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Hello everybody, Cyphers here, welcome to this video review.
I'll try, in one hour, to present to you a instrument Rack Extension.
For French speaking people, you can find a segmented playlist on my channel,
otherwise, this one-hour version has CC.
At first, I wanted to review the Korg Polysix RE,
released a year ago,
but recently,
the Korg Mono/Poly appeared so I found it obvious to show this one first.
I'll probably show the Polysix another day !
Buckle up and see you on the other side !
Part 1 - Korg's history
Everybody knows - I hope ! - the Japanese company, Korg,
synths, numerical pianos and other musical products manufacturer.
In Reason, Korg is known only through its previous RE, Polysix,
converted from the VST plug-in, released in 2004,
part of the "Legacy Collection" bundle.
This VST emulates the well-known orignal Polysix,
an analog synth from 1981.
So, to begin, let's rapidly review Korg's history...
The story begins in 1962, with the encounter of
Tsutomu Kato, club owner, and Tadashi Osanai, musician.
The two men discussed about the rhythm machine Osanai used...
Osanai was also an engineer from Tokyo's university
convinced Kato to give money for his project to build a new rhythm machine.
That's how we found, one year later, the Doncamatic DA-20,
first product from "Keio Electronic Laboratories" and not "Korg",
name that'll appear 10 years later.
The little company kept going, and began to build new instruments,
like electronic organs.
Take the "K" out of "Keio" and the "Org" out of "organ" ("orgue" in French),
combine them and you get the "Korgue" organ in 1972.
The name stayed, and in 1973, we found the first synth under this name,
the MiniKorg700, monophonic, single oscillator.
Korg continued on his way, built some synths,
to arrive in 1977-1978
with two synth ranges, still famous today...
The "PS" series on one hand : PS-3100, PS-3200 & PS-3300,
first Korg's polyphonic synths, with an ARP-2600ish design.
On the other hand, the "MS" series, monophonic synths with
the MS-10 and the very famous MS-20.
The same year, we also discovered the first Korg vocoder,
the VC-10, 20 bands polyphonic vocoder.
But, in the USA, Oberheim and Sequential Circuits - among others - worked hard...
1978 was the release year of the famous Prophet 5,
5 polyphonic voices, easy-to-use, presets memory...
and the beginning of the "OB" series, which led us to
the OB-Xa in 1980,
made famous by Van Halen in "Jump".
But, even if their price was way under the $7000 Yamaha CS-80,
they were sold for over $ 4000 !!!
All of this forces Korg to work on a good affordable polyphonic synth,
so we discovered the Polysix, in 1981,
beating his fellow - Prophet 5 - with an additional polyphonic voice,
and on the street for less than $2000 !
That makes the Polysix the first synth of this category under the $2000 limit !
Note that the two main designers of this synth founded Zoom,
a Japanese company known for its mobile recording devices and guitar FX.
With over 20,000 sales, Polysix allows Korg to overtake it's forever rival, Roland,
in spite of their Juno-6, released almost at the same time !
But before Polysix, Korg experimented a lot,
which led to the Mono/Poly, a kind of unique synth,
not really polyphonic but not only monophonic...
Indeed, it's 4 oscillators share the same filter and the same amplifier - also it's main flaw.
But it's arpeggiator and desyncable oscillators make it very attractive even today !
At the time of the release, it was a very interesting alternative to
the MiniMoog, thanks to it's very stable oscillators,
it's extended modulation possibilities and it's "almost-polyphony".
For today's subject, we don't need to go further,
but obviously, the story doesn't end here.
We can find the M1, in the late 80's,
over the Roland D-50 or the Yamaha DX-7,
a little revolution at the time being as it was the first workstation ever !
Korg striked again 10 years later with
the well known Triton and it's later variations,
still viewed today as THE best seller ever in 50 years of Korg.
We can't forget the Kaoss Pad, the Electribe series...
In 2001, one of Tadashi Osanai's last works,
before his passing in 2011,
the Karma.
We can also notify the Oasys in 2005,
the Radias in 2006,
the M3 in 2007,
the MicroKorg XL in 2009, revisiting the MicroKorg from 2002,
the MonoTron in 2010,
the Kronos in 2011
and the Krome in 2012.
Recently, analog was reborn with the MS-20 Mini and the KingKorg...
Who knows what Korg has for us in the future ??
Part 2 - Mono/Poly RE
Mono/Poly RE is a new instrument module, released in June 2013
one year after it's little brother, Polysix RE.
Mono/Poly and Polysix are the less expensive instrument RE of the Shop.
Each one costs 39€/
Part 3 - GUI
We can't help it, we have to compare VST and RE editions !
That's what we're going to do, and also see major differences to the original hardware synth.
Here it is, Mono/Poly RE, dressed in blue, like Polysix RE,
as the two original synths had a similar design in the 80's.
A little deception : the GUi isn't pristine clear, SDK RE is quite limited,
so we have muddy little fonts, not pristine clear on the screen.
I think the not so bright grayish white is guilty.
The brighter white on the VST edition is more readable.
In fact, all colors are quite dull.
Furthermore, a grainy texture was added, not very helping I think.
But that's little childish details.
At first, VST users will be puzzled for a while, as some elements moved/changed.
The arpeggiator...
Key assign / voices section...
and LFOs.
But globally, main section (Osc, filter & envelopes) didn't move.
The FX section on the VST, was totally removed,
leaving room to expand the Virtual Patch window.
It became more convenient.
Where we had a double-page tiny screen, we have now a one-eye-on-everything window,
allowing us to see every modulation parameter, similar to Thor's matrix.
In Key Assign section, the "Chord memory" function disappeared,
easily explained by the possibility to use CV modules like AutoArp, or even the sequencer.
In essence, this function was useful on the standalone VST version.
To sum up, we have, like the 80's original,
a synth with 4 oscillators and a white noise generator sharing the same filter,
and 2 envelope generators (filter & amp).
Oscillators allow 4 waveforms : triangle, sawtooth, square and pulse width modulation (PWM).
Square width is set by a rotary encoder (set to 50%, we have a pure square wave).
PWM is modulated by LFOs or envelope. We'll get back to it.
We have, on hardware, VST or RE versions, 2 LFOs, called MG1 & MG2 for "modulation generators.
The arpeggiator, controlled by MG2, is quite easy-to-use.
Just remember that "up-down" mode repeats extreme notes.
The section called "FX" in 1981, became "VCO modulation" but is strictly identical,
we find X-Mod, Osc Sync & Frequency modulation.
So we have all elements from 1981 synth, and a little more : Virtual Patch.
In a way, the RE version is more faithful to the original, we don't have the "FX" section, added in the VST.
The Virtual Patch section offers great modulation possibilities,
and we didn't talk about the CV inputs at the back.
But we can cry here, because we have no CV outs !!
Another difference, not on the original but already added in the VST :
Sample & Hold setting on LFOs,
and "Random" setting on the arpeggiator.
Thanks to the Virtual Patch section, we have no less than 159 modulation sources,
that can affect 35 different parameters !
And we touch here a recurrent problem for me in Reason : vertical lists...
As you can see, all of the 159 sources obviously can't be seen at the same time.
And here is the catch : can't see the down arrow !
Taskbar on the top of the screen is guilty !! The wheel is useless here, I must move my taskbar aside or move my Reason window on my second screen.
It would have been far more convenient to use a cascade menu like on the VST !
Part 4 - What's inside ?
We have little presets on the RE, VST is richer (256 patches).
Indeed, RE version has half less patches, 128, including initial patch, drown from the VST.
For Polysix RE, we had every preset from the VST (but it has only 92).
But, as we'll see later, it's understandable : with FX section gone, some patches became pointless.
We can still regret Korg's easy way to reuse presets instead of creating new ones.
Even the Korg aficionado I am can see that : Korg likes to reuse patches through years and synthesizers !
Happily, unlike Polysix RE, patches on the Mono/Poly, are filed in category folders, like the VST :
Arp, Bell, Keys, Strings, Pads, Motion, Drum...
But... some patches are not filed in the same category in the VST and in the RE !
A little thing, but annoying for VST hard users !
Let's dive deeper and analyze the sound !
Again, a little difference between VST and RE :
VST offers many initial patches, but Reason, only one.
It's a shame, these patches add great pedagogical value for sound synthesis beginners.
Part 5 - Oscillators and filter
Here we are, in a Rewire situation with Steinberg V-Stack, Voxengo SPAN and SM-exoscope on the left, to analyze Mono/Poly sound.
Let's see and hear main section, Oscillators !
Mono/Poly offers 4 independent (no tune sync) oscillators.
There is a Master Tune, but each osc can be fine tuned.
There also is a quick function to detune osc 2, 3 & 4.
As I said earlier, we have multiple waveforms :
first one is classic triangle.
Here, only Osc 1 is on, filter is fully open (& no modulation), no sound treatment afterwards : no insert/send, no mastering.
That's a beautiful triangle wave !
Don't be surprised to see moving rotaries, my master keyboard is mapped to some on them !
Let's hear sawtooth wave....
Obviously, a little more aggressive, and richer concerning harmonics, than soft triangle. No surprise here.
Then, not PWM but simpler, pulse wave (square).
It's a square wave which width can be set with this controller.
0 or 10, no sound, but it's normal, let's see why.
At 50 % (5), we obtain a pure square wave.
We have here a beautiful wave, with equal width for both phases.
Let's see know what happens if we change this width. We'll start by diminishing it.
A 0, nothing, but just a little before, we still hear something.
Let's go the other way now, the other phase of the wave is no affected.
Pulse wave, done ! Let's jump to pulse width modulation.
We find a similar principle,
with a 0 intensity modulation, we obtain a pure square wave.
We can apply a variation on this width, the same way we changed it by using the "Width" *** previously.
but here, instead of doing it manually, I can ask a LFO or the filter envelope to do so !
With the LFO 1, which rate can be seen thanks to this LED.
I apply some modulation intensity.
We already see - and hear - an oscillation.
We easily see the variation of the width, according to the LFO curve.
Here, it's a triangle wave.
Indeed, Mono/Poly LFOs have multiple waveforms :
triangle, saw, inverted saw, square and sample & hold (S&H).
Let's try to change this waveform and hear the result !
Here's the saw wave, we could trace the saw above the scope, showing a spike and a "fade out".
The inverted phenomena exists, a "fade in" followed by a immediate drop.
and finally the square, we'll see the S&H later.
By this PWM, we can obtain radical FX,specially with the square wave.
Now that we saw all oscillators' waves, let's review their tuning.
As I said before, each oscillator has a fine tune.
At first, by semitones, -24 to +24, otherwise stated -2 octaves and +2 octaves.
And for oscillators 2 to 4, we have a 1 tone wide control (-1/2 to + 1/2 tone).
Here we find a "Detune" ***, which gives that effect (see the scopes and use your ears !) :
At 0, that effect disappears.
This global detune has a 1/4 tone wide effect.
Let's see how this "Detune" affects the oscillators.
On the VCO 1, nothing,
we heard just before that it can lower the osc 2 by 1/4 tone.
On VCO 3, nothing.
Let's hear VCO 4.
It shifts the frequency 1/4 tone above.
As you must have understood, "Detune" allows to desynchronize VCO 2 and 4 without modifying VCO 1 & 3.
But VCO 3 can be modified through it's "Fine Tune".
With these functions, we can create a kinda crazy sound !
You might have realized that all that we just saw don't concern VCO 1.
That's when the "Master Tune" *** shows up !
It allows to tune not only one VCO but the whole synth, including VCO 1.
This *** will be useful to tune with samples or acoustic instruments in your rack.
Done with oscillators, let's switch to "Key Assign & Voices" section.
Mono/Poly RE allows a 128 voices polyphony,
but... as I don't have 128 fingers, I won't show it here, obviously !
In "Key Assign", the "Poly" function
switches the polyphony on, with a fixed number of voices, showed in the this LCD screen.
If I choose one voice, I might be in "Poly" mode, I'll hear one note at a time.
Mmm... when Mono/Poly turns into a 8-bit console...
Then, we have "Unisson", a monophonic mode, but slightly different from "one-voice-polyphony" :
One-note-polyphony : each note simply cancels the previous one.
Unisson : the last note played interrupts the previous one,
but if it's released, the previous note is still playing (if it is still played of course).
The last mode, "Original" on the VST & RE, was called "Unisson Share" on the real thing in 1981.
It refers to a "pseudo-polyphony",
which uses the 4 VCO in a special way.
Let's hear that :
Here, in "Unisson" mode, with 16 voices, no VCO is mute,
I play a C.
The VCO 1 led lights up.
I add a Eb, VCO 2 speaks.
I can be stopped, I'll add a G ! You got it ?
VCO 3 shows up !
Let's finish the chord with a C, VCO 4 starts !
Now, I release the Eb : VCO 2 stops !
So, we have a kind of polyphony, with 4 voices at best.
Let's try C, D, E, F.
If I add a G,
VCO 1 leaves C to play G.
And so on, each VCO one by one !
This "original" mode is much more obvious when we use the arpeggiator.
As showed here, arp is controlled by LFO 2.
So I'll set the LFO 2 rate to set the arp speed.
With the leds, you can see a cycle between VCOs.
With a chord :
we can see that VCOs are playing independently,
each one assigned to one note.
We can make it more obvious by setting each VCO on a different WF :
"Key assign" ? Done ! Let's dissect the "Voices" section !
We'll begin by hearing the "Unisson" effect.
You just heard every function : "Detune", "Spread Stereo" and "Analog" (emulating the instability of a real analog VCO).
With "Unisson", one can obtain a gigantic sound without touching the VCO detune.
SO we have 2 detune : one in the unisson effect, and one in the VCO section.
And why not, while we're at it, let's change fine tunes !
Yes, my home-studio is invaded by bees swarms !
It also reminds me of the vuvuzelas that we heard during the soccer world wide cup in 2010...
What do you said if we take a look at the filter and it's envelope ?
Here, a completely open filter with no resonance.
There are two more controls, one we can often find, the "Keyboard tracking",
allowing to open the filter according to the note's pitch :
the higher the note, the more opened the filter !
Well.... you heard a wonderful "Analog" option... that I didn't turn off : one can say that keyboard is out of tune.
If I turn it off, we find our perfectly tune keyboard !
Back to the filter... the last *** sets the amount of envelope (VCF EG just below) modifying the filter.
All values above 0 will open the filter, all values below will close it.
The more we tend towards +5 or -5, the more the effect is heard : wider and quicker effect.
We try it ?
Let's set a VCF EG : a long attack, we don't touch decay, sustain and release.
On the filter, we adjust some settings to hear the effect.
We clearly heard the filter opening.
And here, the filter closing itself.
With extreme values, this effect is more intense.
With high resonance values, the Mono/Poly's filter is self oscillating.
To hear it, I set a maximum resonance and I mute all VCOs.
We heard a sine wave, the cutoff allows to tune this pseudo-oscillator, here it's already tuned to VCOs.
With no "Keyboard track", no matter the note you play, it's always the same note.
But with a 100% value, we can ear the "normal" scale again.
We're done with the filter and it's envelope generator.
I won't detail the "Amp EG" here, as it's a very common function on Reason's synth and many times described !
Only 3 controls left !!
Two are classic ones : the intensity of the pitch bend wheel (-24 to +24 semitones),
and the portamento intensity/speed.
The very last control is the noise generator.
It's a white noise, no color selector on the Mono/Poly,
and this *** simply sets the volume of the noise.
Part 6 : Arpeggiator, VCO Mod & Virtual Patch.
I used it a while ago but didn't talk about it.
The arpeggiator has 4 modes :
Up, Down, Up/Down (with extreme notes repetition) and random.
The arp range is set here : 1 octave (default), 2 octaves and the whole keyboard.
There's a "Latch" mode, allowing to maintain the last played chord without holding the keys.
Let's use all of this !
A latch function exists without the Arp, it's the "Hold" button in the "Key assign" section.
Let's take a look at the "VCO Modulation" section, called "Effects" on the 1981 synth.
It's THE section of the M/P, the one that makes it unique !
This section is made of : Osc Sync (or hard sync), the Cross Modulation (X-Mod) and the Frequency Modulation.
I begin with Osc Sync, using VCOs 1 & 2.
As you can hear it, I can't sets the VCO 2 pitch, it's locked to the VCO. I can only have harmonics multiples.
Note that "Fine tune" and "Detune" are not working when osc sync is on.
In "Single mode", VCO 2, 3 & 4 will be synced to VCO 1.
We heard here, for VCO 3 & 4, the same thing we heard for VCO 2.
In "Double" mode, VCO 2 syncs to VCO 1 as before,
but VCO 4 is now synced to VCO 3, which is not synced to VCO 1.
So we have two independent couples, VCO 1 + 2 and VCO 3 + 4.
This mode selector works not only for osc sync, but also for X-Mod and Freq Mod.
Cross Modulation (X-Mod) is a FM synthesis cousin,
but, I must say ; many forums on the web are still trying to clearly differentiate the one from the other !
And misused terms are not facilitating the process !
X-Mod is in fact an early manifestation of what Yamaha will later call FM-synthesis on the DX-7.
The principle : use an oscillator's signal to modulate an other oscillator.
But X-Mod and FM-synthesis could easily require an entire tutorial...
So I won't go further down this path !
I just found work for my colleague Franco La Muerte, a sound synthesis aficionado !
Let's try X-Mod on the initial patch.
As you can hear, X-Mod is not very musical, pleasant...
That's why we have, on this selector, the "X-Mod + Sync" option.
This allows to obtain a much more pleasant sound while using the X-Mod.
The frequency modulation is a other mean to give life to a sound
which changes the frequencies of VCO 2, 3 & 4.
With simple X-Mod, the pitch will change,
but with X-Mod + Osc Sync or simply Osc Sync, the timbre will vary.
The "Bipolar" mode, indicated by this LED,
changes the frequency modulation behavior : only above the osc frequency or above and below.
Let's see that !
In bipolar mode, the modulation is done above and below the note's frequency.
In "unipolar" mode, the modulation is occurring only above the given frequency.
We then obtain a police-siren-like effect.
The "Virtual patch" section allows us to affect modulation sources to given parameters and then create less-static sounds.
It's very similar to the Thor's matrix.
On the Mono/Poly, 35 parameters can be affected by modulation sources,
in which we find the pitch, oscillators' levels, noise level, envelope parameters,
LFO rate, stereo... well very common parameters we find in matrix-equipped synths.
To apply variations to these parameters, we have many sources : 159 !!
But 159 is not completely true as certain modulation sources are split in 2.
Here, for instance, you can find "Velocity +" and "Velocity +/-",
"Kbd Track +" & "Kbd Track +/-", "Aftertouch +" & "Aftertouch +/-"...
One could say "WTF ??", what's the meaning of this ?
It's in fact the same principle as the one we saw concerning bipolar & unipolar frequency modulation.
In "+" mode, the "0" is the value set by the user and the modulation is only above that zero.
In "+/-" mode, the value set by the user is a central value, and the modulation will be above and below it.
A specific feature of the M/P is the possibility to use combined sources.
That opens some performance advanced tricks.
Let's try, you want to apply a LFO modulation to a parameter but only during a given period.
Very well... but the LFO won't wait for you, it's permanently running !
That's where combined sources becomes interesting.
Here, we'll combine LFO and Mod Wheel to cut the LFO action when the wheel is down !
You remember the "Amount" parameter in the Thor's matrix ?
Here, we have a "Intensity" ***, which can also be negative or positive.
So, we're done with the "look under the hood" part.
Let's now hear what Korg has to offer, through a selection of presets !
Part 7 - Presets
Once again, a set-up with V-stack and Rewired Reason, but I added the Legacy Collection VST on a second track.
On the camera, two keyboards, the one in front of me is locked on the RE, the one on my right is locked on the VST.
So we can quickly compare presets !
The default patch is "Luminescent".
On the VST, if we turn off FX, we find the same sound.
Among the presets, we find all kinds of sounds :
16 basses, 7 bells, 5 brass, 3 drums, initial patch, 9 keys, 16 leads,
16 "motion" (evolving sounds), 16 pads, 12 FX (or "Complex" on the VST),
11 synths (split in "Hard" & "Soft" on the VST),
And finally, 16 patches using the arpeggiator.
I prepared, just for you, a selection of presets, to compare the VST and the RE,
and obviously to hear what the M/P has to bring to your rack.
Let's dive into it with the "Flashlight" patch. Here is the RE :
It's a gated sound.
It's easily found on the VST, hear it :
You can easily hear a difference, there's a slight modification :
on the RE, filters setting were changed,
if we set it the same way on the VST (and cut the FX), and it's identical !
Some other patches underwent the same kind of changes.
Second patch : "Ascension".
I chose it mainly to show you what FX bring in the VST.
On the VST, we hear a phaser and a "Polysix-borrowed-FX", "Ensemble". Let's turn them off !
Identical sound !
And it's also the case for many patches on the RE.
But don't forget you can reproduce FX with other modules of Reason !
Let's hear "Prism".
It's one that is not filed the same way in the VST and in the RE.
Mmm.... where is it ?
Ah, here it is !
The RE version :
I played a chord... but if I play a single note...
And now, the VST...
Wow... what a change !
You just heard the "Chord Memory" function that doesn't exist on the RE.
So if I switch to "Polyphony" on the VST and play a single note, we find the same sound !
Next ! "Industrial Loop"...
Once again, FX makes all the difference, the RE version is much more dry.
As I said, we find many types of sounds, like this one who reminded me of a tune from many years ago.
We can find very strange patches but also very "classic" ones like this strings patch, similar to many string-machines from around the same period.
That preset can be very useful when playing tunes like this one :
On the original version, the loop and the strings sound come from a Roland D-50, like 80% of the sounds on the album.
Of course, you're now hearing the "Analog Strings" patch of the Korg M/P RE (+ EQ/Reverb), played over the original loop (sampled from the original track).
As we said, FX makes a lot of differences, but this can also affect realism on "real-instruments emulation".
It's the case for this tenor saxophone patch.
Same thing on the acoustic guitar patch.
Even if it's not that bad on the RE, the sound is a little less realistic !
We can find, - already said - 16 bass sounds... like :
Or that one, dangerously close to a movie OST track, "Danger zone" from Top Gun !
That explain the name of the patch.
Some presets are ready-to-use sequences, using the arpeggiator.
This one shows the "Original" mode with the cycle between VCOs.
For vintage keyboards aficionados, we have some organs and electric pianos patches.
"Hardcore-sound-synthesis-nerds" will also be pleased with FX patches.
That's it, you can hear some sounds of the Korg Mono/Poly RE, it's up to you to master it and create your own sounds !
Part 8 - Conclusion
Here we are, at the end of this review,
it's time now to draw some conclusions !
At first, pros :
The price ! 39 € for a complete, good synth, it's very interesting.
It's an "at-ease-everywhere- synth, able to do all kind of sounds,
Yes, a little "vintage-oriented" but it's logical, it's from 1981,
but still able to create modern sounds we here on the radio.
I really like the "Detune" and the "Unison", allowing us to create very wide gigantic sounds but still precise.
The VCO-Modulation section allows us to obtain very unique sounds
But I must admit, I really don't master cross modulation.
I also really like the "Original/Unison Share" mode, which can, combined to the arpeggiator,
create special sounds.
And finally, the modulation matrix, the "Virtual Patch" which can bring us performance interesting effects.
Now the cons :
As I already said, we don't have that much presets.
It's often recycled from old synths...
I think it's a choice but, eh, one can't always find news interesting patches.
We can regret that Korg didn't give us the FX section...
but it would certainly have made the price a lot higher,
without bringing a lot of new stuff... we already have a bunch of effects modules in Reason.
And finally,
it's a personal thought but I'm disappointed to to find CV out connections.
It was already the case on the Polysix and so, we can't use some of the unique features of these synths
as modulation sources for other racks, it's a shame !
So, I cried on details... but that the point, it's only details, it doesn't change a fact :
The Korg Mono/Poly is a very good synth, very useful and usable for all kind of sounds & affordable.
And it also features unique functions.
That's all folks !! I hope I gave you a rather complete view of the M/P,
I'll see you in other videos from Reason France.
Ciao !