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new Vox Continental - Some thoughts


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Hello @all and thanks for the warm welcome! :) ð

 

@Morrissey: hehe, yeah this is a little strange genre, but when we get some songs presentable, I will drop a link! :)

@ Doerfler: Thanks! :)

@ AnotherScott: oh, a big update is brewing? Damn, I already liked the first one, when they changed for example the volume output I think, which already improved the instrument. (I had do turn the volume nearly complete up, when I was using my headphones, in comparison the Nord or Vox are completely fine at 50% Volume)

I think I should also investigate the YC Thread... ;)

@ stoken6: yes! It's always a lot of fun to play!

@Fleer: Thanks and lets rock! :)

 

 

By the Way, the free space next to the controls on the right of the front panel is - as you guys already found out - perfect for an iPad with the magnetic case, I always use it as a free note stand, which saves time an money but is already someone using this space for a module or expander?

I think this might also be a good addition, especially with the nice keybed.

 

Greetings,

 

Hendrik

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By the Way, the free space next to the controls on the right of the front panel is - as you guys already found out - perfect for an iPad with the magnetic case, I always use it as a free note stand, which saves time an money but is already someone using this space for a module or expander?

 

My Neo Instruments Ventilator II lives there. :cool:

:nopity:
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  • 5 months later...
Still thinking about the Konti 73 for a second keyboard. The EPs and the keybed are the 2 main attractions and as a lower manual for VB3/B-3X and a few other plugs. Not ready to buy one yet but there are none for sale in the UK at the moment anyway. It's still listed on the Korg/Vox websites though so maybe it's just a supply problem. Korg keys usually have a long shelf life so I would be surprised if it's been discontinued. Could there be a V2 on the way?
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I would also be surprised that it's discontinued, as it was only release in 2017, so not too long ago from Korg's usual shelf life perspective... In Germany, it looks that they are also out of stock, but I guess it's due to the supply shortage of many components at the moment. So just be patient if you want to grab one ;-)
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Vox Continental is being displayed on the Korg website in the Product Archives section.

 

As is the Grandstage.

Not yet in the U.S., where are they both still shown on the active product page (see the "stage keyboards" section at https://www.korg.com/us/products/synthesizers/ ) and not appearing on the Product Archives page ( https://www.korg.com/us/products/archives/ ) - But that said, Grandstage is indeed listed as "no longer available" on Sweetwater, so I guess it's just a matter of time. Grandstage did get a bit squeezed from newer releases, between the SV2 nipping at it from one side and the Nautilus from the other. Sweetwater is still showing the Vox, we'll see for how long. Despite some significant limitations, it's such an interesting, unique board, that I hope they might be working on a replacement for it rather than abandoning it completely. Unlike Grandstage, it doesn't really overlap much with any other Korg offering.

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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On the German and French sites, it is also still shown in the active product page. Looks like something is happening in the UK. Brexit effect ð±? For me, the Vox doesn"t need replacement, it is perfect as it is ð ( maybe independant octave setting on splits would be good, but I don"t care so much ð)
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  • 3 weeks later...
Update - pretty sure it is discontinued in the UK and probably Europe. It is still showing up on the US site, maybe they will wait until the big stores shift their stock. Bax Shop says discontinued and Thomann says "Delivery date unknown". Korg UK aren't expecting any more stock. So will a V2 appear next year? That's a much faster update cycle than the SV, but that was a much more popular board.
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I'm not optimistic. In general, Korg has introduced new versions of a keyboard before the previous versions became totally unavailable. e.g. SV1, Kross 1, Krome pre-EX, earlier versions of Kronos, were all available or shown as current boards right up until and even overlapping with the announcements of their updated replacements, IIRC. I can't think of any examples to the contrary. So the lack of even an announcement makes me think no replacement model is imminent. But especially with supply chain issues being what they are, I suppose there's some additional chance that a version 2 is coming despite the fact that they seem to be running out of the original.

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 would actually doubt they would ever bring a version 2, given the fact they have been selling the original at low low prices for years now. There simply isn"t a market for another go. I"m thinking it was a one off, and a great one at that. Get them, or three, while you can.
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I'm not optimistic. In general, Korg has introduced new versions of a keyboard before the previous versions became totally unavailable. e.g. SV1, Kross 1, Krome pre-EX, earlier versions of Kronos, were all available or shown as current boards right up until and even overlapping with the announcements of their updated replacements, IIRC. I can't think of any examples to the contrary. So the lack of even an announcement makes me think no replacement model is imminent. But especially with supply chain issues being what they are, I suppose there's some additional chance that a version 2 is coming despite the fact that they seem to be running out of the original.

 

I would actually doubt they would ever bring a version 2, given the fact they have been selling the original at low low prices for years now. There simply isn"t a market for another go. I"m thinking it was a one off, and a great one at that. Get them, or three, while you can.

 

I reckon you are probably both right. There's a chance Music Store in Germany might get the last ones - website says "Ordered, estimated to be in stock: Dec 14, 2021"

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  • 3 weeks later...

And here we go again with Korg's repacking commercial strategies :crazy:

 

https://www.korg.com/us/products/synthesizers/voxcontinental_73bk/

 

I guess this answers all the questions related to the availability in some regions...

 

Well personally, I prefer the classic Vox scarlet colortone :-) The wooden side panels are nice though.

 

Anyway, I wish they would have also used this opportunity to bring some OS improvements, or new sounds also to the current version. Guess it's too much to ask for :tired:

 

One thing which attracted my attention is that apparently now it is possible to save the EQ setting in a scene, which is nice.

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Looks very nice but I would rather expect reversed colors keyboard version. Maybe in next four years :D or original Vox anniversary edition.

I think they want to get attention of players who don't like red colour.

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

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Looks good. Never figured out if the internal CX3 is identical in terms of sound of the actual Digital CX3 Clonewheel organ or not (same thing with the Kronos CX3).

My drawbars go to eleven.

Gear: Roland VR-09, Nord Electro 2 61, Korg CX-3. Hear my music: facebook.com/smokestoneband

 

 

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I think they want to get attention of players who don't like red colour.

Yes. It would certainly get my attention and could be my excuse to get an organ-centric KB. :D:cool:

PD

 

"The greatest thing you'll ever learn, is just to love and be loved in return."--E. Ahbez "Nature Boy"

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From the product page:

 

"The third stage includes a nine-band EQ that can be set using the touch controller. The final stage features a valve drive circuit with Nutube. All of these settings can all be saved to the scene memory."

 

On the original with the 2.0 update scene memory does NOT store the EQ setting or the valve setting (or the 'dynamics' knob setting). Maybe there will be an OS update soon for the original as this seems to be the only non-cosmetic change, if the information is accurate.

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

 

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Interesting that they spun up production again. I would have bet against that given disappointing sales.

 

Two critical needs imo: expression control and octave shift independent per part. Without those, it's an enthusiast's instrument.

Gigging: Crumar Mojo 61, Hammond SKPro

Home: Vintage Vibe 64

 

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Interesting that they spun up production again. I would have bet against that given disappointing sales.

 

Two critical needs imo: expression control and octave shift independent per part. Without those, it's an enthusiast's instrument.

 

Exactly. Individual octave shift is critical thing.

I wouldn't be surprised if Grandstage was slower seller than Vox Continental. Only Korg knows.

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

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The wooden side panels are removable.

 

Also, it looks like it includes the sustain pedal, or comes in a 61-key version.

 

To me, the black might better communicate that it's a general purpose keyboard, the orange may have made it seem to be that much more of a "mostly organ" board which, as many of us have found, isn't necessarily the best way to see it... if the orange may have stopped someone looking for something more general purpose from paying it as much attention as they otherwise might, so the change could be a positive there. (Though I don't know if the color really called out "organ" so much to people not familiar with the old Vox organs anyway?) A downside of black, as always, is that it will be harder to see the controls on dark stages.

 

My favorite thing about it is just seeing that the platform isn't dead, which also means we may yet see some more software updates, which hopefully would be compatible with the earlier model as well.

 

With Korg being so big in app development these days, I think one thing VC could really use is an iPhone/Android app to aid patch selection, if it's possible for the board itself to support it. Not that I'd necessarily want to use an app for actual patch selection or other manipulations, since so much of the appeal of the board is how you interact with its physical controls anyway, but it would be great to at least have some more visual feedback. So for example, when you're hitting the up-down Variation buttons to navigate the 9 pianos/EPs of the current category, I'd like to be able to use the smartphone to display the names of the 9 sounds, with a highlight on the one that is currently selected. (I could also imagine it letting the user "dim" the names of your less commonly used sounds, to make it easier to quickly see the ones you most care about being able to get to, leaving the display of "favorites" more prominent.) Similarly, when selecting a Scene, it would be nice for the phone's screen to confirm the (user-provided) name of the Scene you've selected, that kind of thing. Being able to scroll through this stuff on-screen and select from the phone itself would be nice as well, people may prefer to do it that way sometimes, but either way, some visual confirmation of the sound you're on/selecting would be useful.

 

And to repeat what I think was my first critique of the board, to make it a better organ, I still would wish for being able to select any percussion setting and any CV setting while on any of the CX3 sounds (i.e. holding down PERC while hitting the adjacent Variation up-down would let you cycle through the eight possible 2nd/3rd, level, and decay options; holding down VIB/CHORUS while hitting the Variation button would let you cycle through the six possible V/C options). Though also, the Kronos has about 70 stock CX3 sounds (just different settings of the various underlying parameters), it would be nice if all or most of them were available in the CX3 section of the Vox, too. If the concern is that it's too many to scroll through, maybe they could be selectively loaded in (or re-ordered) via an app as well. (And maybe a Kronos/Nautilus owner could load in his own customized CX3 settings, too?)

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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 think it looks great in black. Has way more vibe than the Nautilus 73k - now it just needs all the engines.

I am curious if they share the same action, or of the Nautilus 73k has a quality semiweight like you get on the Kronos 61 or Yamaha Montage.

 

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Yamaha CP88, Casio PX-560

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I like the action on the Kronos 61, but other than the lack of AT, I prefer the action of the Vox.

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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