From bruce@ashbysolutions.com Thu Jan 17 14:07:11 2002
Subject:Re: NEW KORG BX-3

John et al,

Interesting! Not at all what the early "wish list" designs had, but a useful design, nonetheless. From what I can see of the image on the website:

1. Start with a CX-3.
2. Add two new, waterfall keybeds.
3. Move the control panel end cap down to the lower manual, and remove the little lower manual DB select buttons. Use the remaining DB select buttons for the lower manual.
4. Create a new end cap with PB and Mod wheels, plus a second set of the larger DB select buttons, for the upper manual.
5. Alter the wood end blocks and top deck a to look more like a real B-3's shape. (The top deck is now big enough to put a synth on it!)
6. Do little or nothing else.

A fairly low-cost adaptation of an already successful product! In the past, when anyone was thinking of a BX-3 -- including Yours Truly -- we always looked at four sets of drawbars, plus pedal functions. This requires major changes to the CX-3 design, just to get them to fit. The KORG method uses the flexibility of the current drawbar setup to get around these issues, and reuses as much of the CX-3 design as possible. It also probably requires almost zero firmware changes to run. My hat's off to the KORG engineers!

I've taken the two graphics from the KORG site, and put them together, sitting side-by-side. It's now up in the Files section, for comparison. The information on the KORG website, however, creates almost as many questions as it answers:

1. "The key scanning method used on the CX-3 and BX-3 starts the sound at the first key contact ...a newly-designed 'waterfall' keybed for absolutely authentic look and feel have all been added." -- Do the new waterfall keys have the same double-bounce problem when funky parts are played that Mark Longo mentioned? The description implies that the BX-3 uses the same first-switch method of triggering the keys, so unless the keyswitch locations were moved, the same limitations are probably there.

1a. Can the CX-3 be retrofitted with the waterfall keybed? Will the CX-3 be updated to a CX-3-II at some point?

2. "Panel: Rotary Effect Control, Vibrato / Chorus on/off, Upper / Lower Select, Drawbars Select, Percussion Control, Volume, Tone Control, Preset / Manual Select, Edit, Split, Master Level, BX-3 only – Pitch Bend Wheel, Modulation Wheel" -- It appears from both the picture and the above specifications that the Split button is still there. What does it do? Does it create three zones, or is it just a way to couple the lower manual to the upper, for convenience when playing certain passages? If it's not a Split button, what is it?

3. "The CX-3 and BX-3 also provide an EX mode in which all 18 drawbars can be utilized as one extended palette." -- So, what happens to the lower manual on the BX-3? Does it go into extended mode, too, or does it get disabled, like the CX-3? If both manuals work, does that mean that one manual gets the drawbars, while the other one uses the preset?

4. "Weight: 112.2 lbs. (Including STD-BX3 stand), 72.6 lbs. (Without stand) -- OUCH! I wonder if it can be ordered without the stand. At 40lbs. (18kg), it's much heavier than my USS stand, which currently supports three keyboards. If it were really sexy like the Vox Continental's Z-legs, or even hidden like the Invisible Stands, I'd think about lugging it, anyway, but as it stands (no pun intended), I'd be inclined to leave it home.

4a. And, at 73 lbs, it's almost twice the weight of my CX-3 -- which is nice and one-person luggable to and from practice. I guess it's been a long time since I lugged a big piece of furniture around. (I don't include my Leslie, because I only take that to gigs.)

5. How much? The BX-3 answers certain issues that players face, but so does my CX-3 + Fatar CMS-161. It's VERY intriguing to me, but the price is the biggest potential derailment.

OK, so is this the "big news" at NAMM, or are there other CW surprises in store???

Regards,

-BW

--
Bruce Wahler
Ashby Solutions™ http://music.ashbysolutions.com
CloneWheel Support Group moderator
978.386.7389 voice/fax
bruce@ashbysolutions.com