Principles. It's still early so it's easier to change things now. Once the process is entrenched, there's no going back. I'm trying to help the Kangz get things right from the start.
The Beat Thang represents a new breed of audio hardware. It is PC + dedicated merged into one, best of both worlds. See with a laptop computer, you have lots of possibilities for software, and more powerful features than you'll ever need. But you have to click around, move windows, select things, etc. That's not fun. It blocks creative flow.
Then you've got dedicated hardware. This stuff is great, it's using optimized chips and low-level code with no big OS to slow things down, real knobs, dials, sliders, it feels like an instrument. But the software is proprietary, and there's not much power. It's not like a PC where you can load up 1,000 different VST FX and instruments with scientific waveform analysis.
What we want to do is merge the power and diversity of the PC software, with the dedication and feel of the hardware. MIDI controllers are not enough. You still have to click, you're still anchored to your PC.
The Beat Thang is a PC brain, with all the stuff you'd want for audio, built into a dedicated control surface. It's like a laptop specifically designed for musicians. You've got the portability of a laptop, you've got the XLR+1/4 input without dangling USB interfaces. You've got MIDI without external box. Pads, pitch/mod, buttons, dials, LCD screen, it's all there built into one.
They're developing the soul application, that fits their vision, and does stuff they and their friends want to do. But what we have is the first merger between PC and instrument. It's not like the MPC. It's not like a laptop. It's both, in one. That means we can program it like we do a computer. We can run anything, invent anything, transform it into a million different monsters.
Everyone doesn't make beats. Maybe someone wants to load it up and use it as a synth. Maybe someone wants to use it as a vocal FX unit. Maybe someone wants to load a Speak n Spell emulator so they can play hangman using the pads, "A E I O U". It's anything, but it's better than a laptop + controller + audio/midi interface because it's all solidified into one dedicated package.
Now keep in mind all of this is based on speculation, based on unverified guesses I've made about the true specs of this machine, what's under the hood. There's a lot that'd have to be right for it to work as I imagine. Maybe the processor is underpowered, maybe it has a nasty loud cooling fan, maybe the audio interface is poor quality, maybe the OS space is way too small to fit anything exciting, maybe it's not running the OS I think it is at all.
I don't know. But I've been investigating, and have been looking at different ways to do this on my own for awhile, and so far this seems to be the most promising route that exists today in the real world. That is why, despite it seemingly being far from fully baked, I want to see the Beat Thang come out fresh, hot, and smelling good.
If by some chance I've made correct guesses, and things align luckily, then we really could see major changes in the audio industry from this device. No longer would we think in terms of software vs hardware. The two worlds would become one, and we'd be trying to figure out the best way to get a new softsynth to fit into the Thang, so we could play it like we just bought a new keyboard.
Think that sounds fun? Like the idea of being able to pop on a website, browse through a list of OS', and drop them into your hardware to transform it into a new type of musical machine? Then stay tuned as we uncover more top secret facts from the Kangz bunker, and see if this could work. If it turns out plausible, drop that grand on the pre-order to show some support. Otherwise, keep looking for other ways, and keep exploring new options.
