Kronos 88 - First Impressions
Posted: Thu Jul 07, 2011 4:28 pm
Well, it finally happened. My Kronos 88 arrived yesterday, and I was able to squeeze in some quality time. Below are some first impressions:
Overall appearance: Very modern, classy and elegant. The gloss end caps, smudge-resistant top finish and understated theme make this look like a high-end instrument. It's as if a mini ebony grand is sitting in my studio.
Display: Compared to the M50 and M3, the K-88 is big and bright. There is perhaps 15% brightness fall-off when looking at the display while sitting at arms length at around a 45 degree angle (relative to the eyes), but it's still bright enough in a well-lit studio. The touch sensitivity is excellent. It is MUCH more responsive than the M50 and M3. However, since many screens are ported from the Oasys, the reduced scale makes text and other UI elements ridiculously small, perhaps as little as 7-point font. The newer screens (introduced with the Kronos, like Set List) use a larger, thicker font and are easily read. Korg MUST eventually re-do the legacy Oasys screens, or add some sort of zoom feature to make them reasonably useable. The display hardware is excellent and can certainly handle the task, but it's going to take some hard work at Korg to get the GUI where it needs to be.
Vitrual "Pads": I was pleased with the responsiveness of the "pads" screen. There is little latency, and not much finger force or velocity is required to trigger a pad. The only downside is that the pads are "monophonic" - that is, only one pad will trigger at a time (unlike the M50 and M3 pads where multiples can be struck at once). I'll be setting my Korg padKONTROL soon to get around this.
RH3 Keybed: The keys have a very nice, high quality texture, just like a real piano. The action is very close to a real piano too. Responsiveness is excellent, with no perceivable latency. After-touch works fine, and of course, is adjustable. There was some minor key spacing unevenness, but it's not obvious, and it certainly does not affect playability. There is no unusual acoustic noise when playing.
Knobs, sliders and switches: The rotary knobs feel rock solid, with zero wobble, and offer a bit of turning resistance. The sliders exhibit a bit of lateral play, and some inconsistent resistance - I would consider them "mid grade" quality, but they may improve with some break-in. The switches are solid, and offer suitable resistance with an audible and tactile click. The LED indicators are easily seen and look really cool.
Panel labeling: The panel text is fairly easy to read, with the exception of the "gold tone" letters (like Karma functions, cutoff, resonance, etc.) Depending on your lighting, there may be some panel glare that obscures the text, but it's isolated to a few areas, and glare is well controlled due to the brushed matte finish.
Joystick and Vector Joystick: The main joystick feels solid, with consistent resistance in all directions. It's a good height, and is operable without giving it a second thought. It's solid plastic, and looks like it will stand up to plenty of use. The vector joystick is small, and is a bit shy of 3/4" tall. The knob is metal, and appears to have a metal shaft. It moves very easily with almost no resistance, and is well controlled with a fingertip. This looks like a high quality component. It's in easy reach, and is a blast to use.
Ribbon Controller: This has a nice, textured surface that prevent finger sticking. There's also a small protrusion on the controller bezel at midpoint so you can tell where the "zero" position is without looking - a nice touch.
Value Dial: It is relatively small, and has a slightly scratchy, inconsistent feel. I didn't try to yank it off but mine appeared to be well seated. There was no evidence of orbital or height wobble. It's probably the lowest quality grade component on the keyboard, but I'm hoping it will smooth out with break in.
Jacks, fan, etc.: The connection jacks all appear to be high quality. Inserted plugs felt strong and secure. The power switch is heavy duty, and has a raised bezel to help prevent accidental activation. The fan is inaudible.
Sound: I only had a chance to really explore the SGX-1 pianos. These are, hands down, the best simulated pianos I have every heard or played. There is excellent dynamic range, responsiveness, and tone. There is ZERO hint of any "stair-stepping" as notes decay. These pianos alone, to me, justify this instrument.
As someone else in this forum mentioned, this is the keyboard I would take to a deserted island if I were marooned for the rest of my life. It is so deep, rich and rewarding, and would probably take a lifetime to exhaust its potential.
Bottom line: Korg did a magnificent job and they can hold up their heads in pride. The biggest letdown is the GUI, but when the computer-based editor is available, that will be an adequate work-around in the meantime.
And such is life with Kronos S/N #113.
Bill
Overall appearance: Very modern, classy and elegant. The gloss end caps, smudge-resistant top finish and understated theme make this look like a high-end instrument. It's as if a mini ebony grand is sitting in my studio.
Display: Compared to the M50 and M3, the K-88 is big and bright. There is perhaps 15% brightness fall-off when looking at the display while sitting at arms length at around a 45 degree angle (relative to the eyes), but it's still bright enough in a well-lit studio. The touch sensitivity is excellent. It is MUCH more responsive than the M50 and M3. However, since many screens are ported from the Oasys, the reduced scale makes text and other UI elements ridiculously small, perhaps as little as 7-point font. The newer screens (introduced with the Kronos, like Set List) use a larger, thicker font and are easily read. Korg MUST eventually re-do the legacy Oasys screens, or add some sort of zoom feature to make them reasonably useable. The display hardware is excellent and can certainly handle the task, but it's going to take some hard work at Korg to get the GUI where it needs to be.
Vitrual "Pads": I was pleased with the responsiveness of the "pads" screen. There is little latency, and not much finger force or velocity is required to trigger a pad. The only downside is that the pads are "monophonic" - that is, only one pad will trigger at a time (unlike the M50 and M3 pads where multiples can be struck at once). I'll be setting my Korg padKONTROL soon to get around this.
RH3 Keybed: The keys have a very nice, high quality texture, just like a real piano. The action is very close to a real piano too. Responsiveness is excellent, with no perceivable latency. After-touch works fine, and of course, is adjustable. There was some minor key spacing unevenness, but it's not obvious, and it certainly does not affect playability. There is no unusual acoustic noise when playing.
Knobs, sliders and switches: The rotary knobs feel rock solid, with zero wobble, and offer a bit of turning resistance. The sliders exhibit a bit of lateral play, and some inconsistent resistance - I would consider them "mid grade" quality, but they may improve with some break-in. The switches are solid, and offer suitable resistance with an audible and tactile click. The LED indicators are easily seen and look really cool.
Panel labeling: The panel text is fairly easy to read, with the exception of the "gold tone" letters (like Karma functions, cutoff, resonance, etc.) Depending on your lighting, there may be some panel glare that obscures the text, but it's isolated to a few areas, and glare is well controlled due to the brushed matte finish.
Joystick and Vector Joystick: The main joystick feels solid, with consistent resistance in all directions. It's a good height, and is operable without giving it a second thought. It's solid plastic, and looks like it will stand up to plenty of use. The vector joystick is small, and is a bit shy of 3/4" tall. The knob is metal, and appears to have a metal shaft. It moves very easily with almost no resistance, and is well controlled with a fingertip. This looks like a high quality component. It's in easy reach, and is a blast to use.
Ribbon Controller: This has a nice, textured surface that prevent finger sticking. There's also a small protrusion on the controller bezel at midpoint so you can tell where the "zero" position is without looking - a nice touch.
Value Dial: It is relatively small, and has a slightly scratchy, inconsistent feel. I didn't try to yank it off but mine appeared to be well seated. There was no evidence of orbital or height wobble. It's probably the lowest quality grade component on the keyboard, but I'm hoping it will smooth out with break in.
Jacks, fan, etc.: The connection jacks all appear to be high quality. Inserted plugs felt strong and secure. The power switch is heavy duty, and has a raised bezel to help prevent accidental activation. The fan is inaudible.
Sound: I only had a chance to really explore the SGX-1 pianos. These are, hands down, the best simulated pianos I have every heard or played. There is excellent dynamic range, responsiveness, and tone. There is ZERO hint of any "stair-stepping" as notes decay. These pianos alone, to me, justify this instrument.
As someone else in this forum mentioned, this is the keyboard I would take to a deserted island if I were marooned for the rest of my life. It is so deep, rich and rewarding, and would probably take a lifetime to exhaust its potential.
Bottom line: Korg did a magnificent job and they can hold up their heads in pride. The biggest letdown is the GUI, but when the computer-based editor is available, that will be an adequate work-around in the meantime.
And such is life with Kronos S/N #113.
Bill
