Kilpatrick Audio Carbon Sequencer (Sneak Preview)

Kilpatrick Audio – creator of the Phenol synthesizer – shared this sneak preview of their upcoming Carbon Sequencer and Performance System.

The video shows a few of the real-time recording and performance functions of the Carbon.

In the demo, MIDI is being sent from Carbon to a Phenol, Juno-2, D-550 and Machinedrum, on each of four tracks.

Preliminary specs & features:

  • Pattern-based sequencer, performance control system and USB interface
  • Beautiful color LCD screen shows everything in real-time
  • Six rotary encoders and nineteen buttons offer fast intuitive control
  • Six tracks with two assignable outputs per track
  • Up to 64 steps per track
  • Polyphonic tracks store chords and CC data
  • Playback start and end points are uniquely configurable for each track
  • Pattern function offers quick remixes each track
  • Multiple track select allows adjusting multiple tracks at the same time
  • Flexible MIDI and CV routing allows huge control possibilities
  • Bias tracks allow transposing of other tracks for oldschool sequencer tricks
  • Six scenes offer fast parameter changes during live performance
  • LIVE mode allows live performance from a keyboard
  • Keyboard split and LIVE multi-select modes allow fast and flexible live MIDI routing
  • Powerful synced arpeggiator adds another dimension to live performance
  • Rock-solid MIDI / analog clock source can be the heartbeat of your studio
  • Rear panel connections / controls:
    • Analog clock and reset outputs (0V/+5V)
    • Four CV outputs (-5V to +5V – 1V/octave digitally calibrated)
    • Four gate outputs (0V/+5V)
    • Two MIDI output ports (separately assignable)
    • MIDI input port
    • USB host port – provides up to 500mA to power USB controllers
    • Get news and updatesUSB device port – connects to PC or Mac for use as a MIDI interface and controller
    • Power switch
    • DC input jack
  • Power input: 24VDC @ 250mA (500mA regulated supply required)
  • Operating temperature: 15C to 30C (59F to 86F)
  • Storage temperature: -10C to 45C (14F to 113F)
  • Dimensions: TBD
  • Weight: TBD
  • Universal input power supply (100-240V) included
    • units purchased from North American dealers ship with a US-style plug
    • units purchased from UK, EU and Australian dealers ship with a set of plugs for US, UK, EU and Australia
  • Designed and made in Canada using high quality parts
  • Warranty: 1 year

The Carbon is expected to be priced at $699. It will initially be made available via a Kickstarter project. See the Kilpatrick site for more info.

22 thoughts on “Kilpatrick Audio Carbon Sequencer (Sneak Preview)

  1. Looks great – web site shows back panel with 4 cv, 4 gate o/ps, clock, reset, 1 midi in and 2 midi out plus usb – crowd funding starts soon. Looks like the perfect companion for my phenol!

  2. Andrew is a talented bloke yet I’m actually turned off by the repeated crowdfunding venue he uses for an established company. I realise KA is by no means Roland or even Elektron, yet he used it for Phenol and according to his recent podcast interview he is selling products faster than he can make them. I just feel it’s a rather cynical approach.

    1. I see your point, but maybe they don’t have the capital to fund the device production outright. R&D is done, but production can require advanced payment to manufacturers. Of course, there is the risk issue as well. They have much less risk going the crowd-funding route as they get a lump sum payment. I see crowd-funded operations as a more flexible route than VC funded.

      1. Brian, I agree with your assessment, Andrew is indeed shifting the financial risk via crowdfunding and assessing the viability by the same measure. However I do find that this sort of venture sourcing troubling in that he has an established business and the marketing arm to reach a wider audience whereby even smaller decelopers will be at a clear disadvantage as I do not believe this to be a limited resources issue with KA. Although I have seen much larger companies with far deeper pockets tap into crowdfunding to launch products. I guess I’m just disappointed.

        1. I don’t necessarily agree on this front.
          Users get to be part of a project from the ground up.
          Secondly it is the very fact that Andrew has an established business that I backed Phenol.
          I knew the quality, skill, expertise, contacts and means where it counts – the end product.
          Even producing a singe working prototype to this calibre finish would not have been cheap and I think it is a perfectly justifiable way for smaller companies to fund higher level production runs from the outset that offset the overall end customer cost.
          Having seen a few kickstart and crowd funding projects go belly up and/or ass over tit you can be pretty damn confident that Kilpatrick Audio will deliver the goods.
          To even compare his company to say Roland, Korg, Elektron, Moog, DSI etc would be utterly ridiculous and it isn’t as though K-Format modular systems are the goto format choice for many people who would clearly jump on a Eurorack system first.
          Don’t see why one should be disappointed when he clearly isn’t a major thousand unit shifting enterprise.

      2. Yes, true. But nevertheless personally I think the crowd-funding should be mainly for start-up companies. If well established companies start using this platform also, then the crowd-funding idea will be IMO dilluted. In case of Kilpatrick Audio I can’t judge if it can be still called a start-up company.

      3. Avoiding VCs is a great and highly desirable point. Not that all VC are Vulture Capitalists but even the most generous (with regard to time:return) can definitely complicate a situation.

    2. Crowdfunding lets companies do two things – tackle bigger projects than thy could otherwise, and validate that there’s an actual audience of people that will buy the product.

      Both of these things benefit you, whether you participate in the project or not., because you get products like the Phenol, which would not be available otherwise, and you have fewer developers ‘pulling an arp’ and blowing their resources developing stuff that won’t ever sell.

      If you think it’s Kickstarter projects are cynical or don’t like sharing the risk, what are you complaining about? Nobody is holding a gun to your head! Just wait and buy the product it gets to market.

  3. Maybe we are getting closer to the day of the re issue of something as good as the atari running cubase.
    This is the best hardware sequencer I am aware of.Give it a mouse port and monitor output for cut and paste and drag and drop arrangements of midi only data, that would be stunning.Well done to this company.

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *