Artiphon introduces stems to Orba 2 in collaboration with Kimbra

Words by Mixdown Staff

You can now create your own versions of studio recordings using stem-based loops on Orba 2

Artiphon has introduced a new stem experience to Orba 2 in collaboration with Kimbra.

What you need to know:

Artiphon has introduced a new stem experience to Orba 2 in collaboration with Kimbra.
Load Kimbra’s new Orba 2 stem song ‘replay!’ into the unit via USB.
The result is a “first-of-its-kind Orba experience”. One where users can rebuild and remix their own version of popular music.

Read all the latest product news here.

Load Kimbra’s new Orba 2 stem song ‘replay!’ and you’ll discover a world of automatic drum patterns, chord voicings that have never been heard on Orba, and snippets of her vocal melody mapped over Orba 2’s lead mode.

Thanks to Orba 2’s new sample playback engine (one of the most valuable upgrades from Orba 1 to Orba 2), users can now put stems on Orba and play them back just like any other sample.

With the press of a finger, you’ll be able to trigger different parts of a song simply by pressing and holding pads. This experience becomes especially interactive when paired with built-in gestures such as tilt and bump, which add effects and translate the movements from your fingers and hands directly into sound.

The result is a “first-of-its-kind Orba experience”. One where users can rebuild and remix their own version of popular music.

“We started working with Kimbra one year ago when she used Orba for several writing sessions while travelling abroad,” Artiphon said. “It seemed like a good match from day one: Kimbra is a lifetime looper. And sampling has been a part of her musical style since her first breakout hit, ‘Somebody That I Used To Know’, with Gotye.

“Her use of new musical technologies and highly improvisational musical stylings felt like the perfect combination.”

There are a few additional stem songs you can play in the app, including ‘Eyes on Me’ by TikTok-famous guitarist Annie Shred, and a few others from the in-house Artiphon sound design team, including ‘Sails’.

Due to the high quality of these stems, a USB connection is required to load them onto Orba 2. Once loaded, you can play them without a USB connection wherever you are (this should be faster with the new app update).