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It's not often I say this about any digital instrument, but I'm actually finding the Krome to be quite inspirational, and am wanting to sit and play it. It's a heck of a bang for the buck. It's probably not the right instrument for serious study, but there are plenty of alternatives for music students; however, for composing, arranging and light gigging duties I doubt anything else comes close at the price. It wipes the floor with the MOX, IMO.

The new made in japan RH3 actions as used on the Kronos X are a definite improvement in both manufacturing quality and playing feel although I would never say it was a good action. It's barely passable. After all it's really a 20+ year old design from Technics. I've played the Krome's NH and I actually prefer it to RH3 ...I think the Krome 88 is somewhat of a bargin. You get a lot for your money.

I caught a bunch of flak on the Korg forum awhile back when I posted that Technics/RH3 connection. I said ...hey just repeating what someone told me who's been selling digital pianos since their inception....and from someone who's one of the most straight ahead guys in the biz.

The Korg fans went ahead and researched it and found it to be true.

Good to hear that you're digging that board voxpops. I have a sneaky suspicion that this is possibly Korg's SV2.... I'll have to spend more time with it myself.

Does that have a wall wart power supply ?

Dr. P-my sympathies you have to come back to LA to make a buck...

Its not that bad mate... this time I've got a lovely old house in Hancock Park to go home to instead of a hotel.

Unfortunately, yes - and a tiny, flimsy connector.

I did not cringe upon playing the NH on the Krome 88.
My question is:

MIDI the PX350 to a Krome 61 and save $510 or
go for the Krome 88?

I myself would want the Krome for the non-piano sounds as well.
I would likely keep the Juno Gi for digital recording purposes, but the Krome seems to beat the Gi in every category.

I thought I could save a few bucks by initially buying the Krome 73 and connecting it to one of my DPs, but since I wanted to access the other Krome sounds at the same time as playing its pianos from the DP, it made the setup of combis over-complex, with compromises in respect of effects. I'm much happier with the 88, although you need plenty of room for it.

The NH took half-an-hour to get used to, but I feel that it's a perfectly respectable action, and better than the equivalents from Fatar and Yamaha.

Hi Voxpops,
Congrats on your new instrument. This is a bit off topic but hoping you'll be able to answer this question:
Do you think this organ sound http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=c0A4n_HmvcU could be reproduced using the organ patches in the Krome.
Thanks in advance,

Thanks thomsurf.

For the Coldplay song, you can get close by using Prog: A110 (Vintage Drawbars 2). You need to turn off IFX 1 (Vib/Chorus), maybe increase the overdrive a bit, and then start the song with SW 1 turned off. For the added upper "drawbars," activate SW 1 at the appropriate moment in the song.

Edit: same thing applies to patch 116 (Drawbars adds Highs)

Hope this helps.

Vox- what are you putting the Krome through for speakers?
Likely going with the 61 in a few weeks- I would be using this for seqeuncing/daw as well, and revisiting some of the revised old korg sounds.

I'll mainly be running it through my Roland SA300 300w stereo head and sub, before sending it on to the main PA system in larger venues. For rehearsals I use a pair of Mackie SRM-350s.

Thanks VP!
Very helpful... I know Coldplay are using Korg Triton module to create that organ sound, so I was hoping it could be done with the Krome as well.

Would you say that the overall decay of the main piano sounds are on par with Roland's Supernaturals?

I'm assuming that the Krome doesn't allow audio tracks to be recorded into the sequencer like the Kronos does?

Hello ando, correct, but it can integrate with a PC to serve as a DAW.
If you are looking for something like that, the Roland Juno Gi has a built 8 track digital recorder that you can master on etc..
I have had mine for 2 years and have been able to do finished recordings/masters on it.
However, I will say I prefer Krome/Kronos sounds

They're different. I think Krome decays are quicker, and so slightly less realistic in this respect. Presumably, this is to eke out memory resources. However, they do sound pretty natural - just not quite supernatural!

Thanks for your comments on the Krome, Vox. That prompted me to go off and watch the long demos again (the Japanese and British ones) and it looks like the overall functionality hits the sweet spot for my boat piano. It's bigger than I wanted, so some surgery is in order, but I think I can shoehorn it in.

The audio environment aboard is a Fusion IP-700 marine stereo with multiple zones and a local sub, as well as a Crown XLS1000 (overkill, but what the heck). Can't use normal powered monitors, which is a shame as I have two pair of KRK Rokits on my old Roland, so I'm still trying to choose space-constrained box speakers for the near field above the studio console. There's an Edirol M-16DX mixer in the space, as well as a Tascam porta-studio, dedicated iMac for Logic and SW pianos, looper, and voice effects processor.

Given the recent introduction of the Krome, do you think there is any reason to wait for NAMM, whether for an alternative, an upgrade, or pricing dips in response to other new products? You know, GAS... me want. Now.

Gizmological cheers,
Steve

It's only two weeks to wait!

Apart from its bulk and workstation pretensions - neither of which I need - the Krome seems to be the only thing on the horizon for the time being that offers top-quality pianos in a lightweight form. I've heard of nothing in the pipeline that is likely to better it. The SV-2 is vaporware. The Physis is vaporware (and heavier). Yamaha might produce a surprise, but I'm not holding my breath. Roland might have something up its sleeve, who knows, but it's probably going to be repackaged SN if it's anything. I don't see anything other than the new VPC controller for Kawai, and Nord's already shot its bolt with the Electro 4.

Edit: there is possibly going to be a new stage piano from Studiologic, but they'd have to convince me that they've sorted out their software and support issues.

Excellent crystal ballage... thanks! (And yah, I can probably wait two more weeks; it's not like I have a shortage of projects. *sigh*

The workstation part appeals to me and I like the UI, though there is certainly some redundancy when it's parked next to a computer. Still, stand-alone functionality appeals...

The bulk is a huge issue for me, however (someone called it a battleship, which sorta fits). If I pull the trigger on this one, it will be with the expectation that it will be repackaged to fit the space... I don't want to hijack this thread, but it's really tight and the planned drawer-mount would not work with a stock Krome. I might rack-mount the whole panel and put the keyboard/joystick in a tidy little box. I'm sure that would not affect the warranty.

Maybe I can play one first in Seattle when I go down for the boat show, which is about the same time as NAMM...

Edit: Mmmm, been doing some more research... I dunno about Krome. Think I will wait that 2 weeks to see what's a-comin'.

Edit 2: Speaking of support issues... yes, I've heard that a lot about Studiologic, but I'm also hearing it about Korg. Cryptic one-liner or no response at all to tech support questions, according to various forum posts. Have you had any reason to test this yet? I like the culture of the company and the design of the board, and the touchscreen UI is vastly more appealing to me than a tiny display with deep menus.

Edit 3: Is the Krome not MIDI class-compliant? I see they offer drivers... kind of annoying if so. My RD-700SX requires a driver on the Mac, and is totally ignored by the iPad. In the Krome manual: "Before you connect the KROME to your computer via USB, you must install the KORG USB‐MIDI driver on your computer."

Thanks for the thoughts!
Steve

Just completed my first gig with the Krome. Generally, I am very pleased with it. I need to work on the APs a little, as they can seem a little strident, but overall it sounded pretty good, and I had no problem with the action, which responded well. However, I was aware of the potential for sweaty fingers slipping on the key surface.

The only other slight negative was in patch selection. I discovered that with a second board above the Krome, the whole of the panel to the right of the screen disappeared into blackness. I couldn't see the buttons themselves, or their designations. I wish manufacturers would think about the practicalities involved with the use of their boards.

Generally I think the Krome is an excellent board at a good price, but for gigging I would prefer those piano sounds in the form of an SV-2. Maybe next week will bring some good news...

This is a chronic problem with Korg. The M50 was likewise covered with black-on-black buttons. At one point, the M50 was available in alternate colors which were much better, but they only did that on the 61. The Kronos is pretty bad this way too.

Korg isn't alone though... Casio PX3 is bad (and older Privias in the x00 and x10 series were fine). The Yamaha XF is pretty bad (the MOX is much better).