Using alkaline AA (LR6) batteries, KAOSSILATOR can run for approximately five hours. It is packed with 100 sound programs, including synth, basses, sound-effects, and drum sounds. In addition, it has sounds simulating a piano, guitar, and trumpet. The horizontal axis is assigned to note/pitch, while the vertical axis is assigned to parameters such as cutoff, feedback, and so on.

Among the 31 different scale patterns one can find chromatic, diminished, major and minor blues and pentatonic scales, and even some unusual scales such as Raga and Spanish ones. In addition, it is possible to perform in any key using the key setting function.

The maximum number of beats that can be used for loop recording is eight beats (2 measures). Phrases can also be created by choosing out of the fifty patterns to specify the timing of the notes using the Gate Arpeggiator. Patterns of notes are then created in sync with the user specified tempo, expanding the available performance options. The price tag for the KAOSSILATOR is around $200.

"The KAOSSILATOR is a new instrument that liberates synthesizer sounds from the keyboard. It gives keyboardists, guitarists, and DJs a convenient way to add fresh new elements to a band performance or to a DJ set, while allowing untrained musical enthusiasts to enjoy an entirely new level of musical involvement and expression", explains the KAOSSILATOR's developer.

TFOT recently covered another synthesizer – the bC16, developed by "Chimera Synthesis". This device is a miniature patch synthesizer, about the size of a small CD case. It is equipped with an internal headphone amplifier and is powered by two 9v batteries or by an external 8 to 12v power source.

More information on the KORG KAOSSILATOR can be found on the company's website.