NAMM 2025 Rumor - New flagship incoming?

[bpoodoo]

Preorder
https://www.guitarcenter.com/KORG/KRONO ... 0453067.gc
https://kraftmusic.com/collections/synt ... orkstation
88-key $3599.99

[voip]

Well, well, well. Good things come to those who wait, eh!

120GB SSD, plus a "new system architecture" to speed up the boot time.

The Nautilus has its place, no doubt, but the Kronos is the real flagship. So good to see that Korg are still supporting it.
.

[D575]

The reintroduction of the Kronos line benefits significant Kronos investors; however, the product's trajectory warrants further analysis. The discontinuation of the flagship Kronos line, its replacement by Nautilus (excluding AT functionality), subsequent add-on AT kits for Nautilus, and the eventual return of a smaller-scale Kronos iteration present a complex product evolution. A true successor to the original Kronos line may still be under development, and the underperformance of Nautilus sales may indicate significant customer resistance among existing Kronos users. Nevertheless, the interim return of the Kronos line prior to a complete product overhaul is a positive development.

[thethirdapple]

I doubt the picture is real since according to comments from Stephen Kay in the past that there was no contact from Korg regarding further KARMA development. Hence at least one of the left hand buttons should be gone which was used to access Karma control panel.

It's true I said this in the past, awhile ago, but I could not comment on recent developments - until now. There's no "further development" on the version of KARMA in it - but it's the same KARMA that's always been in there. Which I'm happy about. I had the new one here, to put a new remix of my Challenger demo in it, and it's a beauty.

PEACE
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[fomalhaut]

https://www.korg.com/us/products/synthesizers/kronos3/

First, congrats to the teams on the new release!!!

As a Korg fan, I am underwhelmed.

As a technologist, I cannot but admire Korg's product engineering effort since the launch of the original OASYS platform.

But as a musician I love the statement that Korg is setting: as an instrument, the Kronos is still relevant.

Kronos is so powerful that it can come back from the dead!

[bpoodoo]

https://www.korg.com/us/products/synthesizers/kronos3/

But as a musician I love the statement that Korg is setting: as an instrument, the Kronos is still relevant.

I'm not mad at Korg for this move - it certainly makes sense from a financial perspective - the potential to have maximum return from minimal effort. It is also a tip of the hat to current Kronos owners that says yes, both you and your keyboard are still relevant and will continue to be supported. And frankly, the most recent flagships from Roland and Yamaha don't sound much better to me than their flagships from a decade ago,and their dumbing down of sequencers from track-based to pattern-based was step backwards in functionality. Korg's focus on sounds rather than redesign I think hits the mark.

[D575]

I am surprised they did not include a few more bells and whistles, especially as a NAMM release, considering the time since the release of Kronos in its various forms.

I still think a genuine Kronos replacement is quite possibly under development and perhaps delayed; hence, we are seeing this re-release of Kronos almost as damage control, where Nautilus cannot quite fill Kronos's shoes in what must still be an important segment of the Korg market.

[Tapas]

It's true I said this in the past, awhile ago, but I could not comment on recent developments - until now. There's no "further development" on the version of KARMA in it - but it's the same KARMA that's always been in there. Which I'm happy about. I had the new one here, to put a new remix of my Challenger demo in it, and it's a beauty.

Hi Stephen,

I enjoyed listening to the 2nd demo track, “1986 – The Challenger” that you made for the KRONOS 3.

This was a great tribute to the brave souls who perished in the Challenger Space Shuttle disaster in 1986.

Did you sing the vocals on this demo?

This was the best demo for the KRONOS 3. You are incredibly talented.

[jtern]

Maybe the new flagship workstation is not a Kronos but an OASYS?

[billysynth]

@jtern…

What do you mean ‘not a Kronos but an Oasys’?
KORG have the Kronos listed on their website as the Flagship workstation

According to KORG website….

Kronos Returns: The Next Generation of Music WorkStation.

LOL….KORG believe in Ghosts….just took them three years to bring the ghost back….and guess what, it switches on much faster!!!!
Kronos ‘switching on much faster’ makes it next generation and thus a Kronos 3. What more do you want?
Come on bro….’switching on much faster’ is a miracle….not many miracles in 2025….

Since Oasys in 2005 till 2025….only took 20 years to get the damn thing to switch on much faster…lol.

And….Stephen Kay is Back!! More Ghosts. Roland where is your ghost bru?

Vas.

[fomalhaut]

Roland where is your ghost bru?

It's called "Fantom"

[bpoodoo]

Roland where is your ghost bru?

It's called "Fantom"

Hahaha Good one!

https://www.korg.com/us/products/synthesizers/kronos3/ currently states
"The internal SSD offers a generous 62GB* capacity, providing enormous space for user sampling or downloading additional Kronos Sound Libraries.
* SSD capacity is subject to change without notice."

So Kronos 3 SSD capacity is 62Gb not 120Gb, for now at least.

What was the SSD capacity of the Kronos 2?

[voip]

Kronos 2 SSD specification is given as 60GB SSD with optional installation of a second SSD.

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[stuartpryer]

Hi.

The new ssd size is 120gb on Kronos 3. 64gb of that is available for expansions etc.

Ps. Great to have Karma back as i loved that on my Oasys.

Cheers

Stuart

[jtern]

@jtern…

What do you mean ‘not a Kronos but an Oasys’?
KORG have the Kronos listed on their website as the Flagship workstation

According to KORG website….

Kronos Returns: The Next Generation of Music WorkStation.

I love the Kronos, but the Kronos 3 is *not* a flagship workstation in 2025.
So, either Korg have abandoned their ambitions to have a flagship workstation, or something will come. By releasing the Kronos 3, we know that this is most certainly the end-of-line for Kronos. They have not spent years of development to come up with it, but it is a way to buy time and capitalize on previous development costs. It makes no sense to release a Kronos 4 within the next 3 years.
If a new flagship will come, it will either have a new name - or they will re-use an old brand with a positive aura. In case of the latter, it would make sense to revive a classic. The OASYS was in at least some ways superior to the Kronos. It was a true flagship in its time and I would put my bet on ”OASYS 2” - the next generation of Open Architecture Synthesis Studio that goes beyond the previous synth engines. I think they tried with the Kronos platform, but realized that it would not go all the way and backed out. But time will tell…