Just saw this on korgpa.com

OSIMO, Italy — Operating System Version 2.0 for the Pa2X/Pa800, Korg's most powerful arranger keyboards, will be released in November 2008. As usual, the new OS will be freely downloadable from Korg Italy's web site (www.korgpa.com), and can be easily installed by the user.

The new operating system includes important new features and enhancements, such as a Score Viewer, the extraordinary DNC (Defined Nuance Control), a powerful Search function – and much more.

• The Score Viewer displays the lead track (or any other track) as clear and plain traditional musical notations with notes or chords, together with lyrics and chord abbreviations. Chord names can also be seen in different languages (English and Italian). For music learners, we also added a function to show note names next to each note.
The Score Viewer automatically adapts the score display to the track’s key and clef, with automatic beaming, spacing and bar placement. Triplets and accidents are automatically recognized. A sophisticated interpretation algorithm cleans up the score display, to allow for easy reading even with rubato (non-quantized) playing.

• DNC Defined Nuance Control is a great advancement in sound generation and performance control. By assigning special articulations, noises and nuances to a physical control or playing style, you can increase the realism of your sounds.
By playing legato you can call up a different Sound, use after touch or the joystick to call in breath noise or harmonics. Or let the Pa automatically cycle between slightly different samples to add timbral variety to your playing.

• The Search function is a great help for everyone keeping a huge collection of songs or samples in their hard drives. The flexible Search function can scan your disks or a single directory for files whose name includes the entered text string.

Also new are the extremely efficient polyphony manager, the renewed chord abbreviation display system, the programmable Quarter Tone Scale Presets, the MP3 player assignable to the sub-outs, the pedal calibration procedure, and a ninth drawbar added to the Pa800.

The new Polyphony Algorithm improves the overall performance with a sophisticated real time control, which also takes psychoacoustic parameters into account. Chord abbreviations are now easier to read, by following the standard suggested by “Standardized Chord Symbol Notation (A Uniform System for the Music Profession)” by C. Roemer and C. Brandt. Up to four Quarter Tone Scale Presets can be memorized, and easily recalled with on-screen soft buttons. MP3 audio output can be sent to the sub-outputs for separate mixing. Both the damper and the assignable pedal can be carefully calibrated for better response. And, finally, a Ninth Drawbar has been added to the Pa800 in the Drawbar page.

When you consider all the new features now available, it is almost like getting a whole new keyboard – but in the form of a free update!

OS 2.0 follows on from the powerful options and new OS features released since the introduction of the Pa2X/Pa800. Over the years the Pa-Series has become the keyboard of choice for countless professional musicians worldwide who demand the very best. Korg promised an ongoing series of powerful and exciting new features for the Pa2X/Pa800, and with 2.0 we continue to deliver on our promise.

OS 2.0 continues our commitment to deliver RX Technology that brings the most realistic musical experience for performers and the audience. DNC – Defined Nuance Control – takes RX Technology to a whole new level of the real world usefulness: that professional musicians demand. This is why the Korg Pa-Series instruments are the world’s leading Arranger Keyboards!

The Korg Italy Team

Kind regards,
Tommy

WOW..., Go Korg!

No style fix?

Korg makes a lot of minor improvements to both sounds and styles with nearly every new OS release. These improvements are normally not documented. As a result my Pa800 sounds much better today than when I bought it nearly two years ago and I expect this to continue with OS 2.

I am very satisfied with the Pa800 styles and don't see a need for a general "fix"

Kind regards,
Tommy


[This message has been edited by TommyF (edited 09-12-2008).]

DNC Defined Nuance Control?

Can you say SA voices

I thought they would have done something with the fills/fill-ins...some people were complaining about them...guess it's not an issue anymore?

One of my primary issues with the PA800 was the lack of available styles, particularly Country/Western. Even in the other genres, there just seemed to be a lack of variety in the style selections. Some of them were very good though.
DonM

Korg has also just announced a MAJOR, MAJOR expansion for their M3 workstation:
http://www.korg.com/m3/

WOW!!! I have to say that I am really impressed by Korg's efforts to improve and enhance their existing product line. I may have to re-think my future consideration for a synth workstation. Way to go, Korg!!!

Michael

Wow...psychoacoustic parameters!!! Now my Pa2 will be trying to get into my head.

------------------
Al Giordano
Visit us at ARRANGER WORLD! http://www.arrangerworld.com

Korg Pa2xpro, Roland VK8-M, DW Collectors Series Drums, Roland TD-12 Vdrums, Roland SPD-S.

Michael,

That's awesome! Now I regret selling my M3 due to lack of and variety of patches; Doh!!!

Al

Don I know where you're coming from. I'm disappointed they have not added more styles. That's not to say I won't keep the Korg PA2xPro.

Wowee.

Korg's software update is as big a leap as Yamaha's keyboard upgrade.

Since I own a both the Korg and Yamaha, I am now happy and sad at the same time...

Chony

So Chony

LOL, so at the end of the day, it's status quo for you??

Al

Steve,

It would be nice to have great styles to go along with the great voices and hardware features. I guess it's all a matter of trade-off; you really can't have it all.

I am holding out hope that Korg releases new styles and sounds along with OS 2.0 as they traditionally have been known to do.

Right now, I would still purchase the Pa2 over the Tyros3 despite the style issue. I've been able to find the right style for the right song so far.

Al

Yamaha folks..see how a "free" update can add to the value of an instrument...Korg and Roland lead the way...in this respect..

Al I'm on that same page I would still purchase the Pa2 over the Tyros3. ?And I'm sure I'll appreciate the the score viewer feature. It's pretty much the same old story just not a perfect board out there.

Being that SA is nothing more than a hyped up name for multi-samples and real time controls to switch between and articulate them, it was only a matter of time before another Manufacturer adopted a new name for it and called it their own. Along comes Korg to rain on Yamaha's parade. This technology has been around for well over 25 years and companies like Fairlight and Synclavier have incorporated this into their CMI and Synclavier workstations way back when.

It's nice to see Yamaha and Korg claim this to be new technology but the fact of the matter is its just old technology rehashed for the masses. At least they are finally catching up with Technology that's been around for so long and it only took them 20+ years to do so!

FYI... the Wersi and Mediastation both have extensive real time controls, advanced initial and aftertouch, and are setup to switch between samples and do real time articulations. Give a listen to Miroslav or Kontaks Orchestral demos and hear the nuances the samples have. When the likes of Yamaha or Korg can produce a sound like that then they'll be seriously moving forward in the technology department. Until then only the Wersi, Mediastation, or Open Labs can offer that type of sound and feature set in an arranger/workstation.

I commend Korg for doing something Yamaha has failed to do, major upgrades to their arranger workstation in software updates. FWIW... Wersi's been offering updates to their customers for nearly 20 years. If Yamaha were more forward thinking like Wersi and Lionstracs they'd have developed the Tyros 2 with enough horsepower to offer updates that were substantial, not incremental at best. Instead Yamaha utilizes processors that are antiquated and most often not upgradeable. Hence the introduction of their answer to a Tyros 2 software update, a $4,000 instrument upgrade named Tyros 3. It's funny how anyone here would blow a gasket if they had to pay $4,000 for a software update and yet they don't hesitate to throw down $4,000 when Yamaha obsoletes their Tyros 2 rather than upgrade it. Where's the logic or reason in that?


[This message has been edited by Ensnareyou (edited 09-12-2008).]

Thanks for the info on the M3. I'm loving it even a little more now.

AJ

Sorry, guys, but multi-velocity splits predates SA voices.

The thing that everyone forgets about (and which some of the old über-expensive things like the Fairlight and Synclavier could NOT do) are rules based INTERVALIC changes and control of different sample layers depending on legato or staccato performance.

Make an octave leap or more, get one set of samples. Make a third, get another. Play a note legato from the previous, get one set of samples (not just a monophonic version of the detached sample), play a detached line, get another. Play a polyphonic sound, and only get the release sample if you lift off ALL your fingers.

CONDITIONAL sample layers are a step beyond simple velocity splits, and don't require button or footpedal gymnastics to achieve (unlike most of the WS or VSTi versions). When it is done well, you simply play normally, and the underlying engine analyzes HOW you are playing, and does the sample selection for you.

That, at least to me, is pretty groundbreaking in a hardware keyboard

[This message has been edited by Diki (edited 09-12-2008).]

Well, what a totally UNDERWHELMING release..

As Yamaha did, its an incremental one at best, certainly not the "new keyboard" Korg were touting.

No fixes for the fills, NO change to the effects structure (you still cannot create a patch and have it load with the effects).

Still the same old antiquated text sytem for linked text files that ahs been around since OS 1 on the original PA1x...Who needs a midi track to be flashed on the screen as notation?? Not me , thats for sure. Just a better way to get chord/lyrics charts to display would have been fine.

MP3's out the sub-outs? Big deal, they could have done a LOT more, believe me, to the audio routing on the PA.

Still no external editing of any sort.

There are lots more areas, but I will not go on.

All of this upgrade really smacks of a big "Yamaha Tyros Catch-up" to me, trying to match Yamaha, and get a bigger slice of the home market, rather than address all the issues and operational tools asked for by users, well most of them anyway.

Way To Go Korg.....NOT!!!!

Dennis

If the SA type improvements are any good, surely that alone should have Korg owners dancing in the streets!

For a FREE upgrade, that's a hell of a major feature. One that, when Yamaha did it (T1>T2) it cost all the Yamaha users a new keyboard to get...

Me, I want my Chord Sequencer back. But when I don't get it, it doesn't stop me from being grateful for the per-Part parametric EQ I DID get with OS3...

Nothing exciting to me, it sounds like a knock off of yamaha so they can try to sell more keyboards as where they haven't sold as many as yamaha. Many of there styles are copied from the PA80 and a few even predate back to the i3. They should have updated or provided new styles for free or purchase. There latin section, IMO is the worst I've heard. The SD1 when through a upgrade, but atleast they provided new styles and the new sounds that was installed with the update. Sorry no korg for me, until they really come out with something that actually sounds good.

well it sounds like a fairly feature packed upgrade to me !!! and it was free...... I dont see any grounds for complaining and i dont own the PA2X and probably will not buy one either. But lets hear some demo's and see what the new SA type voices can actually do and how many of them are in the keyboard .

I am amazed...

So they are playing catchup to Yamaha with the SA thing... Is this a BAD thing? I mean, a feature that helps you play sounds more realistically?

Where is the downside to this?

If Roland added this to my G70 for free, do you think I would slam it and bitch simply about not getting my Chord Sequencer?

Well having had the Korg for a couple months, I have to say the reason I bought an Arranger instead of a Workstation is STYLES....So I sold it. The greatest operating system computer in the world without software is very limited in its usefulness. AN arranger without a ton of styles is the same. I would have rather seen Korg develop 2000 more styles than an upgrade.

there just isn't the library out there there is for the Yamaha. I could have just bought an M3 for the Sounds and arpeggios and bought midi sequences..

I liked the sounds generally but the Yamaha has better acoustic sounds. The drums are nice on the Korg though. The learning curve is higher with the Korg to take complete advantage of what it can do.

Since we are dealer for Yamaha and now Korg I can get any keyboard now for 10% under cost. I have already ordered the Tyros 3 and will probably pick up a PA800 as well and try to get the Yamaha style sequences to play on both.

You would if you found out NONE of the myriad requests for fixes, YES fixes, not improvements went unheeded, that the thing sounds good as it is, and adding "Nuanced" sounds is probably the last thing it needed.

It still cannot be released because it freezes the keyboard when loaded!!!

It will not be available, at this stage, until the end of November (Audya anyone??)

The thing is Diki, they haven't fixed what NEEDED to be fixed.

"Make sure the underlying surface is sound before applying the top coat"

I'm not saying what they have done is bad, just what they have not done.

It would be like Roland giving you a new organ sound (even though the ones you have are good) but still leaving the glitch in the transition from solo keyboard to a style, or whatever that fault is on the G70

Man, you guys are really funny at times... Acting like Korg and the others have to do things to CATCH UP to Yamaha and do it via OS releases. If Korg has somehow included patches in an OS upgrade to compete with the Yamaha SA voices..., that alone is huge considering when Yamaha owners upgraded to get those SA voices on the T2 it cost them over THREE GRAND and Korgs doing it FREE.

Please.., Yamaha does the same damn thing in terms of "catching up" to the others via OS updates. They released a Motif XS OS update that added features to it that were selling points on the Fantom G. So.., Yamaha does the same dang thang.

Squeak, yes I do agree with you and Diki, up to a point.

It is no small thing what Korg have proposed, mind you its not done yet, as the OS wont be out til, ??November??. But it will be a great addition to the sound base.

My argument is NOT the good stuff they have done, but ALL the things that are well-documented at the forums that needed fixing.

And these things Korg said, well strongly hinted at anyway, they were looking at to include as OS fixes for the next update.

None of these were addressed in this OS update, UNLESS Korg are going to release further details about the "Fix" part of the OS update later.. But this I doubt.

That is all I am arguing about. Whats been left out.

Dennis

Dennis..,

I think Korg will address those things.., BUT at the moment at least IMO.., I would say this latest OS release is clearly to challenge the Tyros line (for the moment though).

Korg couldn't let Yamaha release their new top arranger without first giving them the finger I would hope Korg IS working on an OS update to fix real issues for player too.

OK....slow down a little...I think the announcement , being marketing oriented addressed new functions only...

I have to believe that any issues that can be reproduced WILL be fixed AND a new musical resource file will be included that has new sounds using the new (SA Like) features and new styles...

No that wasn't specificaly said, but I hope that's the case.

I am happy with the new stuff...and I hope they just didn't get detailed about everything that will be done in the annoucement.

If that is true...the annoucnement was poorly written!

Lee

Upgrading from the Korg PA1X Pro to the PA2X Pro must have cost a bunch.

No different from going from T2 to T3 IMO.

And no, I am not missing the point...the Korg PA2XPro should have had these features at launch...they are just getting around to trying to add them now...and unsuccessfully, as it seems.

Don't count your chickens before they hatch...


Ian

[This message has been edited by ianmcnll (edited 09-12-2008).]

Hi Tommy,
thanks for the info.

Looks like Xmas will be a month early this year. Some great new functions for nothing.

THANK YOU KORG.

best wishes
Rikki

[QUOTE]Originally posted by TommyF:
[B]Just saw this on korgpa.com

The features Korg are going to provide will be stunning for sure, BUT and I refer to Leeboy's post, in the past when Korg released a new OS, they also announced all the fixes and new musical resources and styles all at the same time.

You guys mostly have history only from the PA800, PA2x..and for those who have longer, they will know.

Go back to os 1.5 with the PA1 (and my history actually goes back to OS 1.0), and then progress through all the remainder..Korg released this information, bug fixes, new styles what was in the new MR package, along with a summary of the new features.

As I have said, its what Korg have NOT said that is of concern to me.

Now, the new sounds are certainly excellent and users would want nothing more than that as an upgrade, me included, but its the fixes I really want to know about.

I am not one for sycophantically bowing at the feet of the Korg God, pleading eternal gratitude for any offerings. Sorry, its just not my go.

I applaud the release, but I want the information on what is to be fixed.

And not many have made any comment that the OS still freezes keyboards,(that info is from someone who is actually at Pakefield talking to the Korg reps) and won't be released until November, which in Korgspeak (and in my experience) means the END of November, if then.

Wake up and smell the grass people!!

Dennis

Look, I've got a list as long as your arm of things I think are ESSENTIAL to be fixed on the G70 (and newer Roland's too). And I bitch as well as the next guy, and better than most when I don't see them in an upgrade

BUT.... if they added something as groundbreaking as SA type control, but didn't fix my favorite peeves, trust me, I MIGHT bitch eventually, but first I would be doing the Pee Wee Dance for at least a few weeks first!

Let's maybe wait a while, and see just how good the SA implementation is, before we slam the upgrade out of the gate. Conditional sample layers is a pretty powerful thing, and knowing Korg, at least THEY probably added the code for you to actually create sounds and modify existing ones to incorporate it, rather than Yamaha's refusal to add user editing of SA parameters.

Maybe the glass is half full, maybe the glass is half empty. But MAYBE the glass has just become twice as big as it needs to be.

I have had a PA2XPRO for quite a while now and it has never stopped working perfectly.

I play it a lot and it just works. I think those that have had any issues are using user developed sounds which I have not gotten into yet...from what I know very few users are having any problems. There were some issues that were fixed in the last release.

I suspect OS2 will solve ALL known problems.
Would you release a new version without doing that...NO.

I think we will delighted with te new OS and musical resources.

Lee

Will tis new OS update include many more needed Korg Styles & easier to operate Folder system?

Those two things are not mentioned, but some of us think a new musical resource will come with it hopefully with styles and new sounds using the new Nuance feature.

Lee

whene is the upgrades info on it to be announced? maybe they were waiting for the T3 release first?

[This message has been edited by Dnj (edited 09-13-2008).]

Hi,
I bought my PA800 just after the 1.50/1.51
resources & operating system upgrades.
My PA came with the old operating system.

The upgrades included 20 to 30 upgraded styles, and a number of new "Real Guitar" sounds for use with Guitar Mode.
Not to be sneazed at. haahaa

Hopefully they will give us some new sounds & maybe some more styles.

Donny , I tend to agree, I think the folder system does confuse a lot of "new" owners at first. I was nervous about loading anything for the first week or so , until I realized I could get my PA800 back to factory standard if I inadvertantly did something wrong.

Now my style organizing into .sets,
has become so much easier with XRM software http://www.dunbharra.net/korg/forum/Blah.pl?

I have a database of all my user styles, from there I just copy them into.sets as needed. Bit easier than doing it onboard.

best wishes
Rikki


[This message has been edited by rikkisbears (edited 09-14-2008).]

Quoting Rob Sherratt from the Korg Forums:

"To those concerned about DNC.

The new articulation facilities are accessible to people creating their own sounds. There are many new parameters associated with assigning Multisamples to sounds.

I have heard new Trumpet, Nylon Guitar, Whistle, and Jazz Organ sounds, created by Korg. I expect there are many others but I haven't had an opportunity to hear. All these are superb. They were being demonstrated at Pakefield. The new "OS2" sounds use existing factory samples from ROM, but the algorithms used for triggering the samples are much more complex and the sounds are much improved as a result.

For example, play the Jazz organ and you get a nice growly percussive effect when you play a chord, and then you get a much softer glide organ sound (without the percussion) when you glissando to the next held note."

All I can add is that Rob is a very serious guy, who knows his stuff.

Put it this way -- I took both keyboards to a wedding 7 pc band job I did this past Thursday. It was really for the show and it worked. Normally the crowd is looking at the guitarist and drummer - this time they were all lookin' at me