From randal.muir@bigpond.com Fri Apr 25 19:07:08 2003
Subject:Re: VK8

I'm finding this thread really interesting. Especially the part about "clumsy" feeling keyboards. I had an XB3 years before finally obtaining an A100. When I got the A, the keyboard was infinitely more playable. And while the amount of key depression for the note to sound was approximately the same, the full "throw" of the keys was hugely different. The A100 keys depressed a total of about 9mm while the XB3 keys went down a whopping 13mm. This makes a HUGE difference in articulation and cleanness of playing. I have since inserted another layer of felt under the XB3 keys and it has improved it amazingly. The throw is now 8mm..... now a little on the shallow side, but it is much closer to the real action than before.... I'd be interested to know what the total key throw of the korgs is.
Cheers -Randal

----original message----

The group has been silent as of late and thought I'd open some old wounds,
what with this being war year and all (jk).... I was at Guitar Center in La
Mesa, Calif., the other day after being overseas for three years and reading
the posts in this forum. The new store had in their keyboard dept, a new CX
with a new Vk8 on top of that and then a new Nord Electro. I went there to
try the CX, with its new waterfall keys, but after trying the VK8, I found
the keys, waterfall also, but perhaps slightly narrower than the CX's to be
more responsive like a real B3. I have been playing a B3/122 for a long while
and have one at home. The keys of the CX although looking like the original
B3's were clumsy feeling and hard to negotiate. I thought I was imagining
things but everytime I'd A/B the VK8, the response was immediate compared to
the CX. The sound of the VK8 was closer to a B3 than the CX. Pulling the
drawbars on the VK8 also had a similar B3 sound and effect. The CX had
clumsy feeling drawbars and the sound was shrill on the high end. Even though
the VK8 only has one set of drawbars, I found it to be closer to a real B3
than the CX, much to my surprise as I used to own the orignal first version
of the CX years ago. I didn't get to try the Nord bec it wasn't plugged in
but the keys were sloppy similar to the CX's. And it had no draw bars so it
failed for that reason also. The thing that struck me the most was that the
VK8 had a touch response similar to the B3 and it spoke immediately when
touching the keys as would a real B3. The CX was sluggish and distant in its
response. Even the CX's BC setting (I saw the man perform live last week on a
real B) didn't save it. From key response alone, the VK8 has it closest so
far. Its sound and drawbar response is pretty darn close to boot and I found
myself thinking I could be sitting at a real B3.
Reliability issues using the VK8 live should be next on the list....but I
digress....

My dos centavos.

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