Korg NTS-1 MkII: Mighty morphing mini-synth gets an upgrade
4,7 / 5,0 | 
Korg NTS-1 MkII · Source: Korg
Korg NTS-1 MkII · Source: Korg
Korg NTS-1 MkII · Source: Korg
Korg’s original logueSDK-empowered mini-synth and effects box gets a major overhaul. The NTS-1 MkII gets more oscillators, more effects, a sequencer and an improved keyboard.
NTS-1 MkII
The original NTS-1 was a bit of a revelation. It was deceptively simple, unimpressive to look at, and you had to put it together yourself. But inside, it had a stunning sound and effects engine that massively outpaced its naked DIY appearance. The MkII boosts the NTS-1 in every direction without turning it into a Volca or some other product. There’s something serious about it. My writer’s imagination wants to describe it as toy-like, but it really isn’t like that. There’s something serious and decent about it that gives off a whole other vibe.
The NTS-1 MkII is a DIY digital mini-synth with multiple oscillator and filter types, a couple of knobs to keep control of things, a slightly-more-usable-than-last-time keyboard and a very welcome 8-step sequencer. The single oscillator has multiple waveshapes available, including triangle, saw, square, VPM (variable phase modulation), a new Noise algorithm and the user engine. The filter section has six filter types, and you get one envelope and three LFOs for modulation.
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Effects
Then we have the effects section. What made the original NTS-1 punch above its weight was that you could use it as a digital effects module. And these weren’t throw-away effects, they were decent reverbs, chorus and delay effects and a brilliant addition to any setup. The NTS-1 MkII adds a bunch of distortion effects. These can be used on the internal synthesizer or accessed externally via the audio input. You can run them in serial, going from modulation effects (chorus/distortion), to delays and then into reverb to build an epic sound bed. There are ten reverb types inside and they are genuinely fantastic.
LogueSDK
The icing on the cake of this remarkable little box is the user engine. It’s a customisable oscillator and effects section into which you can load your own, or perhaps more likely, third-party algorithms. This technology first appeared in the Prologue synthesizer and has since become a mini industry all of its own. There are dozens of algorithms out there that bring new oscillators and effects to this tiny little box. The MkII has a new and improved LogueSDK chip so it can handle more complex algorithms and expand its potential into polyphony.
All of the internals can be managed via the NTS-1 librarian software, which lets you upload various algorithms and backup your own patches.
Overall
The NTS-1 was already a useful little box with hidden depths and delightful effects. The MkII gives it a very welcome refresh with new sounds, new effects, a sequencer with a MIDI output, and an improved LogueSDK engine.
It’s currently available for order from Thomann.
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- Korg NTS-1 MkII: Korg
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2 responses to “Korg NTS-1 MkII: Mighty morphing mini-synth gets an upgrade”
For anyone with the MK1 version, the biggest update for the MK2 is that it now has a power switch. No more having to pull the USB cable to turn it off.
Actually, having saveable states is the key thing, now this thing can be used as an FX box with a small mixer and synths and not having to recall the FX manually after each power off.