[quote name='The Funk' post='376980' date='Jan 11 2009, 06:24 PM']Agreed. Where you say "a metronome is a much purer form of time", I'd say "it's easy to keep time when you have a 'perfect' drum machine playing a groove for you - harder when it's just a series of unaccented clicks".
If you want to improve your time, play with a metronome. If you want to have something to noodle along to without the hassle of a drummer, use a drum machine (or sequence them on a computer - who actually uses a drum machine these days?).[/quote]
I agree.
When I am doing hard, technical practice, I use a metronome on beats 2 + 4, like a snare drum (Thank you Steve Berry!!!). It tests your timing as does wonders for your internal metronome. Otherwise I use Logic, Ableton or [url="http://www.hobnox.com/audiotool.1046.en.html"]HOBNOX Audiotool[/url].
Dan