So most software is 95% of the sound. A lot of hardware is nostalgia + purpose + tactile feel. However there is definitely something to the school of thought that hardware is inherently limited vs software and that opens creative windows that staring at a computer screen may not. Since I have owned real 808s I know what they can do and they are certainly romanticized a large amount. However, the 808s sequencer has a small amount of swing to it which is emulated(but able to be disabled) in the tr-8. I've never heard this mentioned in software. Software emulations have very distinct advantages in that most have parameters that can be tweaked far outside of a real 808/whatever analog device. Where this kind of hardware shines is the fact that you know a certain type of beat/sound is easy to achieve. It's that magic moment that you make something original that the hardware wasn't intended for that makes it all worthwhile. I experience that way more often with hardware than software.