WNAMM10: New KAOSS Family Member

US Korg announce the Kaossilator Pro 14/01/10

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Korg have announced the Kaossilator Pro which they describe as a professional KAOSS synthesizer and loop recorder that suits a wide range of genres. Here's all the details from their press release...
Just over ten years ago, Korg introduced their first KAOSS product, allowing the control of multiple audio parameters by simply moving a finger across an X-Y touchpad. The KAOSS family quickly grew to include not only effect processors, but also DJ mixers, video and audio samplers, and musical instruments. The newest addition to the line is the KAOSSILATOR PRO, a versatile instrument for the creative musician.
A touchpad-based synthesizer, the KAOSSILATOR PRO offers built-in sounds suitable for an expansive range of musical genres including techno, house, hip hop, R&B, reggae and electro. Additional sounds simulate acoustic instruments such as piano, trumpet and guitar. High-quality PCM samples have been added to the DSP engine to provide realistic drum sounds, yielding twenty individual drum hits and twenty-five preset drum patterns. In all, there are 200 programs available â€“ including fifteen vocoder programs that can process an external audio signal. Eight memory keys allow instant recall of favorite programs.
Playing these sounds and programs is easy as well. In addition to free-form performances, a musical key and any of 31 scales can be selected for truly musical results. The X-Y touchpad can cover the full note range or a single octave for nuanced control. The Gate Arpeggiator, derived from Korg's Electribe products, provides a creative method for adding pitch and timing information, and can be used in conjunction with the touchpad for rapid groove creation.
The KAOSSILATOR PRO adds another dimension by allowing the creation of up to four-bar looped phrases. Adding new sounds and new layers to each loop can create rich, musical phrases. External audio signals â€“ from an MP3 player, other instrument or a microphone running through the internal vocoder â€“ can also be recorded as part of a looped phrase. There are four individual Loop Recorder Banks, offering realtime looping, layering and DJ-Style remixing. Loops data can be saved to convenient SD storage cards and transferred via USB to a computer for further use in a DAW.
Stereo inputs and outputs are provided (RCA pairs), as well as an unbalanced 1/4" microphone input. A convenient 1/4" headphone jack is located on the front panel. MIDI IN and OUT jacks allow the KAOSSILATOR PRO to be an expressive MIDI controller; USB MIDI is also provided. Best of all, the responsive, illuminated touchpad can be configured to display custom messages when idle, for adding extra flair during a performance.
KAOSSILATOR PRO owners can download the free KAOSSILATOR PRO Editor software from the Korg website.
Pricing and Availability:
The Korg KAOSSILATOR PRO will be available May 2010, with a U.S. MSRP of $460.00. More information: