Using the Microkorg as a guitar amp

[nichobert]

Page 21 in the manual tells you how to do this. The page under the Osc 1 section about the "AUD" source for the first oscillator.

I haven't messed with it much, it'd be cooler if you didn't have to hold a key down so you could use the 2nd oscillator to modulate the tone from your guitar. i guess you may still be able to do that, but the key would be playing while you did it

[sgsg1212]

It's not operating as an amp. An amplifier is what makes the sound loud. You're just using it as a guitar synth. Which is pretty effin cool.

[1qways]

Please, try to learn at least one instrument...you can't play guitar nor synth...please stop...

[nichobert]

@1qways i don't see him trying to learn to play synth, i just see him using the synth as a guitar pedal. god forbid someone want their guitar to sound the way they want their guitar to sound while learning.

[cjsinister6]

@hdebbache2000 I did everything I'm supposed to on the synth and I get the audio signal green LED to light up but my guitar doens't make any sound, got the amp plugged into the korg and the guitar into the korg what am I doing wrong???

.

[cjsinister6]

I have a razorback a guitar amp and a microkorg, do I need anything else?

[hdebbache2000]

@cjsinister6 You need the synth, the guitar, and whatever you use to listen to your synth. thats all you need, even the amp is not used. I didn't use any amp in this video

[cjsinister6]

@cjsinister6 I plug my amp into the synth and synth into the guitar I get a an audio signal (green LED) but nothing is coming from the guitar. I set all the settings correctly on the microkorg.

[crza814]

Please please someone w/ knowledge of how to do this(preferably the person who made this ).give me a detailed description if how this is done. All parts needed. I just bought my MK and I have an ibanez w/ practice amp(ig/3?0 starter kit I believe) and a metal muff pedal. Message me!

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Crza814

[nichobert]

@crza814 Not really that hard, there are instructions on page 21 of the microkorg book. Basically, unplug and turn off everything. Then turn the Line 2 down to Minimum, then plug it guitar into line 2, then turn it on. Then turn edit select knob 1 to Osc 1, turn the first/'Cutoff' knob all the way to the right where it says AUD, turn 2nd and 3rd knobs to left til they say 0. Hold some keys down, play guitar.

[manifatzigula]

just read the manual.....there is nothing in a digital synth you could break :/

[Haggisman0]

The microkorg doesn't have an internal speaker

[hdebbache2000]

@Haggisman0 This was connected to the Mic jack of my laptop..

[justinboodissy]

i want to know if you can use the micro korg in a chain of pedals with a line selector so that it can come out of your amp?

[AssembletheDinosaurs]

Why is everyone saying this isn't good for your synth? A synthesizer is just an effects board with keys what do you guys think guitar pedals are homies? This is a neat little video for showing the line in on a microkorg but I'm looking for someone that has made a more synth-like sounding effect on their guitar alot like the white stripes "Icky thump". If anyone sees such a thing let me know yo :D

[RaygunShaun]

@AssembletheDinosaurs Jack White used an actual synth on "Icky Thump".

[octoberguitaru2]

hey hdebbache2000 - so you just plugged your guitar into the line in #2? do you think i could get those "Shimmer" / strings sounds with this and a guitar?

[sp4zzer]

The el. goutar is an Hi-Z source, so it might not be healthy for the synth. You should use a preamt and rund the line signal to the korg. I assume you here simplu used it as a dynamic sound sorce (that is no external power from the guitar fed to the synth). If so, you probably havent broken anything.

[nicojaf]

so, let me see if i got it...

you are bassicaly using the microkorg as a guitar pedal? (a multi effect one of course)

and if that's the way you're using it, that doesn't brake the microkorg or something? in any way? because that is not its "normal" function i supose.

sorry for the ignorant question, but i'm planning to buy one of those and i play guitar, so that function would be very usefull.

great sound man!

[hdebbache2000]

@nicojaf No I'm using it as an amp! There is absolutely nothing else here, just the guitar and the korg. So it does the amplification, effects, and whatever else you do with it. I have no idea if it breaks anything in it, I'm basically as ignorant or maybe more than you are, but it seems to me that it would maybe have fucked an analog synth, I doubt about the fuck-ability of a digital synth. All that to say I dont know

[luuus1]

@hdebbache2000 nice! you think it's gonna work the same way with the microkorg XL?

[KaslarProductions]

I like to run mine thru the gate appegiator and also have the global "thru" set to on

[Geekernator21]

what would happen if you played a chord with the arpeggiator on? or if you played the same notes on the keyboard as on the guitar?

[AhhThatGuy]

Put the microkorg in arpeggio mode, latch on, gate 100%, type trigger

This way you press one note at the start and then you can continue to play without further key presses

[Deanboy2007]

Can I still do this and play from my guitar cab? I wanna use the effects from my micro korg but continue micking my cab up to Pro tools.

[TheDivineAberration]

@Deanboy2007 yeah man just plug your microkorg into your cab!

[franzen0]

Awesome! So you can plugin a guitar to the microkorg and get the microkorg sounds?

[MrBrandonPeoples]

no, but sort of, its using sound effects, that lace over the audio that comes in so it's like an effects pedal

[gacpianoman]

I've done this with a piano and it sounds awesome! Piano with some distortion on it sounds very cool!

[skiptofreedom]

i tried emoboys advice and its not ohelping much, anyone got any advice?

[TheDivineAberration]

@skiptofreedom it worked for me but i have to turn it up loads :/

[emoboy3437]

Just run an instrument cable into the audio 2 input. From there turn the edit select 1 knob to osc 1 and set the value to aud. Then set the 2nd and 3rd knobs to zero values. Push down a few keys and play the guitar. From there you can just edit the signal like a normal sound on the microkorg. Enjoy!

[jmtdowland]

Nice! I've been looking for evidence that you can do something like this with the alesis micron or the xiosynth. Your video gives me a bit more hope!

[hdebbache2000]

You're hoping too soon... I have the Micron, but I dont think this is feasible. Well if it is, it must be such a pain to program...

[dudewhosaysarrh]

@hdebbache2000 Actually it, is- I just did it! Simply select one of the *Ext In- patches from the sfx category and start tweaking the parameters to your liking. Before you do that, press a key on the keyboard and engage the latch function, so the micron will actually play the external signal. When tweaking you should use the shortcuts, its easier that way. There is hardly any limit to what the micron can do, you just have to know how to make it do what you want. ;-)

[AngusT07171]

basically he is sending the signal of his guitar though the vocoder, and the microkorg is just altering the sound parameters (modulating the guitar in layman terms) and he is using the on board effects.

[jmtdowland]

ah so you need a vocoder as part of the synth to get the effect. The microkorg has one, but apparently so does the micron...

[AngusT07171]

yeah from what i understand it needs a vocode at the very least, it may require a little more. not sure i don't own either of these instruments you should probably ask this for what it involved him doing

[danballztv]

u can do this on a micron, its pretty easy.. just line in and go to the vocoder sounds then hold down a key and hit the latch button..

[sirajali005]

So this does have a 1/4" output jack so it can be hooked up to an amp, right? Or did you get some kind of adapter?

[kerbie420]

yeah, u can hook it up to an amp with standard instrument cable 1/4"

[edenmeden]

Its a 1/4". Both in and output.

I think:)

[DogOfPanic]

Does the octave shift work with the guitar input as well? Or does it only effect the keyboard?

[QueenKittan]

Octave shift just acts as if you played the note up higher or lower, helping make up for the size of the keyboard. It would be nonsensical to generate the waveform then have advanced DSP algorithms for recreating it at a higher pitch in a way that would also work for more complex waveforms like that of a guitar, instead of just generating it at different pitches.

[QueenKittan]

ROMPlers work by doing simple pitch shifs most of the time. In DSP when you know the length of a sample it's an entirely different story to processing in real time. When you raise the pitch, the sample becomes shorter. "Shorter" only makes sense when you know how long it is.

Though that said a lot of the same stuff used in the waveform generation would be helpful when recreating the guitar sound at a higher pitch.

[jumpmaster98]

you can add gate... i think

[mynmyself]

i love to use my bass with the microkorg and play with filter section to create some crazy noises...

[evondizzle]

i got the same problem, how exactly is your shit set up?

[hdebbache2000]

Set the swich at the back from "mic" to whatever the other position is. Now select Audio in as oscillator 1 wave. Knob 1 (in the oscillator 1 menu) is used to define which audio in is used (for audio 1, set it at 127, for audio 2 set it at 0). Set knob 2 at zero, as it controls the modulation of the mix of the two audio ins. Also a very important thing... You must play a note in order to hear your guitar. So if you want it to be permanent, set arpeggio on with latch on.

[synthtron2000]

or just set it to vocoder and turn up direct input level to full.

[hdebbache2000]

The vocoder will get you stuck on one note (or one chord)

[synthtron2000]

no it won't.  voice > synth/vocoder > vocoder > amp > direct level > 127. it means you don't need to use the arpeggiator.

[reznorfan15]

this is dope. i pulg my guitar into my microkorg and the audio led indicates that the sound is coming through but it doesnt play back. curious.

[paedrough]

dude! i do similar stuff with my radias... this is dope.

[classicscenes55]

holy shit that is cool as mate

[hdebbache2000]

Hey thanks!

[lundeee]

Hi! What a great sound! 5 stars!!! :) Can you tell me instructions for that great sounding patch? I'd love to connect my guit to MK if i just could get a sound like that from it! Thanks mate!

[8thdj]

how did you connect it up

[hdebbache2000]

You plug the guitar cable in the "audio in 1" jack of the MK

[hdebbache2000]

You could, but the effects are supposed to come after the amplification, so the sound would be disgusting. You could do the opposite though, but in the end you need normal speakers

[Saladin126]

1) if you're gonna run it through an amp, it needs to be a digital power amp, not a tube amp... and yea, it'll sound bizarre, or horrible if you clipped the signal (distortion)

2) I'm glad you posted this, I needed to find a video of a guitar simply being played through a microkorg as basically as possible.

3) should have messed with the Arpeggiator :) (or even play some pinch harmonics through that thing's weird clip-distortion)

[a280281]

so could i run my guitar through the microkorg and then streight into my amp,,

[uglycasanova159]

I had been wondering how feasible this was but hadn't messed with it yet. nice.

[hughbie93]

did you use only the MicroKorg or some other pedals?

[hdebbache2000]

No, the gear in the vid is the microkorg plugged directly in the microphone jack of my laptop. The effect used is the flanger or ensemble effect of the microkorg itself with of course distorsion and the appropriate values of the filter.