Great! This is making me even more convinced! Yes, it's just what I need and what I've been looking at for ages! Thanks for clearing the very little mist in my eyes, that made me think twice. 10/10
Even now this unit is still awesome, had mine for quite some time and it was such a massive improvement on the original somewhat flawed Beatstep which I also have.
That Pro is amazing! Maybe to much tech for me to grasp but this great review is sending my back to my basic BeatStep to learn more about it. Great shirt Nick and a fantastic review!
great review Nick! one thing I'd have liked you to mention is that if you go from a short pattern (16 ) to one double the length (32) the second pattern starts half way through, because the sequencer sees step 17 as the next one to play. This puts a fly in the ointment if you want to treat patterns as segments of a song.
sonicstate 'Wait to Load Project' is the closest thing I can find, which quantizes project changes, but there's nothing I can see on the pattern level. I live in hope that they gave you a work in progress firmware with the feature in development though :)
Bought one today, I have mc505 and mc909 which haven't the best lasting sequencer pad buttons, the Arturia Beatstep Pro seems an absolute BEAST of a sequencer and so reasonably priced it borders on ridiculously cheap for the features you get...wahoo ..can't wait .
Ooooh! I knew I was in the right place when I saw that Simmons SDS8. I'm using my Beatstep Pro with two Simmons brains. Stopped by to get some tips as usual.
I love your reviews. It's great to have someone discussing new gear who actually knows what he's talking about. I just got one of these...now to get cracking on learning the ins and outs. This video has given me lots of inspiration. Thank you!!
It'll be a boost switch mode power supply. Not a very complicated circuit - just a single IC and 2 or 3 external components and you can get a higher power rail: en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Boost_converter
13:50 My god this jam at the end is so cool. Your demos are so inspiring, Nick. I might have to get a BSP even though it has notorious encoder and usb port problems...
Hey great video Nick. A comment about the voltage - you mentioned that you weren't sure how that worked. They would most likely use a voltage regulator which takes an input voltage of 5v and converts it internally to 12v - thus allowing 10v over your CV outputs. Voltage regulators can step up or step down input voltages. (the manual talks about 12v) There are some modular guys who are testing out voltage differences on the BeatStep Pro - as there's a lot of interest how accurate it is. So far all I hear is good results. I've only had mine for a week now - so not much time to play ... but really impressed with it.
Just FYI, power is measured in Watts. James Watt was a famous Brit that invention the stem engine and a model of an early steam engine is at the Science Museum in London. Anyway, it is power that can't be created without a power generator, Volts can be increased but going from 5V to 10V would halve current given the same Wattage input. Watts = Volts * Amps..
I wish you'd come to my house and show me how to set mine up. Your a genius. I've seen other videos but they talk to bloody fast but you your amazing 👏
Account Von Fraude You are stepping into a very deep pit. :) It is a fun place, though. I Just wanted an oscillator to go run into my minibrute, and told myself I would never fill up one 19" space... so I got the second 19" mount, and now I can totally see burying myself in a roomful of cables and flashing lights wondering where my money went.
Looks fantastic. Would I be able to use with a Volca Sample and have extended patterns? I have an AJII, MS20 kit, Minibrute and Virus TI2, I think this thing would be perfect to jam on if a Volca Sample will trigger properly, then I might get both at the same time.
I wanted to get this but I read a lot of problems and bugs from folks about issues they have had that are not yet fixed with the Beatstep Pro. People who had this returned it for the Electribe 2 instead even though there are no CV outputs/inputs on the Korg Electribe.
Tom's Diner was one of the best remixes ! Can you do some synth reviews alongside Nick Rhodes and Thomas Dolby ? Aside from Georgio Moroder being a synth pioneer, Rhodes & Dolby trail blazed midi mastery !
Can you make a demo on showing how to control Behringer Model D via Arthuria Beat Step Pro; lot of people seem to be using those gears but there is no good video on showing the connectivity of both of them . Also I am planning to connect the midi from Arturia beat step pro and key step to the model d using the Y MIDI cable, so that I can have an arp from BEAT STEP continuously playing while I play live lead in to the model d using the Keystep. Pleas show a video of how to connect model d with the beahringde MODEL D! Thnxxx.
what about Midi-CC in Seq Mode? I see 3 channels to be selected on the left where i can dial in values for the individual steps. But what about MIDI-CCs and how much of them can be assigned at the same time? Shame that it doesnt transmit on individual MIDI-Channels in the Drums Section. Volca Sample?? Cant be controlled then !!! A shame.
Nick! Do you know what settings I need to use in the MIDI control centre to sequence a Korg Odyssey module via CV/Gate (and or connections, I've heard you ALSO need to trigger the trig in?)? I've sequenced it from my Keystep via CV/Gate no problem but cannot get the BSP to sequence the Karp module....
Thank you Nick! would this work OK with a Kaossilator Pro? I've never managed to get it set up like u did in the Kaossilator review. Really appreciate any feedback. Thanks.
Note: drum triggers are just gates 0 or 10v NOT dynamic triggers. Also the knobs have no master offset so you can't do realtime accent or gate length mods unless you can turn knobs very fast. It's a cool unit but no master offset knob is a shame for me.
Can MIDI CC (such as LFO rate) be sequenced on the Beatstep Pro? If not, is there a hardware unit that does allow you to sequence external gear's knob twiddles (either from the sequencer or from the external gear)?
@8:56 you ask how it is possible to have a 5V input and a 10V output (how can you have more voltage coming out than coming in?). The answer is a circuit called a "boost converter" (or step-up converter).
Typically Mr Batt, a voltage can be boosted using a Ferrite Ring wound with Copper Wire and Switching Transistor. It's probably been miniaturised into a single component by now.
This thing looks amazing, especially considering the price. Thanks for the great review, als always. Would it be possible to use it as a MIDI-CV interface, i.e. play an analog synth from a MIDI keyboard as opposed to sequencing it?
To answer my own question: yes, it can. But only when the sequencer is not running. It is even described in the manual. This thing becomes more interesting by the day.
When this showed up, I was a bit bummed that you need the app for so much of the configuration, especially around the analog integration. I look to external sequencers specifically because I don't want to have my PC handy. I would have paid a bit more for a small OLED or something that lets you navigate parameters locally. But I can't have everything, I guess. :) It's a nice and solid unit, though, with a ton of features.
Little bit difficult working out connecting drums machines - you can run one in via one of the midis but can you connect via the drum out when eg drumbrute impact only has three ins with multiple sounds for each . I’d want the two midi outs for two synths.
Is there a way of hooking up two Volca Drums (each with 6 voices that can be assigned to either a single or 6 separate MIDI channels) to the BSP's drum sequencer? For instance, could row 1 of the BSP pads control Volca Drum 1 via MIDI channel 10 and then row 2 control a 2nd Volca Drum via channel 11? (or whatever MIDI channels)? Can this thing do triplets? Can you microstep nudge notes or step shift sequences?
If anyone is having problems make sure the randomness and probability knobs are turned all the way to the left. That had me befuddled for about a half an hour. Also it would of been nice if the metronome was onboard and not just a midi note.
How can I use my original beatstep, keystep & Beatstep Pro all together ? Now the old beatstep only has a midi out so it has to be the clock source, it goes through the keystep ok and then on to other gear without any double clock speed triggers but won`t go through the Beatep Pro without the Beatstep Pro filtering out all midi going through to it`s midi out apart from the dang clock. I used a thru box to split between keystep and Beatstep Pro and I get that 2 clocks making a double bpm thing ? in my setup, if only the Beatstep Pro could not pass on the midi clock from an external midi sync to it`s out then all would be fine. Any ideas anyone ? or will I just have to get some kind of device that filters out a midi clock from the Beatstep Pro`s midi out ? although the price of a device may not be worth it perhaps ?
that first synth pad Nick plays sounds like EX-Machina one...you will know which one if you wached the movie/listened to the soundtrack..is that coming from erebus?
Can you do microtonal stuff with this? It looks like the outputs are all scaled to 12tet scales. Can you configure the user scale for not 12 tet scales?
Hi, I need you to show the Connectors with the rhythm machine. The connection from the rear panel to the rhythm machine. Thank you! Hola, necesito que muestren los Conectores con la máquina de ritmo . La conexión desde el panel trasero a la máquina de ritmo . Gracias!
Excellent review once again! Does anyone know what that "Program Review" device Nick was using to (I think) switch camera views? Also what was the black box next to his laptop that I believe all the audio was being plugged into?
There are two major issues with this unit. 1. Patterns switch immediately, not at the end of the currently playing pattern. Not sure why they did this. 2. It has a problem where it randomly stops sending midi notes out of Seq 1 and 2. It will also hold notes as well. Arturia needs to fix these issues ASAP! But overall, it's a wonderful sequencer!
Hi brother! Based on your experience. How can I save different BMPs for different projects in the BSP. I need to change time for the different songs. If it is not possible, is there any hardware that will allow me to do this? I have a Roland SPDSX with BPM for each song, but I did not get sync with the BSP. Obviously does not transmit messages Sync via midi, is there any magic box that does this work? thank you very much
been thinking of getting one of these for a while now. just wondering, can the drum sequencer also be used as a third "regular" sequencer? i mean, can i use seq 1 - seq 2 and the purple drum sequencer all 3 for synth? for example 1 is my rev2, 2 is my nordlead and 3 is my blofeld? or is the purple drum section really just for drums? 🧐
Amazing piece of gear - my next purchase. I'm glad I didn't buy the original (although I wanted to! it was back ordered in Canada for flipp'n ever) and bought the collection of volcas (no sample yet). Now I can control and rearrange my r3 synth, Volcas and DR-3 from one spot. I was using the Trigger finger pro, but I've found its better as a drum pad (beat creator, which I absolutely love for its sampling capabilities. - the Sync out is fucked but if you use it as slave and record the AUDIO on a Daw track its works perfectly as the midi notes drift or something) and DAW controller. I just wonder how long the Beatstep Pro will take to get here... it's also 299.99 here plus tax ... boo. That parting track was super rad Nick, albeit short.
They're also $299 usd though. I don't know why cdn retailers are listing it at $299 cdn, but I'm happy with that, considering how bad the exchange is right now. I hope they don't smarten up!
+Turm Ulus interesting. I'd have to look into that. 299 is tomlee pricing and they are on order. ...everything up here went up here big time in the last 4 months. example : I bought my volcas for 160..... now they are 200! but I bought the TFP for 399....but now it's 249...... ( I got a rebate because it was actually dropped to 199 before these price hikes and within one yr of my purchase. .. so I was choked!) . Anyway 299.99 is beyond my current budget so I'm saving up for this Beatstep Pro. it looks fantastic. ...If only it had a battery option....
Hello nick, great review as usual! Could you please tell me the commands I should use in the MCC to allow my beatstep pro to control program change on a sub 37? I was able to do it for the slim phatty but for some reason I can't find a way to switch banks on the sub 37. Thanks!
You need to set the LSB and MSB bytes which are on each of tha BSP pads if you set them to Program change mode. But they only work after you send the Controller setup to the BSP
I've been around synths for a couple of years, but It wasn't until recently that I've gained interest in Midi CC, so please bear with me. I've tried all sorts of combinations of CC 0, CC 32 and program changes to no avail. Can you please guide me through the process using a practical numerical example? Ex: I want to go to bank 4, preset 16, what would be the commands and CC values that I need to use? Or if there's any documentation readily available it would be great as well, Thank you!
Hello, I'm not entirely sure where to write this so I'll just put it on this video as it's the most recent, I've been looking at analog synths lately, the ones that has been interesting me the most has been the KORG Monopoly and the ARP odyssey. I got myself a soft synth version of the monopoly, obviously it doesn't sound exactly like the analog version, but it's a fairly close fit I'd say (I tried recreating a synth I knew was created on a monopoly, got very close). but I get this feeling the monopoly is very limited in what it does and I'm not entirely sure if it's my limited knowledge or if it's the synth itself. one of my biggest criterias is that the synth is polyphonic, very preferably being able to play 3 keys at the same time, the odyssey doesn't give that sadly. which from my research the Monopoly does offer. also, to add on top of all this it this will be my first synth analog synth, I've been working with software for several years now being too afraid to step into the hardware world because of the price tags. I'm very serious about music and very passionate so I don't want some crappy synth. as a guideline for what I want to use the synth for, without having a lot of technical names: I want a synth can have lots of textures to the sound, maybe through a lot of oscillator settings or something similar, I tend to work in the envelope, filter and oscillator settings, I love reverb. I tend to over use it most of the time, though it's not at all important that the synth has it, I can just use reverb through the pc instead. I lean towards softer and filling sounds, warm sounds. so yea, now that the huge rant is kind of over, I'm looking for input on what kind of synths you think I should look at. or is monopoly a good choice? thanks for reading and as a last little thing, I'll add a couple track names that has 'hits home' with what I like in synths, maybe it will help you understand more what I'm looking for. and a HUGE thanks for anyone who read this "The answer - gattobus & Millolab" - just the whole thing basically "Mango & Jan Martin - Pillows (Original mix)" -the synth that comes at 1 minute "Kollektiv turmstrasse - last day (david August Revision)" most sounds "Aparde - loom" - the lead base synth
+Valom one thing that scares me a bit about the monopoly as well is that I'm afraid I'll just make the same sound over and over again with it. I havent had the soft synth version for a long time but I end up making the same thing over and over.
i want to know that type of things as well. It will always be within the limitations of the synths you are using though, this is not some kind of looper, if you see what i mean.
orbitalchiller I have a pigtronix infinity looper , and I can accomplish a loop , but the thing is the midi sync from my minilogue to the loop pedal is wacky , because my minilogue is receiving master clock from my arturia drumbrute.
I ve been looking into the Pigtronix Infinity as well. I want to keep my gear as simple and computerless as possible and play long sequence and be able to stack upon them. I guess the Arturia BSP is a machine with so much connectivity possibilities you could just pick one to experiment with it and always find a compromise. I wish they would have made a Beatstep Pro / Keystep sandwish. Maybe a Keystep Pro is on the way ? BTW i have a minilogue too, nice sounding synth. :)
wow I can see that even a single sequencer here is vastly superior to the original Beatstep, no wonder Arturia dropped the original. I have the original and for the most part only really used it as a basic midi controller. Now we have 2 much better sequencers and a drum controller too, not bothered about CV myself as all my hardware is midi I`m sold I think
Useful information. Can you tell me if it possible to trim/scale the pitch control Voltage coming out of this device? I have a MiniMoog that isn't quite 1 Volt per octave. Ah, you answered it. Sorry! No scaling What a stupid, stupid omission! Crossed off the buy list - Sigh...
cresshead 1. incorrect! by setting last step to 12 or 9 or whatever you want. you can even have different lengths on each sequence for polyrhythms. 2. no, also not even quantizing on the pattern changes, although that's the most requested feature for future updates. the thing to understand is that despite having modern features it's more like an old modular sequencer (e.g., ARP. SQ-1, etc) than a groovebox or electribe in its roots. features that might look like are there for live performance tweaking are more for fast ideas and inspiration.
