Korg Gadget 2.0!

[EnochLight]

So it looks like Korg has been at work on Gadget, and it's poised to hit 2.0 next month. Check it out!

https://www.musicradar.com/news/namm-20 ... pc-plugins

Korg’s Gadget is now well-established on iOS, and version 2 sees improvements being made not only to this mobile version, but to the Mac one, too. And, for the first time, Windows users will be able to get a taste of the Gadget goodness.

First the straightforward bit: there are six new Gadgets in version 2, four of which have been confirmed, with details of the remaining two still to come. Memphis is a semi-modular analogue synth; Pompei is a 6-voice analogue synth; Taipei is a MIDI Out Control device, suggesting that Korg is looking to open Gadget up as as hub to control your other gear; and Durban is a bass effect processor.

On iOS, the Gadgets will be available as paid upgrades - the version 2 update itself is free - but on the Mac, you’ll have to pay for the version 2 update but the new Gadgets will come included. Got that?

Gadget 2 also sports a redesigned user interface, with the main screen view now enabling you to see the status of each track at a glance. Smooth tempo change and fade-in/out functions have been added, too.

As well as this update to the full-on Gadget, Korg has also confirmed the forthcoming availability of the Korg Gadget 2 Plugins, which will be available for both Mac and PC. This will enable those who just want the Gadgets to buy them on their own so that they can be used in any DAW.

All the Gadget 2 products are scheduled for release in February.

[Aosta]

That is great news! I'm a huge fan of Gadget.
You know what would be nice..if somehow Korg could turn Figure into a gadget? With Allihoopa closing down it's an app without a home.

[fieldframe]

I was over the moon when Gadget first came out; there was nothing on iOS like it, and in some ways there still isn't. Alas, I don't think Gadget really kept up with the times, and I'm not really convinced that they fixed what needed to be fixed from reading the press release.

The biggest issue for me has long been the sequencer: It's just not that great. Too much copying and pasting, and the lack of a fluid playhead makes longer patterns a headache to work with. The "UI improvements" may address some of this, but without the words "sequencer overhaul," I'm skeptical.

The other problem is the Gadgets themselves. They are the most fun toys I've ever played with on iOS, but they have limitations that keep them solidly in the realm of toys, the most glaring of which is how they handle MIDI velocity. After almost half a decade, velocity is still hard-wired to amplitude, with no option to change it. With the leading AUv3s starting to adopt MPE, it's a joke that Gadget still can't even handle velocity. And yet Korg is adding new toys to the store, rather than updating the platform all of them are built on.

I'd love to be proven wrong, but it looks like Korg is selling to casual GAS rather than evolving Gadget as a tool for electronic musicians.

[m.arthur]

I'd love to be proven wrong, but it looks like Korg is selling to casual GAS rather than evolving Gadget as a tool for electronic musicians.

This kinda makes me laugh tbh, because I honestly think that is exactly what Korg's business plan was for Gadget from day one.
It was never meant to compete with Ableton and Logic (or Reason for that matter), you get that right? It was meant to be a quick, easy, entry-level, portable, dare I say a "casual" way for people to create electronic music. I think your expectations for the complexity of its development are out of touch.

[KIKBAK1]

I'll have to check this out at NAMM. I just used gadget on a project I finished. Very cool on Mac

[eusti]

I use some of the Gadget plugs in Reason and am happy about how little DSP they use. Although they do click when saving while the song is playing... So, I'm curious about the upgrade options... Especially if I can upgrade to the plugin only version; haven't used the Gadget main program after testing it when I first got it...

D.

[selig]

I'd love to be proven wrong, but it looks like Korg is selling to casual GAS rather than evolving Gadget as a tool for electronic musicians.

This kinda makes me laugh tbh, because I honestly think that is exactly what Korg's business plan was for Gadget from day one.
It was never meant to compete with Ableton and Logic (or Reason for that matter), you get that right? It was meant to be a quick, easy, entry-level, portable, dare I say a "casual" way for people to create electronic music. I think your expectations for the complexity of its development are out of touch.

And yet, when asking about the future of Reason Compact and why it can’t become more like Gadget, one response I heard is that Gadget it aimed more at the “pro” market than Reason Compact.

File under “things that make you go hmmmmmm”.



Sent from some crappy device using Tapatalk

[EnochLight]

This kinda makes me laugh tbh, because I honestly think that is exactly what Korg's business plan was for Gadget from day one.
It was never meant to compete with Ableton and Logic (or Reason for that matter), you get that right? It was meant to be a quick, easy, entry-level, portable, dare I say a "casual" way for people to create electronic music. I think your expectations for the complexity of its development are out of touch.

And yet, when asking about the future of Reason Compact and why it can’t become more like Gadget, one response I heard is that Gadget it aimed more at the “pro” market than Reason Compact.

File under “things that make you go hmmmmmm”.



Sent from some crappy device using Tapatalk

LOL - I remember reading that too. Some users actually said Gadget was "too complex"! Isn't the desktop (Mac-only) version $300 USD? Still the cheapest "DAW" out there, I suppose, but I'd wager that it's more than just a casual/entry level way IMHO.

[selig]

LOL - I remember reading that too. Some users actually said Gadget was "too complex"!

Maybe those were all the Reason Compact users?!?

[EnochLight]

LOL - I remember reading that too. Some users actually said Gadget was "too complex"!

Maybe those were all the Reason Compact users?!?

Eeeek - I’m certainly not one of them. I’d love Reason Compact to be more like Gadget.

[kuhliloach]

This is exciting news. I've always felt KORG Gadget is among the G.O.A.T. music programs along with Logic and GarageBand based on sound quality combined with ease-of-use. I'm very interested in the Windows plug-ins. One thing I would love is full Gadget compatibility with KORG's iMS-20 app.

[chimp_spanner]

Gadget is one of my favourite music making apps. I mean it's one of the few that I actually make music (or at least cool loops/grooves) in. That said, it has some serious shortcomings in terms of MIDI editing. Selecting and manipulating notes is a real chore, and it's crazy to think that it's no better on Mac OS. I mean it's more expensive than Reason 10 and it objectively does far less. So I'll be interested, firstly to see what improvements have been made in version 2. And secondly how much the PC VST suite is, assuming it doesn't come with the actual program.

[EnochLight]

I mean it's more expensive than Reason 10 and it objectively does far less.

Huh? Reason 10 retails for $399 USD. Gadget (on Mac OSX) retails for $299. Gadget costs 25% less than Reason.

[chimp_spanner]

I mean it's more expensive than Reason 10 and it objectively does far less.

Huh? Reason 10 retails for $399 USD. Gadget (on Mac OSX) retails for $299. Gadget costs 25% less than Reason.

Oh dang well my bad - I was looking at the education price here without realising (about £249). Point still stands though. I think $299 for a "DAW" with basically zero MIDI functions and an odd implementation of audio is a biiiit much. I think I paid 40 for it on iOS? And then whatever the addons are worth. Definitely less than 200, and deeeefinitely less than 300. I dunno. I'm not trying to be overly harsh. Again, I do like Gadget and I am kind of excited about version 2. Just think the desktop pricing is steep. But I should probably wait and see what's actually new

[eusti]

The most in depth discussion of the topic I found: https://forum.audiob.us/discussion/30850/korg-gadget-2

[EnochLight]

I think $299 for a "DAW" with basically zero MIDI functions and an odd implementation of audio is a biiiit much. I think I paid 40 for it on iOS? And then whatever the addons are worth. Definitely less than 200, and deeeefinitely less than 300. I dunno. I'm not trying to be overly harsh. Again, I do like Gadget and I am kind of excited about version 2. Just think the desktop pricing is steep. But I should probably wait and see what's actually new

Totally agree 100%. I always thought the price for Gadget on OSX was laughable (although, to be fair - it comes with a lot more Gadgets than the iOS version - like almost all of them, and you can use each and everyone of them as VST/AU in other DAW... so there's that...).

[Delora Software]

I think $299 for a "DAW" with basically zero MIDI functions and an odd implementation of audio is a biiiit much. I think I paid 40 for it on iOS? And then whatever the addons are worth. Definitely less than 200, and deeeefinitely less than 300. I dunno. I'm not trying to be overly harsh. Again, I do like Gadget and I am kind of excited about version 2. Just think the desktop pricing is steep. But I should probably wait and see what's actually new

Totally agree 100%. I always thought the price for Gadget on OSX was laughable (although, to be fair - it comes with a lot more Gadgets than the iOS version - like almost all of them, and you can use each and everyone of them as VST/AU in other DAW... so there's that...).

Yeah $300 does seem expensive, though Korg does periodically offers Gadget for MacOS at 1/2 price. $150 USD for 30+ VST/AU instruments is a pretty good deal (< $5 per). The gadgets are kind of a best-of-Korg's history in a repackage format. You can find in these plugins genetic material from the M1, Triton family, Z1 (really original OASYS project), plus their 70's and early 80's analogs (as well as ARP DNA). One "hidden" benefit is that all of the UIs have pretty low control counts, and the controls are pretty focused on the instrument's theme. So these can work well if you like to use a control surface. They also support NI's NKS format so are nice additions to Maschine or Komplete Kontrol set ups.

One other interesting feature is that the MacOS version can serve as a conduit between a project started on iOS and a desktop DAW. iOS songs can be saved on iCloud so there is no extra steps to access them from MacOS Gadget. If you use Ableton then you can export a Gadget song as MIDI and plugin settings, instead of just audio clips, as an Ableton Live project file. Alas export to other DAWs, like Reason, is more fiddly, unless you go the audio clip route.