Korg Forums

[80snostalgia]

Hi there!
Well one of my first controllers was the Korg Microkey 25.
It was brilliant to start on then I wanted more, mod and pitch wheels, and even a phasing effect function (very much like Gary Numans - Cars) I even tried Arturia Minilab MK 2 great software but hated the pitch strips.
So now I've evolved by listening to music and knowing exactly what I want but there's competition!

We have the different Korg Micro Korgs Vs Novations Mininova,
I know this is asking alot but I'm sick of recording to the computer and even then it's touch and go. Sometimes old fashioned ways are best
So I'm wondering if any of you know of a controller that can actually record to it.
Anything similar to the good old Korg Microsampler?

Found this link quite clever sample recording....

https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=nXWFXhnuxwk

Many thanks for any help!!

[OpAmp]

Hi,

Not sure what you are looking for exactly... Some light to shed on the different devices that you name.

The Korg Microkey is indeed a controller. It produces key events. You need to hook it up to a computer with soft synths that can render the key events to sounds. Standalone it is in fact useless.

Now the microKorgs and Mininova are virtual analog HW synths. They can be used standalone, meaning no need for a computer. They can render standalone the key presses to sounds. On top of that the parameters of the built synth engine can be changed on the board itself. Where the original microKorg allows more hands-on tweaking than the XL using the knobs. All parameters in the XL can also be tweaked on the board, but needs some more menu-diving. The XL though has a bit more advanced engine, more effects and 8 iso 4 voices. The Mininova is a similar beast. I don't know the details of it. (At first sight the engine is a more advanced.) The engine will have certain differences compared to the microKorgs, some of them pro others con. Point is that most sounds on the microKorg can also almost competely replicated to a large extent on the Mininova. Vice versa may be less obvious if you make use of the special features of the Mininove.

You mention that you're sick of recording to the computer. Note that the microKorgs and the Mininova are synths, not workstations. Hence they don't have a sequencer on board an recording is not possible at all. For that purpose you still need a computer, with which you can record either the key-events and/or the the sounds of the boards.

Korg Microsampler. Ok. That is something different. It is not a synth. It is a sampler. Meaning, you need samples in order to produce sound. You can record them yourself with this board (hooked up to a mic or yep a computer...) or feed them When you press a key, it will play a certain sample transposed for the pitch of the key (or not). It is a matter of arranging your samples over the keyboard and while playing the keys, composing a song. This one has a pattern sequencer in which you can record your performance. It is not clear to me what samples are in the board when leaving the factory. Btw, the microSampler is end-of-life, look for 2nd hand versions.

So, over to you and clear up what you want to do exactly...
Have fun
_________________
microKORGXL, Kaossilator Pro, monotribe, SQ-1, volca fm, Kross 88 BK
Alesis SR18, Akai Miniak, Fender Strat, Line 6 Spider II 112, Zoom MS-50G

[80snostalgia]

Many thanks for your help OpAmp.
I'm definitely looking for Microsampler on Ebay, and I like the idea that the Micro Korgs and Mininova are stand alones.

I think I'm looking for that dream Synth, most Sampler keyboards were made in the 1980s, but then I love all these type of vintage sounds the Micro Korg and Mininova produce.
I think multitimbral / overdubbing tracks would be a cool add on but can't find any Synth like this so might have to get the Tascam DP-008EX – 8-Track Digital Portastudio.
I can't get on with Ableton so I use Magix Sound Studio.

So a dream Synth!...

1. Lots of vintage sounds
2. Pitch and Modulation wheels
3. Phaser and flange effects.
4. Sampling modes.
5. Multitrack recorder.

Yeah I'm probably looking for something very expensive! 😂

[megamarkd]

I don't use computer DAW's. I've used them in the past but let's just skip over my reasons for not using computer-based synthesis and recording.

I grew up using an M1 synthesiser which was (almost) the first workstation synthesiser on the market, which sort of spoilt me in that respect, but helped with the concept of how to manage a multitrack recording. Since it, there has been many successors, each with "better" versions of the synthesised traditional instruments (but interestingly enough some of those M1 sounds have become staples of the synthesised instrument world).
Today the Kronos is what you would use to replace the synth/sampler/sequencer sections of a DAW with a stand-alone solution. The Kronos is a well loved machine, it seems, with an enormous user-base. It can easily do the duties of a microSampler (or microKorg) and a Mininova combined. As for vintage sounds, it's got that in spades with engines devoted various vintage sounds/instruments. On-board is a multieffects engine also with the option of a master effect on the master stereo output. It synthesises, it samples, it sequences and it can even record multitrack audio. With it's 4 ins and 6 outs, you have enough options to run it as a small capacity production center replacing what a DAW does for the solo musician. It's a monster.

The Tascam DP-008EX is well reviewed and should do you finely for audio recording, but it only really has a single stereo input. Once you record a sequence comprising of many instrument patches from a workstation synth, you won't be able to split them up and put effects onto each sound individually using it. If you are an accomplished keys-player you can do multiple takes and over-dub all your instruments to build up a track. I prefer to sequence the various instruments and record in one take to multiple tracks to avoid having to correct timing/synch issues later while still having the option to mess with each instrument after the recording process. Tascam have a couple of multiple input multitrack recordes available for reasonable prices. That said, if you were to get a Kronos, there's a good change you'd have those individual instrument patches' effects how you want them and the final recording process would be more for adding some of the mastering effects that the Tascam offers. And using a Kronos to write your sequences, if after you have recorded to a mastertrack you decide you'd like to change instrument levels or tone down effects.

The other option for escaping the box is an Akai MPC Live or X. It's a DAW in an MPC controller basically. If you like the DAW but don't want to use a computer, that could be the one for you, but you'd need a separate MIDI keyboard for playing notes in a traditional manner.

Both of my suggestion are fairly pricey, but will replace a computer for the musician and do so for some years longer than that in which a computer will need upgrading.
_________________
Stuff I'm using: Umm right now, well there's a Volca Drum, a Micro Freak, an ADX-1, a Pulse, a Blofeld, a UNO Drum, KeyStep/Beatstep Pro/Keystep Pro (one of each), a Circuit, a LiveTrak L-12 and this nonsense: The Brief-case as it was about a bit over a year ago (the the complete ridiculous GAS monster collection here)and here

[Spheric El]

You mentioned Dream machine.
Now this is small, pricey. Has no mod wheel (but you can tilt it to mod amongst other things) and only 24 mini keys....
Check out the OP -1
Can play with it on the couch or train. It's a dream machine, with simplicity and fun being priority. So capable and ticks all your other boxes.

[Spheric El]

Oh yes - a battery life to die for.

[80snostalgia]

The Kronos looks great but unfortunately I have to go for something in my budget. Even if it means getting beautiful beasts like Korg Microkorg and Mininova and add a hardware multitrack recorder. I've even seen the new Novation Sl mk3 but have to look into it.

The Op-1 I will check out but I think I still very much like a synth with keys.

[megamarkd]

Thing with the microSampler/Korg is the polyphony means it's really a one-handed synth. The Mininova has a higher voice count though, but is single timbre. It's a nice sounding synth for running most synth duties. For some reason sampling keyboards are thin on the ground for years now.

The OP-1 is a great looking all-in-one machine and can do sampling, loads of people love it. My only gripe with it is no way to sync it with my existing gear via standard MIDI cables. It can be done using the USB connection, but when it was first brought to my attention I had no way to translate DIN5 MIDI to USB MIDI. I've since bought a iConnetivity MIDI router that can do that, but somehow the OP-1 slipped off my radar. Still as far as I know, the OP-1 cannot by played with anything other than it's own input keyboard, but I feel that Teenage Engineering don't want users to think of it as a traditional keyboard instrument.

Teaming up a Mininova with the OP-1 and syncing them via USB MIDI would be a fun setup. I'm not too up on running USB MIDI on computers and am under the impression that they don't like more than one interface at a time, but I kind of recall being able to connect two then use the port selector in MIDIOx to specify input on one device and out on another. I do know I can run eight USB MIDI devices on my iConnectivity MIDI4 box on top of four DIN5 connections (in and out) with no issues, just need to configure it so that it sends the DIN5 in's to the USB outs. It can host one USB MIDI connection via it's USB host port, but if used with a powered USB hub, that increased to eight. In this way you can use the Mininova as a master clock and have it playing arpeggios while sequencing, drums and samples happening on the OP-1. The drawback I can see for what you want to do though is you still have no way to sequence the Mininova.

Another option is a Mininova, a microSampler, a Volca Beats and a Keystep. The microSampler has a decent pattern looper on it, while the Keystep would run chord pattern duties for the Mininova and the Volca Beats would give you, well beats! It's not a complete song creation setup in the way that you'd be missing a pattern chaining on the Keystep and the microSampler. The Beats can be set to chain it's patterns in a linear fashion with the option to set the start and finishing patterns. The microSamplers patterns can be rather long though, so you can record a massive pattern that is essentially a short song. In the end this would mean to do a song type playback for recording, you'd have to do a little bit of a performance by changing banks on the microSampler and clicking over patterns on the Keystep at the appropriate points in the song.

The last thing you could do is to grab the two synths you have your eye on, then an old MIDI sequencer like a Roland MC500 (I hear the mk2 is the better one to use) or a Yamaha QY sequencer (I have a QY700 which also has a decent yammy pcm synth and drums onboard with some simple programming capabilities for them as does the QY300). You'd still need drums somehow if you go for an MC sequencer, but the Volca Beats isn't a bad starting point for it's price. Also with the 21st century analogue renaissance putting a number of drum machines on the new market, there are a good amount of those 80's and 90's Boss digital drum machine on the 2nd hand market at realistic prices. They generally have heaps of 'studio' drums on them that you'll probably never use, but they have a good number of instruments that are good and all the Roland legacy drum machine sounds in a sampled manner. Because of their Roland-under-a-guitarist-friendly branding, Boss drum machines are easy to program and have a good song mode too.

Oh an addendum: The Novation Circuit runs the Nova synth engine in it, effects per instrument, has a great loop sequencer, a sampled drum machine and I think it can be played with a MIDI keyboard (I've never tried that but I be surprised if it couldn't). It can run other instruments via it's MIDI out. It does need a computer and it's own software to get into the nitty gritty of programming it's patches but the frontface controls are very usable out of the box. That and a microSampler could be the simplest and the least costly way to get started with you wants. Add a small mixer plus the DP-008ex and you away.
_________________
Stuff I'm using: Umm right now, well there's a Volca Drum, a Micro Freak, an ADX-1, a Pulse, a Blofeld, a UNO Drum, KeyStep/Beatstep Pro/Keystep Pro (one of each), a Circuit, a LiveTrak L-12 and this nonsense: The Brief-case as it was about a bit over a year ago (the the complete ridiculous GAS monster collection here)and here

[Spheric El]

+1 on Volca expanding your sound palette. Monotribe is nice too.
Another synth that's nice is the MiniAk by akai. Comparable to mininova and microkorg. I use mine over my Mkorg coz the keys are full size, the synth sound is better (!) and it has a sequencer that can do drums aswell. Its 8voice and has 1000 program storage plus two mod wheels, pitch and 3 assignable performance controls.
Only downside is its key hole to edit so not as straightforward as the microkorg. It does provide shortcuts via the keyboard though, and with so many programs and performance control it makes up for it. It's completely standalone too.

I think your idea about a multi track is a good one. If you find one with a few inputs even better.

[80snostalgia]

Happy New year everyone! Well all your info is alot to think about.
Waking up and online shopping for Synth candy 😂 saw the Yamaha ReFace CS or the X one. Apparently they do over dubbing. But couldn't find if it can take software from let's say Arturias Anolg Collection?

So I have 3 on my list so far:

Yamaha ReFace and its siblings.

Korg Micro Korg new one with speakers

And Mininova.

When you say about single timbral could I still play a chord?

https://www.scan.co.uk/products/novation-mininova-synthesizer?utm_source=bing&utm_medium=cpc&utm_campaign=0%20conversions&utm_term=4575548920987119&utm_content=0%20conversions%206%20FY%2017%2F18%2B2%20months


https://www.gear4music.com/Keyboards-and-Pianos/Yamaha-reface-DX-Synthesizer/1BGV?origin=product-ads&msclkid=2782552e19dc110eb20009058680986c&utm_source=bing&utm_medium=cpc&utm_campaign=PLA%20Shop%20-%20Yamaha&utm_term=4583726537317071&utm_content=Yamaha%20%7C%20Piano%20%26%20Keyboard

https://www.amazon.co.uk/Korg-MICROKORG-S-Analogue-Modelling-Synthesizer/dp/B01LXKNIQQ/ref=pd_aw_sbs_267_1?_encoding=UTF8&pd_rd_i=B01LXKNIQQ&pd_rd_r=a9c57c71-0b4d-11e9-b077-351724338b6e&pd_rd_w=6lGFG&pd_rd_wg=0Cj2K&pf_rd_p=d9539b3c-75e6-4bff-a48d-94806c2c2f83&pf_rd_r=RS8AQ8SN8QNGZVX1CCKH&psc=1&refRID=RS8AQ8SN8QNGZVX1CCKH
[/url]

[80snostalgia]

If I had the Mininova or Korg Microkorg I'd definitely get a
Tascam DP-008EX – 8-Track Digital Portastudio or Zoom R8 to do the over dubbing.

[kottan]

Korg microStation is a fantastic workstation (synth), having various sounds and combinations, it's sequencer allows recording on 16 tracks. It might be worth looking into this option for a low budget, but high quality synth.

best regards,
kottan
_________________
Korg PA2Xpro, Korg microSTATION

[80snostalgia]

Hi Kottan do you know any links to the Korg MicroStaion please? As it looks discontinued. But looks well good, another to my list!

[megamarkd]

[OpAmp]