The instrument
The S-550 digital sampler was launched in 1987 as a rack version of the S-50 keyboard. It is a 16-voice module with 2U and 3.5 inch floppy drive. It has twice as much memory as the S-50 and dynamic filters. The memory holds a maximum of 4 x 7.2 second samples divided into 2 blocks with 2 banks each (A and B). The S-550 samples with 12 bits at either 15 or 30 kHz and has a 16-bit converter. The S-330 was a reduced version of the S-550.
Details
The sound is based on a maximum of 64 pure samples, which are provided with playback parameters to create so-called tones. Tones can be distributed anywhere on the keyboard and saved as a patch (sound programme). With the S-550 you can create 32 patches. The operating system must be read from a floppy disc.
A SCSI connection can be retrofitted to the S-550 with the HD5-IF, to which a maximum 80 MB Apple-compatible SCSI hard disc or the CD-5 CD-ROM drive can be connected. Using the optional SYS-553 software, the S-550 can mutate into a multi-track MIDI sequencer. (Source: Rolandmuseum)