Is the Microkorg still relevant in the same way it was in the early 00’s? Like what exactly was the appeal: the presets; the price; the vocoder; it was just enough synth; it was small enough that your bassist could pull double duty and easily play the synth lead lines without having to take piano lessons (and risk becoming a real musician)?
The synth landscape looked different when the MK was first released. It may be used in a bunch of tracks, but I only ever see it referenced as a punchline. In a world with all the options we have now, does an MK2 have a shot in this market?
Dilla had one as well - used on “The Shining” … if it was good enough for him I bought mine 2nd hand while living in London for silly money - had a broken key, but it was easy to replace - still using it to this day
The big knob and terrible interface has always scared me away from the MK, despite its incredible sound and iconic status. I have so much love for that sound, and many of my favorite songs from the 2000s feature it (or the MS2000) heavily. This one is actually moderately temping to me. The interface may still be kinda funky but at least it has an informative screen.
I know it’s a core part of the design, but I am a bit baffled that they kept the genre knob labels, which was a silly outdated concept even when it was released.
Ha, touché! Seems like the whole synth/gear/kit industry (or whatever we’re calling it these days) are all chasing ghosts. Or chasing the ghosts of the competition. Hoping for a NAMM release that elicits a wow. Or st least an ooooo.
For folks talking about the MS2000: Korg indicated that the iMS20 iOS app will eventually get AUv3 support on iOS. That’ll scratch the itch for me (though the current plugin does not support poly).
I had the (original) Microkorg four times. I sold it again and again and then bought it again. Always because of the stupid keyboard, which is just creepy.
I haven’t had one for three or four years. And now comes the Microkorg 2. But, a Microkorg without wooden side panels is like a Microkorg without this incredible cheesy microphone: it’s simply not a Microkorg.
I feel at first glance neo looks like that, but closer look at it seems like the knobs are more parameters that a stage keyboardist would reach for than someone looking to deep dive into synth editing.
Good Lord I’d sell my left kidney for a new and updated Radias with the durability and stage-friendliness of a MicroKORG. Radias has been my synth main brain since 2007 performing across several countries
I bought mine 2nd hand while living in London for silly money - had a broken key, but it was easy to replace - still using it to this day