Overview

The Kong front panel.

Kong is an advanced drum sound synthesizer, sampler/sample player and REX loop/slice player with many unique features. The design could be described as semi-modular, in that the sound, FX and audio processing modules are open slots that allows you to select between an array of different sound generators, FXs and audio processor types.

As a result, Kong is capable of producing an astounding array of drum and percussion sounds - or any type of sound, for that matter. While it offers a lot of scope for serious sound design, it still has a straight-forward and user-friendly interface.

Kong also features audio inputs on the back panel. By connecting the output of another device to these inputs, you can use Kong’s audio processing modules to process external sound. You can also route drum sounds for audio processing in external devices.

The Pad Section

The pad section features 16 pads. Each of these pads can be assigned to a separate Drum sound. You can also choose to assign several pads to one and the same Drum sound - or to link pads so that one pad will trigger several other pads as well. To the right of the pads is the Pad Settings area where you can control the pad assignments and behavior. See “Pad Settings”.

The Drum Control Panel

The Drum Control Panel at the bottom left of the panel shows the name and “macro parameter” settings for the selected pad in the pad section. From the Drum Control Panel you can also load and save Drum Patches as well as initiate sampling. See “The Drum Control Panel”.

The Drum and FX Section

By clicking the Programmer button below at the bottom of the Drum Control Panel you can bring up the Drum and FX Section. Here is where you can edit your drum sounds and combine with various types of sound processors and FX. See “The Drum and FX section”.

About using custom backdrops

As with the Combinator device, it is possible to customize the Kong front panel graphics with a user-designed skin. In the Reason Download section at the Propellerhead website is the “Combi and Kong Backdrop Templates” zip file, which can be used as starting point for designing your own Kong panel graphics. See the “Read Me.txt” file in the Backdrops folder for more details. Note that you should use separate backdrops for folded vs. unfolded states.