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Unlike the standard Kaossilator, the Pro version can't be battery-powered.

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When we reviewed Korg's groundbreaking Kaossilator, we loved its innovative approach to creating loop-based music and hoped that it might spawn a bigger follow-up.

Three years down the line, Korg has granted our wishes with the introduction of the Kaossilator Pro (KO-Pro), a much-improved version that offers a variety of new features and looks all set to build on the success of the original KO-1. Yusss!

Overview

Pulling the Kaossilator Pro from its box, it's immediately apparent that this is a far more substantial unit than the original version. The form factor is almost identical to that of Korg's Kaoss Pad KP3, with an all-metal construction and a bigger overall footprint giving the Pro a much more weighty, well-built feel than its predecessor.

One side effect here is that the Pro is less portable, requiring DC power from a mains adapter. Retaining the ability to run on batteries would have been a bonus, but Korg's promotion of Pro as a studio and live performance tool suggests that it simply isn't intended to be a mobile device like the original Kaossilator.

The layout of the KO-Pro will be familiar to anyone who's used the KO-1, but a series of key differences reflect the new features on offer. The large X-Y touchpad is backlit, as on the KP3, and the gate arpeggiator has a new dedicated slider and button. A quick glance at the connections reveals an extra pair of RCA sockets and a mic input for capturing external sounds and using the vocoder.

As if that wasn't enough, the Pro features MIDI In and Out, an SD card slot and a USB socket to link it to your computer.

In use

The Kaossilator Pro is pleasingly intuitive despite a number of small changes to the original workflow. The four large buttons below the X-Y pad represent four separate loop locations, allowing complex multi-layered patterns to be built up with ease.

During playback, each of these pads allows parts to be quickly muted, assigned for recording or erased using the function buttons down the right hand side of the unit. The levels of loops can also be adjusted using the new mixer feature, allowing four-part sequences to be tweaked on the fly.

A few features from the mini KO have been omitted in the new version, with the lack of an undo function in particular necessitating a slightly different approach to working which may not be obvious to existing Kaossilator users.

All 100 programs from the KO-1 are included and supplemented by 100 new patches replicating everything from vibraphones to MS20 leads. Sliding your finger horizontally on the pad controls the pitch according to your chosen key and scale but most patches also offer a degree of expression control via your finger's position on the vertical axis. Typically, moving your finger higher up the pad will control a variable such as filter cutoff, vibrato or the mix of a delay or reverb effect.