Products of Interest

Native Instruments KORE Universal Sound Platform

KORE is described by Native Instruments (NI) as a Universal Sound Platform. It combines a software application that integrates all of the user's plug-in instruments and effects (in NI, VST, and AU formats), makes them available to the sequencer in use, and provides tactile controls with an integrated hardware controller.

At the heart of KORE is the new KoreSound format that can store meta-data such as comments and other descriptive information, a musical category attribute, keyboard mappings, controller assignments, mixer and routing settings, and MIDI files. Single instruments can make up a KoreSound or a more complex set of instruments and effects can be combined into a single KoreSound, each with the optional extra data mentioned above (see Figure 1). The musical categories attribute is an important part of the software side of KORE. Currently, all presets supplied with Native Instruments software are included with KORE and have been specially configured for use with the software and hardware components. This set consists of more than 10,000 instruments and effects, more of which can be added depending on the third-party plug-ins users also own. The KoreSound category attribute allows each preset to be described in terms of instrument, type, timbre, articulation, and genre. The browser then allows the user to browse the database of sounds by single or combined attributes, to search by name or comments using keywords, or to browse the presets in a file tree representation.

Figure 1.

Screenshot of the Native Instruments KoreSound Attributes software interface.

When used with a sequencer, KORE combines all of the user's plug-ins into the software interface and then is itself loaded into the sequencer as a plug-in providing access to all the instruments and effects through the Sound Browser. When the chosen plug-in is located in the browser the user double-clicks on the plug-in to play and edit it with the hardware controller. In this way, one can use just a single interface to gain access to the complete range of plug-ins on a computer. Additional sounds can be created by combining single instruments, effects, layers, and splits with MIDI files for triggering and signal routing information into a single KoreSound that can be saved for repeated use.

Figure 2.

Native Instruments KORE controller.

The KORE hardware controller functions as an audio interface with transport controls, a jog wheel, eight buttons and knobs for parameter control, a backlit display (64 × 128 pixels) and gain controls for the input/output (see Figure 2). It uses USB 2.0 for connection to a computer and is powered from this bus also. Two stereo (1/4-in.) inputs and outputs, a digital output, a 1/4-in. headphone output, three pedal inputs, a MIDI input/output, and a USB 2.0 port are all located on the rear panel. The controller comes configured for use with all applications from NI KOMPLETE 3 and any AU or VST plug-in parameters with automation IDs can be also configured for use with the hardware controller. The user simply clicks an Assign button, the parameter they wish to control, and then the hardware controller they want to associate with that parameter. Parameter assignment is presented on controller pages that consist of eight buttons and knobs for assignment with additional pages available for stepping through as more assignments are required. The first page of assignments can be recorded in the automation track of the user's sequencer. A number of parameters can be assigned to a single control and the values of multiple parameters can be set to move in the same or opposite direction to each other. The knobs for parameter control are backlit and touch-sensitive, and operate incrementally with 500 steps per revolution. Context sensitivity is built in so that if the user touches a controller, the assigned parameter is displayed on the hardware display and is highlighted in the software and vice-versa.

Along with parameter control, the hardware controller can be used to switch channels...