| StoreTags: review, ds10, korg
Author: skab on July 28 2008 Viewed 3909 times. 21 people liked this blog. You can rate it below if you haven't already.
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So my Korg DS10 arrived yesterday, courtesy of Amazon.jp, and I thought I'd write a review of it. Firstly, the sound. It sounds nice, really nice. I'm not sure how Korg have done it, but they've knocked up some really good virtual oscillators. Having played a real MS20 I know that it in no way compares to the real thing, and obviously for 5000 yen you can't really expect it too. It sounds like a nice analog squeezed into 12 or possibly 11 bits. Similar to running reaktor at 22khz. I've seen quite a few people on the internet dissing the sound, but personally, I like it. It is warm, it has plenty of bass and that ever present high-end squelch of a sound straining to get out of the constraints of its sample rate.
So, on to the goodies. What do you get? A nice clean easy to use interface. I haven't RTFM'ed because it's all in Japanese, but I picked it up in no time. There's a lot going on behind the deceptively simpl controls, but the main window adequately illustrates the signal flow, so you never feel lost. Basically you have two 2oscillator synths and four 2 oscillator drums synths, each driven by it's own dedicated sequencer. The two sythns are routed into an FX unit containing delay, chorus and flanger, and the drum synths can be similarly treated. The effects are good - no serious FSU fun, but they do the job. Finally everything is routed into a six channel mixer with level, mute, solo and pan for each channel.
The sequencers are nice, and a breeze to use. Each synth sequencer consists of 6 panes. Note pitch, gate time, volume, pan, Kaoss x and Kaoss Y (more on this later). A single on screen button cycles through them. All of the panes are of the XOX style and they are all locked to the master pattern length (between 1 and 16 steps) so sadly there's no way to creating shifting patterns. maybe Korg will come up with an analogue sequencer in the next version, eh? As for the Kaoss X and Y panes, they can be used to send a precise signal to each synths Kaoss pad. Great idea this, and beautifully implemented. Each synth has 3 dedicated Kaoss pad panes. The first controls gate and note pitch, the second volume and panning, and the third is user assignable (although the default is cutoff and peak). Each Kaoss pad can be played in realtime while the sequencer is running, and the note/gate pad can also be played while the sequencer is stopped. By hitting a record button, your frantic stylus waggling can be recorded and saved along with the whole sequence. Going back to the sequencer, if precision is your thing, then you can set exact values for each step for the user-assignable Kaoss pad, and, of course you can still screw around with it in real time. The user assignable controls range from the mundane (release time) to the exotic (modulation freq, oscilator pitch in and VCO sync - oh yeah, it has snycable oscillators - even on the drum synths).
Another great element is the synth patch section. Each synth is patchable with it's own LFO (that can run free or be synced to the master clock) that outputs sine, triangle, square and S&H. Destinations for this include master pitch in, VCO1 and VCO2 pitch in, cutoff in and VCA in. Each destination has a knob to control the depth of the modulation. Also you can route the envelope generator to any destination. Best of all the out put of VCO2 can be used as a modulation source for gnarly FM goodness.
Not content with that, the drum synths also have there own patch screens.
My own gripe here is that it's not possible to dump the output of the various modualtion sources from all 6 of the sythns and route them freely to other patch screens. At least, I don't think it is - when this beauty comes out in the rest of the world I'll have to grab a manual off of someone.
Other bells and whistles include - on screen keyboard for finger jamming, the ability to chain four of these beauties together via wireless sync, 16 patterns per sequencer per song and a very easy song mode - just string your patterns together on a matrix grid.
This isn't a studio that fits in your pocket. Nor is it a faithful reproduction of the classic MS10 sound. But it is truly fucking brilliant - the FM sounds are sick, the basses are crunchy and the kaoss pad jiggery-pokery is scarily, train station missingly addictive. If Mario carried only one (almost) modular synth under his hat, it would surely be this one.
Oh yes - samples soon, i promise
here we go. both of these made with only synth module each and some toolin around on the kaoss section of the sequencer
wobbly bass
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and a manually driven wavetable nonsense thing
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07/28/08
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skab
just fixed most of the typos in that. my hands are spasming from waggling my stylus too much
errrr.....
07/28/08
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xLefr
Need. One. Now.
Thanks!
07/28/08
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ejectorset
oooo i have a question! does the delay have rate (non-tempo locked and feedback) and can those be assigned to the kaoss X and Y?
07/28/08
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KidQuaalude
yes it does non-tempo locked rate + feedback but cannot be autuomated only tweaked while in pattern mode 
07/28/08
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KidQuaalude
you can set up different patterns with different fx settings on the drums tho.
07/28/08
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KidQuaalude
oops just checked that - you cant do that either...
07/28/08
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ejectorset
i was just curious, when i get this i am thinking its going to go perfect next to my friends mini KP.
my plan would be to use the ds-10 on the go to come up with ideas then later record those into the computer for the real processing.
07/28/08
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skab
sadly not kidQ
that was strangely the first set of parameters i looked for too
still - the way i look at it is that Korg have produced something really special here, that along with apps like DScratch and DSglitch could really bring electronic sounds to more people. no more guitar hero - the next million seller could be teh aphex beets hero
actually, maybe that's not such a good thing
07/28/08
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skab
miniKP plus ds10 is great. i love them both. battery powered mayhem.
perhaps a laptop harness to carry them both around in 
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07/28/08
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license
skab said: "still - the way i look at it is that Korg have produced something really special here, that along with apps like DScratch and DSglitch could really bring electronic sounds to more people. no more guitar hero - the next million seller could be teh aphex beets hero
actually, maybe that's not such a good thing"
if this gets popular, I really don't see it being a bad thing. it's basically a beefed up Rebirth 338, right? I cut my teeth on RB-338 when I was, what, 15? at any rate, guitar hero requires nothing but timing, it's something you can pick up in a night and master in several days - the accessibility is key to its popularity. making music with synthesizers takes time and there's a culture (us!) attached to it. even if it's a synth on a DS it works basically the same, right? you still have to take time to make good sounds and good melodies and good rhythms and meatheads who just want to look cool in front of their friends will look elsewhere. less pee in the pool.
I only see this being a good thing, more synth nerds is good. I'd only scoff at it if it came with drum samples from Crystal Method or some shit. I think it's more likely that it'll only be nerds buying it and the occasional curious teenager stumbling upon it in Guitar Center or wherever they decide to sell it (hopefully Target, Best Buy and Wal-Mart).
but then again I've never used it before...
07/28/08
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mapmap
nice review ivan! very helpful.
i will totally get one of these little guys
07/28/08
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pillowtalk
I wonder when these will come to the US. I don't think I can resist buying one, even though I already have more than enough gear to keep me busy. Roland just needs to make an 808 one!
07/28/08
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ejectorset
i think the US release date was posted a week or two ago. seems like its a couple of months out still for us. or you can just buy from play asia or something.
07/28/08
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fora
thanks alot ivan, another bloody reason to spend money that i haven't got!
07/28/08
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dpmtl
fora said: "thanks alot ivan, another bloody reason to spend money that i haven't got!"
Yeah me too! I was eyeing up a kaossilator but then there are all these lovely apps for the DS and teh DS-10 looks like the icing on the cake. Yes, samples please! Let's hear what this badboy can do!
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