Korg Forums

[keeverw]

So my beautiful, wonderful amazing wife just recently said I could buy myself a workstation. I had been using MainStage live up until then, but I had been having lots of glitches, and lock-ups on stage, and I just go frustrated and decided to just use a workstation instead.

I have always loved the M3. I like the way it looks, the way it sounds, the way it is modular, etc. And I could afford a used one, last December, so that's what I got.

And after using it live about 5 or 6 times now, since December-2015, I am not disappointed in the sound at all. I think it sounds amazing!

But there are two features missing, that the Kronos has, and for how I play keyboard, these would be extremely useful.

Smooth transitions between patch changes, and setlists.

This is something I took for granted when I used MainStage.


But from her perspective, she doesn't know what a game-changer these features are, and how much of a difference there is between the M3 and Kronos in this regard. And I don't think she cares. lol
All she knows is I told her that the M3 would be the answer to my prayers, and then 2 months later, I want to exchange it for a more expensive board.


Here are my questions

A. Is there any way to get these features on the M3?
What about adding an additional keyboard to my setup?

B. If I cannot, what are my chances of talking the wifey into allowing me to shell out another $1000 to put with the hopefully $1000 I could get for my M3 on the used market?



FYI, I am aware of the KARMA hack allowing the use of scenes for smooth patch changes within a combi. I am currently using this, and it is still very limited. You get four 4-part combis this way that can be smoothly swapped out. But they all have to share the same FX, which is very limiting.

I am seriously considering finding a cheap keyboard that has nice pad sounds (any suggestions), and using that to sustain while I change patches on the M3.


Thoughts? Concerns? Anyone in the same boat?

I really would rather the M3 got updated with these two features, than buy a Kronos. Because I really think the M3 is a better looking board, I really like the way it sounds. But I need smooth transitions and a setlist which can contain combis and programs together in the same list.

The setlist, even that part I could live without.

But I need those smooth transitions.


edit: the other day I tried putting my TC Electronics Ditto Looper pedal on the output of my M3 so I could just loop a sustained sound while I changed patches, and then kill the loop when I start playing the new patch.
You could hear the loop points, so that didn't work. lol
_________________
"For I consider that the sufferings of this present time are not even worth comparing to the glory that will be revealed to us." Rom 8:18

[keeverw]

Follow up question.

If I did decide to buy a small (25 key) board, just for pad sounds, which would you go with?

I am thinking either the Micro-X or the Triton Taktile 25.

But I don't know much about the Micro-Korg, or any others.


I want the lush analog pad sounds Korg is known for. And that is basically all I would use this little keyboard for.

Any suggestions?
_________________
"For I consider that the sufferings of this present time are not even worth comparing to the glory that will be revealed to us." Rom 8:18

[Bald Eagle]

The only way to get Smooth Sound Transition with the M3 is to buy 2 of them.

Go for the Kronos. You wont regret it.

[EJ2]

[keeverw]

What I tried yesterday worked pretty well.
I used Reason running on my MacBookPro just for pad sounds. I used to use Reason exclusively for playing live, so I had some pretty good sounds already programmed.

And then I used my M3 for everything else. Piano, B3, Rhodes, Strings, etc.

And it actually worked pretty well.
The only thing is I don't want to use my laptop on stage anymore, so I will try this a few more times, and if I think it is gonna be the answer, I will buy myself some sort of sound module for just pads.

I am leaning heavily towards the Korg Micro-X, because it has the Triton sound engine, and I like Triton pads. Also it's small and portable.
I can just run midi out from the M3 into the Micro-X, and control both with one keyboard.

The only thing I have a question about now, is it possible in the M3 to decide which parameters are getting sent via midi?
I would like to use the joystick on the Micro-X for it's own sounds, and the joystick on the M3 for it's sounds.

Or if that's not possible, is there a way to filter what's coming in on the Micro-X?

I had this issue in Reason yesterday. The ModWheel in Reason sweeped the filter cutoff for the Thor and Malstrom I'm using for my pad sound.
But when I had a B3 pulled up, and pushed the joystick up to change speeds on the rotary FX, it also jacked up my pad sound.

So in Reason I just disabled the ModWheel on my combinator.
But that isn't a great solution, because then I can't sweep the cutoff when I want to anymore.


The more I think about using a Kronos, the more I'm not sure I would want it, even though it's capable of smooth transitions.

If I used smooth transitions to go between a piano patch, and a piano/pad patch, then again to go to a pad/B3 patch for the chorus of a song, then back to the pad patch for the verse, etc. I would have to make a massive setlist every week, and then during the performance I would constantly be swapping patches. I'm not sure that's the workflow I want to go for.

That is pretty much what I did with MainStage, and it's not the best workflow.
And another method is just put all the sounds I am gonna use for a set in a combi, and then fade them in and out as needed. But that comes back to the same problem my M3 has, you only get one set of FX for a combi, each timbre can't have it's own unique FX and settings. So a program might sound amazing on it's own, but in a Combi, not so much.

I would rather have two keyboards, one for pads, and filler sounds, and another for piano and lead sounds. And I'd rather not play one with my left hand and the other with my right, so I would probably just use midi to control both with one keyboard, especially if I end up with a 25-key for my pad keyboard.

So back to my question,
Any way to be able to send notes and velocities from the M3 to the Micro-X, and nothing else? Or to send everything, and filter it in the Micro-X?


Thanks!



edit: now that I think about it, I believe the Micro-X has 4 real-time control knobs, and one of them is cutoff by default.
So I might've just answered my own question. I could just use that knob instead of the modwheel to sweep frequencies, and just disable the modwheel in whatever pad patch I am using.

Thoughts?
Alternatives?
_________________
"For I consider that the sufferings of this present time are not even worth comparing to the glory that will be revealed to us." Rom 8:18

[Bald Eagle]

In combi mode you can control what midi events are transmitted and received on the MIDI Filter pages.

[keeverw]

[Derek Cook]

Buy the wife a token present that she will love, but leaves you cash rich. Buy yourself a Kronos.

Works every time for me

Seriously, when you look at what the good lady spends on clothes and handbags over several years, it equates to a decent workstation for me.
_________________
Derek Cook - Java Developer



Follow kronos.factory development and submit ideas over at the kronos.factory Trello Board

My Echoes Music Website
My Carreg Ddu Music Website

[Derek Cook]

Buy the wife a token present that she will love, but which eaves you cash rich. Buy yourself a Kronos.

Works every time for me

Seriously, when you look at what the good lady spends on clothes and handbags over several years, it equates to a decent workstation for me.
_________________
Derek Cook - Java Developer



Follow kronos.factory development and submit ideas over at the kronos.factory Trello Board

My Echoes Music Website
My Carreg Ddu Music Website

[keeverw]

[Derek Cook]

[keeverw]

[EXer]

Beware. They read the forums.

[Derek Cook]

[iowagold]