Korg Volca Bass

Korg's 2013 Volca Bass, Analogue Bass Machine, Desktop Synthesiser / Analog Groove-Box, three Oscillators, Analog filter, one VCF, VCA, LFO and EG, Loop- and Step-Sequencer, Slide- and Active Step-Function & more

Released in 2013 along with the Volka Keys & Volka Beats, this trio of battery or mains powered units kicked off what was to become a major selling product line for Korg which at today's date (October 2023) now comprises 10 different Volca units, and the Volca Bass has arguably achieved classic status offering as it does a genuine analog signal path, a quality sound & an iconic design form all combined with serious value for money at around £130 GBP new & around £80-£100 GBP secondhand.

The Volka Bass draws it's inspiration from the TB-303 - of which it does a quite passable impression - and is a 3 oscillator analog Mono synth offering VCO waveform choices of Sawtooth or Square wave. Up to three VCO's can be active to create a sound patch & they can be tuned up/down from each other by a maximum of an octave in either direction, while the unit itself can be pitch tuned across a 6 Octave range.

The Volca Bass sports a 12dB/Octave diode ring filter, the design of which is derived from Korg's classic 1970'S MiniKorg 700S. An all analog VCA is complimented by an LFO with Square & Triangle waveforms.

The lower sequencer area allows realtime or step input. VCO Grouping allows the created sequence/s or incoming MIDI notes to trigger either all three VCO's at the same time in unison or all three separately. The middle option is Osc' 1 & 2 together & the 3rd Oscillator being separate. These 3 VCO grouping options allow the Volca bass to deliver up to 3 paraphonic patterns or big fat unison type sounds with up to 3oscillators working together. The sequencer also has a feature called Active Step which allows the user to remove & then re-add (not simply mute/unmute) as required individual or groups of steps across the pattern on the fly, making the Volca Bass a very versatile unit for live performance in the old skool way. Furthermore each of the 3 possible VCO sequencer parts can have its own active Step settings which allows the user to do things like set one VCO to a single step drone sound while the other sequences two play patterns; it's very cleverly thought out.

Korg Volca Bass, Analogue Bass Machine, Desktop Synthesiser / Analog Groove-Box, three Oscillators, Analog filter, one VCF, VCA, LFO and EG, Loop- and Step-Sequencer, Slide- and Active Step-Function, Self tuning-Function, Multitouch Trigger Pad / Step-Button, LED-Display, build-in Speaker, Sync I/O 1/8" Mini-Input female Mono, MIDI In, Headphone-Out 1/8" Mini-TRS Stereo, Power via 6x AA Battery or optional Power Supply (KA-350; not included)