'm expecting to see the step recorder like I do with the normal BASS part, but intead of this, it goes to the DRUM GRID editor (whcih is obviously no use for a bass or lead part.
THEN, the machine just locks up and nothing will unfreeze it!!!! All I can do is switch it off and on again!! It's doing my nut in!!!!!!!!!!!!

I've read reviews of it which seem to imply that other owners have experienced problems with the 2nd/3rd Bass/Lead part but surely there is some way of getting the thing to work. Incidentally, the machine is on OS 2, whcich at least sounds a bit more reliable than OS1.

Any one got any ideas????

[judas_beast]

No ideas, I'm afraid. But I've been offered a 309 dirt cheap (a ton). What are the sounds like? Not too dated? I might go for it. Maybe I'll be able to figure it out an let you know!!! ;)

Good luck!

[Jay Pace]

I love my 309.

Not used it for years though, and then a mate borrowed it and never gave it back.

Lovely sound quality, perhaps a little dated.

Great fun though.

[michael00elder]

In answer to the first post, if you've got the chance of getting a 309 for £100 Judas Beast, I would definately say buy the f**ker, even though I've only been using mine for a few days so far. (especially if it has the 3 expansion cards fitted)
I paid "230 and I suppose I could have got one for quite a bit less, but the guy I got it from had 250 ratings and 100% positive feedback, so I reckoned he was quite kosher. I'm always paranoid about buying stuff off Ebay, so I'd rather pay a wee bit extra and have a bit more peace of mind!!!!!!

As far as the machine goes, one of the reasons I wanted one was that I'd been thinking of getting something like an Electribe or a Roland MC-505, cause the programming of percussion is probably the one part of production that I struggle with the most. It just doesn't come intuitively to me and I don't like using pre made loops, so I thought it was worth spending a small amount on something like the 309 to experiment with and muck about with, although hopefully, I will get a lot of use of it with my setup. I suppose you could say it sounds a wee bit dated, I suppose it's quite and old machine, but it's not like I'm ever gonna get fed up of listening to 909 Kicks etc. It is quite banging and I always fee l that hardware just seems to sound fatter than VST's but I don't know if that's just psychological!!!!!
As for the other sounds, I suppose you might get bored with it eventually with it having limited sounds and no sampler, but it's just so tweakable, I love it already.

Buy it!!!!

[RDR]

the 309 is a good machine1 i used to own one.. long ago.

If you have the manual.. you could make a profit and scan it and sell copies on ebay, the firm went bust long ago and there is a demand for the manual.