Korg Synthesizers

[karthiks25]

Hello,
For practicing for trinity graded exams, can I use a synth instead of a digital piano?
Are there sheet music stand provision available for Korg synthesizers?
And can ordinary 2.1 speakers can be connected through 3.5 jack to the korg synthesizers?
Pls suggest your opinions.

 

[happyrat1]

Question #1 > I have no clue. Fred Coulter can probably answer that one.

Question #2 > Not knowing exactly which Korg model you are referring to I can still probably tell you a flat No.

However, there are third party music stands that can attach to a Keyboard X-stand or Z-Stand. I use one such arrangement on my own rig.

Here's a similar one from Amazon.

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B000OR66MU/

Here are some photos.

Question #3 > Yes you can connect the 1/4" TS Line Outs directly to a 3.5 mm TRS jack on a set of 2.1 powered computer speakers using the proper cabling adapters. They are both line level compatible and present no obstacle. DO NOT, however, connect the speakers to a headphone out jack. Levels are NOT compatible and will result in distortion and possible destruction of the amp.

Here is a suitable cable for connecting the line outputs to the 3.5 mm input of an amp.

https://www.amazon.com/Hosa-HMP-010Y-Stereo-Breakout-Cable/dp/B009RUCYDU/

Good luck with your exam.

Gary

 

[Fred Coulter]

The Trinity exams will probably require that you use a "real" piano for the actual examination. They'll probably supply it. If the action is good, you can prepare for the exam on a Korg keyboard. I practice piano on an 88 key Kronos. But it really should be a weighted keyboard, not a typical five octave synth keyboard.

Most Korg synthesizers don't include a music stand. However, their arrangers usually do include the ability to attach a music stand. On the other hand, your keyboard stand may have an available music stand.

If the speakers are powered, you can probably connect them. (Although if you like your family and/or room-mates, you'll use headphones.)

 

[karthiks25]

thanks for your replies.. I am actually referring to korg kross 88 synth..
it has natural hammer action weighted keys.

1. Previously I was using Yamaha psr e403. Apart from no. Of keys, How does it differ from korg kross 88 or are both are equal?
2. Is korg kross 88 having a dedicated sheet music stand.
3. Is studio monitor absolutely necessary?
4. And is an audio interface too is needed.?
Request your further suggestions...

 

[happyrat1]

1) Equal how? Tone, Touch and Features will vary widely between those two models. On the other hand, you can play the same notes on both with more or less equal results.

2) Don't know. Contact Korg and ask them.

3) Personally I'm happy to have some kind of studio monitors. Headphones are great if you don't want to disturb anyone but once in a while you want to hear the natural sounds of a keyboard in a proper room. It's 100% a matter of personal taste. Myself, I hate wearing headphones. My building is soundproof and headphones are always heavy, awkward, sweaty and unnatural sounding to me.

4) An audio interface can be useful if what you are planning to do is make your own recordings on a computer. Even then it's not absolutely necessary. I've made dozens of recordings on my own computer and all that I've required is a decent soundcard and a standard audio mixer to bring multiple instruments together.

Exactly what are your intentions here?

Gary

 

[karthiks25]

1) Equal how? Tone, Touch and Features will vary widely between those two models. On the other hand, you can play the same notes on both with more or less equal results.

2) Don't know. Contact Korg and ask them.

3) Personally I'm happy to have some kind of studio monitors. Headphones are great if you don't want to disturb anyone but once in a while you want to hear the natural sounds of a keyboard in a proper room. It's 100% a matter of personal taste. Myself, I hate wearing headphones. My building is soundproof and headphones are always heavy, awkward, sweaty and unnatural sounding to me.

4) An audio interface can be useful if what you are planning to do is make your own recordings on a computer. Even then it's not absolutely necessary. I've made dozens of recordings on my own computer and all that I've required is a decent soundcard and a standard audio mixer to bring multiple instruments together.

Exactly what are your intentions here?

Gary

Hi..
1) Equal how? ---> Trying to ask that whether yamahapsr psr e403 is also a synthesizer?
3) Is it true that studio monitors are needed to be connected only through amplifiers and not directly to the synths?
4) Intention is to learn and try some recording using flstudio...

 

[SeaGtGruff]

I'm not familiar with the Korg, so I can't compare and contrast it with the PSR-E403. But I do have the YPT-400, which is the same as the PSR-E403, so I'll talk about it.

Is it a synthesizer? Yes, technically it's a type of synth commonly called a "ROMpler"-- a synth that plays sound samples (a "sampler"), but the samples can't be modified because they're stored in ROM (Read-Only Memory). But even though they technically are synths of a sort, ROMplers usually aren't considered to be synths per se, because in general synths let you create new sounds on the fly, and normally the only way to create a new sound on a ROMpler is to load new sound samples into its expansion memory-- although lower-end ROMplers don't usually have expansion memory (the PSR-E403/YPT-400 does not), so you're limited to using just the built-in sound samples.

On the other hand, some ROMplers let you modify how the samples sound by changing things like the ADSR envelope (Attack-Decay-Sustain-Release), the filter parameters (cutoff frequency and resonance level), and DSP effects (Digital Signal Processing) such as reverb and chorus that can be applied to the sound. The PSR-E403/YPT-400 is like that, and even has two "Live Control" assignable knobs that can be used to change the Cutoff and Resonance, or Attack and Release, or Reverb and Chorus while you're playing, as is generally true with a synth. So you can't create new sounds in the sense of loading new samples or actually editing the existing samples, but you can sort of create "new" sounds by changing how the built-in samples are played back and how their sound is modified by LPF (Low-Pass Filter) and DSP. Still, the PSR-E403/YPT-400 isn't nearly as sophisticated as much more expensive ROMplers.

 

[karthiks25]

that's a very useful info about e-403... thank you.

 

[CowboyNQ]

I'm pretty sure the Kross doesn't have a music stand. But you can buy a stand alone music stand fairly cheaply and then use it with any keyboard you might own now and in the future.

When you get sick of keyboard and decide to take up the euphonium, the good news is your music stand will be fully compatible with that, too.

 

[Rayblewit]

When you get sick of keyboard and decide to take up the euphonium

LOL . .

 

[karthiks25]

As seen from the picture above in this post, why in general musicians use a pair of keyboards while producing music?

 

[SeaGtGruff]

That's partly so you can play with more than one sound at a time. Most keyboards have a split function that will let you split the keys between a left section and a right section, so you can play with a different sound in each section. And most keyboards also have registrations or memories for storing different setups and recalling them quickly, so you can switch between different sounds while playing. But by playing the different sounds on different keyboards you're able to use the full range of each keyboard for each sound, rather than being limited to just a few octaves per sound, and you can switch from playing with one sound to the other without having to press any buttons to recall the correct registration.

Another part of it is that different keyboards may be better at making certain sounds. General-purpose keyboards usually have a smorgasbord of sounds to try to fill all needs, but for specific types of sounds it's usually better to have keyboards which excel at those particular sounds. For instance, if you want to play using an acoustic grand piano sound, then your best option is to play using an actual acoustic grand piano-- except it's a hassle trying to get an acoustic grand piano into the back seat of your car, so the next best option is to use a conveniently-portable digital piano that has a high-quality acoustic grand piano sound, along with authentic-feeling piano-action keys. Likewise, if you want to play with a church pipe organ sound, your best option is to play an actual church pipe organ, and your next-best option is to use a portable organ that has an excellent church pipe organ sound. But specialized keyboards don't usually have as many different sounds as general-purpose keyboards do, so if you can't afford to have a bunch of different specialized keyboards, or if it's too much trouble to tote around multiple keyboards all the time, then you'll probably want to get one general-purpose keyboard and make do with it, even if its sounds don't have the same high quality or authenticity as the specialized keyboards.

However, the most important reason why keyboardists often play with two or more keyboards is because it looks really, really cool to have more than one keyboard-- and the more keyboards you have, the cooler you look. Size is also important, especially with synthesizers-- the bigger the synth, the cooler the synth player!

 

[happyrat1]

However, the most important reason why keyboardists often play with two or more keyboards is because it looks really, really cool to have more than one keyboard-- and the more keyboards you have, the cooler you look. Size is also important, especially with synthesizers-- the bigger the synth, the cooler the synth player!

That's 1 MILLION PERRCENT TROO MICHAEL!~!!!!!

IZE DA KEWLEST GEEK OFG DEM ALL

ROTFLMFAOWEAH!!!!!

SSUCK IT PEONZ!!!!!

Gary

 

[happyrat1]

BTW it may be helpful to point out that different sound engines produce entirely different timbres and sounds. PCM, Analog, Virtual Analog, Modelled FM etc...

There is NO such thing as a single keyboard that can produce every type of sound.

Gary

PS. And before the original poster asks the inevitable "What's the difference between those types?" perhaps he should crack open a book or exercise his google skills to do some work on his own?

 

[SeaGtGruff]

This is the coolest synth in the world:

http://www.retrosynth.com/slideshow/namm00/audities/moog_modular.jpg

By the way, I got very little sleep last night, so this morning when I posted I was feeling loopier than usual. My humor wasn't meant to be insulting toward karthiks25 or keyboardists in general.

Besides, guitarists can suffer from their own version of Gear Acquisition Syndrome (GAS), such as buying dozens of effects pedals, or having a dozen different guitars lined up on stands behind them while they're playing, or even buying guitars that have multiple necks:

http://cdo.seymourduncan.com/blog/wp-content/uploads/manynecks.jpg

Now that is silly. How are you going to wear it around your neck? You'd have to stand at the very edge of the stage and let it hang down into the audience!

 

[Fred Coulter]

As seen from the picture above in this post, why in general musicians use a pair of keyboards while producing music?

My stack is two keyboards. One of them (the Kronos) is an 88 key weighted keyboard. It works best for me while playing piano style. The other one (the Tyros) is a 76 key unweighted keyboard. It works best for me while playing organ/synth style.

The other keyboards tend to not be played at the same time, so they're not next to the stack. (Actually, the piano is, but two 88 key keyboards forming a corner is not really that playable as a combination.

Last weekend I went to see some friends playing The Wall. The keyboard player had four keyboards so he could switch sounds quickly. Personally, I'm not sure he needed four, but then again I haven't tried to play The Wall. (There was a stack of three, and a separate 88 note piano.)

 

[Fred Coulter]

However, the most important reason why keyboardists often play with two or more keyboards is because it looks really, really cool to have more than one keyboard-- and the more keyboards you have, the cooler you look. Size is also important, especially with synthesizers-- the bigger the synth, the cooler the synth player!

Also true. Many of us grew up watching Rick Wakeman playing.

 

[SeaGtGruff]

I saw an old photo of Geoff Downes (currently in Yes) with his ginormous collection of keyboards back when he was in Asia, but I can't find it right now-- the only version I can find is cropped and doesn't show him literally looming over the rest of the band on an elevated platform, looking like the whole thing could fall down on top of Carl Palmer at any moment.

And then there's Keith Emerson. I believe some of his keyboards were for very specific purposes, such as the old organ that he would horse around the stage, jump on top of and rock back and forth while squatting on, flip over backwards on top of himself as he played it from behind, and of course plunge daggers into, giving new meaning to the term "organ stabs." Everybody needs at least one old organ like that!

As for Rick Wakeman, the number of keyboards in his setup-- and his obvious skill with them-- were only part of his coolness. His capes also had a major coolness factor!

 

[happyrat1]

Yet Jordan Rudess, nowadays, has the audacity to appear on stage with only a Korg Kronos and occasionally a Moog product as well.

That's what happens once you sell out and become a paid shill for Korg International

But here's a tour of his home studio and what he really enjoys getting down on.

Notice the prominence of the big yellow Sledge in the first one

Gary

 

[SeaGtGruff]

I think most keyboardists who don't play in megabands, with all day to let an army of roadies set things up for them and then all night to tear things down again, eventually reach a point where they say, "I don't care how cool it looks to have twelve keyboards, it's a dang-blasted hassle to deal with them, so I'm going to find me one or two new 'boards that can do everything I need, and sell the rest of my collection! Except, wait, these ones here might come back in demand 20 years from now and be worth an obscene amount of money, so I'd better stick them in the corner of my bedroom."