Just picked up my Kronos 61!

Thoraldus · Post by **Thoraldus** » Wed May 25, 2011 6:31 pm

jahrome wrote:
MartinHines wrote:
EXer wrote:Maybe not only the data wheel.

They took care to make the Kronos look well built, but what about the hidden components?

At least let's hope they put an industrial grade slider for the 'Value' (data entry) slider. This is gonna be the most used slider.
I have used and played workstations from Korg, Yamaha, Kurzweil, and Roland, and most of their parts are very similar in quality. I am confident the quality of the Kronos will be similar to other previous Korg workstations.
The build quality of the Fantom G (data wheel, sliders, knobs, buttons, etc) has a look and feel that is of higher quality than the Kronos. This is my opinion with having them side by side. This opinion will not changed since the keyboards are already shipping. So fan-boys/non-fanboys alike can keep talking about this useless debate or more focus can be put on what can be accomplished with these workstations.

Your welcome.

FGTH · Post by **FGTH** » Fri May 27, 2011 1:55 pm

ozy wrote:the glorious days of prophet08's knobs are back!

Oh, the smell of deoxit and superglue in the morning...

More: women love guys who can fix things.

So: the Kronos will smell vintage AND will get you laid!

Here's the Adjunctive Reference Guide Manual. I just downloaded it from
Korg Belgium website.

I was LOL so hard that my wife came to see if i was ok!!!! Ok, now I need to go download that guide too. Who knows, it may come in handy...

It was hilarious, thanks Ozy.

McHale · Post by **McHale** » Sat May 28, 2011 12:22 am

Over at HC, someone had a quick review of the Kronos.

http://acapella.harmony-central.com/sho ... st43065955

Enjoy:

They also had a Kronos there.
Sounds fine, didn't quite knock my socks off or anything though. I thought there would be a lot more expression/modulation possibilities programmed in the acoustic instruments using AT/velocity/ribbon/joystick etc...
The screen is ridiculous - the type is in like a 2 point font. It's nearly impossible to tell what is going on - half of the area is taken up by stupid little hi-res pictures of what you're playing (like an electribe!?).
The design/UI overall is pretty bad I think. For instance: sitting down I coudn't read what the knobs are pre-assigned to because they are too tall and close to the type! The board as a whole was awkward to read/navigate around and not very intuitive.

Oh, and the main jog wheel was one of the worst rotaries I've ever used! Hopefully it was just this one.

MartinHines · Post by **MartinHines** » Sat May 28, 2011 1:01 am

McHale wrote:Over at HC, someone had a quick review of the Kronos.

http://acapella.harmony-central.com/sho ... st43065955

Enjoy:

They also had a Kronos there.
Sounds fine, didn't quite knock my socks off or anything though. I thought there would be a lot more expression/modulation possibilities programmed in the acoustic instruments using AT/velocity/ribbon/joystick etc...
The screen is ridiculous - the type is in like a 2 point font. It's nearly impossible to tell what is going on - half of the area is taken up by stupid little hi-res pictures of what you're playing (like an electribe!?).
The design/UI overall is pretty bad I think. For instance: sitting down I coudn't read what the knobs are pre-assigned to because they are too tall and close to the type! The board as a whole was awkward to read/navigate around and not very intuitive.

Oh, and the main jog wheel was one of the worst rotaries I've ever used! Hopefully it was just this one.

Also note his OTHER comment in the same post:

I'm always VERY dissapointed in the big 3's hardware quality though - I couldn't imagine spending a lot of money on something that feels as cheap as their stuff does.

I am definitely not going to trust his opinion.

aron · Post by **aron** » Sat May 28, 2011 1:05 am

Weird that he did mention the rotary knob. Well, hope that the pot underneath the knob is of hi-quality or else we will be screwed. My rotary pot is flaky on my old CS6x and it was painful to change parameters.

Also interesting that it didn't impress him sonically. Ah well, I still want my Polysix, DX, MS-20 and Acoustic Piano in a box anyway!

McHale · Post by **McHale** » Sat May 28, 2011 1:43 am

MartinHines wrote:I am definitely not going to trust his opinion.

BUT, he's not a korg guy and doesn't read any of the threads or forums on the Kronos. For him to point out the very two things that people here are complaining about speaks volumes in my opinion.

-Mc

p.s. he played the Kronos is Toronto. It wasn't for sale there but it was on display...

McHale · Post by **McHale** » Sat May 28, 2011 1:46 am

aron wrote:Also interesting that it didn't impress him sonically. Ah well, I still want my Polysix, DX, MS-20 and Acoustic Piano in a box anyway!

When I first played the OASYS (well after I'd had my M3 for a while), it didn't really wow me either.

And I'm with you. Having a Wavestation, modeled analogs, and FM in one keyboard is enough for me to buy it. Everything else is gravy.

MartinHines · Post by **MartinHines** » Sat May 28, 2011 2:08 am

McHale wrote:
MartinHines wrote:I am definitely not going to trust his opinion.
BUT, he's not a korg guy and doesn't read any of the threads or forums on the Kronos. For him to point out the very two things that people here are complaining about speaks volumes in my opinion.

-Mc

My comment was based on his statement that he thought the quality of ALL workstations from the Big 3 were bad. This is simply not the case.

Regarding the screen, there appears to be no question that Korg has packed alot of information on each screen.

Regarding the jog wheel, I will wait to see if it is any different than the one on the M3 or triton series.

He is certainly entitled to his opinion, but I will trust my own opinion.

McHale · Post by **McHale** » Sat May 28, 2011 2:11 am

MartinHines wrote:My comment was based on his statement that he thought the quality of ALL workstations from the Big 3 were bad. This is simply not the case.

Well, his statement is out of context. We don't know what he's comparing it too. It's in a thread about the Motif X (which IS a cheap, lightweight keyboard).

MartinHines · Post by **MartinHines** » Sat May 28, 2011 2:21 am

McHale wrote:
MartinHines wrote:My comment was based on his statement that he thought the quality of ALL workstations from the Big 3 were bad. This is simply not the case.
Well, his statement is out of context. We don't know what he's comparing it too. It's in a thread about the Motif X (which IS a cheap, lightweight keyboard).

Later in his post he talks about how a Boss effect pedal is built "fantastastically - better than anything Roland has built in 25 years". He also references "some of these poorly built flagships".

I am confident his statements are not taken out of context; he thinks all current Big 3 keyboards have terrible build quality.

Melodialworks Music · Post by **Melodialworks Music** » Sat May 28, 2011 2:25 am

MartinHines wrote: Later in his post he talks about how a Boss effect pedal is built "fantastastically - better than anything Roland has built in 25 years".

That's kinda funny, considering that Boss is made by Roland, and is (I believe) part of their cheaper line.

MartinHines · Post by **MartinHines** » Sat May 28, 2011 2:32 am

Lougheed wrote:
MartinHines wrote: Later in his post he talks about how a Boss effect pedal is built "fantastastically - better than anything Roland has built in 25 years".
That's kinda funny, considering that Boss is made by Roland, and is (I believe) part of their cheaper line.

I assume the poster does not like anything made of plastic. Many guitar effects units have metal shells and buttons, since people are stepping on them. I guess he wishes keyboards were all made of metal.

Bertotti · Post by **Bertotti** » Sat May 28, 2011 2:51 am

I wouldn't call Boss the cheaper line, less expensive maybe! One thing is tru the few boss pedals I have are tanks! I can't imagine what a Kronos 88 would weigh built to that sort of spec though. 100 pounds or better!

jahrome · Post by **jahrome** » Sat May 28, 2011 3:29 am

MartinHines wrote: My comment was based on his statement that he thought the quality of ALL workstations from the Big 3 were bad. This is simply not the case.

Regarding the screen, there appears to be no question that Korg has packed alot of information on each screen.

Regarding the jog wheel, I will wait to see if it is any different than the one on the M3 or triton series.

He is certainly entitled to his opinion, but I will trust my own opinion.

IMHO, you will immediately come to the conclusion that both that the M3 and Triton Studio's jog wheel would have been an better option.....I wager a frozen 40 ounce glass mug filled with Asahii Premium beer.

sparkie · Post by **sparkie** » Sat May 28, 2011 3:35 am

Just what we need!! Another complaint on the User Interface Turnwheel knob and Touchscreen,,

Martin, you will go down with the ship for sure!!

Jahrome, is your knob fixed or is it still loose and coming off when you use it?