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new Vox Continental - Some thoughts


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I'll be interested in your impressions Josh. The Vox Conti is a board I've never been able to settle on a proper opinion of. (Why have an organ-forward board without front-panel percussion controls?)

 

Despite it being an "organ-forward" board, organ won't be my main use for it (and definitely not transistor organ, which is a sound I've never liked and literally only ever use when I end up having to grudgingly cover "Light My Fire"). I see myself using it mainly when I want a lightweight board to go on top of a house B3 or under my Mojo 61, or as an all-in-one board when I don't need top-tier organ realism and functionality.

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A bunch of interesting tidbits in that video, and not just about the Vox.

 

at about 1:09:00 he talks about the EP1 engine... there's been discussion here in the past about what's sampled and what's modeled, and it turns out it uses wavetable synthesis.

 

Well, that's an "easy out" for Bill, and not quite accurate.... But we're not allowed to discuss the underlying technology (even though I've been gone for almost 10 years now), but suffice it to say it's more complicated than wavetables. If you look at the model's parameters you see very individual control over elements of the sound that couldn't be achieved solely by wavetables.

 

Jerry

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I'd also add that during the conversation, the attendees ask him if the CX3 engine was modeled after the previous analog Korg organ (1980's), or the 90's creation/rethink of it. The 90's unit was a completely new approach to emulating a B3/tonewheel organ... it had nothing to do with the earlier effort Korg had done in the analog days. And when the engine was moved from the CX/BX hardware instruments into the Kronos, the same code was reused. Later on, the engineers noticed some "issues" with the original code which they "fixed" and then they re-visited the whole approach to the Rotary Speaker (The V2 implementation). So the CX-3 model has nothing to do with recreating previous Korg instruments, it was always aiming at recreating the B3.

 

Jerry

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Thanks for your posts, Jerry, love any and all tidbits on the Korg/Vox Continental. I"m in ongoing love with these wonderful instruments (as I got three of them already).

Please keep posting anything you"re at liberty to share.

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As I already said, I don"t really use the Vox for the organs. However, the CX-3 engine works pretty well for playing Soul, Funk, Blues or Rock. You can get a really gritty sound thanks to the valve drive and dynamic knobs, plus the drive effect for a more aggressive tone. And the led drawbars work also very well. Last but not least, the key action fits well to organ playing. So finally, I find myself using the organ engine more than I thought. The only thing which I"m still struggling with is the key width. Even though I"m concentrating hard, I still miss my target keys from time to time. But it"s more a problem for me than for the audience or for my band mates. Ah yes, and another thing which annoys me a bit is the gig bag. After 1.5 years of intensive use, the sewing of the rear suspenders has started to break, and now I"m always scared that the keyboard falls down when I want to carry it on my bag. I would have liked it to be more solid. Now I probably need to get a new gig bag or a different one...
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do you know if the Hi trig point is transmitted over MIDI out. I am interested in this board but would like to trigger an organ module.

No, the high trigger (and corresponding low release, btw) only apply to the internal sound. It will trigger at the usual deeper point (and release at the higher point) when used to trigger something over MIDI. Besides driving a module, this is also unfortunate for recording an organ part into a MIDI sequencer. On the plus side, though, it's still a really nice feeling action to play, even at the low trigger point. That's how it was set when I first played it, before I thought to check.

Maybe this is the best place for a shameless plug! Our now not-so-new new video at https://youtu.be/3ZRC3b4p4EI is a 40 minute adaptation of T. S. Eliot's "Prufrock" - check it out! And hopefully I'll have something new here this year. ;-)

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Thanks for your posts, Jerry, love any and all tidbits on the Korg/Vox Continental. I"m in ongoing love with these wonderful instruments (as I got three of them already).

Please keep posting anything you"re at liberty to share.

 

Thanks Fleer. But all the work on the Continental happened after I left Korg. I know the folks involved, and we speak (especially the guy who developed the transistor organ engine - a brilliant man!), but my knowledge and insights are more about products during my time there . The first things I was part of were the Z1 and SG-ProX keyboards, and then everything else up and through the Kronos.

 

Jerry

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do you know if the Hi trig point is transmitted over MIDI out. I am interested in this board but would like to trigger an organ module.

No, the high trigger (and corresponding low release, btw) only apply to the internal sound. It will trigger at the usual deeper point (and release at the higher point) when used to trigger something over MIDI. Besides driving a module, this is also unfortunate for recording an organ part into a MIDI sequencer.

 

Yes, the difficulty is that to read, or generate MIDI velocity you need to measure the speed between the hi and the low trigger points. I'm not sure of any (or many) manufacturers that have solved how to ignore that part of the mechanism and offer an "only hi trigger" MIDI reading as well. I would think it's not that hard to do, since they are already reading the hi trigger point, though... But I know there's issues involved, as I pushed the Korg engineers for a long time to do that for the Kronos. Never happened.

 

Jerry

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Yes, the difficulty is that to read, or generate MIDI velocity you need to measure the speed between the hi and the low trigger points. I'm not sure of any (or many) manufacturers that have solved how to ignore that part of the mechanism and offer an "only hi trigger" MIDI reading as well. I would think it's not that hard to do, since they are already reading the hi trigger point, though... But I know there's issues involved, as I pushed the Korg engineers for a long time to do that for the Kronos. Never happened.

Interesting. Some companies have solved the problem, though.

 

Kurzweil kind of figured it out. Not sending both at once, but at least letting you send out the one you want. On the Artis 7 (and presumably the Forte/PC3/PC4 series, since most of the basic architecture is the same), when you play their KB3 organ engine, its high trigger is sent via MIDI. When you do a split, the keys playing organ send out the high trigger notes, the keys playing the other sound send out the normal low trigger with velocity. When you layer organ and another sound, the trigger behavior is determined by what you chose as your primary part. If you started with organ and layered a piano, the MIDI out will have the high trigger since organ is on part 1. If you started with piano and layered an organ, the MIDI out will have the low-with-velocity trigger since piano is on part 1. So you can get whatever behavior you want out of it, as long as you're not trying to send both types of triggering out simultaneously from the same key.

 

Dexibell J7 (and I'm assuming S9) actually seem to do it perfectly. If you have an organ sound selected, the MIDI Out is high trigger. If you have a different sound selected, it is low trigger on the MIDI out. If you have an organ split with another sound, the organ part transmits MIDI high trigger, the non-organ part transmits low trigger with velocity. So far, same as Kurzweil. But it goes Kurzweil one better. If you layer organ with another sound, a single keypress will actually send out both MIDI signals. Organ is always the primary part (channel 1, at least by default), the layered sound will be channel 2, and mimicking what happens when you play, the MIDI Out will send the high trigger MIDI Out on channel 1, and the low trigger with velocity MIDI Out on channel 2.

 

BTW, the Dexibell and Kurz use the same (high) release point for everything, which I think is the common practice. The Vox appears to do something unusual, where the release point for the organ when in high trigger mode is variable. If you've pressed the key all the way down, it will release at a low point, which is kind of nicely snappy feeling. But if you've merely tapped the top of the key and triggered the high trigger point but haven't pressed the key further down than that, then it will release at the higher point (as it would have to, or else it would never release). So rather than having a fixed (high) "note off" point in the travel, it seems to send note off at whichever sensor it hits first on its way up. (And since release velocity is not an issue for organ, releasing at the low trigger point does not create any issue there.)

Maybe this is the best place for a shameless plug! Our now not-so-new new video at https://youtu.be/3ZRC3b4p4EI is a 40 minute adaptation of T. S. Eliot's "Prufrock" - check it out! And hopefully I'll have something new here this year. ;-)

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I'm not surprised that Kurzweil figured it out. They've always been one of the smartest companies in their software design. I always studied their products deeply to learn things. Kudos to them!

 

Wanna bet Dexibell studied them too?

 

:-)

 

Jerry

 

Yes, the difficulty is that to read, or generate MIDI velocity you need to measure the speed between the hi and the low trigger points. I'm not sure of any (or many) manufacturers that have solved how to ignore that part of the mechanism and offer an "only hi trigger" MIDI reading as well. I would think it's not that hard to do, since they are already reading the hi trigger point, though... But I know there's issues involved, as I pushed the Korg engineers for a long time to do that for the Kronos. Never happened.

Interesting. Some companies have solved the problem, though.

 

Kurzweil kind of figured it out. Not sending both at once, but at least letting you send out the one you want. On the Artis 7 (and presumably the Forte/PC3/PC4 series, since most of the basic architecture is the same), when you play their KB3 organ engine, its high trigger is sent via MIDI. When you do a split, the keys playing organ send out the high trigger notes, the keys playing the other sound send out the normal low trigger with velocity. When you layer organ and another sound, the trigger behavior is determined by what you chose as your primary part. If you started with organ and layered a piano, the MIDI out will have the high trigger since organ is on part 1. If you started with piano and layered an organ, the MIDI out will have the low-with-velocity trigger since piano is on part 1. So you can get whatever behavior you want out of it, as long as you're not trying to send both types of triggering out simultaneously from the same key.

 

Dexibell J7 (and I'm assuming S9) actually seem to do it perfectly. If you have an organ sound selected, the MIDI Out is high trigger. If you have a different sound selected, it is low trigger on the MIDI out. If you have an organ split with another sound, the organ part transmits MIDI high trigger, the non-organ part transmits low trigger with velocity. So far, same as Kurzweil. But it goes Kurzweil one better. If you layer organ with another sound, a single keypress will actually send out both MIDI signals. Organ is always the primary part (channel 1, at least by default), the layered sound will be channel 2, and mimicking what happens when you play, the MIDI Out will send the high trigger MIDI Out on channel 1, and the low trigger with velocity MIDI Out on channel 2.

 

BTW, the Dexibell and Kurz use the same (high) release point for everything, which I think is the common practice. The Vox appears to do something unusual, where the release point for the organ when in high trigger mode is variable. If you've pressed the key all the way down, it will release at a low point, which is kind of nicely snappy feeling. But if you've merely tapped the top of the key and triggered the high trigger point but haven't pressed the key further down than that, then it will release at the higher point (as it would have to, or else it would never release). So rather than having a fixed (high) "note off" point in the travel, it seems to send note off at whichever sensor it hits first on its way up. (And since release velocity is not an issue for organ, releasing at the low trigger point does not create any issue there.)

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For people following the Vox conversation and wondering what it actually feels like, the thing it reminds me most of is a clavinet. So if you've ever played one of those, that might give you an idea of how this feels.

Maybe this is the best place for a shameless plug! Our now not-so-new new video at https://youtu.be/3ZRC3b4p4EI is a 40 minute adaptation of T. S. Eliot's "Prufrock" - check it out! And hopefully I'll have something new here this year. ;-)

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:-) It's not exactly the same, but the overall resistance and landing feel about right to me.

Maybe this is the best place for a shameless plug! Our now not-so-new new video at https://youtu.be/3ZRC3b4p4EI is a 40 minute adaptation of T. S. Eliot's "Prufrock" - check it out! And hopefully I'll have something new here this year. ;-)

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Mine arrived yesterday. Sadly it has some issues and isn't usable, so I'll be sending it back. (It was a demo model.) But that turned out to be kind of a blessing in disguise, because even apart from the defect, I was able to tell that I wouldn't have been happy with it. It does what it says, and I can see why people like it. But its particular combination of strengths and weaknesses turned out not to be what I'm looking for, in the elusive way that you can never really know until you spend time with a board.
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Very true. It worked exactly the other way for me. When I read about it, I was pretty sure the new Vox wasn"t up my alley. After I ordered and played my first one, I ended owning (and loving) three of them. Never had this with any other board. I"ll cherish them until my dying days ;)
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Very true. It worked exactly the other way for me. When I read about it, I was pretty sure the new Vox wasn"t up my alley. After I ordered and played my first one, I ended owning (and loving) three of them. Never had this with any other board. I"ll cherish them until my dying days ;)

 

I realize in some social circles this may be considered rude, nonetheless I've taken the liberty of writing an epitaph for you:

 

 

Though some may have thought him quite mental

He thrice acquired the Continental

Now here he lies inside this box

Constructed of his beloved Vox

 

 

[note: the plural of Vox is still "Vox"?]

Gigging: Crumar Mojo 61, Hammond SKPro

Home: Vintage Vibe 64

 

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I was able to tell that I wouldn't have been happy with it. It does what it says, and I can see why people like it. But its particular combination of strengths and weaknesses turned out not to be what I'm looking for, in the elusive way that you can never really know until you spend time with a board.

Very true. It worked exactly the other way for me. When I read about it, I was pretty sure the new Vox wasn"t up my alley. After I ordered and played my first one, I ended owning (and loving) three of them.

There are definitely things you can't tell until you get first-hand experience. My own disappointment (based on minimal time on it) is that I'd hoped the LED sliders would work more smoothly. I found myself having to repeat a swipe, or struggle to get the exact right level selected (the intended LED illuminated, without going too far or not far enough). Has anyone else experienced that? I'm wondering if that's just the way it is, or if something might have been amiss on the one I tried, or if there is a technique one needs to develop to be quick/reliable with them.

 

No board is perfect, but I am curious, Josh, if you could bring up any specific disappointments... certain sounds? the action? operational ergonomics?

 

For me, the unique strength is something superlight with more than 61 keys that covers the bread and butter sounds with a semi-weighted action that is quite playable even for pianos. I can't think of anything that would be better in that regard, but maybe that's too specific a niche to garner a lot of interest. I think the action is where it consistently beats the potential sub-20 lb competition (Korg Krome 73, Roland DS76/FA07, Yamaha MODX7, NumaCompact 2/2X), though each of those will also have advantages of its own. I haven't played the Dexibell S1.

 

Adan, I think the plural of Vox is Voxen. ;-)

Maybe this is the best place for a shameless plug! Our now not-so-new new video at https://youtu.be/3ZRC3b4p4EI is a 40 minute adaptation of T. S. Eliot's "Prufrock" - check it out! And hopefully I'll have something new here this year. ;-)

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There are definitely things you can't tell until you get first-hand experience. My own disappointment (based on minimal time on it) is that I'd hoped the LED sliders would work more smoothly. I found myself having to repeat a swipe, or struggle to get the exact right level selected (the intended LED illuminated, without going too far or not far enough). Has anyone else experienced that? I'm wondering if that's just the way it is, or if something might have been amiss on the one I tried, or if there is a technique one needs to develop to be quick/reliable with them.

 

I love the LED strips as an interface for editing the keys/layer sounds, but yes they're not easy to swipe accurately and I'll often have a few goes before getting what I want, which is fine for editing sounds at home, but makes them useless as drawbars. I think this is part of the reason it took me a while to work out whether the Vox was a keeper or not: I wasn't sold on the Hammond emulation and the LED strips weren't too good as drawbars, so once I accepted that I didn't need access to the LED draw strips live having another board above it didn't matter, so it has ended up as a wonderful lightly weighted bottom board in a 2-keyboard rig, and I control scene changes from the top board (Hammond SK1 or Yamaha VC61).

Gig keys: Hammond SKpro, Korg Vox Continental, Crumar Mojo 61, Crumar Mojo Pedals

 

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No board is perfect, but I am curious, Josh, if you could bring up any specific disappointments... certain sounds? the action? operational ergonomics?

 

For me, the unique strength is something superlight with more than 61 keys that covers the bread and butter sounds with a semi-weighted action that is quite playable even for pianos. I can't think of anything that would be better in that regard, but maybe that's too specific a niche to garner a lot of interest.

 

There was no one thing, but a combination of various little things. For starters, I didn't love the action. It was certainly better than the super cheap ones, but it didn't click with me. I'm not sure by what definition it counts as "semi-weighted"; I would just describe it as a decent synth action. The EP sounds, which were the main attraction sound-wise, didn't measure up as well as I'd hoped, though that may be partly due to the action. While they're perfectly good, I just didn't connect with them the way I have with some other boards. And the effects turned out not to be as tweakable as I'd like, and the sounds not as easily customizable. With all those things together, I found the overall playing experience more limiting than I was happy with.

 

So instead I'm going with an SV-2. This purchase was a tossup between that and the Vox all along. I had hoped the more lightweight option would cut it, but I'd rather have something I enjoy playing more. And from what I can tell, the weight and the pitch bend lever are the only advantages the Vox offers. I went through several SV-1s over the years, and it seems like the SV-2 has addressed most of the "hate" portions of my longstanding love/hate relationship with it.

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Very true. It worked exactly the other way for me. When I read about it, I was pretty sure the new Vox wasn"t up my alley. After I ordered and played my first one, I ended owning (and loving) three of them. Never had this with any other board. I"ll cherish them until my dying days ;)

 

I realize in some social circles this may be considered rude, nonetheless I've taken the liberty of writing an epitaph for you:

 

 

Though some may have thought him quite mental

He thrice acquired the Continental

Now here he lies inside this box

Constructed of his beloved Vox

 

 

[note: the plural of Vox is still "Vox"?]

 

Love this. Though I"d need one more Vox (or even three) for that to work.

 

In the meantime, Vox rocks :)

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For starters, I didn't love the action. It was certainly better than the super cheap ones, but it didn't click with me. I'm not sure by what definition it counts as "semi-weighted"; I would just describe it as a decent synth action.

Understandable, it's still not a hammer action. I think it's probably about as good a non-hammer action as I've ever played (in terms of being usable for piano/EP), but I can also see where someone could look at that sentence as damning with faint praise. ;-) I'd be curious to know which if any non-hammer action you found to be noticeably better. But I could certainly understand why someone may prefer, say, the 24 lb PX5S... which besides the hammer action, also gives you the strong MIDI controller functions for getting your sounds from an iPad of whatever, if preferred.

 

And the effects turned out not to be as tweakable as I'd like
I assume you saw that the effect knobs have secondary functions if turned while holding down a button?

 

So instead I'm going with an SV-2. This purchase was a tossup between that and the Vox all along. I had hoped the more lightweight option would cut it, but I'd rather have something I enjoy playing more. And from what I can tell, the weight and the pitch bend lever are the only advantages the Vox offers.

Weight, pitch bend (also mod via an LED strip), the organ emulations, and the synth tweaking parameters (i.e. envelope and filter controls.). That said, as a >61 piano/EP focussed "bottom" (and occasional "only") board with enough other stuff to get you by, I tend to agree that the SV2 is the stronger board, if you can deal with the weight (or if it's for home/studio use and not really for portable use in the first place). And the organ and synth advantages of the Vox can probably be met or exceeded pretty easily by adding something to the SV2, anyway. To me the Vox is does pack a nice, usable punch into its small box, but there is little if anything it is really top notch at. Maybe the transistor organs? Not my area of expertise. Other than that, maybe it's top notch at being a compromise. ;-) The SV2 covers a bit less ground, but if you can deal with the weight and don't need the other organ/synth functionality to be in the board, I'd agree that the SV2 would be the more satisfying board to play.

Maybe this is the best place for a shameless plug! Our now not-so-new new video at https://youtu.be/3ZRC3b4p4EI is a 40 minute adaptation of T. S. Eliot's "Prufrock" - check it out! And hopefully I'll have something new here this year. ;-)

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I really wanted to like the SV2, but instantly returned to the Kronos-derived EPs in my Continental. Also, I consider the action too heavy for my EP blood. I do like the inclusion of speakers on the SV2S but the use of MDF plywood underneath is a definite no-no for me.
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I really wanted to like the SV2, but instantly returned to the Kronos-derived EPs in my Continental.

 

I can certainly understand that. I'm among the few people who preferred the SV-1 EPs to the Kronos ones. Of course I can't deny that the smoother velocity response of the ones in the Kronos makes them more realistic. Yet for reasons I can't defend or even really articulate, I never found them to be as much fun to play. And while I haven't played an SV-2 and am still unclear as to exactly what the differences are in the EPs between it and the SV-1, it seems that it has all the SV-1 sounds "plus" new and improved ones. So even if the new ones aren't to my liking, I'll still be happy playing the old ones again. The APs are clearly much improved, which wouldn't take much; at minimum, they no longer sound like a buzzy DX7 patch once the loop kicks in, like the ones in the SV-1 did. And with the additional synth sounds and split/layer capability, it will handily cover the vast majority of my non-organ needs. (And even the organs are good enough to pass the "get me through 'Any Way You Want It' on a cover band gig" test, which are all I require of them.)

 

In conclusion, I'm happy I got to spend time with the Vox, because if I hadn't I always would have wondered "What if...?" But I'm now confident in my choice going forward.

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Understandable, it's still not a hammer action. I think it's probably about as good a non-hammer action as I've ever played (in terms of being usable for piano/EP), but I can also see where someone could look at that sentence as damning with faint praise. ;-) I'd be curious to know which if any non-hammer action you found to be noticeably better.

 

I find the Mojo 61 action better for its EPs, though admittedly not by a huge amount.

 

To me the Vox is does pack a nice, usable punch into its small box, but there is little if anything it is really top notch at. Maybe the transistor organs? Not my area of expertise. Other than that, maybe it's top notch at being a compromise. ;-)

 

Funny, that's the way I've often described the much-maligned VR09; it may not be great at any one thing, but it's great at being good enough to get you through a lot of situations while weighing very little and taking up very little space. I'd have sold mine if I'd kept the Vox, but now I'll be hanging onto it for that reason.

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I think all the pros and cons raised in all the previous posts are valid points, as well as one"s decision to buy or not the board. But there is one point which speaks very much in favor of the Vox: its price, at least here in Europe. 1000 EUR for the 73 keys version, is definitely a no brainer. Best value for money among all the digital stage keyboards, in my opinion. All the things and quality you get for this money is simply incredible. I had the plan to buy the SV2 or the CP88 to replace my SV1. Of course the Corona crisis crashed this plan. Now I will continue with my SV1+SK1+Vox Conti rig, at least for 1 year and I think it"s ok. I can even use the iPad+Plugkey if I want a better AP, even though I"m still happy with the SV1 and now the Vox"s pianos. So let"s see what the future brings. But I"m definitely happy with the Vox!!

By the way, Fleer, I was wandering: what are you doing with 3 « Voxen »?? Just curious ð

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...The APs are clearly much improved, which wouldn't take much; at minimum, they no longer sound like a buzzy DX7 patch once the loop kicks in, like the ones in the SV-1 did...
Good to know! I actually liked the APs in the SV-1 better than the stock APs in my Kronos. I found them to be more "playable." IIRC, the SV-1 had it's own unique AP engine (i.e., not found in other Korgs). Not sure if this is true for the SV-2.

"We don't stop playing because we grow old; we grow old because we stop playing."

- George Bernard Shaw

 

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SV-2 has different engine from that in the Kronos. It's not SGX-2, it's EDS-X. SV-2 has this engine for everything, it's single-engine machine, unlike Kronos or Grandstage (I believe Vox is also multi-engine Kronos-based because it sounds like that).

I find pianos in SV-2 sounding more natural and woody, listening to demos, but maybe a little lower-fidelity. Those from Kronos have a bit of metallic character, you can hear a shade of M1 piano in them, just a little :)

Yamaha P-515, Korg SV-2 73, Kurzweil PC4-7

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For starters, I didn't love the action. It was certainly better than the super cheap ones, but it didn't click with me.

p.s. -- did you try adjusting the front panel Dynamics knob? It does make a difference, and it's kind of cool that you can easily turn it one way when you're playing rock with a band and the other when you want more subtle control over lower levels playing solo. I think it helps compensate for an inherent shortcoming of non-hammer actions.

 

I'm among the few people who preferred the SV-1 EPs to the Kronos ones.

Likewise. Though I'm not sure just how rare a breed we are!

 

I find the Mojo 61 action better for its EPs, though admittedly not by a huge amount.

Interesting. One more reason it could be nice to see a 7x-key Mojo + Gemini module combo.

 

maybe it's top notch at being a compromise. ;-)

Funny, that's the way I've often described the much-maligned VR09; it may not be great at any one thing, but it's great at being good enough to get you through a lot of situations while weighing very little and taking up very little space. I'd have sold mine if I'd kept the Vox, but now I'll be hanging onto it for that reason.

Yeah, I could see that. I did try and like a VR-09 but it had just a few too many gotcha's for me at the time... though really, the Vox has many of its own, and I think it's going to be a matter of which points are more crucial to someone. Not counting the sounds themselves (where I think each has some advantages over the other), these are the main differentiators to me:

 

* ACTION/PORTABILITY: Vox has 73 keys of a decently piano-playable action in an 18.5 lb box; but if you're okay with the less piano-friendly 61-keys of the VR-09, it has the advantage of being just 12.25 lbs, plus it can run on battery. (I haven't played a VR-730, but it's almost 22 lbs, with an action reportedly better than the VR09 but not as good as the Vox.) Of these two, as a "bottom" I'd choose the Vox 73 over having 61 keys or the VR09 action, but as a "top" I'd probably pick the VR-09.

 

* PATCH RECALL/INTERFACE: Vox lets you select 64 of your favorite sounds/setups (scenes) via front panel buttons or via MIDI; VR09 gives you just 16 button-recallable favorites (though 100 in total with scrolling) with no MIDI recall for them (though I believe MIDI can be used to call up individual sounds inside its subsections). An extra point for the Roland here is that those favorites (registrations) can include definable MIDI Program Changes, and I like that the Roland has a display that provides text information like names of sounds instead of just numbers. I guess I'd give the Roland the edge if you're using it for up to 16 sounds you want quick access to, the Vox if you need quick access to more.

 

* DRAWBAR CONTROL IMPLEMENTATION: the Vox LED strips reflect the current settings and are in the correct place for manipulation (and unlike a lot of clones, the VR09 has no "live drawbar" setting, so getting your drawbars in sync to your playing can mean having to move all 9 of them); and manipulating those drawbar settings sends MIDI CC on the Vox instead of sysex as on the Roland. The Roland drawbars may be easier to accurately manipulate, though (despite being kind of mini-sized). Roland also provides direct access to every percussion and CV permutation. I'm not sure yet who has the edge here... though if you want to get your organ sound from something like B3X on an iPad, I think the advantage may end up going to the Vox.

 

* EDITING: the Roland has the advantage here by virtue of having a fully editable VA synth (albeit via iPad app), and although "unofficially," even more customizability through Frank's CTRLR editor, which I'd like to look into some more myself. So I'd say the Roland wins on total sonic versatility here.

 

I actually liked the APs in the SV-1 better than the stock APs in my Kronos. I found them to be more "playable." IIRC, the SV-1 had it's own unique AP engine (i.e., not found in other Korgs). Not sure if this is true for the SV-2.
I believe the SV-2 engine is identical to the SV-1 engine, albeit with a lot more wave data to play with. I think the engine is shared with Korg's arrangers, though may not be identical in all respects.

Maybe this is the best place for a shameless plug! Our now not-so-new new video at https://youtu.be/3ZRC3b4p4EI is a 40 minute adaptation of T. S. Eliot's "Prufrock" - check it out! And hopefully I'll have something new here this year. ;-)

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