Korg Keystage

[DeltaJockey]

On 3/20/2024 at 2:15 AM, Paul Woodward said:

Korg confirmed that 'the MIDI data received through the MIDI In port cannot be sent to the USB MIDI Out or MIDI Out port (ie 5 pin DIN). The MIDI In port is primarily for bidirectional communication with MIDI 2.0 devices.'

Note its says 'primarily' but they offer absoutely no other use for it and nothing to say it can't be routed that way in a firmware update,especially if Roland can activate the audio interface on the new RD-08 at the drop of some dollar 😉 

On a more positive note, I tried the Keystage with Gadget (MAc and IOS) and its nice how you can change tracks, see them in the OLED display and that the main 8 dials are automatically mapped to key parameters/knobs in the each relevant gadget. I had played with the idea of using Gadget as a multitimbral unit rather than Korg Module and I can see how this might work now.

Also impressed how many gadgets you actually get in the 'producer' bundle. I think there are only 5 missing from the full set leaving quite a few gadgets (and more than the IOS version I think). Great that they are also added to Logic Pro as plug ins. Some of these are £10-15 each on IOS!

Thats a £300 piece of software and Wavestate another £200 which almost covers the cost of the board. Yes, somewhat limited versions, but not enough to make them useless and more than I need from them. A few Acoustic Audio Solutions plug ins offered as well.

Definitely having fun with it and the polytouch in Animoog Z is great.

I haven't bothered to get the producer bundle because I don't have an iPad anymore, but maybe I should look at it for my iPhone15ProMax. Have plenty of room for it on the phone, and with the USB C connection, I don't even need the adapter anymore. I could download and try it at least. I don't really have much use for it, or time to use it, but you never know.🤩

[Paul Woodward]

Just now, DeltaJockey said:

I haven't bothered to get the producer bundle because I don't have an iPad anymore, but maybe I should look at it for my iPhone15ProMax. Have plenty of room for it on the phone, and with the USB C connection, I don't even need the adapter anymore. I could download and try it at least. I don't really have much use for it, or time to use it, but you never know.🤩

I believe the producer bundle stuff is all mac based (maybe also windows?). They just link you to Gadget LE for iPad 

[DeltaJockey]

Just now, Paul Woodward said:

I believe the producer bundle stuff is all mac based (maybe also windows?). They just link you to Gadget LE for iPad 

Oh. I have the Legacy stuff, and did peruse the Producer bundle, but didn't properly absorb the info. It gets  a bit overwhelming with all the different versions of software for different levels of bundle/purchase etc. I'll have another look. But I could try the Gadget LE stuff on my iPhone, seeing it's an ios device.

[Paul Woodward]

Well, quick card model says it should work 🙂

[DeltaJockey]

Maybe you could buy another Keystage shelf, and just cut the tabs off to use!🤣........Just kidding!

 

I downloaded and installed Gadget 2 Le on my Mac. Seems good. But, oh great! another bunch of synths I've got to find time to play with 🤔

 

I've also downloaded it for my phone, and realised I must have already got it at some stage, as it was a cloud download. I think I must have tried it with a Korg Microkey 61 Air I purchased a few years back. I remember some of the plugins are only active when the authorised hardware is plugged into the ios device.

The Korg module piano is the thing which most interests me on the Keystage. A way of having quite a good piano sound without using a full computer.

[Paul Woodward]

Gadget Producer Bundle gives you 40 of the 45 'gadgets' of the £299 version and lots of those pop up in Logic which is great.

Wavestate Native is also pretty awesome with much of what you need from the £199 version to make noises. A decent bundle really.

Module is my go to for 'performing' sounds. I have the Ivory expansion and the Scarbee EP. Both play very well especially if you disable Bluetooth and Wifi on the iPad to reduce any lag.

Im really hoping Korg will update Module now the Keystage is out. We need more sounds, midi 2.0 like Gadget has, drawbars on (and better) organs, additional splits/layers and some sounds with aftertouch response. Otherwise Module and Keystage paired feels like a bit of a dud.

[DeltaJockey]

2 minutes ago, Paul Woodward said:

Gadget Producer Bundle gives you 40 of the 45 'gadgets' of the £299 version and lots of those pop up in Logic which is great.

Wavestate Native is also pretty awesome.

Module is my go to for 'performing' sounds. I have the Ivory expansion and the Scarbee EP. Both play very well especially if you disable Bluetooth and Wifi on the iPad to reduce any lag.

Im really hoping Korg will update Module now the Keystage is out. We need more sounds, midi 2.0 like Gadget has, drawbars on (and better) organs, additional splits/layers and some sounds with aftertouch response. Otherwise Module and Keystage paired feels like a bit of a dud.

Logic is my primary DAW, but I only occasionally use the built in synths. That's nice that some of them are the same as Gadget. I'm a heavy user mainly of the audio path plugins, EQ's, Space designer etc. as the vst's I mainly use are my more expensive purchased third party stuff. You might remember I had been using Wavestate and changed to the LE version when I bought the Keystage.

[Paul Woodward]

Firmware update 1.05 released recently for anyone with this board. For a minute I thought they had removed the ability to power up over lightning cable, but it’s still there.

[DeltaJockey]

Interestingly, I plugged my iPhone 15promax with a usbC to usbB cable directly into the Keystage, and my phone directly powered it no problems.

Playing the Korg Module piano, and using headphones directly out of the Keystage audio interface, battery drain was incredibly sustainable.

Only saw a couple of percent battery drain in about 10 mins. Amazing to get such sound quality, keybed playability and functionality in such a minimalist rig!

 

[Paul Woodward]

Indeed, it's an undocumented bonus and, with WiFi and BT off on my Ipad 9, it's no different from playing a dedicated board. This is why I wish Korg would update and expand Module. It's pitched, like the Keystage, as the perfect setup for rehearsals, practice, gigging and studio, but it's a long way off being perfect for some of those. When released, Module was great, it just hasn't advanced much. Keystage deserves a bit more from Korg to 'showcase' what it can do.

[Paul Woodward]

On a different note, I read somewhere that the end cheeks were a cheap laminate. Probably just someone being negative, but they are solid wood.

[DeltaJockey]

18 hours ago, Paul Woodward said:

On a different note, I read somewhere that the end cheeks were a cheap laminate. Probably just someone being negative, but they are solid wood.

Could have fooled me. I thought they were wood with the convincing grain, then I touched them and they felt like good quality plastic, and now they seem to be wood. In any case, they are nicely finished. The wood must be very highly polished and have a polyester finish.

[DeltaJockey]

On a different different note.

I wonder if I have found a new bug in the latest firmware update? Or was it there before, and I didn't notice?

I have a Korg DS1H damper plugged in, and I noticed when I sustain, say a few piano notes while doing an octave transpose, letting off the damper doesn't release the existing notes, even if they are notes around C4 which doesn't scale off the end of the keyboard. Perhaps other short actions do this? I've not had occasion to notice.  I generally have no reason to do this on my 88 weighted actions, so have nothing to compare to.

 

...maybe they have inadvertently introduced the sostenuto function into the firmware update🤔

[Paul Woodward]

 

2 hours ago, DeltaJockey said:

Could have fooled me. I thought they were wood with the convincing grain, then I touched them and they felt like good quality plastic, and now they seem to be wood. In any case, they are nicely finished. The wood must be very highly polished and have a polyester finish.

Grain is too well matched for a laminate so I guess it's just a glossy finish.

[Paul Woodward]

4 hours ago, DeltaJockey said:

On a different different note.

I wonder if I have found a new bug in the latest firmware update? Or was it there before, and I didn't notice?

I have a Korg DS1H damper plugged in, and I noticed when I sustain, say a few piano notes while doing an octave transpose, letting off the damper doesn't release the existing notes, even if they are notes around C4 which doesn't scale off the end of the keyboard. Perhaps other short actions do this? I've not had occasion to notice.  I generally have no reason to do this on my 88 weighted actions, so have nothing to compare to.

 

...maybe they have inadvertently introduced the sostenuto function into the firmware update🤔

I use the same pedal and played the new Oasys piano and some others in Module. Never noticed anything out of the ordinary...but then again, didn't try switching octaves.