after getting deep into the korg polysix emulation, i took some time out to give the korg ms20 emulation a good work out and create some presets for it. that the original is loved by many and has become a classic is quite surprising, considering that its sound isn't exactly pleasing. but what it lacks in beauty, it more than makes up for with character.
ms20 picture by regueifeiro
korg stayed quite true to the original hardware for the emulation. they've added polyphony, unison, tempo- and key sync for the lfo and a simple control matrix. while this matrix allows for some tricks not possible on the hardware ms20, korg have basically just updated the synth to modern practice, without really changing the heart of it.
as to whether the emulation sounds like the original, i'll just say that in my opinion, current digital technology isn't able to capture any (semi) modular analog synth. emulations of synths with a fixed and simple signal path, like the polysix, have come pretty close and are getting closer every year. but when there's a patch panel to change the signal path or do things you're not supposed to do, then the difference between digital and analog becomes obvious.
i experienced this first hand when i played a real ms20 alongside the emulation a few weeks ago: be a good boy and use the original without patching and the emulation comes close, start having fun and put that patch panel to good use and the emulation bites the dust. i'll dedicate a separate post to this issue soon, as i think it's worth it. and hey, i have some arp 2600 samples to share.
but that's not to say the emulation is made of fail. just like the original, monstrous bass, distorted guitar-like leads and quirky fx is where the virtual ms20 feels at home. to give you an impression, here's an audio demo made with some of the presets i did:
as i said in my post on the polysix emulation a while ago, i don't care too much whether an emulation sounds 100% like the original. as long as the emulation comes close in character, sounds good of itself and is fun to program, i'm happy. i'm not looking to fool myself and others into thinking i own synths that i don't, i just want to have good sounds and have fun programming them. if i wanted the real thing, i would get the real thing.
of the extra options that the emulation offers, i like the control matrix the most, as it allows for velocity sensitivity, filter keytracking, pulsewidth modulation and a few lfo tricks. polyphony is nice too, but as exciting as a polyphonic ms20 may sound on paper, i wasn't too impressed with the pads and strings i got out of the emulation. without unison detune and spread to hide behind, they mostly sounded thin and static, lacking the lushness of say, the dry polysix emulation.
this is not a bad thing though. the original ms20 was a monophonic, 3-octave synth, and i wouldn't be surprised to learn that the analog circuits designed by korg wouldn't work that well for polyphonic sounds covering the full keyboard. since korg's marketing department claims that the emulation contains accurately modeled components, one would expect the software to exhibit similar behavior. and indeed, a lot of patches of the emulation seem to fall apart in the higher octaves.
so while i generally like the emulation, i dearly miss the ability to connect other modules to its patch panel. in the real world you can connect external step-sequencers and lfo's to the patch panel of the ms20, effectively turning it into another synth. i know that in the virtual world, this could probably be hacked together with some bidule or reaktor midi trickery. but as long as it's not really integrated into vst, it will be limited to midi resolution and never be as simple as connecting some output to some input. may i suggest for the next version of vst something like high-resolution virtual midi, with corresponding inputs and outputs on every vst synth?
this would for instance help overcome what i consider the biggest limitation of the software ms20: it only has one lfo whose rate can't be modulated. with virtual midi™, you'd simply use an lfo from another synth or from a dedicated vst lfo. but right now, you're stuck with just one lfo, and as a result, modulation on the virtual ms20 can become very static.
there's a trick though, to get sort of an extra lfo: connect the envelope generator 1 out on the patch panel to the eg1 trigger in. this makes eg1 loop. now connect the eg1 rev out to any parameter you want to modulate. you can set the shape and rate of the "lfo" by changing the attack, release and delay of eg1. it's crude, but it helps to give sounds some more movement. here's what it looks like:
ms20 extra lfo trick (click to enlarge)
if you need more tips on programming the ms20, look no further than the videos of youtube user newueel. s/he pretty much covers all the cool things you can do with an ms20. and then some.
quick download:
more downloads and terms of use in the goodies section.
