Korg Zero 4 Mods/Knobs
Korg Zero 4 Mods/Knobs Posted on: 21.03.2011 by Len Ladera Shoutouts to Korg Zero 4 users, anyone changed the knobson your Zero 4. If so what kind did you use? Where did you get them? Any other mods anyone has performed? l0rdr0ck | |
04.04.2011 |
Originally Posted by aviatorman
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| Arcelia Siebeneck 04.04.2011 |
Originally Posted by aviatorman
shame the same can't be said of new macbooks... |
| Ethyl Hire 30.03.2011 |
Originally Posted by aviatorman
The knobs and faders are fine. They may be plastic, but after nearly 2 years of use I have had no real problems with either the faders or the knobs, and my mixer is the center piece of my little "home studio" so it's on and used for 6+ hours a day. This is not an install mixer, and I'm unsure as to why it is still being compared to mixers like the DJM 800 and Xones (not specifically aimed at you, but you provided no real baseline for comparison, only midi controllers). This is more of an instrument, like it's big brother the Zero8. It's supposed to have a finesse feel and not be some big clunky mixer that is going to be beaten on. Personally I don't believe the knobs or faders make the unit feel cheap in anyway. The suit the necessity for the mixer and have stood the test of time. Secondly, what's your base line comparison for firewire vs usb reliability? Just experience or are we talking actual benchmarking/diagonstics? Also, USB seems to be light years more stable on PCs than OSX, but that could just be my experience and the fact that Apple doesn't play nice with anyone. Regardless, my original complaints also stemmed from the knobs, but not the faders. Even so they aren't cheap by any stretch of the word. Just because it's plastic doesn't mean the quality is lacking, it's just another material was choosen, probably for cost reason, but this doesn't take away from the usefulness of a great piece of kit. Just my .02 having been using the Zero4 for 2 years now, nearly everyday. |
| Len Ladera 21.03.2011 | Shoutouts to Korg Zero 4 users, anyone changed the knobs on your Zero 4. If so what kind did you use? Where did you get them? Any other mods anyone has performed? l0rdr0ck |
04.04.2011 |
Originally Posted by aviatorman
|
| Arcelia Siebeneck 04.04.2011 |
Originally Posted by aviatorman
shame the same can't be said of new macbooks... |
| Art Beatz 04.04.2011 | I used to have a urei 1620 rotary hooked up, but with the entire controlerism phenomenon, I had to make the swith. To deal with the flat sound, I invested in an analog tube compessor: the avalon design stereo tube with graphic eq for post mix. There are cheaper ways to get around this, but I am a big fan of quality, and I don't care what anyone says, analog tube compression will enhance the quality of mp3 tracks. The korg eq's are ok but tha's why you need to add a little more umph to the setup I wonder: does the vci 100 SE knobs fit the korg???? |
| Len Ladera 01.04.2011 | I adore my Zero4, I would absolutely agree this mixer is more like a precision instrument. than a battle/mash surface. I treat it very kindly, I cannot find a way to replace it with some other gear yet. Its just too wicked to have analog/midi on the channel strips or 8 knobs per channel of midi. Simply brilliant with Ableton/Traktor External Mixing. Not to mention the bonus Traktor Scratch Approved, fundamentally this lets me break out audio Pre-Eq/Pre-Fader for Ableton this is really nice. Firewire chain, i absolutely agree i would always prefer firewire to USB, it's pretty easy to understand this when using SMPTE, Genlocs, or any of a number of Realtime VJ paradigms. Asyncronus and Isyncronus transfer, USB does not. As the previous posts state, i free up USB, i use a firewire Harddrive. I already have 10 USB devices connected, granted they are low bandwidth midi, but why muddy the bus. I just want some damn knobs with rubber. l0rdr0ck Yes it sounds flat, I personally like the neutral sound of the mixer, i add some vintage tube or analog warmth in an Ableton track. I just want to find some new knobs, knobs that hopefully are a little rubbery. They are very slim knobs. I havent found a good set yet. |
| Ethyl Hire 30.03.2011 |
Originally Posted by aviatorman
The knobs and faders are fine. They may be plastic, but after nearly 2 years of use I have had no real problems with either the faders or the knobs, and my mixer is the center piece of my little "home studio" so it's on and used for 6+ hours a day. This is not an install mixer, and I'm unsure as to why it is still being compared to mixers like the DJM 800 and Xones (not specifically aimed at you, but you provided no real baseline for comparison, only midi controllers). This is more of an instrument, like it's big brother the Zero8. It's supposed to have a finesse feel and not be some big clunky mixer that is going to be beaten on. Personally I don't believe the knobs or faders make the unit feel cheap in anyway. The suit the necessity for the mixer and have stood the test of time. Secondly, what's your base line comparison for firewire vs usb reliability? Just experience or are we talking actual benchmarking/diagonstics? Also, USB seems to be light years more stable on PCs than OSX, but that could just be my experience and the fact that Apple doesn't play nice with anyone. Regardless, my original complaints also stemmed from the knobs, but not the faders. Even so they aren't cheap by any stretch of the word. Just because it's plastic doesn't mean the quality is lacking, it's just another material was choosen, probably for cost reason, but this doesn't take away from the usefulness of a great piece of kit. Just my .02 having been using the Zero4 for 2 years now, nearly everyday. |
| Art Beatz 30.03.2011 | I would finally like to have my say in regards to the reason this thread was started. I am so glad that there are still some Zero 4 users out there. I bought mine about 3 years ago and I love what Korg did in terms of design and features. The biggest bust about this mixer is the quality of the knobs and faders. I was hoping someone would point that out... The biggest plus in any knob design is that it should have a weighted feel with the ability to provide comfort to the touch. In my opinion, based on all the knob twisting I have done for many years, NI has nailed it down to a science with the X1 and the S4. I had a VCI-100SE with the Vestax knob upgrade, and it still does not compare to the weighted tension in the NI controllers. I also have heard of an Innofader mod, but it hasn't been confirmed. The knobs on the Zero 4 make the entire unit feel cheap, and I believe that if you find a nice knob kit, it will make this mixer shine- the way it should. My impulse was the firewire. USB will NEVER be as reliable as firewire (sorry PC users!) And as a plus, if you have a macbook, it frees up the 2 USB connections, so you don't have to buy a USB router. (+1) I have it set up at home with my Traktor scratch Pro setup. For gigs, I use the incomparable S4 along with a reliable Mackie 803-VLZ3 8 channel mixer that is light and does not eat up space in my backpack. The Mackie is there as a safehouse in case a crash occurs. And I don't give a shit who you talk to- sooner or later, the shit will hit the fan, so for $200 extra, you should be prepared. But back to the Korg... If anyone has any cool traktor mappings or advice on what knobs to mod it with, I would greatly appreciate it. I believe all of us Zero 4 users invested wisely on a platform mixer that was ahead of its time. |
| Art Beatz 30.03.2011 | Thanks dude |
| Virgie Igler 29.03.2011 | yes if you delete the settings all your controller mappings will be gone, so what I suggest is make a copy of your controller maps, and then after you get the korg zero 4 to work properly, one by one, add the mappings back in. |
| Art Beatz 29.03.2011 | Thanks BMO! I am gonna try that. But, I am also getting an S4 for the road and I already have an X1 connected with the Korg setup. If I move the settings folder, will it mess with my other devices ? |
| Virgie Igler 28.03.2011 | I had the same issue, it took me a week to figure out that it was my traktor settings that were messing with my korg zero 4. You should try going into the Traktor folder on your mac and delete or move the settings folder, and see if this fixes your problem. As well, it is imperative that everytime you plug the zero 4 into your computer you set the traktor adapt before opening traktor. cheers, |
| Art Beatz 23.03.2011 | I went to the korg site and got the update; I will try it and see if it works |
| Len Ladera 23.03.2011 | try from the uk support site http://www.korg.co.uk/downloads/zero...91;E1]_Mac.zip |
| Art Beatz 23.03.2011 | Thank you so much for replying the mac link for the 1.60 firmware is no good it is giving me a technical error do you have the file for Mac ? -thank you again |
| Len Ladera 22.03.2011 | First are you using windows or mac? Second have you used the Korg Zero Edit software to verify the midi? http://www.korg.com/uploads/Download...5047950000.zip http://www.korg.com/uploads/Download...5566260000.zip Third have you used the Traktor Adapt for Zero 4, it enables traktor on all channels? http://www.korg.com/uploads/Download...8404970000.zip http://www.korg.com/uploads/Download...8753420000.dmg Fourth, have you re-flashed the 1.6 firmware? You can get it directly from Korg. alt link. from korg uk http://www.korg.co.uk/downloads/zero...91;E1]_Mac.zip To reset your Zero 4, hold the "gate play" and "split cue" buttons while powering the unit up. l0rdr0ck |
| Art Beatz 22.03.2011 | I actually have a question. I hope a zero 4 user can help me. When I use Traktor Scratch Pro with my 1200s, the first channel (1st 1200) on the S4 does not show up on the turntable control. I had to re-route all the channels in Traktor, so I have it as 2, 3, 4. Basically the midi in channel 1 does not work. I believe it is the mixer, but I doubt that it is Tractor or my Audio 8. I tried all the channels on my audio 8 and it works fine. Any help??? Is there a way to do a hard reset on the mixer???? |
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