Quick Impressions from Someone New to Korg

rkuli · Post by **rkuli** » Sat Jun 11, 2011 3:15 am

now that i have the board at home and have been sitting down with it off and on throughout the day (very short bursts only) i thought i should take a little time to provide some of my specific feedback.

screen: it is the best i've seen on a keyboard. i even prefer it to the open labs miko keyboard i had - mainly because i believe it is just the right size and fits with the aesthetic design of the keyboard. the screen also is exactly what i was looking for when i had my fantom g. the two screens i believe are fairly close in size and i was always reaching to touch the screen to change parameters but alas, that kind of functionality did not exist and always frustrated me.

screen angle: i don't have an issue whatsoever with the reading angle of the screen and my board is currently flat on the stand. i suspect that this will be a non-issue but we'll see how the other owners feel about it and get some consensus soon. i think we have a tendency to lean forward a bit as we are concentrating on editing and changing other parameters but things are clearly visible without leaning over.

font size: there have been many comments on the font size. i agree that the text is small but still legible. upon reflection, i'm surprised that so many have complained about it however, as i believe that those who have voiced concern are currently korg owners. if so, isn't this at least the same size text as it was on the tritons (i had a triton studio for just a brief period of time)? this screen has to display things at the same size or better than previous korg touchview displays right (with the exception of the oasys)?

imo no one should have any issue whatsoever playing live using the setlist (excluding external lighting issues).

i borrowed my kids stylus from their nintendo ds and believe i will be using it a lot with this board. i think the stylus may in the end be quicker and more accurate overall however, i have BIG hands (think boxer or primate but i prefer comparing to a boxer) and i'm still able to select things on the screen without any real issue. additionally, i'm using the tip of my finger and there is absolutely no white on my fingernails (holdover from playing the violin).

screen conclusion: overall, i have come away with a great first impression of the screen. the negative for me would be trying to do long sessions of deep editing. again, current korg users should be used to this since the old screens excluding the oasys i think were about half the size. for me (admittedly, someone who would prefer not just to do the editing on a laptop but rather a 27inch imac...), working for long periods of time using the screen (and i would be hunched over just like i hunch over or rather forward to concentrate on the iMac screen) would not be ideal.

the best case scenario i think would not be for korg to go through the trouble of reworking any of the touchview screens but rather add capability to the editor program that is forthcoming that allows complete control then using your computer or the touchview. an ipad app similar to the motif concept would work just as well.

RK [/b]

Lou · Post by **Lou** » Sat Jun 11, 2011 3:25 am

Thanks rkuli, that was finally a pleasant overview..
Glad you are doing well with it. I have a feeling it's just an adjustment thing.

rkuli · Post by **rkuli** » Sat Jun 11, 2011 3:25 am

data wheel: the data wheel certainly doesn't feel like the sturdiest knob, but it doesn't bother me either (maybe i just have low expectations). mine has not come off and i exerted a little pressure to see if it would pop off although i'm not trying to break it if it isn't already broken either. i guess it feels like a cheaper part but i don't mean that in a negative way in terms of korg cutting corners or building a poor instrument just, this piece of the board feels like one of the areas where if something is going to go wrong - this is where it will be.

i've had a mpc 1000, mpc 2500 and an mv-8800. the 1000 data wheel i think felt just as cheap and light however, i don't recall people complaining about it falling off either. i also believe akai used a shaft design vs. what korg used......

vector joystick: i never really used one before so i don't have a base of comparison. its flimsy but based on other posts and what the stick is used for i believe this is actually by design. this, unlike the data wheel doesn't concern me for the future but let's hear from someone that actually uses it and will put stress on the design.

RK

sparkie · Post by **sparkie** » Sat Jun 11, 2011 4:42 am

I agree, the screen is very sharp with bright colors and great resolution detail.. BUT it is all to small to see for me w/o reading glasses and I wish it had a brightness adjust. Maybe it takes some getting used to.. I hope!

synthguy · Post by **synthguy** » Sat Jun 11, 2011 4:46 am

I'm glad that it's a good replacement for a Kindle so far.

Now, the synthguy in me wants to know how the thing sounds, how spacious the O Verb, how juicy the various filter are, How much you like MOD-7, etc.

Mike Conway · Post by **Mike Conway** » Sat Jun 11, 2011 4:49 am

sparkie wrote:I wish it had a brightness adjust.

It should! If it's like OASYS, it should be in GLOBAL mode.

Press BASIC tab.

Press the dropdown menu (upper right). Select LCD SETUP.

sparkie · Post by **sparkie** » Sat Jun 11, 2011 4:57 am

OK Yeah I got it.. brightness doesnt get any brighter than 63..

Mike Conway · Post by **Mike Conway** » Sat Jun 11, 2011 5:03 am

Okay. Try playing around with the Contrast and Color Temperature. Upping the Contrast a little bit - say "76" - might help.

taurgo Production · Post by **taurgo Production** » Sat Jun 11, 2011 5:30 am

the screen to me is fine. It would have been nice to have that HD look like the famtom G, but hey the sounds in this thing is amazing!

ChrisP · Post by **ChrisP** » Sat Jun 11, 2011 10:33 am

Thank you for the nice reviews

rkuli · Post by **rkuli** » Sat Jun 11, 2011 4:50 pm

screen saver: i feel like there should be a screen saver for the display. i'm concerned there is going to be burn in. i guess this wouldn't have been a problem with the triton series since it was greyscale or something similar right? i believe the m3 was color. does it have a screen saver? was there any reported issues regarding screen burn in with it?

JimH · Post by **JimH** » Sat Jun 11, 2011 5:00 pm

rkuli wrote:screen saver: i feel like there should be a screen saver for the display. i'm concerned there is going to be burn in. i guess this wouldn't have been a problem with the triton series since it was greyscale or something similar right? i believe the m3 was color. does it have a screen saver? was there any reported issues regarding screen burn in with it?

Not a problem with LCD. Anyway, do you plan on keeping your Kronos on all the time?

rkuli · Post by **rkuli** » Sat Jun 11, 2011 5:08 pm

start up time: my board clocked in with a startup time this morning of 2:19.7 (iPhone stopwatch). as i wrote in another thread, it is not the quickest startup but also did not feel inordinately long to me. i think as these boards become better and more computer like, we will be looking at a shift overall to longer startup times. i'm sure things will improve so maybe it takes a minute and a half but sub minute startups are probably not going to be achieved (although i will gladly accept being proven wrong in the future).

for comparison my:

ipad gen 1 started up in 32.4 seconds (i think i pressed the stop button a second late)

iphone 4 started up in 44.5 seconds

macbook pro started up in 59.4 seconds (i think i pressed the stop button a second late). my mb pro has an 120 gb ssd drive for startup and a hybrid 500 gb ssd seagate momentus xt where the optical drive used to be and 8 gb ram.

additional load time for music programs were as follows:

apple garageband = 6.3 seconds
propellerheads reason 5 = 7.5 seconds
propellerheads record = 11.1 seconds
ableton live 8 = 14.7 seconds (i definitively pressed stop a second late)
ni maschine = 16.5 seconds

rkuli · Post by **rkuli** » Sat Jun 11, 2011 5:29 pm

JimH wrote:
rkuli wrote:screen saver: i feel like there should be a screen saver for the display. i'm concerned there is going to be burn in. i guess this wouldn't have been a problem with the triton series since it was greyscale or something similar right? i believe the m3 was color. does it have a screen saver? was there any reported issues regarding screen burn in with it?
Not a problem with LCD. Anyway, do you plan on keeping your Kronos on all the time?

i don't know if i plan on keeping in on a long time but i do tend to play for a little bit - leave do something else and play some more. often times, these little micro sessions of time will result in some melody or other musical idea that i will record and come back bit by bit to add and fill it out. i should clarify - this is how i work on a daw and am assuming this is how my workflow will be on the kronos with some modifications given this board is not a full fledged software daw and is not intended to be one.

RK

rkuli · Post by **rkuli** » Sat Jun 11, 2011 5:42 pm

keys: i really like the keys. they feel solid and robust not "plasticky" and the action is really good as well. the keys are a pleasant surprise for me as i wasn't expecting to really feel one way or another about them. i can't recall my motif xs keys so much but i do remember that i felt the fantom g 6 keys weren't anything to write home about for me at least and the same goes for the open labs miko keys. i think the fantom g keys felt the cheapest to me of all the boards i've had (with the exception of my akai mini).

RK