Korg RK100S2 Remote Keyboard
Keytar it up with the Korg RK100S2 remote keyboard! Includes an analog modeling engine for classic synth sounds, with an arpeggiator and vocoder built in.
Overall User Ratings (based on 2 ratings)
Submitted July 30, 2022 by a customer from gmail.com
"I Want to Update My Review..."
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zZounds has verified that this reviewer made a purchase from us.
Feel free to ignore my original review. zZounds, feel free to DELETE it, THIS is what I have to say about the Korg RK100S-2 Keytar. Regardless of the bad things I say about this instrument, or Korg, this does still function as (Korg) intended. However, you can save yourself the reading, and just head over to the Roland Axe Edge II page, THAT is the instrument that you want, NOT this!!! I'm stuck for the short term, learn from my mistake.
Sound
I have now owned the RK100S-2 for a couple of months, and I like this thing less and less every day. Korg's engineers seem to be completely out of touch with reality. Their customer support might as well be nonexistent. And this f*****g thing is kind of a nightmare to work with. I'm stuck for the time being because the keytar is DEFINITELY my instrument, I gotta pay this off before I can go ahead and get the AX EDGE II from Roland.
Features
For real, the ONLY way that I can find to create a layer in this instrument is to connect with the PC app, go to the patch that you want to layer, and choose to create a layer forever and all time until the sun itself runs out of Hydrogen, or you go and change it back. Whichever comes first. Now that might not sound like a big deal, but that means that creatively jamming with your friends and trying out new sounds becomes anything but easy. However, that's not even the REAL issue...
Ease of Use
When you go into the app to create a layer, or a split, or whatever; after you choose your option it then opens up a box that allows you to set the wave form in its entirety. WTF?!? NO!!! I don't want to choose what type of wave to use, set the attack and decay, add effects, choose scales and all of that. I just want to add patch 133 to patch 87. Where's THAT functionality KORG?!? It's been 10 days, and apparently their entire customer service department is on vacation because they don't seem to want to answer MY inquiries into the subject. And yes, that level of customization is crazy useful to musical engineers. The average end point user isn't going to appreciate it. Not without a simple way to test things out on the fly BEFORE making them permanent additions to your sound bank. It's almost like Korg's engineers think that only people employed in the aerospace industry are really big keytar fans. Personally, I think we're probably mostly a bunch of stoners that like bending notes into crazy shapes. Know your audience Korg, Roland and Yamaha have managed to figure it out.
Quality
Yeah, it's made well. But nowhere near the attention to detail that my MODX7 has. The keys of this instrument might be 1-2 mm raised or lowered compared to the ones they rest beside. The neck joint seems well anchored, but the plastic control module has uneven gaps made with where it should meet the wood. At a guess, I think it was made in China. But it was a well-run assembly line, unlike some of the garbage instruments that come from there.
Value
Is it worth it? HAHAHAHA!!! This thing should cost half the money, and then they should give you a $500 rebate for having to work with that PC app! As it stands, I won't ever spend another penny with Korg.
Manufacturer Support
Korg sent me 4 emails a day when they were "helping" me to decide to buy the f*****g thing. I emailed them for a reason as to why it is impossible to create layers easily, and they ghosted me. It's the way of the world. "Thanks" to the internet, the doors reading "customer service" might as well be painted on like some dumb ass Bugs Bunny cartoon.
The Wow Factor
This is a cool looking instrument, and that long ribbon makes it unique in the marketplace. But it quickly loses its appeal once one realizes that only a musical engineer will find this instrument EASY to work with. Then, once you realize that the Roland Axe Edge II is only $150 more and has the easy functionality built right into it, well, that's when the buyer's remorse REALLY sets in.
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Submitted June 10, 2022 by a customer from gmail.com
"A Strange Little Beast..."
Verified Customer
zZounds has verified that this reviewer made a purchase from us.
First of all, I'll do my best to review this instrument seriously, but the reality is that I can't play keyboards anywhere near well enough to make this a logical, much less necessary purchase. Serious players should take everything I say with a grain of salt.My first thoughts upon unboxing the (Red) RK-100S2 was that it is beautiful, and feels good around my neck and in my hands. It really is a good size to hold on your lap and just play with while watching TV or whatever which is my primary purpose for purchasing. Just to improve my improv.I knew I wanted a Keytar, so it was between this and the Roland Ax-Edge 2. And, honestly, once I started digging around in the RK100's features, I was bummed that I didn't get the Roland. The Roland has a USB port so that you can have tracks to play along with the instrument. I guess that I just assumed that the Korg would have that feature too, because I went looking for who to yell at, zZounds or the Korg rep, but I can't find anywhere that either company deceived me in the marketing material.I did consider returning this but the size and other features on the Korg make it a better fit for my small apartment than the Roland would have been. Still undecided on it, and waiting for the amp to show up, I started messing around with the sounds, and of the 200 voices in the 100S2, I really like 35 of them. There are about another 50 that I think could be wild if I can learn to play this thing correctly. But still, it "felt" less than the Roland and for nearly identical prices.Then, I plugged it into my computer (via the instrument jack), and connected the Korg to Guitar Rig 6 and started to play with the pedals and amp sims. THAT was when this instrument came alive! While it wasn't the instrument I was expecting, it is the instrument that I NEEDED!This thing is stupid proof! And I'm the evidence. For real, if you don't press either of the modifier buttons on the neck, then simply tapping, rubbing, or holding anywhere on the long touch strip will allow you to play scales. And the scales change from patch to patch. And you can go in and set the Key, the Modality, and the type of scale to be played if you connect to the PC app.The PC app itself sucks, but it is there. It's one of those apps where it opens a window that contains other windows inside it, but those secondary windows can't be re-sized so, even though I have a 32" 1440p monitor on that PC, the app takes up like 20% of the screen and I need a microscope to read anything. I will never understand that design choice.I know that there is an awful lot of this instrument being wasted on me. Somebody that knows what they are doing could have one hell of a time with this thing. I have been making myself laugh for the last couple of days at just how easy it is to get a really good sound out of this thing. This thing almost has me ready to go on a stage, and I have NEVER been able to improvise anything before.I can play like 70 songs on bass, and maybe 5 on piano all covers. I like to say I'm just good enough to know how much I suck! But this thing has me feeling a confidence that I haven't ever felt in 12 years of lessons. I'm sure it's a false sense of confidence, but give me six months with this thing, and it won't be quite so false.The RK-100S2 can be used as a midi controller too. I suggest that you don't. I tried it out, and it triggers the midi just fine, but the touch strips don't function in anything approaching the same way as they do in instrument mode, so it's like having the coolest looking, least functional midi controller available. There are too many cheap midi controllers out there to waste the RK-100S2's talent there.Oh, and in case anyone is wondering, I contacted Korg, and the "SLIM KEYS" are 3/4" wide, and a standard key is 7/8" wide. That 1/8" makes a big difference for my chubby little fingers, but if you have more of a pianist's hand, they shouldn't be an issue.
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