Find Harmony, Spark Creativity: Play, make music, and spark inspiration with the chord recommendation feature on a new type of portable groovebox.
AlphaTheta has officially launched Chordcat, a sleek, portable groovebox that puts the power of chord creation and track building into the hands of producers and musicians… anytime, anywhere. Originally launched as a limited pre-release in Japan, where it quickly sold out, Chordcat is now rolling out globally to meet the creative needs of everyone from bedroom beatmakers to seasoned studio pros. With its intuitive layout and smart harmonic tools, Chordcat invites users to break through creative blocks and build tracks from scratch with ease – and there’s not even any advanced music theory required.
At the heart of Chordcat is its Chord Cruiser mode, an exclusive feature that suggests seamless and musically compatible chord transitions in real time. With access to over 110,000 possible chord combinations and 18 preset chord sets (inspired by genres like house and future bass), users can jumpstart their creativity and compose rich progressions effortlessly. This workflow is enhanced by key and scale settings, which ensure users stay in harmonic alignment no matter what notes or chords they choose, which serves especially useful as a helpful tool for beginners.
Chordcat packs a punch with an 8-track sequencer, 145 instrument presets, 16 drum kits, and creative tools like 3 built-in effects (Arpeggiator, Delay, Ducker) and the Running Direction playback function, which unlocks rhythmic variations at the touch of a button. Additional features include per-pattern automation, low-pass filters, and amp envelopes, wgich give users the flexibility to shape their sound and create dynamic, evolving arrangements across 128 steps and 16 patterns per track.
The included Chordcat Manager software allows seamless pattern transfer between the hardware and computer, and every registered unit comes with a free license for Ableton Live Lite, expanding production possibilities even further. On the connectivity front, Chordcat includes MIDI IN/OUT/THRU and USB-C ports, making it easy to integrate with DAWs or external synths. Designed for life on the move, Chordcat’s flat, knob-free form factor makes it ultra-portable, while power via either USB-C or 6 AA batteries ensures the music doesn’t stop.