Korg Volca Keys Reviews

Nice little bass synth

A nice little bass synth that does way more than just bass. I mostly use it with an external keyboard but the internal keyboard is fine to record a few loops.

amazing sound

I can't really comment on operation, because I've just been using it for a couple of minutes. But GOD, does it sound good !!! The features are of course not that of a 4-digits priced synth, but the sound quality is honestly that of one of them big analog monsters. I'm blown away.

On the minus side, some complex connection setups already created a lot of background noise, while in other situations it's pretty clean... so that aspect is a bit of a coin toss it would seem.

Super sweet for the price

really nice little analog synth.

perfect for a portable live rig.

Some small issues are in the sequencer, Its pretty limited on the rhythms that can be used(no syncopation or advanced timing. But I think this is to be expected for the size and price.

Buuuuuut other than that it slaps for theorise and portability.

Good for writing and filling spots

Handy little device, the features make it very useful for writing and coming up with ideas because you aren't endlessly tempted to just twist knobs. Lots of sounds but definitely limited, it's good for filling spots. The battery power is nice but get a power supply.

Great with Midi

If you can line in with a Midi keyboard that produces analogue sounds, this is an awesome piece of kit. The in built sounds aren’t the best.

Great little synth for its price

The volca keys is a nice little box of character. It has plenty of different flavours to choose from and can sound very lo-fi if you play around with its onboard delay and aggressive filter.

I like the fact that the volca keys is a one-knob-per-function synth without any hidden menus or settings. That way you can get really hands-on with it and makes it a great synth to learn synthesis as well.

The only quirk of this volca is that its sequencer starts skipping steps once you plug in a mono TS cable. When using regular stereo TRS cables, I get a really soft and noisy signal from the Headphone OUT. When using a mono TS, it's really loud and clean. But due some technical flaw in the keys, the sequencer might skip steps because of it.

Generally it's a great little box for the money and certainly works well when jamming with other volcas!

Nice entry into the synth world

Simple but efficient little poly-synth. The filter sounds good, especially with the resonance cranked up. The lofi delay is fun to play with!

First time synth

For being one of the first synths i have ever tried. It is quite easy to understand. Over all think its a great product

Cant beat this, it just works perfectly

Cant beat this, it just works perfectly

Korg Volca Keys

First of all you can't find other real analog synths in the market with up to 3 part polyphony at this very low price.

Sounds like a real analogue synth all the VCO, VCF, LFO knobs help you create beautiful vintage sounds

the delay is a bit noisy it's dirty and imperfect but it could be useful in certain situations.

the mini keys are ok for functions but very bad as keyboard especially for chords.

The sequencer and recording is not for me and I prefer using my DAW sending midi to volca

for the price is a good instrument

Great

Bought it to supplement my setup with some analogue polyphony and it's a great little synth once you know how to make it sing.

If it could play one more note it would be perfect, given the pricetag I'm happy. The delay section is a nice extra. The only thing I really dislike about it is the tempo adjustment but this isn't an issue when synchronised to other volcas or squenced via MIDI.

Not sure I'd advise buying it as an introductory piece but it's a good piece of kit nonetheless.

Really nice synth

Warm analog sound. Really handy sequencer for live performance

very good but not expect a huge sound

Your first synthesizer

A fantastic introductory synthesizer! Very expressive sound and great capabilities to built your own patterns. Every fan of synthpop sound should own one just to play around with its knobs and the sequencer.

Since its manual provides only basic info you will need to browse youtube for tutorial videos.

Best synth under 300$

I use this little monster whenever I wish to add grit and lofi to myself tracks. I actually think this is better than the microbrute and maybe even than the minibrute. Yes with the latter You have a bit more control over your sound(more oscs settings available) but they are monophonic. The volca instead is paraphonic (3 voice) and this, along the price and the raw sound makes it a wonderful addition to any studio.

Volca Keys

I'm very happy with my Volca Keys. For the price this synth can produce some eminently usable sounds. There are minor things which i found a little disappointing, mainly that there is a single amplifier EG for all three voice. As a result you cant really play slowly shifting three voice pads affectively as each new note re-triggers the EG. This is by no means a fault and again, with the price in mind, not a big problem.

The unison sounds great and with the detune function makes this an excellent lead synth. The most fun thing about the unit is the sequencer, allowing you to move 'off grid' opens up some really interesting possibilities. I have three Volca's and the build quality is good throughout the range providing you don't knock them about.

worth the money!

Volca Keys is my first synth and I am really happy with it so far. For that price I just couldn't ask for more. The thing sounds better than some synths I've heard for hundreds of £ more. Sounds warm and raw and not uber clean and harsh. Shows nicely the range of great sounds this tiny, cheap box makes?. I think it would work best for anything between Progressive House, Electro and Techno (but not only!). Sounds a la Gui Boratto or Oxia are easy to make, Bodzin leads too! I actually don't use it that much for synths, but for bass lines.. rips, risers, falls.. it's real beast for FX. Connect it to the Monotron Duo for even more wicked sounds.. rusty base lines or crunchy leads!

Beware, sausage fingers would be a huge pain! Also, I find it a bit noisy.. Power suppy is not included (batteries are!) so be sure to look for the bundle where you save 10eur buying both a Volca Keys, Bass or Beats and the power supply. Hope my review helps you with your choice.

Quality fun

Korg have outdone themselves with the volca series and the volca keys is the pick of the bunch. Synced with the beats and bass its just class. Im not a big synt head and dont claim to know much about them but thats the point you dont have to and you can still get a great little groove going. Would recommend them to anyone looking into setting up a home studio or just looking to have some fun. Haven't come across anything else that compares for the price.

One word of warning though you need a 9 volt power adapter as you'll loose hours playing with it and the batteries will break your bank balance. Also the internal sound is not going to satisfy you for long but I expect most buyers will already have an audio system of some kind. I'm using KRK Rokit 5 monitors and the sound is awesome.

Very nice!

This is a pretty cool sounfing synth, especially for the price! Only lack I see is that the waveform is solely saw, but you can "smooth it out" with the filter cutoff. It does good bass and you can control all the parameters with midi, including cutoff (the volca bass does not do this). I love this little synth for stab chords, bass, and fx/strange sounds with the ring modulation and built-in analog delay.

Korg Volca Keys

I'll start off by mentioning it's Voice mode knob. One can choose through five different voice modes, which are Poly, Unison, Octave, Unison Ring & Poly Ring. Through these options you can play in different modes, polyphonic & monophonic. All of these sound nice, especially if it's send through some reverb!! The volca's modulations are pretty straight forward & easy to use. It has a VCF (filter - cutoff & peak & eg amount) & it also has an LFO & EG ( attack, decay/release & sustain). I haven't used it's sequencer that much but from what I saw on vidoes, it seems pretty cool too. The Volca Keys can also be easily synced with the Volca Beats by simply using the 3.5mm provided with it. The only thing that I didn't like about this product is that it didn't have a power adapter included in it's box, but it works with AA batteries, so thats fine. If anyone is interested in it's sound I simply recommend it.