KORG POLYSIX - Synth Review, Sounds & Demo
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- Опубліковано 8 чер 2024
- Korg Polysix synth review, sounds and demo. The Polysix is a vintage 6-voice polyphonic analog synthesizer released in the early 80s by Korg. In this review I provide an overview of the Korg Polysix, demo some Korg Polysix sounds and patches, and conclude with my final thoughts on the synth. Note: MXR analog chorus was used for subtle stereo.
TIME CODES:
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00:00 - Intro
00:32 - Overview
14:46 - Sounds & Patches
26:52 - Pros
30:45 - Cons
33:24 - Final Thoughts
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Released in 1981, the Korg Polysix is a classic vintage 6-voice polyphonic analog synth from the early 80s. It features a single VCO (saw, pulse, PWM) with sub-oscillator, 1 LFO which can be routed to VCO, VCF and VCA, SSM low-pass filter, shared ADSR envelope (filter/VCA), invertable envelope, arpeggiator, chord memory, unison, and can store 32 patches. It also has on-board analog effects including chorus, phaser and tremolo for lovely string sounds.
The Korg Polysix excels at rich and dark organic tones, strings, warbly pads, brassy sounds, cutting leads and phat basses thanks to the unison mode. It also supports external CV for filter cutoff, arp sync in, chord memory in, and has separate output for phones and line out.
The Korg Polysix competed with the Juno 6 at the time of release but has some distinct features that set it apart, including the built-in effects with variable control. However, the battery used in the Polysix is notorious for leaking and causing acid damage to the circuit board and traces, which often requires repairs. Newer KIWISix upgrades can be used to enhance the Korg Polysix capabilities and replace damaged circuit boards. There are also other modifications available from Tubbutec to expand sound design capabilities even further.
Overall the Korg Polysix is a lovely vintage synth from the early 80s and excels moody sounds. If you like the sound of SSM filters and single VCO synths, the Korg Polysix is a great choice and can still be found on the second hand market. Hope you enjoy this synth review and sounds from the Korg Polysix.
#korg #polysix #review #synth #synthesizer #analog #80s
While this synth is simple and limited, it does lend to the fact that they are really easy to program excellent sounds. It's raw tones are awesome.
Agreed, easy and fast to program which makes it fun to use. Also great to learn synthesis on. Raw tone is definitely rich.
For me living in the UK a huge con for all old analogs is if it blows up your screwed, Couple that with the price of these things AND there never has been a better selection of Analogue synths ever, I steer away.
Great vid, thank you
Thanks for this nice video - it really inspired me to explore the Polysix on my Kronos a bit deeper and it is astonishing how similar that sounds to the original Polysix in your video. Great synth indeed!
Thanks for the comment and watching, glad it helped you out!
Great vid. It’s a testament to Korg that this is still a very useful and awesome synthesizer, like over 40 years later. Thank you for covering this one. I still want one to this very day. Cheers!
Thanks for watching! The Polysix is a classic.
Underrated synth.
It is very nice. :)
Nice vintage sounds, thank you for this complete rewiew👍
Thanks for watching, I appreciate it. :)
Thank you for the cool video!!!
Thanks for watching!
The Opsix has a Poly6 filter and I have been using it to emulate the Poly6 architecture. I have made some inspiring sounds and riffs. Crazy how even emulations carry enough of the flavor to still inspire.
Beautiful demo.
Thank you!
Very nice demo.
Thank you!
Hey man! I love that patch you had at 17:00
Cool, lots of resonance was the key. :)
Great demo. I have the VST and find it very musical. Listen to your demo with my headphones on it really reminds me of my Minilogue.
I haven't tried the VST but sounds cool!
@@synth4ever It's in the Korg Collection. Nothing beats a real thing, but it is a fair reproduction.
@@gridsleep True. Even my Modwave has a PolySix filter mode.
I was going to say, this demo reminds me so much of the sound of my prologue!
Reminds me of being in a music store back in the 1980s, lol. Interesting how they retained a number of those features in the DW series. I think these are really nice for pads or poly synth sounds like plucked pads. If the only mono mode was the Unison, that's a huge limitation of the DW series for leads. I like the dark vibe of the Korgs of the 80s. Definitely had their own sound.
Korg DSS-1 is the best one!
@@HenritheHorse The DSS-1 sounds amazing but it's not as fun to use as the DW (or polysix).
@@Roboami It is even more fun, because you can sample and draw waveforms!
Yea, these early Korgs definitely had a darker tone... very moody and brooding sounds. The DW series is also lovely.
I love your demo of your trident mkii - supposedly they share the same discreet vco, and well as ssm 2044 yet they still sound pretty different even with the trident using just a single vco. My theory is that things are integrated differently in the polysix particular the rough/muddy vca. Also the efx add a much different character in the polysix, for better or worse.
Interested to hear your thoughts on your preferences between the two and their similarities?
Thanks for the comment. The Trident can sound much bigger thanks to 2 osc setup + strings, however it lacks an LFO which is unfortunate. Sound-wise there are close similarities in the synth section of Trident and Polysix, especially the filters. To me they are like brothers. If given the choice, Trident all the way.
@@synth4ever nice, my trident mki has a cv in mod for pitch, and native filter/vca cv control so I feel it has plenty of mod options - have soooo many LFO's in euro haha. Sold my polysix right before I could do a comparison, which I could have!
Curious how this would sound ran through that Juno chorus pedal?
I had one in 94 that I paid 250$ at that time. Amazing Synt
Great deal
(News to me. Sounds great.) (Looks through all the second hand markets) ....Everybody's already hip to this. I'm always the last to know.
Still good deals to be had... patience is key. ;)
@@synth4ever I already have a juno-106. I looked around more out of curiosity, but you're saying one day a poly evolver I can afford will pop up? Awesome. (Kidding aside, can attest patience is delicious when it pays off. Great vid, cheers!)
Hi. This is a great demonstration. I have a problem with my Polysix. I purchased it used on Ebay from a Cash Converter style trade in shop. When it arrived, many things weren't working. I realised the battery leak had broken the computer/main board. I asked them if they wanted to replace the board with a KIWISIX mainboard of I could return it. They agreed to pay the difference and I installed the KIWI board. Great :). I spent a lot of time adjusting the oscillators into the darkest hours and it sounds really nice. I'm just worried about the authenticity of this machine now. It has higher functionality but, I worry that it is no longer original. Is this something I should worry about?
I've never used a KIWISIX Polysix before so can't comment on the sound, but the additional functionality is a great addition. I wouldn't worry about it much, if anything you've likely increased the value of your synth. Enjoy it!
@@synth4ever Thanks for your reassurance. The oscillators are identical of course. It's just the control board which has more operational function. It's just no longer fully original. Lovely sounding synthesizer though :)
I am currently in a dilemma... trying to decide which to buy.. this or the prophet 6?
Hi, question - I've had this synth for many years but only ever played it set up sounding like a normal keyboard. I took it in to be serviced and when it came back it no longer sounded like a standard keyboard, is there and chance you could send a photo of the dial settings to get me back to just being able to play it? Thank you
It sounds like the technician tested all the knobs and buttons and left them in that state when he finished. I recommend reading the Korg Polysix manual so you understand what each section does, and then adjust the knobs to your taste. You can get the manual here: www.korg.com/us/support/download/manual/1/194/1640/
You can also look at these settings to create different types of sounds: www.korg.com/us/support/download/manual/1/194/1641/
My first synth back in 1982. Loved the sounds. Didn't like how limited it was. Single osc, so no sync and no cross mode either. No noise. No portamento, multi trigger only, phaser is very weak, ensemble is beautiful for strings, but it turns the sound very dull. One can compensate by opening the filter. The following year I bought a Roland Jupiter 6, which was supposed to be an affordable Jupiter 8. It was very versatile, had power and clarity, a transformer balanced output, but it sounded thinner than the first generation power houses by Roland, Yamaha, Oberheim and Sequencial Circuits. No self oscillating filter and one couldn't tweak the sliders while playing. The steps were audible. The killer synths were and are insanely expensive.
Polysix is somewhat limited but it still has its charm and sounds nice. Agreed that the early VCO synths are still in a league of their own, they sound incredible.
shame your final thoughts didnt mention in the cons section that the juno6/60 which you say were its counterparts also only had single osc. single envelope and simple arps.etc
Yea, I didn't touch on competitors at a deep level, but the Polysix effects definitely differ vs the Juno6. The rest of the architecture is fairly similar, but the Junos do have noise, HPF and that distinct chorus which the Polysix does not.
No need to mention, everyone who is a little in synths, knows that Juno has a single oscillator and a single envelope. And vice versa. That’s why from one of the first sentences in the video, when he said Polysix is made as a competition to Juno, everyone who knows Juno probably understood that Polysix has a single oscillator and single envelope as well. :))
Cannot wait for the Behringer PolyEight. If it is as precise as the MonoPoly, it should be a near identical clone. Thank you for this excellent demo!
Thanks for watching. Will be interesting to hear how the Polyeight sounds.
I would prefer an exact rebuild (5 octaves, 6 voices), albeit with more memory slots.
Good to know, I wasn't aware they're making a polysix clone. I've got my preorder for the UB-xa. I'd get the Deepmind 12 but I need at least 61 keys.
I have to opportunity to buy one for 1200 USD but the arpeggiator doesnt work. Is this a worthwhile purchase you think? BTW it has midi installed and the battery has been changed thus no leak
Decent price but if arp not working maybe you can get it reduced... hopefully just a simple fix.
That patch at 22:28 - can you recall the settings?
I no longer have the synth but it sounds like PWM with long release time and open filter
Ah, my first poly synth love!
No upgrades. In excellent condition.
Showcasing the cutoff at 3:15 with the resonance all the way up doesn’t make much sense...
Wanted to keep things moving but noted for next time.
Yes, would have been great to hear the filter with different resonance values. Nevertheless, thank you for the very informative video!@@synth4ever
👍
Theres a lot of nice sounds but I dont know where I would put them in an arrangement.
I owned two of these over time but I always ended up with cheesy sounds. I think the resonance is way too sharp and the oscillators are boring. The cutoff can eliminate some of the cheesiness but not all of it.
Good stuff for a bad gear review.
It is fairly simple in architecture which can limit sound design possibilities. IMO the Trident, Polysix and Mono/Poly all share similar tonal palette due to their osc / SSM filters, but like anything may not appeal to all users.
I am very pissed!!! at Korg because 3 weeks ago I had ordered the M1V2 VST plugin when it was on sale for $49.99 & instead of sending me the M1 Product Code they sent me the Polysix Code SMDH!!!!!!!! 🤦🏾♂️ which I cannot use for House, Hip Hop R&B & Neo Soul music so I will never download the Polysix VST because I’m learning Ableton Live Lite & I wanted to transfer the M1 Organ sounds to my MPC One Plus because I cannot use the Polysix for the type of music that I make
Ok
stooped.
Never liked the sound of this synth back in the 80s.... listening to it now and I feel the same.... seems to sound like a cheap Casio more times than not. At least is is not as bad as the Poly 800.
Not all casios were cheap, and the polysix sounds like none of them.
The Polysix , for better or worse, does sound much more like a 70s synth than an 80s analogue.