Korg Forums

decreebass · Joined: 14 Dec 2018 Posts: 35

I know this topic has been done to death, so I'd like to know, after you chose the one you were going to get, does anyone have regrets?

If you got the 88-key, do you regret it? Is it too big to take to most gigs? How much does its size affect your willingness to gig with it or take it places? Do you even use outside the home/studio?

If you got the 73 key: do you wish you had gotten the full 88? Do you wish you had just gona ahead and gotten the 61 and a separate 88-weighted-key keyboard? Do you find it awkward splitting the octave for songs?

If you got the 61: do you regret not getting one with weighted keys and MORE keys?

I've basically decided on this workstation (barring any new NAMM releases) but now the size is what's getting me. I do gig a lot, but I only have a smallish car (Subaru Legacy). I feel like if I got the 88-key, I'd just use it in the home (which isn't necessarily a deal-breaker, since I have the Kross 2 to gig with).

Anyone else do this? Have a really nice board at home for practice/learning/writing but then use a smaller, more portable one for gigging?

I just can't believe how hard of a decision this is turning out to be! Thanks in advance for your insight. And please, no need to reply with "depends on your needs" since that's a given and I don't NEED an 88-key, at least for gigging, but if I'm practicing piano parts at home, I'd definitely like the extra notes and the weighted keys. I'm heavily leaning toward the 88-key version, but it's not in stone. I just fear it'd never leave my house; and I know the 73 key version really isn't THAT much smaller, so I don't know if I'd be kicking myself for not having gone the full monty.

Thanks everyone!

Qtipcore · Posted: Sat Dec 15, 2018 12:18 am Post subject:

Hi decreebass,

Chiming in from Norway.
I purchased my K88 along with a heavy flight case in 2011.

At the time I had a big spacious car + a work supplied VW transporter;
So the issue of big and clunky didn’t bother me - the weight of the K88 in the case did though.

So for a while the K88 was my only board;

But then the big spacious car was replaced by a smaller one, and the van was no longer available; That meant that gigging with the big 88 almost stopped completely. It was just placed in my home studio for most of the time.

Swithed to gigging with one and then two smaller boards - missing the capabilities of the Kronos also when out of the house.
So I bought a second Kronos, this time a 61.
Kept that for a year and the sold it, along with the two other smaller boards - to fund a Nord Stage 3 Compact.

But kept the 88. -Sold the case and got a nice Progo Gigbag for it instead.
Now much easier to transport.

On smaller gigs, I just bring the Nord - Because of size and weight.
But I often bring the Kronos as well.

Do not regret having sold the 61, but I liked having both versions.
For me the K88 still is the best keyboard I have ever had.

decreebass · Joined: 14 Dec 2018 Posts: 35

Thanks for your input. Yeah, I have a feeling that as much as I want the portability of the 61 or 73, I think there’s going to be a huge part of me that will regret not going all out on the 88. Strangely, I have a bigger fear of missing out in that sense than I do of not being able to gig with it! Like, in my mind, anything that i make in the Kronos, I’ll just whip up an approximation on my Kross and head to the gig.

Okay, so, leaning more toward the 88... Smile

dfahrner · Posted: Sat Dec 15, 2018 2:42 am Post subject:

I started with a 61, intending to use it as a second board with a Yamaha MOX8, or maybe with a (lighter) 88 key controller...but I could never get the K's piano sounds to "feel" right, no matter how I adjusted the Kronos and/or the controller...so I tried a 73, and the RH3 keybed response immediately felt right...then I got tired of tearing down and setting up twice for every gig, so I got an 88 that never leaves the house, and the 73 stays packed up and ready to go...the 88 is way too heavy for an old guy to move around, anyway, and barely fits in my (small) car, and I really don't miss those few notes on the top and bottom with the 73...

df

IAA · Full Member Joined: 10 Feb 2013 Posts: 131

Derek Cook · Posted: Sat Dec 15, 2018 2:12 pm Post subject:

Kronos X61 for me because I wanted it for my second tier, as I have always had Yamaha 76 note semi-weighted on the bottom.

So no regrets, here.
_________________
Derek Cook - Java Developer

Follow kronos.factory development and submit ideas over at the kronos.factory Trello Board

My Echoes Music Website
My Carreg Ddu Music Website

danmusician · Posted: Sun Dec 16, 2018 3:26 am Post subject:

I originally bought the K73 back in 2011. The K88 wasn't an option because it wouldn't fit in either vehicle I had at the time. I really did miss 88 keys, though. I wish the K73 range was C to C instead of E to E. I could probably live with it better if it was.

In 2015, I bought a K2-61. I already had a Casio PX-5S to use as a controller. The 2 of them together weigh less than the K88 and fit in my car better than the K73. But, I really don't like setting up 2 keyboards at a gig. I do a one-man-band/vocal thing. I like to load in and out as simply as possible.

In 2017, I purchased a mini-van for hauling grandkids. (I hadn't owned a van since 2004.) Now that I had extra room, I tried the Kronos LS. I bought it online and had it at home for a week. I just couldn't adjust to the touch and sent it back.

At the end of 2017, I bought a K2-88. I like having the full keyboard in one unit, but it is so heavy and bulky to set up.

My gigs range from full length concerts to events where I may only perform a few songs. Depending on the gig and the venue, I take different rigs with me on the road.

For just a couple songs, I may take just the PX-5S with my tracks on a thumb drive or iPad. Or I may take only the K73. On the rarest occasions I may take just the K61.

For full length concerts, I take the K2-88. There are a couple of gigs I do annually where it's a full length concert, but load in to the venue is up a lot of steps. In that case, I take the PX-5S/K2-61.

I had a weekend engagement this fall where I was in two locations within the venue throughout the weekend. It was nice to be able to have 2 rigs with me for both spots.

I also appreciate having a back up keyboard if needed.
_________________
Kronos 2 88, Kronos Classic 73, PX-5S, Kronos 2 61, Roli Seaboard Rise 49

19naia · Platinum Member Joined: 29 Nov 2012 Posts: 1216

88 all the way for me. When i gigged, i lived with hauling 88 keys around and that was before had kronos.
I rarely play out with Kronos 88 but i haul it out when i want to.

I commited to 88 keys long before korg kronos.
It goes back to my days starting on keys as an acoustic piano player.

I still play Acoustic piano style music but with the added nature of the synthesizer world influencing my style. The roots of my music are acoustic pianos.

I have to have 88 keys just to maintain the finger strength to retain my Acoustic piano player status. I may never play an acoustic piano again, but i don’t want my finger strength to be fallow should i walk in on an irresistable grand piano somewhere, someday, somehow. It happens from time to time.

Easier to work my way down soft keys like a kronos 61, than it is to work my way up to playing kronos 88.

Kronos 88 hammer action is actually a heavier touch, but smooth.
Even heavier touch than many of the acoustic pianos i have come across.
Maybe some steinways i recall being the hardest-heaviest touch i ever experienced. Or maybe that music school rigged their acoustic steinway pianos for finger training..?

Anyway, i am 88keys and it is not about Kronos.
I was 88 keys all the way, long before i knew such a thing as Kronos.
I had an 88 key Kurzweil as my first real rig. Then moved to an 88 AlesisQ
Then moved to 88 Korg triton extreme where i really got deeper into workstations. Then i moved up to 88 kronos for a more advanced grasp on the workstation synth life.

I can’t imagine not being able decide right away what keyset i need under my fingers after so many years playing keys.
My fingers are nearly 30 years conditioned into makng the choice for me, i don’t even think about it.

A real keyboardist should have both 88 weighted and common synth soft keys. Not a matter of one or the other. If it must be only one, then your finger conditioning should decide, unless you have other problems making it worth it to recondition your fingers.
Best option is the versatility of both.
Some go farther and play heavy keys, soft keys, then hop on the acoustic drum kit and then the bass guitar and then on to the guitar. And maybe even blow a horn or two. Wow! whoever that lady is. She must play in several bands too.

decreebass · Joined: 14 Dec 2018 Posts: 35

Lots of good insights here. I'm HEAVILY leaning towards the K88.

I realize that depending on the case I get for it and if my car can fit it, I may not end up gigging with it. But for a home practicing tool for creativity and inspiration/songwriting, I don't think I'd want smaller than the full 88 keys.

I think the thing I'm coming to realize is, as mentioned above, a variety is going to be the key (no pun intended). I am getting along famously with my Kross 2 61-key, although for piano-based songs, I am feeling the limitations. As a guitarist newly coming into the world of keyboarding, it's all a bit intimidating, especially since my gigging band only plays a few keyboardy songs.

I guess... The board is more for me; to fulfill a dream I've had for years. I think I've been confusing that with the practicality of gigging and transportation and setup/teardown/weight/etc. When it comes down to it, I'll still have the Kross which is stupid-easy to gig with. I imagine there will be a lot of cross-compatibility (in other words, if I come up with a cool patch on the Kronos, I'll be able to generally recreate it on the Kross using similar wave forms, filters, and effects) so my professional/gigging life won't be completely divorced from my at-home practice/writing life.

Ugh. Obviously I'm just spitballing here, now. I have no idea. I want it all lol! I want the convenience of a 61-key and the features and weighted keys of the 88-key. The 73 feels not like a good compromise, but like a sort of double compromise; it'll still be big enough to be a hassle to transport and gig with, but it won't have the extra octave+ to make it worth the hassle.

Gotta keep reading and deciding...

KK · Platinum Member Joined: 13 Oct 2016 Posts: 1422

Got a K2 88 two years ago. I still think it is the best synth I have ever bought, so for sure I am totally satisfied with it. It is heavy and not very fun to carry, but I don't gig so often anymore, so not a problem for me.

In the past, I used to carry a 450 lbs Hammond + Leslie, a Mellotron and so on, so 65 lbs is not so bad in comparison. Of course, I got rid of all those monsters. Except my grand piano which of course stays home, and same with my MIDIboard, which is 20 pounds heavier than the K2.

decreebass · Joined: 14 Dec 2018 Posts: 35

decreebass · Joined: 14 Dec 2018 Posts: 35

Okay, well, I did confirm that the 88 WILL fit in my car if I lay the front passenger seat back all the way and load in through the rear passenger-side door (or I guess the other side would work as well).

But... we play a lot of small places and there's no way there'd be room on stage for me to have a nearly 5-foot wingspan.

This shouldn't be this hard deciding Sad

KK · Platinum Member Joined: 13 Oct 2016 Posts: 1422

psionic311 · Posted: Mon Dec 17, 2018 4:36 am Post subject:

My take: K61 with a Privia PX-5S for portable ivories and combi real estate.

I gig with a K61 and a second controller. I had an X-station 61 that could split into 2 zones and run power and MIDI off a single USB cord. I can't stand X-stands so setting up my 2-tier Z stand is just as easy as setting up for one keyboard as it is for two.

I really use a lot of keyboard ranges and zones in my combis so having 2 boards is essential for me. I've since replaced my dying X-station with the portable and bi-timbral DSI Prophet Rev2. All my combis still use the same zone setup as I had with the X-station -- K61 on channel 1, left Rev2 on channel 2 for bass duty, and right 3 octaves on Rev2 channel 3 for solo lines and what not.

As for missing 88 keys, I finally got a Privia PX-5S. I love its light action and the whole thing is very portable as well. It will fit in your car more easily than most 88 keyboards, and won't break your back carrying it. Another plus for the PX-5S is that it has 4 zones. So layering and splits for my Kronos and Rev2 and Minitaur gets me a lot of mileage.

I've streamlined my gig rig to cut down on setup/breakdown time. When at home, the keys are set up with all MIDI cables, power cords, audio cords, etc, ran in place like normal. But those cords and the stand they are on never leave the studio. For gigging I bought separate cables that stay in the gig bags, and use a separate keyboard stand as well. This way home set up after a gig is quick and painless.

psionic311