Don't rely on Korg ? Read all the posts before you decide

[Old Piano Player]

People who are prepared to invest in a Kronos are likely to be working musicians who rely upon their kit to earn a living, or serious musicians with gig or studio commitments

My Kronos failed after just 7 months and I’m being quoted 3 weeks to get my keyboard back from repair (and that’s in the priority queue!)

I don’t know if the support that Korg provide is any better or worse than Nord or Roland etc. but I’d think twice about buying another Korg because of this.

So, if anyone in Korg is listening, spare a thought for people who rely upon your products and improve your after sales support please

[pete.m]

Commiserations... that's a very frustrating situation to be in. I hope it doesn't put you off the Kronos - or Korg. I have to say that all the Korg stuff I have used down the years has been rock-solid, and the minor dealings I have had with the support side of things has always been good. So I'm hoping that this will just be a one-off piece of bad luck. In my experience, if you want to encounter real difficulties with service, try Akai! Anyway, hope it will be fixed soon.

[michelkeijzers]

I also didn't have many problems with Korg (I have 5, only one is not working at the moment, but that's a low end synth).

Anyway, it's always possible something is breaking. Luckily I'm not depending on the synth as way of living, but it wouldn't good if my Kronos breaks before a gig. I think it can happen with any synth manufacturer and I doubt those have a better solution.

However, maybe if you bought it at a good shop, you can get a lend model for a few weeks, or maybe with a small rent.

[GregC]

People who are prepared to invest in a Kronos are likely to be working musicians who rely upon their kit to earn a living, or serious musicians with gig or studio commitments

My Kronos failed after just 7 months and I’m being quoted 3 weeks to get my keyboard back from repair (and that’s in the priority queue!)

I don’t know if the support that Korg provide is any better or worse than Nord or Roland etc. but I’d think twice about buying another Korg because of this.

So, if anyone in Korg is listening, spare a thought for people who rely upon your products and improve your after sales support please

I have been saying this for +6 yrs. If you rely completely on your Kronos, you should have 2 of them.

Yes, i know, I know, impractical, thats crazy, etc, etc, etc, etc. But if your livelihood depends on a board you must have a backup. If not a 2nd keyboard, a setup you can live with, temporarily.

Being a realist and having some experience, 3 weeks in the shop is not a surprise. It might be 5 weeks. Of course, lengthy service time is a disappointment. Every owner would have that emotion.

I would hope that new Kronos owners and potential are aware that service is not a 24/7 thing. We might have that for automobiles but that is not an accurate benchmark, IMO

[Joe Gerardi]

Yeahbut...

On the other hand, I have owned 8 or 9 Korgs over the years, (including 3 right now) and only ever had one in the shop, and that's because I bought it (a Trident Mk. II) as a project. Next worse thing I ever had was busted keys on the M1, and I learned real quick how to replace them them.

So, for every owner that complains that the workmanship is shoddy, there's probably 7 or 8 hundred that haven't had a single problem. Remember: it's the squeaky wheel that gets the grease.

..Joe

[enigmahack]

Yeahbut...

On the other hand, I have owned 8 or 9 Korgs over the years, (including 3 right now) and only ever had one in the shop, and that's because I bought it (a Trident Mk. II) as a project. Next worse thing I ever had was busted keys on the M1, and I learned real quick how to replace them them.

So, for every owner that complains that the workmanship is shoddy, there's probably 7 or 8 hundred that haven't had a single problem. Remember: it's the squeaky wheel that gets the grease.

..Joe

Exactly. I have two, never had a single issue with either and I drive one of them over 8 hours a day.

[narf]

I've had mine since early 2012, no issues whatsoever. 100% reliable for me. Been gigging with it at least once a week since I got it. When at home, it's on at least 2-3 hours a day, playing and programming it. I work in a shop that sells many Kronoses and its unusual to see them come back with any issues. Our local distributor responds very quickly in case any of them need repair.

[GregC]

Yeahbut...

On the other hand, I have owned 8 or 9 Korgs over the years, (including 3 right now) and only ever had one in the shop, and that's because I bought it (a Trident Mk. II) as a project. Next worse thing I ever had was busted keys on the M1, and I learned real quick how to replace them them.

So, for every owner that complains that the workmanship is shoddy, there's probably 7 or 8 hundred that haven't had a single problem. Remember: it's the squeaky wheel that gets the grease.

..Joe

yep, I also see the bigger picture. Having worked for an electronics manufacturer helped.

While the odds are strongly in your favor, to only have 1 keyboard, there is still the possibility plus folks that gig may have rough situations vs the home studio person.

I still maintain if your livelihood and/or rep relies on the Kronos, you should not bet on the 'odds'. I think its better to plan. Similar to having a form of insurance.

[GregC]

I'.. Our local distributor responds very quickly in case any of them need repair.

this is also a strong point- how local service reacts/responds to a Kronos repair.

Korg does not exactly control the process. Its up to the service co to carry parts, to have the staff, to have expertise on the Kronos.

My closest service co does 1000 different things. Thus they are slow , I never get a human when I called, and it takes them 3 days to return the most basic of phone calls.

So I would go to the 2nd or 3rd closes service co that is not as over committed.

You don't have to wait to have a Kronos problem to assess service response, at least here in California where there are a few options

[afr]

very sorry for you, but talking about my experience never had a single problem in 6 yrs

People who are prepared to invest in a Kronos are likely to be working musicians who rely upon their kit to earn a living, or serious musicians with gig or studio commitments

My Kronos failed after just 7 months and I’m being quoted 3 weeks to get my keyboard back from repair (and that’s in the priority queue!)

I don’t know if the support that Korg provide is any better or worse than Nord or Roland etc. but I’d think twice about buying another Korg because of this.

So, if anyone in Korg is listening, spare a thought for people who rely upon your products and improve your after sales support please

[tomto66]

... and also ... you do you really think Yamaha, Roland, Nord have a significantly lower number of issues, or a significantly higher reaction time for repairs??? Sorry to hear about your issues, but like others said, s**t happens. Having a plan B is a must if you rely on your gear for a living. Irrespective of the make.

Personally I have never had a failure - not with Korg - and only once - at a gig - with an 11 year old Roland XV-88. I had it repaired and then sold it as fast as I could.

[pranaearth]

Be happy with 3 weeks.
My original Kronos has the dreaded keyboard problem, and I took it to a certified repair person.
It was there for 2 ½ months because Korg didn't have the replacement part(or so I was told by the repair person)
I called Korg and they had a brand new unit shipped to me at my door in 3 days.
I do hope you have the speediest of repairs though, I know what it's like to be without!

[GregC]

Be happy with 3 weeks.
My original Kronos has the dreaded keyboard problem, and I took it to a certified repair person.
It was there for 2 ½ months because Korg didn't have the replacement part(or so I was told by the repair person)
I called Korg and they had a brand new unit shipped to me at my door in 3 days.
I do hope you have the speediest of repairs though, I know what it's like to be without!

I think adding more context to your experience might be useful

This was 6 yrs ago, correct ?

Here is my recollection- from 6 yrs ago.

Korg had a bad batch of keybeds, or the actual keyboard assembly. I am estimating that about 100 -300 defective
keyboard parts got into the retail channel and several new Kronos owners had the bad luck of getting the defective keyboard assembly.

Thus the service outlets were soon swamped with complaints. They weren't prepared for this and how could they be prepared ? I think Korg stepped on the gas pedal and got more parts and keyboard assemblies into the service centers. Given the nature of the problem, I can see why it would take 2.5 months. It was bad luck all around. It was very confusing what the problem was as owners had various interpretations of what was going on.

But it got resolved. And this was 6 years ago. Not last month.

[Bachus]

People who are prepared to invest in a Kronos are likely to be working musicians who rely upon their kit to earn a living, or serious musicians with gig or studio commitments

My Kronos failed after just 7 months and I’m being quoted 3 weeks to get my keyboard back from repair (and that’s in the priority queue!)

I don’t know if the support that Korg provide is any better or worse than Nord or Roland etc. but I’d think twice about buying another Korg because of this.

So, if anyone in Korg is listening, spare a thought for people who rely upon your products and improve your after sales support please

Buy at a local dealer, if support is a major thing to you, a good local dealer should provide you with a backup instrument while yours is in repair..

And most of the time they are only a tiny bit more expensive then internet retailers..

If you relie on your instrument, this is the only way...

[voip]

No issues here across several bits of Korg kit, apart from a pinged spring on an M1 several years ago, but can appreciate the inconvenience of non-working equipment.

.