Korg Forums

rmgatl · Joined: 22 Mar 2018 Posts: 8

I'm in a major city with 6M people. Fwiw, the five local guitar center stores apparently have a total of two Kronos 88 hammer weight (only) models (no 61, 76, LS) in local (not warehouse) inventory. Can't tell what's in the GC warehouse - maybe nothing - could probably drop ship straight from Korg US warehouse in 3-7 days.
Only two units locally seems thin to me but who knows if there's any profound meaning to it so far as EOL.
I'd be surprised if a major chain like GC takes much if any inventory risk beyond display units (from my experience negotiating disti supply agreements).
I'm still leaning toward a used LS but maybe won't find one to demo in a store unless I get to NY or LA.

studio460 · Posted: Mon Mar 26, 2018 5:10 am Post subject:

It seems all the major online resellers have them in stock. When I bought my Kronos Platinum refurb, Sweetwater told me they had "more than five, and less than ten" refurbished Platinum models (since they cannot give out exact inventory numbers). A week later, Sweetwater posted another Platinum model, apparently a customer return or floor unit, but priced about $300 below than the one I bought (and the one I bought was only $2,960).

The "refurbished" Platinum I received looked brand new. Not a scratch, no fingerprints—it looked factory-fresh. There was tape on to the box (it had been opened), "Korg USA, Inc. Opened for quality control inspection."

Why would Korg still have 5-10 seemingly brand new Korg Platinum units to re-sell? Sweetwater currently has new Kronos 88s in stock (61- and 73-key Kronos are out-of-stock). Musician's Friend has an open-box LS for only $3,079, plus new LS' in-stock. Zzounds has all four Kronos models in-stock.

In 2014, Korg introduces the Kronos 2. Then in 2016, Korg performs a cosmetic refresh and announces the Korg Platinum (which sells well into 2017). Then, in 2017 they release the LS and another refresh—the Kronos Gold.

It's as if Korg is bringing out every kind of brand-extension and refresh to the Kronos in an effort to keep it "new." R&D costs have been fully amortized, manufacturing streamlined; it's now pure profit. How long can they milk this cow?

Seeing that the Kronos UI has a lot of Oasys still in its roots, I imagine a complete OS revision (or processor upgrade) is a major effort for a company like Korg. Will Korg invest in a new OS for another refreshed Kronos? Will they develop a completely new workstation? I doubt it. I'm assuming they're looking at the popularity of Roland's Integra-7 and the direction Yamaha took with its new Montage. In light of their competitors' developments, I think a completely new workstation-class product for 2019 seems unlikely.
_________________

Korg Nautilus 61 AT + DS1H + EXP2 | Korg Kronos 2 Platinum 88 | Korg Radias | Korg Kaoss Pad KP3+ | Kaossilator Pro+ | Kronos Remote iOS
PCG Tools v3.2.0 | WavesArt Cinematic Suite EXs

GregC · Posted: Mon Mar 26, 2018 11:50 am Post subject:

NormC · Full Member Joined: 09 Jun 2015 Posts: 158

GC also had a falling out with Korg so you will not see a huge inventory of Korg products at a GC. I believe it was an issue with GC trying to push their store brand of EPs instead of Korg's. This may have been just a rumor though and not the real issue. I also heard there was an issue with GC's ability to pay for inventory. My two local GCs are useless for keyboards now.
_________________
Kronos 2 73

GregC · Posted: Mon Mar 26, 2018 4:29 pm Post subject: