This sounds very good.
The Expander, especially at this price, looks like a total winner ā pending some independent confirmation on quality. I know the other versions of the Kobol including the Polykobol are far along and have progressed. The knob per function, with CV per knob control makes a comprehensible system and workflow.
Add another interesting semi-modular for Behringer.
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The price is absolutely nuts. Quite surprised by the sound palette you get for the price, itās gorgeous 
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So according to Vintage Synth the original RSF Kobol Expander had āring modulation, sample-hold, and envelope followersā, along with other stuff. These are not mentioned on the Behringer product page.
Looking at the front panel image of the Behringer model ( very similar to the original BTW ) i see the āVoltage Processorā in the lower left corner.
Is this the ring modulator ? I assume the āRev Outā would be an inverted output ?
Looking at the layout of the panel this module will function very nicely as a collection of nice utility funcitions, as well as a integrated monosynth.
Does it actually sound like a RSF Kobol?
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If you watch the behringer promo to the end they rather drop a hint that they are making the expander 2 as well and that has all the funky stuff.
The price is great, the filter is very nice on the original as is the layout, I think they have priced it as half a pair as the numbers donāt add up otherwise. If it was over 200 it would be more than a 2600 for a pair with an expanded and an expander2
The expander may have digitally generated LFO and Envelopes. Itās a nice configuration, but itād be nice to hear the filter etc demoed properly, rather than buried in a track.
They donāt tend to price low on pre-orders, there is usually an early adopter premium
There is a third part of the Kobol too, looks like it might be a sequencer (the image added shows a programmer)
Iām guessing they make these as they (the og ones) are unobtanium and ultra spendy on the s/h market
They look cool, but as Behringer are spreading it thin across supplies Iād hate to buy into the Kobol ecosystem only to wait ages for the sidecar.
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Preordered.
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Same oscillators as all their other stuff?
Naturally
Mine just arrived! Hopefully Iāll get a chance to have a play later on. It was a pre order from Andertons.
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Would love to hear a user report, additional sound examples!
Okay so I had an hour or so yesterday. First impressions, itās great! Build quality is good with nice chunky knobs. The slide switches are okay, not tank like but not floppy or wobbly either. Pots all feel good with just the right amount of resistance. Iām not familiar with the OG model but there are a few quirks, possibly carried over. The LFO is hard wired to the pitch of oscillator 2 but you can break that path by inserting a jack into the mod input socket. Thereās an LFO amount knob labelled volume whoās output is normalled to the pitch of oscillator 1 and there are also two output jacks from the LFO with one coming from the level control.
Thereās no dedicated PWM amount control with the output of either the LFO, env 2 or both being directed at both oscillators via a switch which isnāt labelled PWM! Turning the waveform knob fully clockwise activates PWM for that oscillator. You can always use the voltage processor to control PWM amount by using the patch points so no big deal there
The waveform control give a really wide variety of waves and that can be modulated via a dedicated input for each VCO. The oscillator waves all sound good to my ears. This is especially true with oscillator sync sounds imo. I got some very Vince Clarke type lead sounds with the sync switched on and judicious use of the frequency controls. Lots of scope in the oscillator section before Iāve got to the filter.
Thereās a bit of bass roll off as you increase the resonance but nothing too dramatic. Iāve not played about with the filer too much yet but I was able to get some decent percussion sounds using the noise generator.
The envelopes are super fast and snappy, with the decay control having quite a narrow range over the first half of its rotation but I found that better than tiny adjustments crammed at the lower end of the pot to increase decay time. Brilliant for getting the decay just right.
Thereās an update on the app already. I couldnāt see any release notes and the app looks no different between OS versions so maybe just a couple of bugs swatted? Interestingly thereās a couple of things in the quick start guide that I can only think are errors. Thereās reference to pressing the shift button to enable a separate release setting for the envelopes only I canāt see any other reference to a shift function! Likewise the manual lists the Key CV control in the filter as āKeyb Ctrl/Step Lengthā yet thereās no sequencer? I can only assume thereās been a cut and paste fail or the guide was written when the keyboard version was being developed? Iāve not played with the duophonic aspect yet but there is a facility on the app to set up poly chaining so thatās something
Overall Iām really happy with this one. It sounds big and has a pretty varied sound palette. Itās much more than a common or garden monosynth with its generous patch points and voltage processor. I can imagine it can really get pushed if hooked up to some other modular/semi modular gear.
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Hereās a Behringer Kobol Expander demo video with 20 patch ideas for Techno, Ambient and Electronica. Maybe you find it interesting
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There is a very good review of the Behringer Kobol done on Amazona. Es ist auf Deutsch, but you can translate it.
Very positive review. The author did a lot of real world sort of use, making a variety of different sorts of music and testing a variety of aspects of the Kobol. Definitely listen to the 14 music samples that are in this article.
In the conclusion the author says this :
The ādriving pleasureā and the completeness of the features of the Behringer Kobol Expander are definitely surprising! And that at a new price that is lower than that of many plugins. I know from my own experience the other Behringer synthesizers on the market and only a few have convinced me so far. This one is the long-awaited exception and I would be very surprised if I didnāt see it in studio photos from all over the world soon. I take my hat off to Uli Behringer and his team ā a great success has been achieved here!
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Couldnāt agree more. Itās deffo one of the better ones imo
Not a fan of Behringers clone in general, but Iām intrigued by this one.
It seems to have a very distinct character, according to the sound demos that Iāve heard.
I have them all and this one might be the best. It sounds fantastic and is really fun and versatile.
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Agreed. I keep toying with getting another and poly chaining them
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Order your second one right now. If you are properly jinxed Behringer will announce manufacture of this when you can no longer return the second Kobol Expander.
BTW : Itās obvious now the PolyKobol will come with a poly-aftertouch keyboard, and hopefully a mod-matrix something like on the UB-Xa.
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Wantā¦needā¦
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