Can I use the Kronos sounds in DAW productions?

[hag01]

It will be really nice if I would be able to use the Kronos electric pianos instead of buying Spectrasonic Keyscapce in addition to buying the Kronos.

Question is, whether it is possible to route the Kronos sounds smoothly to a DAW(I work with Cubase).

But I don't want to transport audio from the Kronos line out, I want to use it like a rack module with MIDI data.

[jeremykeys]

I use Cubase as well and the good news is, yes you can! I'm not in my studio room that now so I can't remember all the details of how to do it but it's not hard.
If I remember correctly you have to set up a midi track in Cubase and also need to Globally turn local control off on your Kronos.

[darwinwiebe]

You can use Kronos as a VST in a DAW by plugging it into your computer via USB. You should have access to all the Kronos sound engines on your computer. I've never tried it myself, so I'm not up on the details.

[QuiRobinez]

It will be really nice if I would be able to use the Kronos electric pianos instead of buying Spectrasonic Keyscapce in addition to buying the Kronos.

Question is, whether it is possible to route the Kronos sounds smoothly to a DAW(I work with Cubase).

But I don't want to transport audio from the Kronos line out, I want to use it like a rack module with MIDI data.

it is possible, but if you use any vst or effect in combination with a kronos you need to route the audio through cubase to handle the latency compensation. It's not really hard, here's a guide i wrote in one of the cubase / kronos threads on this forum.

When using the kronos you want to be able to use all 16 Channels. The audio is transfered over an audiochannel, this is different then a midi channel. So you basically want to create an external instrument in cubase that knows which audio channel the kronos is connected to and which midi driver is used by the kronos. This can be done by doing the following steps in cubase:

Cubase:
- create an external instrument named Kronos where you use the Midi Port: Kronos Keyboard and the audio return channels where connected your kronos to (see the cubase connection window)
- then (IMPORTANT) load this newly created external instrument in a VST instrument Slot (see the menu option: Vst instruments), what this does is saying to cubase that you are using a multitimbral external synth (so you have 16 midi channels) and that all audio streamed by this hardware external synth is latency compensated automatically with all your other VST instruments or samples.
- Now go to the Cubase project window and add 16 midi tracks (or as much as you need)
- in the inspector of the midi track in the output dropdownbox select the loaded kronos external instrument which is now available because you have loaded it as a vst instrument
- do this for every midi channel you want to use
- beneath the output dropdownbox you can select the midi channel, start with 1 and every next midi track add 1, so you have 16 midi tracks where you are using midi channel 1, 2, 3, etc..

Korg Kronos
- press the global button
- press the midi tab and then the midi subtab
- Set Local Control On to off (you are going to use cubase for this). If you want to use KARMA then you need to leave this to on, but then you will have to pay some extra attention to the midi return channels (not part of this explanation now.)

- Now open a new combi (empty)
- press the timbre parameter tab
- at the top you see a row with the name midi channel
- set it that way that you have selected 1 for timbre 1, 2 for timbre 2, 3 for timbre 3, etc...
- now select the programs per timbre you want to use in cubase. So for instance Piano for timbre 1, bass for timbre 2, guitar for timbre 3
- save the combi with the song name so you can find it later again.

Cubase:
- go to midi track 1
- play something: you will hear the piano of timbre 1
- go to midi track 2
- play something: you will hear the bass for timbre 2.
etc..

- Record your tune in cubase
- then go the file menu and choose audio export
- IMPORTANT! Select the realtime export checkbox, this ensures that the track is played in realtime and not rendered at a higher speed which the kronos doesn't support.
- Now all your midi tracks from the kronos will be played and combined with your vst instruments and samples in realtime and all be merged to an audio file automatically. You don't need to record each audio track seperately anymore in the kronos. Cubase will take care of that.


These are the basics of working with an external hardware synth which you want to behave more or less like a vst instruments. Once you got familiar with this procedure you can go to the next step and create an automation connection between the kronos and cubase so that you can automate the parameters of the kronos with a midi controller or by creating automation lanes in cubase.

[playboy354]

It will be really nice if I would be able to use the Kronos electric pianos instead of buying Spectrasonic Keyscapce in addition to buying the Kronos.

Question is, whether it is possible to route the Kronos sounds smoothly to a DAW(I work with Cubase).

But I don't want to transport audio from the Kronos line out, I want to use it like a rack module with MIDI data.

it is possible, but if you use any vst or effect in combination with a kronos you need to route the audio through cubase to handle the latency compensation. It's not really hard, here's a guide i wrote in one of the cubase / kronos threads on this forum.

When using the kronos you want to be able to use all 16 Channels. The audio is transfered over an audiochannel, this is different then a midi channel. So you basically want to create an external instrument in cubase that knows which audio channel the kronos is connected to and which midi driver is used by the kronos. This can be done by doing the following steps in cubase:

Cubase:
- create an external instrument named Kronos where you use the Midi Port: Kronos Keyboard and the audio return channels where connected your kronos to (see the cubase connection window)
- then (IMPORTANT) load this newly created external instrument in a VST instrument Slot (see the menu option: Vst instruments), what this does is saying to cubase that you are using a multitimbral external synth (so you have 16 midi channels) and that all audio streamed by this hardware external synth is latency compensated automatically with all your other VST instruments or samples.
- Now go to the Cubase project window and add 16 midi tracks (or as much as you need)
- in the inspector of the midi track in the output dropdownbox select the loaded kronos external instrument which is now available because you have loaded it as a vst instrument
- do this for every midi channel you want to use
- beneath the output dropdownbox you can select the midi channel, start with 1 and every next midi track add 1, so you have 16 midi tracks where you are using midi channel 1, 2, 3, etc..

Korg Kronos
- press the global button
- press the midi tab and then the midi subtab
- Set Local Control On to off (you are going to use cubase for this). If you want to use KARMA then you need to leave this to on, but then you will have to pay some extra attention to the midi return channels (not part of this explanation now.)

- Now open a new combi (empty)
- press the timbre parameter tab
- at the top you see a row with the name midi channel
- set it that way that you have selected 1 for timbre 1, 2 for timbre 2, 3 for timbre 3, etc...
- now select the programs per timbre you want to use in cubase. So for instance Piano for timbre 1, bass for timbre 2, guitar for timbre 3
- save the combi with the song name so you can find it later again.

Cubase:
- go to midi track 1
- play something: you will hear the piano of timbre 1
- go to midi track 2
- play something: you will hear the bass for timbre 2.
etc..

- Record your tune in cubase
- then go the file menu and choose audio export
- IMPORTANT! Select the realtime export checkbox, this ensures that the track is played in realtime and not rendered at a higher speed which the kronos doesn't support.
- Now all your midi tracks from the kronos will be played and combined with your vst instruments and samples in realtime and all be merged to an audio file automatically. You don't need to record each audio track seperately anymore in the kronos. Cubase will take care of that.


These are the basics of working with an external hardware synth which you want to behave more or less like a vst instruments. Once you got familiar with this procedure you can go to the next step and create an automation connection between the kronos and cubase so that you can automate the parameters of the kronos with a midi controller or by creating automation lanes in cubase.

Good info but a few questions. ..

1. Will effects used on Kronos for each individual timbre be included in Cubase file when bounced to audio or do I have to use Cubase effects?

2. Will you be able to Record Kronos midi to Cubase on individual midi tracks simultaneously or one track at a time..? For instance if I have a Kronos song of 16 tracks already completed can this be recorded to 16 individual midi tracks in Cubase in one pass and then audio exported , maintaining Kronos effects?