Korg Forums

Don Audio Labs · Joined: 07 Sep 2010 Posts: 39 Location: Berlin, Germany

Hi Guys,

i'm about to buy a preowned Korg M3XP-88. The unit is in very good cosmetic condition.

The Offer includes the M3XP itself, the 88-Keyboard and the 256MB Memory Expansion.

Seller offered me to test-drive the unit for a day before making the purchase.

I'm new to the M3 so i'm a little bit worried that i might miss to test some functions or features… the stuff you only notice once you really know your new gear.

I would totally appreciate it if you guys could point out what parts or functions need some extra testing in order to make sure that this unit is in good shape.

Things i came up with myself:

- Every key of the keyboard including Aftertouch
- All Ins and Outs
- USB Connectivity
- Reading & Writing to SD Media
- Loading a library into the memory expansion
- All Buttons and Sliders

Any other things i should check?

Thanks a lot guys!

Bald Eagle · Posted: Mon Apr 29, 2013 1:38 pm Post subject:

Also check out these things ...

The pads - There were reports of pads sticking. Trying them easy and hard and stright down and from edges and sides.

Touch screen response. From center area plus edges and corners. Is it accurate. Do you have to seem to use force or easy to touch. Any problems could be a possible replacement soon.

Touch screen brighness. Turn the contrast all the way down and see how far up you have to go back up in order to read the screen to your preference.

Look closely at the button text. There were problems with it coming off but I think that issue was corrected with th XP version.

Lower and raiase the module to be sure the hinges are working correctly.

Top panels on either side of the module ... Are they loose and do they vibrate and rattle when you play hard. Will it bother you if they do.

Are the side wood panels in good condition. Banged up panels could be a sign of heavy use and abuse.

The joystick - Be sure it is responsive. Find a program that uses it for modulation and make sure it works. I had to replace a joystick once. I won't say they are generally bad since I make heavy use of it but if feels loose and not responsive it could be a sign that a replacement is needed soon. And when a joystick goes it can render the keyboard useless. When mine failed it started sending out random modulations and it became unplayable.

Don Audio Labs · Joined: 07 Sep 2010 Posts: 39 Location: Berlin, Germany

Hello Bald Eagle,

thank you so much for your answer. A lot of stuff covered there! Great!

I assume most of this can be considered wear from direct (ab)use of the instrument.

Is there anything internally that requires testing? Like anything that is not obvious and might slip through?

I once had a Akai Sampler with a broken voice board and i only became aware of that particular issue when i ran into polyphony issues way down the line…

EDIT:

Oh and how is the spare parts situation for this particular instrument? Can anyone speak from experience? Thanks a lot!

Bald Eagle · Posted: Mon Apr 29, 2013 4:23 pm Post subject:

I can't think of anything in particular to look at internally so as long as you go through the different modes and try a few things there's nothing special to look for. I suppose you could try to sample something into the 256mb memory bank to be sure that it's installed correctly and working properly.

When I had a joystick replaced the service tech had trouble getting a replacement. It took 3 weeks. Also there could be an issue getting a touch screen replacement. Korg doesn't have them and Parts Is Parts usually has a long wait. I ordered a spare just so I had one available if I need it.

Synthoid · Posted: Mon Apr 29, 2013 7:56 pm Post subject:

Don Audio Labs · Joined: 07 Sep 2010 Posts: 39 Location: Berlin, Germany

Thanks again for your answers.

I will test the unit later this week.

Don Audio Labs · Joined: 07 Sep 2010 Posts: 39 Location: Berlin, Germany

Hi Bald Eagle!

Just wanted to report back to you real quick.

So i had the gear over here for a day testing out the stuff you told me and YES it had several of the issues you pointed out before.

- Several of the pads seemed to be unresponsive
- Several buttons had no text on it anymore which might be a problem for a newcomer
- Screen was... kinda weird even after calibration.

You probably saved me from buying a lemon! Thanks again!

In the end i just bought a brand-new M3-88 for the price of a Krome 88.

After reading so much about the pros and cons of the various Korg Workstations i came to the conclusion that i value the M3 features like Sampling, Pads, Build Quality & Workflow higher than 3.8GB's of Sample ROM in a M50v2 plastic case...

Seeing how you are quite knowledgeable about the M3 i'll most likely hit you up if i have any questions in the future. If that's ok for you that is.

Thanks again!
_________________
Korg M3XP-88 - Korg Electribe MX-SD - Akai MPC1000

Bald Eagle · Posted: Wed May 08, 2013 5:14 pm Post subject:

404bekawe · Joined: 24 Oct 2012 Posts: 17

Hi, please allow me to chime in. First, it's really good to share experience here.
(Info's not shared are 'useless') Very Happy

Second - I found some interesting test options with screens I've never seen before :
Idea

Perhaps useful to know
----
M3 Test mode:
How to enter the test mode:
====================
-Test mode to confirm that the keybed is not connected when to use as
M3-M=
Turn the power on pressing ENTER + 6
-Full inspection mode
Turn the power on pressing ENTER + 5

-Other test mode:
==============
ENTER + 0 :Initialize BackupArea
ENTER + 2 :Skip the internal check
ENTER + 7 :Check of connectors of M3-73/88’s Sub-OUT
ENTER + 8 :Ext Key Check
ENTER + 9 :Diplay of Version No.
MENU + 1 :Option memory simple check
MENU + 2 : writing check of GUID to Firewireboard
MENU + 3 :On Board + Option memory simple check
MENU + 4 :RADIAS Option Check
MENU + 5 :Test Mode
MENU + 6 :Firewire Option Check
MENU + 7 :Option memory Full Check
MENU + 8 :Load Preload/Demo Data
MENU + 9 :On Board + Option memory Full Check
LOCATE + 0 :USB Storage Mode
LOCATE + 1 :Keybed Update

Operation in the test mode
===================
[ENTER] : Proceed to next check
[△] : Proceed to next item
[∇] : Go back to former item
[ FF ]: Proceed to next step
[ RW ] : Go back to former step

Saludos! Cool

----------------------------------------------
[quote="Don Audio Labs"]Hi Bald Eagle!

Just wanted to report back to you real quick.

So i had the gear over here for a day testing out the stuff you told me and YES it had several of the issues you pointed out before.

- Several of the pads seemed to be unresponsive
- Several buttons had no text on it anymore which might be a problem for a newcomer
- Screen was... kinda weird even after calibration.

You probably saved me from buying a lemon! Thanks again!

In the end i just bought a brand-new M3-88 for the price of a Krome 88.

After reading so much about the pros and cons of the various Korg Workstations i came to the conclusion that i value the M3 features like Sampling, Pads, Build Quality & Workflow higher than 3.8GB's of Sample ROM in a M50v2 plastic case...

Seeing how you are quite knowledgeable about the M3 i'll most likely hit you up if i have any questions in the future. If that's ok for you that is.

Thanks again!