Korg Forums

aron · Posted: Wed Aug 19, 2015 5:42 pm Post subject: Sounds cut off?

I still haven't decided between the Kross and MX61. Can the Kross do this?

1: Switch between sounds without the current sound cutting off when the program is changed.

2: Assign one knob to fade a program in and out when in a performance?

Thanks!
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Korg Kronos, RD-88, Yamaha VL1, Deep Mind 6, Korg Kross, author of unrealBook for iPad.

rammstein · Full Member Joined: 06 Apr 2014 Posts: 103

aron · Posted: Thu Aug 20, 2015 9:46 pm Post subject:

Hey, thanks a lot!

I just need a super lightweight "decent" keyboard for use for traveling. It just needs to have a decent piano and electric piano sound and the standard assortment of sounds.

You are right - I have a Kronos as well as a Kurzweil PC361, I also have an S90ES so I do have "motif" sounds. I guess the choice is leaning towards the Yamaha - more polyphony but older.

I guess I shouldn't be so picky, it's just going to be simple traveling keyboard.
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Korg Kronos, RD-88, Yamaha VL1, Deep Mind 6, Korg Kross, author of unrealBook for iPad.

rammstein · Full Member Joined: 06 Apr 2014 Posts: 103

well, if it's just going to be a travelling keyboard, i highly recommend the kross:

1. it is lighter than the mx and the handle at the back is really useful. and in some regions, it comes with a free red softcase. Smile

2. it can be battery-powered.
3. it has a smaller footprint because the wheels are placed at the top rather than the sides.

piano and other bread and butter sounds are ok if not slightly better than ok. Very Happy

castorex · Full Member Joined: 06 Jun 2014 Posts: 134

But the Yamaha MX validates your first requirement... you can easily switch from one program to another one without sound or effect cut off: each 16 buttons is used to change programs (and each buttons can be connected to a specific MIDI channel).
I don't know for the second requirement.
And the polyphony of MX is far better, as for the piano sounds.
The Kross ROM samples is tiny (112MO)... so samples loop is clear with the kross !

aron · Posted: Sun Aug 23, 2015 1:29 am Post subject:

Well guys. I finally got to the music store and tried both.
Both keyboards were playing through the same terrible Roland keyboard amp - but here are my observations - please feel free to argue against!

The Kross sounded fine. When I mean fine - I mean - it sounded liked a fine, quality keyboard. I knew I could play with it immediately. The keys were also full width. I saw a lot of plastic - but what did I expect? I thought the keybed was fine - playable.

The MX61 - it LOOKED so plastic. The problem was the sound was so thin. I'm not sure if some setting was incorrect.... I did recognize some of the sounds - Vintage EP type sounds - but it was thin. I thought a lot of the synth sounds were cheesy, buzzy and again thin. The piano sounded clear but again thin. What made me worry was that there were 3 broken keys. The keys themselves were not broken, but they would only play when you hit them harder - like the membrane switches were worn out and that's a red flag. The keys are also not full size in width although I can get used to that.

I think the MOXF also uses the same keybed. Interesting.
I did get the 16 sound performance working and was able to go from sound to sound easily so that's a big plus. I'm just not sure if I could deal with that thin tone.

So right now I am leaning towards the Kross because of what I noticed, but if you have an MX61 - feel free to correct me on the tone.
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Korg Kronos, RD-88, Yamaha VL1, Deep Mind 6, Korg Kross, author of unrealBook for iPad.

Shutoku · Full Member Joined: 17 Aug 2008 Posts: 143

I didn't know the MX61 had narrower keys.

I think that ultimately everything sounds pretty good these days,but amplification could definitely have a big effect. I think you might be better to use headphones on both.

As for the Kross and changing sounds, I use the stereo limiters in the IFX section a great deal for this, and I asign the changes either to a pedal, the mod wheel or sw1 or 2 depending on the songs and the requirements.
A couple examples:

I was playing Siberian Khatru by Yes. It requires a fair amount of mellotron using string and flute sounds. Sometimes separate, sometimes layered. Mellotrons allowed you to fade between sounds, so I used the mod wheel for this.

I am playing "Woman from Tokyo" by Deep Purple in a couple weeks and will only have the Kross. I need three sounds. distorted hammond, piano, and a spacey filter sweep resonance sound. So I put the filter sweep (I had to make it first, there was nothing exactly right on the Kross) on the lowest C, and put the hammond and piano through their own limiters and again use the mod wheel because sometimes I want one or the other, but in some other places I want a layer.

At the same gig I will play Roundabout by Yes. No need to layer anything here, but I need, hammond, a weird fade in sound at the beginning, a synth, a softer hammond patch, mellotron flutes, and I'm doubleing the guitar harmonics in the verses, again all on the Kross.
In this case I set the fade in, guitar harmonics, and the main hammond split from left to right. Then I hit sw1 and I get tron flutes, soft hammond, and synth left to right.

So all of this happens with no sound dropping, however I need to plan ahead when creating combis.
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Stage: Korg Krome 88
Home: above plus Korg Kross 61, Korg m1, original Korg Mono/poly, Yamaha Reface CS, Yamaha KX-5

aron · Posted: Mon Aug 24, 2015 10:43 pm Post subject:

Thanks! Awesome work!

>I think that ultimately everything sounds pretty good these days,but amplification could definitely have a big effect

That's what I thought but both keyboards were going through the same amp. I'm mainly going to use the keyboard live so I want to know how it sounds in mono and through a normal system. I used to play in stereo all the time, but much less now.
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Korg Kronos, RD-88, Yamaha VL1, Deep Mind 6, Korg Kross, author of unrealBook for iPad.

Shutoku · Full Member Joined: 17 Aug 2008 Posts: 143

Well on the topic of running the Kross in mono, I have found it sounds rather "boxy" using the "mono" channel, but if I use the other one (I don't remember if the mono is the right or left output) it sounds better. I read somewhere (probably on keyboard corner) that this is sort of common with Korg products.
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Stage: Korg Krome 88
Home: above plus Korg Kross 61, Korg m1, original Korg Mono/poly, Yamaha Reface CS, Yamaha KX-5

rammstein · Full Member Joined: 06 Apr 2014 Posts: 103

aron · Posted: Wed Aug 26, 2015 8:34 am Post subject:

If you use the R channel, then yes, you may get less phasing but certain panned sounds will not sound correct level-wise. In general, it is better to use the (mono) output so at least you will not lose any sounds - except when they are out of phase with each other.
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Korg Kronos, RD-88, Yamaha VL1, Deep Mind 6, Korg Kross, author of unrealBook for iPad.

aron · Posted: Wed Aug 26, 2015 9:06 pm Post subject:

I just purchased the Kross. Got it for $592 shipped from Amazon - damaged box.
Cannot beat this deal. Will love using this on outer island gigs!!!!!
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Korg Kronos, RD-88, Yamaha VL1, Deep Mind 6, Korg Kross, author of unrealBook for iPad.

rammstein · Full Member Joined: 06 Apr 2014 Posts: 103

Dan Stesco · Posted: Sat Aug 29, 2015 8:34 pm Post subject: Re: Sounds cut off?

aron · Posted: Mon Aug 31, 2015 9:14 pm Post subject:

Thanks Dan!

From what I have been reading (amazon taking their time to ship), I can use a limiter plug in with mod wheel assigned to fade in/out a program in the combination.

Someone posted a trick when changing programs in a combination, if you changed a program in the same "slot/channel" the sound doesn't stop.

Since no polyphony is saved when muting a program in a combination, the mod wheel trick would be ok. Will let you know when I finally get the keyboard.

It has less capability than my Kronos and Kurzweil PC361 but about the same tech as my S90ES - minus the faders- should be great.
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Korg Kronos, RD-88, Yamaha VL1, Deep Mind 6, Korg Kross, author of unrealBook for iPad.