Korg Forums

WaterDrum · Posted: Thu Dec 15, 2011 3:28 pm Post subject:

a hardware upgrade would probably be too expensive...
imagine : soldering out the old chip ...and soldering in the new chip
or exchanging one of the sub modules...

card upgrade : it seems the WD has the loudness info already
before it starts to load card information (still worth to try card upgrade)

so here I think it is a flash upgrade through the JTAG connector
which is on the lower left side of the mainboard.
similar to flashing a computer BIOS

But I can be wrong

the same way you might get an upgrade to the ORIENTAL , try

random · Joined: 16 Dec 2010 Posts: 13

hi,

> Firmware Upgrade
> I'm still curious about your first post where Korg mentioned to you something about the possibility of "lingering stock" of the upgrade. That makes it sound like they were actually swapping out the internal SD card or something.

that is my impression... something gets swapped or added.

> I'm also disappointed that Korg Japan was less helpful. If anyone could resolve your problem, you'd think it would be them!

right?!!

> Noise in the system
> What you describe is definitely not normal.

Sad

i will do another reset and see if that helps, although i would think not. the other thing i could imagine is if i need to physically adjust the pressure sensor height (maybe it is receiving signal?). i saw instructions for how to do that in the manual...

i'll also drop a mail to my friend with a similar non-updated dm-x and see if he notices similar sounds on his - just to double-confirm what's "normal" for this version.

> I'll see what I can find out about this later today and report back!

that would be great! will update with results of my reset or anything else i do, too...

random · Joined: 16 Dec 2010 Posts: 13

after doing a second factory reset and still having the noise problem described above, i started going through parameters to see what it might be. short answer - RIM SENSITIVITY WHEN IN HAND PLAY MODE. (this also affects volume a bit, for those of you who may have missed this.)

i'll write instructions in case anyone with a similar problem stumbles across this thread in the future:

TO SEE IF YOU ARE IN HAND PLAY OR STICK PLAY MODE:
1) hold down BANK/MODE-3 to enter EDIT2 mode. you want the first option that shows up Pre-EQ (looks like "E9").
2) press button 1 to see EQ mode (tyP):
H-H = drum & rim set for hand play
H-S = drum hand / rim stick
S-S = drum & rim set for stick play
H-n = drum hand / rim notches
S-n = drum stick / rim notches

FIX: rim calibration (manual p.29)
1) hold down BANK/MODE-4 to enter global mode
2) press BANK/MODE until r.cd (rim calibration)
3) press button 1 to adjust Lo value (i get the noise if this is less than 3 - so 0-2 give noise)
4) press WRITE button twice to save setting
5) BANK/MODE-1 to return to LIVE PLAY mode

- - -

if you don't have a problem, but want to hear what i was talking about, try using the instructions above to set your rim EQ into hand-play mode, then set rim calibration LO to 0... Smile

what i didn't expect is that resetting the factory settings DOES NOT CLEAR USER CALIBRATION! and i recall the other day i was playing around with rim calibration, turning it down from 5 to 0 without noticing at the time the can of worms i just opened.

to trace the problem, i first noticed the sound disappeared or changed when altering the rim algorithms. then i noticed it disappeared completely if i set the rim PreEQ to anything other than H. that led me to re-calibrate the rim (which would logically have been a place to start, not end, but this didn't occur to me because i thought resetting factory default settings would put everything in a generically safe range).

- - -

WaveDrummer · Posted: Thu Dec 15, 2011 8:06 pm Post subject:

Very Interesting!

I was going to mention the calibration parameters but I had assumed the Factory Reset would've taken care of that. I'm not about to do a reset on mine to verify that the changes aren't stored because I'd then have to spend hours reprogramming all my custom settings. So I'll take your word for it! Wink

(But I will mess around with this when I'm at NAMM and have a few new ones to play with.)

I experimented with the settings you described and experienced the same thing on those two programs. There is definitely unwanted noise when the Lo setting is below 03.

But I also just realized something else along the way, and I think I'll have to include this info in the Tips & Tricks thread:
The Owner's Manual doesn't seem to mention what the actual Factory Default settings are for calibrating the sensors!?!? Mad

So here they are! These are the setting that both my Silver and Oriental had from the factory.
I haven't had the need to change these at all, so I would recommend using these parameters. If these numbers are too far off, you really start to lose a lot of the dynamic response of the Wavedrum.

Global Mode Factory Settings

Head Calibration [H.ca]
Lo=007 SEn=020

Rim Calibration [r.ca]
Lo=007 SEn=020

Pressure Sensor Calibration
VaL=000 P.Lo=005 P.Hi=100

Press the WRITE button twice to save these settings!

As far as the "Pre EQ" settings (an odd term for that, I've always thought), I pretty much always use the H-H parameter on all my programs. It gives me the most dynamic range. Even if I have to be a bit careful when using sticks or mallets on the rims (but only for some programs), I'd still much rather be in control of the dynamics and adjust my playing accordingly.

Some great info today! Good discovery!

random · Joined: 16 Dec 2010 Posts: 13

> I was going to mention the calibration parameters but I had assumed the Factory Reset would've taken care of that. I'm not about to do a reset on mine to verify that the changes aren't stored because I'd then have to spend hours reprogramming all my custom settings. So I'll take your word for it!

yes, strange considering - as you pointed out - the manual does not list the factory defaults.

> I experimented with the settings you described and experienced the same thing on those two programs. There is definitely unwanted noise when the Lo setting is below 03.

thanks for confirming - was glad i figured that one out!

> Some great info today! Good discovery!

yes! hopefully it will help out some other people down the road... thanks again for all your help!

Charlie · Posted: Fri Dec 16, 2011 8:18 am Post subject:

Hey! Thank you for this excellent calibration description - useful stuff you've posted here! Cool

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random · Joined: 16 Dec 2010 Posts: 13

now we just need to figure out if the firmware update did anything beyond the volume x2 option.... Smile

random · Joined: 16 Dec 2010 Posts: 13

hi, i just got done speaking with a person at korg japan who is a friend of a friend, and was able to find out more about the firmware update. he confirmed:

- it only affected volume, giving x1 and x2 output level options.

- having the update done required a factory reset, so all user-edited programs would be lost and reset to factory settings.

- the update program is officially over/no longer supported (at least in japan).

Charlie · Posted: Mon Dec 19, 2011 7:03 am Post subject:

So, everyone who has the option to switch between the 2 output-modes has received the latest firmware, correct?
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WaveDrummer · Posted: Mon Dec 19, 2011 12:12 pm Post subject:

Panason · Junior Member Joined: 13 Mar 2011 Posts: 80

I think Korg had to compromise a little to deal with the WD's insane dynamic headroom... Its a studio instrument, meant to be plugged into mixers, and probably needs a compressor / limiter to get the most out of.

Charlie · Posted: Sat Dec 24, 2011 2:29 pm Post subject:

Hm, makes sense ... Confused

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