I figured it out! The real purpose of this channel is not to shame manufacturers of bad gear (although it helps, and probably feels good), it's to shame bad producers who blame their bad gear for their own musical shortcomings. You prove that you can make good music with any kind of gear. Thank you.
@@AudioPilz Absolutely. A lot of flak comes from people not exploring a devices' range and just going but xyz device has these features. Everything has a limit but you can get something out of (nearly) everything.
@@noomnoom8469 The Moog DFAM's a really good example of that combined with unintentionally inaccurate marketing. People bought the DFAM expecting a drum machine (partially their fault for not doing their research and partially Moog's for calling it the "Drummer From Another Mother" when it's really more of a "Drum From Another Mother"), got a percussion and bass focused dual-oscillator analog synth with an extremely old-school dial-based 8-step sequencer for their troubles, couldn't figure out how to use it as a drum machine, and then blamed the instrument for their mistakes and unfamiliarity with it.
My hardware journey started with this channel, i saw the tempest video and was so intrigued by the fact that people didn’t like programming it. Easily the best purchase I ever made and literally a breeze to work with. People are soft and have no patience to learn anything and I think I kind of prefer it that way. I think that’s why you hear so many sample pack loops and the same midi packs in so many of todays productions
I've gotten a surprising amount of mileage out of mine as a production tool, once I embraced its limitations and started exporting the tracks as wav files to finish songs. It's a weird mix of old school and modern and I think it's got its cult following because of that.
I actually think the sampler version of this "e2s" represents more than both the rythm and tracks at this point. Im using the circuit to record midi in. having both is a real touch of old and new
Yeah, I think it does have a bit of a cult following! It's a really unique piece. Maybe this is like when Coke released New-Coke. Perhaps they should've called it something else and made it it's own thing. I love mine regardless, I've made some of my best songs with it.
I love my E2... I don't own a computer, so it is the centerpiece of my rig. Bought it used for $300, never once regretted it. The synth section is capable of some great sounds if you use it right. Using the Overdrive insert effect goes a long way towards beefing up the synth sounds. Each of the 16 parts is on its own midi channel (part 1 = ch1, etc), which is useful when live playing it with my Keystep. I use the gate arp all the time; in combination with the touch scale function it makes for killer improvised leads. I'm fine with all the hate it gets, just means it's possible to find them cheap. Haters can hate all they like, I'll take mine with me to my grave! Great video as always, Bad Gear is one of my favorite youtube shows. Keep it up!
Same! I use a computer all day so wanted a dawless setup for song creation and jamming. The E2S is the brains which controls my small collection of hardware synths (Behringer model D, Neutron, Volca FM). It's really fun and I'm always figuring out new performance tricks and new sounds. I have the sample version, so never had a complaint about internal sample selection :)
I'm a true novice at making electronic music and always had trouble successfully making music in a DAW because the unlimited options end up becoming overwhelming, so I bought an Electribe 2 (synth version). It is the first piece of music production hardware I've ever purchased, and after figuring out how to truly use it I've come to love it. It certainly has many limitations that I've even experienced myself, but the excellent build quality and highly flexible synth engine with tons of waveforms, filters, and modulation options has allowed me to produce a number of patterns I'm genuinely proud of. For someone with serious ADHD like myself, getting an actual piece of music hardware has been a godsend that pushes me away from the computer and phone, eliminating distractions. Unfortunately now I have the synth bug and want to make a whole music studio full of equipment 🤣 Thankfully I have a job that pays well enough for me to pick up some new shit!
The electribe MX with valve..sounds better than this model. There isn't a comparison. I have the MX and SX and never would sell It for buy the electribe2.
Yeah, some of my stuff has shown up and that is okay. Nothing is perfect. Also, stuff seems to go up in price on the used market after it appears here so if you want it buy it quickly :D
As an ESX aficionado, I skipped on the Electribe 2 literally because of the shortened pattern length. I don't think a successor should ever scale back any feature. Remove/combine feature? Cool, but never scale back.
It baffles me that manufacturers limit pattern length and sequencer capabilities in the modern day. It's got to be about the most trivial feature to implement in a modern synth. The amount of memory it takes to store hours and hours of MIDI sequence data is physically tiny and is a trivial expense next to even the potentiometers and encoders on a device like this. Why?
@@agentvx8320 Agree! and it's not just tiny starter boxes like the volca series either - I have a Pioneer Toraiz SP-16 I got used. Great sampler, amazing sound, but the patterns are limited to 4 bars. This thing was $1500 new, and Pioneer licensed a filter from Dave Smith (Sequential) but the sequencer only does 4 bar patterns??? Why!!!???
Thanks for systematically going through all my equipment. Would it help if I sent you a list of my entire studio gear to get this over and done with? 🙄
Ngl, I literally have: - Korg Electribe 2 - M Audio Venom - Roland MC303 (world's best demo song jk) - An 80s Roland rompler This show was practically made for me too hahaha. It's just super fun seeing people like Florian try to bring the good out of janky gear.
The E2 is underrated. It has some obvious, infuriating limitations, but it’s also uniquely capable. I love that it doesn’t sound like all the other more current groove boxes, and being stuck with those samples really encourages creative exploration to get new vibes out of it.
The E2 was my first major hardware synth and I absolutely love it despite its shortcomings. It's just plain fun and it's capable of some super wacky and interesting stuff if you take the time to learn its more obscure features.
I went twelve feet down a 1:4 hill in snow nr blizzard condition.. and a old skateboard made barely one ft ..( due to grip tape not working in snow ). So for me it’s a 10
I've found out something interesting with the "voice stealing" issue. I decided to export my favorite preset samples and then clear the memory. When I had the WAVs in my computer, I had a look at the samples and was surprised that quite a few of the samples had very long "quiet" sections ranging from 50% to 75% of the entire sample. I think there is a small amount of reverb on these samples, so trimming off the tails will alter the sound slightly (I don't think you'd notice though). My point? I think this is part of the polyphony problem. I can imagine these long samples are still playing long after you'd assume the sound has finished, imagine too if you're playing at a fast tempo. In any case I trimmed all the samples, much happier now! I keep my own personal samples as short as possible as well! I think 24 note polyphony is just enough if you're very disciplined like this, but it would be great to have a Korg Electribe Sampler 3 with at least 48 note polyphony or more. And while Korg are at it, a proper sequencer with the option to turn off quantising (ok, there is a workaround, set sequencer to 32 steps a double the tempo/double the measures), also FULL sized midi DIN ports like its 1999, Audio over USB, color touchscreen with waveform display and for goodness sake, PRINT the shortcuts on the unit, so we don't have to put bits of tape all over it! Oh yeah, and proper sample importing with the ability to import samples and at least 1GB of sample RAM!
I always got along fine with it. Was the central brain of my live set up for years. The King Korg derived synth engine is actually pretty nice. The biggest drawbacks were 3 fold. 1.) No proper ADSR 2.)Pattern chain/Song mode was glitchy 3.)Voice stealing I agree that it is more of a synth workstation than a proper groovebox but for what these go for on the used market ($200 - $250) it's a pretty great value. People also forget that that the EMX-1 / ESX-1 were like a $1000 USD when they came out so expectations need to be inline with cost.
I purchased the E2 on its release day, for the sole reason of hacking the firmware and swapping it to the Sampler. Every video I ever did on it, for the first two years, was the Sampler in the Electribe body, which really confused some people. Great video once again!
@@ildafons It costs a bit more? Or maybe it's a color thing? 😂 I don't think it's worth the risk/effort though, unless you can somehow get the the features of both in one box.
@@ildafons .. I already had the firmware hack in my possession before I even purchased, and I wanted to try out both boxes. I even had high hopes of swapping firmware back and forth, and using both units independently in live shows, but alas.. I only used the Electribe for about two days before realizing I needed to have the Sampler. Also, in the early days there were no blue and red. Just grey and black. So I had a grey sampler, lol.
This could've been so much better if they'd open sourced the firmware and let the hackers at it. There's a competent groove box under there somewhere. That said, I still like mine :)
It ditched the og's 6-row function selector, which changed things the most. Without that 'matrix of buttons' any OS would still be needing shift combos all the time, just.... perhaps different combos. That said, if even just some other Oscillator selections were available I'd be very interested. If user waves (even tiny ones) and/or custom osc functions could be replacing the factory Osc waves it would be the most powerful mod. ....I dream of MODWAVE + OPSIX in the Electribe3. A $900-1200 unit with double the knobs and function buttons of the E2, with a step-edit knob above each drumpad a la MS-2000/radias. C'mon and go all the way, Korg :)
Good news, there's now a firmware called Hacktribe that provides some synth engines from the standard Electribe 2 and the ability to sample among various other features so that way you don't need to buy two Electribes or use the hack that allows you to switch between Electribe versions
@@Bantam80 Just be careful preparing and installing the hacked firmware itself since it is liable to brick your Electribe if you skip a step same with the other hacks available for it, for the most part though I believe it is THE firmware to get for it
The korg electribe sample and synth are both the core tools used in the german hardtekk/schranz genres and for good reason. There just is not any other groovebox that can immitade the hard dirty grimey sounds you can produce with these things. completely in love with both of these.
Yes, the Electribe 2 has its limitations, but despite these the Electribe is a wonderful groove box and you can have a lot of fun with it. ❤ Beste Grüße, Florian und weiterhin VIEL Erfolg!
Here in France, lot's of Free party's music are based on the electribes (we even have a genre called "tribe" which also exist in Italy but existed before the first electribe). However, I actually never saw one of the new type in those. Maybe the red (sampling) one could be useful tho ! But we already have the ESX which sounds better. To be honnest, I kinda hate korg for those new electribe (and I'm a korg guy) !
It's like they took a classic performance took and turned it into a mediocre and unplayable studio tool. I'm still trying to like mine, but it's not making it easy, man.
Absolutely love your work- the hits just keep coming! Idea for upcoming video: “Bad Gear: The Eurorack Format: How It Stole My Kid’s College Fund and Made My Wife Divorce Me”. Seriously though, if you are ever up for doing Eurorack, the debate about how awesome/overrated/useless Make Noise MATHS is rages on. It’s a never-ending war of music snobbery.
EMX-1, ESX-1 and the MKII's of the original line up were absolutely solid machines. Then they went with these 2 plastic follow-ups that've never had the same cult status - but they've kept the 2's in production for like 10 years now. it's baffling... earlier in the electribe line they did many models and small updates, but these two lackluster ones have just sat there basically the same forever. i moved on from the esx-1 years ago, but I'll never get rid of my ER-1 MK2... love that thing.
@@LightboxX The E2s are actually metal (well, the top anyway). I think the best thing is just to accept that they are different instruments from their predecessors, and not even intended to be upgrades to the previous models, like the EMX-1 and ESX-1 were.
I have the sample version, it was fun to sample a volcaloid box into it. Also replaced the knobs with colors based on their function. Always good at making these devices slap so hard I gotta ask for seconds.
Pro tip: Each pad has a shift function. Get a label printer and print them out. It will save heaps of menu diving and make it much faster to work with. I don’t know what Korg was thinking by not labelling them.
I think Korg didn’t label them because the shift shortcuts came along in an update, along with the undo function. But I totally agree, should have had these features in from the start. Still, love my ES2.
So glad you made this one. The Electribe Sampler was my first real introduction to the fun of electronic music junk- I mean gear. Had so much fun with this device, but sold it to buy gear with less limitations. Great video. I hate that step edit mode.
I feel amazing, I FINALLY own a Bad Gear BEFORE I found out it’s bad gear… Well, not really. I’ve been spending all my time in my SpazeDrum and Typhon… BECAUSE THOSE ARE DEFINITELY NOT BAD GEAR! Okay? EVER! NOT BAD GEAR! DON’T EVEN… (yes I’m joking, do what you do, don’t listen to me). Also: ALL HAIL THE HYPNOTO… UH…. 4 on the floor.
Yeah......now I remember why I passed on getting any of the Korg Electribes back in the day. Thanks for reaffirming my decision! As always, excellent breakdown too!
I really like mine, the Moog filter sounds very nice but I bought it because of the battery. I love going outside and being able to jam in the park. Got it used for 200€, definitely worth it for me:)
Managed to get an E2S a while back, in a second-hand shop for £99 ! Very pleased with it (works well with Volcas, Minilogue etc and.. iPad via USB!) Only(?) having 24mB of sample RAM means being careful with sample processing/editing/management before putting them on SD card. The FX are really fun (on OTRR speech for instance) and can be used on the live audio input (great for vocals.. 16 FX at the push of a pad!). It is getting long in the tooth (firmware updates seem to have ceased..) but works well if you play to it's strengths. Part of my live rig now.
I still have and use my fleet of Electribes. I bought them, geez, like 20 years ago. They compliment a set up quite well. But the 4 bar pattern on the Electribe2 is a creative killer.
NOOOOOO this is my favorite piece of gear that I have gotten in so long 😱😱😱😱😱 but good video as always! This thing kills it for tech house and other techno
I love the ES 2 chopping a sample is limited there’s no timestretch but it’s a fun machine with workarounds. The chaos pad can give you 1/32 1/64 rolls. The chain function can give you longer patterns The sound quality is dope enough to record it 2 track and sequence by hand. It beats the pants out of the 404 as far as creative power
i had the electribe 2 sampler, was my first synth/sampler and i think is very nice for beginners. It has limitations but for the price i think is ok, i learned a lot with it.
The manatee part killed me 🤣 I'm still giggling. How do creatures like that even exist?? They get so fat but all they eat is what? Kelp and algae and seaweed? What does it feel like to hug one? I'm so easily distracted...
@@AudioPilz I never thought of that! Still curious though. Now that I've regained my senses, I gotta commend you on the no restraint beast of prey jam near the end, you really squeezed some interesting pulsing bass out of the electribe!
They're the slob of seas you just want to hug and go buy them all the stuff they want to eat and then hug them even more! *GET HERE MANATEE, YOU NEED HUGGED!!!* 😋
I really love my Electribe 2. It was one of the earlier synths I got, I sold just 2 of my volcas to get it used at a great price, and I still use it (though largely for drums, though often with some fx modified chords). Its probably because I never had another groove box, and for me it was a massive step up and easier to use than managing a fleet of volcas. I'm going to rehearsal in a bit and will still be using it for drums with my band as I use other synths for the keys.
@@AudioPilz Most definitely, though I really wish Korg didn't pull a Nintendo and split the versions like the Pokemon games. Still might end up with both.
The Dave Smith Tempest is kind of like the Electribe except it’s synth section is amazing- almost too many possibilities, and the OS is… an acquired taste. I’m still hoping to see it on here one day…
I remember it was riddled with bugs when it first came out, a friend bought one and said it was virtually unusable at the time, guessing they have updated it a few times since? Well I'd hope so anyway..
@@BWPT. It did get updates but it was still a bear to use. It’s a device that really crammed so many features into a small box that trying to access everything felt super restrictive. I’m a hands on kind of person though- I like physical real-time knob per-function control.
Yeah, I'm a huge electribe fan and looked at the Tempest as the next step. But when they fixed the bugs with the latest OS and then discontinued the Tempest prices sky rocketed. So I purchased a dsi Tetra to pair with my E2 and make a pseudo Korg Tempest. I actually find the dsi/sequential stuff pairs good with the sound of the electribe. Other analog synths make the electribe sound plastic and thin when mixed together.
I started with an e2s, and when I got my Tempest I noticed some of the similarities (mostly the different pad modes) - I love the Tempest, but I mostly use an Octatrack for sequencing it.
I have one and agree about most of the synth engine, though its still fun to play with. The drum side and midi out to other synths are what makes it for me.
OK, so I've got the old ESX-1 SD and EMX-1 (sadly smart media on the blue one) and they have really held their value. Classics. There's just something magic about those old red and blue ones. I don't think they are going to depreciate, frankly. Maybe just keep going up. But the Electribe 2? Are these things going to just continue to depreciate? Is it because they hold no sentimental value to anyone? Is it because they are so maligned? What gives? Fun fact: I bought the ESX-1 SD off a local listing a couple years ago for $160 USD. It's in great shape. One of the best deals I've managed.
The Electribe 2 S was my first piece of music gear and I have a bit of a love hate relationship with it. It works pretty well as a drum machine / midi controller, but the step sequencing is clunky and the menu diving hurts my ADHD addled brain. I got it for $200 though and I think I'm starting to get the hang of the workflow. I wish Korg would update the firmware to allow for triplet hihat rolls, maybe make it possible to chop samples, but all in all it's a versatile and affordable little piece of tech.
Glad you did this one! I own the red one so I wanted to know how I messed up my first major music purchase. Also I upvote an electribe modular - digital sequencer with drum machine and 1 or 2 analogue modular lanes 😍
God this reminded me that they put 12AX7s in the MX/SX… you really have to admire the almighty cash cow of starved plate vacuum tubes in consumer facing gear. Your Korg videos provide the slow drip of nostalgia that’s keeping me from trying to repair my Triton, so thank you for that. I would love to see you grapple with an Akai S01 next… or a theremini… neither of which you could really consider an instrument (or even a ‘fun’ toy for that matter)
The Electribe 2 is a MUSICAL INSTRUMENT !!! It is what it is and its on the artist what he makes of it exactly like a guitar !!! The ergonomi and form are fenomenal and with all the features it ofers You basicaly have lifetime exploration possibilities. Im mostly fammiliar with the sampler but am planing to buy the synth in near future and am mega excited. The only problems i sometimes have is the processing which could be faster but Nothing is perfect in this world so You have to learn to live with it . Sorry for the english and ENJOY this little beast 😁😁😁🔊🔊🔊💫💫💫
I've owned all the Electribe models except this one. I've always loved them for their ease of use and getting to the essential quality of any good synth - great oscillators - and getting rid of a bit of extra fluff that just gets in the way of workflow.
I was bummed at what I saw with the Circuit Rhythm, so I bought the Sampler version of this for $250. I'm having fun with it. It's just strange that all they really had to do was take the existing tactile UI of the ESX and mesh it with the S2, it would have been perfect. Instead, it's a ton of menu diving, memorizing shift/pad settings, and SD card marriage that is so codependent that if you forget to press write every few minutes, you can easily lose what you spent hours working on..
Instead of bad gear, it's more like gear that nobody else is willing to put the time and effort into. Everybody just wants a whole orchestra and fantastic sounds right in front of them ready to go, without putting there own twist or sound into there own creations...SBN RESONATE
I think you’re hitting the nail in the head here with good vs bad gear. Good gear makes things easy for you. With good gear you quickly get what you hear in your head out into the world. Good gear gets out of the way. Bad gear is gear you have to wrangle and embrace the limitations. There are those who really enjoy mud wrestling with an alligator, and who get fantastic results with it. I don’t want to put time and effort into learning gear. I want the gear to *save me* time and effort, you know?
I have the es2 and it's a love-hate relationship. Many features are awesome, but the UX is frustrating when diving into menus. I hope some "better gear" magician comes up with a pirate firmware update.
I have the same experience. Often I get put off by some limitation, before curiosity seeps in and I find out about new functions or ways to use it. The sequencer really is pretty capable, if it weren't for the 4 bar limit and menu diving...
I just bought one for its mobility, lack of complexity and price. The idea is to escape for a while from the electron workflow that I'm so attached. I hope this will be enjoyable :) Your video is brilliant and pure pleasure as usual :)
"more of a production tool, than a live performance instrument" - the exact reason why i got mx1+tr8s+mc707 instead of Electribe2. The only thing is - my heart still bleeds of why I sold my ESX-1SD, but had no choice. Maybe will get my son a Volca Sample 2 after all, but I am all Roland now.
I actually prefer my E2S as a drum machine over my TR8S 😬, 16 velocity sensitive pads adds alot more dynamics and easier accessable parameters. I appreciate the send amounts to the fx on the tr8S and the reverb is a huge plus, but it's such a hastle to access all the settings. Admittedly the Roland sounds better, but for creativity electribe FTW!
I do mostly techno and even without reverb I can get a better sounding and faster rubble kick on the electribe 2 then the tr8S. Most the lfo's on the E2 reset at trigger so combine with a slow speed amp decay and you almost have a third envalope. 👍🏽
The E2S is a great little box, still miss it from time to time. You can have a lot of fun taking it with you outdoors and sampling your phone (or maybe not anymore now that audio jacks are disappearing from phones 😢)
There is a lot of dislike towards both the synth and the sampler. I own both and got them both for the price of what just one costs. I can truthfully say they have limitations but I absolutely adore them when they are paired together. They're also kinda fun just to make samples on to use later on my mpc live 2. But before the mpc, I would transfer wave files from the electribe and put them into a daw. Add stuff to it and finish song. Overall, I have no plans of selling either. Good video man!
Coming from the EMX / ESX-1 the E2 line seemed like one step forward two steps back to me. Like a "wannabe MPC" that fails hard in a direct comparison. I know it is a bit unfair considering prices but Korg gave up on so many things that made the old machines great in favor of this completely different concept that doesn't seem to keep many of its promises. The limitations in the old ones were much more obvious and "honest" and lead to a fast and fun workflow whereas the newer ones seemed like they tried to hide their weaknesses, causing frustration for the user when finding out through trial and error. They upgraded polyphony in a still rather limited way (to a max. of four notes per part) and introduced some serious voice stealing, along with the restriction that all these four notes need to share the same length when placed on the same step. They sacrificed song mode, programmable step edits for parameters, eight bar pattern length and somehow even managed to cut down sample memory in the ES2 compared to the ESX-1 after many years that had generally caused a huge price drop in memory. It was a weird move by Korg. Nevertheless, the E2s are pretty cool sounding and I guess can be lots of fun when you know what to expect... it's just that they could have made clear what and what not to expect much better. Instead it seems to me Korg tried to sell the E2 as something it really is not, which is a bit of a shame.
This was my first synth, and I'm fortunate it was. The mix of decent sounds but frustrating limitations sent me off on a quest to acquire what I *really need*. One DSI, a Virus, and an Octatrack later (many in between that have come and gone), I'm now satiated. I love my set-up now, but the E2 was certainly fun, and I'd definitely recommend it to anyone just looking to mess around.
It such a vanilla piece of gear. Like meeting an engineer with a bland personality. It's cool that it can do so many things, but its unexciting and so bland you'd rather not hang out with them
Man, I remember having such high hopes when I got my e2. I'm not sure why, but I hate the sound of its synth engine. It's currently in its box with a dead filter pot.
@@AudioPilz @devambient Supposedly based on the KingKorg, whose synth engine seems fairly well regarded (even though overall the KingKorg is probably a candidate for a Bad Gear episode..)
@@latontolog That's a bit like saying the Minitaur is based on the Polymoog. Other than copying some oscillator models and a filter model, the comparison falls flat when you strip it of all the features that make the King Korg a fully fledged VA-synth. You get one oscillator, and a filter, and that's it. The rest is FX from the Microsampler, a single LFO, and a single two-stage envelope. Very very limited. Useable though, especially the Sine oscillator with its FM-feedback circuit. You can get some decent basses out of that.
Dear Korg; How to fix the ET2 in the next gen; Add Osc edit 2 knob Add FX edit 2 knob Combine the synth and sampling capabilities together in one unit. Add normal modern sampling functions such as end point/loop end point/loop start point Single cycle waveform support in the sample Add another stereo out for outs 3/4 nice to have; Allow editable arp banks using the step sequencer Add granular synthesis for manipulating samples Wavetable support Resample fx plus mfx out as one shots to render single cycle waveforms or wavetables.
The most important part about this channel is the part where he still makes something awesome out of the shitty gear just to remind you that you gotta snap out of GAS mode and just make something inspired
The synth section does seem underwhelming. I remember the original back in the late 90s at least had some squelch and bite even if it was very digital.
Digital but with a warm tube drive finish... I can see how some don't like it, I totally love it though. Edit: I just realized you were probably refering to the black model EM-1, my bad!
Really and truly hate how the sample version doesn’t have a dedicated “sample end” controller knob (as far as I can tell). If I’m remembering correctly, the “edit” knob can change the start point and make the sample reverse, but the only way to change the end point is to edit the AD envelope (which isn’t always the desired effect) or to menu dive. Why on earth they didn’t just give the start point knob a shift function, I’ll never know.
I would actually otherwise like the workflow. It's REALLY fast and intuitive, especially for sketching out ideas on the go, but as someone who is a bit too obsessed with UX, it's an oversight that is both frustrating and baffling. It's so completely unavoidable as a stumbling point.
Yes!!! The edit knob on the sampler is such a waste. Can't for the life of me find a use for it! IF the loops were relative to the start point, you could do some cool wavetable and granular stuff by modulating the edit knob. But the 100% to 0 (no sample playing?!?) Then back up to 100% reverse!?!! 🤷🏽♂️ Why for what... 🤦🏽♂️
Select whatever scale you need, turn on last step, set it to 1/2/4, set part to mono, record and keep sliding your fingers across the chaos pad until you hear something you like. This has helped me a lot
I’ve had mine since it came out and even though I have some small nitpicks, I think this is an amazing sequencer! It drives all my other synths and the fact that it exports to Ableton is fucking awesome! I think those that have serious hate for it don’t know how to use it properly. That being said: I still would really like to get the Elektron Analog 4. Just so damn expensive!!
@@AudioPilz exactly. sure, some of the internal sounds are just crappy, but if you get passed that, then there is a whole lot more to do with this thing.
@@AudioPilz Just wait till you read an entire xenophobic, self-aggrandizing Mista Bishi rant of pretentious whimpering racist drivel (of which there are plenty). You might reassess
This one hits close to home, because I used to have an EMX and ESX as well as an E2, and I sold all of it a few years ago :( I miss them all but the E2.
Every time you upload, i get surprised by what you get out of this gear. :) I tried using the E2, but it didn‘t work for me at all... In general, groove boxes are something, my brain refuses to work with. I can create some patterns, but i‘ve never gotten a cohesive song out of one. OctaTrack, Digitakt, Electribe 2, Arq-96. None of these worked for me. The Arq-96 is still here, cause i got it really cheap and it‘s resell value is so daaamn low. ^^
I know that feeling of things becoming too "loopy"... But its just a matter of skills, and one day i will learn how to avoid that stuff. Until then, ill have a fun time anyway, creating sounds and melodies that nobody ever heard - and sticking to my motto of never making a fun hobby into something serious =)
I figured it out! The real purpose of this channel is not to shame manufacturers of bad gear (although it helps, and probably feels good), it's to shame bad producers who blame their bad gear for their own musical shortcomings. You prove that you can make good music with any kind of gear. Thank you.
Not trying to shame anyone. Just having fun with some gear many people don't like;)
@@AudioPilz Absolutely. A lot of flak comes from people not exploring a devices' range and just going but xyz device has these features.
Everything has a limit but you can get something out of (nearly) everything.
@@noomnoom8469
The Moog DFAM's a really good example of that combined with unintentionally inaccurate marketing. People bought the DFAM expecting a drum machine (partially their fault for not doing their research and partially Moog's for calling it the "Drummer From Another Mother" when it's really more of a "Drum From Another Mother"), got a percussion and bass focused dual-oscillator analog synth with an extremely old-school dial-based 8-step sequencer for their troubles, couldn't figure out how to use it as a drum machine, and then blamed the instrument for their mistakes and unfamiliarity with it.
My hardware journey started with this channel, i saw the tempest video and was so intrigued by the fact that people didn’t like programming it. Easily the best purchase I ever made and literally a breeze to work with. People are soft and have no patience to learn anything and I think I kind of prefer it that way. I think that’s why you hear so many sample pack loops and the same midi packs in so many of todays productions
lol.
I can’t wait for the release of “Bad Gear: The Album”
Bad gear: The lawn dart years
So do I😅
been saying that too. put it on vinyl :P
@@kcosminhz7988 Id buy it, *hint hint nudge nudge*
Needs to happen, comeplete with genre definitions...
I've gotten a surprising amount of mileage out of mine as a production tool, once I embraced its limitations and started exporting the tracks as wav files to finish songs. It's a weird mix of old school and modern and I think it's got its cult following because of that.
I actually think the sampler version of this "e2s" represents more than both the rythm and tracks at this point. Im using the circuit to record midi in. having both is a real touch of old and new
I use mine everyday. It’s the main brain of my setup.
Yeah, I think it does have a bit of a cult following! It's a really unique piece. Maybe this is like when Coke released New-Coke. Perhaps they should've called it something else and made it it's own thing. I love mine regardless, I've made some of my best songs with it.
You might be right here!
this is the voice i wanted to hear on this, Groovebox Gabe knows his boxes
I love my E2... I don't own a computer, so it is the centerpiece of my rig. Bought it used for $300, never once regretted it. The synth section is capable of some great sounds if you use it right. Using the Overdrive insert effect goes a long way towards beefing up the synth sounds. Each of the 16 parts is on its own midi channel (part 1 = ch1, etc), which is useful when live playing it with my Keystep. I use the gate arp all the time; in combination with the touch scale function it makes for killer improvised leads. I'm fine with all the hate it gets, just means it's possible to find them cheap. Haters can hate all they like, I'll take mine with me to my grave! Great video as always, Bad Gear is one of my favorite youtube shows. Keep it up!
Thanks! I kept reaching for the overdrive a lot too!
Same! I use a computer all day so wanted a dawless setup for song creation and jamming. The E2S is the brains which controls my small collection of hardware synths (Behringer model D, Neutron, Volca FM). It's really fun and I'm always figuring out new performance tricks and new sounds. I have the sample version, so never had a complaint about internal sample selection :)
The 2 Groove pages are a readily deployable weapon, and the most musically potent aspect of the entire box
Unbeliewably hilarious Nick Batt sample 🤣
That one had me rolling too😂😂😂
@@AudioPilz Mistabishi got his "Akai Dan" moment on that video.
@@Nik.leonard haven’t seen akai Dan for a while...
I'm a true novice at making electronic music and always had trouble successfully making music in a DAW because the unlimited options end up becoming overwhelming, so I bought an Electribe 2 (synth version). It is the first piece of music production hardware I've ever purchased, and after figuring out how to truly use it I've come to love it. It certainly has many limitations that I've even experienced myself, but the excellent build quality and highly flexible synth engine with tons of waveforms, filters, and modulation options has allowed me to produce a number of patterns I'm genuinely proud of. For someone with serious ADHD like myself, getting an actual piece of music hardware has been a godsend that pushes me away from the computer and phone, eliminating distractions. Unfortunately now I have the synth bug and want to make a whole music studio full of equipment 🤣 Thankfully I have a job that pays well enough for me to pick up some new shit!
Nice, beware of modular - that stuff's addictive;)
what are some bad limitations ? i am considering buying for this exact reason - DAWs are too huge esp for live music
Time to start a TH-cam channel…
The electribe MX with valve..sounds better than this model.
There isn't a comparison.
I have the MX and SX and never would sell It for buy the electribe2.
It's always scary when something on my wishlist ends up in bad gear, great video as always
Thanks! It's nothing personal;)
it's par for the norm to see your own gear on this channel.
Yeah, some of my stuff has shown up and that is okay. Nothing is perfect. Also, stuff seems to go up in price on the used market after it appears here so if you want it buy it quickly :D
As an ESX aficionado, I skipped on the Electribe 2 literally because of the shortened pattern length. I don't think a successor should ever scale back any feature. Remove/combine feature? Cool, but never scale back.
I wholeheartedly agree!
It baffles me that manufacturers limit pattern length and sequencer capabilities in the modern day. It's got to be about the most trivial feature to implement in a modern synth. The amount of memory it takes to store hours and hours of MIDI sequence data is physically tiny and is a trivial expense next to even the potentiometers and encoders on a device like this. Why?
@@agentvx8320 because they hate their die hard customers?
I was on the fence about it for a long time, primarily because of the shortened pattern length. I ultimately passed
@@agentvx8320 Agree! and it's not just tiny starter boxes like the volca series either - I have a Pioneer Toraiz SP-16 I got used. Great sampler, amazing sound, but the patterns are limited to 4 bars. This thing was $1500 new, and Pioneer licensed a filter from Dave Smith (Sequential) but the sequencer only does 4 bar patterns??? Why!!!???
Thanks for systematically going through all my equipment. Would it help if I sent you a list of my entire studio gear to get this over and done with? 🙄
It's nothing personal;)
@@AudioPilz Actually, thinking about it, there's a couple of things I got AFTER seeing them your show. 😄👍
Lolol
Ngl, I literally have:
- Korg Electribe 2
- M Audio Venom
- Roland MC303 (world's best demo song jk)
- An 80s Roland rompler
This show was practically made for me too hahaha. It's just super fun seeing people like Florian try to bring the good out of janky gear.
I feel you paid. Same here. I got some Bad Gear.
The E2 is underrated. It has some obvious, infuriating limitations, but it’s also uniquely capable. I love that it doesn’t sound like all the other more current groove boxes, and being stuck with those samples really encourages creative exploration to get new vibes out of it.
You can replace "E2" in your postwith whatever other groovebox, like the MC-101, and it holds true anyway. =\
I'd prefer other limitations;)
The E2 was my first major hardware synth and I absolutely love it despite its shortcomings. It's just plain fun and it's capable of some super wacky and interesting stuff if you take the time to learn its more obscure features.
It certainly has some cool features other pieces of gear don't
Its a very good first 'synth' engine to learn on.
I went twelve feet down a 1:4 hill in snow nr blizzard condition.. and a old skateboard made barely one ft ..( due to grip tape not working in snow ). So for me it’s a 10
I've found out something interesting with the "voice stealing" issue. I decided to export my favorite preset samples and then clear the memory. When I had the WAVs in my computer, I had a look at the samples and was surprised that quite a few of the samples had very long "quiet" sections ranging from 50% to 75% of the entire sample. I think there is a small amount of reverb on these samples, so trimming off the tails will alter the sound slightly (I don't think you'd notice though).
My point? I think this is part of the polyphony problem. I can imagine these long samples are still playing long after you'd assume the sound has finished, imagine too if you're playing at a fast tempo. In any case I trimmed all the samples, much happier now! I keep my own personal samples as short as possible as well!
I think 24 note polyphony is just enough if you're very disciplined like this, but it would be great to have a Korg Electribe Sampler 3 with at least 48 note polyphony or more. And while Korg are at it, a proper sequencer with the option to turn off quantising (ok, there is a workaround, set sequencer to 32 steps a double the tempo/double the measures), also FULL sized midi DIN ports like its 1999, Audio over USB, color touchscreen with waveform display and for goodness sake, PRINT the shortcuts on the unit, so we don't have to put bits of tape all over it! Oh yeah, and proper sample importing with the ability to import samples and at least 1GB of sample RAM!
Yeah, the list is long;)
I always got along fine with it. Was the central brain of my live set up for years. The King Korg derived synth engine is actually pretty nice. The biggest drawbacks were 3 fold. 1.) No proper ADSR 2.)Pattern chain/Song mode was glitchy 3.)Voice stealing
I agree that it is more of a synth workstation than a proper groovebox but for what these go for on the used market ($200 - $250) it's a pretty great value. People also forget that that the EMX-1 / ESX-1 were like a $1000 USD when they came out so expectations need to be inline with cost.
I agree with all three!
I purchased the E2 on its release day, for the sole reason of hacking the firmware and swapping it to the Sampler. Every video I ever did on it, for the first two years, was the Sampler in the Electribe body, which really confused some people. Great video once again!
Nice! Subscribed!
Why didn’t you buy Sampler?
@@ildafons It costs a bit more? Or maybe it's a color thing? 😂 I don't think it's worth the risk/effort though, unless you can somehow get the the features of both in one box.
@@ildafons .. I already had the firmware hack in my possession before I even purchased, and I wanted to try out both boxes. I even had high hopes of swapping firmware back and forth, and using both units independently in live shows, but alas.. I only used the Electribe for about two days before realizing I needed to have the Sampler.
Also, in the early days there were no blue and red. Just grey and black. So I had a grey sampler, lol.
@@danieklerr Heya, question, in swapping from the Sampler and the normal one do you get the other filter types and Osc engines?
This could've been so much better if they'd open sourced the firmware and let the hackers at it. There's a competent groove box under there somewhere. That said, I still like mine :)
Hoping for The Shaman to step in!!!
It ditched the og's 6-row function selector, which changed things the most.
Without that 'matrix of buttons' any OS would still be needing shift combos all the time, just.... perhaps different combos.
That said, if even just some other Oscillator selections were available I'd be very interested.
If user waves (even tiny ones) and/or custom osc functions could be replacing the factory Osc waves it would be the most powerful mod.
....I dream of MODWAVE + OPSIX in the Electribe3. A $900-1200 unit with double the knobs and function buttons of the E2, with a step-edit knob above each drumpad a la MS-2000/radias. C'mon and go all the way, Korg :)
Good news, there's now a firmware called Hacktribe that provides some synth engines from the standard Electribe 2 and the ability to sample among various other features so that way you don't need to buy two Electribes or use the hack that allows you to switch between Electribe versions
@@Lunaula This is *exactly* one of the things I was hoping for! Thanks for the heads up!
@@Bantam80 Just be careful preparing and installing the hacked firmware itself since it is liable to brick your Electribe if you skip a step same with the other hacks available for it, for the most part though I believe it is THE firmware to get for it
The korg electribe sample and synth are both the core tools used in the german hardtekk/schranz genres and for good reason. There just is not any other groovebox that can immitade the hard dirty grimey sounds you can produce with these things. completely in love with both of these.
Great for that style!
Yes, the Electribe 2 has its limitations, but despite these the Electribe is a wonderful groove box and you can have a lot of fun with it. ❤ Beste Grüße, Florian und weiterhin VIEL Erfolg!
Besten Dank!!!
Good god, that last track was pure heaven.
Thank you!!!
it made me buy one ;)
Here in France, lot's of Free party's music are based on the electribes (we even have a genre called "tribe" which also exist in Italy but existed before the first electribe). However, I actually never saw one of the new type in those.
Maybe the red (sampling) one could be useful tho ! But we already have the ESX which sounds better.
To be honnest, I kinda hate korg for those new electribe (and I'm a korg guy) !
yeah on the old teknivals electribe was huge
Always been a fan of these live jam based parties. Electribes are strong at these here in Austria too!
Why hate Korg for the new Electribe if you are happy with the older model? The new one doesn’t effect you.
i had the blue one
It's like they took a classic performance took and turned it into a mediocre and unplayable studio tool. I'm still trying to like mine, but it's not making it easy, man.
who ever is helping you do and have the ideas the visuals for these internal music videos, should be paid more, their most excellent dude
Thanks! I'll give myself a raise;)
You can’t make this thing sound bad, it’s a classic.
Challenge accepted;)
IDK, the voice stealing can do a pretty good job of that.
I’m starting to realise that Bad Gear is just a list of every device in my studio!
It's nothing personal;)
@@AudioPilz haha, no, I love it! you put all these devices to great use - this is probably my favourite channel!
Absolutely love your work- the hits just keep coming! Idea for upcoming video: “Bad Gear: The Eurorack Format: How It Stole My Kid’s College Fund and Made My Wife Divorce Me”. Seriously though, if you are ever up for doing Eurorack, the debate about how awesome/overrated/useless Make Noise MATHS is rages on. It’s a never-ending war of music snobbery.
Great idea, thanks!
Narrator (from How I Met Your Mother) Kids, do not get into Eurorack set ups.
good to see youre staying hydrated mate
It's important!
"Here, this is bad gear, watch me create a great sounding track with it." You're the best!
Thank you!!!
Used to take mine on plane journeys. Battery life was about 6 hours which was great.The filters are cool and its a nifty little timefiller.
Great for travelling!
The EMX-1 is one of my favorite pieces of gear ever. I wish they just released an enhanced version of that.
Yeah, I'm waiting for the next generation too!
EMX-1, ESX-1 and the MKII's of the original line up were absolutely solid machines. Then they went with these 2 plastic follow-ups that've never had the same cult status - but they've kept the 2's in production for like 10 years now. it's baffling... earlier in the electribe line they did many models and small updates, but these two lackluster ones have just sat there basically the same forever. i moved on from the esx-1 years ago, but I'll never get rid of my ER-1 MK2... love that thing.
@@LightboxX The E2s are actually metal (well, the top anyway). I think the best thing is just to accept that they are different instruments from their predecessors, and not even intended to be upgrades to the previous models, like the EMX-1 and ESX-1 were.
I have the sample version, it was fun to sample a volcaloid box into it. Also replaced the knobs with colors based on their function.
Always good at making these devices slap so hard I gotta ask for seconds.
Thanks!
Pro tip: Each pad has a shift function. Get a label printer and print them out. It will save heaps of menu diving and make it much faster to work with. I don’t know what Korg was thinking by not labelling them.
I think Korg didn’t label them because the shift shortcuts came along in an update, along with the undo function. But I totally agree, should have had these features in from the start. Still, love my ES2.
True! There are pretty nice overlays too!
So glad you made this one. The Electribe Sampler was my first real introduction to the fun of electronic music junk- I mean gear. Had so much fun with this device, but sold it to buy gear with less limitations. Great video. I hate that step edit mode.
Thank you!!!
I feel amazing, I FINALLY own a Bad Gear BEFORE I found out it’s bad gear… Well, not really. I’ve been spending all my time in my SpazeDrum and Typhon… BECAUSE THOSE ARE DEFINITELY NOT BAD GEAR! Okay? EVER! NOT BAD GEAR! DON’T EVEN… (yes I’m joking, do what you do, don’t listen to me). Also:
ALL HAIL THE HYPNOTO… UH…. 4 on the floor.
the Typhon is truly nice;)
Yeah......now I remember why I passed on getting any of the Korg Electribes back in the day. Thanks for reaffirming my decision! As always, excellent breakdown too!
Don't underestimate the older ones!
I really like mine, the Moog filter sounds very nice but I bought it because of the battery. I love going outside and being able to jam in the park. Got it used for 200€, definitely worth it for me:)
Nice, filter models are great!
I had an ER-1, and I have to admit I loves the noise you could make with it.
Big ER-1 fan here!
Aww I love my elwctribe 2. Especially using it live over when I'm DJing
Nice, never used it in that application!
I use it like that too!!
Any videos of your live dj + elective hybrid sets guys?
@@petert7807 unfortunately no but there will be once i get a camera haha
Managed to get an E2S a while back, in a second-hand shop for £99 !
Very pleased with it (works well with Volcas, Minilogue etc and.. iPad via USB!)
Only(?) having 24mB of sample RAM means being careful with sample processing/editing/management before putting them on SD card. The FX are really fun (on OTRR speech for instance) and can be used on the live audio input (great for vocals.. 16 FX at the push of a pad!).
It is getting long in the tooth (firmware updates seem to have ceased..) but works well if you play to it's strengths. Part of my live rig now.
Great find!!!
Your mock ups of the future Electribe are hilarious! Well done sir!
Thanks!
I still have and use my fleet of Electribes.
I bought them, geez, like 20 years ago.
They compliment a set up quite well.
But the 4 bar pattern on the Electribe2 is a creative killer.
True, a real step back
NOOOOOO this is my favorite piece of gear that I have gotten in so long 😱😱😱😱😱 but good video as always! This thing kills it for tech house and other techno
Nothing personal;) Agreed, phantastic sounds for these genres
3:30 I laughed way too hard at this
Same here!
This was so edgy :D .... whatever those guys were on... caning it!
I love the ES 2 chopping a sample is limited there’s no timestretch but it’s a fun machine with workarounds. The chaos pad can give you 1/32 1/64 rolls. The chain function can give you longer patterns The sound quality is dope enough to record it 2 track and sequence by hand. It beats the pants out of the 404 as far as creative power
Nothing wrong with a Korg-heavy setup;)
i had the electribe 2 sampler, was my first synth/sampler and i think is very nice for beginners. It has limitations but for the price i think is ok, i learned a lot with it.
Agreed! Great introduction to grooveboxes!
The manatee part killed me 🤣 I'm still giggling. How do creatures like that even exist?? They get so fat but all they eat is what? Kelp and algae and seaweed? What does it feel like to hug one? I'm so easily distracted...
Love manatees. There's a problem with the hug part: they can't hug back;)
@@AudioPilz I never thought of that! Still curious though. Now that I've regained my senses, I gotta commend you on the no restraint beast of prey jam near the end, you really squeezed some interesting pulsing bass out of the electribe!
@@GeorgeL909 Oh the Hugh Manatee!
:D
They're the slob of seas you just want to hug and go buy them all the stuff they want to eat and then hug them even more! *GET HERE MANATEE, YOU NEED HUGGED!!!* 😋
“At first glance the Electribe seems to be ticking boxes quite randomly” lol love that line. Awesome sounds you get out of your gear
It was my first synth, and while it has limitations, I still love it!
Powerful machine if you can work around its quirks
I really love my Electribe 2. It was one of the earlier synths I got, I sold just 2 of my volcas to get it used at a great price, and I still use it (though largely for drums, though often with some fx modified chords). Its probably because I never had another groove box, and for me it was a massive step up and easier to use than managing a fleet of volcas. I'm going to rehearsal in a bit and will still be using it for drums with my band as I use other synths for the keys.
Certainly more convenient than a bunch of volcas!!!
My favorite bad gear low end so far, great bassline in this final track.
Thank you!!!
So many things to like about these videos, but I LOVE the made up genre names for each track that gets made with the bad gear
Thank you!!!
I just loved the jam 2 track ! You keep ticking my boxes
Thanks!
I'm a proud owner of the Red version (sampler) and I'm so happy to see this video.
The red version seems to be the better choice
@@AudioPilz Most definitely, though I really wish Korg didn't pull a Nintendo and split the versions like the Pokemon games. Still might end up with both.
The Dave Smith Tempest is kind of like the Electribe except it’s synth section is amazing- almost too many possibilities, and the OS is… an acquired taste. I’m still hoping to see it on here one day…
I remember it was riddled with bugs when it first came out, a friend bought one and said it was virtually unusable at the time, guessing they have updated it a few times since? Well I'd hope so anyway..
@@BWPT. It did get updates but it was still a bear to use. It’s a device that really crammed so many features into a small box that trying to access everything felt super restrictive. I’m a hands on kind of person though- I like physical real-time knob per-function control.
Great suggestion! Thanks!
Yeah, I'm a huge electribe fan and looked at the Tempest as the next step. But when they fixed the bugs with the latest OS and then discontinued the Tempest prices sky rocketed. So I purchased a dsi Tetra to pair with my E2 and make a pseudo Korg Tempest. I actually find the dsi/sequential stuff pairs good with the sound of the electribe. Other analog synths make the electribe sound plastic and thin when mixed together.
I started with an e2s, and when I got my Tempest I noticed some of the similarities (mostly the different pad modes) - I love the Tempest, but I mostly use an Octatrack for sequencing it.
I have one and agree about most of the synth engine, though its still fun to play with.
The drum side and midi out to other synths are what makes it for me.
Agreed, powerful drum machine
OK, so I've got the old ESX-1 SD and EMX-1 (sadly smart media on the blue one) and they have really held their value. Classics. There's just something magic about those old red and blue ones. I don't think they are going to depreciate, frankly. Maybe just keep going up. But the Electribe 2? Are these things going to just continue to depreciate? Is it because they hold no sentimental value to anyone? Is it because they are so maligned? What gives? Fun fact: I bought the ESX-1 SD off a local listing a couple years ago for $160 USD. It's in great shape. One of the best deals I've managed.
The old ones really had some character!
160.. oh that´s really cheap ^^ nice deal ^^
never had a channel cover so much of my gear ! - truly honoured :)
Happy to hear that, thanks!
The Electribe 2 S was my first piece of music gear and I have a bit of a love hate relationship with it. It works pretty well as a drum machine / midi controller, but the step sequencing is clunky and the menu diving hurts my ADHD addled brain. I got it for $200 though and I think I'm starting to get the hang of the workflow. I wish Korg would update the firmware to allow for triplet hihat rolls, maybe make it possible to chop samples, but all in all it's a versatile and affordable little piece of tech.
Yeah, I'm still hoping for the next generation though...
Music Gear, Videogame-Referenzen, cooles Video… ach, da hat er mich wieder für knapp 10 Minuten wunderbar unterhalten… Merci, Florian!
Immer gerne, besten Dank!
Glad you did this one! I own the red one so I wanted to know how I messed up my first major music purchase. Also I upvote an electribe modular - digital sequencer with drum machine and 1 or 2 analogue modular lanes 😍
Yeah, modular Electribe FTW!
God this reminded me that they put 12AX7s in the MX/SX… you really have to admire the almighty cash cow of starved plate vacuum tubes in consumer facing gear. Your Korg videos provide the slow drip of nostalgia that’s keeping me from trying to repair my Triton, so thank you for that. I would love to see you grapple with an Akai S01 next… or a theremini… neither of which you could really consider an instrument (or even a ‘fun’ toy for that matter)
Oh yeah, toobs;) thanks for the suggestion!
It's very impressive that you've learned the functionality of so many pieces of gear. 👏🏼👏🏼👏🏼
Thank you!!!
The music was banger, like always. Wanna try the Casio Tone Bank MA201? I wonder what could you do with that cute toy. Have a great weekend!
Thanks for the suggestion. Same to you!!!
The Electribe 2 is a MUSICAL INSTRUMENT !!! It is what it is and its on the artist what he makes of it exactly like a guitar !!! The ergonomi and form are fenomenal and with all the features it ofers You basicaly have lifetime exploration possibilities. Im mostly fammiliar with the sampler but am planing to buy the synth in near future and am mega excited. The only problems i sometimes have is the processing which could be faster but Nothing is perfect in this world so You have to learn to live with it . Sorry for the english and ENJOY this little beast 😁😁😁🔊🔊🔊💫💫💫
It does feel a little underpowered;)
I love my electribes going all the way back to 1999 when I purchased the EA-1. That being said, the Buchlatribe made me salivate.
I'd take 2!
I bought one literally 20 minutes before this video was posted :(
It only cost £180 mint condition, which I consider cheap just for the drums :)
Cool price!
Don't let people get you down, this thing is more powerful than most people want to admit!
I've owned all the Electribe models except this one. I've always loved them for their ease of use and getting to the essential quality of any good synth - great oscillators - and getting rid of a bit of extra fluff that just gets in the way of workflow.
Love the 'tribes!!!
I was bummed at what I saw with the Circuit Rhythm, so I bought the Sampler version of this for $250. I'm having fun with it. It's just strange that all they really had to do was take the existing tactile UI of the ESX and mesh it with the S2, it would have been perfect. Instead, it's a ton of menu diving, memorizing shift/pad settings, and SD card marriage that is so codependent that if you forget to press write every few minutes, you can easily lose what you spent hours working on..
Yup, a lot of labor can be lost that way
I remember asking for this ages back, Danke dir Florian!
Immer gerne! Danke fürs Zuschauen!
Instead of bad gear, it's more like gear that nobody else is willing to put the time and effort into. Everybody just wants a whole orchestra and fantastic sounds right in front of them ready to go, without putting there own twist or sound into there own creations...SBN RESONATE
I think you’re hitting the nail in the head here with good vs bad gear. Good gear makes things easy for you. With good gear you quickly get what you hear in your head out into the world. Good gear gets out of the way.
Bad gear is gear you have to wrangle and embrace the limitations. There are those who really enjoy mud wrestling with an alligator, and who get fantastic results with it.
I don’t want to put time and effort into learning gear. I want the gear to *save me* time and effort, you know?
That doesn't work so well in the TH-cam search;)
that "more elaborate piece" is absolutely FIRE, maybe my favorite thing you've made so far!
Thank you!!!
I have the es2 and it's a love-hate relationship. Many features are awesome, but the UX is frustrating when diving into menus. I hope some "better gear" magician comes up with a pirate firmware update.
Yeah, I'm hoping for the shaman too!
I have the same experience. Often I get put off by some limitation, before curiosity seeps in and I find out about new functions or ways to use it. The sequencer really is pretty capable, if it weren't for the 4 bar limit and menu diving...
I just bought one for its mobility, lack of complexity and price. The idea is to escape for a while from the electron workflow that I'm so attached. I hope this will be enjoyable :) Your video is brilliant and pure pleasure as usual :)
Thank you!!!
"more of a production tool, than a live performance instrument" - the exact reason why i got mx1+tr8s+mc707 instead of Electribe2. The only thing is - my heart still bleeds of why I sold my ESX-1SD, but had no choice. Maybe will get my son a Volca Sample 2 after all, but I am all Roland now.
I actually prefer my E2S as a drum machine over my TR8S 😬, 16 velocity sensitive pads adds alot more dynamics and easier accessable parameters. I appreciate the send amounts to the fx on the tr8S and the reverb is a huge plus, but it's such a hastle to access all the settings. Admittedly the Roland sounds better, but for creativity electribe FTW!
@@petert7807 yep. This is why i also got mc707
I do mostly techno and even without reverb I can get a better sounding and faster rubble kick on the electribe 2 then the tr8S. Most the lfo's on the E2 reset at trigger so combine with a slow speed amp decay and you almost have a third envalope. 👍🏽
Nice Roland setup!
@@AudioPilz thanks! Need to learn how to use mc707, but tr8s+mx1 is a dope and breeze to use.
I had the original Electribe Synth. It was a beast. The sound design capabilities were dope af.
I like the OGs too!!!
Wish you all a pleasant weekend ❤️
Same to you!!!
The E2S is a great little box, still miss it from time to time. You can have a lot of fun taking it with you outdoors and sampling your phone (or maybe not anymore now that audio jacks are disappearing from phones 😢)
Yeah, no audio jacks on phones is a real PITA
There is a lot of dislike towards both the synth and the sampler. I own both and got them both for the price of what just one costs. I can truthfully say they have limitations but I absolutely adore them when they are paired together. They're also kinda fun just to make samples on to use later on my mpc live 2. But before the mpc, I would transfer wave files from the electribe and put them into a daw. Add stuff to it and finish song. Overall, I have no plans of selling either. Good video man!
Thanks! Maybe it was Korg's rationale to sell them in pairs;)
The part I like about producers hating on gear is where I get to pick it up for dirt cheap a year later 👾
;)
Coming from the EMX / ESX-1 the E2 line seemed like one step forward two steps back to me. Like a "wannabe MPC" that fails hard in a direct comparison. I know it is a bit unfair considering prices but Korg gave up on so many things that made the old machines great in favor of this completely different concept that doesn't seem to keep many of its promises. The limitations in the old ones were much more obvious and "honest" and lead to a fast and fun workflow whereas the newer ones seemed like they tried to hide their weaknesses, causing frustration for the user when finding out through trial and error. They upgraded polyphony in a still rather limited way (to a max. of four notes per part) and introduced some serious voice stealing, along with the restriction that all these four notes need to share the same length when placed on the same step. They sacrificed song mode, programmable step edits for parameters, eight bar pattern length and somehow even managed to cut down sample memory in the ES2 compared to the ESX-1 after many years that had generally caused a huge price drop in memory. It was a weird move by Korg. Nevertheless, the E2s are pretty cool sounding and I guess can be lots of fun when you know what to expect... it's just that they could have made clear what and what not to expect much better. Instead it seems to me Korg tried to sell the E2 as something it really is not, which is a bit of a shame.
That sums it up pretty nicely!
This was my first synth, and I'm fortunate it was. The mix of decent sounds but frustrating limitations sent me off on a quest to acquire what I *really need*. One DSI, a Virus, and an Octatrack later (many in between that have come and gone), I'm now satiated. I love my set-up now, but the E2 was certainly fun, and I'd definitely recommend it to anyone just looking to mess around.
Yup, it really helps to find out what you really want
It such a vanilla piece of gear. Like meeting an engineer with a bland personality. It's cool that it can do so many things, but its unexciting and so bland you'd rather not hang out with them
it's me. im that guy. .
😂
Vanilla hits the nail on the head!
I came for the title of the jam… I was not disappointed. 😄👏👏👏
Thanks!
Man, I remember having such high hopes when I got my e2. I'm not sure why, but I hate the sound of its synth engine. It's currently in its box with a dead filter pot.
The synth engine didn't really work for me as well
@@AudioPilz @devambient Supposedly based on the KingKorg, whose synth engine seems fairly well regarded (even though overall the KingKorg is probably a candidate for a Bad Gear episode..)
@@latontolog That's a bit like saying the Minitaur is based on the Polymoog. Other than copying some oscillator models and a filter model, the comparison falls flat when you strip it of all the features that make the King Korg a fully fledged VA-synth. You get one oscillator, and a filter, and that's it. The rest is FX from the Microsampler, a single LFO, and a single two-stage envelope. Very very limited. Useable though, especially the Sine oscillator with its FM-feedback circuit. You can get some decent basses out of that.
Dear Korg;
How to fix the ET2 in the next gen;
Add Osc edit 2 knob
Add FX edit 2 knob
Combine the synth and sampling capabilities together in one unit.
Add normal modern sampling functions such as end point/loop end point/loop start point
Single cycle waveform support in the sample
Add another stereo out for outs 3/4
nice to have;
Allow editable arp banks using the step sequencer
Add granular synthesis for manipulating samples
Wavetable support
Resample fx plus mfx out as one shots to render single cycle waveforms or wavetables.
Correct!
The most important part about this channel is the part where he still makes something awesome out of the shitty gear just to remind you that you gotta snap out of GAS mode and just make something inspired
Thanks!!! (...and then buy even more gear;)
Yaay been waitin for this, i have a sampler version loving it from the day one. Weird that i wanted to see it in bad gear episode :D
Yeah, it definitely needed the Bad Gear treatment
The synth section does seem underwhelming. I remember the original back in the late 90s at least had some squelch and bite even if it was very digital.
Agreed, super characterful!
Digital but with a warm tube drive finish... I can see how some don't like it, I totally love it though. Edit: I just realized you were probably refering to the black model EM-1, my bad!
I've been waiting for this piece of gear to be reviewed, well done! It's working well as the brain in my rig. beasts of prey FTW ;)
Thanks! Beasts of prey 4 life!!!
Really and truly hate how the sample version doesn’t have a dedicated “sample end” controller knob (as far as I can tell). If I’m remembering correctly, the “edit” knob can change the start point and make the sample reverse, but the only way to change the end point is to edit the AD envelope (which isn’t always the desired effect) or to menu dive. Why on earth they didn’t just give the start point knob a shift function, I’ll never know.
I would actually otherwise like the workflow. It's REALLY fast and intuitive, especially for sketching out ideas on the go, but as someone who is a bit too obsessed with UX, it's an oversight that is both frustrating and baffling. It's so completely unavoidable as a stumbling point.
Wow, strange limitation!
Yes!!! The edit knob on the sampler is such a waste. Can't for the life of me find a use for it! IF the loops were relative to the start point, you could do some cool wavetable and granular stuff by modulating the edit knob. But the 100% to 0 (no sample playing?!?) Then back up to 100% reverse!?!! 🤷🏽♂️ Why for what... 🤦🏽♂️
the low-end sounds abolutely huuuuuuge x
It does!!!
I love this thing actually :D
Never really got into the emx, but this thing is awesome. Just misses an arpeggiator.
The lack of an arp is a real bummer
Select whatever scale you need, turn on last step, set it to 1/2/4, set part to mono, record and keep sliding your fingers across the chaos pad until you hear something you like. This has helped me a lot
@@felixvids7238 Hey, Thanks a lot for your Tipp! Took me a while to understand how it works :-) Its a great idea!!
@@thomasnibler5601 no worries, I got that from another TH-cam video. It doesn't replace an actual arp but it's great for creating arpeggiated patterns
My brain blacked out for 15 minutes when you said "28-page menu system"
I can relate to that!
I’ve had mine since it came out and even though I have some small nitpicks, I think this is an amazing sequencer! It drives all my other synths and the fact that it exports to Ableton is fucking awesome!
I think those that have serious hate for it don’t know how to use it properly.
That being said: I still would really like to get the Elektron Analog 4. Just so damn expensive!!
Great as a sequencer for bigger setups. 16 polyphonic tracks!!!
@@AudioPilz exactly. sure, some of the internal sounds are just crappy, but if you get passed that, then there is a whole lot more to do with this thing.
One of my first pieces of gear was a blue E2 exactly like that. After watching your video I realized why I sold it so quickly.
Yup, not necessarily a keeper
+1 on Mistabishi for his drum and bass, but also r beny for ambient.
It’s a mystery how both are able to tame this device the way they do
Just listened to an entire Mista Bishi set. Great stuff!
To the mysterious comment.. unfortunately, when politics come into play.. you just can't win them all.
@@AudioPilz Just wait till you read an entire xenophobic, self-aggrandizing Mista Bishi rant of pretentious whimpering racist drivel (of which there are plenty). You might reassess
assuming he hasn't scoured the internet to hide them. they used to be very public
The video I’ve been waiting for !!!
Happy to hear that, thanks for watching!
I have a few 1 hour live streams featuring the electribe 2 as the main brain.
7:20 Tech House Beast of Prey makes my booty clap - slaps so hard
Thanks!
Made me wanna twerk too bro
I loveeeee the final mix and edits u made ur such an enigma
Thank you!!!
You should check out some of Mistabishi's electribe 2 vids, he makes this thing SING like nobody else.
True
Ah, I've seen him in the Sonic Lab vid
Is he still being racist?
This one hits close to home, because I used to have an EMX and ESX as well as an E2, and I sold all of it a few years ago :( I miss them all but the E2.
The older ETs are legend!
Every time you upload, i get surprised by what you get out of this gear. :)
I tried using the E2, but it didn‘t work for me at all... In general, groove boxes are something, my brain refuses to work with. I can create some patterns, but i‘ve never gotten a cohesive song out of one. OctaTrack, Digitakt, Electribe 2, Arq-96. None of these worked for me.
The Arq-96 is still here, cause i got it really cheap and it‘s resell value is so daaamn low. ^^
Thank you!!!
I know that feeling of things becoming too "loopy"... But its just a matter of skills, and one day i will learn how to avoid that stuff. Until then, ill have a fun time anyway, creating sounds and melodies that nobody ever heard - and sticking to my motto of never making a fun hobby into something serious =)
BETTER GEAR alert: there's now an unofficial firmware mod on the scene called Hacktribe.
Nice! Thanks for the heads up!