Any rumblings of a new Kronos replacement at NAMM...?

Dniss · Post by **Dniss** » Tue Nov 07, 2017 4:34 pm

jeremykeys wrote:Korg has no reason to come up with a new workstation for the immediate future.

I totally agree.

It reminds me of people asking for 8k TV as if we were there already. Most people are on HD TV still.

It's not like the keyboard has so many shortfall that a replacement is overdue. This is already a fairly complex and complete instrument. I certainly won't buy a new workstation in the short term.

But I'm sure Korg is working on its replacement. It will prolly come in due time, when repositionning in the market is needed.

Dniss · Post by **Dniss** » Tue Nov 07, 2017 4:48 pm

Meanwhile I'd rather have Korg offering new synth engines for the Kronos.

GregC · Post by **GregC** » Tue Nov 07, 2017 4:55 pm

Dniss wrote:Meanwhile I'd rather have Korg offering new synth engines for the Kronos.

seems like a reasonable request , especially since the platform is + 6 yrs old.
We would have to pay for something like that. I would be surprised if it was free.
Korg is excellent at marketing, as we know. anything can happen if they
believe it will generate more sales.

I wonder if the current OS/Linux/tech is constrained for another engine. we already are pushing polyphony as I posted prior.

If there are constraints, what seems incremental today, might be shelved for a newer robust platform. If this is even being considered by Korg, in the 1st place.

Dniss · Post by **Dniss** » Tue Nov 07, 2017 5:39 pm

Hi Greg,

You are way more familiar then I with the Kronos. But not sure how that would affect polyphony, unless you want to layer all synth engines together. Which is already a no-no. The way I understand it, that limit should remain the same.

Since the Kronos is already different synth modules architecture, it must have been coded and integrated together in the same modular way. So adding another engine wouldn't be a complete redo of the OS. But that is pure speculation, not based on Kronos facts.

Didn't they add modules to the Oasys? Maybe it wasn't a commercial success.

GregC · Post by **GregC** » Tue Nov 07, 2017 6:25 pm

Dniss wrote:Hi Greg,

You are way more familiar then I with the Kronos. But not sure how that would affect polyphony, unless you want to layer all synth engines together. Which is already a no-no. The way I understand it, that limit should remain the same.

Since the Kronos is already different synth modules architecture, it must have been coded and integrated together in the same modular way. So adding another engine wouldn't be a complete redo of the OS. But that is pure speculation, not based on Kronos facts.

Didn't they add modules to the Oasys? Maybe it wasn't a commercial success.

Polyphony problems are created by custom mega Combis that might also rely heavily on Karma.

I am not into that exactly- but I record heavily on the SEQ, multi tracks. and I copy the juiciest programs into the SEQ .

Its not a huge issue for the most part. But its possible to push the limits and its good to be aware by watching the Performance Meters. and listening to dreaded 'pop's or popping noises.

I am not astute on the technical side to guess at how 'expandable ' the Kronos is at the OS level.

If it is in fact 'expandable ', and doesn't break the threshold or operating ceiling, there is going to be a cost of development of the engine. I am quite sure Korg is going to cover themselves with a new expensive feature. Assuming thats work that Korg wants to do. It has to make business sense for Korg.

Again, we really don't know ' how expandable ' or 'if expandable ' the Kronos is.

Its been 6 years,,, I am hearing crickets....

studio429 · Post by **studio429** » Wed Nov 08, 2017 4:16 pm

I was talking to a Korg UK expert at the Music's Live event in Birmingham at the weekend and was told that any replacement for Kronos is at least 2-3 years away. I already own two and was pondering my next move, or whether I need to save for the 'new Kronos'.

GregC · Post by **GregC** » Wed Nov 08, 2017 5:01 pm

studio429 wrote:I was talking to a Korg UK expert at the Music's Live event in Birmingham at the weekend and was told that any replacement for Kronos is at least 2-3 years away. I already own two and was pondering my next move, or whether I need to save for the 'new Kronos'.

thats interesting. what is a ' Korg UK expert ' ? Someone who plays Korg keyboards for a long time in your country ?

swarupmahapatra · Post by **swarupmahapatra** » Wed Nov 08, 2017 7:18 pm

I absolutely love Kronos the way it is. However I would like to suggest few upgrades -

1. Some free and better acoustic presets like Sax, Flute, Accordion, synth strings etc.
2. Few more hands on controls for ADSR
3. A bit tilted screen
4. Faster boot time

GregC · Post by **GregC** » Wed Nov 08, 2017 7:32 pm

jeremykeys wrote:I very rarely get into these speculative discussions but as far as I can guess, Korg has no reason to come up with a new workstation for the immediate future.
Think about it. Why do they need too? They've already got the market cornered. What else is there that can realistically compare with the Kronos?

having a DUH! moment

Rolands FA06/08 is an excellent buy as a W/s. In fact, eBay has several used, which makes the models a great buy.

The FA series is 3 yrs old.

Yes, the 06 keybed is cheap, no AT. As a 2nd board , it looks very competitive.
Has some excellent features and compares with Kronos, assuming you want the Roland sound.

Koekepan · Post by **Koekepan** » Wed Nov 08, 2017 7:32 pm

GregC wrote:thats interesting. what is a ' Korg UK expert ' ? Someone who plays Korg keyboards for a long time in your country ?

No, KORG UK is KORG's tentacle in the UK.

I hope that if KORG do a Kronext (or whatever the hell you want to call it) they leave more room for the production side. That was always something that astonished me - why should the Krome have a positively pointillist interface, that invites you to get down to the precise value of a precise CC at a precise point in your track, while the Kronos doesn't really do that? I mean, you can. But it's not as easy nor as obvious.

We shall see.

GregC · Post by **GregC** » Wed Nov 08, 2017 8:27 pm

Koekepan wrote:
GregC wrote:thats interesting. what is a ' Korg UK expert ' ? Someone who plays Korg keyboards for a long time in your country ?
No, KORG UK is KORG's tentacle in the UK.

.

it would be better if the poster clarified.

As most of us know, Korg employees and their partners and contractors do not discuss Korg plans. Per their NDA

I consider myself a Korg US expert. LOL. Any maybe their 'octopus ' as I am close to the Pacific ocean

Bachus · Post by **Bachus** » Thu Nov 09, 2017 10:33 am

Dniss wrote:Meanwhile I'd rather have Korg offering new synth engines for the Kronos.

I actually gave it some more thougt
For a Kronos 3...

- faster hardware..
- bigger modern touchscreen
- improvements of the current interface, make it more ipad like
- limitless encoders instead of the current potentiometers
- led indication for sliders and knobs
- piano roll editor
- physical drum pads

And then an option to add new synth engines trough the korg shop..
And maybe not only upgradable with synth engines
But also upgradable with other tools, like the pa series styles engine
Or a new type of arpeggiator, maybe some new types of programs

Thats a small list of wishes from a 7 year old instrument..

leonh · Post by **leonh** » Thu Nov 09, 2017 1:43 pm

I did play Kronos 2 at the music shop today as I am thinking of purchase (I already have Montage) and obviously Kronos can do things which Montage cannot unless you use DAW I prefer doing everything on keyboard so my main objection is build quality compared to Montage i.e keybed on Kronos doesn't fill as good as Yamaha's then screen is a bit dated when other manufacturers use high resolution ones other than that is perfect .
So I am thinking should I buy now or wait for next Kronos

voip · Post by **voip** » Thu Nov 09, 2017 2:02 pm

Build quality on the Kronos seems pretty good. Kronos has the better screen resolution; good enough to display useful details of all 16 programs in a Combi:

Montage VGA 640 x 480
Kronos SVGA 800 x 600

.

GregC · Post by **GregC** » Thu Nov 09, 2017 2:37 pm

leonh wrote:I did play Kronos 2 at the music shop today as I am thinking of purchase (I already have Montage) and obviously Kronos can do things which Montage cannot unless you use DAW I prefer doing everything on keyboard so my main objection is build quality compared to Montage i.e keybed on Kronos doesn't fill as good as Yamaha's then screen is a bit dated when other manufacturers use high resolution ones other than that is perfect .
So I am thinking should I buy now or wait for next Kronos

If you had an immediate requirement such as a band gig, pro studio project, I could see adding Kronos quickly.

Other than that, I recommend waiting until January, to be 100% certain.

Buying a keyboard is often an emotional decision, so I state things from a more practical bias.

If Korg truly has another WS in the wings, we would see prices coming down at retail this month. Korg will signal their retailers ( at least here in the US) to begin a product transition.

This tactic isn't crystal clear, or universal , of course. GC's are routinely do inventory clearance a a marketing tactic so the 'clearance ' move gets misinterpreted as far as original intent.

You shouldn't be that concerned about Kronos build quality. If you are rough on your gear and heavy handed on keyboard controls, you might experience breakage. To keep weight/cost down , and to manage a variety of controls these keyboard cos tend to have lighter and smaller components.