MusicRadar

The control aspect is impressive.

1 of 3 » View in gallery

• Related News
• Review
• Manufacturer's Description

Were there to be a synthesizer hall of fame, Korg’s M1 (first released in 1988) would fully warrant its place therein. Coupling a phenomenal sound set with a powerful sequencer, it represented the cutting edge of technology at the time and was the instrument that introduced us to the wonders of the 'workstation'.

The M1 went on to shift more units than any other model in workstation history and Korg, knowing they were on to a good thing, slowly expanded their output to accommodate more powerful models in the T and 01/W ranges.

However, alongside the do-it-all-in-one-box products, Korg were also busy developing other technologies throughout the ’90s and early naughties, including physical modelling, the expansive OASYS system, Wavestation vector technology, the Karma system and, of course, effects processing, Kaoss-style. A lot of water has passed under the bridge since the M1 arrived, not just for Korg but for the industry at large and the workstation concept has, for many of us, been assimilated into a DAW and studio set-up. But there are plenty of signs that not everyone wants to go that route and with such a range of technologies at Korg’s fingertips, they seem better primed than anyone else to relaunch the workstation concept.

In summary, this is a synthesizer, sampler, effects processor and sequencer, with the additional benefit of a range of real-time performance controllers. On top of that, USB connectivity is provided to allow the M3 to fit seamlessly into a computer-based set-up, or to link directly to USB storage devices.

Versions

The M3 is available in four versions, with 61 and 73-key semi-weighted keyboard versions, an 88-key weighted version and the M3M module. Like the Radias, the keyboard versions allow you to tilt the central 'business' section forwards to improve the viewing angle and the central LCD pane uses Korg’s TouchView technology for direct parameter tweaking. The finish is a contemporary white and from the off, everything about this workstation screams class.

The sonic backbone of the M3 is taken from Korg’s flagship OASYS technology. The HD-1 sound engine behind OASYS has been streamlined into a new chip at the heart of the M3, which Korg call Enhanced Definition Synthesis (EDS).

This drives the synthesis possibilities, which allow you to construct programs from the onboard 256MB of PCM material, which is broken down into over 1,000 multi-samples and 1,600-odd drum samples. Alongside this, if you’re more interested in making synthesized sounds from scratch, you’ve got Korg’s dual-oscillators that can feed two filters per oscillator, before reaching the envelopes and effects.

As you might expect, this all adds up to an enormously rich sound. The M3 simply sparkles, whether you’re interested in acoustic instrument simulation, synthesized loops and phrases, or unusual soundscapes and motion sequences. In Combi mode, programs you’ve lovingly constructed can be layered, zone-mapped to specific keyboard areas and further processed, so that entire performances can be triggered from the keyboard. Check out the DVD for some examples – none of which have been sequenced at all but simply produced by playing Combis.