Keyboard Presents Korg Product Spotlight - (Page 12) ® REVIEW OF R3 Two backlit button rows access functions from sound selection to utilities. Enter arpeggiator edit mode, and the bank select buttons turn each of the arpeggiator’s eight steps on or off. Originally printed in the October 2007 issue of Keyboard by Tom Brislin Where the fun is: The Page Select knob selects up to 46 groups of 4 realtime controls. Each knob has its own deliciously-backlit red LCD screen to tell you what parameter you’re tweaking. Plug in the included gooseneck mic, or another dynamic mic, and vocode away. The formant motion feature lets you record vocal phrases for later use. The bank select knob cycles through the R3’s 16 banks, logically organized by sound category. Performance-oriented synthesizer with vocoder. PROS Authentically analog sound character. Powerful synth section. However impressive full-fledged workstations get, compact synths of four octaves or less have undeniable appeal. It boils down to what LED-ringed knobs and they let you do on impulse — like throwing one in your car (or motorcycle saddlebag) for a gig, or grabbing a knob to make the filter multiple screens give excellent interface go “eee-orng” or see what some lilting pad would sound like with a snappy attack. Bring the list price comfortably under $1,000, and feedback. Gooseneck there’s something else you might do on impulse: Take one home. mic for vocoder plugs right into the front One of the most popular synths of this sort is the MicroKorg (reviewed Dec. ’02), embraced by players and DJs alike for its solid panel. Very lightweight virtual analog sound and built-in vocoder. At a glance, the new R3 looks like a beefed-up MicroKorg with full-size keys. On the and compact. Great inside, it’s a scaled-down Radias performance synth (reviewed Aug. ’06). If your yen to play is stronger than your dollar, is it the best value. of the affordable subcompacts? CONS Pitchbend and mod wheels are small and OVERVIEW have short throws. The R3 is sleek and compact, housed is a lightweight plastic chassis of dark metallic brown, with a silver rear panel. Korg’s policy is Keyboard action could be more inspiring. that performance keyboards like the R3 use traditional pitchbend and modulation wheels, while workstations such as the Triton $799 and M3 have a joystick. Good call — I prefer wheels, if only because it’s simpler to apply modulation and leave it on. The wheels on Korg the R3 are a bit small, however, and may take a little getting used to if your fingers are used to those found on most five-octave synths. www.korg.com 12 Octave up/down buttons are a must on a 37-key synth, and the R3’s have multi-colored backlights to indicate up to three octaves up or down. Pitchbend and modulation wheels, not a joystick, are the right choice for a performance synth, although they are a bit small. Unweighted synth action has velocity sensitivity, but no aftertouch. Each control knob has a glowing LED ring. You can assign whether knob movements jump to their new position, or if they must pass through the current value first. http://www.korg.com
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