Korg • Poly-61

Korg Poly-61 Image

The Korg Poly-61 was released in 1982 as the successor to the Polysix. It was somewhat of a step up from the Polysix, as it has 2 DCOs for better reliability. It also retained the arpeggiator of the Polysix. It has a very dirty sharp sound much like the Yamaha DX7. This is good if you are into the lo-fi sound of electronica. The Poly-61 can provide cool gritty basses or trippy analog sounds and fx.

Also added is the familiar Korg joystick, which can be used to modulate the VCO or the VCF. However, its filter only has 7 steps of resonance and is not as fat as the Polysix's filter. It also uses the same method of programming the Poly-800 and Yamaha DX-7 use, so it's not a very useful synth for real-time-tweaking junkies. The first Poly-61s didn't have MIDI, but the Poly-61M released in 1984 corrects this. Overall, the Poly-61 is still a decent synth, and it can be acquired for practically nothing! It has been used by FM Static and The Faint.


VISITOR COMMENTS

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Ali MC
Posted 8 days ago
Heya, I got given one of these but I can only get it to emit a strange highpitch sound... is that because the battery has died? I have read online the batteries need to be replaced and then the sounds re-uploaded via tape... can anyone help me with more info about this? I'm not much of a synth person at all but would love to get this thing going... Cheers!!
edwarddelavilla
Posted 12 days ago
does anyone know where i can get one, i need one badly! here is my email, incase anyone can help, this is THE keyboard that is missing in my rig, I have a Moog LP Stage ii, a Micro Korg, and alot of soft synths for my electro dance project called "The Warning" this would def add a dark 80's feel to the mix, just what I need, anyone can help EMAIL: EdwardDelavilla_3@msn.com
Tomb789
Posted 26 days ago
Hi,
I have a Korg Poly61 and have just replaced the blue battery that helps keep the presets,now I have to track down (hopefully at minimal cost) a rescue disc or tape for re-loading the data for the presets,can anybody help,please.....?

Tomb789
Lasse
Posted 44 days ago
This is a great (and very underrated) polysynth that produces some stunning sounds. It's capable of amazing pads and arpeggiator sounds, which is what I mostly use it for. I don't like it as much for leads, though it can produce some great basses.
It's mono, so it's a good idea to team it up with a chorus for lush pads. Poly 61 + Electroharmonix Stereo Polychorus has turned out to be a great combination for me. Thinking about it, the chorus was actually more expensive than the synth... It's a freaking steal!
The Poly obviously has its flaws and shortcomings. Aside from the lack of knobs, the limited resolution of some parameters (resonance and envelope stages in particular) can be a pain. Having a sub oscillator and glide would also make it even more useful. But overall, it's a great sounding analog polysynth at an unbelievable price. Bargain alert!
kb
Posted 52 days ago
I think knobs make this synth much more fun:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uYpo_ AF5hSE
 

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