Korg Forums

[Matisson]

Hi all. I would like to make a present for my son and I know he saves up for Korg Krome. I've been checking few websites in order to find information I need but then I simply got lost. I thought about some forum where people having experience could help me with my questions...so here I am.

This is the thing - for Korg Krome (it'll be most probably 73 key model that I want to buy for him) I would like to find:

1. suitable keyboard combo
2. appropriate/right cable to connect Korg to combo.

I noticed this Korg Krome has 2 audio outputs (AUDIO OUTPUT L/MONO, R) and then I started to read about different cable types...There I got lost for I found there are actually some balanced and unbalanced types, Y-cables and Dual Cables...Y-Cables as I understood is when on combo there's just one audio input per each channel whereas on the end there are two, the ones which connect to Korg's audio output? It says something about 6, 3 mm cables too if I got it right....

And I've been checking information for combos too when I came to Behringer, Roland and other ones...Which in your opinion would work fine with Korg Krome? Any other suggestion (manufacturer, model) is surely of great help! I suppose it'll be used at home so not really some huge volumes thing, so some "budget" model.

Thank you very much for your patience while reading all this and your feedback.

[billbaker]

"Combo" in the sense you appear to be using it is just an amplifier.

It's called a combo for a couple of reasons, first because such amps are designed for playing in a small group or combo, and second because it contains a woofer/tweeter speaker combination more suitable for keyboard, which puts out a much wider and more varied sound than guitar.

Personally, I use a small powered PA (public address) speaker to run my keyboard through, since it is designed to reproduce a full range of sounds without changing ("coloring") them too much - this is called a flat response. A flat response does not emphasize any one frequency over another and the amplification does not change the tone of the sound.

Guitar amps are not recommended for keyboards because guitar amps are specifically built for the range of sounds produceable by an electric guitar and they are purposely designed to color the sound, adding harmonics and tonal coloration, emphasizing certain frequencies and to a certain extent distorting the actual sound to sound better (for certain values of better).

The Krome, like most korg keyboards, has a summed mono out, meaning that the two sides of a stereo signal are put together in a single signal. The L/R stereo outs are not strictly necessary for what you are asking about here, but are provided for more advanced use in studio recording or to send signals for more complex set-ups.

What type of cable you use depends on what the input to the amp or powered speaker is.

A simple 1/4" jack "guitar" cable plugged into the L/mono output will get you the summed signal, and that can be plugged into most combo/keyboard amps.

Some powered speakers only have a XLR (three prong, aka "mic" cable) input. You can get a cable that changes from the 1/4" jack to the XLR or buy a direct box which adapts one to the other, in which case you'd have a 1/4 to 1/4 cable > direct box > XLR between the krome and the powered speaker. That is, I think, a more flexible way to go about it, particularly if your son will want to play with friends or run into a PA if they start to play bigger venues than the basement or garage.

A powered speaker will run between $300 and $600 (Behringer at the low end and JBL, Mackie, QSR, and others at the top) - and a direct box about $40.

Without getting into details, I have yet to find a keyboard combo amp that sounds as good as a powered speaker except at the top end of the price spectrum.


BB
_________________
billbaker

Triton Extreme 88, Triton Classic Pro, Trinity V3 Pro
+E-mu, Alesis, Korg, Kawai, Yamaha, Line-6, TC Elecronics, Behringer, Lexicon...

[Matisson]

Hello Bill. Thank you for your very detailed answer. For time you spent and for information you provided, I really do appreciate it, thank you very much!

[JPWC]

I agree with Bill.

Powered, full range, PA speakers are best live or when playing with others. I use two Mackie SRM450's. Interested in the new Line 6 powered speaker columns, a little expensive but get good reviews on sound quality.

At home (in the studio) I use KRK 10-3's, Yamaha HS-80's, with a KRK 10" subwoofer. I would not take these open-faced speakers out for performance, as they'd end up looking like the speakers at guitar center, the speaker cones would be pushed in, people will touch anything.
_________________
Kronos-6, Krome, M3, Radias, KingKorg, microKorg, KP-2, KP-3, KO-1, KO-1 PRO, Karma, microX, monotron, monotribe, PadCONTROL, Wavedrum Mini, Volca Keys, Beats, Bass, Sample, monotron Duo & Delay, microArranger, M1, Wavestation, Volca Sample, Keys, Beats & Bass, MS-20

JD-XA, JD-Xi, Aira (system 1, TB3, TR8, MX-1), Prophet 12, Mopho X4, Jupiter-80, FA-06, D50, CS1x, CZ101, DX200, AN200, analogFOUR, MachineDrum, MonoMachine, Motif XF6, Virus Snow, Nord Lead 2X, OP-1, MFOS, Tenori-on, QY100, QY70, meeblip se, miniBrute, microBrute, Bass Station 2

[billbaker]

Mattison,

We neglected to ask how old your son is and at what stage he is, musically.

Krome is a tremendous first "serious" keyboard for a young player, and remains a great choice for intermediate to pro players for different reasons including suitability for solo gigs (able to play sequences and use drum tracks) and lightweight for easier transportation.

Similarly, our recommendations will vary depending on whether this is intended for a "bedroom-studio" (JPWC listed studio monitors in his recommendations) for a "just for fun" garage band, something to take away to school, or entry into the professional playing market. All of those variables will effect what our recommendations are -- and we need to look again at your request for a budget conscious solution.


BB
_________________
billbaker

Triton Extreme 88, Triton Classic Pro, Trinity V3 Pro
+E-mu, Alesis, Korg, Kawai, Yamaha, Line-6, TC Elecronics, Behringer, Lexicon...

[billbaker]

Matisson,

Use the link below to see what's available in your budget range.

I use JBL Eon speakers and have had pretty good luck with them for many years - they are tough and reliable and sound good.

I would recommend a 12" or 15" speaker for fuller bass sounds and a separate tweeter/driver. I do not recommend any tweeter that uses a piezo component as they can sometimes be harsh sounding.

Guitar Center is a national chain and is pretty good about returns and also provides warrantees on used gear if you feel you might want it.

You can get information/specifications for any of this gear by googling the maker and model number, and if you put in "review" as well, you will get a cross section of opinion from actual users.

http://used.guitarcenter.com/usedgear/index.cfm?page=2&srch&category=40&q=powered%20speaker&distance=100&sort=price&dir=asc


Good luck,

BB
_________________
billbaker

Triton Extreme 88, Triton Classic Pro, Trinity V3 Pro
+E-mu, Alesis, Korg, Kawai, Yamaha, Line-6, TC Elecronics, Behringer, Lexicon...

[JPWC]

This month Keyboard magazine (you know the thing made of paper) has an article/review of Power PA speakers, with subjective remarks for their use as Keyboard amps.
_________________
Kronos-6, Krome, M3, Radias, KingKorg, microKorg, KP-2, KP-3, KO-1, KO-1 PRO, Karma, microX, monotron, monotribe, PadCONTROL, Wavedrum Mini, Volca Keys, Beats, Bass, Sample, monotron Duo & Delay, microArranger, M1, Wavestation, Volca Sample, Keys, Beats & Bass, MS-20

JD-XA, JD-Xi, Aira (system 1, TB3, TR8, MX-1), Prophet 12, Mopho X4, Jupiter-80, FA-06, D50, CS1x, CZ101, DX200, AN200, analogFOUR, MachineDrum, MonoMachine, Motif XF6, Virus Snow, Nord Lead 2X, OP-1, MFOS, Tenori-on, QY100, QY70, meeblip se, miniBrute, microBrute, Bass Station 2

[Bileofwood]

I also find that it sounds pretty good when plugged into the AUX of my old hifi separates system