Korg Poly800/EX800 Users

Ok, maybe it was "expensive plastic construction", but plastic none
the less.  It really feels like a cheap toy compared to other
synths...All my other synths are made of heavy gauge metal.

If you launched an old dx or roland and a poly-800 out of cannons on a
collision course...well...lets just say my money is definitely not on
the korg...

BUT, you can wear it with a strap! Yikes.

-Tim

--- In korgpolyex@yahoogroups.com, LARRY HAWKE <gorgarh@...> wrote:
>
> 
> I'm not so sure I agree with the "cheap plastic" construction
opinion of the Poly-800.
> Mine is at least 20 years old, and it's in near-perfect condition
with wear only near the joystick.
> I think it's very well constructed, and is at least as sturdy as my R3.
> 
> Gor
> "Just my opinion....I've been wrong...before!" - Dennis Miller
> 
> To: korgpolyex@yahoogroups.com
> From: korgpolyex800@...
> Date: Wed, 11 Feb 2009 12:01:11 -0800
> Subject: Re: [korgpolyex] Re: Jupiter vs Poly
> 
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>     
>             Well, then don't do anything at all but rather go hang
out with friend entropy. :p
> 
> No, I have never had the pleasure of playing a Jupiter-8. I guess
there's a mystique for me that the Jupiter-8 is some sort of prophetic
messiah type of synthesizer. Wizard of Jupiter-8 kinda thing.
> 
> The way you're describing it sounds like the Jupiter-8 is made out
of play doh!
> 
> "flying by the seat of your faders" - very, very funny!
> 
> "I'll set up an A/B test of the Jupiter-8 sounding its brightest vs.
> 
> the Poly800 once I get it back in one piece and you'll be amazed
trust me."
> 
> But will I be amazed in a good way?
> 
> Mike.
> 
> 
> 
> From: serotonic_sound <sero-tonic@...>
> To: korgpolyex@yahoogroups.com
> Sent: Wednesday, February 11, 2009 1:16:30 PM
> Subject: [korgpolyex] Re: Jupiter vs Poly
> 
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>     
>             > OK, I love the Poly but you are going to have to
explain to me how
> 
> the Jupiter-8 is not capable of making which sounds.
> 
> 
> 
> Actually, I don't have to do anything, but I will... :p
> 
> 
> 
> > What sounds can the Poly make that a Jupiter-8 cannot?
> 
> 
> 
> Have you ever played a Jupiter-8 for any length of time?
> 
> 
> 
> Seriously, plain and simple the Jupter-8 is pure creamy liquid awesome
> 
> drippy oooze, deep, dark and complex.
> 
> 
> 
> The Jupiter-6 sounds totally different, the architecture is basically
> 
> the same so it sounds similar, but the components are totally
> 
> different.  It is really, totally, totally, fully, different
> 
> sounding...way way zingier and brighter--more modern, kind of
> 
> electro-psi sounding by nature and it only has a 24db filter which is
> 
> too bad...but I still love it...
> 
> 
> 
> The poly-800 when you open up the filter and stack all the square
> 
> waves up (and perhaps put it in chord mode if you're feeling really
> 
> sassy) is like this rad kind of cheap but still massively huge buzzy
> 
> distorted zippy sound that the Jupiter-8 can't even get close too
> 
> making...By "close", realize that I'm speaking in the company of a
> 
> bunch of old synth fanatics. :)
> 
> 
> 
> Though, trust me if somebody held a shotgun to my Jupiters I'd plead
> 
> with them to take me out out first, or use the poly-800 as a shield
> 
> all the while cursing its cheap plastic construction ;)
> 
> 
> 
> > Do you have any recorded audio of these sounds that we could
listen to?
> 
> 
> 
> I just got my poly-800 a day ago, and I'm working on the mods (so far
> 
> so good), but like I said I'll make a bunch of patches and upload
> 
> them.... You sort of have to make patches with this thing, instead of
> 
> just flying by the seat of your faders---because of the horrible
> 
> interface... .
> 
> 
> 
> Anyway, I don't often use very complex sounding patches for the music
> 
> I make...And I like trying to pull the distinctive pure sound of the
> 
> raw oscillators and filters from different synths...
> 
> 
> 
> I'll set up an A/B test of the Jupiter-8 sounding its brightest vs.
> 
> the Poly800 once I get it back in one piece and you'll be amazed
trust me.
> 
> 
> 
> > 
> 
> > Mike.
> 
> > 
> 
> > 
> 
> > 
> 
> > 
> 
> > ____________ _________ _________ __
> 
> > From: serotonic_sound <sero-tonic@ ...>
> 
> > To: korgpolyex@yahoogro ups.com
> 
> > Sent: Wednesday, February 11, 2009 3:47:25 AM
> 
> > Subject: [korgpolyex] Hello poly-800 world, my story, ( and missing
> 
> joystick. :(  )
> 
> > 
> 
> > 
> 
> > Hey folks, I'm really glad I found this forum!  Nice work everyone.!
> 
> > 
> 
> > EXECUTIVE SUMMARY: I love this synth! But, I'm missing the joystick
> 
> and need some info 
> 
> > on rigging up some resistors to run in tune without it.
> 
> > 
> 
> > (Ok first, I'm not totally illiterate, just really excited by
> 
> good/fun hardware synths)
> 
> > 
> 
> > So, I recently was given a tattered old poly-800 mk1 from a
> 
> friend...Free is a really good 
> 
> > price!
> 
> > 
> 
> > I was really skeptical about this unit when I read about it and even
> 
> more skeptical when I 
> 
> > got my hands on it and was loading it into my car because it felt
> 
> like a total cheap piece 
> 
> > of sh**t.  Plastic unit with crappy buttons and that stupid
> 
> programming reference stencil 
> 
> > area that should have been filled with a million knobs and
> 
> switches...anyway. ..
> 
> > 
> 
> > I got it home, hacked together a power supply to turn it on...and
> 
> you know the 
> 
> > story...nothing, no sound....... ....oh wait if I hold the keys down
> 
> I heard some kind of low 
> 
> > fequency something coming in on a really slow envelope...I
> 
> think...So I quickly referenced 
> 
> > the manual, which amazingly was part of the deal, to put it into
> 
> programming mode and 
> 
> > set up everything to make a simple square wave, unfiltered, sane
> 
> adsr settings...and sure 
> 
> > enough...success. ..major success!!!  It actually worked...nice!
> 
> > 
> 
> > Oh dear, then I read about the battery issue in the manual....WHAT?
> 
> NO INTERNAL 
> 
> > BATTERY? You must be kidding me, seriously? come on...so I unplugged
> 
> the dc power, 
> 
> > plugged it back in, sure enough, everything was erased...no really,
> 
> come on, really? 
> 
> > seriously? come on korg...really?  YES REALLY. 
> 
> > 
> 
> > First order of business 3v lithium mod... (THANKS GUYS!)...works
> 
> like a charm... Yes one 
> 
> > step closer to a "real synth"...
> 
> > 
> 
> > Anyway, this synth, for certain applications, absolutely kills!  I
> 
> love it to death...the factory 
> 
> > presets are ridiculously bad...seriously all of them (even patch 15
> 
> ;) This thing sounds 
> 
> > best when you open it right up loud and pure...I REALLY, REALLY,
> 
> love the oscillators on 
> 
> > this thing...and the filter sounds really good, but I'm going to do
> 
> the 12db mod asap, I 
> 
> > don't like 24db filters personally for the music I make...I prefer
> 
> the more acidy sound of 
> 
> > 12db...
> 
> > 
> 
> > I have a Jupiter-8 and a Juptiter-6, and I hate to admit it, but
> 
> this thing will make killer 
> 
> > sounds not possible on those two machines...very complimentary.
> 
> ..Retro Electro 
> 
> > madness!!!!! ...
> 
> > 
> 
> > Maybe you can tell...I love old keyboards... YYEEEEAAAAAAAHHH
> 
> HHHH... <happy dance>
> 
> > 
> 
> > I'll upload some good "housey-technoy- elctroey- acidy-discoey-
> 
> psy-ee" patches for 
> 
> > everyone soon...
> 
> > 
> 
> > Ok, long, long, story short. (Thanks for listening).. .
> 
> > 
> 
> > THE REAL MEAT OF THIS MESSAGE:
> 
> > 
> 
> > I'm missing the joystick unit completely, its not just broken, its
> 
> gone, the whole unit...  I 
> 
> > can stare down the square hole and see the connectors hanging there.
> 
> > 
> 
> > 1) I think the pitch of the unit is being thrown off because there's
> 
> no resistance on the 
> 
> > pitch mod joystick, it's sounds about 5 tones off, yeah?
> 
> > 
> 
> > 2) Would somebody be kind enough to tell me what resistors I should
> 
> wire up to what 
> 
> > leads to simulate the joystick being in the center? Please?  I'll
> 
> buy you a case of beer or 
> 
> > lunch, or write you a song, or something... I promise.
> 
> > 
> 
> > 3) Does anybody want to sell me a joystick unit?  or know where I
> 
> can get one?
> 
> > 
> 
> > Peace everybody, happy synthing... :) :) :) :) :) :)
> 
> >
>