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I'm curious which of the many Kronos engines people like best, and which you find yourself using most often?

For me it is a tossup between MS20 and EP1 (with props to runners up MOD7 and the wave sequencing portion of HD1)

I dont own a kronos but i think the polysix engine is the coolest cuz it can make epic plucks

Its a tough list to pick from......a better answer for me would be: all of the synth EXi's (AL1, Mod7, STR1, P6, MS20).

I can easily pick the the EP1, SGX1, and HD1 as my favorites...I'm not much of a synth guy--and frankly the synthy sounds I like, I'll be programming and bringing in samples into the HD1. I've never "gotten" the proper musical context for FM and analog synths.

As the "most used"...since I have a Hammond C3 and yamaha U3 piano, in terms of what will be "most used on final recordings" here--easily the EP1 (the main selling point for me) with occasional HD1. I love the SGX1 and Cx3 emulations, as much--and will be using them for writing demos and such...but, I doubt they will get used on final recordings just due to the real thing being here. But, the SGX1 is good enough for that--should I really want to track something and the U3 isn't in tune enough.

How do you know which synth engine us being used. Does it tell you on the display with the sound. Can you mix them in a combi,,,
A question for all of us waiting?

Cheers

runningman67 wrote:How do you know which synth engine us being used. Does it tell you on the display with the sound. Can you mix them in a combi,,,
A question for all of us waiting?

Cheers

in the program, you can see which 2 EXI models you are using (visually by a large picture).

Every program can combine 2 EXI models or can use 2 HD models.
In a combi you can use 16 programs which means that a combi can create sounds using 32 EXI models together (lot's of power that way). The only thing to keep in mind is that every Synth engine has a specific amount of polyphony, so as far as i know you need to focus on that. For instance, the MS20 had 48 polyphony. if you use 32 EXI models of the MS20 in a combi, you would probaly run out of notes instantly.

Thanks for that.
Presumably the same goes for recording on the sequencer. Just got to keep an eye on polyphony ?

Cheers

When I finally do get my Kronos, it's going to be AL-1 by a margin, though I don't intend to ignore the others. And what else would you expect from a synth guy?

...

synthguy wrote:When I finally do get my Kronos, it's going to be AL-1 by a margin, though I don't intend to ignore the others. And what else would you expect from a synth guy?

I was expecting the same thing before I got my Kronos, yet now find myself choosing MS20 over AL1 on a regular basis.

AL1 is flexible and sounds great, but MS20 is also tremendously powerful, and has more character (at least to my ears). AL1 gets the job done, but MS20 inspires me while doing it! It almost feels like comparing a classy, well implemented VA (AL1) with a real analog synth (MS20).

Bear in mind that MS20 in the Kronos is far more than the original (interesting but rather limited) MS20 monosynth. For starters it is polyphonic, and adds a couple of extra patch panel connections, but more importantly it inherits the flexible AMS routing and AMS mixers (same as AL1), multiple envelopes, multiple LFOs, common LFO, and step sequencer. Combine these powerful modulation options with the analog style patch panel, and you have something really rather special. Not to mention the ability to run two of them within a single patch, of course!

So far I seem to be the only CX-3 fan. I got the Kronos 61 specifically for the CX-3 since I can't get a real CX-3 any more (though someone offered me a mint A100 for nothing - didn't have the room for it). And I use MOD-7 and EP-1 quite a bit. For an organ I've mostly been using B4 on a laptop with a FastTrack Pro and a couple of amps but it was too fiddly to keep setting it up, and none of my other keyboards came close to a B3. I took a look at the electrical specs for the Kronos and immediately put the amps away. It's now connected straight into my stereo amp, no pre-amp, 600W per channel into a pair of large full range speakers. It's the only way to listen to the Kronos. The quality of the sound is simply amazing.

Cpilot wrote:So far I seem to be the only CX-3 fan. I got the Kronos 61 specifically for the CX-3 since I can't get a real CX-3 any more (though someone offered me a mint A100 for nothing - didn't have the room for it). And I use MOD-7 and EP-1 quite a bit. For an organ I've mostly been using B4 on a laptop with a FastTrack Pro and a couple of amps but it was too fiddly to keep setting it up, and none of my other keyboards came close to a B3. I took a look at the electrical specs for the Kronos and immediately put the amps away. It's now connected straight into my stereo amp, no pre-amp, 600W per channel into a pair of large full range speakers. It's the only way to listen to the Kronos. The quality of the sound is simply amazing.

You're not the only CX3 fan. One of the main reasons for my getting the Kronos was to replace my A100/Leslie. As soon as I'm proficient at programing the CX3 engine, I'll be selling my Hammond. I'm getting to be too old to carry around the old beast; Love the weight of the new beast! But I haven't voted yet. I'm also spending a lot of time on the accoustic and electric pianos and HD1. I'm sure I'll be spending a lot of time on the other engines as well, although I'm not too sure about STR1 yet.