Microkorg Arpeggiator guide

[@ranzee]

Hey everyone, I'm thinking of doing a few more Arpeggiator reviews on other hardware - so be sure to subscribe and check them out. For those who want to get the content early - head on over to Patreon and become a supporter: patreon.com/ranzee

[@offworldnetwork]

mikrokorg the gift that keeps on giving

[@BarryWarne]

offworld network totally concur. Korg got it so right with this model.

[@Rompler_Rocco]

Am I alone in considering this the perfect synth to start out on? Each click /section is like a comprehensive 5-knob education.. and for graduation you end up with a surprisingly capable & useful synth. ..oh yeah, and then it's like Korg swings by & hands you a free vocoder! Thanks for helping keep this classic alive & relevant Ranzee!

[@ranzee]

Hi Naked Bob, absolutely the perfect first synth. I wish they had something like this when I was starting out. It was my 5th synth - and I've had mine since 2008 - so 10 years. It still works as new, and it is still relevant for today's needs. As you can tell, I love the Arpeggiator on it - and can't believe that I haven't raved about it 'til now ;) Thanks for the comments - and have an awesome week!

[@Rompler_Rocco]

@@ranzee Wow, you've been at it a while! Microkorg was my 1st (unless you count the family SK-1 in the 80's), but I TOTALLY agree about that arpeggiator! My 2nd "synth" has an arpeggiator that STILL blows my mind when I scroll through.. If you have one (which wouldn't surprise me), it might make an interesting addition to this series.. The Roland MC-303. Say what you will about that box, but the arp is.. special. Thanks for replying Ranzee, I hope you have a great week too!

[@ranzee]

Great synth! I have an MC-505 - and I'd imagine they are similar, and the ARP on it is insane!

[@cassiomendes13]

Hello! And thanks for sharing! Is it possible to record a whole song using Microkorg? Sorry for this silly question. All the experience I have is only with a casiotone from the 80s! Hahahah!

[@Rompler_Rocco]

@@cassiomendes13 As a synth, the Microkorg definitely has a wide enough range of sounds to record all the parts of a song, though there are no drum samples like in most Casiotones (instead you could shape rudimentary drum sounds with the help of white noise), and it does not record/sequence the parts within the keyboard.. you would have to arrange the parts into a song on a multitrack recorder. If you want to hear a good range of modern sounds it can produce, there is a great recent video of Microkorg sound design by Cuckoomusic. The other "synths" we discussed here, the Roland MC series (I have the MC-303) allow you to basically record a whole song within the unit if you like.

[@mmypainting]

I've owned one of these Microkorgs for years, just now wrapping my brain around it's possibilities. Thanks for the vid.

[@ranzee]

No problem 👍

[@stuartcarroll2556]

This is really so helpful. I've enjoyed my microKorg for about 8 years now, but had never really been able to make the arpeggiator do my bidding. Thanks so much for this walk-through, you did a fantastic job!

[@ranzee]

Glad it was helpful!

[@patandmacmusic]

I had no idea you could actually set the temp to an actual BPM, I thought the tempo knob had to be set by ear. I was actually looking for videos to sync the midi clock to a DAW because I spent all day trying to figure it out 🫠 thank you for your assistance!

[@AMSOLO420]

That's funny. I've had 2 micros over the yrs & just today I found out about the tempo too lol. I always thought it was a shortcoming of the device. Now... I don't know if you can set tempos for things that aren't arps though.

[@nik-khealcrosby581]

Thank you Brother I am a blind producer. I think the Korg micro chord I have fallen in love truly awesome no menu diving just making music

[@ranzee]

Enjoy! It's a great synth :)

[@YourFreeBeats]

THANK YOU for putting this together. I was wanting to find something that went in to depth for each of these controls. You made it vert easy to understand as well. A+!

[@ranzee]

Thanks so much :)

[@imagiste58]

A mighty good intro. Thanks for keeping it simple yet compelling!!!

[@ranzee]

You're very welcome!

[@Blueskeepersband]

I just picked up one of these MicroKorgs a couple days ago. I'm a guitar player with Very little Keyboard/Synth experience. I have looked at a couple of Video Tutorials, but not helpful. You're Arpeggiator video is very good! Easy to understand! Thanks

[@ranzee]

Hi James, Awesome stuff mate - hope you enjoy your MK!

[@chriseisert1349]

Awesome tutorial. VERY informative and just shows how powerful this tool is. Thanks man!! Subbed!!!

[@strukturwalzen]

Thanks for this great journey into the Arpeggiator!

[@ranzee]

Glad you enjoyed it!

[@RockHardRiffs]

Excellent tutorial. I’m sold!

[@shaneharrington3655]

I followed the instructions from the start, starting from patch A.63 but when I get to the point of turning the arpagiatior on I do not get the same sound as you. The arpeggiator works and I can adjust with the knobs but the synth texture is totally different. Any idea why? Are you starting from factory settings?

[@ranzee]

I'm fairly sure that I modified that patch. You probably need to tweak it with the filter and envelope to get something similar.

[@marting6037]

Excellent video: that's my Saturday morning sorted.

[@veraroquete4698]

Is this the best bang for the buck synth in the world or what?

[@matrizxxii]

despues de probar mas de 5 sintetizadores de diferentes marcas, la verdad el microkorg es el mejor de todos, se podria desir es el papa

[@flyingcod14]

Love the background music at the beginning, was that with the MicroKorg?

[@ranzee]

The track is called "Outpost Mission" - you can find it here: open.spotify.com/track/3mwhpZNk9rkgIEqqfQkSqX?si=edab0648c4464307 It used a whole bunch of synths and effects - but yes - the MicroKorg is in there!

[@shahryartaherkhani5299]

I found your page, guidness very informative. ! Thanks so much for the brilliant teaching.

[@ranzee]

Cheers! Thanks for letting me know - and hope you get a chance to watch on of the live streams!!

[@AMSOLO420]

I use my minilogue xd more than the micro... but the minilogue is so freaking spazzed out, I think I'm going to start learning more about my micro!

[@jgonsalk]

Such a great video! Thanks!

[@cesarvalerio4292]

Wow! Great Review! Greetings from Brasil!

[@jboogie7938]

Awesome. Thanks for sharing

[@GrootsieTheDog]

I love the arp on the MickroKorg. I own the Minilogue xd as well and isnt nearly as fun to work with nor is it as intuitive. There isn’t even an octave setting on the Miniloguexd arp. I hope the xd has a major update to fix its many issues because the microkorg I own is a blast compared to the xd. Don’t get me wrong, the analogue sound on the xd is fantastic and so are the efx but as a testament to the MicroKorg, it’s just so user friendly...even with the lack of knobs and the need to spend some time to do deep editing.

[@AMSOLO420]

Yeah. Minilogue XD = the most spazzy freaking analog board I've got. I think it's got something to do with the fx dept on the xd... or it could just be Korg lol. They've got a few clunkers out there for sure 😅

[@SyncdAlien]

Very nice tutorial! Liked!

[@ranzee]

Thank you! Cheers!

[@rahjuwow]

Thanxalot, very helpful. Regards from Sri Lanka.

[@ranzee]

Hi Rahju - nice to hear from you in Sri Lanka!

[@shmagglehammer]

Excellent video!!! Thank you! I was wondering if I could set the microkorg to be a slave to a daw. I have a midisport which should be able to handle the info, if the microkorg can receive it. Thank you in advance for your time and consideration.

[@ranzee]

You can - pg 50 of the user manual: Using the external MIDI device as master and the microKORG as slave Connect the microKORG's MIDI IN connector to the external MIDI device's MIDI OUT connector (➝p.48). If you set MIDI "CLOCK" to External (EXT ), the microKORG will be the slave. The microKORG's arpeggiator will operate at the tempo of the external MIDI device (sequencer, rhythm machine, etc.).

[@iloveanimals91799]

Awesome tutorial....I have an MX61 it’s good but need more control

[@SteveDPIves]

Very cool - thanks. Hopefully getting a MicroKorg soon - can you tell us what patch you were using for most of this video?

[@ranzee]

Cheers mate. It's a custom patch :)

[@SteveDPIves]

Thanks. Took a gamble on a MicroKorg that wouldn’t power on and yes - it is dead. Usual MicroKorg issue. I think. 😢

[@nathandaems]

Hi Ranzee! Maybe a stupid question but i'm new with the microkorg (my first synth btw) and in these corona times i'm taking the time to get to know everything about it to create good sounds. When editing in the edit select 2 menus (arpeg.A or B.)... how can you go back to change the sound again? I mean how can you use the 5 knobs (cutoff, resonance, etc...) again to change cutoff & resonance (etc.) again instead of the parameters belonging to Arpegg. A&B ? Thanks a lot & take care!!!

[@ranzee]

Hi Nathan, now this is straight off the top of my head - as I haven't got the MicroKorg plugged in at the moment: I think all you do is hit the patch [program number] button and it takes you back to patch mode.

[@nathandaems]

@@ranzee Well, usually that's how it's done but in the arpeggiator those numbers are used to silence the beats or make them sound...That's why i don't know

[@ChanRedfield]

Nathan Daems turn edit select knob 2 away from arpeg a/b the 8 Program Number lights just below the big Program Select knob will go from 8 lit up blocks to 1. Hit the lit up block and there you go. The original patch patch number will appear in the LED window. This trick also works when not using an arp. Just hit the one lit block. Happy MK’ing!

[@spoonyeti]

thanks for sharing !!

[@ranzee]

Cheers spoonyeti!

[@mmypainting]

I think that of all the vids on MicroKorg, yours is probably the most concise, and thought out. I cannot get my drum machine or mics to have much volume when I plug them into the Microkorg, I get some sound with all the knobs cranked, but not what it should be, any idea's?

[@ranzee]

Hi Ken, thanks for the kind comments. Perhaps you should use a mixer? I've always found the MicroKorg audio in a bit finicky :/

[@mzunguofficial]

Hi, great video! im having trouble with syncing the microkorg to a roland tr 8s, here's my problem: The roland i use as master (midi out) to the korg (midi in/slave), so that the arpegiator of the korg follows the tempo of the roland. Everything is pretty perfect so far except although the arpegiator tempo is correct, half of the time it starts and stays off beat. How do i get the arpegiator to run perfectly on the beat, what am I doing wrong? Or is the microkorg simply "inaccurate" by design? Ps i tried matching midi channels but that makes the arpegiator glitch by playing notes i'm not even touching, so even worse. Any help would be greatly appreciated, thx!

[@Havanacuba1985]

Dude that was great ,I know barely zilch about synths , my main instrument is guitar ,but I like 80s rock and pop and this looks ace at building songs

[@ranzee]

Cheers man - enjoy the synth world. I always find guitar to synth is a great progression.

[@RaggruppamentoDRIEU]

Great tutorial, thanks a lot!

[@ranzee]

Thanks so much Cesare!

[@jeremyrandall7228]

That was perfect. Thanks

[@ranzee]

Glad you liked it!

[@sergiopalma7180]

Amazing tutorial. Everything is laid out so neatly, it's really easy to follow along. I did have a question though. Is it possible to edit an appreciated patch and save that patch to use later? That way you don't have to go through the process each time?

[@ranzee]

Hi Sergio, yes you can save patches - even after you tweak a factory patch, you can save the changes. There's a section in the manual that covers this, and unfortunately I haven't done a video on it to refer you to watch. But check out page: 58 ... there's also patch librarian software you can get for it which helps you keep patch libraries.

[@Stevaside]

Couple things I can't figure out if you could please help me with: #1 - when I have the arpeggiator latched, how can I go back in the menu & say play with the cutoff knob while the pattern is still playing?? Also, I have it working in my DAW kind of, but the moment I hit stop, every parameter resets & I have to go back on the MK & turn the tempo, resolution, gate, range, etc knobs ALL OVER AGAIN 😑😑

[@ranzee]

Nice work! What you may be referring to is "Performance Edit" mode - and this can be returned by simply pressing the program number key that is lit. Page 8 of the manual refers if you need to check out more info about this. Also - if you make changes to your patch by using the EDIT SELECT (1 or 2) - you will lose all those changes unless you write them.

[@Stevaside]

@@ranzee Yeaa that doesn't work unfortunately, because all the program number keys are lit when the arpgegiator is on & pressing any one of them just edits the steps in the arp's pattern....Also, I wasn't even turning EDIT SELECT, I was saying pressing play or stop within my DAW when the MK is connected resets everything. Basically if I have the MK hooked up into my DAW & am playing the arpeggiator on a pattern I made, the moment I hit stop in my DAW, EVERYTHING is wiped out. I have to set the arp's time, gate, length OVER & OVER & OVER again (without me touching ANYTHING on the actual MK)

[@garlandpoolfredpool]

Very cool! I have a MicroKorg and I hardly know half of what it can do.

[@calebbarfield4728]

Could you show(or tell) how to synch the arpeggiator tempo with a drum machine via MIDI? I have an alesis SR-16 I’ve been trying to synch up with my micro KORG arpeggiator but can’t seem it figure it out :/

[@ranzee]

You need to set your MIDI sync clock to Auto or External.

[@naturallife3316]

Appreciate it my brother.❤🙏

[@ranzee]

Best of luck bro :)

[@valedonjos]

Is the delay really analog ?

[@ranzee]

hi crgl2009, everything is digital on the MK. It is an analog modelling synth - which means the digital tech models analog circuits.

[@valedonjos]

@@ranzee oh, I did know that but since you say "the analog delay" ...

[@un11verse11]

Thanks for the posting this mate, but how did remove the analog delay (3:23-3:29)? Btw to dial a specific tempo when the one you want is being skipped (E.g you want 120 but 121 & 122 are the only options) click & hold Shift, then press Down or Up (buttons under Octave Shift..credit to ChrisLody "Hybrid Synth Sounds Tutorial Using microKorg Audio & Midi Inputs")

[@ranzee]

Hi, edit select knob 2 has "Delay" - two positions above the ARP - dial out the delay using the column knobs.

[@GuitarsAndSynths]

I cannot get sound in arpeggiator mode- how do I fix this problem with my Microkorg? It works in regular non-arpegiator mode.

[@ranzee]

Check your MIDI clock settings and whether you're in local mode or not. See pages 49,50 of the manual.

[@DjKixk]

Thanks for the helpful tips, what cables are you using to record the audio and what interface, cheers

[@ranzee]

Hi - 1/4 inch L + R from the back of the Microkorg into a Zoom H6 recorder - for the video (I usually use PreSonus gear when I'm recording my music).

[@pablolopez7913]

How should I set the delay bounce like this? PD: excelent guide

[@ranzee]

Go to Edit select 2 - Delay - Delay Type: L/R Delay then play with the tempo sync and delay time. There's actually some neat effects on this :)

[@SanplerVarondaro]

excelente bro saludos

[@MAXIproduction]

the arpeggiator only works with one sound? i cannot put multiple sounds on the different program numbers?

[@erikjanhobma]

the ,,down`` light is green how do you get this low sound at 5.06

[@ranzee]

Hi erik, by setting the octave range which is the 5th knob ... I think that's what you mean?

[@pasyensyatv9092]

I cant figure out why the arpeggiator patterns doesnt transmit midi in my korg volca fm. But when i press a key on my microkorg it does play on the fm.

[@ranzee]

That's how it is supposed to work.

[@mateusz_bricks]

Great vid, but do you know if the Arturia Microfreak sync with Microkorg?

[@ranzee]

So long as the Microfreak can take an external clock - then yes.

[@mateusz_bricks]

@@ranzee Thanks, you're very helpful. I think it's working. I'm realizing synths are finicky.

[@steveswan5714]

I guess it would be good midi linked to a few Behringer synths 🤔👍

[@0872114]

Awesome

[@0872114]

Gonna order a red one today. You really inspired me)

[@0872114]

Breaking news))) I’ve ordered a classic one

[@leewightman8619]

My friends got one of these bad boys ...I want it

[@motoboy6666]

Those background sounds in the beginning is _excellent_, are those the microkorg?

[@ranzee]

Hi motoboy6666 ! That's a track named "Outpost Mission" and you can listen to it here: open.spotify.com/track/3mwhpZNk9rkgIEqqfQkSqX?si=iGUaBTeaRzeFuL8mcUFBNQ ... it has MicroKorg in it among other instruments :)

[@acidbog]

I am struggling 😭 as long as the arpeggiator is on, the synth makes no sounds

[@theguy-g2]

My MK is not arpegiatting as in the video, it just holds the last pressed note infinitely rather than actually arpegiatting a chord.

[@sumoslap1973]

I want this thing bad.

[@minusx5508]

Fantastic tutorial... thanks so much!!

[@ranzee]

Glad it was helpful!