Linn not impressed with knock-off

Drum synth pioneer Roger Linn is less than happy with a knock-off of his 30-year-old and long-defunct LinnDrum by Germany’s Behringer.

Behringer released its LmDrum last December, touting it as “a drum machine that can recreate the classic sound of the 80s …  (with) an authentic 8/12-bit sampling sound engine that captures the essence of a hundred legendary 80’s drum sounds including those designed by Roger Linn such as the LM1, LM2, LM9000 and more”.

In a statement on his website, Linn says he was given a sample last year, but that the Behringer CEO did not have his permission to copy either the visual design or sounds of the LinnDrum.

He notes that Behringer approached him in 2020 to collaborate on a future drum machine, but that he “respectfully declined because of concern about Behringer’s past business ethics and legal practices”.
Linn goes on to explain his mixed feelings about the knock-off.

“On the one hand, it’s not unusual for companies to borrow ideas from older products in order to inspire a new and innovative design, which I’ve done in the past. Plus, my old drum sounds are all over the web, controlling copying is difficult, and I don’t enjoy legal stuff so I’ve generally ignored the issue so far.

“On the other hand, even if we discount the copying of the visual design, logo style and sound circuit of LinnDrum, the LmDrum copies my sounds. So, I’d have preferred for Uli (Behringer) to ask my permission. Even if he thinks it is legal, I question whether it is ethical.”

In its launch video, the company acknowledges that its new product is not approved by its original inventor.

“While Roger Linn was not involved in the design of the LmDrum, we deeply respect and admire his outstanding contributions to the music industry,” a text slide in the video states.

And what of the new synth itself? Linn is less than complimentary.

“I think it’s a bit of a head-scratcher.
“Personally, I found it somewhat confusing and difficult to use. I suspect the designers found it difficult to find a balance between 1) the impression of a LinnDrum clone, and 2) the addition of modern features, given that the 1982 LinnDrum’s feature set is woefully inadequate by today’s standards.”

Linn goes on to contrast the Behringer experience with his dealings with GForce Software, which recently released its IconDrum software drum sound generator.

“Like the LmDrum, it copies the LinnDrum’s visual design, logo style, and drum sounds, but has no sequencing. Unlike Behringer, GForce did say they wouldn’t release the product if I objected, but they seemed like good people, so I turned a blind eye. They also offered to pay me an insignificant royalty for my association with the product and perhaps to use the ‘LinnDrum’ name, but I declined because of the low compensation and because I thought it was misleading to call a product ‘LinnDrum’ that wasn’t a drum machine but rather only played my copied drum sounds.”

Meanwhile, Linn appears to fully endorse the latest “tribute” instrument, Deftaudio’s Luma-1.

The US company describes its offering as “a no-compromise re-implementation of Roger Linn’s LM-1 Drum Computer”, and shares a statement of support from Linn. “I think it’s very cool that my friends (at Deftaudio) are breathing new life into the LM-1, recreating the original circuit, sound and timing while adding some useful modern features. These guys are in it purely for the passion and are far better engineers than I am, so I’m honoured that they’re taking on this project. It’s entirely their project, but I’m staying in touch with them and giving some help along the way.”

Linn ends his statement with some confusion around the renewed interest in vintage tech: “What’s the big deal about nostalgia? I can understand that some people value analogue synthesis, though I find the many types of innovative software synthesis created in recent decades to be far more capable, versatile and interesting,” he notes.

It seems nostalgia just isn’t what it used to be!