I finally put my hands on the kronos

[Sharp]

EDIT: 3900€ is 5375$ right now. Wonder who would pay that in the US?

Never use European prices to gauge American prices. Everything costs more here, even the air we breath.

Still you have to agree that is some crazy ass big prize difference?

Yes, but it's very common.

Take an everyday item like Petrol. I'll convert this into Dollars for you.
1 Gallon of petrol costs $7.67 here.

Your average cost is $3.13 per Gallon.

Regards
Sharp.

[GregC]

Seems like the "old" samplings from the Oasys (HD1 with it's expansions) are what's lagging behind the rest of Kronos, and that's what my ears tell me when I hear the demos aswell. Pianos are obviously amazing, EP-1 sounds awesome, synths seems really solid and I can get amazing strings with KARO samples but sad to her that wind/brass/choirs are not up to par.

Another thing that struck me in all demos is how crappy STR-1 sounded, but I guess it has to do with personal preference and what sounds the demos have shown.. What I've heard so far are horrid upright bass-like and something vaguely remenicent of a bad fretless plus an acoustic guitar which sounded nothing like the real thing, but I'm guessing it has potential for some cool, not life-like plucked string sounds?

Also, 3,9k€ for the 88 when it's 3799$ in the US??? That's more than 1000€ more in Europe???

EDIT: 3900€ is 5375$ right now. Wonder who would pay that in the US?

Do you pay for healthcare ? For us geezers over 50 yrs of age, $500 per month is common.

Not trying to start an economic debate, more of a there is a bigger picture
to consider.

[Jan1]

€3900 for the 88-key version is overpriced compared to the US price.
Somewhere around €3500 would have been reasonable.

I'm not really surprised to read how good the pianos are.
What I heard so far in the clips sounded very good and inspiring.

[jmexio]

Not trying to start an economic debate, more of a there is a bigger picture to consider.

Indeed!

Here in Argentina, Kronos 88 will be around 18.000 argentinean pesos. The minimum salary is officially near 1.800, so that is 10 FULL minimum salaries for one piece of gear... The cheapest car is around 45.000 so that is, again, 25 months... Note that some people don't even make it to the official minimum.

Makes it harder to keep complaining about the euro, doesn't it?

On the other hand, gas is cheaper I think, so once you get your car it is hopefully less expensive feed it.

Cheers,
Juan Miguel

[Lando]

Do you pay for healthcare ? For us geezers over 50 yrs of age, $500 per month is common.

Not trying to start an economic debate, more of a there is a bigger picture
to consider.

Trying...not...to...post...too...off...topic....

Ok, can't stop myself, Sharp, please delete this debate if it's too ot

Comparing healthcare and KORG synth prizes is way beyond comparing apples and oranges..

Yes, I have free health care, cause I pay lots of more taxes and Sweden has a very different system than US. This is money I pay to the goverment and has absolutely nothing to do with what a japanese company charges for their products in different parts of the world.

Also I pay more for gas here and I do belive this largely has to do with Sweden, and europe in general, having huge enviromental taxes on gas.

Yes, the taxes on synths most likely area bit higher here aswell, but I have a hard time beliving that the difference is so huge.

Also, looking at Motif XF8 it costs less € on Thomann than $ on Sweetwater (Kronos beeing the other way around). Still, it costs way more money here than in the US, but the difference is at least not as big as with the Kronos.

That beeing said, I will still get Kronos the same day it's shipped, but I do think that the price of 3900€ is pushing it, maybe not compared to Motif or other pices of junk out there, but to the US price.

[Melodialworks Music]

* HD-1 is "mature". Meaning: it's at the end of the road, its boobs are sagging. Can't be improved.

Heh. Heh. I can think of a few ways of improving on sagging boobs.

[jmexio]

I have
(...)

passed the examination for a step-up in my career, I had been preparing for months

(...)

traveled back 300 km to Milan

(...)

got bashed for ever discussing the kronos purchase.

Congrats on your job!

As an aside (or two, really), I really hated Milan when I was there, but I think it can be safely attributed to being awfully sick and having to work, so I'm looking forward to re visit sometime...

Oh, and my girlfriend actually ENCOURAGES my purchases so far and thinks that I must buy a Kronos... She is actually more decided than me on the matter, so I just need to get the minuscule amount of cash needed now

Cheers,
Juan Miguel

[Bertotti]

300K well I drive an average of 400 miles a day and still do 5 - 14 hours in shop work when I get to where ever the work is that day. I've been doing that for, well, a long long time.

Now the real question is, are the weak orchestral horns and such a deal breaker? This is going to be my first workstation ever and the only real board I will have. I can't think of anything that is even close to the Kronos otherwise. Everything it has is something I do not have now, but nice horns and such would certainly be a +, especially if the ones in there now really can't keep up with the pianos. What good is it to have something so stellar then try to put it together with a super weak backing? I need to hear it layered up together to decide.

[ozy]

are the weak orchestral horns and such a deal breaker?

Hi. back from the movies, have 5 minutes.

Now, this was supposed to be MY review, not THE review.

On a workstation I use only electric pianos, pads and brass/winds/ethnic winds (plus drums for training sequences/composing, but that's just demos).

[plus VA if it was mega-modular and easily patched to and from samples and acoustic models]

So, for me the horns/winds/brass are a dealbreaker.

But that's totally personal.

Also, I think I am a competent judge on those sounds.

While I am not on hammond or guitar sounds, which I don't use.

Others will focus and be competent on those other sectors.

In general terms, of relevance to all, I am surprised that the same programmers who could get the most detailed key noise of a rhodes,

can't or won't, IN A MACHINE BORN FROM 5 YEARS OF WORK ON IMPROVING THE OASYS, make a quantum leap and go beyond the same old tired [ok: new and already tired] "vibrato clarinets" and "falling bones" [nice, having a separate preset for vibrato clarinet... my gad, it's 2011!]

"Improving" is not enough. Not when you, on pianos, revolutionize sound generation.

That's my pet peeve, so please forgive me.

I had expectations, and THAT disappointed me.

I plan a further test after I read the manual. I need to explore in detail the VA part. The korg guy told me the ms20 and the polysix were "component-modeled".

This is something I had expected for some time. But I'd need to have a deep look at that. It's easily said. There's some ways of testing it.


PS, for sharp and others:

sagging boobs can definitely contribute to falling bones.

That's subjective as well, but I think it's a fairly common reaction.

[DaveBoulden]

I use horn section patches quite a bit live. How do they compare to the horn patches on the M3 (one of which I do use live)? Do you think it is something that could possibly be solved by importing a better programmed sample set into the HD-1 synth should a better one be found?

[robinkle]

I use horn section patches quite a bit live. How do they compare to the horn patches on the M3 (one of which I do use live)? Do you think it is something that could possibly be solved by importing a better programmed sample set into the HD-1 synth should a better one be found?

I think all of us should knock on Korgs door and force them into making a Brass Synth Engine. They did it with strings and electric pianos, why not Brass?!

[danatkorg]

Thanks for your kind comments.

* analogue emulations very good, jury still out about their modularity

and

a) no final decision, I'll wait for the reference guide because I need testing the conflicting information about the Kronos' modularity [I am afraid I believe Danatkorg (=no modularity), not Mirabella (modularity)]

Well, I *am* on the development team, and I'm also the guy who distributors generally ask when they have questions.

See my earlier response here:

http://www.korgforums.com/forum/phpBB2/ ... 796#371796

If you have any further questions, or want to clarify anything which someone else told you (who is "Mirabella?"), please let me know. You could also look at the OASYS manuals, which explain the general functionality in great detail.

Further "news" from Korg personnel:

Note that demonstrators are not developers, and so while they are a great resouce for information about the product being demonstrated, they are rarely a good source of information on future product plans.

Best regards,

Dan

[cachete1966]

Could be possible that Korg release another engines for this machine..??

i said... like a ms20 or polisix... those are like vst into the hardware keyboard...

is possible that korg release another engine... like brass ( fisical modeling) or voice...

may be im a dreamer...

but how knows..!!

[sparkie]

I knew it! Sounds disappointing about the Touch Screen! Cmon.. I cant see a musician of any kind using a digital pen to make selections on this.. I just want to screammmm! AHHHHHHHHH! Like driving a New Cadillac with a 10" steering wheel, looking through the 12" windshield. Hardware problems and complaints before its available for sale.. Thumbs down.........

[GregC]

I knew it! Sounds disappointing about the Touch Screen! Cmon.. I cant see a musician of any kind using a digital pen to make selections on this.. I just want to screammmm! AHHHHHHHHH! Like driving a New Cadillac with a 10" steering wheel, looking through the 12" windshield. Hardware problems and complaints before its available for sale.. Thumbs down.........

I doubt the touch screen is a problem