# Anyone own a Korg Kronos?



## dpasdernick (Jun 23, 2018)

I'm thinking of buying a Korg Kronos and have a few questions for anyone who may have one.

1) Are the drivers and editing software 64 bit? I had Korg M50 and the drivers and editor were only 32 bit and were blacklisted in Cubase 9.5.

2) is it easy to integrate into a DAW? I have a Roland Integra and can have 16 Integra sounds playing away inside of Cubase at a time. Can you have multiple Kronos synth engines in combination mode on separate Midi channels inside your daw?

3) Do you buy new sounds often? Companies like kapro sell orchestral libraries but they are pretty expensive. Just curious about the need to add more sounds.

4) is it good as a master contoller?

i had purchased a Kronos a few years back but at the tine, you had to pay extra money for the editor. I took it back but now I'm getting more and more interested in it's synth engines and the wavesequencing capabilities.

A used one is around 2 grand and that's a ton of software libraries.

any insight would sure be appreciated.

All the very best,

Darren


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## chimuelo (Jun 23, 2018)

Not sure about the editor as 32bit, I can’t see why it wouldn’t be a choice.
I see them everywhere. Nord Stage and more recently Montage too.
Korg Kronos goes all the way back to their PCI Cards. Lots of development since then.
Good controllers for multi zone layouts.
I still prefer my own hardware analog and VSTi based PC with a Physis K4, but eventually these all in 1 solutions will get multiple Processors. 
Once they get past that proprietary software I’ll be checking them out.


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## EvilDragon (Jun 23, 2018)

No 64-bit editor IIRC.


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## dpasdernick (Jun 23, 2018)

EvilDragon said:


> No 64-bit editor IIRC.



That is a drag. I can’t believe they can’t update it. Having to buy the pro version of midi quest is over 300 bucks. I have the mid version of Midi quest and it’s a tad Frankenstein-ish at times


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## Piano Pete (Jun 23, 2018)

I think it is a great board for playing gigs, but if it were me and I was only using it for DAW work, I would probably get other gear.


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## EvilDragon (Jun 23, 2018)

dpasdernick said:


> I can’t believe they can’t update it.



It's not Korg's doing, it's done by SoundTower, and they are still in the previous century as far as their coding skills... :/

MIDIQuest has 64-bit plugin tho. But yeah, pricey.


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## HeliaVox (Jun 23, 2018)

I have a Kronos.

1: The Korg USB drivers are 64 bit. The editor however, is not. The editor is provided by Sound Quest. As I understand it, if you want the 64 bit version, you have to buy MIDI Quest. 

2: Yes, it is easy to integrate into a DAW. Every DAW interacts with external MIDI instruments in their own way but once you've got it figured out, it's a breeze. Just don't believe the hype when they say you can use the Kronos as a soundcard. You can't. Well, technically you can, but functionally it does not work. Or at least after years of trying I've never been able to figure it out and have given up. This is all through the USB cable, I have the Kronos plugged into my soundcard with audio cables. But it kinda defeats the purpose of doing everything through one cable now. Also the Kronos can only output at 48k.

3: I don't buy 3rd party samples for the Kronos, however, I do buy soundsets programmed for the specific engines. 

4: As a MIDI controller it's nice. Splits/Layers, no problem. Also , you can assign the control panel (over on the left) to MIDI control. So you can program them to do what you want. You can also save and reload, i think, like 128 different control panel layouts. I'm not at the Kronos now, so that number could be wrong. 

The Kronos is an amazing beast, and after 6 years of owning one, I feel like I still haven't scratched the surface.


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## dpasdernick (Jul 9, 2018)

Update:

After spending a couple of hours at guitar center playing the Kronos I have decided not to buy one. I will eventually need a new controller as my XP-80 is getting older but after some more soul searching $2000 just seemed too steep. Even though the Kronos has 9 synth engines I have many of those already covered. I have far more superior orchestral sounds and own the Poly Six and wavestation in software and the MS20 is only $50 away.

So the good news is I have a few bucks and am upgrading Omnisphere and may buy Swing more and EW Hollywood orchestra soon just to get over the gear lust. 

For any Kronos owners I did email Korg and they are working on 64 bit versions of the software.


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