SynthArk vs the Kawai K5 - a BEAST of a controller!

No, this black monolith isn't a lost member of Korg's MS range, but a controller for Kawai's 1987 K5! I'm a big fan of Kawai, owning various models (still need a K3 & K5000!) and the K5m was a recent purchase. The K5, whether module or keyboard version, is an enigmatic synth, bewildering to most synth fans - yes, even trickier than a DX7!

In this additive classic, you are given a bunch of sine harmonics (128, or 2 lots of 64 in double mode) which may be assigned to 4 groups - these groups each get a harmonic envelope to create movement in the sound. There's an LFO, pitch envelope, VCA section and digital formant filter, but that or 64/128 sine digital harmonics generator (DHG) is the real heart of the instrument.

Many K5's have developed dim screens with age (bright yellow & blue aftermarket screens exist, btw) and even then, many people find the UI rather tedious, with many pages of text. If you enjoy 80's computing then it's not so bad, but even for nerds, Synthark's MSP-K5y controller makes the synth far more tweakable - bringing nearly every parameter onto a dedicated knob or slider.

A set of these sliders control up to16 harmonics at a time; yet others make the filter, envelopes and LFO's play to your every whim. It looks so inviting!

https://synthark.com/Products/MSP-K5.html

All this control comes at a price, of course. Linked above, you'll see that this product costs $704 - quite a chunk of change. For keyboard owners this makes sense - the instrument is a similar price; but I personally couldn't justify the outlay to control a K5m that cost me £300 - including the new yellow screen.

I suggested a lower cost version to Synthark, and they seemed open to the idea. My own K5 journey goes like this, so far:

• I copy spectra from other additive synths (old Amiga soft-synths and the like) and recreate waveforms to use in my patches,
• I assign different envelopes/groups to the harmonics that make up these Spectra, sometimes using the K5's clever macros (ODD, EVEN etc) to help me,
• I assign controllers to the groups for a little bit of morphing,
• I copy the patch to layer 2 and detune, for a bigger sound.

So I'm no whizz yet! I find that the most tedious part of the process is setting the harmonics, so a panel with just those controls would be great. I also feel that to be an additive synthesis master, you eventually need to learn (off by heart) what those 64 harmonics do; what combinations create certain "recipes" - and realtime control could help in learning that.

Speaking of Facebook, SynthArk replied:

"That's a great idea. We could do a 3U (5.25") version that would have dedicated 45mm sliders for 40 harmonics. Alternately, we could do 32 harmonics and have room for something else (DHG envelope?). Yet a third option would be to offer a 6U (10.5") version that has 60mm sliders for each of the 64 harmonics. Target price for the options would be $320, $384 (assuming DHG envelope), $448 respectively."

That sounds a bit more manageable and I've got to say, I'm super tempted!

Posted by MagicalSynthAdventure an expert in synthesis technology from last Century and Amiga enthusiast.