Description
In excellent used condition with minimal rack rash. Supplied in the original packing with the original owners manual. Tested & working 100%. Photos show the MS-404 for sale
The Roland TB-303 is a legendary monophonic synth famous for funky bass lines and squelchy filter noises. German synth wizards Doepfer took the TB-303 and created their own version / tribute / clone, the MS-404. It has CV and gate inputs for use with older synths and modular systems plus a full MIDI implementation, making it eminently useable in a modern synth rig. It also has an audio input to feed external audio through the filter section
Doepfer built around three thousand MS-404s before retiring the synth so it’s relatively rare. It enjoys a good reputation due to the sound and great build quality. The casework on this model is well made and the front panel is unusually thick
According to VintageSynth.com:
“The Doepfer MS-404 is basically a TB-303 emulator. It’s analog, monophonic, has a nice 24dB/oct VCF (filter), a simple envelope and the bonus of two LFOs. As with any 303 emulator, the MS-404 has the typical 303 controls you would expect for the filter and envelope. However the two added LFOs add a whole new dimension to the 303 sound. This is because they can modulate the VCOs!
Other common 303 emulator features also found on the MS-404 include an external filter input, CV/GATE interfacing, MIDI implementation and a glide effect. All parameters are MIDI controllable. The slide and accent effects from the 303 are possible on the MS-404 from the glide control and MIDI velocity for accent. The MS-404 ranks high among the 303 emulators under $500, and it sounds pretty darn good too”
Other quotes
“All parameters are MIDI controllable. The slide and accent effects from the 303 are possible on the MS-404 from the glide control and MIDI velocity for accent. The MS-404 ranks high among the 303 emulators under $500, and it sounds pretty darn good too”
“No, definitely not a TB-303 clone. 303 is sharper, higher and more energetic. The 404 is more liquid, more sci-fi and has a curious lazy sound (to my ears anyway, and in a good way).
I’ve used the Fat33, or FatBass (I forget the exact name) from I think MAM…that is plainly a clone. The 404 is its own beast. It doesn’t sound like any of my other synths”
“The 404 in fact is not a clone but has a clear personality and can be considered more a single VCO monosynth”
“The impression I had playng the MS 404 is really good. This is a interesting bassline synth , not so good at emulating the classic TB sound, but this is a good point! Other than that can be used as a classic monosynth with a great modulation capability, and many sounds with a small amount of functions and knobs
There is also an audio in (with gain) to process external audio signals and a cv-gate interface (in/out) so the 404 can be played thru cv by an analog system/sequencer or can be used to control other cv-gate synth.
I prefer the 404 to a Basstation, for example, it sounds more interesting and “analog” and is not the “wannabe everything” emulator”
