The nanoPAD2 in white is a slim USB pad controller for drum programming and phrase work. Sixteen velocity-sensitive pads and an X-Y touchpad give you two ways in, and the whole thing runs off a single cable. Producers on a laptop, or anyone short of desk space, will get on with it.
Pads that respond to touch
Each of the sixteen pads reads how hard you hit it, so parts land in your sequencer with their dynamics intact rather than flat. Four scenes can be switched between, which puts 64 assignments within reach. Drum programming stops feeling like data entry.
The X-Y touchpad
Beyond controlling synthesizer parameters, the touchpad plays notes. Touch Scale locks what you finger to one of sixteen scales, and you set the root key and note range yourself. Wrong notes stop being a worry.
Tempo-locked phrases
Gate Arp sends note data in step with the clock, a feature borrowed from the Kaossilator Pro. Tap tempo and sync are both supported. Stroke the pad with Touch Scale running and rhythmic phrases arrive already in time with the track.
Power, cabling and tablets
Data and power both travel down the USB lead, so nothing else needs plugging in and the desk stays clear. Connected through Apple's Camera Connection Kit, the controller also runs from an iPad with no external supply. Korg does not guarantee that across every iOS update or new model, and the app you use has to support Core MIDI. For long sessions, or where more than one nanoSERIES2 unit is connected, a powered hub is the safer route.
Editing with Kontrol Editor
Korg's Kontrol Editor is a free download from their site and handles the deeper settings. Pick between three velocity curves or a fixed value, choose note numbers, assign chords or control change messages, and build your own scales for Touch Scale. Everything you set can be saved.
