Corg, 0-Key Mixer Accessory (MONOTRONDUO)

In terms of hardware synths, I have a microKorgXL and a Moog Slim Phatty which I love to pieces and use all the time... However I don't think either of them get as much use as my montron and I think that is purely down to the in built speaker... I have yet to use it in any of my productions and purely play around with it for fun, but I would like to include it in a tune soon. It is sooo much fun for when your chilling and wanna play around with the possibilities of what you can create. I bought this and my housemate loved it so much he went and got the original monotron so we now chain them together and run them through our guitar pedals and kaoss pads to see how far we can push the sounds... if you are a tech head you will know that although sometimes utterly pointless, this experimental process is a lot of fun. Specifically for the duo: I have found that it is definitely the only real monotron designed for playing melodic lines due to its quantizable ribbon keyboard. If you have a chromatic tuner at hand it is very easy to set a key and a scale and get some sweet lines and hooks out of it. The second oscillator is wicked for creating interval based sounds which are reminiscent of retro video game music and electro due to both oscillators being square waveforms. The x-mod on the duo is essentially a frequency modulation effect that routes the output of each oscillator across one another other (hence cross or x mod). The second oscillator can reach inaudible low frequencies and therefor the effect can also be used as an LFO using the square wave of oscillator 2 to modulate the pitch of oscillator one. When turned up to a higher frequency, oscillator 2 modulates the first oscillator to create harmonically rich tones not present in either oscillator creating some interesting distorted and metallic sounds. I am definitely going to buy more monotrons once my next load of pocket money comes in to chain them all together :)

This thing is great fun. Amazing quality and sounds for the money and I love having the built in delay. My almost 3 year old daughter loves it too!

Having had this a few days now I have to admit that after the initial play around I haven't picked it up again. But this is more a reflection on me than the instrument. I did experiment recording it into my DAW and found the result was rather more 'angular' a little rougher, than it sounds through the headphones. I am hoping it was the method I used. Having said all that the instrument itself is of the quality we have come to expect from KORG. A delightful little thing with great potential. For the price you couldn't do better. I haven't yet tried linking it into my other gear but realise the potential that lies there. I heartily recommend this to anyone who enjoys playing with synthetic sounds. Its great. Please note this reivew is for the Monotron DELAY.

I love this little machine. It makes some great sounds and is excellent value for money.

I play in a band (or two) playing garage rock in the old 60s tradition. In the studio, we have used a theremin for swoops and sound effects. That is impractical on stage as it is always too crowded and people stumble into the teremin's "force field". That is cool only the first three times it happens. Enter the Monotron Delay. The Monotron Delay differs from the other Monotrons in that it is virtually impossible to play. Those key outlines on the ribbon are purely decorative. The range is huge. This, it is almost as difficult to play as a theremin, and the resulting sounds are not too different. By balancing a fingernail on the ribbon and angling it ever so slightly to one side or the other, I can play melodies, but it's tricky. But then, I don't have to. The gritty delay makes all those swoops and seagull calls sound awesome, if a bit off key. And that is what you get: an inexpensive box that produces otherworldly sounds. You could use a theremin to the same effect, but it takes up space and costs ten times as much. Conclusion: don't expect to be able to play soaring lead lines unless you have perfect pitch and even better muscle control. Expect to give in to the fact that you don't have to.

Great range of sound manipulation

Hours of fun

This was great craic for about an hour and then stopped working. Changed batteries... no joy. Cheap rubbish really. Though not cheap for an hours entertainment.