Korg MS-20 Mini

[supermel74]

Yeah I'm starting to seriously consider that I won't actually ever get one.

why not cancel your order and buy one off Ebay? Last time I checked there were several available for sale.

[shaft9000]

The kid who works in the electronics department at Best Buy told me his uncle is the janitor for Korg's US distributor and he told him some guy at the factory stole all the yellow patch cables and is selling them on the black market. Unless Korg can source more yellow patch cables the MS-20 Mini will cease production.

better sell my Korg stock now - thanks to the kid-prophet at best buy who's mop-wielding uncle sits in on executive counsel meetings and is privvy to every strategy memo
and who knew that yellow patch cords are so crucial and scarce

[Blopho]

The kid who works in the electronics department at Best Buy told me his uncle is the janitor for Korg's US distributor and he told him some guy at the factory stole all the yellow patch cables and is selling them on the black market. Unless Korg can source more yellow patch cables the MS-20 Mini will cease production.

[mute]

Joke all you want, the synth is still nowhere to be seen other than those first orders that went through, so I'm going with the explanation the synth store owner got from the EU importers.

That's not true.. I was in the 2nd batch (placed order in early February) of orders through Sweetwater and I got mine late last week. I asked what the volume was they were pushing this round and he said several hundred units.. considering that's just Sweetwater, and its the 2nd batch.. I would say what you've said doesn't add up to what's actually been going out. The queues are just really long, this thing had a s**t ton of pre-orders.

[Bitexion]

there are different distributors in Europe than the US.

[mute]

but the manufacturing all comes from the same place(s?) in China.. your comment was in regard to some financial issue with a manufacturer that you heard about through a retailer. that's what I was saying didn't add up..

[thestreets]

Yeah I'm starting to seriously consider that I won't actually ever get one.

why not cancel your order and buy one off Ebay? Last time I checked there were several available for sale.

Not a bad idea. I'll give guitar center another month or two, though.

[thestreets]

Checked my bank statement today and noticed there was about 600 dollars missing. Turns out Guitar Center charged me for the MS-20 and it's allegedly going to arrive in the store on Thursday. We shall see.

[Analogue Crazy]

Had a phone call from my music shop yesterday; mine is being delivered to me tomorrow Oh the excitement! Will be reporting back on here with my verdict after some serious time with it.

[thestreets]

Picking mine up tonight. Called the store and had someone physically put their hands on it for me. I too shall report back after a couple sleepless days/nights with the thing.

Just to make sure, all the outputs are 1/8 mini headphone jacks right? Ill have to get a 1/4 to 1/8 converter to plug it into an amp?

[megamanx]

yep the outputs are all 1/8. I have had mine for about 2 weeks, and unfortunately don't have much time to play with it as a full time dad and completing a masters degree. The pros, it sounds really good, lots of character, the cons, it is cheaply made, it won't win best built quality, but hey it is an new ms20 for half the going price of the vintage ones.

[mute]

Not sure why a handful of ppl feel it's a cheap build. My experience is that its got a solid metal body,.. the knobs are typical of all korg gear (never great, but not horrid) and better than some (electribes/microx/etc).. no cheaper than the slide-on caps on my Evolver for example. The smaller ones are a bit short with a little looseness, but sturdy. The movement/resistance is even on them on every pot. It surprisingly has a solid weight to it, nothing feels "loose" or "hollow" (i expected it to have a lighter/hollow body to it). The jack points are tight with no sight of movement or give over time (they aren't riveted nuts as they appear, but mounted from the back). The 1/8" jacks make 100% sense in this day and age, but it would have been nice to have a 1/4" on the sig out jack. -- To that note btw,.. don't get an adapter, get a mono 1/4"<->1/8" cable... 1/8" adapters on a 1/4" cable is asking for disaster on any gear, but esp. when its hanging out horizontally.. all that uneven weight/pull on the socket..ugh.

My 2c on the build - it's just as good or better than a lot of other gear I've bought and used in the same price range (or cheaper) in the past 5-6 years. A couple exceptions being my RE-20, SparkLE (shocked me how well that thing was built) and the Minibrute - which is a hefty and solid build, but even then there's the mysterious "loose PWM Env knob" that is present on almost every model ..and.. I had to re-glue every single key weight upon delivery, with 2 being inside the case - 1 stuck in the keybed, etc. So while I would consider the build of the MB better as a recent comparison/competitor (mostly due to the "knob perception" thanks to its nice rubberized-ish knobs) - it's manufacturing isn't and it was a very annoying thing to have to open it up and fix it before i could use it.

So what defines cheap? Knobs? Cheap glue? 1/8 jacks? Loose metal banging around on your electronics? Large hands?

All I know is they both are a pleasure to tweak on and sound excellent. If I had a complaint with the MS-20 it would be the lack of midi control...at least give me cc control of the modwheel (/me prays for o/s update)!

[thestreets]

Got my hands on the MS-20 at last! Just spent a couple hours with it and I must say it's pretty amazing. Definitely the most expressive instrument I've ever played in my life. It has so much versatility, I can't wait to sit down tomorrow and incorporate it with the rest of my gear.

[vin14]

So what defines cheap? Knobs? Cheap glue? 1/8 jacks? Loose metal banging around on your electronics? Large hands?

With the exception of 1/8 jacks and large hands , all of the above. My minibrute has none of issues you mention, maybe I got lucky or maybe it's because I waited until long after the initial rush, could that have anything to do with it? Did they cut corners to speed up production at some stage?

In the case of the MS-20 mini, my initial reaction was that the whole thing felt cheap, especially the knobs. I couldn't help wondering if they'll be going strong after 30 years like the original. Perhaps if the sound/interface had grabbed me more I'd not have noticed as much.

I also think the same cheap build quality applies to more expensive stuff such as the Fantom, Motif and especially the Mox, it seems to be the way of things with japanese gear these days. The yamahas are a joke compared to my old SY85.

Also, as mentioned something from DSI, I thought the prophet 08, knobs in particular, felt cheap too, I haven't seen the pot edition, DSI gear is no longer on sale locally.

[supermel74]

Has anybody used both the Korg MS-20 mini and the MS20ic Legacy Controller? Are the build quality of those 2 comparable? I had the Legacy controller briefly and if the MS-20 Mini is even up to that standard I think the build quality is more than adequate