RD303 / Raw Dog 303: acid bass across your studio

I wanted another reason to reach for my Force: an instrument I could put in a session, play with my hands, and come back to.

That became RD303 / Raw Dog 303 by Rare Data: an acid bass instrument with patterns, accent and slide, effects, and recorded knob automation. The dog is part of its identity because RD303 also belongs in COMPA.

An instrument for the controls in front of you

The Force version is built around the Q-Links. You can move through steps and change notes, octaves, gate, accent, slide and hold without trying to make every edit on its touchscreen. Patterns can extend to 128 steps, with pages and pad banks for working through longer lines.

The COMPA Pattern Library supplies starting points organized by genre. Choose a key and scale, load a pattern, then vary it or build a new one. Save your own patterns in the user library. When playing live, choose LEGATO for overlapping slides or RETRIGGER for a fresh attack on each new note.

Record what your hands do

I wanted more than choosing an LFO and leaving it running. RD303 can record several knob movements as you play, then repeat those movements with the line. The knobs show the automation during playback, so you can see what you recorded.

The Force version has been tested by saving a custom preset and the project, rebooting the instrument, reopening the project, and playing it back. The saved work and automation survived that process.

The Force skin keeps the lighter knobs and clear pointers that work within its 2 GB memory budget. Navigation can still be slow just after loading a project, especially on Pattern and Library. It becomes more responsive as you move around; that remains an area for improvement.

One place to install it

RD303 is part of Rare Data HQ, alongside COMPA and the Quota apps. The installation window asks where it is going: This computer or Force / MPC. It verifies the package, checks the destination, and retains a previous installation for recovery.

RD303 is free through HQ. Choose your platform on the RD303 page, enter your email, and we'll send you HQ for Mac, Windows and Linux. Open HQ to install RD303 on your computer or on your Force. There is no separate plug-in download to manage.

The tested hardware profile is Akai Force on 3.9.1.2 with working root SSH, executable storage, and a supported persistent scope-service hook. MockbaMod provides a tested setup; HQ itself does not unlock firmware. Other MPC models still need physical testing.

HQ has Mac, Windows and Linux builds. RD303's desktop formats are AU and VST3 on macOS, and VST3 on Windows and Linux. Windows and Linux have passed automated host and plug-in validation; additional real-DAW testing is welcome.

Beyond the instrument: send the set, too

The Force workflow I have been using with Quota Stems and my own automation is now part of Rare Data HQ. Stems can build a complete Force set from a song or batch, with its samples and cue scenes. Quota Kits can build an XPM drum program, a Song Kit, or a Remix Kit project. HQ delivers those exports to the folder I choose on the Force.

The connection is shared. Browse the device, make a folder, send the export, and wait for the queue to say it is delivered and verified. If a transfer is interrupted, retry it without running separation again. The local files stay on the computer, and the Force keeps running during delivery.

Quota Voice and its paired phone Remote can start that same workflow from a confirmed command. The computer still needs to be awake and able to reach the Force; the phone is an entry point to the desktop job.

That is why I'm bringing these apps together in HQ. You can install RD303, separate a song with Quota Stems, turn the stems into a Force set, and send it over without moving between installers and file-transfer tools. Quota Stems and Quota Voice are free; Quota Kits adds drum programs, Song Kits and Remix Kits.

See the Stems and Kits delivery workflow.

Part of COMPA, too

RD303 is included in COMPA on iPhone and iPad, with its bundled AUv3 available in other hosts. On those devices it sits beside sampling, sequencing, hardware control and the rest of COMPA's workflow.

The Force and desktop versions are free. If RD303 introduces you to Rare Data, the same studio also makes COMPA and the Quota apps. Explore whichever fits how you make music.

See RD303 and its supported setups, or read the Rare Data HQ installation guide.

The complete user manual is available without signing up. See screenshots of the key pages on the product page, or open the manual from RD303's installation window in HQ.

Thanks to OpenMPC, sd88me’s MPC VST tools, Force Shadow and MockbaMod for their work on the hardware ecosystem. Force Link Audio is my earlier network-audio project for Force; RD303 continues that interest in making more of the hardware we already have.