CHOMPI is back!
With some fun firmware on the way
written by Joel Korte
This could easily become an all-time-long newsletter so I’m going to contain myself and stick to the facts as much as possible. We made a big video that covers everything in detail if you want to know more:
We have CHOMPI in stock.
I want to mention this up top because it’s important: We don’t have a ton of them. We have 1100 units in black, and another 200 units in the limited white/translucent Storytime colorway. There’s a good reason for this – this is all of the remaining CHOMPI hardware that there is, and this will be the final run of CHOMPI in this exact form factor.
So what does that mean for the future of CHOMPI?
Going forward, we will be making new hardware ourselves. This process is already underway, but it will take some time and we won’t have units ready until 2026 (I would love to be more specific about when but it’s too hard to say). This is our goal and focus for CHOMPI at the moment: to find a way to make them our own way, in higher quantities.
I know some of you that already own a CHOMPI (or are considering buying one right now) might worry that I’m talking about a MKII or sequel, but that’s not the case. The hardware will change slightly (and the price may have to change slightly, too) but otherwise this is good ol’ CHOMPI, just made by us here at Chase Bliss. On the inside it will be the same and firmware updates we make for it will be compatible with existing units.
Which brings me to the next bit of news:
We have an alternate CHOMPI firmware on the way, and it’s a big one.
When Tobias and Chelsea first announced CHOMPI in 2023, the plan had been that CHOMPI would expand over time and offer different experiences – like a hardware platform. But then the Kickstarter popped off and those dreams had to be set aside in order to fulfill and support all those orders. So when we decided to team up it felt like the right time to make good on it.
TEMPO is essentially a rhythmic reimagining of CHOMPI. Whereas the original firmware – that we’re now calling TAPE – was all about fluid, free-form, “tape” style composition, TEMPO is the complete opposite. It’s all about making patterns.
The workflow and feel are still familiar and very “CHOMPI,” but otherwise it’s essentially a brand-new instrument. It’s free for anybody with a CHOMPI and very easy to update.
The downside:
It’s not quite ready yet. We hoped it would be by the time we made this announcement, but we want to get it right before you get your hands on it. We’re deep into beta testing and while I don’t want to make any predictions, it’s getting close. (I think.)
Finally, we made a mini-doc about CHOMPI. This is our first big project that we’ve done as a team and it felt like the right time to talk about Tobias and Chelsea and everything they’ve been through to get here. It’s quite a story.
Okay, I think those are all of the facts.
All of the CHOMPI units are in-house, assembled, and ready to go (worldwide). Because the numbers are relatively small, I’m confident we can ship these out more-or-less right away, we’ll keep the shipping estimates updated on the website so just take a look at what it says when you place your order.
I know this is a lot so if anything is unclear just email us here: help@chasebliss.com.
Thanks for reading all of this, and thank you for taking an interest in CHOMPI. It’s a special instrument made by special people and I’m so excited to finally be getting into this together.
