Kronos nylon

[Mystic38]

Its simply because the majority of consumers have not done major edits or created patches from scratch and would not know a synth architecture if one fell on their head...

..and that includes some oft verbose folks in this forum who have recently invested well over $10k into gear...

as the Yorkshire people would say "there's nowt stranger than folk"

It amazes me that people complain about presets (not just the Kronos, but practically every synth thats come and gone since the Prophet 5).

[aron]

Its simply because the majority of consumers have not done major edits or created patches from scratch and would not know a synth architecture if one fell on their head...

Hehe multiple threads same result!

[PinkFloydDudi]

It amazes me that people complain about presets (not just the Kronos, but practically every synth thats come and gone since the Prophet 5).

The Kronos BEGS to be programmed, edited and generally messed around with. The multi samples for the HD-1 are a perfectly good starting point to create a decent guitar, whether it be nylon, steel or whatever.

But I've found that STR-1 is a better bet for guitars of all sorts, as it can be very articulate... Get to know how to program it, you'll be happy you did.

Such a true statement IMO.

Just looking at the CX3 engine...some hardcore B3 folks were complaining about it, but then slowly as people started releasing more programs that had been tweaked, the ragging on it died off quickly.

[NuSkoolTone]

It amazes me that people complain about presets (not just the Kronos, but practically every synth thats come and gone since the Prophet 5).

The Kronos BEGS to be programmed, edited and generally messed around with. The multi samples for the HD-1 are a perfectly good starting point to create a decent guitar, whether it be nylon, steel or whatever.

But I've found that STR-1 is a better bet for guitars of all sorts, as it can be very articulate... Get to know how to program it, you'll be happy you did.

Doesn't amaze ME one bit! In fact after auditioning the Kronos for about 4 hours total, I'll put my hand up and complain about the presets.

The vast majority sound like they were done by the SAME guy. Even synth sounds across different engines sound similar. Don't get me wrong, there IS variety but the sound is SO Korg ALL THE TIME it's disappointing when it's obvious it can do so much more. It didn't sound to me like the strengths of each engine were emphasized hardly at all. Perhaps the $150 headphones I auditioned with don't have enough resolution, but I heard a lot of the SAME type of sounds OVER AND OVER.

So why does that kind of suck? Why don't I just "Man up" and program it myself? One word: TIME! I'm not 17 anymore. I have a day job, I have kids, I have a LIFE. If there were more variety in the types of sounds (Especially emulating some well known sounds) all I'd have to do is TWEAK here and there and I'd be ready for the gig. Instead I see myself having to spend a whole WEEKEND programming to get the sounds I need for the new songs we're doing that month. This is where the Motif RULES. It's like all pop radio from the past 40 years to today used a Motif! I wish other keyboard companies would take notice to the variety of the sounds they have and go in that direction. I mean at least a LITTLE! Perhaps I could make a little nut programming some sounds, but of course that would make me EVIL for not wanting to give away hundreds of hours of my time for free and it's only a matter of time before they become "Public Domain".

[aron]

>. It's like all pop radio from the past 40 years to today used a Motif! I wish other keyboard companies would take notice to the variety of the sounds they have and go in that direction.

You didn't listen to the Kronos enough. There are tons of sounds and they sound more different than your Motif. The electric pianos sound like real ones. The FM pianos sound more real than the Motif's FM pianos. There are tons of sounds in there and they do not all sound alike. Not any more than the Motif sounds like (and sometimes worse) than the early CS6X and S80.

I have used Yamaha keyboards all of my life and probably will continue to do so, but don't convince me that the sounds in the Motif are incredibly superior and vastly different from each other. They share very similar characteristics.

[NuSkoolTone]

>. It's like all pop radio from the past 40 years to today used a Motif! I wish other keyboard companies would take notice to the variety of the sounds they have and go in that direction.

You didn't listen to the Kronos enough. There are tons of sounds and they sound more different than your Motif. The electric pianos sound like real ones. The FM pianos sound more real than the Motif's FM pianos. There are tons of sounds in there and they do not all sound alike. Not any more than the Motif sounds like (and sometimes worse) than the early CS6X and S80.

I have used Yamaha keyboards all of my life and probably will continue to do so, but don't convince me that the sounds in the Motif are incredibly superior and vastly different from each other. They share very similar characteristics.

Never did I say "Superior" just more clear differences. There's no argument the pianos are "Better" in the Kronos. I wasn't saying every patch sounded exactly alike either, what I was saying is the RANGE of variety didn't go very far. The majority of the sounds were in the same vein to my ears. You're entitled to your opinion of course, but here's where I'm coming from: I played the Kronos for over 4 hours just playing sounds making sure to go through ALL the preset programs, I loaded the extra EXis that don't come in the preload, I went through EVERY bank, EVERY sound. Seriously how much more time do I need?

The majority of stuff sounded like something I'd use in a soundtrack. That's not to say much of it wasn't plain awesome, but it was VERY similar. I noticed especially a lot of repetition in the AL-1, Mod-7 and PolySix while the MS-20 seemed to be it's own thing. Though I must say I was expecting the filters between those engines to have larger differences. They're powerful, but all sound like they're coming from the same machine. I've read the Mod-7 filters are the same as the AL-1 and I could hear that. Moving on I heard more variation in the HD-1 sounds, though given the chance I'd rather use the modeled stuff.

What I'm getting at is I think the Kronos is capable of taking on more "Personalities" if you will, and I wish the presets reflected that better. Further, I got the feeling that while it's certainly doable I'm going to have to program LOTS of patches from SCRATCH to get the sounds on the radio for doing covers or even the sounds in my head with only an occasional patch in the ballpark already. It's just a lot of work I'm not looking forward to. It'll be GREAT for when I'm looking to do something "fresh and unique" but the other scenario is my current reality.

[aron]

I think you need more than 4 hours to determine how good this machine is.

It is an amazing machine and if all you judge by are presets which I think are every bit is good as the motif, then you are missing out on how powerful this machine is.

[arne v]

I think you need more than 4 hours to determine how good this machine is.

Thats true, i loose track of time everytime i turn this beast on
Wife is not happy though....

Perhaps the $150 headphones I auditioned with don't have enough resolution, but I heard a lot of the SAME type of sounds OVER AND OVER.

I had the same experience after a day of Kronos and i think i know why. The Kronos was so overwhelming that my brain couldt cope with it all. I gave it a day rest and started listening, i mean reeeally listening to a few sounds and stuck with those all day and found all the nuances, the resonating frequencies, the karma, XY stick and found the different chords that worked with the different sounds. Now i can play a preset/combi for hours just by tweaking and having fun. Like the piano sound. Try hitting just 1 note with the damper pedal ..WOW. The sound is not static at all, it vibrates, fluctuates and only then you can appriciate the true power, not of the dark side, but of Kronos

[EXer]

It is an amazing machine and if all you judge by are presets which I think are every bit is good as the motif, then you are missing out on how powerful this machine is.

That's not the point. Nobody denies this machine has a huge sonic potential.

What has been said is that:
¤ when you want to create a sound you have in your head it takes more time to program it from scratch than to start from an existing preset with similar characteristics and to edit it until you get the result you want
¤ according to some people, the Motif presets offer more diversity to be used as a basis for their own sound creation.

[PinkFloydDudi]

It is an amazing machine and if all you judge by are presets which I think are every bit is good as the motif, then you are missing out on how powerful this machine is.

That's not the point. Nobody denies this machine has a huge sonic potential.

What has been said is that:
¤ when you want to create a sound you have in your head it takes more time to program it from scratch than to start from an existing preset with similar characteristics and to edit it until you get the result you want
¤ according to some people, the Motif presets offer more diversity to be used as a basis for their own sound creation.

lol, all I read was "I want to play Final Countdown and can't find the exact patch that matches it"!!!!!

I am actually very glad the Kronos is not filled with pop-song intro patches and such. There are tons of libraries out there if you want those sounds.
I like the different sounds that immitate actual instruments...not patches that people created on those instruments.

Going back to the Final Countdown thing - I'd much rather the Kronos mimic the Polysix or JX8P...than the specific patch for Final Countdown.

[JPROBERTLA]

While I only had about an hour to audition it, I thought the Kronos factory sounds were very good and, like most Korg's, are going to be good place to start from for most cover song program emulations. Over the past 20 years, I have programmed over 200 sequences of "pop" music from the 1960's on. I never had a problem creating a required program with the O1W/FD, Trinity or Triton using some factory program as a starting point. After even a short time with the Kronos, I don't suspect I will have any problems doing the same. Excluding pure synth sounds, which do usually require in depth programming, everything else is there.

[PinkFloydDudi]

I think a ton depends on what people use as a baseline when comparing sounds.

If you are looking at brass...do you play a brass patch from your Motif and then go to the kronos and compare which you think is better?

Same with things like the piano.

What you should be doing is going and listening to an actual grand piano (even if just finding a recording on the internet) - and compare both sounds to that.

Or give a listen to an actual brass ensamble, and then compare.

[NuSkoolTone]

It is an amazing machine and if all you judge by are presets which I think are every bit is good as the motif, then you are missing out on how powerful this machine is.

That's not the point. Nobody denies this machine has a huge sonic potential.

What has been said is that:
¤ when you want to create a sound you have in your head it takes more time to program it from scratch than to start from an existing preset with similar characteristics and to edit it until you get the result you want
¤ according to some people, the Motif presets offer more diversity to be used as a basis for their own sound creation.

Finally SOMEONE gets it! Thank you for not covering your ears and saying "Unless you're going to lather praise on the Kronos I don't want to hear it." My ears are fine and my brain can "Handle" Kronos's awesomeness of modulating madness. It wasn't til I dug in after the first hour that I started to realize a running "theme" to the presets.

LOL Yeah the Final Countdown, don't forget Jump either! What's funny is everytime (Which isn't often) I goof on those people get all excited! They're disappointed when I don't actually play the song, and I live in NY an hour north of NYC. So it's not because they're rednecks.

Classic analog synths are EASY any fool can program that s**t. Those aren't the kind of sounds I'd like a better starting point it's the modern pop radio of the last 20 years in particular that can be a challenge.

As far as comparing sounds to the "Real thing" I PROMISE you each one is going to be pretty damn far from a pop motown or new orleans horn section.

Please let me know where are these "Tons of libraries" for the Kronos that have pop-song patches. I'd love to grab them to save me some time!

[Bruce Lychee]

LOL Yeah the Final Countdown, don't forget Jump either! What's funny is everytime (Which isn't often) I goof on those people get all excited! They're disappointed when I don't actually play the song, and I live in NY an hour north of NYC. So it's not because they're rednecks.

I don't have any love for those two songs, but having grown up in the tri-state area, I can tell you that those aren't redneck songs. They were just typical radio fare in the big hair 80s. I remember when Jump came out they would play it back to back to back on some stations. Fortunately I was already listening to Zeppelin, Hendrix, Floyd and Steely Dan so I was immune to those overwhelming synth intros.

[SanderXpander]

I'll admit to being somewhat of an outcast at my conservatory but I actually love those songs. Have a JX10 AND played Final Countdown with it during a gig. That thing just sounds so amazingly powerful... Just had to add reverb.