Roland releases firmware 1.50 for the TR-1000 with keyboard mode and new effects

Roland has released firmware update 1.50 for its TR-1000 Rhythm Creator drum machine, Gearnews reported on 22 October 2026. The update is free for registered owners and can be downloaded from Roland's website.

The main addition is a keyboard mode that lets the step buttons be played like a keyboard. Notes can now also be entered per step in the pattern sequencer, without relying on motion recording. New effects include a reverse pan delay, the SBF-325 flanger/chorus and two new rolls, and the update adds new FM instruments and interface refinements.

Routing changes in two ways: all analog elements can be sent through the AFX output for purely analog recording, and USB audio can be routed through the individual outputs, so the machine works as a sound card.

The previous update, 1.20, arrived in September 2026 with SP-303 and SP-404 vinyl simulations, a cassette simulation, a DJFX delay, locked-in LFOs and 808 and 909 bass sound generators, as the TR-1000 came back in stock in limited quantities. The machine succeeds the TR-8S and combines analog, ACB, FM, PCM and sample sound sources with 64GB of internal memory. Gearnews lists it at $2,545, £2,299 or 2,699 euros. Earlier in October, mbuzz reported that the Japanese company had added the Jupiter-08 and n/vision synths to its Boutique series.