BOSS DR-110 Dr. Rhythm Graphic (1983)

The Boss Doctor Rhythm DR-110 Graphic is a drum machine, produced by the Boss product division of the Japanese Roland Corporation in 1983.

Boss were better known for producing electric guitar accessories such as effects pedals, and the DR-110 is similarly small and lightweight in size (190×110×30mm, and only 450g), and like most Boss equipment, could be run from a 9V d.c. supply or batteries. In 1980, Roland introduced their first simple and affordable drum machine to bear the BOSS Dr. Rhythm brand, the DR-55, offering four sounds, an Accent and a limited number of programmable patterns. It was followed by the Dr. Rhythm Graphic (DR-110) in 1983, which offers a wider selection of sounds, preset patterns, an increased number of programmable patterns and the ability to chain patterns together to form songs. The simple step programming of the first Dr. Rhythm, with alternating button presses for notes and rests, is augmented by an LCD with a grid showing the individual notes in the current pattern. In addition to step programming there is also a "tap write" programming mode, albeit without a metronome click for timekeeping.

The sounds are Kick, Snare, Closed Hi-Hat, Open Hi-Hat, Cymbal and Clap. The sounds are totally analog, and sound crisp and punchy, thanks to tone generation circuitry that is more sophisticated than the Roland TR-606 Drumatix. A balance knob alters the level of the Kick, Snare and Clap relative to the other sounds, while an accent knob controls the amount of emphasis applied to accented steps. There is also a volume knob, which controls the overall level of both the main and headphone outputs. The main output is mono, but has an unusual feature whereby plugging in a suitable wired lead with a stereo jack plug allows for the feeding in of another signal to be mixed with the drum sounds. Another socket provides for a trigger signal, emitting a pulse for every accented step in a pattern.

The patterns are organized into four banks of eight patterns each. Banks C and D are the presets, while banks A and B are programmable. Each pattern can be switched between 12 or 16 steps, for a 3/4 or 4/4 time signature. Two songs can be programmed, each containing a maximum of 128 bars.

At the time of writing, the Dr. Rhythm Graphic is relatively affordable compared to similar machines such as the  Roland TR-606 Drumatix, and are usually found in good condition thanks to the padded carry case that they came with. On the downside, there are no outputs or tone controls for the individual sounds, but a number of well documented modifications can be found on the Internet that add these features.

White Star (D/1983)

Der abgehalfterte Musikmanager Ken Barlow im Berlin der frühen Achtziger war einmal ein erfolgreicher Rock-Tourmanager, doch seine Glanzzeit ist längst vorüber. Als letzte Chance will er den mittelmäßigen Musiker Moody und dessen Album White Star in die Charts pushen und bedient sich dazu immer ausgefallener Methoden, als der Erfolg ausbleibt. Für den eher farblosen und willensschwachen Musiker versucht Barlow, seine alten Kontakte im Musikbusiness zu nutzen und dringt mehrmals in die Zentrale der großen Plattenfirma Eurosound ein, doch am Ende wimmelt man ihn ab. Als allerletztes Mittel bleibt Barlow nur noch die Inszenierung eines Attentates auf Moody, um ihn in die Zeitungen zu bringen und damit den erhofften Albumumsatz zu erzielen.

Roland Klick (u.a. "Deadlock", 1970) drehte mit Dennis Hopper in englischer Sprache und ließ ihn dann deutsch nachsynchronisieren (mit der Stimme des bekannten deutschen Synchronsprechers Christian Brückner). Hopper selbst war in einem Zustand, der aufgrund seines exzessiven Kokainkonsums kaum Möglichkeiten für lange Dreharbeiten ließ. Außerdem kam es am Set zu Vorkommnissen wie einem Autounfall, bei dem Hopper Roland Klick über den Fuß fuhr. Die Dreharbeiten ziehen sich über zwei Jahre hin, am Ende konnte nur ein Teil des Drehplans realisiert werden. Der Regisseur und Kameramann Jürgen Jürges versuchten, nachdem mit Dennis Hopper nur eine Folge explosiver und kaum ruhiger Szenen gedreht werden konnten, im nachhinein noch durch Aufnahmen von Westberlin, vor allem bei Nacht, den Film zu retten. Trotzdem macht der Film einen fragmentarischen und eher seltsamen Eindruck, grossartig ist aber Hoppers überaus starke Performance, die sehr persönliche Züge trägt.

WHITE STAR (1983) 92 Min.

incl. KORG PE-2000, ELKA Rhapsody, PPG Modular , Oberheim OB-X

LISA (1983)

While the documentation shipped with the original Lisa only ever referred to it as The Lisa, officially, Apple stated that the name was an acronym for Local Integrated Software Architecture or "LISA". Since Steve Jobs' first daughter (born in 1978) was named Lisa Jobs, it is normally inferred that the name also had a personal association, and perhaps that the acronym was invented later to fit the name.

Lisa was a major project at Apple, and with more than 90 people participated on the design, with more on the sales and marketing effort to launch the machine. The project began in 1978 as an effort to create a more modern version of the then-conventional design epitomized by the Apple II.
Apple's Lisa was first introduced on January 19, 1983, at a cost of $ 9,995,– ($ 21,693,– in 2009).

The Apple Lisa was a commercial failure for Apple. The intended business customers balked at Lisa's high price and largely opted to run less expensive IBM PCs, which were already beginning to dominate business desktop computing. The largest Lisa customer was NASA, which used LisaProject for project management and was eventually faced with significant problems when the Lisa was discontinued.
In 1989, Apple disposed of approximately 2,700 unsold Lisas in a guarded landfill in Logan, Utah, in order to receive a tax write-off on the unsold inventory. Working Lisa's are now fairly valuable collectors items, for which people will pay hundreds or even thousands of dollars.