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Korg Volca Keys > AUFX Dub > Space
I bought a Korg Volca Keys this week.
Hooked it up to my iPhone and ran it through Dub and Space for a quick and dirty test.
Keen to know what people think of the sound quality (it's just a sample pattern):
Comments
Sounds horrible. I can dispose of it (the volca) for you if you'd like
Hey matt, sounds nice. I had one and sold it because it would always track dirty. I might have had a bad one. Kinda intersted in the kick one but i like beimg down to only a few key hardware instruments and the rest mac and ios. After buying the ipad i see no need for a volca, dealing with their quirks and step limitations and small pattern storage. Had. The sample as well.
Ha ha
.
It is certainly quite noisy. No doubt about that.
It's my first hardware synth. I guess they don't all sound like that?
Yep. Mine sounds dirty too. Particularly with the on board delay. Also the start of the attack is very clicky.
However, if you put enough AUFX dub and space on it kind of hides it.
And maybe it's part of its character?
Yeah agree it sounds like....real bad. Those aufx apps should go on a clearance sale.
Yeah. Not hating on it, was fun when i had it, when i was going through an all out of the box phase. Volcas, and 8-10 synths/drum machines all synced making beautiful noise. Then i had the 2 volcas, drum machine and a roland jx-03 on a big pedal board with pedals so i could carry them around and jam next to my kids while they played legos etc. But gadget...
No , the keys is notoriously dirtier than most. The volca bass is supposedly cleaner.
I only have the Beats, which hasn't struck me as noisy at all but, then I've learned to live with an MS-20 which gives me an extra blast of white noise with every key press.
*been a while since I used the v.beats and it's actually pretty noisy.
If you want noisy, try a minilogue with the on-board delay. It's something I've come to like and utilize, but man.
As far as sound quality of your volca, i didn't immediately turn away from it, but it didn't wow me either. The AUFXs helped, but I feel the same way about it as I do my recent Minilogue purchase...it gives you a sound that matches its price. I don't say that as a bad thing, I just feel like the pricing is exactly In line with the sound you get. At least the resonance on the Volca doesn't eat away at the low end like the Minilogue.
Fabfilter Volcano can help immensely, though
Thanks.
I might try a comparison. The exact sequence, complete with parameter automation, sent to the Volca keys and also to a sawtooth in Phoenix in Gadget. Both given the same delay and reverb.
Be interesting to see which one would rather put into a track. (Highly subjective of course).
I really like the sound of the Keys, gritty and cool. I don't use mine as much as I should, mainly from having lots of other toys to distract me. I recommend doing the midi out mod when you get the chance. Then you have a nice portable midi controller for ipad synths too.
I think it sounds great. And it kind of doesn't sound like anything at all on my iPad, either. I think the grit is what you're paying for!
Nice sounds Matt. Keys is the sleeper volca in my eyes. I've wretched great sounds from the thing. Plus, flux mode!
Definitely worth hooking up an external keyboard as the whole affair becomes much more playable. Also, using external knobs via CC might seem kinda silly but it allows you to record automation. Plus, if you wiggle each controller at the top of your track, you can basically do volca keys presets.
I didn't realise the Volca's where controllable via MIDI CC..?
If so, Korg, take my money!
Yes, and Modstep happens to have nice controller templates for all of the them.
yeah there's also a free Max for live random patch generator which you can use via Ableton Live which is quite fun.
Nice. For those who don't have/use Ableton it would be possible to make a similar random patch generator yourself with TB Midi stuff. It has a random function and you just apply it to the 16 or so midi ccs that the Volca accepts.
(I do the same with Gadget).
Had another session with the Volca Keys yesterday and I'm finding it produced some very acceptable and beefy sounding bass sounds. It's crunchiness and noisiness seems to help in the case of bass.
That's true, pretty easy to make one in Lemur too and there's a few templates around I think.
Cool. Didn't realize TB had that feature.
Oh yes. It's great like that.
By the way, can anyone explain the difference on the Volca keys between the
VCF cutoff and the VCF EG Int?
Since there is only one envelope on the Volca surely both knobs will do exactly the same thing (vary the filter cutoff in line with the envelope that's being applied to the note).
Without FLT ENV set to some positive position you could, for instance, set the FLT LFO to something positive and the filter would modulate without regard for key presses. Easiest to hear with the LFO set to square.
Ah - good point. Hadn't factored in the LFO. Thanks.
I kind of wish that it had 2 envelopes rather than an LFO - but I think that's because I'm more used to using Phoenix in Gadget (which has 2 env - and an LFO).
I guess I could think about using the LFO as a substitute for the filter envelope.
The other thing I've noticed about the keys is it doesn't have a particularly long envelope. I guess that's to avoid polyphony problems.
The LFO is brilliant if you use a very fast speed with a triangle waveform and a tiny amount of lfo/pitch knob to thicken sounds and create different timbres. You have to be fairly subtle though.
I think it's the release part of the envelope that doesn't last that long, but as soon as you trigger a new note it restarts the envelopes anyway, so no overlapping and building of textures which is the real downside of paraphonic for me. I still love the keys though, it has its uses.
As for the VCF EG int and filter cut off, they're not the same. Increasing the eg knob will make the filter follow the shape of the envelope, letting you shape the sound further. Remember to bring the cut off down to test. Yes 2 envelopes would have been nice, but the VCF EG is an invaluable part of the Keys.
Thanks @LeeB - I'll dig further into the LFO.
I'm really enjoying using the keys as a sound module with my iPhone attached.
I've figured out how to send midi into it from the iPhone, then send the audio from the keys back into the iPhone, applying IAA effects, and mixing with other apps.
By the way, @syrupcore here's my 'randomise any gadget' TB Midi Stuff page:
https://forum.audiob.us/discussion/9303/randomise-korg-gadget-synths-free-tb-midi-stuff-page/p1