Questions before buying a Kronos

[Ricky]

I made my decision. I'll buy a Kronos 88.

I'm a little confused about the versions.
Kronos, Kronos X, Kronos II, Kronos 2015
That's what I've seen until now.
Are there an Kronos 2018?
Which is the newest and most updated?
My music store is announcing a 2015-model.
Are there anything I should be aware of in order to get the latest model? A certain range of serial numbers or something like that?
I live in Denmark if that matters.


Are all of the synth engines included?
I come from an Oasys, and during the first couple of years it was necessary to BUY expansions/engines. Later on they became free!


Can it be upgraded with more RAM, or is it maxed out when I buy it?


Are there any upgrades/expansions/modules that I need (besides sound libraries)?


Are the keys (88 model) the exact same as the Oasys (which I like a lot)?


Can I load all of my Oasys sounds (progs, combis and global settings) into the Kronos and be ready to gig immediately? Or are there any tweaking to do?
Of course I will optimize them with the new sounds from Kronos but that's not first priority.


Thankx

Ricky

[GregC]

I made my decision. I'll buy a Kronos 88.

I'm a little confused about the versions.
Kronos, Kronos X, Kronos II, Kronos 2015
That's what I've seen until now.
Are there an Kronos 2018?
Which is the newest and most updated?
My music store is announcing a 2015-model.
Are there anything I should be aware of in order to get the latest model? A certain range of serial numbers or something like that?
I live in Denmark if that matters.


Are all of the synth engines included?
I come from an Oasys, and during the first couple of years it was necessary to BUY expansions/engines. Later on they became free!


Can it be upgraded with more RAM, or is it maxed out when I buy it?


Are there any upgrades/expansions/modules that I need (besides sound libraries)?


Are the keys (88 model) the exact same as the Oasys (which I like a lot)?


Can I load all of my Oasys sounds (progs, combis and global settings) into the Kronos and be ready to gig immediately? Or are there any tweaking to do?
Of course I will optimize them with the new sounds from Kronos but that's not first priority.


Thankx

Ricky

as far as ' factory new', the Kronos 2 from 2015 is the latest

Suggest you read the K2 spec at the Korg web site

That should explain the included factory Programs and any additional included sample libs

Take that as a good start and anything more is up to you

[danmusician]

The RAM is maxed out. The various versions have updated motherboards, but they make NO DIFFERENCE in performance. The OS does not take advantage of any extra speed or power a motherboard might have. I believe Korg did this intentionally to keep the Kronos experience uniform across all models.

All the synth engines are included. There are sound libraries that you can purchase if you wish. See korg.com for more info.

The keybed on the Kronos 88 is the RH3. I don't know what was in the Oasys.

I don't know the answer to importing your sounds from the Oasys since I never owned one. Searching the forum here should get you some answers.

[DeltaJockey]

As Greg mentioned, 2015 is the last major release, however there was the lightweight Kronos LS 88 added last year which offers the synth action 88 key, (and before anyone corrects me, I know they call it semi weighted , and some cosmetic changes. Also I notice the black keys either side of the D key are wider apart than standard, when playing one. I have no explanation as to why they would do this, unless someone else knows.

The Kronos 2015 is the Kronos2, which on the website is now just called the "Kronos" On mine it's labeled as "Kronos2-73" on the back - which I bought last year. Incidentally when you ask about serial number batches, I noted a slight update in certain components on my "2017" Kronos2 vs the 2015-16 batches, and earlier. The ribbon controller has traditionally had a frosted texture which eventually shows shiny spots of wear, but my 2017 model has a much smoother surface, for the better in my opinion.

Also, there seems to have been a small smattering of reports with the past year's batches occasionally failing initial bootup and requiring a restart, even from new, mine included. This seems to be only occasional and no obvious issues like loose RAM sockets. I have a 2015 Kronos2-88 also, and never seen this happen on it.
Given the power sensitivity nature of the Kronos, and the fact that this occurance can happen due to other external reasons on any Kronos, I wouldn't take that into account with the decision.

Even though the RAM is maxed out, you can increase disk size or add a second disk, so at least the onboard "loadable" libraries have plenty of room for your collection. You just can't load them all at the same time.

[Liviou2004]

What we could add to all that is that since 2015, so Kronos 2, the realization is far more solid than Kronos 1 and Kronos X.
The heat cooling is better, thanks to a ventilation grid.
The Kronos 2 series is a bit heavier (from 1kg to 2kg).

[In-the-CHORD]

The original Kronos had an issue with some keyboards where the keys on the keypad did not respond on the earlier model. This issue was replaceable under warranty, but if you buy a used one then you would be out of luck as far as the warranty goes. So for that reason if you're looking at The original Kronos I would recommend checking the keys for response. This includes softer and harder response to make sure that this sounds are responding appropriately.

I purchased the original Krono's and I am very happy with it. I have upgraded both the ram and the hard drive. I did this myself. This upgrade is not an easy task if your not technical. If you buy this model I would recommend having it upgraded either by yourself or someone else. This will enable you to expand with the Korg sound modules in the future, no hinderances. Purchasing the Kronos expansion makes it equivalent to the Kronos 2. What a lot of people don't know is you will not be able to have the keyboard start up with all of this sound expansions if you purchase those without having the extra RAM and hard drive on the origional Kronos. With the upgrade no problem. If you get the original Kronos model I would highly recommend getting the expansion that expands the keyboard to the equivalent of a Kronos 2. I like the German grand preferable to the Berlin grande, but it's nice to have both. But another value add of that at Upgrade is the extra copies and sounded banks that you get with it. With the upgrade I have a equivalent of a Kronos 2 at a much better price.

[Liviou2004]

...Purchasing the Kronos expansion makes it equivalent to the Kronos 2...

Sorry but I must insist : on one side you're right but on another one you're wrong.
Right : because the software power become the same on both. The possibilities of the workstation in themselves are abolutely the same.

Wrong : Korg had to change the original case (Kronos 1 and X) because of its plastic lack of rigidity and, also, some heat cooler issue because of air flow inside. Some Korg 1 anx X often freezed for that reason.

These two issues has been solved in the Kronos 2.
So the only advice I would give to our friend, is to buy preferably a Kronos 2.

[Ricky]

What a lot of people don't know is you will not be able to have the keyboard start up with all of this sound expansions if you purchase those without having the extra RAM and hard drive on the origional Kronos.

I will order a brand new Kronos 2-88 today.

Oasys had the same "problem". Without additional ram, it couldn't load the expanded soundsets.

You mention the hard drive as well. Does it need an extra hard drive to load the extra Exs?

What is the purpose of 2 hard drives?
Better performance when streaming samples direct from disc, so that it streams from one disc and operates the OS from another?

Or is it just to get extra storing capacity?

Is the extra hard drive considered by Korg as a user installable part, or will I void the warranty by doing it myself?


Ricky

[Liviou2004]

What a lot of people don't know is you will not be able to have the keyboard start up with all of this sound expansions if you purchase those without having the extra RAM and hard drive on the origional Kronos.

I will order a brand new Kronos 2-88 today.

Oasys had the same "problem". Without additional ram, it couldn't load the expanded soundsets.

You mention the hard drive as well. Does it need an extra hard drive to load the extra Exs?
No it doesn't. You can load EXs in the original SSD

What is the purpose of 2 hard drives?
Better performance when streaming samples direct from disc, so that it streams from one disc and operates the OS from another?
No better performance. Of course the second hard disk has to be SSD like the first one. When streaming or sampling, you can choose what SSD you record to.

Or is it just to get extra storing capacity?
Yes, extra capacity

Is the extra hard drive considered by Korg as a user installable part, or will I void the warranty by doing it myself?
No, you loose the warranty if you do it yourself


Ricky