Artiphon Orba 2 Portable Synthesizer, Sampler, Looper & MIDI Controller (8 Touchpads, Motion & Layer Sensors, Onboard Looper, New: 2GB Sample Engine, Quantization Function, Up to 128 Clocks)

Product Information

With the Orba 2 app, you’ll be able to record any sound from the real world and transform it into a playable musical instrument. Touch, glide, tap, wave and much more. The Orba 2 provides a variety of ways to interact with the onboard synth. The onboard motion and touch sensors capture even the most subtle of movements so you can express yourself without boundaries. You can create vibratos using different gestures, shake the Orba, or even wave it in the air, resulting in different tones and dynamics. The intuitive design makes it perfect for both beginners and professionals.

A bicycle bell, a bird in a tree, and your roommate’s amazing voice can be the start of a new song. You can also import samples you’ve already recorded, such as your solo from the middle school musical. The Orba Gestures For a more in depth list at the differences (and similarities) between Orba and Orba 2, you can see this list below. Stem songs allow you to remiagine and remix real songs by the sharpest songwriters and producers. Create your own instruments That's just from top of my head, I think the list is longer. App and it's connection to Orba is really bad, but it is required.Orba 2’s touch and motion sensors combine to capture even the most subtle micro - movements. Its improved cera mic - like playing surface simultaneously reacts to the nine simple gestures: Tap, Press, Radiate, Tilt, Shake, Spin, Vibrato, Move, and Bump. Each gesture can control the onboard synth engine or your MIDI music software of choice. With unprecedented express ive potential, you’ll never play the same note twice. MIDI CONTROL Orba 2’s touch and motion sensors combine to capture even the most subtle micro - movements. Its improved ceramic - like playing surface simultaneously reacts to the nine simple gestures: Tap, Press, Radiate, Tilt, Shake, Spin, Vibrato, Move, and Bump. Each gesture can control the onboard synth engine or your MIDI music software of choice. With unprecedented express ive potential, you’ll never play the same note twice. MIDI Control: Use Orba to control your MIDI - based software and hardware instruments (via USB - C or wirelessly via Bluetooth MIDI). Orba 2 allows you to record loops right on the device itself. Using Drum, Bass, Chord, and Lead, you’ll be able to layer sounds to create songs that are uniquely yours. Orba 2 also has a quantize feature that snaps your musical phrases to the beat so that every moment fits perfectly into the groove. And since Orba 2 has far more memory than its predecessor, you’ll be able to make way longer songs: up to 128 bars! The sleek and compact design allows the Orba 2 to be held in your hand, this is perfect for making music wherever you go. The robust construction provides a highly durable exterior, keeping the internal circuitry protected from bumps and scrapes. It even features a built-in speaker so you can play and listen no matter where you are. The headphone output allows you to play in private, perfect for capturing inspiration during late-night sessions or on public transport. Problem is, that software part quality ruins it all, and I cannot recommend Orba2 to anybody until these issues are resolved. And, unfortunately, there are no visible signs that it is going to happen.

Another side of the problem is an absent vendor communication - while Orba2 seems to be in state similar to Early Access games, that usually requires speaking with community a lot, Artiphon is completely silent about their roadmap and development, and their presence on their own forums is close to zero. Actually. They might release OrbaSynth for Orba2 tomorrow or never, you cannot guess. Nobody knows if they are doing something cool or filing for bankruptcy. That's quite annoying too.The Artiphon Connect app allows you to choose between over a hundred new audio-based presets. Including sounds inspired by genres like Trap, RnB, Electro-pop, Lofi, and more. With Artiphon Connect, you can now play instruments like electric guitars and upright pianos, as well as more adventurous sounds like vocals, found sounds, and custom artist songs. Imagine conducting an orchestra in the park with no strings attached and no screens required. I’m an absolutely awful musician who loves to explore (play with) the technology but thanks to the Orba’s ability to communicate with my iPad I’m flying!! There are so many possibilities yet to explore such as Scale change and Key setting both of which are available in this little ‘ball’. What I thought would be a great and amusing toy for a family Christmas has turned out to be so much more. The Orba 2 is CERTAINLY NOT A TOY!! Speed of development of Orba2 seems to be quite slow paced, and no patches or fixed had been provided for more than a month at this point, so it is hard to expect some dramatic changes soon. The USB connectivity means you can also use the Orba as an external MIDI controller. This allows you to control your favourite music software and virtual instruments using this handheld instrument. Handheld portable design with rechargeable battery Changing volume of the particular instrument type forces switching to the next instrument type, that's really annoying.

We’re also pleased to be introducing an all new Drum sampling feature, which lets you sample your world. Build your own drum kit and add custom samples to individual pads. And you’re not limited to drum sounds, by the way: you can turn your Artiphon instrument into your own sound effects board and DJ kit. This feature has been highly requested, so we expect some crazy creative setups from all of you! Scrolling list of presets in the app is almost impossible without switching to preset accidentally. Volume and reverb knobs are not working properly. Saving songs creates visual bugs that I cannot even describe. The internal synth engine is designed to respond to your movements, providing four main sounds to loop and create songs with. The synth is comprised of Drum, Bass, Chord and Lead sounds that span every genre. Each of the four Modes (Drum, Bass, Chord, and Lead) feature dozens of new instrument presets. New on Orba 2: Stems

Artiphon Orba 2 Overview

I waited four months before writing this review, hoping that Artiphon would provide fixes and I would be able to write a positive review to support a small company doing interesting device, but there was no significant change during this time. Orba 2 allows you to record loops ri ght on the device itself. Using Drum, Bass, Chord, and Lead, you’ll be able to layer sounds to create songs that are uniquely yours. Orba 2 also has a quantize feature that snaps your musical phrases to the beat so that every moment fits perfectly into the groove. And since Orba 2 has far more memory than its predecessor, you’ll be able to make way longer songs: up to 128 bars! PLAY WITH GESTURES

Play on the move thanks to the built-in lithium-ion battery. This rechargeable battery means you can use the Orba 2 on the move for up to four hours. The Orba also features built-in Bluetooth LE MIDI connectivity so you can control your music apps wirelessly. What’s Included The Android bluetooth orba app quality is, to put it mildly, disappointing. To be honest, it feels like it was developed by a students being paid with a bag of chips. App is constantly crashing, disconnecting from the Orba, or app can decide that it is connected in the connection menu, but refuse to do anything useful telling that you are not connected indeed. This app is only compatible with Orba 2 and Chorda by Artiphon. If you are looking for the Orba 1 app, search for “Orba 1” in the app store. We’re excited to announce the release of something we’ve been working on behind the scenes for quite some time.Last comment from anybody from the Artiphon team had been made 2 month ago on the forum, they do not even try answering users questions anymore.