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KORG KRONOS


mildbill

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Good question: why are there particle boards on the bottom of most Japanese keyboards with a graded hammer action? Has this some dampening effect or is it just cheaper? US (Kurzweil) and European (Nord) manufacturers use metal for the bottom of their keyboards...

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My 24 year old KX88 has a particle board bottom. The Juno-106 has a particle board bottom. This isn't some new "omg they used cheap materials!" thing going on here.


so you're saying they've always used cheap materials.:lol:

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yeah perhaps it's a design thing. that panel should be harder, more costly to manufacture I guess? because steel is in oversupply.

maybe the panel is of higher quality and thickness, compared to cheapish Yamaha KX8 (not KX88).

but yeah, it's weird for a $3K keyboard. its present even in the 61,73 key version?

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Poly-61 bottom and sides are thick particle board.
I think DSS-1 has a particle board bottom
which makes it heavier than the DW-8000 which has a metal bottom.


I said bottom 3x hehehe

 

 

Yes, but it's also what you see at 1:00mn that makes it weigh a ton:)

 

 

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Your AFAIK is incorrect.


If you select one of the 16 tracks in a Motif mixing, the knobs give you access to filter cutoff and resonance, amp EG ADR (but not S for some reason), EQ, arpeggiator settings, effects depth and 2 assignable parameters (per part!) while the sliders give you volume control for each part. They all send over MIDI so as long as the external gear plays nice with CC assignments you can control some of that, too.


Yamaha's Performances have
never
been like Korg Combis...even if you go back to ancient workstations like the SY77. On Korgs, the Combis and Sequencer modes are pretty much the same as I recall. Yamaha's Performance mode seems to bug a lot of people, but it never bothered me...I don't use it
;)
Using Songs and Patterns as multitimbral setups makes sense to me because that's how my old Ensoniq SQ-80 used to work.


I learned the hard way when I replaced the SQ-80 with a Motif ES that I needed to learn Yamaha's way of doing things rather than being upset when it didn't work like the SQ-80.


I'm sure if I suddenly switched to a Kronos there would be a long list of things that would drive me insane because it doesn't work like a Motif
:thu:
One off the top of my head is the DAW controller features of the Motif simply don't exist in the Kronos or any other workstation.



Ahh but you're using Master Mode with Songs it sounds like. Not sure if that's a different scenario knob/slider wise? I don't like to work in sequencer mode for live playing. Sorta like the old GM modules of the day.

I had an EX5 before my Motifs and it was a GREAT controller for a live rig. Though it's layering capabilities internally left much to be desired apart from other flaws. Had some charming character to it though. If the motif had used the EX's implementation for controlling external gear(While keeping the ability to do more than one layer), the Motif would have been a near perfect synth.

Interesting you mention an SQ-80. Still have my ESQ-1! My first synth. :love:

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O RLY?? Well, I guess I know where I'm going to be sometime this weekend! Thanks!

 

 

Pup, I would call before you go to see if they have one out to demo. The one I saw was still in the box and they said it was already sold.

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Just got back from Guitar Center where I had another play on a Kronos 61.

 

I had more time to play on one this time and I have to say that I really liked it sound wise as well as the look of it. I still have some reservations on the build quality and thought that sometimes, there was a bit too much going on for the size of the touch screen. It's a fine board that I believe still needs some structural tweaks. I'll be keeping my M3 and still look forward to more from Korg.

 

The bad as I see it:

 

No Kaoss Pad

Font is too small at times for good touch screen use on some screens. (You'll be better served with a pointer.)

No M1 Piano

Build quality (The vector joystick metal cap came right off on the one in GC. I told a store rep that he should glue it on immediately or risk loosing it.)

 

The Good as I see it:

 

Excellent sound

Great look (I like the black)

Several synth types in one instrument

 

 

IMHO, Korg just needs to improve on the build quality. I expected better build quality in an instrument that costs as much as a motorcycle. Honestly, as nice and great sounding as it is, I don't think that it warrants it's $3000 price tag.

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I'm not sure really - how much do you think it should've cost? I don't think a lower price was possible unless an even greater sacrifice regarding build quality and components was made...




LOL @ M1 piano.
:cop:

 

IMHO, they simply improved on a lot of the software they already had and improved the converters. This along with the current build quality doesn't warrant the $3000 price tag. $2400 tops for a 61 and perhaps $3000 for a 88 key version.

 

And yes the lack of the M1 piano is a detriment IMO. The M1 piano is a signature Korg piano and is widely used in not only House music, but Contemporary Jazz and Fusion as well. A companies staple sounds should never be discarded. It's a shame Kurzweil doesn't have any. ;)

 

Korg: M1 piano, Several Wavestation sounds.

Yamaha: CP Piano, Lately Bass, FM-Rhodes

Roland: Several D50 and JV sounds.

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These build quality observations don't speak well for the Kronos (although I have never seen one myself).

 

IMHO, any 61-key instrument that costs $3,000 (before tax) should have the build quality of a Virus TI.

 

$3,000 is a ton of money for a 61-key workstation, regardless of what's under the hood. Will definitely scare potential buyers, given what else is out there.

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The build quality issues are WAY blown out of proportion. My Kronos 88 came in today and I see NO issues.

 

Be careful with that vector joystick. :thu:

 

But it does sound damn good doesn't it!? I just think that the build of the M3 is better besides the other niggles I had with the Kronos.

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