Reprinted from the June 2002 issue of Guitar One magazine

Roger Linn Design AdrenaLinn: WHAT A RUSH
By Michael Ross

If you are like me, you may feel that guitarists are being snubbed by this Techno/Electronica uprising; it sometimes seems like the samplers/keyboardists/programmers are having all the fun. Well it's time to join the party; and who better than Roger Linn, the inventor of the first digital drum machine, to help guitarists enter the machine music age—especially when it turns out the man is a fine guitarist himself. His new product, the Adrenalinn, provides guitarists with effects and sequences that are easily synchronized to its own internal drum machine or any external clock source. Want to jam with Moby or The Chemical Brothers? Read on.

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The Adrenalinn is a 7 1/4" x 4 1/2" x 1 1/2" metal box that packs an enormous number of sonic possibilities into a relatively tiny package starting with a simple but musical sounding drum machine, adding amp modeling, delay, tremolo, flange and envelope filters, and continuing into complex routing of modulation sources, and sequence programming. The four knobs, four buttons and two footswitches on the top are all multi-functional, while the side has a mono input, stereo outputs, MIDI in and out, and an A/C adapter input. If you want an in depth look at the control capabilities you can download the manual at Roger's website (see below). Permit me to use the limited space here to try and relate some of the many things this box will do.

One of the Adrenalinn's advantages is that you can approach it on a number of different levels. If you break out in hives at the mere mention of something like "routing of modulation sources", you can use the Adrenalinn as a simple stomp box. Say you want to match your tremolo time to your live drummer. You turn the Preset knob to a tremolo effect and hold the bypass switch down for one bar. Presto! Your tremolo is in time with the song. (If the drummer drifts, just press it down for one bar again). You can pre- program the effect for eighth or sixteen notes, in a straight or triplet feel. Delays can be synced in the same way as can any sequence or modulation effect in the unit. The sync-able tremolo alone justifies the price of the unit and we haven't even turned on the drum machine yet.
Hitting the start footswitch sets the drum machine going; from then on, any effect added to your guitar signal is in perfect synch with the Adrenalinn's rhythm pattern. Turning the Preset knob allows you to check out 100 different effects, while turning the Drumbeat knob selects from among 100 beats. Adjust the speed with the Tempo knob and it is quite likely that four hours later you will have enough ideas for five songs, two movie soundtracks an a couple of car commercials, simply by strumming triad chords and letting the Adrenalinn's effects and sequences do the rest-did I mention that you don't need any kind of special pickup, or interface for your guitar? Basic adjustments are easily achieved, thanks to an intuitive setup, and a clear manual. Scrolling with the up and down buttons lights up an LED on one of seven rows on the units surface. Each knob then controls the function written underneath it on that row. You can adjust the guitar volume, the overall drum volume, the bass, snare, hihat, and percussion volumes, delay time, feedback, blend etc.; as well as more advanced effect modifications. All changes can be stored to 100 user locations.

Hooking Up
For playing with others-either with sequencers, or with recorded material that is synched to a beat clock-the Adrenalinn offers MIDI in and out to send and receive clock messages. Though the unit will not send MIDI note information to a recorder, it does receive editing information from external sources, such as keyboards, beat boxes, or Emagic SoundDiver. It will send clock information to other units or recorders.
In practical terms, I was able to hook up the Adrenalinn through both audio and MIDI to my Pro Tools LE system. Synching the unit to the recorder's clock, I then recorded a track of Adrenalinn drums. I chose one where the drum sounds were sent through the unit's filtering section for a Techno vibe. I was then able to start again and record a new audio track of Adrenalinn percussion that was exactly synched to the original drum track. Subsequent sequenced, tremoloed, and auto-wah tracks also synched perfectly. All that was left was to record a lead part using the amp modeler, some filtering and synchronized delay and I had my own version of Jeff Beck's last two records. (see below for lead riff and check out the G1 website to hear all the other sounds). In a less Electronica mood, I arranged an old Dean Martin tune ala Patsy Cline with some great sounding brushes and a little tempo-matching tremolo.

Future Fun
Techno fan or not, the world of pop music is rampant with modulated, synchronized sounds. You don't have to be a Prodigy fan to hear them-check out records by bluesmen like R.L. Burnside, rockabilly cats like Chris Isaak, singer/songwriters like Shawn Colvin and you will hear the sound of loops, beats and time-synched sequences. There have been devices that will do some of what the Adrenalinn offers, but no one device has ever offered all of this in such a small, easily operated, affordable package. The Adrenalinn rates the One award for offering guitarists easy entry into the fascinating sounds of the new millennium.

Features:
Amp Modeling
Synchronized Effects
Drum Machine
MIDI In and Out
List price: $395.00