The Smallest MIDI sequencer? - RK008

My first jam with the new RK008 MIDI sequencer by Retrokits.
More about RK008:
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Video gear used: kit.co/TrueCuc...

[@truecuckoo]

Anyone interested in a tutorial on this little sequencer? Any specific use case?

[@AMTunLimited]

Do you think it could support a full live set?

[@patricknecighi1227]

Would be great. 😊

[@SculpArts]

I would be interested for a tutorial 😊

[@crazygamingswede]

Yes sir! Sign me up for that tutorial. I'm curious to know how big of a setup you could control with that tiny calculator.

[@robinplur]

Yes please! With this type of gear, can you control say a hardware and a vst-synth as a part of the same set up?

[@Chasing_Thoughts]

I love your mirror face technique! It’s very Cuckoo, it’s like you’re one of the pieces of gear. Totally wireless too 😊

[@truecuckoo]

Thank you!

[@jessejohnson7591]

It is a nice touch. Especially given Cuckoo doesn't hide his emotions and you can see the frustration while working and eventual elation when finished.

[@Chasing_Thoughts]

@@jessejohnson7591 well said!!

[@AMTunLimited]

I appreciate that you'll do graphics and text and all that good stuff but are still committed to the mirror.

[@eddiereflux]

Cuckoo’s music keeps getting better and better. Amazing stuff.

[@truecuckoo]

❤️🙏🏼 thank you so much!

[@krostudios]

This is probably the best jam I've seen you do and have been subbed for a long time. Very Tangerine Dream like. Also would like to see more vids on the sequencer

[@truecuckoo]

Thank youuu so much! ❤️

[@NJC935]

This was lovely The timbre of each patch was unique to me.

[@GreatistheWorld]

This track was mesmerizing to watch build, like musicians kept entering the room and had something new to selflessly add

[@DomDomPop]

Wow what a jam. Amazing as always, man.

[@truecuckoo]

Thank you Dom! I appreciate it 🙏🏼

[@robinplur]

Lovely soundscape right there

[@artsolomon202]

If i walked the streets in a blade runner scene, rain pouring down , in search for a cafe, eventually there i would sit down for a cup of coffee, drinking and staring at the big air ad ships that float by and they play this music on the background, i say picture perfect. Love your sound, man.

[@EarthnikNews]

WOW!!! 9 minutes of eyes-closed bliss. Thank you!!!

[@majormercator]

This was beautiful. Made me realize I should really dig into my Volca FM more

[@valley_robot]

The only piece of gear I regret getting rid of , I’ll get another one day , I had a massive collection of patches for it

[@RoyaleFougard]

I wanted to see the RK0008 in action and, well, I forgot about that and just listened to you jamming. That's is so beautiful. Thanks!

[@dmcinnis23]

Beautiful jam. Thank you cuckoo!

[@Two-Eyed_Boy]

It's cool (very cool actually) that it has a calculator form factor but you buried the headline... The fact that it plays back unquantized MIDI events is awesome! I sometimes come up with melodies that fire on upbeats and things like that and the Volca and other simple sequencers don't play well with that. Beautiful jam Cuckoo!

[@truecuckoo]

Thanks! I hope to make a tutorial of some sort with this. The unquantised mode is great. Then you apply quantisation in a variety of settings. And remove quantisation if your don’t like it anymore.

[@Chasing_Thoughts]

Cool squared*

[@drindy5166]

Sooo awesome! No voices, just your face and notes made this piece so epic. Love the architecture ;) Look forward to some more vids soon! Cheers ✌🧡👍

[@ruezulich8]

Dear Cuckoo, your work is always excellent, your tutorials helpful & your presence inviting. This jam is really something special. Iv shared this with my entire friend group. The flow & sounds are on another level of excellence. If I may be so forward - please make an extended jam of this. Something 30+ mins. This could really be the start of a whole album.

[@yeoldmedic7572]

love your way with FM friend i like your tones

[@PrimitiveInTheExtreme]

Wow, I didn't know him, very interesting, great jam, great sounds.

[@StevenSclafani]

hypnotic midi. This is the little sequencer I always dreamed of. If I wasn't already in a relationship with Squarp Pyramid I would certainly be transmitting note + cc from this.

[@providief]

This is a sick jam

[@DavidDeLuge]

Fantastic! I really enjoyed that. What a great bit of kit! 😜

[@luispat8633]

Nice setup. Lovdly theme remines me of video games.

[@blsemetan7232]

Very NICE jam!

[@svartsjokolade]

Lovely as usual! Made me think of Aphex Twin at times, very tranquil piece.

[@TotallyFictional]

A beautiful gentle piece

[@brentladue]

really love the melodies in this one! excited about the rk008 but still wish there was a pocket operator with midi out so i could use one as a controller along with all the pattern switching, chaining, and held fx button effects. great video!

[@dillipphunbar7924]

so chill

[@MoCalaz]

Great showcase 🙏🏻 This little box looks quite interesting 🤪

[@truecuckoo]

Thanks! Yeah I agree. It's very interesting!

[@renbelmont]

Brilliant, I was just looking for a video on this sequencer and I think I found an FM synth too

[@phoenixrising1576]

Lovely Demo. I think this little Sequencer is Outstanding and Simple design and for a non technical synth jam player exactly what ive been looking for for years! I feel its an absolute Diamond of an idea.

[@erichutchinsws]

Just an amazing demo of the RK-008. Was trying to wrap my head around it and your video simply revealed its potential. Truly Dawless and looper like abilities in one easy to use package. Thanks for this! I would love to see you do a tutorial with small portable setups or even experiment with modular setups. So cool. 😎

[@alexparada607]

That black keystep looks so good!

[@danhess2343]

Always impressive content. Thanks for sharing

[@tornadoalleystudios2283]

What a great sequencer.... thanks for sharing. Great vibe. It made eating my lunch all that more entertaining.

[@J1M0TEE]

Ok wow - *now* I see the power of this lil device! When I first saw the RK008 I didn't get it, but now I do! Thanks Cuckoo! 🙏

[@warrenmusic]

Love your playing. Inspiring.

[@leftmono1016]

It’s worth reiterating that, like the Alesis MMT8, each of the 8 tracks is able to contain all 16 midi channels. So you’re not limited to just one sound per track. Very flexible!

[@mathiasberthold1223]

Lovely!

[@henrytheworst]

Love this

[@Spherical_El]

Very very nice . Lovely hearing you just FM out - loved it

[@elsantoproductora]

This little thing is simply amazing. I love the design and it seems to be very powerful. Thanks for the jam!

[@DanChippendaleMusic]

The worn out patches on the keys looks like the fingers of a flame ghost. But then I have been playing A LOT of Elden Ring 😁

[@guyvonlino3685]

Très apaisant après une journée de travail...☺ merci GVL

[@bijanrisdanaa]

Cuckoo. Amazing. Love the soft tones and your talent. Bravo my friend.

[@stefanie_m466]

rk retrokits is wicked, they design good stuff to make nice music.

[@trancemuter]

nice jam!

[@jackpijjin4088]

Boards of Cuckoo! What a lovely little machine. Matches all my vintage calculators. :3

[@rygelxv]

The smile on your face, when you twist the MegaFM to some delightful quirky sounds. :)

[@scottharris7222]

Incredibly well chosen sounds and nuanced performance. The sequencer is cool and I’m checking it but the tasteful performance and ears are all you. Well done.

[@nebula0697]

Pretty jam from the FM king. Very soft and free.

[@hollsound]

Very fine melody with awesome dubby vibe, I love it! 🤩

[@gooneybird808]

so sick man, a perfect set up for you to shred you're wonder

[@aaanicholls]

So excited about this piece of gear, hope to see more videos in the future, and once mine arrives I will likely have plenty of questions and use cases, cheers

[@pavilionman64]

Well that's the ultimate calculator looking music gear i ever saw...POs and Ep-133 can breath now since more variables joined...the equation x)

[@markkeller94]

That ability to just drop in and out of recording while not stopping playing might just make me turn my Alesis MMT8 into a wall hanging. Awesome demo.

[@intheblink]

Cuckoo, I’ve been subscribed to your channel from the start and you’ve always been an immensely artistic entity, but I think your recent stuff is showing a lot of maturity and skill. Really lovely stuff with a great sense of musicality. Keep up the great work :)

[@preservedjams4109]

Lovely sounds

[@lorenz4712]

I love your piano playing, you make wonderful melodies!

[@michaela6718]

Sold. And this is really a great jam, dude. Definitely make a how to!

[@colinoliver]

great composition

[@dorn_beats]

I want to stay in this Cuckoo video game universe forever!

[@imdeaf81]

Beautiful !

[@FoundationStepper]

🔥🔥

[@truecuckoo]

🙏🏼

[@AndrewHill23]

I really enjoyed this and the sounds. Would love to know more about this little seq. I get that it is unquantized as a design feature but does it have any other cool tricks up its sleeve? I keep wanting something simple with euclidean drum fun though.

[@truecuckoo]

Thanks! You can choose whether you want to quantise or not. You can record flows of CC changes, knob twists, pitch bends, mod wheel action etc. All of that can potentially be recorded into the sequencer. Some nice copy paste function, and MIDI routing.

[@rollermusic]

Really beautiful little jam! Love your overall style -- like many people wrote, the mirror is very special and you play to it well (like at the end)... Great job!

[@reidmclellan7934]

good song man!

[@dylanleroysynth]

Love this! Great tune here. Really nice work!

[@paulriggs42]

This is just such a good jam…. Would love to see a more detailed setup with midi routing etc…. Too kool for Skool Cuckoo !

[@GerenM63]

Great jam!

[@mike.thomas]

Absolutely interested in a tutorial. I’ve been voltage control only, since entering Eurorack in 2017 (had a long break from music production). I’ve been considering getting MIDI in the system again, but have old-school requirements (I think). This little guy seems to be perfect to take me back to 1990 with my MMT-8 ❤, but takes up much less room. BTW 7:28 was a lovely movement. You are a man of taste 😊 Edit: oops I realize now I’m very late. Whatever, my points still stand 😂.

[@Batou_73]

This Sounds so good! One of your best jams. Every Sound was unique! Just missed your voice with reverb over it😉

[@pacorayban]

Machinarium musique style ❤

[@Thomasabraser]

Would love to see a tutorial/review. As far as I understand it's more of a multitrack midi-looper than a sequencer? Lovely jam!

[@StephenMcLeod]

I am so curious about this, but unsure of if it's for me in terms of application. It looks beautiful though.

[@etiennedutrucmuch7247]

Waow! Vraiment génial !

[@kh485]

I like the small form factor, but for the price there are more powerful options in hardware offerings.

[@VitoMichaele]

Hey mate, yes am dying for an in depth tutorial on how to use this. I feel so silly to ask, and I’m a bit of a slow learner, for this sort of thing and the instruction manual seems to list everything except how to get going on making connections and select midi channels etc. a few things that need help with are 1. Using a keyboard controller that has a usb out such as a nanokey studio…can that be used? 2. How to go about selecting midi channels and actually just a proper introduction/navigation of controls in general would be great. 3. How to hook up an RK006 to use it in conjunction with volcas and other equipment I think once those basics are covered then people can enjoy this great tool a lot more… I’m actually a bit dissapointed with the retrokits demonstrations and impressed you got out of it as much as you did. Thank you

[@apostatatheprovost3041]

❤️✌️

[@benwiley8941]

I've been trying to get an RK 008 ever since it launched and I missed it by an hour. I keep refreshing the page every day to see if it's back in stock. I'm going insane.

[@nickdestruct]

i suppose some dont like fm but i find it more melodic and harmonious than anything else. and sounds even better with effects. wish i could store more banks on my volca at once. id never run out of sounds. may even try korgs new opsix vst..

[@yepuh8828]

Great Vid...this inspire me so much bc it's kind of where i want to go with music. I want to ask the retrokits sequence say an ipad from the usb connection?

[@matszh]

”Where does he get all those wonderful toys?” Also; Is this the One, or should we wait for the BCR32?

[@isaacanthonydj4124]

i have a Keystep37 plugged into my MC707 which both use internal clock, so i can make some pretty fun/interesting polymetric type sequences on the MC707

[@isaacanthonydj4124]

and i figured out how to get DEXED to run thru my MC707 so I can have all the fun FM tones i love as well :D

[@ryokokofficial]

The Smoothiest Jazz.

[@ToyKeeper]

This thing really, really channels Kraftwerk. "I am the operator of my pocket calculator. Beep boop... boing!" But the music you make with it is undeniably Cuckoo, not Kraftwerk.

[@fibiger12]

Great track you made there. i had to hear it twice! I cant find any tutorials for this device... could you make one? :D

[@hovermotion]

Cool....is that a Arturia key step .. That sequencer looks very retro.

[@truecuckoo]

Thanks. Yeah it's the key step, with a very worn out custom paint job.

[@Cambaudio]

@@truecuckoo gives it character!

[@jakojako_live]

pretty

[@MadGeek17]

Hey, how do you play the volca fm with the midi keyboard through the sequencer? thanks!

[@frankhumphries1927]

👍, I’m interested in seq vsts, and desktop module like the Typhon, and organizing a track for recording or performance.

[@MorningView]

5 stars

[@agneldominique352]

Awesome jam… I m all years for a tutorial on it plz

[@jaydeepalmer]

Ooh nice jam! Really nice sounds here 😊 Also I really like your keystep with blue keys, where did you find it? Also I think you got one with red keys? Those are sick!

[@HansyPants184]

Do you have a video on what you used to paint your keystep keys to get them to wear in so quickly? I love me a good patina!

[@stefanie_m466]

thnx for the song, im so drunk, its sounds so good

[@mutedsounds2k]

OMG! What have you done to that poor KeyStep?!

[@kisho2679]

Does it beat the Squarp Pyramid?

[@romi2910001]

So this is basically a Multitrack Sequencer 🤔

[@thebmxband1t]

is everything we see here all that is playing? wheres the delay and reverbs coming from? i would like to see this amazing seqencer control a few items midi clock while perhaps recording some cc or sysex parameters abd maybe throw in pattern bank changes so effectively the units are running their own onboard patterns and sequencer might be ‘playing’ the knob / bank changes like automation.