Kaossilator Pro + Monotribe

Vholum · Post by **Vholum** » Wed Sep 19, 2012 3:15 am

Hi,
I seriously considering buying a Kaossilator Pro to complete a small set-up already including Electribe er-1 + monotribe (modmidi) + mini kaoss pad.
I wanted to know if this machine will synchronize well with others?

I've seen videos on Youtube of the KaossilatorPro with the Monotribe but each time people seem to only put the sound of the Monotribe into the Kaossilator and use only the portion "effect" of the machine.

Is it possible to sync but to use them independently?

If the two machines do not mix well, I'll opt for a second monotribe.

MarcusCarab · Post by **MarcusCarab** » Wed Sep 19, 2012 1:59 pm

I covered some of this in my reply on the Electribe board but I'll expand here, in case it's helpful:

KP3/KPros are not fantastic for syncing. Search this forum and you'll find many, many discussions on that topic. Apart from the fact that they send a constant clock signal with no start/stop, there is the issue that even once you have stuff synced, samples taken on the kp3/kpro can drift over time. They also don't have midi-through functionality, so once you send a signal into them, you can't pass it along to something else (which for many setups means you need additional equipment to split the midi signal)

Personally I find the KPro/KP3 best used as a midi master, sending its clock signal -- though that generally means you have to manually start/stop everything else in your chain on the correct beat to get proper syncing. Still, it's basically the best you can do. The combination is still great, though geared somewhat more towards performance than composition.

If you're looking for a tightly-synced setup where everything in the chain starts and stops in perfect unison from a single controller... KPro might not be the way to go. If you're going to be working more organically and jamming a bit, or doing live shows, I think you'll love the KPro and/or KP3.

Vholum · Post by **Vholum** » Wed Sep 19, 2012 5:06 pm

Thanks again for your help.
If the BPM is perfectly synchronized ... It does not seem to be a big problem even if the two machines do not start at the same time. Press Play at the right time should be more than simple.

If I only want to sync the BPM of my Electribe and my Monotribe with the Kaossilator Pro... I should use the Kaoss as master and i have to plug it into the Electribe (midi thru) then plug the Electribe into the Midi In of my Monotribe. Right?

I'm a Midi Noob!

I'm gonna read the other discussions about the synch of the KPro. Thank you.

PS: Sorry if my english seem pretty weird.. This is not my first language hehe

MarcusCarab · Post by **MarcusCarab** » Wed Sep 19, 2012 5:14 pm

Vholum wrote:If I only want to sync the BPM of my Electribe and my Monotribe with the Kaossilator Pro... I should use the Kaoss as master and i have to plug it into the Electribe (midi thru) then plug the Electribe into the Midi In of my Monotribe. Right?

Yup that should work.

Vholum wrote:PS: Sorry if my english seem pretty weird.. This is not my first language hehe

I can understand you just fine! :)

Bowmoney · Post by **Bowmoney** » Wed Sep 19, 2012 7:48 pm

i am not sure how you would synch the monotribe since it uses audio for synching...

Vholum · Post by **Vholum** » Wed Sep 19, 2012 7:51 pm

With the midi modification

zululord · Post by **zululord** » Mon Sep 24, 2012 4:17 am

Sorry to hijack this thread but I have a similar question.

I picked up a cheap MC303 and have heard they have sync issues so should be used as the master clock. I'm not really sure how MIDI Thru works and am wondering if the following is right?

MC303 MIDI Out > EMX MIDI In (to control tempo only of EMX)
EMX MIDI Thru > K-Pro MIDI In (to control tempo of K-Pro)
EMX MIDI Out > Monotribe MIDI In