Korg: releases decent sounding accessible synths Synth community: that doesn't look like Minimoog Phantom Premium full sized keys synth Korg is a blessing we don't deserve
@@AudioPilz same here. I understand why peoplewho can afford it are buying Sequential/Roland/Moog stuff. I don't understand why they hate lower tiers so much
^ Once a popularity threshold of any niche community is crossed, some % of this larger population will consistently behave like drama queens. Or outright morons. Old cliches about human nature become woefully more and more relevant. I try not to be bothered by things I can't change, particularly something as absurd as being bothered by _someone I'll never meet trash-talking a synth company in their spare time._
@@shaft9000 good point, but whole concept of Bad Gear show is built around analyzing community hate towards gear. And I'm usually OK with this and I myself must confess of unadequate hate of Roland, but sometimes it's just totally ridiculous
Be careful, dude. Too many more reviews like this and people will start to figure out that you don’t actually review bad gear. 🤣 Great review, NTS-1 is worth the price of admission just to be a reverb for my Lyra-8. I’ll be surprised if I don’t buy three more and possibly an XD module too. 👍
The open platform means that you can code your own Patches and FX in C++. The toolchain works great on Linux. If you are a programmer and a synth nerd this thing is small enough to keep on your desk at work.
I spent a decade (“back in the day”) doing primarily C. C++ can be a scary beast, particularly since the powers that be churn the spec every 5 to 10 years. C++ is the real Bad Gear 😛
This hundred buck pocket synth really smash the synth world. Not mentioning the tons of customized waveshapes/effects you could load and plenty of tweaking options, the reverb unit inside is incredible. I don't see much difference between it and bigsky. Yep, no saving option is a bigh shame, but if you treat it as a dedicated fx with a mono synth engine, the NTS-1 is really crazy. While Behringer keep cloning the legendary synth, Korg is leading the innovation with so many affordable and powerful products.
Gone are those days bro... Tats is nowhere to be found, Korg making leftovers mushes like Drumlogue and ex-Korg engineer now work for Behringer creating... tiny analog synths. It's a weird world.
Ultimately, it was Korg that got me back into hardware again a few years back, so I'll happily confess to being a big Korg fan. They've released an impressive variety of synths over the last few years and their role in anologue revival has to be commended.
The NTS-1 has become one of my most important tools in my small setup for recording for sending a signal for stereo processing with the wonderful effects and for producing bass lines, leads, and arps with my DAW as a sequencer. For the money it has probably given me my greatest return. I have a mid 80s Roland SRV-2000 which I love to pieces, but I find myself using the Korg more often because it takes less time to get a great reverb for whatever instrument I am working with at the time. I have a few other much more expensive synths and plugins that sound top notch. But the little Korg makes it so easy to just plug in and create a solid riff or main melody. My only beef is that I wish it had an even smaller keys to anger keyboard purists.
@@Dash02 honestly I use the standard stock oscillators for bass. I love the triangle and square and will often stack them with the waveshape (multiple takes). A little envelope tweak gets it in the ballpark of what I am looking for and then post production compressors and EQs to solidify the sound I want. Sometimes reamping if I want a certain tonal character mixed in with the original track. All of the other wave forms I use from 3rd party creators tend to be used for high octave melodies or arpeggios. Sometimes even just ambient texture.
Also using a SRV-2000 as a reverb with the NTS-1 acting as delay on my Mackie VLZ PRO 1202 Mixer. The rest of the desk is a pair or TD-3, and Volca Sample, FM, Keys, and Drum Modules. I recapped several SRVs now. Great machines!
@@pileggitech I love my SRV. Taking the time to really dial in a great verb is fun and pretty easy, but it can be time consuming. I know it's a classic on snares but I love using it as A general send for synths and vocals.
Use a power bank. There is plenty more that korg could have done to make this thing a better, more useful product but they very deliberately chose not to. Patch saving for example. This is probably just a matter of a few lines of code, the hardware itself allows for saving custom oscillators that surely take up more memory than a patch would. They developed this tech to be included in more expensive products, but I guess they figured they could get some online buzz by making a super-minimalistic unit and selling it as cheap as possible, let the internet loose on their open source platform and see what comes out of it.
@@JH-lo9ut Yes I know I can use a power bank, it would just be nice to have a battery/battery compartment actually inside the unit to make it truly portable
Small enough to be worn as a fashionable pendant. Team it up with a QY8 and a 30X powerbank, and you can terrorise all your friends with a portable four bar eternal jam session. Blinky lights optional. I like the idea and the execution, and I'd have demanded one from my parents for Xmas if I was a techy pre-teen. The first step on the career path to Eurovision glory.
I was thinking that Korg could sell a zillion of these if it came with a "gold" chain lanyard and some hipitty-hopitty 'patches' out of the box. ...and then I came to my senses and remembered the DIY inclinations of said demographic.
Forgot to mention, if you hold the ARP button down and turn the type nob you can actually change the division type, A will allow you to change the note count, up to 24, and B will let you set the tempo.
Wow, I bought one of these a month ago, to fill in the gaps that I have with the Volca Sample and Kaossilator Pro (both featured on Bad Gear before, and yes, I have the Retrokits 002 cable, and Pajen firmware, muchos gracias to those legends) as cheap hardware units to generate some more personalised / hand-played / organic sounds to fire into Ableton. Didn't expect to see this on Bad Gear so soon, but def a good choice. I thought it looked whack at first, then i realised what it's capable of. Amazing value for money
If I wanted that technology I would rather buy a Pro-8 or 16. These barebone gadgets tend to get easily broken. All the input controls are surface mounted potis and buttons. That's not minimalism. It's just shit. It's like buying a car without doors, seats, windows and suspension.
TARDIS intro was a great choice, as the NTS-1 is much bigger on the inside than it appears. It's my most-used bit of gear - intuitive, inspiring, and sounds amazing.
I was expecting something like the Monotron Delay or Duo (which are actually good for lofi stuff). Didn't expect this one! I just researching the NTS-1 for GAS purposes and now you're reviewing it in Bad Gear... 😅 It's reverbs sound amazing though.
@@AudioPilz you're making kickass music with just this and the Circuit. Here I am with a Circuit Tracks, stuck in learning the thing with the presets. 😂 How long did it take you to compose and program those pieces? Thanks for answering and see you next time!
FRAGILE! If you play tug of war with NTS-1, you’ll win. The slightest cable tug can destroy any input/output jacks. Take precaution to place no stress on this device, unless you’ve rehoused it, e.g. in an effects pedal enclosure.
@@AudioPilz If Minilogue XD (either version) had audio input, I would have bought one long ago. Because the audio input broke off the PCB on my first NTS-1, I’ve bought 2 NTS-1, but I’m too afraid to even use the 2nd one! 🤪
@@dingalarm That might be a great idea to try doing, if ever I want to make an NTS-1 more durable before giving an old one (warranty already expired) to a small child! I think the electronics manufacturer for whom I work regularly uses such adhesive in their assemblies!
This is insanely awesome if you think about what he said at the end. Take 4 of these and build them into an enclosure with flexible connections, routing, and mixing, and you could build an insane synth. Korg is giving you the building blocks and saying go for it. Super cool. :)
As someone whos spent thousands on gear, some of which has been hosted on your channel. The fact you have found the means to play or even keep some of the instruments you review is the greatest life hack a limited musician could have ever developed. I dont miss a video and appreciate you greatly!
I love my little NTS-1. I use it as a sample making machine for the most part and as an effect unit. And if you hold down osc and turn the type knob you get a whole lot more settings for the (custom) oscilators .
Bought it a couple of weeks ago, and for the money it sounds pretty impressive! The filter is good, the oscillators and reverbs are amazing. Paired with VCV rack (turing machine + quantizer + a couple of lfos and envelopes modulating the parameters via midi cc) = a powerful generative voice
What you have to remember with this device, is it's more of a public dev platform for developing/prototyping Minilogue XD/Prologue oscillators and effects - it just happens to be a device that can also be used on its own - bonus.
That’s actually a genius idea I’m from korg. A product that helps improve a different product while also making money and being a genuinely good piece of gear.
I love this synth. Just wished it had patch memory. Is a permanent component of my tiny eurorack setup. Also, it took me awhile to realize all the intros to your vids are developed using the "bad gear" tech starring IN the vid itself lol. Well done! Cheers :-)
the best part is that you can pop off the top PCB and make your own hardware control surface with a sit ton of knobs that plugs right into it. I made my own. You can also add memory for saving patches and a better screen.
First time watching a video from you. At first I was put off by your manner of speaking and the ott video/illustration things. But after watching completely I won the impression you deliver good content in a quite unique and enterprising way. The piece of music from 7:42 was truly excellent! So thanks for making this!
Anybody else here like Swedish meatballs a bit too much? I'd go to IKEA to get them but I'm wary buying food there. I got an Allen wrench accidentally mixed in with my last two meals.
It is amazing how nice it really does sound. I have previously stated that i am a korg fan but personally i am afraid of the NTS1 being too fragile and also it is, like the brits say, "too fiddly". i also counter the argument "But it is worth the $100 for the reverb alone" with: " No, for effects alone you spend $129 and get a zoom MS70-CDR which is on another plane of usefulness instead of that little breath-mint tin".
Amazing! As a stereotypical Volca and Pocket Operator owner this has been on my to-purchase radar for a long time and if the same instrument came out with Volca or Teenage Engineering level industrial design and save functionality this would be a pretty great addition for my lofi succulent DAW-less jamming.
When are you going to boycot the terrible Behringer Crave? I hate that machine so much, it deserved a center in my studio to keep me reminded of hate it gets.
before i sold my minilogue XD, one of my favorite custom oscillators was 'souper' by hammondeggsmusic, generating up to 10 detuned saw, pwm or triangles per digital osc. another one of my absolute favorites, and that really expanded the capability if the XD was 'Extra', also by hammondeggsmusic, that used the digital oscillator to generate multiple paraphonic voices, up to 3 per oscillator instance (so up to 12 voices on the XD). does make me wonder why i sold it now, especially seeing some of the recent developments.
Got one to pair with my microfreak. Super happy with the effects, the drum machine synth sounds super interesting, I guess I should have a look myself!
The USB noise literally only happens when you hook the USB power up to the same laptop you try to record to. It has to do with how most laptops just have no ground or shielding there either. You shouldn't run into this issue on a desktop PC or Mac. It's less of a real issue from the NTS-2. And technically, you could use one of those USB cables with a ferrite bead / ferrite choke, to just eliminate the problem altogether. Or use a separate powerbank which isn't a terrible idea anyway. I mean, why occupy a USB slot on your laptop and have it to be close to your music gear. It can be super clumsy. I do think and agree it should come with an USB cable with a ferrite choke by default though, as apparently there's also zero shielding inside the unit itself which could be seen as a con. Overall though, the sound is 100% clean. Heck, the Korg Nu:Tekt NTS-1 is outright _loved_ by the people that own it. For its price, it has some truly insane sounds. Custom oscillator support is just unheard of. Soundwise it is better than any of the Behringer 303 clones and can even compete with some of the $200-250 range synths out there. There are FX boxes and pedals out there that are four times the cost and do not sound nearly as good. It might be worth it for the FX alone. I also disagree about build quality. Plenty of synths literally have a plastic casing that is not much better than this and it would never come up as a problem. I dare say if we wouldn't have to put the unit together, this whole thing would not have been brought up at all.
I love my NTS-1 and was really excited to see it get the AudioPilz Bad Gear treatment! I bought it for the effects and to have another oscillator to sequence in home office DAW-less jams. Sounds great and is fun to play with! Best piece of $99 music gear I ever bought!
I mainly use mine as an fx unit with my MS20mini. I wish the ms had midi out as I could use it as a third oscillator. I also loved the tiny Action Man sized screwdriver that came with it.
Shame the MSRP went up to $119 in the past couple of months. It's the perfect little gateway drug into spending thousands of dollars on a DAWless setup. Don't ask me how I know.
@@AudioPilz This episode will cause the price to increase. Florian should get a kickstart incentive from these synth companies….least of which a free demo
If it could save presets for the effects and the custom oscillator (aka a fourth effect), it could be a perfect multi effects unit for live playing. But even as a studio unit it's a crazy good value
@@AudioPilz Hopefully a firmware update will fix that (wishful thinking, I know). It's been fantastic looking forward to your videos on Fridays! Keep up the great work in 2022!
1:01 "...a legit high-tech music production tool." Laughing my ass off that you used a picture of the Commodity Fetishism "module" for this. Nicely played.
I mean, for about $100 and only slightly more complex DIY you could have an XVA1 open source FPGA polysynth that has an engine comparable to multithousand dollar commercial digital synths (but no UI at all), sooo...
wow . you keep outdoing it, and you outdid the outdone on the outhouse over and out. I'm guessing it's a full time job now with some of Santas elves that were chained up in your basement to find those clips and stills for the edit. every new cut I wanted to stop the vid and really check out the images but I had to keep watching dammit!!
Nice SNES mug! I love your videogame references in general. Actually, is it my imagination or is there actually a big overlap in the Venn diagram of gamers and synth nerds??
@@AudioPilz I had one, output jack broke off PCB after 3 weeks. I think I used it twice. Sent it back, got another. That one broke at one of the buttons the second time I played it. The button just stopped working. These things are junk. You literally have to treat it as gentle as a butterfly’s wing.
@@malcolmbliss777 I have to agree. I'm no gear snob. I love the oddball and cheap gear. There are other units that are sturdier and more versatile. If you go to the used gear sites, even something like the Uno synth seems way more powerful and can be found used for the same price..
I love how you dropped the Haynes Electro Synth in there. I bought one last year at a Radio Shack I found still doing business. The NTS-1 is a great little addition to the tiny producer's tiny toolkit of tiny volcas and other thing like one pocket operator. Or two, even :)
Damn, another synchronous occurrence with my friend at Bad Gear. Been binging Doctor Who recently, and just saw that episode with Micky, Rose and the David Tennant doctor!
The effects are good, but the arpeggiator is almost useless. The timing is way off on mine. It keeps running faster than the MIDI or sync clock speeds. Using the synth without a controller is virtually impossible.
This is the first of my gear on here, and while I did expect to see some of it on the show this one does hurt me a little just because I love my little NTS-1 a lot, especially its wonderful effects.
@@AudioPilz Yep, and I am especially in love with the space and & submarine modes. Its not just a "it will do fine", no, its an actually REALLY PRETTY reverb that I WANT to use.
The quote from the reviewer who threw their NTS- in the trash shocked me a bit. Sure, it'll end up in a landfill eventually, but straight away? Even if you hate it why not donate it, or send it to this channel for review? Anyone thinking of disposing their gear in this fashion should consider sending it to this channel instead.
I see it as a very affordable and space saving effects unit for my other synths, I would guess that is how most people are using this little unit. And nice video/excellent demo as always!
Really getting your money’s worth out of that novation circuit!!!!!! If my Alesis strike multipad didn’t decide to die on me leaving me w/o a sampler/multipad/sound card/EFX unit and forcing me to have to buy a Roland spd-sx on very short notice I would have bought myself one. Seen one used for 150$ and and Akai mpc touch for 100$(broken USB port,probably easy fix) I would have snapped them both up. I did get good deal 350$ for 2gb version, much better than 500$ plus
Verdict : - Dr. Clow! Dr. Clow i find a magic synth. People call then Korg Nts 1. - Give me this magic synth! I whont to become more, more than Andrew Lloyd Webber!!! Ha, ha, ha...
A hundred bucks. Sweet. Wouldn't this be an excellent starting point for DIY modding? Improve the inputs/outputs, buttons, dials etc. so they are no longer flimsy? Maybe a new case to hold all the knobs/dials, ins and outs would go a long way. But hey... that is from a guitar player's view. A hundred bucks guitar can be turned into a great sounding machine for very little money.
Yeahy! Finally! 😁 Was wondering when the NTS-1 would show up. I bought this little box, cause i wanted to dabble around with the Korg Multiengine API, but i quickly learned that DSP programming is a whole other world than building office applications. 😂 Instead of a development board, i now use it as an FX unit for my MicroFreak or my Modular. I especially loooove the Submarine reverb. It can sound sooo massive!😊 Nice video again!
TB-3 and Novation Circuit: *exist* Florian: *makes a bad gear episode for them * Florian two months later: *uses each a lot in other episodes * Florian: “Perhaps I treated you too harshly”
This little NTS-1 cutsy dude was promising but pissed me off. I tried to run it an an external effects unit from the send out and back into aux in of my Volca Mix and only one side of the stereo mix received the effect. Then I tried a guitar pedal coming out of the Volca Mix through the send out and back into the aux in and same deal. What gives? Maybe it wasn't the NTS-1's fault after all? Something faulty with my volca mix sending only one side on a stereo line? I am so confused.
It seems you are running on fumes 😄... No real bad gear left or did nothing arrive in time due to the lockdown 🤔? I bought a 2nd nts recently as I love that lil thing for it's FX section alone. The downloadable Oscs are the icing on the cake! Da vid is gorgeous as usual...
No way, a bad Gear. ITs on my wishlist for a long time. you can NOT ruin a good snitzel only if you burn IT. Tnx for the video (ITs more like a preview than a verdict)
As a swede I feel the urge screaming from my dna to eat a plate of meatballs and mount a synth now. I hope the mounting instructions are better than the ones from the big I though. xD
I would like to nominate that Wildfire Laboratories device for your next round. Maybe a soon-to-be-no-longer-friend wants to assist with their eurorack? :)
A show on ring modulators, I love 'em...other half of the world...uhm..no to I don't understand em..why would you do that!? What do I know. I've often been called an audio tool. you know sum difference as it ever was
Well, it's nice and all, but I think I'm going to wait for the NTS-1M because I want less knobs and only a sine generator model in the oscillator. Oh, and that new plaster wallboard enclosure for it, too!
I have a Korg Prologue 16 and these user OSC's are amazing. I'd love to see korg make a x3 user OSC polysynth so you can mix and match all these wonderful custom user OSC's into one patch. Sinevibes doa. x4 Op FM synth and their new Odds OSc release this week now gives you loads of new waveforms
@@AudioPilz Id pay korg for the electribe to have user osc and fx, but it seems like they prefer to sell another cheaply made box, having the same feeling with the volca drum, huge gas on that too but when you have the electrime it seems like a waste of money... change my mind...
Great sound synth even though it does not store presets onboard - until something breaks on it, which happens far too easily! Bad move Korg. Why no mention of the numerous complaints of jacks breaking?
Thirdst!!
Alex Ball is an international treasure!!!
Third Ball
Thirdsty 🤤
But will AudioPilz ever will work on his sweater game with the likes of Alex Ball and Hainbach?
@@johnmeroney2007 Step not to Hainbach's godlike sweater prowess, ye mortals, for those who do are put to shame
Most reverb stompboxes in this price range have *nowhere near* the satisfying crunch when you stomp down on them.
Yeah, without any (pre-)delay;)
I have to put wafers and crackers on my pedals to get anything close to the same feeling as the Korg.
I can't tell if this is genuine praise or a joke about the build quality.
And yet when teenage engineering make raw PCB devices and upsell cheap plastic cases it's hip and cool 🤔
@@superchroma imo teenage engineering is overpriced hipster bullshit
I bought this little guy while drunk and no regrets really, it's such a powerful thing with the custom effects and oscillators
Drunk-shopping is so (too?) much fun
Running my monosynths through the cathedral reverb from hammondeggsmusic on the nts1 **chefs kiss**
Hey there a lot worse things that you could have done when you were drunk so there is that!
NU regerts.
I wish I made such good decisions while drunk.
Korg: releases decent sounding accessible synths
Synth community: that doesn't look like Minimoog Phantom Premium full sized keys synth
Korg is a blessing we don't deserve
Big Korg fan here!!!
@@AudioPilz same here. I understand why peoplewho can afford it are buying Sequential/Roland/Moog stuff. I don't understand why they hate lower tiers so much
Yep, love my affordable, compact gear.
^ Once a popularity threshold of any niche community is crossed, some % of this larger population will consistently behave like drama queens. Or outright morons.
Old cliches about human nature become woefully more and more relevant.
I try not to be bothered by things I can't change, particularly something as absurd as being bothered by _someone I'll never meet trash-talking a synth company in their spare time._
@@shaft9000 good point, but whole concept of Bad Gear show is built around analyzing community hate towards gear. And I'm usually OK with this and I myself must confess of unadequate hate of Roland, but sometimes it's just totally ridiculous
Be careful, dude. Too many more reviews like this and people will start to figure out that you don’t actually review bad gear. 🤣
Great review, NTS-1 is worth the price of admission just to be a reverb for my Lyra-8. I’ll be surprised if I don’t buy three more and possibly an XD module too. 👍
You know too much😂😂😂
@@AudioPilz 🏃🏻♂️
Badass gear
The XD is a thing of beauty.
(not so) Bad Gear
The open platform means that you can code your own Patches and FX in C++. The toolchain works great on Linux. If you are a programmer and a synth nerd this thing is small enough to keep on your desk at work.
So many great custom oscs and fx!!!
I might just have to get one to sharpen my C++ skills! Thanks for letting me know!
Hey! I'M those things! It reminds me of those "baby's first Pi" kits I love to ask for for Christmas
I spent a decade (“back in the day”) doing primarily C. C++ can be a scary beast, particularly since the powers that be churn the spec every 5 to 10 years.
C++ is the real Bad Gear 😛
@@Roboprogs _perl has entered the chat_
This hundred buck pocket synth really smash the synth world. Not mentioning the tons of customized waveshapes/effects you could load and plenty of tweaking options, the reverb unit inside is incredible. I don't see much difference between it and bigsky. Yep, no saving option is a bigh shame, but if you treat it as a dedicated fx with a mono synth engine, the NTS-1 is really crazy. While Behringer keep cloning the legendary synth, Korg is leading the innovation with so many affordable and powerful products.
The reverb is indeed top notch!
I think that comparing with a Bigsky is too much!😅
Gone are those days bro... Tats is nowhere to be found, Korg making leftovers mushes like Drumlogue and ex-Korg engineer now work for Behringer creating... tiny analog synths. It's a weird world.
I think that this little pocket thing beats the JD-Xi by quite a lot, NGL. Guess it's Korg VS Roland though, maybe I'm just a Korg girl?
Nothing wrong with being a Korg girl! It does have a few sonic similarities to Rolands supernatural engine
Ultimately, it was Korg that got me back into hardware again a few years back, so I'll happily confess to being a big Korg fan. They've released an impressive variety of synths over the last few years and their role in anologue revival has to be commended.
The NTS-1 has become one of my most important tools in my small setup for recording for sending a signal for stereo processing with the wonderful effects and for producing bass lines, leads, and arps with my DAW as a sequencer. For the money it has probably given me my greatest return.
I have a mid 80s Roland SRV-2000 which I love to pieces, but I find myself using the Korg more often because it takes less time to get a great reverb for whatever instrument I am working with at the time. I have a few other much more expensive synths and plugins that sound top notch. But the little Korg makes it so easy to just plug in and create a solid riff or main melody.
My only beef is that I wish it had an even smaller keys to anger keyboard purists.
Smaller keys wouldn't even make a difference on this one;)
can you tell me the patch you use to bass? i can make sound like a bass, only like a gritty noisy bass sound, dont deep and glitchie
@@Dash02 honestly I use the standard stock oscillators for bass. I love the triangle and square and will often stack them with the waveshape (multiple takes). A little envelope tweak gets it in the ballpark of what I am looking for and then post production compressors and EQs to solidify the sound I want. Sometimes reamping if I want a certain tonal character mixed in with the original track.
All of the other wave forms I use from 3rd party creators tend to be used for high octave melodies or arpeggios. Sometimes even just ambient texture.
Also using a SRV-2000 as a reverb with the NTS-1 acting as delay on my Mackie VLZ PRO 1202 Mixer. The rest of the desk is a pair or TD-3, and Volca Sample, FM, Keys, and Drum Modules. I recapped several SRVs now. Great machines!
@@pileggitech I love my SRV. Taking the time to really dial in a great verb is fun and pretty easy, but it can be time consuming. I know it's a classic on snares but I love using it as A general send for synths and vocals.
Mine is already broken, I blame the builder! 🤣
Lol
No, blame the Government, it’s convenient no matter what party you side with
external input + custom fx is a great combo, you don't even really need the actual synth part imho
I'd love a stompbox with that tech
@@AudioPilz also, "why..oH.. WHY???" have Korg not put this into a Eurorack module form factor, they have missed a massive new market IMHO
Scott McDiarmid ----- genius--------
I love this little thing, but I think Korg missed a trick by not making it battery powered like the volcas
I assume they had to cut every corner possible
@bad gear you're right, the corners are all rounded
Use a power bank.
There is plenty more that korg could have done to make this thing a better, more useful product but they very deliberately chose not to.
Patch saving for example. This is probably just a matter of a few lines of code, the hardware itself allows for saving custom oscillators that surely take up more memory than a patch would.
They developed this tech to be included in more expensive products, but I guess they figured they could get some online buzz by making a super-minimalistic unit and selling it as cheap as possible, let the internet loose on their open source platform and see what comes out of it.
@@JH-lo9ut Yes I know I can use a power bank, it would just be nice to have a battery/battery compartment actually inside the unit to make it truly portable
Small enough to be worn as a fashionable pendant. Team it up with a QY8 and a 30X powerbank, and you can terrorise all your friends with a portable four bar eternal jam session. Blinky lights optional.
I like the idea and the execution, and I'd have demanded one from my parents for Xmas if I was a techy pre-teen. The first step on the career path to Eurovision glory.
I just read Eurovision gory;)
I was thinking that Korg could sell a zillion of these if it came with a "gold" chain lanyard and some hipitty-hopitty 'patches' out of the box.
...and then I came to my senses and remembered the DIY inclinations of said demographic.
Some truly noteworthy feedback here hahahaha
@@shaft9000 Just need Flavor Fav to wear one yet he too old Skool….Weeknd or Drake or Lil Wayne or Lil Bad Gear
@@autecheee Hopefully, Li'l Badgear will be making an appearance on the Bad Gear Xmas Speshul
Forgot to mention, if you hold the ARP button down and turn the type nob you can actually change the division type, A will allow you to change the note count, up to 24, and B will let you set the tempo.
Thanks for the clarification!
Awesome
I like how synth snobs think anything that doesn't require a minor bank loan is immediately "bad."
There's a lot of bank loan-worthy gear that sucks big time;)
Never thought I'd see my NTS-1 on here, oof.
It happens to the best;)
@@AudioPilz Oh you 🥲
Wow, I bought one of these a month ago, to fill in the gaps that I have with the Volca Sample and Kaossilator Pro (both featured on Bad Gear before, and yes, I have the Retrokits 002 cable, and Pajen firmware, muchos gracias to those legends) as cheap hardware units to generate some more personalised / hand-played / organic sounds to fire into Ableton. Didn't expect to see this on Bad Gear so soon, but def a good choice. I thought it looked whack at first, then i realised what it's capable of. Amazing value for money
Agreed, I'm just afraid it will break any moment
If I wanted that technology I would rather buy a Pro-8 or 16. These barebone gadgets tend to get easily broken. All the input controls are surface mounted potis and buttons. That's not minimalism. It's just shit. It's like buying a car without doors, seats, windows and suspension.
They're certainly not built for eternity;)
TARDIS intro was a great choice, as the NTS-1 is much bigger on the inside than it appears. It's my most-used bit of gear - intuitive, inspiring, and sounds amazing.
Thanks!
I was expecting something like the Monotron Delay or Duo (which are actually good for lofi stuff). Didn't expect this one!
I just researching the NTS-1 for GAS purposes and now you're reviewing it in Bad Gear... 😅 It's reverbs sound amazing though.
I so want this reverb in a stomp box!!!
@@AudioPilz you're making kickass music with just this and the Circuit. Here I am with a Circuit Tracks, stuck in learning the thing with the presets. 😂
How long did it take you to compose and program those pieces? Thanks for answering and see you next time!
Totally agreed! I wasn't researching (I already made up my mind), but it feeds my GAS like brussel sprouts!
Surprised to see it here 😂😂😂
@@bisheejom it depends on the setup and how ambitious I am but it's usually 2-3h
The effects alone are fuckin unreasonably good for such an affordable tiny Lil synth
FRAGILE! If you play tug of war with NTS-1, you’ll win. The slightest cable tug can destroy any input/output jacks. Take precaution to place no stress on this device, unless you’ve rehoused it, e.g. in an effects pedal enclosure.
Extremely fragile. I was in constant fear sth would break
@@AudioPilz If Minilogue XD (either version) had audio input, I would have bought one long ago. Because the audio input broke off the PCB on my first NTS-1, I’ve bought 2 NTS-1, but I’m too afraid to even use the 2nd one!
🤪
@@chiefbucknell I wonder if Silastic 738 (or an appropriate adhesive) applied to the jacks would strengthen them 🤔🙄 (and void the warranty 😋) ?
@@dingalarm That might be a great idea to try doing, if ever I want to make an NTS-1 more durable before giving an old one (warranty already expired) to a small child! I think the electronics manufacturer for whom I work regularly uses such adhesive in their assemblies!
@@chiefbucknell I hope it works well! Good luck! 🙂👍
This is insanely awesome if you think about what he said at the end. Take 4 of these and build them into an enclosure with flexible connections, routing, and mixing, and you could build an insane synth. Korg is giving you the building blocks and saying go for it. Super cool. :)
Yeah, very powerful piece of gear for the size
As someone whos spent thousands on gear, some of which has been hosted on your channel. The fact you have found the means to play or even keep some of the instruments you review is the greatest life hack a limited musician could have ever developed. I dont miss a video and appreciate you greatly!
Thank you so much!!!
I love my little NTS-1. I use it as a sample making machine for the most part and as an effect unit. And if you hold down osc and turn the type knob you get a whole lot more settings for the (custom) oscilators .
I have to try that out, thanks for posting!
Bought it a couple of weeks ago, and for the money it sounds pretty impressive! The filter is good, the oscillators and reverbs are amazing. Paired with VCV rack (turing machine + quantizer + a couple of lfos and envelopes modulating the parameters via midi cc) = a powerful generative voice
Agreed! I would not want to play it live though
What you have to remember with this device, is it's more of a public dev platform for developing/prototyping Minilogue XD/Prologue oscillators and effects - it just happens to be a device that can also be used on its own - bonus.
Interesting angle on the NTS!!!
That’s actually a genius idea I’m from korg. A product that helps improve a different product while also making money and being a genuinely good piece of gear.
I downloaded the Korg NTS editor by Momo Muller which enables me to save presets, it was certainly worth the small amount of money it cost.
Ah, didn't know that one, thanks for posting!
I was thinking about writing one. The NTS1 is pretty much all midi controlled.
In case anyone's looking for a WHITE NOISE oscillator for this. I built one:
ruclips.net/video/9R3mLR4aC5o/видео.html
Enjoy!
Nice!!!
I love this synth. Just wished it had patch memory. Is a permanent component of my tiny eurorack setup.
Also, it took me awhile to realize all the intros to your vids are developed using the "bad gear" tech starring IN the vid itself lol. Well done! Cheers :-)
Certainly goes well with a little modular! Thanks!
the best part is that you can pop off the top PCB and make your own hardware control surface with a sit ton of knobs that plugs right into it. I made my own. You can also add memory for saving patches and a better screen.
Nice, didn't know that! Thanks for posting!
Can You please post some links, how to add memory, better display and more knobs?
@@faustinodales4237 it's on Korg's website.
First time watching a video from you. At first I was put off by your manner of speaking and the ott video/illustration things. But after watching completely I won the impression you deliver good content in a quite unique and enterprising way. The piece of music from 7:42 was truly excellent! So thanks for making this!
Thank you so much!!! Stick around!
Anybody else here like Swedish meatballs a bit too much? I'd go to IKEA to get them but I'm wary buying food there. I got an Allen wrench accidentally mixed in with my last two meals.
I like my Allen wrench with some nice lingonberry sauce
It is amazing how nice it really does sound. I have previously stated that i am a korg fan but personally i am afraid of the NTS1 being too fragile and also it is, like the brits say, "too fiddly". i also counter the argument "But it is worth the $100 for the reverb alone" with: " No, for effects alone you spend $129 and get a zoom MS70-CDR which is on another plane of usefulness instead of that little breath-mint tin".
Big fan of the Zoom stuff but the reverb algos on the NTS are Eventide-grade magic
@@AudioPilz this is a point
One of the best gear I bought! It fits great in my studio and the sounds that u can produce with this machine are pretty decent!
I was surprised by how grown-up it sounds too
Amazing! As a stereotypical Volca and Pocket Operator owner this has been on my to-purchase radar for a long time and if the same instrument came out with Volca or Teenage Engineering level industrial design and save functionality this would be a pretty great addition for my lofi succulent DAW-less jamming.
If you like Pocket Operators and Volca's you will love the NTS-1
The succulent is strong in this one!!!
Only that dam mini jack out mine popped off the PCB and couldn't get audio out anymore , it is now an ornamental 😭
I was afraid that this would happen to mine all the time
Perfect for my tiny collection.
Agreed, goes together well with Volcas
I bought it for my korg monologue and with midi sync and audio input calling this setup monologue xd
Nice one!!!
When are you going to boycot the terrible Behringer Crave? I hate that machine so much, it deserved a center in my studio to keep me reminded of hate it gets.
Lol;) Noted...
before i sold my minilogue XD, one of my favorite custom oscillators was 'souper' by hammondeggsmusic, generating up to 10 detuned saw, pwm or triangles per digital osc. another one of my absolute favorites, and that really expanded the capability if the XD was 'Extra', also by hammondeggsmusic, that used the digital oscillator to generate multiple paraphonic voices, up to 3 per oscillator instance (so up to 12 voices on the XD). does make me wonder why i sold it now, especially seeing some of the recent developments.
Hey thanks for the mention!
I really have to check out their stuff
Love mine, but be careful with that audio out kids. It’s fragile.
I was so happy that it made it until Friday;)
Beside the synth engine, the NTS-1 is a great effect box because you can use the audio in for processing external instruments.
Agreed!
It's the worst and I hate it and every video I've ever made about it should be taken as satire.
:D
Nice! Subscribed!
@@AudioPilz Oh wow, I'm honored! Love your channel :)
Got one to pair with my microfreak. Super happy with the effects, the drum machine synth sounds super interesting, I guess I should have a look myself!
So many nice add-ons for this
Ouch, Roland have taken a beating lately, and now its Korg's turn!
Wait for it;)
The USB noise literally only happens when you hook the USB power up to the same laptop you try to record to. It has to do with how most laptops just have no ground or shielding there either. You shouldn't run into this issue on a desktop PC or Mac. It's less of a real issue from the NTS-2. And technically, you could use one of those USB cables with a ferrite bead / ferrite choke, to just eliminate the problem altogether. Or use a separate powerbank which isn't a terrible idea anyway. I mean, why occupy a USB slot on your laptop and have it to be close to your music gear. It can be super clumsy. I do think and agree it should come with an USB cable with a ferrite choke by default though, as apparently there's also zero shielding inside the unit itself which could be seen as a con. Overall though, the sound is 100% clean. Heck, the Korg Nu:Tekt NTS-1 is outright _loved_ by the people that own it. For its price, it has some truly insane sounds. Custom oscillator support is just unheard of. Soundwise it is better than any of the Behringer 303 clones and can even compete with some of the $200-250 range synths out there. There are FX boxes and pedals out there that are four times the cost and do not sound nearly as good. It might be worth it for the FX alone. I also disagree about build quality. Plenty of synths literally have a plastic casing that is not much better than this and it would never come up as a problem. I dare say if we wouldn't have to put the unit together, this whole thing would not have been brought up at all.
Power banks worked well here
Yea I think I’m gonna buy it just for fx’s this or that boss from-1b
It’s good, but it’s no Monotron Delay..
BTW check out the Betty “oscillator” which turns out to be a surprisingly good Drum Machine..👍
Thanks for the heads up!!!
I love my NTS-1 and was really excited to see it get the AudioPilz Bad Gear treatment! I bought it for the effects and to have another oscillator to sequence in home office DAW-less jams. Sounds great and is fun to play with! Best piece of $99 music gear I ever bought!
It's quite a bang for the buck!
Sorry I'm a little confused. How is it even remotely "bad gear"?
There are some valid points of critizism...
I mainly use mine as an fx unit with my MS20mini. I wish the ms had midi out as I could use it as a third oscillator. I also loved the tiny Action Man sized screwdriver that came with it.
Loved that screwdriver too (didn't use it tho;)
Shame the MSRP went up to $119 in the past couple of months. It's the perfect little gateway drug into spending thousands of dollars on a DAWless setup. Don't ask me how I know.
Yeah, it should have a warning like cigarette packs;)
@@AudioPilz This episode will cause the price to increase. Florian should get a kickstart incentive from these synth companies….least of which a free demo
Looks like a toy, produces serious sounds. Many grooveboxes fared worse on this channel.
Agreed! I would appreciate an open source electribe!!!
The criminally expensive custom oscillators are for mugs.
Wise words!!!
If it could save presets for the effects and the custom oscillator (aka a fourth effect), it could be a perfect multi effects unit for live playing. But even as a studio unit it's a crazy good value
Patch saving would be awesome!
@@AudioPilz Hopefully a firmware update will fix that (wishful thinking, I know).
It's been fantastic looking forward to your videos on Fridays! Keep up the great work in 2022!
@@AudioPilz Can you save patches to computer via some kind of librarian or a daw?
Don’t you mean ‘The Stocking Filter’?
Lol
Bad Gear Friday...It should be standard viewing! Can an AudioPilz Jam ever be bad...No, it cannot. Well done sir, well done indeed.
Thank you so much!!!
Only downside for me is the delay isn't syncable.
Worked pretty well here
1:01 "...a legit high-tech music production tool."
Laughing my ass off that you used a picture of the Commodity Fetishism "module" for this. Nicely played.
Thanks!
also lmao'd at this
I mean, for about $100 and only slightly more complex DIY you could have an XVA1 open source FPGA polysynth that has an engine comparable to multithousand dollar commercial digital synths (but no UI at all), sooo...
...or a Roland D-110;)
It looks like it could be a great synth If you'd make a custom housing
Agreed!
Damn expensive for a stocking filler. Rich family's only
Synths won't get much cheaper than that
@@AudioPilz mate that would be my main gift in my family.
A truly gourmet reverb... superb meme / OG footage timing
Thanks!!!
got me wanting another piece of equipment I don't fucking need and whipping out the soldering iron and sheet metal tools
Thanks! No soldering required though!
@@AudioPilz no to put it in maybe a Hammond enclosure or something
It sounds surprisingly good for such a modest piece of gear :o Especially in your jams
Thanks! Really liked the synth engine too!
wow . you keep outdoing it, and you outdid the outdone on the outhouse over and out. I'm guessing it's a full time job now with some of Santas elves that were chained up in your basement to find those clips and stills for the edit. every new cut I wanted to stop the vid and really check out the images but I had to keep watching dammit!!
Thank you so much! Full time job yes, Santas elves - working on it;)
can't wait to hear this week's obligatory 303 techno club filler
Surprisingly 303-free this week;)
@@AudioPilz good job convincing me to get an nts-1 by the way
@@heartache5742 same here ;-) I am just wondering why this channel is called "bad" gear?
Nice SNES mug! I love your videogame references in general. Actually, is it my imagination or is there actually a big overlap in the Venn diagram of gamers and synth nerds??
Thank you!!!
The riser setting on the reverb is worth the price alone. Truly an amazing bit of kit for the price.
True that!
It’s a toy, if it lasts 3 weeks, be thankful. The PCB is junk. Th solder joints are trash. Save yer money.
I was happy that it made it until Friday
@@AudioPilz I had one, output jack broke off PCB after 3 weeks. I think I used it twice. Sent it back, got another. That one broke at one of the buttons the second time I played it. The button just stopped working. These things are junk. You literally have to treat it as gentle as a butterfly’s wing.
@@malcolmbliss777 I have to agree. I'm no gear snob. I love the oddball and cheap gear. There are other units that are sturdier and more versatile. If you go to the used gear sites, even something like the Uno synth seems way more powerful and can be found used for the same price..
I love how you dropped the Haynes Electro Synth in there. I bought one last year at a Radio Shack I found still doing business. The NTS-1 is a great little addition to the tiny producer's tiny toolkit of tiny volcas and other thing like one pocket operator. Or two, even :)
Wow, didn't know there are still Radio Shack shops!
@@AudioPilz That was my reaction too! Their billboard sign out in front says "WOW! A RADIO SHACK!"
I am a great fan....I watch every single video you make, I would like a review from the KORG MONOTRIBE...I've been waiting for it all this time
Thank you so much! Great suggestion, I'll have a closer look!
I can't believe how cheap this is and it still sounds better than some other supposedly better gear!
So true!!!
Damn, another synchronous occurrence with my friend at Bad Gear. Been binging Doctor Who recently, and just saw that episode with Micky, Rose and the David Tennant doctor!
That episode is really nice!
You're doing a good job convincing me to get one. I have the XD, but... but... I MUST HAVE ONE!
If you've ever wished you could run your own audio through the xd's FX, then the NTS1 is great for that alone...
Just click that buy button;)
The effects are good, but the arpeggiator is almost useless. The timing is way off on mine. It keeps running faster than the MIDI or sync clock speeds. Using the synth without a controller is virtually impossible.
Weird! Worked fine here
This is the first of my gear on here, and while I did expect to see some of it on the show this one does hurt me a little just because I love my little NTS-1 a lot, especially its wonderful effects.
The FX unit is extremely powerful!
@@AudioPilz Yep, and I am especially in love with the space and & submarine modes. Its not just a "it will do fine", no, its an actually REALLY PRETTY reverb that I WANT to use.
The quote from the reviewer who threw their NTS- in the trash shocked me a bit. Sure, it'll end up in a landfill eventually, but straight away? Even if you hate it why not donate it, or send it to this channel for review?
Anyone thinking of disposing their gear in this fashion should consider sending it to this channel instead.
As far as I remember it was more or less DOA
I see it as a very affordable and space saving effects unit for my other synths, I would guess that is how most people are using this little unit. And nice video/excellent demo as always!
Thank you!!!
Really getting your money’s worth out of that novation circuit!!!!!! If my Alesis strike multipad didn’t decide to die on me leaving me w/o a sampler/multipad/sound card/EFX unit and forcing me to have to buy a Roland spd-sx on very short notice I would have bought myself one. Seen one used for 150$ and and Akai mpc touch for 100$(broken USB port,probably easy fix) I would have snapped them both up. I did get good deal 350$ for 2gb version, much better than 500$ plus
The Circuit is a super powerful machine!!!
Not my NTS-1!
Nothing personal;)
Verdict :
- Dr. Clow! Dr. Clow i find a magic synth. People call then Korg Nts 1.
- Give me this magic synth! I whont to become more, more than Andrew Lloyd Webber!!! Ha, ha, ha...
I'd buy a Andrew Lloyd Webber Synth!!!
So much humor and so many absolute bangers of demo tracks packed into these videos 🤯
Thank you!!!
A hundred bucks. Sweet.
Wouldn't this be an excellent starting point for DIY modding? Improve the inputs/outputs, buttons, dials etc. so they are no longer flimsy?
Maybe a new case to hold all the knobs/dials, ins and outs would go a long way.
But hey... that is from a guitar player's view. A hundred bucks guitar can be turned into a great sounding machine for very little money.
Didn't try it but it seems like it's quite hard to mod because the solder points are kinda janky
Yeahy! Finally! 😁
Was wondering when the NTS-1 would show up.
I bought this little box, cause i wanted to dabble around with the Korg Multiengine API, but i quickly learned that DSP programming is a whole other world than building office applications. 😂
Instead of a development board, i now use it as an FX unit for my MicroFreak or my Modular.
I especially loooove the Submarine reverb. It can sound sooo massive!😊
Nice video again!
Thanks Erika!!!
Well I’m up to 4 synthesizers you’ve covered.
That's a pretty good Bad Gear score! Kudos!!!
@@AudioPilz I guess 5 if you count the MiniNova in with the Nova desktop I used to have. Damn.
TB-3 and Novation Circuit: *exist*
Florian: *makes a bad gear episode for them *
Florian two months later: *uses each a lot in other episodes *
Florian: “Perhaps I treated you too harshly”
One man's Bad Gear...;)
It's Friday, it's fabulous .... it's Florian ! At first glance this doesn't even come in a box. Wait, what? Does sound good tho. The Turtle moves !
Have a nice weekend!!!
This little NTS-1 cutsy dude was promising but pissed me off. I tried to run it an an external effects unit from the send out and back into aux in of my Volca Mix and only one side of the stereo mix received the effect. Then I tried a guitar pedal coming out of the Volca Mix through the send out and back into the aux in and same deal. What gives? Maybe it wasn't the NTS-1's fault after all? Something faulty with my volca mix sending only one side on a stereo line? I am so confused.
I only used it stereo in/out which worked great. I assume it doesn't work so well in less typical applications
It seems you are running on fumes 😄...
No real bad gear left or did nothing arrive in time due to the lockdown 🤔?
I bought a 2nd nts recently as I love that lil thing for it's FX section alone.
The downloadable Oscs are the icing on the cake!
Da vid is gorgeous as usual...
Thanks! You know, one man's Bad Gear...;)
No way, a bad Gear. ITs on my wishlist for a long time. you can NOT ruin a good snitzel only if you burn IT. Tnx for the video (ITs more like a preview than a verdict)
Thanks for the Schnitzel;)
As a swede I feel the urge screaming from my dna to eat a plate of meatballs and mount a synth now. I hope the mounting instructions are better than the ones from the big I though. xD
Hand me the lingonberries, please;)
I would like to nominate that Wildfire Laboratories device for your next round. Maybe a soon-to-be-no-longer-friend wants to assist with their eurorack? :)
Great input, thanks! Pretty sure we will find a victim for that;)
A show on ring modulators, I love 'em...other half of the world...uhm..no to I don't understand em..why would you do that!?
What do I know. I've often been called an audio tool. you know sum difference as it ever was
Audio tool was written on my business card for much too long;)
Well, it's nice and all, but I think I'm going to wait for the NTS-1M because I want less knobs and only a sine generator model in the oscillator. Oh, and that new plaster wallboard enclosure for it, too!
...or maybe an 88 keys version;)
Software and sound : 98 points
Hardware and build quality : √-1
Lol
I have a Korg Prologue 16 and these user OSC's are amazing. I'd love to see korg make a x3 user OSC polysynth so you can mix and match all these wonderful custom user OSC's into one patch. Sinevibes doa. x4 Op FM synth and their new Odds OSc release this week now gives you loads of new waveforms
...or maybe an open source Electribe?
@@AudioPilz Id pay korg for the electribe to have user osc and fx, but it seems like they prefer to sell another cheaply made box, having the same feeling with the volca drum, huge gas on that too but when you have the electrime it seems like a waste of money... change my mind...
This was uncalled for! No synth gives you more for 100€. If you want more build quality buy a mini/prologue.
Well, you could get a Roland D-110 for under 100 bucks,)
Ha ha.. i love mine - the fx are awesome in their own right, so you dont even have to use the synth if you don't want to
True that!
Great sound synth even though it does not store presets onboard - until something breaks on it, which happens far too easily! Bad move Korg. Why no mention of the numerous complaints of jacks breaking?
I think Korg doesn't want to sell less of their more high end synths;)
Goddammit Florian, quit ripping on my palette of tools! I wish I could save a default fx chain & parameters which would be recalled on startup tho.
Nothing personal;) saving patches would be great!