Korg Forums

I'm sorry if I'm re-treading ground, or if I am in the wrong forum, but the search function wouldn't work so I created a new post.

I have a Korg X5D. I've had it for about 8 years. Not too long ago, it developed a odd problem. When I use the damper pedal, specifically if I hold in down for a long while. It stops registering notes after about 5-10 secs of playing. If I release the pedal, it will play most of the notes, dropping maybe 1/7 of the notes I play in a 10 second period. I've never seen anything like it, I reset to factory defaults, but nothing. I'm going to buy a new pedal just in case, but I didn't know if anyone had encountered this problem before, and I they had a solution.

Thanks for your time, Korg Forum Members. And if it is a matter of my synth giving up the ghost, any suggestions for a new synth for under a grand?

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The polyphony of the X5D is pretty limited (? ~ 16..32?) and holding notes, especially those that might use a double oscillator configuration, eats up your polyphony pretty quickly. Once the available notes are used up (i.e., held with a pedal) the unit should start taking away the first held note to let you play the next; a function called voice robbing. There may be a tick box in global that allows you to pick a mode to do that more intelligently -- I don't know for sure (RTM). But that's what the problem appears to be as you've described it.

It's not a fatal flaw or malfunction of the unit or the pedal, just a limitation of the architecture... you'd probably get the same issue cropping up if you tried to play a big midi file as well -- it would sound like a record skip except that parts would drop out noticeably.

BB

Thanks for the knowledge Billbaker. I understand what you are saying and thats seems to explain what is happening. Since then, I haven't used any pedal with the Korg X5D. I couldn't find any settings pertaining to the oscillation, polyphony, or voice robbing.

The Keyboard has gotten alittle worse. Now it drops or make certain keys dead without having to use a sustain pedal. Now it happens it you are rocking out a little too hard with too many notes.

Oh well, its by no means unplayable. Just an old keyboard not being able to do the same old tricks.

E

You don't show a location or give a genre, either of which would make a recommendation easier.

Plowing on tho', there are a lot of USED synths under $1000 US - some are former flagship models, many are 88-key weighted 'boards. Most have pretty decent polyphony.

I've had pretty good luck from a price and quality standpoint with used gear from guitar center.

A recent look tells me that for a grand you could get:

Korg Triton Classic 61 or LE 76 ($499) [great sounds and way better polyphony]

M-audio Venom ($250) [edgier more up-to-date sounds than X series]

Alesis Micron ($200) [just for fun - digital analog hybrid; sounds different than anything the korgs can do]

... and still have enough left over for a Quarter Pounder w' Cheese.


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