Korg • DW-8000

Korg DW-8000 Image

Take Korg's first digitally controlled analog synth hybrid (DW-6000) two steps higher and you get the more popular DW-8000. Sound is digitally generated from the DWGS (Digital Waveform Generator System) and has been doubled from 8 sampled digital waveforms to 16 simple analog to complex digital waveforms. The DW-8000 has 8 voice polyphony in two modes, or one monophonic mode with all eight voices stacked. The analog VCF resonant filter and VCA both have independent ADBSSR envelopes. Parameters can be altered in real time via a single programmable slider. There are 64 presets that can be reprogrammed by the user.

Korg EX-8000 Image

When the DW-8000 succeeded the DW-6000, it expanded it to 8 notes polyphony, 16 sampled waveforms, a velocity sensitive keyboard with programmable aftertouch, auto-bend, a simple arpeggiator and a digital delay unit. The Digital Delay was an astonishing goody for the time, offering up to 512ms delay, phasing, flanging, chorusing and other time effects. Both the Arpeggiator, Auto-Bend and Digital Delay make this synth an inspiring and great sounding machine to use for great 303 basslines, techno and house bass and synth sounds and more! The EX-8000 (pictured above) is a rackmount version of the DW-8000. Several 3rd-party developers offered expansion boards for the DW-8000 providing up to 1024 presets, layered sounds, keyboard splits and Sample+Hold for the LFO. Though later overshadowed by the M1, the DW-8000 has been used by Divine Masquerade, Juno Reactor, Depeche Mode, Dream Theater, Joe Zawinul, and Keith Emerson.


VISITOR COMMENTS (37)

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relic
Posted 8 days ago
got a dead one off ebay with no sounds. replaced the battery and uploaded patches and now it's a monster! $75...steal. battery replacement is so easy. get a broken one and save money and put in the battery yourself. it's almost always the battery if something is wrong...:) this is a warm sounding synth!
Beastrichards
Posted 44 days ago
Nine Inch Nails used this in the late 80's early 90s.
Aaron
Posted 70 days ago
Bastard love child of the Poly-800 and the CZ-1000. Quite fun.
Beastrichards
Posted 74 days ago
Just bought one for $200. It is in mint condition, everything works, came with a pedal, a MEX-8000 Memory Expander, original tape with the factory patches on it and a stand for it! I think I did pretty well! Anyways, this thing sounds amazing! I would compare the it's sound to my Juno 60 I had. I also have some patch parameter sheets for patches that sound just like a CS-80! This synth sounds soooo classic. I love it.
Cyclone
Posted 98 days ago
I agree with Leonardus. The sound of the DW8000 is
dark and menacing, strange to say but I'm realizing that...