Please for those who own the PA5x your opinions please

[losackmd2]

just about ready to put my money down, in light of V1.2 and some YouTubers videos. I greatly appreciate your time in responding, and any pros or cons are absolutely welcome.

1. Compared to the PA4x, does the PA5x sound better. Im sure some of the same styles are in both so can you decipher better quality of sound in the Pa5x?

2. Is the machine still full of bugs, i.e. freezing, etc? for everyday use, just playing the unit using styles pads matrix variations, all elements and the 2 style player?

3. Does the Microphone record vocals well, including harmonies as it does so nicely on the KORG PA4x. THE GENOS ( i also own ) has an awful MICROPHONE set up. The vocals cut off they are not smooth as in the PA4x

4. Is the PA5x a different animal than the PA4x? Must one learn it as if it were a different arranger altogether?

5.For those who waited a year to buy it and have indeed purchased it are you satisfied with it?

i am not a techie, i am a singer songwriter and i have used the Pa4x for many songs with the styles as is, rarely using the right hand incorporating GarageBand in my DAW. The styles are what matters most to me.

thanks so much for giving a future buyer important user based opinions and based on your responses i will put my money down or not.

my deepest gratitude
Glenn Losack

[JagiChan]

I graduated from PA900 to PA5X 88, so I definitely cannot speak about PA4X.

However, my experience has been out of the world with the PA5X. The sounds and styles are so much more real. The PA900 had a resistive touch screen, so had to dig into the screen to select any menu item. The RAM was so much limited and with those stock Indian sounds and styles, there was hardly any RAM left.

The PA5X, on the other hand, is an awesome instrument, with a real capacitive touch screen (similar to a smartphone), the user RAM is 4GB, no limit on the number of songs or styles that can be saved thanks to the 1TB SD card slot, the styles are amazing, the UI/UX is intuitive, the color driven UI coupled with the full-color keyboard lighting is a joy for the eyes and makes it easy to identify what is going on with the keyboard, the strip display is amazing and one of its kind (I guess), and the matrix is amazing, etc., etc.,

Of course, the early version of OS 1.0 was buggy but with the update to 1.2.0; things have gotten very nice. The arranger and the functions work as expected. As you have observed on this forum "power users" still need some things to be fixed in the software (e.g., KAOSS function, midi to style bot, etc.,)

As time goes by software will mature, features will be introduced and the bugs will be ironed out (oh well that is how software development happens).

Overall, it is was worth upgrade from the PA900 for me.

[D575]

Q.1> Absolutely yes, PA5X sounds better compared to PA4X.

Q.2> Yes, there are still bugs, one example http://www.korgforums.com/forum/phpBB2/ ... p?t=129368
Also, the New dual players' synchronization is very good indeed, with some careful editing (i.e. you dont want both base lines running at the same time) but, still requires some further development, for example...
"I believe there is a Strong Need to improve access to Player1 and Player2 once locked and synchronised together independently of the X-FADER Slider when both Players have started each style, so you can have real-time access and complete control of all the functions from the Main Screen or the Control Panel of Player1(Yellow) and Player2 (Blue) with out disturbing the X-FADER Slider...

At the present time you have limited options/access to both Players (1 and 2) unless you choose to disturb the X-FADER which is not practical in many instances once set, and this can be very limiting when needing to access each player independently after synchronisation...

Possible Suggestion>
Perhaps a double tap of the Style button in each Player would then switch to the Player of choice indicated by the change in colour of the Player chosen (Yellow or Blue)"

Q.3> N/A to me (your really don't want to hear me sing)

Q.4> Yes in many ways, some aspects are intuitive and familiar, others will require a learning curve, but we have manuals and help from this forum, including some high quality Video Tutorials found on this forum/YouTube.

Q.5> This question is not quite for me, but, as a earlier adopter (this is a personal one) I am still quite annoyed with korg, but I recommend you make your own judgement call of course.

Conclusion>
It is very possible any outstanding issues with PA5X that many users still have may not bother you, if you intend to trade your Pa4X in for a PA5X then perhaps it might be useful to see if you can come to some arrangement with your dealer... i.e. Pay for PA5X and take the shop Demo home for 2/3 days, set some time aside to heavily test PA5X, if you are happy, return Demo for a New boxed version of PA5X or if you are still unsure then money refunded with the return of shop Demo.

P.s.
A fair assessment from me, although Korgs (((( Ears )))) must be burning considering some of the conversions I am having over PA5X at the moment.

[NETWORK1]

left the sinking ship

[Nemydom]

1. Compared to the PA4x, does the PA5x sound better. Im sure some of the same styles are in both so can you decipher better quality of sound in the Pa5x?

2. Is the machine still full of bugs, i.e. freezing, etc? for everyday use, just playing the unit using styles pads matrix variations, all elements and the 2 style player?

3. Does the Microphone record vocals well, including harmonies as it does so nicely on the KORG PA4x. THE GENOS ( i also own ) has an awful MICROPHONE set up. The vocals cut off they are not smooth as in the PA4x

4. Is the PA5x a different animal than the PA4x? Must one learn it as if it were a different arranger altogether?

5.For those who waited a year to buy it and have indeed purchased it are you satisfied with it?


Glenn Losack

1. yes and no. The sound of pa5x is more "processed". There are significantly more FX are used. That makes the first impression that it sounds better. That's probably why the vast majority believe it "sounds better". In fact, I would say it's a similar level of sound quality, just more effects, etc. The drums' sounds are not better, if not worse.
2. No, it's fine. I use it without any problem. You can't do simple recording using a style as yet, but it will be available soon (hopefully)
3.sorry, don't know
4. Don't worry about that. It's a bit different, but nothing significant. Same stupid things: e.g. different menus, depending on when you press the menu button... crazy, but exactly the same as it was on pa4x.
5. No, I am not satisfied. The drum kits (especially snare and BD) are of extremely bad quality! But it can be fixed: the drum samples need to be changed to good ones, and it will become a perfect instrument!

[hnoormohamed99]

PA5X is missing the basic functionality such as:
- Quick Record where you can record a Midi file while playing a style
- You cannot change the CV length. This really sucks beause I have used PA series for the past 20 years and all models had this functionality.
Sorry for the comments but this is the fact, and I hope Korg will add this in the next OS release soon.

[QuiRobinez]

1. Compared to the PA4x, does the PA5x sound better. Im sure some of the same styles are in both so can you decipher better quality of sound in the Pa5x?

yes, it does sound better, this is mainly due to the much better master EQ's and compressor limiters that are on the pa5x and of course the better effects with more effect power (so you can use a lot more effects in a style now).

If you disable, the effect and compressor / limiter system and import a Pa4x style, than the difference is more or less the same, but there are better and new samples added to the pa5x so if you use a pa4x style with those sounds then you will also hear an improvement. But in general this is not needed because the new effects and mastering eq and limiter does a great job.

2. Is the machine still full of bugs, i.e. freezing, etc? for everyday use, just playing the unit using styles pads matrix variations, all elements and the 2 style player?

No, it never freezes over here.

the only annoying bug i've noticed is that in rare cases the touch pad screen freezes (doesn't respond), it doesn't happen often, but sometimes it does. But it's easy to solve by pressing the menu button and then the exit button and the screen is responsive again after that. So not a huge issue for me and i'm confident that they will solve that in the future.

But I do understand where your comment is coming from, a few months ago I finally got my pa5x after waiting for 10 months on delivery and I read all those horror stories online. So I was quite worried. But I couldn't reproduce those horror stories on my pa5X, so maybe I've got the only working pa5X on the world, but my opinion is that most issues mentioned are caused by importing old non supported styles or sample packs which aren't correctly programmed or interpreted. There is no official import support for Korg Pa3x or older sets, even though you can import them there is a change that the pa5x won't work correctly with them. The Korg Pa4X sets are supported and I have loaded over 1000 styles from the pa4x without any problems, so that process seems very solid.

Based on my experience, it's very stable and as long as you just use pa5x and pa4x sets you shouldn't experience real problems.

3. Does the Microphone record vocals well, including harmonies as it does so nicely on the KORG PA4x. THE GENOS ( i also own ) has an awful MICROPHONE set up. The vocals cut off they are not smooth as in the PA4x

I've only used the microphone for the vocoder in the pa5X, that works flawlessly, and I did some singing while testing the autotune and other features, It sounds good to me, but i'm not a professional singer, so my advice would be to try it out yourself in the store to see if it fits your requirements.

4. Is the PA5x a different animal than the PA4x? Must one learn it as if it were a different arranger altogether?

This is difficult to answer. I think it's a very different instrument compared to the pa4x. Although you will recognise a lot from the pa4x, they moved some of the features to different places or replaced it by other buttons.

The post above this post is a good example, someone has no clue how to change the cv length, that is a typical example of a feature that has been changed compared to the pa4x, it's in there but it's in the edit menu now. And there are hundreds of these changes.

So yes, I think it's different, but people with pa4x knowledge that invest time in learning the pa5x and not trying to do it the same way as on the pa4x will get used to it rather quickly.

The user interface now looks a lot like on the yamaha genos, so also if you are used to that interface then you will not have a hard time learning it.

5.For those who waited a year to buy it and have indeed purchased it are you satisfied with it?

My studio is full of workstations, synths and keyboards ranging from the korg kronos to the access virus ti, from nordlead 4 to the roland aira series and jp8080 and over hundred VST synths connected to 5 midi controllers.

So a lot to use in my studio and guess what: I play the most on the pa5X.

It's absolutely amazing what you can do with it once you know how to operate it. It's hard for me to show the real way I use it because it would cause a lot of copyright strikes on youtube but what I do is using realtime elements of famous songs in existing styles with timesliced loops, create my own pads on top of the styles. Add full accappella vocals in the second player (you can start them in sync with the shift play button), use the matrix pad with the mute channel feature but also with one bank of finger drumming hits, one bank with effects like hits, uplifters, downlifters, etc.

Also I've added lot's of drumkits with my own drumhits ranging from acoustic kits to electronic drumkits, and they are all based on the existing factory kits, so it's easy to use them in any style. I've added my own sample banks to it, over 120 songstyles, my own dance styles, etc.

It's insane and everytime I start the pa5x I can't hardly believe it what comes out of it, it's extremely inspiring. (and considering that I almost never play on my yamaha genos that says a lot about the pa5x). And all is controlled with the pa5x features and the behringer FCB-1010 that I connected to it and programmed it to control a lot of the features I use.

So yes, I'm very happy with it.

But an important fact to know is that there are still features missing, and if these features are important for you then you should definitely wait. The most important features that are missing at this moment (september 2023 OS V1.20):
- No Quick Record mode for midi styles, you can't record your style playing in midi at the moment, there is a sequencer where you have 16 channels to play your parts in, but recording the complete performance you play in midi is not possible at the moment
- No Kaos pad, the kaos effects from the pa4x are not available
- No Midi Creator bot

These are the main features from the pa4x that are not implemented yet and if these are important than my advice would be to wait till these are available. I don't miss them, but I can imagine that some people do.

[patpsc]

... The post above this post is a good example, someone has no clue how to change the cv length, that is a typical example of a feature that has been changed compared to the pa4x, it's in there but it's in the edit menu now. And there are hundreds of these changes.

Hi Qui, are you saying that the CV length can be changed after the track has been recorded? and the function to do this is in somewhere else in the edit menu? Can you show me where and how I can change it?

I've found a YouTube video showing how to change the CV length, but you must delete the already recorded track to change the CV length. However, deleting the track will make you play and record it again, and this is a waste of time to me.

[QuiRobinez]

... The post above this post is a good example, someone has no clue how to change the cv length, that is a typical example of a feature that has been changed compared to the pa4x, it's in there but it's in the edit menu now. And there are hundreds of these changes.

Hi Qui, are you saying that the CV length can be changed after the track has been recorded? and the function to do this is in somewhere else in the edit menu? Can you show me where and how I can change it?

I've found a YouTube video showing how to change the CV length, but you must delete the already recorded track to change the CV length. However, deleting the track will make you play and record it again, and this is a waste of time to me.

my advice would be that you watch my tutorials, it's explained in one of the tutorials.

but in short:
- press rec edit
- press style edit
- press the menu button
- select the style edit tyle
- select cut/insert subtab

now you can insert or cut CV lengths from each element.

[patpsc]

Thank you! I'll try it tonight.

[whitecolin1]

The 5x is a far superior keyboard to the 4x, Korg always had rich sounds and the 5x in particular the pianos and strings are exceptional.
The styles are Fresh and modern , people have said the drums aren`t good I disagree it seems as if some old styles are mixed with the new. Also with editing reach a different level. Styles an be edited with ease. As Qui has said anyone watching his videos give more depth to the keyboard than Korg have.
Kaoss was fun but apparently a unpopular feature. Midi to style was in my opinion a useless feature and hardly useable.
In Summary the korg pa5x is a flawed diamond but if you are prepared to do the hard yards of learning, it the best Arranger available and with further updates could reach legendry status.
However with the possible emergence of a new yamaha, Korg may not have it al l their way.
Especially if the keyboard is more user friendly.

[JagiChan]

The 5x is a far superior keyboard to the 4x, Korg always had rich sounds and the 5x in particular the pianos and strings are exceptional..... As Qui has said anyone watching his videos give more depth to the keyboard than Korg have.... the korg pa5x is a flawed diamond but if you are prepared to do the hard yards of learning, it the best Arranger available and with further updates could reach legendry status.

I concur with your observations 100%. The PA5X has very rich sounds and good hardware too, and all it needs is a good software upgrade and TLC from its users, and the instrument would last a long time in every music studio.

Qui's videos have been a real inspiration for me. Especially the one using MIDI's for song styles, that has been my favorite video. Who needs the style bot when one can use millions of free MIDIs on the internet ready for use as backing tracks? Thanks, Qui for that clear, crisp, and wonderful video.

I am a software developer myself and have been developing real-time software for the automotive world, and it is always a challenge to get things right the first time. Even after getting the product into SOP, we still face bugs that come from the integrated system or users and we have to fix them.

Software development is a very complex task especially when it comes to real-time stuff like automotive applications or even the music instruments like PA5X which does loads of real-time processing of sounds.

I trust that the engineers at Korg are doing their best to leverage the potential of the hardware in the PA5X and provide the best user experience. Go on Korgies with your engineering and show the world that the PA5X is the go-to flagship arranger.