Korg Kaoss Pad 2

Great sampling and effects. i cant think of anything that this mixer doesn't have in that area.

Price paid

$400.00

UTILIZATION

Very simple to use. the manual is pretty thorough too.

SOUND QUALITY

Probably the very worst sound quality i've ever heard come out of a mixer. it sounds exactly like a car radio without an amplifier - no matter what trim, boost, or level configuration it would basically sound very tinny and the bass distorts way too easily.

OVERALL OPINION

I wouldn't dare take this mixer to a gig. the buttons seem pretty durable though. never bothered to contact customer support. i returned this piece of crap the very same day i bought it.

its a shame that the sound quality is so poor because the effects are sooooo cool! i'd recommend buying the kaoss pad by itself and then hooking it up to your vestax or numark or whatever you have because the mixer on this thing is a complete joke! its light as a feather too...that should tell you something right there

Originally posted on FutureProducers.com
Posted by: Unknown ( 4-, 2002)

Too many to mention. mangle your mix in ways youve never thought of. most suitable for live performance and particularly effective when used well in, or coming upto a break. have to put design in features since the unit is top notch. looks the muttts nuts with awesome lighting from behind the screen at the top illuminating the make and model in blue and different coloured lights for the different programs illuminating the pad in different colours in the opposite diagonal corners on the main pad

Price paid: £270

UTILIZATION

Really simple to use and install. it is worth reading the manual as its only about 4 pages but was installed and up and going in about 5 minutes. user interface is the main point of this unit. to allow you to control two effect parameters with one interface. namely the x,y pad pressed to activate the effect

SOUND QUALITY

Clean as a whistle and as clear as a bell. honestly.... i havent the experience to rate the sound quality though judging by the fact that radiohead have used them on stage and some of Britains biggest clubs have them installed id say as good as what youd ever get

OVERALL OPINION

Not too sure about the robustness of these units. they feel ok but make horrible sounds when placed on a surface if the last mm or 2 is dropped. should be fine with a flight case though but i couldnt find any specifically for it. Also the unit used to misbehave with the effects depth knob acting as if it were full on unless moved slightly then it would register its correct position.

i love this little magic box, korg have definately pulled out all the stops on this one. the problem with the effects knob seems to have subsided but this review has reminded me to contact Korg about the fault. despite the dodgy pot and the weird rattling when relocating this box still deserves 9, at least. cant give 10 for things with faults

Originally posted on FutureProducers.com
Posted by: Unknown (January 1-, 2003)

The KaossPad II (or KP2) is a multi-effects processor digital format "box desktop", a vague parallelepiped metal (aluminum?) With some controls and a sensitive pad.

It offers a good amount of effects, some tempo-sync (via MIDI in), which can be recalled via buttons and "automated" with "motion sequencer" called "Motion Pad." You can use the KP2 on mic input jack (without phantom power) or stereo input / output RCA (damage) either directly or in an effects loop. A tap tempo can give pulsation effects in the absence of MIDI Clock.

UTILIZATION

The KP2 is relatively "user friendly", we can use it as a DJ or in a more "studio" as MIDI gives a lot of opportunities both in managing the effects in the use of KP2 as a MIDI controller.

To go further in the MIDI and advanced it is better to refer to the forums (AF among others) that manual not really explicit. A manual that talks a lot but does not say much, unfortunately.

SOUND QUALITY

One might think that the KP2, designed for DJs, does not deserve a place in the home studio.
This is wrong, but to take all the juice it will pay close attention to the level of input and output and focus use in send / return rather than insert.

The effects are quite good overall, especially the delays and filters. The sampler is fairly usable if it expects a reasonable audio quality.

I use it in the effects loop POD X3 Pro, exclusively for keyboards and especially for an old Farfisa Matador organ. The result is quite good.

OVERALL OPINION

I use it daily for a few months.
This is my second effect oriented "DJ" (I had a Pioneer whose quality does not convince me).
I like the price / quality ratio very good opportunity. I also like the KP2 for its compactness and quality of construction. Too bad that it is equipped with RCA and has no digital inputs / outputs. A pair of optical or coax SPDIF would be a great addition and would bypass the converters without being bad, are not exceptional.

I remake that choice without a doubt, and I do not go to the KP3 that bring me nothing more.

100 Programs including:
10 "filters", 10 "modulation", 10 "Delay" 10 "reverb" 10 "sfx" 18 "BPM FX" 15 "synth" 5 "vocoder" and 10 "sample"
2 paramters to control the program via the pad ...
2x6 Stereo sampler seconds without a backup!
implmentation complte twelve o'clock in input and output: nice for the studio

UTILIZATION

Nothing more simple, the c itret machine
The main difficulty in the fact of RSID be compared ractifs music is - ie to find the right program at the right time, for we must know the machine.
The manual is not helpful trs prcise except the list of programs and their paramters

SOUND QUALITY

It's cheap is the basis for ddi DJ sounds so ... not really.
The Kaoss INTERESTED trs is impressive effects for live, but the sound itself is cheap

OVERALL OPINION

I use it for a year as sondier. I use it with groups I beeps in voice or on the sampler and instruments bizaroide. It's nice to do anything but push the knobs on the console. It's a fun toy trs.