Korg DS-10

AfxTwn · 07-11-2008, 7:19 PM

I'm guessing that not a lot of people will be familiar with this title (although it did receive a glowing review in this month's official Ninty mag). It's a soft-synth program for the DS and is absolutely fantastic. To give you an idea of what it does, I steer you to this excellent YouTube clip of a guy called Denkitribe making great music with it: YouTube - KORG/AQ DS-10

No experience is necessary to use this synthesizer program (although it would be a big advantage as it would save you messing about aimlessly for a while). Although having said that, I suppose that's part of the charm for this type of game/software. It's not the first foray into making music on the DS, Jam Sessions was a previous title in which you basically played the guitar. However this will be one for fans of the old 8-bit videogame soundtracks of the 80's and early 90's. Do you love the Super Mario theme tune? Can't get enough of Super Turrican's sweet, sweet tuneage? Then the Korg DS-10 is a must buy for you.

I had no idea what I was doing at first but just having a play around with the touch-screen Kaos pad section of the demo song was great fun. You basically just move your stylus around the pad and create all manner of fantastic wibbly-wobbly sounds. Once you get into it, you can be very, very creative. You can make patterns up which can contain drums and two synth variants. So you could use one synth as a bass line and the other as the lead. Then once you have got the initial tune up and running you can create a further 15 versions of this for a total of 16 patterns. Then in the song section you can choose which order these patterns are played in to create an actual song and save it all. There is tonnes of space to save all your creations and the more tech-savvy among you will already know how to hook up your DS to your PC etc to record what you have made.

I know I haven't done a very good job of describing this but if you just watch the clip I linked to earlier then you will get a very good idea of what I'm on about.

I honestly can't recommend this title enough. It's one of the best non-games I've ever bought!!! 10 out of 10!!!

LEEROY_UK · 07-11-2008, 9:04 PM

I have this and its freeking fantastic !

After playing around with it for a few hours to get the hang of it ive made a totally banging hardcore techno track.

You however will need headphones in all the time as the ds speakers dont give any depth to the sound at all (and it drives the missus nuts).

AfxTwn · 08-11-2008, 8:01 PM

On the contrary Leeroy, you can quite easily connect the DS to either a guitar amp, your PC or even a hi-fi using the headphone jack of the DS to the input jack of any of the things I mentioned. I have mine connected to a small guitar amp and the sound is fantastic, I can also plug in my headphones into the amp so as not to disturb the neighbours.

If you do plug it into your PC (via the standard speaker/headphone socket) then you will have the added benefit of being able to record your music via Window's sound recorder or other similar software and then convert it to an MP3.

I've been going for a more minimalist Kraftwerk-style electronic feel Leeroy, lol.

rob1sp · 09-11-2008, 7:03 PM

That vid is awesome! I'm very tempted to get this for my girlfriend's DS, purely for her use you understand

AfxTwn · 10-11-2008, 7:28 PM

Well clearly it would only be used by your girlfriend rob! Of course, you will have to 'borrow' it for a little while, just so you can show her how to use it. Plus you'll need to use it a little more often, to make sure it's still working properly, it would be the gentlemanly thing to do!

And then 6 months later when you're on your own after being dumped by her for not paying her enough attention, it'll all be worth it to know that you have finally made that tubthumping, 4-on-the-floor, Ibiza anthem you always dreamed of!! Lol.

Amph · 10-11-2008, 11:35 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by AfxTwn

Well clearly it would only be used by your girlfriend rob! Of course, you will have to 'borrow' it for a little while, just so you can show her how to use it. Plus you'll need to use it a little more often, to make sure it's still working properly, it would be the gentlemanly thing to do!

And then 6 months later when you're on your own after being dumped by her for not paying her enough attention, it'll all be worth it to know that you have finally made that tubthumping, 4-on-the-floor, Ibiza anthem you always dreamed of!! Lol.

SOLD!

I've read a bit about this recently but I have to say, you guys have sold this to me. This is a must for when I get paid.

rob1sp · 11-11-2008, 1:00 PM

I'll be too busy to have a girlfriend when I'm supporting Kraftwerk on their world tour. At least the roadies wouldn't have much to load onto the tour bus!

AfxTwn · 11-11-2008, 6:20 PM

lol rob! I've been trying to replicate the sounds that Denkitribe guy made in his video but so far it's come out sounding like a Stylophone trapped in a belnder!

In other news, I know this isn't DS-related but it's technically linked to this game. I recommend you guys check out Denkitribe's other videos where he uses a Korg Kaossilator and a Korg Kaos 3 pad. They are very similar to the DS game except they are bigger hardware versions and do lots more stuff but still retain the easy to use touch-pad interface. I think the Kaossilator can be had for around £100, whereas the KP3 will set you back a whopping £275 roughly.

Sorry to go off topic slightly but thought you might be interested.

rob1sp · 13-11-2008, 10:07 PM

I got this today, along with Professor Layton for the GF, not that she'll get much chance to play it! I'm working off the demo tunes that are pre-loaded and just basically messing them up completely. Still spent about an hour just fiddling with it, I must work out how to save my work as I'm pretty damn impressed with how proficient I am for a beginner!

AfxTwn · 17-11-2008, 10:44 AM

Good stuff Rob, keep plugging away mate and you'll soon get the gist of it. I found that by just copying some of the knob-twiddling the guy does in the video that it helped explain a lot of what they actually do. With regards to saving your work, there is a Save button on the main page where it shows sections for Synth 1 and 2 and choosing drums etc. When you press it, it then comes up with the menu you see after you select single player right at the start and you just select one of the available spaces to save to. They are listed as S1, S2 etc. Also, you can press the A, B or C tabs just above the list for more save slots.

Oh, another little tip is to just adjust the knobs in small increments. That way you will get a better understanding how each turn affects the sound, some knobs also work in conjunction with each other. And as far as the patch bay goes (the bit that lets you connect wires up), again this is just a case of experimentation - just connect a wire up and adjust the knobs slowly to see what happens. Plus I highly recommend you make use of the FX section, in particular the Delay effect. You can apply the effects to the drums or synths or all/any combination and this can really make a huge difference to the music.

I'll shut up now and let you take it in, lol. I know it's mega confusing and I'm still learning loads, the best advice really is to just keep experimenting but taking it slowly/in stages otherwise you can completely change the sound of something by accident and find it hard to get back to the way it was.

randan · 01-12-2008, 4:56 PM

Hi - I am pleased to hear that some people have had success with this.

I was given this as a gift a couple of weeks ago and tried it out with no success for about an hour. I gave up at that point as I didn't have a lot of time and have not gone back to it.

I must dig it out tonight and have another go.

Thanks

AfxTwn · 01-12-2008, 8:11 PM

Yeah it's definitely worth another look randan! I've read a few comments on YouTube and other forums where a bunch of muso-snobs say that it isn't a game and therefore only serious synth-heads should use it but that's just rubbish. I didn't have a clue how to use it but within a few minutes I was messing about with the Kaos pad part of it and having a whale of a time. Just start off with the demo's and play along with them and twiddle all the knobs to see what happens.

Good luck.

*ChaosUK* · 30-12-2008, 8:16 PM

Hes made a new vid partnering the ds with a korg mini-KP
Looks fun

[youtube]M8sd05pQ3aw[/youtube]

fdrzrich · 30-12-2008, 9:14 PM

Looks like it will be good to fiddle with on the missus new DS! She didn't seem so enthusiastic when I showed her the vids

AfxTwn · 01-01-2009, 5:43 PM

Yeah that's a great vid, thanks for the link Chaos! I've seen another video of Denkitribe's where he uses a Korg Kaosillator which is very similar to the Korg Mini-KP except that it mainly triggers various samples/drum loops so you can make more complete songs, although it does have loads of effects to - just like the Mini-KP. I think the Kaosillator can be bought for about £100 so I'm definitely going to get me one of those in the new year once they're back in stock (they were recently featured on Five's Gadget Show and because of the TV exposure have sold out nearly everywhere). I think if you somehow hooked up the Kaosillator and DS and even with the Mini-KP, then you could have a very effective mini electro kit for relatively little money.

I play with my DS' Korg DS-10 every day nearly and love being able to make new music on the fly, although I prefer to just do it live rather than recorded loads of different patterns and then linking them to make one whole song. I like the idea of starting off with a simple drum/bass lead and then leaving say Synth 2 for adding new patterns as I play along with the main beat and then completely altering the sound with the edit and FX functions. You can even get a great chord-change, type effect going on if you fiddle about with the patch bays on the Syn 1 & 2 parts. My favourite effect to use is the delay as this can drastically change whatever you've made into something different and back again and with effective use of solo/mute buttons in the mixer (and indeed just simply pausing and unpausing the main play button for the whole mix), you can add different layers to your song, especially if you crank up the delay and then just simply tap on the Kaos pad section of the synths and it will repeat the loop over and over without having to actually record it as normal.

Sorry I'm probably not making much sense here, I just can't get enough of this DS software, definitely the best thing I've ever used/played on my DS.

Houghsx · 01-01-2009, 7:54 PM

I cant believe what a good job Korg have done with this. My mate had an MS-20 and the likeness is very good considering. Touch screen as well is a touch of genius. Its a bit crap through the DS speaker but put the headphones on and its fantastic.
I hope manufactures will follow Korg and release their own softsynths. I would love Propellerhead to release Rebirth DS, 303,808 and 909 bring it on.

*ChaosUK* · 05-01-2009, 1:00 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by AfxTwn

Yeah that's a great vid, thanks for the link Chaos! I've seen another video of Denkitribe's where he uses a Korg Kaosillator which is very similar to the Korg Mini-KP except that it mainly triggers various samples/drum loops so you can make more complete songs, although it does have loads of effects to - just like the Mini-KP. I think the Kaosillator can be bought for about £100 so I'm definitely going to get me one of those in the new year once they're back in stock (.

Yeah the Kaosilator looks fun to, also what might be fun would to partner the ds with a boss sp202 sampler thats pretty small and should be cheap on ebay.
So many possibility's

AfxTwn · 05-01-2009, 5:02 PM

Just had a quick look on ebay and found one Boss SP-202 for about £70 but it had a while to go so the price may have risen a bit more. I'm thinking of getting a Kaossilator and a small Behringer mixer for about £40 for the meantime so that I can record things live and then I'll probably save up and get the Kaos Pad 3 seeing as that has an on-board sampler as well as all the other things it does. Then I could connect everything up along with my DS through the mixer and subsequently through my small guitar practice amp lol. I'm thinking of going busking with it all in the town centre just to see people's faces when I'm playing along with those pan-pipes guys that sell CD's of their music.

AfxTwn · 24-01-2009, 10:35 PM

Just resurrecting this thread for anyone who's still interested as I've found a great forum especially for this game: Korg DS-10 Message Board for DS - GameFAQs I wouldn't ordinarilly send people to another forum away from the AV ones but that GameFAQ's one is a great resource for people interested specifically in this DS title. I still use my DS-10 every day and have come on in leaps and bounds just through constant experimentation with it, I have only read the manual a couple of times and the rest I have learned myself. I again want to reiterate that even though this may seem like a niche piece of software for music-heads only, it really isn't. I have since discovered how to create a random pattern on the DS-10 and how to make all kinds of music, even drone-like music/dub music.

Just thought some of you may be interested in the other board.

*ChaosUK* · 26-01-2009, 12:09 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by AfxTwn

Just resurrecting this thread for anyone who's still interested as I've found a great forum especially for this game: Korg DS-10 Message Board for DS - GameFAQs I wouldn't ordinarilly send people to another forum away from the AV ones but that GameFAQ's one is a

Thanks for the link, really need to have a play with the korg when I get time.

Dont know if you are interested but I thought this looked pretty cool, they are using a gameboy with some music cartridge to make chip tunes -
Think they are using nanoloop and lsdj http://8bitcollective.com/wiki/index.php?title=Game_Boy

[youtube]6_ir1EMhvGs[/youtube]

Wonder what the nds and gameboy duo could do

AfxTwn · 26-01-2009, 6:12 PM

Thanks for the vid and link Chaos. I've read a bit about chiptunes in the past and it seems that you have to change the soundchip/CPU in your old Gameboy as well as getting a software cartridge to make music with. From the hundreds of pages and forums out there about Chiptunes it sounds quite a complex and complicated scene to get into. Alas, like so many of these niche music scenes some of the people on the forums can be extremely unhelpful and very anti-newbie. I used to visit a couple of forums asking people for help and some of them seemed to have a real chip (pardon the pun) on their shoulder, although I must say that not everyone is like that. You may notice on that other DS-10 forum that some people can be a bit clique-y and rather snobbish with regards to what is and isn't chiptunes. I personally think that is completely the wrong attitude to have and can't be bothered trying to learn about something if the community can be quite harsh and very unhelpful towards outsiders. But that is just me own experience, perhaps I am being a little generalistic so it may be worth finding out for yourself if you want to get into it.

*ChaosUK* · 26-01-2009, 9:16 PM

If I ever get a gameboy I think ill look into it, The iphone synth app looks pretty cool to Home - Noise.io - iPhone Synth - iPhone Synthesizer shame I cant afford one at the moment.

The 1upshow is worth a watch if you didnt see it, think this episode is the one where they talk to the korg ds-10 creators -

The 1UP Show: Wheelman, Legendary, and Korg DS-10

Happy music making

AfxTwn · 27-02-2009, 6:21 PM

Once again I just wanted to add another link re this great game/software. Over at this blog Home of the KORG DS-10 you can find really easy-to-follow and detailed posts/articles showing you how to use the DS-10. It has a couple of videos to give you an actual in-game view for more clarification and I have to say I think it's one of the better guides out there. It doesn't have a snobbish attitude like most music-related sites, where the posters appear to not want to help anyone who doesn't already have experience in electronic music production. This site doesn't assume you know what all the technical gobble-de-gook means and approaches it from a complete novice's viewpoint which is a really great change. I highly recommend this to anyone who has an interest in this DS title.

evangelink · 19-05-2009, 12:20 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by AfxTwn

Once again I just wanted to add another link re this great game/software. Over at this blog Home of the KORG DS-10 you can find really easy-to-follow and detailed posts/articles showing you how to use the DS-10. It has a couple of videos to give you an actual in-game view for more clarification and I have to say I think it's one of the better guides out there. It doesn't have a snobbish attitude like most music-related sites, where the posters appear to not want to help anyone who doesn't already have experience in electronic music production. This site doesn't assume you know what all the technical gobble-de-gook means and approaches it from a complete novice's viewpoint which is a really great change. I highly recommend this to anyone who has an interest in this DS title.

Hey AfxTwn, excellent work in keeping this thread going and putting links up for guides. I just stumbled across the DS-10 accidentally the other day and ordered my copy immediately. Can't wait for it to arrive. Already know how to program synths/sequencers, but am looking forward to taking this on the daily commute and putting some ideas down. And I'm amazed at some of the sounds people are getting out of this in the demos. Now I've just gotta convince the missus to stop playing brain training and give me my DS back....

AfxTwn · 19-05-2009, 6:37 PM

No problem evan. I'm trying to add to this thread as much as I can as I really think this is one of the all-time top games/carts for the DS or indeed any handheld console. It finally brings chiptunes to the masses without having to buy an old GameBoy and get a special cart/chip and go through a very boring/complicated text-based interface in order to make some simple music. Also with regards to the Korg DS site I last linked too, I should warn people that a large proprtion of it is devoted to teaching people about musical theory and I personally found this very hard to grasp. I don't think you nescessarilly need to know how to write music in order to make it, most of the fun is in experimenting and stumbling upon things accidentally. I have been using my DS-10 alongside my new Korg Kaossilator which I also recommend to anyone interested in making electronic music. I am just a beginner when it comes to this but both these pieces of kit are very newbie-friendly. Of course you can spend hours either reading manuals or searching the web for tutorials but I personally found the best way to learn by watching YouTube videos of other people and then trying to copy that. Once you figure out what certain knob-turns do (this also applys to the DS-10 cart) then you can just mess about and see what happens. I often hook up my DS to my PC and record long sessions of me live-sequencing (I'm talking 20 minute pieces here lol) and then editing it down by keeping the parts I like and getting rid of everything else. I usually start off with a basic bass line and drum part and keep one of the synths spare so I can just add bits as I go. Then I fiddle about with the patch bays on one of the synths and edit the VCO's/cutoffs which gives very interesting effects (an almost random-sounding pattern can be achieved this way) and then just keep layering and changing bits as I go along. I think the Korg DS-10 is a gateway drug to the world of electronic music so be warned people, lol. Now I just have to learn how the hell all this stuff works!

evangelink · 20-05-2009, 12:19 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by AfxTwn

No problem evan. I'm trying to add to this thread as much as I can as I really think this is one of the all-time top games/carts for the DS or indeed any handheld console. It finally brings chiptunes to the masses without having to buy an old GameBoy and get a special cart/chip and go through a very boring/complicated text-based interface in order to make some simple music. Also with regards to the Korg DS site I last linked too, I should warn people that a large proprtion of it is devoted to teaching people about musical theory and I personally found this very hard to grasp. I don't think you nescessarilly need to know how to write music in order to make it, most of the fun is in experimenting and stumbling upon things accidentally. I have been using my DS-10 alongside my new Korg Kaossilator which I also recommend to anyone interested in making electronic music. I am just a beginner when it comes to this but both these pieces of kit are very newbie-friendly. Of course you can spend hours either reading manuals or searching the web for tutorials but I personally found the best way to learn by watching YouTube videos of other people and then trying to copy that. Once you figure out what certain knob-turns do (this also applys to the DS-10 cart) then you can just mess about and see what happens. I often hook up my DS to my PC and record long sessions of me live-sequencing (I'm talking 20 minute pieces here lol) and then editing it down by keeping the parts I like and getting rid of everything else. I usually start off with a basic bass line and drum part and keep one of the synths spare so I can just add bits as I go. Then I fiddle about with the patch bays on one of the synths and edit the VCO's/cutoffs which gives very interesting effects (an almost random-sounding pattern can be achieved this way) and then just keep layering and changing bits as I go along. I think the Korg DS-10 is a gateway drug to the world of electronic music so be warned people, lol. Now I just have to learn how the hell all this stuff works!

Yeah, the interface is much more intuitive than Nanoloop/LSDJ for me. Those programs are undeniably good, but as you've said they aren't the easiest to get into, especially LSDJ as it's a real pain to get the right version/hardware and I've never got on with Tracker sequencing. I like your style, just get on with it, experiment and pick it up as you go along! Although some music theory is useful, especially when you move onto multiple synths and building layers. Th e Kaossilator is an interesting bit of kit, but I'm holding out to eventually get a Kaoss Pad. You can do some very cool tricks with it (Check Beardyman and his duck- YouTube - Beardyman using Korg's kaoss Pad 3). It sounds to me like you could use a Digital Audio Workstation (DAW), that way you can record all your Kaossilator and DS-10 bits, edit them and layer them together into complete songs. It also gives you the option of adding in extra VST synths (lots of free ones available) so you can expand your sonic arsenal. Personally the DAW I prefer is Podium's Zynewave, mainly because I got a free copy, but also because the guy who created it is very helpful on the forums and is constantly updating it. Also I found Propellerheads Reason 4 (2.5 when I started) a great way to learn about synthesis and MIDI, and as it's an all in one self contained studio it's difficult to go wrong with it. And the Thor synth is amazing!

AfxTwn · 22-05-2009, 11:04 AM

Thanks for that Evan, I've sent you a PM as we were starting to go off topic here.

AfxTwn · 06-07-2009, 2:00 PM

Ok some exciting news for you DS-10 lovers out there, there is going to be a DS-10 Plus version released especially for the DSi. According to this and various other sites: Siliconera » Korg DS-10 Plus Raises The Bar For DSi Enhanced Games the upgraded version of the software will be released in Japan in September. No news yet on when we can expect a European or American release but seeing as the DS-10 has been quite popular overe here then I don't see why they wouldn't release it overe here too. This is my one main reason to get the new DSi, I was holding out as I didn't want to trade-in my current DS as I wasn't sure if the DSi's new functions were that good (plus the current Guitar Hero games won't work on the DSi as it doesn't have the old GBA slot for the guitar grip adapter). Anyway, I'm well looking forward to this coming out and may even have to purchase an import copy if it's not released in the UK. The thought of more drum pads, more VCO/Synths and more tracks is just brilliant. Also, if they could double the amount of time you get to record a loop, that would be brilliant!