Korg Wavestation SR

This unit would have received a full rating had it been given better sounding, resonant filters! Whilst the acoustic sounds (which it does attempt) sounding realistic in the early 90's (many M,T and O1W waveforms onboard also!), they can't really hold up to today's instruments such as the Triton, EX5, XP/JV series, K2500 etc. The acoustic piano and nylon guitar are the same as in my T3! As are some of the brass, pitched percussion and assorted other sounds. Don't buy this (or any Wavestation) as the only sound sourse in you Studio! You will usually run out of polyphony before you could set up your 3rd patch on MIDI channel 3!!!!Don't worry, I tried it!). Buy this instrument because it can do the most wickedest pads (moving/evolving/straight), everything is covered except for analogue filter sweeps because of the crappy filters. The wavesequenced patches such as 'the wave police' are trully inspirational but they become a bit gimicky after a while. Don't rely on the onboard drum sounds (unless you want to create some weird noises using the effects). These are crappy. Some of the synthe basses are not bad considering that this synthe is digital. I also like many of the tuned percussion and harplike sounds. Organs are also particularly well done. The Wavestation series have a flexible modulation routing scheme whereby you can use many different kinds of hardware controllers to assign various parameters for- you guessed it- real time synthe and effects control! It responds to velocity and channel aftertouch (although I think it might respond to poly aftertouch also- I'm not sure). As mentioned above, the onboard effects are quiet good even by today's standard.

I have never taken it out of my studio and never had a problem with it.

If it were lost or stolen, I would use the insurance money to buy another one (mabey even 2!). I have been playing since 1980 and also teach piano and organ as well as co-running a Midi based studio running various Korg and Roland Bits. I LOVE THE UNIQUE VECTOR AND WAVESEQUENCED SOUNDS OF THIS MODULE! I don't care much about most of the acoustic emulations but it must be remembered that Korg released these units right in the midst of when everything had to sound clean, pristine and realistic!!!! I believe that the Wavestation series cannot be compared to other synthes (in a similar vain to the Kawai K5000 series can't either) because they have their unique sound and synthesis methods. If you wan't an easier to use intterface and don't care about all the extra patches, then GET A WAVESTATION AD! This is much easier to use and quite well laid out for such a complex instrument- it also has the 2 analogue inputs at the back- THIS SOLD ME ON THAT UNIT! as well as a large LCD and much easier navigation. If you don't care about programming or editing, then simply get the Wavestation SR and be 'wrapped to the eyeballs'. I use mine as a preset box (I know this is very unacceptable but that is why I also own a Wavestation AD!). The Wavestation's inspire me to be creative and they must be the best things around (along with the Kawai K5000S) for writing new age and film score stuff. I wish it was easier to use but this can't be helped much considering it's size and it should have much better filters! I only wish that Korg didn't give up on the Wavestation series. Why they did is absolutely beyond me!