12 Bit Blues

Owning an E-mu SP-1200 sampler/drum machine was Canadian turntablist Kid Koala's teenage dream. Released in 1987, just a year before Koala (a.k.a. Eric San) started DJing, the SP-1200 pretty much defined the sound of hip-hop's golden age. Everyone from Public Enemy to Gang Starr to the Beastie Boys expertly deployed beats crafted on the machine, making the SP-1200 San's ideal sonic weapon. But at around $5,000, San was totally priced out of owning one himself, and he was forced to...

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