Korg DSS-1

Don't know what OS it's on, if any. Never found any bugs or problems (imagine that!). Editing isn't the best, but it's not bad due to the parameter list on the right panel. Sliders and caps often go bad, they WILL require cleaning or replacement...how you do so, you can leave to your own imagination! ;)

8 voices with 2 oscillators per voice. Super, insanely FAT unison mode with all 16 oscillators stacked...it's almost too huge, ridiculously big sound. Unit features two highly programmable DDLs which can be used for your standard ho-hum delays, but since it's such a full featured effect can be used for chorusing, flange, primitive reverb, that pitch-delay Skinny Puppy vocal sound, etc. Midi is pretty good:: sysex, smdi...you can use Turtlevision's SampleVision for free to transfer samples to and fro, if (or when, rather) your diskdrive stops working...and even if it did work, SampleVision or the like would be way better than dealing with that clunky, antiquated floppy drive.

Really good keybed! It's kind of scary when you open it up to inspect....I never thought I would get it back together again, this sucker is Humpty Dumpty synth! The quality of the keys contributes to the serious weight of this machine. I have flirted with selling it or giving it away, but it's more worthwhile to just keep it around, if only as a Master Keyboard. Of course, that would be a waste because this thing sounds good. If you can pick one up cheap, go for it. The 12 bit ADACs color things in such a nice way...no Ching-Cheng CrapFu converters like today, the AD and DA paths are quality. It has an additive section that is alot of fun once you figure it out. Start w/ slider at bottom, slowly move up until waveform record done = ramp. Opposite = sawtooth. Go crazy with the slider for chaos noise waveforms. Combine these with a sample = heaven. The VCF doesn't reach self-oscillation, but it is so warm and lush...think Jupiter or later Roland hybrid machines like JX-10. The joystick is awesome, I'm glad Korg has kind of brought that back, the joystick is great for adding expression to samples that already sound very much alive due to the 12 bit nature and analog filters.

eh....heck no! I wouldn't gig with this thing, unless I wanted something to benchpress and wanted to be able to kick Chuck Norris' ass at tour's end. Not too reliable, these are getting a bit long in the tooth. The construction is solid, but I think the sheer stupid weight and non-trendyness leads to much disregard and abuse, so give it a good check through if you find one...most common problem is a dead diskdrive, which can be replaced for about $50 - $100. Select buttons are aging plastic, look for bad ones. Keybed needs to be cleaned thoroughly every once in awhile....which is not fun, let me tell you. Good news is there's a solid userbase and third party communities out there.

Never dealt w/ them. I think you can still get the manual from them....which is thorough, but incredibly confusing and stiff. I've cracked the manual maybe two or three times.

If lost or stolen....well, anyone that could get this down two flights of stairs probably earned it. I can't say I would replace it...it's stupid huge, a real space hog. But it is quite useful for everything from vintage poly pads to drum/drumloop destruction. If you find one for $200 or less, and if you like that crunchy 12-bit sound ala Skinny Puppy's MTPI and VivisectIV, Prodigy's TJG and Experience, 80's Peter Gabriel, NIN PHM, etc, you would like this unit, and it would probably be worth your time to pick one up locally. Don't ship it though...good lord.

Back in 2002 I bought the DSS-1 on a Norweagian internet auction mentioned in an earlier review here, and I strongly disagree with that reviewer. I've been very happy with this instrument.
As for ease of use, it would have benefitted from a larger and more informative display and some real time controllers, but it's not hard to find one's way round it.

8 voice polyphony is sufficient in most cases, especially in an instrument that isn't multitimbral. I like the keyboard action, one of the better synth-keyboards I've used with excellent aftertouch.
The built in effects are good, although not very intuitive in use.

The factory libraries emphasize this instrument's sampling capabilities, which are at best mediocre (not a problem to me, I have two Emulator 4s). However, used as a digital synthesizer with additive waveform generation or as a hybrid combining a sampled waveform with an additive, it can do some amazing things. The filter is great. Don't expect it to sound like any other instrument though, this instrument deserves to be judged by its own performance.

I've had this instrument for more than four years, it's never failed me.
And don't forget, this was built in the mid 80s.

I have never had any need for support on my DSS-1.

I like this instrument, it sounds very good for some very specific uses.
I'm not sure I would get another one if mine were lost, mainly because of its age. 20+ years old electronics tend to get unreliable, which is why I've sampled most of my sounds from it into a bank on one of my Emulators. But as long as I have it and it functions properly, it fits nicely in alongside the E-mu samplers, a Roland D-70, and an Oberheim OB-12.

Although the manual for this beast is around 300 pages, editing and creating sounds is fairly easy and standard for 1986- the dreaded data entry slider. I've had the machine for 3 days and already have made serious headway into understanding the dss-1. But considering this keyboard's versatility and power, editing is straightforward, and I'm not even using a software editor.

The only major drawback of this synth is its clunky keys. You will almost have to change and adapt your playing style to be able to finger songs on the dss-1. I feel sorry for you virtuosos out there.
Is too bad there is no sequencer on this synth, but it already has enough features that make up for this.
The twin digital delays are amazing and they really increase the variety of sounds you can get out of the dss-1.
I've heard complaints about the slowness of the disk drive, but I think its an advantage to have a library of disks, rather than an internal memory, which is limited in itself, and could be damaged by battery failure or leakage.

Wow. If you've heard this synth in person, complete with detuning, unison and digital delay, you'd forget about minimoogs, prophets etc. The dss-1 can belch out the roars of a tortured dinosaur.
This synth works best for noise/experimental, and industrial, but thats all relative, isnt it?
The joystick is handy for real-time tweaking, and is superior to the usual modwheel-pitchwheel duo.
Its also velocity and after touch sensitive, which is always a benefit.

I have yet to buy the DSDD disks for this, so I cant comment on how easy or reliable the disk memory feature is. A couple of the buttons on my dss-1 are dodgy at times, but considering its age, it works just fine. I want to use the dss-1 live BECAUSE of its size. It looks impressive.

Dont bother asking Korg for help. There are companies on the web where you can get replacment disk drives, DSDD disks, cases, sound programs etc.

Any musician/artist should be concerned with first and foremost the SOUND of an instrument. The dss-1 can produce sounds that have its own distinct character. Since its from 86', it does Everything that was popular 2 years before and 2 years after its production. Its a sampler, wavetable synth, analog synth, digital synth, and an external effects processor. You can get this synth for cheap, and considering what you get for your money, its a great deal.

learning curve a bit much but get the 16 page third party manual (use the factory manual for starting your next barbecue;it will be more useful) and you are in like flint.

there was nothing it couldn't do for the time now and back then.

For a 12 bit machine it sounded better than the Ensoniq Mirage itty-gritty-dirt band sound. even better than some 16 bit samplers if you want to really know. Mostly an analog-digital monster with sampling capabilities. Sounds were better than the original analogs.

the superman of synths.

had a minor repair done quick and easy by korg westbury ny.

For the price and intend on using it for trance or hip-hop, technical, stop searching. Forget all the new crap that is WAAAYYYY overpriced and built like a wet kleenex. if this thing even had 32 voices and 32 meg of ram with a portamento setting the m1 would have been forgotten.

I apologize for posting every other review on here, it's just that I feel I have to set the record straight for the DSS-1 when there's a negative review based on misguided info, especially since I run the DSS-1 Resource Site on the web. The two synths mentioned, K2000 and JD990 go for considerably more cash ($400-$500) on the used market than the DSS-1 which can be had for around $150 now. To put these in the same cash value bracket as the DSS-1, or even feature-wise, is ridiculous. With SampleVision software and tons of sample/waveform archives on the net, your source for new waveforms is unlimited; plus the waveform drawing feature to create your own, of course. You've got to be creative to bring out new and unusual timbres, and not limit yourself to the factory disks. Agree, the manual is not very helpful, but the 3rd party manual "DSS-1: Making It Happen" is an indispensable read. Only reliability problem is the disk drive which can go bad, but you can find replacements for them at the Route 66 Studios web site. No, this is not one of the great samplers from the 80s, but it is a great polysynth with a very warm, fat and expressive sound. An underrated monster IMO.

I have posted this addition to my previous over generous post. I must say in experiencing the presently equally priced synths of around three hundred dollars, one can do so much better. Kurzweil, (K2000 mods and synths), old Roland mods...JD990...EMU...that is the new Emulator X or most of their newer used items will blow away the Korg.

Again, the manual is a joke. Cartoonish. But thick cartoonish.

Reviewer below is a little psychotic to obsess for two paragraphs about aftertouch. I think the Kurzweil aftertouch will suffice for any gearhead nerd.

Eight note poly. Keyboard action is typical plastic eighties feel...like junk.

How realistic can you get with 256K of sampling? And where are you going to get waveforms for this dinosaur?

No. No twenty year old synth is going to be trustworthy. Sudden power shutdowns, etc.

Company is nice. Very helpful.

No. Would not waste my money when you can get a Kurzweil or a JD module for around three to four hundred.

A previous reviewer wrote:
"Not very expressive by today's standards for velocity, but a crude version of velocity and aftertouch was there."

Sorry, have to strongly disagree on that, espeically the aftertouch. This synth has the best aftertouch of any synth I've ever tried, and I've tried at least 5 dozen in my lifetime. It is one of the most expressive synths I've ever played. On most modern synths, including the Triton, Motif, Fantom, etc., the aftertouch acts as nothing more than an on/off switch. On the DSS-1 you can do complete filter sweeps with the aftertouch alone. You can "lean into" the keys and the sound seems to breathe. Especially when you assign the filter cutoff to aftertouch. There is a lot of resolution in the aftertouch control which no other synth (that I can think of) has. I can't say for sure whether it's the hardware (keybed) or the software that makes it that way. Perhaps it's a combination of both. The DSS-1 keybed controlling the DSS-1 itself works much better in tandem than controlling another synth with the DSS-1, or controlling the DSS-1 with another synth. There are multitudes of parameters for adjustment of velocity and aftertouch, and they are assignable to almost anything, so I can't understand how one can say it's primitive. This synth is worth the cost ALONE just for the aftertouch!

The original presets from the factory are thin...very little effects. These can be fattened up very nicely in Roland Jupiter style with a good manual. I bought mine new, so I have one... However...the manual is very cryptic...as if written by a fourteen year old. Simplistic, but not explanatory.

Editing patches is not a hard thing if you take your time to play with it and learn the machine. I never used any patch editors. In 1988 or thereabouts, I wrote my own disc for the beast, and like that one best. (I had offered it in Keyboard magazine.)

Sampling on it is fairly easy if you have the studio equipment...proper clean area with necessary electronics...and time and patience. Guitars sampled are interesting. I did a Rickenbacker and I also sampled an Oberheim to disc, which I cut and looped and added effects for a decent Oberheim sound. (way back when!)

Overall a five rating, because without the manual, you will go through a little learning curve hell. With the manual, be prepared to do a number of "what the ****" to yourself.

Eight note polyphony. Keyboard is typical synth action...higher resistance than some. I believe this thing is built like a Mack truck for the time...built as the flagship in 1986 to take a beating. The effects are not too difficult, nor too sophisticated for this day. If you have a cassette / computer with CD burner / able to download sounds and burn a CD...you can make new floppies for this machine. (256K at a time...single notes sampled across definite pitches.)

Midi implementation as full as possible for 1986. No sequencer.

Interesting note...this is NOT just a sampler. Factory sounds did come with it on floppies, and these must be reloaded under any power failures. However...there is a wave creation and drawing utility in this that should theoretically make it possible to emulate Jupiter series of Roland, or other simple wave ROM units.

The realism for the eighties was surprising. Emu systems was putting out the Emulator III and the Emax, and this unit was eating its lunch. Not bad for a 12 bit sampler. The Emu units were at the time I suppose around three grand or so...and higher. I seem to remember the EII was around ten grand. The Stones used the Emu stuff on stage. Yes, I wanted one, so I bought this Korg DSS-1.

Pretty much could do most types of music. I agree the unit is better in the studio. NOT live on stage. Long load times, occasional shutdowns from power...etc. Not very expressive by today's standards for velocity, but a crude version of velocity and aftertouch was there. Overall, for its day, still very useful, especially at current market prices. Unique, hence the rating.

Dependable as in built well, yes. Dependable as in will not shut down on you in mid performance, no. Due to its niche, I would definitely NOT use it alone, without backup. That is, the floppy is slow. (This was the eighties, folks.) An eight overall though, because this thing never electrically failed me in a need to get it repaired way, except for internal fuses going out one time. It still performs just like it did when it was brand new. (I have used it at home only. No gigging.)

Have to say, unlike Roland, this company gets behind the product. I had a question about some scratchiness in the one slider, they SENT me a shipping box which I used to send it back. In a couple weeks, back it came, checked out and perfect. They replaced the sliders for free under warranty. I think they even cleaned the case.

Probably would opt for something different today. A controller with a module such as the Roland JD's or the Jupiter Eight or MKS80. I realize we are talking a big price difference here. (Jupe eights are running one to two thousand dollars NOW...on a 20 year old keyboard.)

Would have to say at the time, worth at least as much as a Yamaha DX7, which always seemed fairly digital and limited in sounds to me. They were about 2000 dollars then. However...would love a DX1...Elton John had one.

I was a newbie to the keyboards back then. Broke in the red carpet way. I am strictly for fun, not profit, in my playing. I own a Roland MC500 which sits on the Korg...(5150 Van Halen tour was THAT Roland sequencer...) also sound card in computer...(Creative Labs makes and owns EMU systems...the Live Platinum has EMU parts in it...great sampled ROM card sounds on the puter!

It is a little heavy. Large and luggable. Don't really like to move it a lot.

At the time, I compared it to the Roland Jupiter Six new in the showroom in Tampa, FLA. I bought the Korg for under two grand because I could not afford the analog Roland...but the cosmetics on the Roland were and are still some of the best, period.

Of course, today, we want sample time. But 12 bit is quiet enough. At first, when I first brought it home, I think I stayed up two nights in a row just going through the manual and playing with it.

If you collect analog synths, and want one that was digital, get one of these for the museum. Not a Jupiter eight, but not a Yamaha DX7 either...kind of half way in between the two. VCO sounds by DCO, and extreme editing possible. If you wanted the Yamaha, they made a disc for the Korg from the DX7 series.

Rates an overall seven, just because its not an old average synth. But, its not the best either. For the field it plays in today, I would still give it a 7 just for its niche in the field. A studio analog wannabee and digital wannabee that did both...kind of. And for the money today, that ain't bad.

I appreciate the functions written on the cover. It's very convenient.
The user manual is very interesting to learn using the machine, but your don't need it to work with the DSS1

8 voices but monotimbral. The keyboard is ok but a little bit noisy.
I appreciate the DDL and VCF. Actually, I use the DSS1 as a sound effect processor !!
The MIDI implementation is well, but I never use sysex.

The samples are not so good : 12bits - 16-48kHZ.
However, the synthetic sounds are very warm and rich.
The DSS1 works good for Rock, Dance and... Electro Acoustic Music.
Due to the slowness of the disk drive and the limited memory (256kb), the DSS1 is designed for the studio, not for the stage.
The Keyboard is Ok but a little bit noisy.

Very reliable.
I own my DSS1 since 1988 and I have some problems with the disk drive only now (2004).
In 1989, water falled from the roof on the DSS1 !! I have just open it, dried it and... it restarted without any problem.

No deal with Korg...

DSS1 is very versatile but limited (disk drive, 256kb, 12bits)
It's a very good component for an electro-acoustic studio.
Sounds coming from DSS1 are not "signed" such as those with Fairlight, DX7 or S900.

A few corrections to some reviews here. The DSS-1 is 8-note poly, not 16 as some have said. One reviewer kept repeating that it's not polyphonic (what?!) I think he meant that it's not multitimbral.

Since the parameters can be edited via MIDI sysex, I recently created a profile for the DSS-1 on the Kentron Control Freak (a slider-based control surface). While it works great for quickly editing patches, it is not good for real-time control of the DSS-1, as you will hear digital distortion noise when you adjust a slider while holding a note down (unlike the DW-8000 which was very friendly to real-time tweaking from the Control Freak). Also, the cutoff will not update in real time while holding a note down, you have to retrigger to hear the difference. The best way to do filter sweeps on the DSS-1 is to assign Cutoff to the joystick and turn pitch bending off. Also, the only way to monitor what you're doing is to look at the Control Freak's own LCD; the DSS-1's menu based LCD screen will not update in real time while you're controlling parameters via MIDI (another big difference from the DW-8000 whose LED's update in real time, letting you monitor what you're doing).

Here is a great hidden feature I discovered while setting up the Control Freak for the DSS-1. On the DSS-1 you cannot separately control Oscillator 1 and 2 volumes; it only lets you adjust Osc balance, e.g. if you want equal volume between Osc's, you can only get 50%/50%. However, as I studied the MIDI sysex stream for this Osc Balance control, I found out that it's actually adjusting 2 different controls: Osc volume 1 (values 0-100) and Osc volume 2 (values in reverse order, 100-0). So, using the Control Freak, I was able to create 2 separate sliders for Osc volume 1 and 2 respectively. This way, I was able to get both Osc volumes up to 100%/100% which you definitely can't do using the DSS-1 control panel!! As a result, some patches that I have always wanted to boost the volume past the max VCA Level, I was now able to do!!

Using the Control Freak to quickly edit patches, I created some wicked phatt sounds on this thing using saw, pulse & square waveforms, unison mode, osc detuning, flanging from the twin digital delays, and sync mode on. I mean TRULY wicked phatt, we're talking Prophet 5 and OBXa dirty gritty analog warmth! What an awesome filter on this mutha. Don't underestimate the power of the beast!

Overal rating for ease of use: 10, using the Kentron Control Freak!