Discontinued for sounding wrong.

Roland pulled it after three years. It sounded nothing like drums.

A kick with an unnaturally long decay. A snare made of filtered noise. A hi-hat like a metallic tick. In 1980 a drum machine was supposed to imitate a drummer, so the 808 flopped, got dumped cheap onto the used market, and landed in the hands of people with no budget. The reason Roland stopped making it is better than the reason it failed.

Know the history, link to the free Vault article: The 808: The Machine That Changed the Sound

THE DETAILS

The colors on this cap aren't decoration. They're the step-sequencer buttons, in order.

• 80% acrylic, 20% wool
• Structured, 6-panel, high-profile
• Flat visor with green undervisor
• 6 embroidered eyelets
• Plastic snap closure, one size fits most
• See chart for sizing details. Head circumference: 21 5/8″–23 5/8″ (54.9 cm–60 cm)
  
• Blank product sourced from Vietnam or Bangladesh
• Three-color embroidery, not printed
• Ships free
  

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BX ORIGINALS — TRUE TO THE CULTURE
Hip-hop has four elements: DJing, MCing, Breaking, Graffiti. Each cap in this series carries one, set in that element's own lettering tradition. Not four versions of one graphic — four distinct hands held together by one system.

THE BX VAULT
Every BX Originals piece connects to the BX Vault — our library of long-form writing on hip-hop history and practice. Not marketing copy. Real research on the people, places, and decisions that built this culture. The culture on the cap. The context behind it.

FROM THE BRONX
BX Originals documents hip-hop's four elements from where they started. We're not a fashion brand borrowing an aesthetic. We're building an archive that happens to make things you can wear.