Imagine a DX7, but with more parameter controls via extra faders – and it’s a KORG. That’s the best we can tell about the new opsix.
MATRIXSYNTH got the scoop on this one before the American NAMM trade even began this week:
I’m not sure if calling it a “new DX7” is quite fair, as we just don’t know about it enough. But certainly KORG have copped the look and feel of the original – curious how Yamaha will react there – and added additional controls. Whether there are other KORG touches, it’s hard to say, though you’re welcome to squint at this image:
It’s not unheard of for manufacturers to show up with synthesizers hidden under glass. (I hear if a certain Prince Charming comes along and gets into the glass coffin and kisses the prototype, the enchantment will be lifted and it will magically wake up with complete firmware. But maybe that only works in Disney movies.)
FM synthesis remains a tough nut to crack from a usability standpoint, so I’m not sure about this one. It at least adds to the pile of retro-themed synths this year.
The closest Yamaha has come to making a DX7-style synth after the DX line of the 1980s was the reface DX (2015). That wasn’t a bad take on the original, but it had limited front panel controls and preset storage – and no full-sized keyboard. You can read an in-depth review by Francis Preve of the full reface line for Keyboard. And of course, the obligatory comparison video:
It seems likely that the opsix prototype came from the Japanese engineering team at KORG, given their past with FM on the volca series – and it seems equally likely that they were busy on other products, too. But KORG are proving themselves to be still prolific and provocative.
Watch this space.