It combines a simple sound module with a sequencer to record and store notation, along with controls aimed at encouraging the musician to improvise the music while it is playing.

As the first Groovebox, the MC-303 was the first in a line of inexpensive products specifically targeted towards house DJs and amateur home musicians rather than professional producers.

Although communication with other devices is possible, the main advantage to the MC-303 with its small form factor and all-in-one design is the ability to use it as a self-contained studio, albeit an amateur one.

From a more technical perspective, a major concern was that any knob tweaks made during real time recording were not transmitted via MIDI.

Roland responded in part to these criticisms in its later grooveboxes by solving the MIDI problem, increasing the synthesis capabilities and user pattern storage and adding a sampler section.