Arturia's original Beatstep was a great little box. When it was released, it arrived as (yet) a (nother) midi controller with pads and knobs- but it had one really, really cool trick up its sleeve- the built in sequencer. The controls were a bit weird and it didn't really give you much feedback about what notes were going on, but it was great for experimenting and having a different way to get ideas for riffs and hooks very quickly.

Arturia realised pretty quickly that they were onto something and have listened to peoples feedback on what they wanted on it. Introducing the Beatstep Pro!

Beatstep Pro Top

 

Featuring not one, but three sequencers, there are two for melodic lines and then one dedicated for drums. You can program lines in either in realtime, with the pads that are lit, playing it like a keyboard and step sequencing, using the knobs to dial in the note or use the middle row of buttons to select step, the pads for notes.

Unlike the original, the screen gives you nice, clear feedback on what the note you're programming or editing is, which is a major help when trying to dial in changes to your sequences.

You have velocity and gate length control for each of the notes, and the drum sequencer also lets you dial in shift amounts for each note, for a more organic feel to your drums.

Beatstep Pro Angled

 

Outputs are very well specified, with both midi in and out, there's clock sync in and out, and a whole plethora of CV and Gate outputs for your drums and synths. It will also fire sequences over USB to control software synths if you want to run it that way. Beatstep Pro Drum Outputs Beatstep Pro CV/Gate Outputs

 

Integrating it into a set up is also easy- as well as running its clock internally, it will sync to USB, Midi or the clock inputs.

On top of that there are a whole load of extra programming features to help you build up tracks and then perform them live- too much to cover here!

For anyone using any electronic gear, these things could add another dimension to your music thanks to the different ways you can run it. We recommend them  either for inspiration when you're just jamming or for your live performance.