Will there ever be an OASYS in the future again?

[Sock]

I know I can still get my hands on OASYS if I want... it's no where near impossible YET.

... However, like many, I am not doing so hot in the money department (what with being a university student and all). So right now, it's out of the question. Do you think in 10 years-or-so there will be a reincarnation of the OASYS or some other keyboard like it by Korg?

I LOVE Korg's interface and their features. I currently have a Triton Extreme and I think it's amazing. But I've always been oggling the OASYS.

I'm really hoping this isn't the end for this kind of keyboard by Korg. Other workstations like this just don't cut it. Open Labs, Phantom, etc.

Thanks much!

[Mike Conway]

Do you think in 10 years-or-so there will be a reincarnation of the OASYS or some other keyboard like it by Korg?

I don't think in size and price, but I do think that a lot of those features (MOD-7, etc.) will make it into a mini-monster.


Economy is usually what dictates whether or not a company takes a chance on making a "bells and whistles" product. Korg's success with workstations, like the Triton series, allowed the OASYS to happen. When the economy dove, they had to abandon the OASYS updates and shore up the more mainstream M3 with more competitive features.

I wouldn't doubt that either Yamaha or Roland had some sort of monster synth blueprint to counter the OASYS, had it sold large numbers. I think the Fantom G and it's 8" color screen could have been that contender, if it allowed for more ASR-X boards (including a Vari-Phrase elastic audio sampling option and VA board) to make it more like a user expandable modular type system. The sequencer and 22 simultaneous FX are pretty nice, but it really could have had more options, without increasing the base unit price.

If Kurzweil had more money, they could release something with a decent sized screen, large ROM and sampling/recording options, like a K3000.

What I don't see (though I could be wrong) is another $5,000 plus hardware board, when programs like Omnisphere are just $500. But, I imagine there will be a 2 - 3K priced, large screened unit with a multi-gigabyte ROM library and the ability to retain program FX in Multi/Combi mode. A lot of players don't want to do the engineer thing; they want a lot of sounds, more than 16 channels and easy operation (with the option to dig deeper).


BTW, the Triton Extreme is an amazing workstation. I used to have one. Talk about oodles of Programs and Combinations. I sold it to a buddy, who keeps it in his closet! I think I'll see if I can borrow it for a bit.

[bax]

It's funny you mention that, Mike... When I decided to get my O, I sold off a few things that seemed like they would be redundant or even completely replaced by the functionality of the O. My Triton Extreme was one of them...I had it loaded with RAM and the MOSS board and really liked it but figured it would go back in the box, get put in the basement and never be used again. I've thought more than twice recently that I actually kinda miss it and was thinking about grabbing another one at some point. It really was (is) a great board...

Thanks!
bax

[BruceL]

bells and whistles. lol
ain't that the truth there is no such thing as a one end all piece of gear
but, if i could afford it, tho. my greasy hands would be all over to the big O.

[RAYDAR]

Korg the Dance music scene is seeing a new comeback,

I never had the money to purchase the Oasys,

Now i have the money and everything Korg are releasing at present dosn't fit my needs and thats ok but,



A new Oasys is not coming but a MOD7 and Wavestation Electribe would make me cry with joy

[Rohan_of_Arc]

Missing gear- yes its true!

I miss my Trinity with the solo-tri (prophecy board).

The Oasys is awesome but I can't get brass sounds like I could with the brass model on the Solo-Tri board.

Ah well, can't have everything!

[billysynth1]

Its a shame we didnt get the reed and brass model for the Oasys. I've pulled out my Korg Z1 to provided my live playing sax, trumpet sounds.

Billy

[Charlie]

I doubt such a thing like this Oasys will return (Oasys is a bit like the Synclavier of 2005). That's why I'm very happy to keep mine.

Software-Synths will continue to replace hardware-solutions - esp. at the high- and low-end market, in studios etc. And there will always be the middle-workstation/synth-segment ... one needs that for playing on stage.

[nitecrawler]

I doubt such a thing like this Oasys will return (Oasys is a bit like the Synclavier of 2005). That's why I'm very happy to keep mine.

+1 here as well. Our numbers are low and the instrument will remain unique for its time period.

nitecrawler

[Sock]

Can you guys hear the sound of my heart breaking?

Because it is LOUD. =(

How long will support, repairs and replacement parts be available for? Any idea?

[Charlie]

Nobody knows for sure. But I've read here many times, that Korg has a reputation for having solutions for many years after a product was discontinued. Others claim to look for spare-boards etc. in advance. I don't do that as I didn't experience any problems in the past that could not be resolved. That being true for all kinds of synth I own, be it Korg or others.

[Sharp]

KORG have invested over a decade to the OASYS concept and to finally see a real OASYS on the market has been an honour, even more so that I actually own one. It is quite simply a dream come true for me in many ways.

A decade is a long time to invest in a concept too so I'm rather hopeful that we will see another in time.

If I had the money I'd buy a second OASYS right now for our home and the family to enjoy in exchange of our Yamaha Piano.

Regards
Sharp.

[Dr. Who]

It's funny you mention that, Mike... When I decided to get my O, I sold off a few things that seemed like they would be redundant or even completely replaced by the functionality of the O. My Triton Extreme was one of them...I had it loaded with RAM and the MOSS board and really liked it but figured it would go back in the box, get put in the basement and never be used again. I've thought more than twice recently that I actually kinda miss it and was thinking about grabbing another one at some point. It really was (is) a great board...

Thanks!
bax

Same exact thing here. I dumped my Triton Extreme 88 key with MOSS to upgrade to the Big O. I do miss my Extreme at times. It's a highly underrated synth. Many times I've thought about picking one up again. Would be great to have a rack version, I'd be all over it.

[Dr. Who]

Can you guys hear the sound of my heart breaking?

Because it is LOUD. =(

How long will support, repairs and replacement parts be available for? Any idea?

I wouldn't worry too much about it. This forum has been an amazing source of support and ideas for workarounds. In fact, I don't think I've ever called Korg for an O problem. I searched on here first for a solution. As great as the board is (and it is) there are some big limitations to it and as technology advances these limitations are being addressed by other gear. So you see and will continue to see O's pop up for sale here and there. I think in the future years if you really want an O you'll be able to find one. Some of the biggest gripes were the dated sequencer and the limitation with sample RAM. Korg has already made some pretty outstanding advances with their sequencer, what a joy it would have been to use the big O's screen for piano roll editing! Gotta believe if the O had sold more (probably would have if the economy hadn't fallen through the floor) that the M3 advances would have been shifted to the O as well (when there weren't hardware limitations). What could have been... there are things that drive me insane about the O like lack of DAW integration, but most of the time I think about selling it I find something else that I didn't really think it could do and I'm hooked again. If you know you're really going to make the plunge for an OASYS in 5 or 6 years you might want to make sure that Sharp will still have his OASYS Assault available in 5 or 6 years. He didn't put me up to writing this, but anyone that's has purchased O Assault knows that it is as close to an "essential" OASYS companion that there is out there. The sounds are gorgeous and open up the O to so many new possibilities. I've purchased some Karo libraries which are pretty good but Assault is in another category. Very very good stuff indeed and a must have for OASYS owners. I use the Yamaha CP-80 from Assault more than I do anything from my Yamaha Motif!

[Kevin Nolan]

I own two OASYS and find it excellent. So anything I say here is predicated by the fact that I find this instrument excellent.

I am very confident we are unlikely to see another OASYS, at least for a very long time. Firstly, hardware synthesizers and workstations are in disarray. The likes of Korg literally do not know what to do next in hardware – the release of the M50 and the ridiculous Microstation reveal that Korg are out of ideas and are at this stage raiding the family silver for a quick buck.

As an aside, I would be surprised to see Korg survive as a company in the long term. They have based their future in hardware, but those making decisions in Korg have made about every wrong decision that could be made, recently. I suspect there are harsh realities in that company that forced their hand. The release of the Microstation and the Monotron in particular reveal a company in crisis regarding innovative ideas and a sound future prospect.

IMO, the biggest strategic mistake Korg have ever made is in not finishing the concept of the OASYS. Of course the OASYS arrived with a lot of attention in 2005, but its prohibitive price and the advent of the likes of NI Komplete for a fraction of the cost meant that OASYS was literally slaughtered by the music forums (hugely unjustifiably IMO). Korg made several critical mistakes however - they failed to promote the OASYS in its critical advantages (for example, most importantly was its comparable capabilities to the likes of NI Komplete but with near-zero latency even when using over 170 voices – something no computer can still compete with). Secondly, Korg did not complete the project. They got nervous with poor sales, plundered our ideas in that Korgforums survey a while back, and released an updated M3 but critically cancelled OASYS. In that instant they declared to the world that they do not believe in their own hardware; and that even their prestigious user base at Korgforums was dispensable.

Rather, they should have bent over backwards to complete the sequencer on the OASYS; and hire an actual marketing team who understand the ethos of Korg, understand the key legacy and benefits to the workstation paradigm now and into the future and then promote the hell out of what is an actual outstanding instrument (and which could have been a classic like the Fairlight). Korg needed to finish the OASYS concept and prove to the world that there's a future to innovative and useful workstations; but they got nervous and failed to do so. This was a fatal blow to their central ethos advocating hardware over software. How can they expect people to buy products they themselves declared they do not believe in?

Furthermore, Korg should also have been looking at true innovative derivatives from the OASYS – some examples that come to mind include developing awesome realtime controllers for a MOD-7 or STR-1 based instrument; awesome touch screen sequencing/rhythm design; a snazzy hardware conroller version of the AL-1 (perhaps) and a stunning rhythm workstation based around KARMA – but were you do not need a computer science degree to understand GE’s and to use it properly.

In short, Korg got nervous over poor sales figures and in so doing revealed to the world that they do not in fact believe in the workstation market – a market they essentially defined.

With the advent of the iPad and multicore iMacs, the future for Korg is IMO extremely questionable. The KAOSS has no future in light of the iPad; and Korg’s attempt to reveal they are in tune with current trends through the release of the Electribe for iPad for example (but with absolutely no follow on with actual serious Korg iPad synthesizers and groove boxes to exploit this platform the way many start-ups currently are); suggest to me that they are by now reacting on a quarterly sales basis and have abandoned all sense of a long term future.

The Korg who released the OASYS, the Radias and the Microkorg are long since dead; and I genuinely fear for their future. I hope I am wrong and that they some sort of a future in small devices; but IMO the premature cancellation of OASYS – or to put it another way – Korg’s failure to complete the project - tells me at least that they do not know what they are doing any more - that they are not bing TRULY innovative and that financial constraints are too tight to be true leaders in music technology hardware.

The OASYS I own is truly awesome. Here's how awesome it is - after owning it for 5 years and working tirelessly from every conceivable angle to better myself and my music since ownig it - the OASYS still scares the bejaysus out of me. I know it well, I've used it relentlessly - but still - every time I sit at it, a _vast_ wealth of musical/technical depth comes at me to say "You're currently not good enough to use me properly!!". Whether it be what makes up an awesome Karmafied Combi by Stephen Kay or E2J, or a deep rich sampled piano or MOD-7 lead voice with realtime control for adding soul that will match the playing of Herbi Hancock; the OASYS demands the very, very best I can give - and then some - to sound as gob-smackingly good as it is capable of.

The sad fact is that I suspect that even Korg have by now forgotten just how deep this instrument is; they have forgotten their motivation in designing THE WORKSTATION; and hence have conceded to the dominance of software and the certainty that no new innovative workstations will appear (from Korg) for a very long time.

Kevin.