[HN Gopher] KORG phase8 - Acoustic Synthesizer
___________________________________________________________________
KORG phase8 - Acoustic Synthesizer
Author : bpierre
Score : 161 points
Date : 2026-01-23 14:34 UTC (8 hours ago)
(HTM) web link (www.korg.com)
(TXT) w3m dump (www.korg.com)
| bsaul wrote:
| Is there a demo ? i couldn't find it on the page
| rwmj wrote:
| Loopop did a very thorough review:
|
| https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xHlYvj0Ge7I
| artimaeis wrote:
| Demos are on the feature page: https://phase8.korg.com
| whilenot-dev wrote:
| Or on the page of the prototyping stage:
| https://korg.berlin/products/phase8
| rolivercoffee wrote:
| Red Means Recording made a nice video with it:
| https://youtu.be/mpMxHfxuNco
| yetkin wrote:
| Looks really neat. I wish I had one, I am curious but it just
| sounds like an FM to me. In the demos I hear very decayed
| percussive FM sounds or mellow bell like FM sounds.
| embedding-shape wrote:
| If I understand correctly, it is doing frequency modulation
| somewhere, but the main point is that you can physically
| interact with the resonators, and influence the sound that way.
| jimmyjazz14 wrote:
| Yeah as far as I can tell the bars are just producing sine
| waves and everything else is done within the electronics,
| interesting concept but honestly not all that exciting to me.
| ssalazar wrote:
| It looks most similar to a Rhodes piano-type electromechanical
| keyboard, where tuned metal elements are somehow actuated and
| then sonified with a guitar pickup. Unlikely theres any FM
| which would require independently digitizing each of the
| resonators and just generally a lot of complexity that doesnt
| seem warranted.
|
| The similarity in timbre isn't coincidental though -- FM is
| noted for its ability to emulate complex timbres like
| bells/metallic tones (such as electric pianos) that are
| challenging for more traditional subtractive synthesis
| architectures.
| CompoundEyes wrote:
| I agree. I have a Nord Drum 3P that's FM percussion modeling
| with drum pads. I can get close to these sounds and a lot more
| stuff that bends when you hit the pad harder. About half the
| price on Reverb. The Phase 8 is a cool idea.
| fauria wrote:
| $1149.99, in case you are wondering:
| https://www.bhphotovideo.com/c/product/1946617-REG/korg_phas...
| embedding-shape wrote:
| Not too bad, considering the space it sits in.
|
| Another "physical modeling synthesizer" which I've been looking
| at for the last few weeks
| (https://www.ericasynths.lv/steampipe-3153/) goes for EUR990,
| which is more or less the same as the phase8, when you consider
| the currency difference.
|
| Edit: Actually, seems phase8 will be slightly cheaper, my local
| (Spain) shops seems to sell it for around EUR950.
| pschoeps wrote:
| I really love the Steampipe and its approach to synthesis,
| its a lot of fun:
|
| https://www.reddit.com/r/synthesizers/comments/1j7hgoo/makin.
| ..
|
| Erica synths makes really solid hardware too.
| munificent wrote:
| Phase8 isn't physical _modeling_ , though. It's actually
| electroacoustic, like a Rhodes.
| ChipopLeMoral wrote:
| Coming next year: A Behringer knockoff that's just as good for
| $250.
| kennywinker wrote:
| "just as good" with every single corner cut ;)
| Lio wrote:
| What ammuses me is that the little Korg Volcas synced up in the
| demo can be found really cheaply if you look around. They were
| low cost units to begin with and are now old enough to be
| considered classic equipment so there are loads on the market.
|
| The Volca Drum being used is excellent at making all kinds or
| resonant, spriny noises with its wave guide effects if that's
| what you're looking for. It's a very distinct, unique sounding
| little box.
|
| Volcas in general are an affordable way to get started with
| electronic music making. Cheap enough and easy enough to sell
| if you change your mind.
|
| (I still really want a Phase 8 though :P )
| byproxy wrote:
| I keep telling myself to stop lusting over gear and just start
| making music, but...
|
| EDIT: Saw that it's pretty much a fixed-key device, which makes
| it much less appealing. Still pretty damn cool, though.
| Tangurena2 wrote:
| GAS (Gear Acquisition Syndrome = buying stuff you don't
| _really_ need is a serious problem in the synth /eurorack
| community.
| rjh29 wrote:
| Or any community that involves conspicuous consumption.
| There's always what feels like a majority of people who
| collect/buy/show off more than they use things
| wdfx wrote:
| and that's fine in some sense if you're honest about what
| you're doing.
|
| I have at least one guitar that I rarely play but I keep
| because I consider it a work of art and a collectible. But,
| I have others which are workhorses and I play daily.
|
| It gets awkward when collecting is presented as a way to be
| a better musician, which is clearly false.
| Scene_Cast2 wrote:
| It also percolates into reviews, too. When a nontrivial
| fraction of the community is buying dreams and is about
| collecting as opposed to using whatever it is, some
| reviewers style their content towards that crowd and
| overlook issues or benefits that pop up when actually
| using the gear.
|
| I don't have a problem with collecting, but I'd love for
| the distinction to be more upfront.
| embedding-shape wrote:
| > It also percolates into reviews, too
|
| It's kind of easy to detect though. I usually read
| three/four paragraphs before I realize that the person
| reviewing doesn't actually make music and doesn't
| consider the music making parts of the hardware, and
| instead focuses on very generic stuff that basically the
| manufacturer handed to them and said "make sure this is
| included".
| rjh29 wrote:
| On that note I absolutely love Matt Johnson
| (Jamiroquai)'s youtube channel because you can tell he
| likes gear but spends a huge amount of time actually
| playing it and making his own patches. So much of the
| review market is just GAS-inducing paid promo stuff.
| racl101 wrote:
| Doesn't every musician with money have this problem? Every
| rockstar owns like 50 guitars. And they don' like to admit
| they're just collecting. They always got some story about why
| they need to buy the nth guitar that's missing from all the
| other tens of guitars they already own.
|
| Almost all of them own instruments and gear they'll touch
| once and never do anything meaningful with ever again. Then
| it becomes a fixture on their walls or den.
|
| It all seems wasteful.
|
| But still, by rich people standards, it seems cheaper than
| other things like buying a huge boat.
| embedding-shape wrote:
| Yeah I mean many people with disposable income seems to be
| doing this, it's just that the music community has a name
| for it, GAS, and it's a bit of a meme in the community.
|
| I have a friend who seemingly collects mechanical
| keyboards. He keeps saying he needs them for various
| purposes, but always seems to be using the latest one, then
| the old ones go up on a shelf and sit there.
|
| Another friend is obsessed with football, so he has a bunch
| of shoes, also "depending on the grass/ground" yet keeps
| using 1 or 2 the most, the others seems to in some cases be
| "collectors items" and never gets used.
|
| Another friend is a avid golfer, literally has a wall in
| the garage with clubs, but seems to mostly stick with the
| clubs they have in their go-to bag.
|
| I'm sure I could come up with more examples, it just seems
| pervasive among all people who can spend money on their
| hobbies.
| mystifyingpoi wrote:
| I have a friend who plays tennis. He literally has like
| 100 tennis balls, all neatly packed and sorted on a
| shelf. Of course, all you need for a tennis match is like
| 3-4, since more won't fit in the pockets anyway.
| mrob wrote:
| If you're practicing your serve alone it's convenient to
| have a lot of tennis balls. It's quicker to gather all
| the balls in a big batch than individually.
| ChipopLeMoral wrote:
| This goes to 11!
| neilpointer wrote:
| Problem? Buying what makes you happy is keeping the entire
| synth industry afloat!
| wdfx wrote:
| Could mount a guitar pickup under the tines of a kalimba and
| get much the same effects.
| robinsonb5 wrote:
| You might an internet search for "Array mbira" entertaining.
| kennywinker wrote:
| I think that's actually pretty different. In this case the
| tines are being electronically "plucked" - in the kalimba +
| pickups case you have to do all the plucking
| shams93 wrote:
| Actually you can change the keys up so much you can do
| microtonal scales on it, but at the end of the day its a
| metallaphone so not likely to ever be the only piece of gear
| you'd want to use, you'd want to mix this with other gear to
| make a full sound.
| byproxy wrote:
| "Essentially" in the sense you can't really change the 8
| frequencies you have to choose from quickly. Kinda
| impractical to do if you wanna play a set that spans
| different keys/tonalities.
| raffael_de wrote:
| He explains it quite well:
|
| https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=81fMDyNCljM
| jihadjihad wrote:
| I guess I am left wondering why the person in the photo is
| playing it with a pencil and a truffle.
| lewispollard wrote:
| Says right underneath:
|
| > Beyond adjusting parameters, phase8 invites physical
| interaction. Sculpt sound by touching, plucking, strumming, or
| tapping the resonators - or experiment by adding found objects
| for new textures.
|
| Like prepared piano.
| ChipopLeMoral wrote:
| Pretty sick demo here:
| https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zFNQoekyGAs
|
| at 6:20 he's showing how placing different objects on the
| resonators changes their tone.
|
| I want this so bad.
| embedding-shape wrote:
| > he's showing how placing different objects on the resonators
| changes their tone
|
| "Have you ever thought re-patching your modular synth was too
| easy? Here, now your drum machine can be even harder to
| recreate the sound you liked last week!"
|
| A joke, but was immediately what jumped out as scary. Not gonna
| lie, looks like a fun machine, but for that money, I tend to
| buy stuff I can use and recall old patches with. Although
| except for the modular obviously :/
| ChipopLeMoral wrote:
| You can change the actual resonator shape (it says it comes
| with 3 different shapes) to affect their sound. Like actually
| unscrew them and screw different ones on. Since this is just
| a piece of metal I see endless hacking opportunities here.
| embedding-shape wrote:
| Looks really interesting, no doubt. But I also see that you
| can change the sound by just placing objects on top of the
| resonators, so I'm guessing if I was jamming with that, I'd
| try placing my hand, foot, head and a bunch of other stuff
| on top of the resonators. Probably find some neat sounds.
|
| Then next week I'm gonna have zero ideas about how to
| recreate it again :P Already suffering with this with the
| modular synth, and those are just cables in specific holes.
| TheCraiggers wrote:
| What an insightful comment. I've always considered art as
| something that can't be recreated, as it involves the state
| of mind the creator was at the time of creating it. I would
| worry no more about recreating a sound on this synth as I
| would recreating the exact pitch of an acoustic guitar I made
| last year.
|
| Your take is obviously a valid one though. I just find it
| infinitely interesting how there can be so many valid
| viewpoints about something like this.
| mobiledev2014 wrote:
| That is how many synth users feel as well, that they don't
| need presets because they'll just create a new sound.
| Neither approach is invalid as there is no right or wrong
| way to be creative.
| duped wrote:
| There are forms of art where the "meta" is that the artists
| are attempting to recreate something exactly the same each
| time, but in doing so there is always something different
| (theater, live music, etc). Some art leans towards
| perfection in recreation and some leans towards the unique.
|
| Professionals are usually good at doing both.
| mrandish wrote:
| You nailed it. Cool idea. Nice design. Great demo. Fun toy.
|
| I'm sure I'd have a good time playing with it for an
| afternoon and come up with some sounds I like. And, in
| principle, I'm all for more ways to create music existing -
| especially ones which are interactive and tactile. But the
| reality is, if I bought this device it would end up spending
| most of its time in the basement graveyard with all the other
| cool tools that are too narrow, too big, too hard to
| interface, store/recall patches, etc.
|
| I decided several years ago to refocus on a stack that's
| purely microphone (or other a/d converted input) + MIDI
| controllers to a DAW driving infinite layers of internal
| real-time digital synthesis, analog modeling and effects
| plug-ins. There are fabulously expressive MPE (MIDI
| Polyphonic Expression) controllers now which can capture
| every nuance of input my hands, feet and breath could ever
| provide. As you highlighted, the feeling that creating in a
| digital audio workstation is "too easy" or maybe somehow
| 'soulless' - is all in my head. That lurking suspicion analog
| circuitry or electro-mechanical waveforms are more authentic
| or pure is just magical thinking.
|
| Always believing that the next new box's cool-looking tactile
| input, novel interaction model or unique set of opinionated
| constraints will unleash my creativity - is just getting in
| the way of actually sitting down and making myself create
| with all the insanely powerful, wildly creative, infinitely
| flexible, hyper-productive digital tools I already have.
| Being able to save and recall entire racks worth of patching
| at the press of a button isn't soulless or limiting - unless
| I let it be. Feeling like I _need_ just-one-more new device
| to inspire me with its defaults or constrain me with its
| limits - is the limiting constraint I finally realized was
| holding me back.
| bartread wrote:
| Just a bit later in the video he shows using his finger to
| change the pitch of the resonator on the right as well. I'm
| often a bit sceptical of "gimmicky" instruments (what's that
| synth with all the rotors inside that makes a noise a bit like
| a vacuum cleaner when you use it? but, I have to say, the Phase
| 8 does sound really cool and, just as important, looks really
| fun to use as well.
|
| Be interested to see how long it takes before Florian gets his
| hands on one to review for Bad Gear though.
| ChipopLeMoral wrote:
| Yeah, it's not just the novelty aspect, I genuinely like how
| it sounds and how it opens up new ways to be creative with
| sound making. I'd really like to hear what Radiohead or Bjork
| would make with something like that.
| bayindirh wrote:
| Or Daft Punk, if they didn't decide to not punk together
| anymore.
|
| Maybe Venus Theory can run it through its paces as well.
| munificent wrote:
| _> (what 's that synth with all the rotors inside that makes
| a noise a bit like a vacuum cleaner when you use it?_
|
| Motor Synth: https://gamechangeraudio.com/motor-synth/
|
| Agreed the Phase8 is a neat synth. Basically like a Rhodes
| and a EBow had a baby.
| bartread wrote:
| That's the one, yes - thank you! Looks super cool but is
| rather impractical, and I seem to remember a review - might
| even have been Audiopilz - suggesting that you could get
| similar sounds out of plenty of other synths.
| m3kw9 wrote:
| It just another way to do something that a lot of these tone
| generators can do already, i'm not seeing the appeal other than
| to have some quick fun with sounds.
| ranguna wrote:
| Has that always been the appeal?
| anotheryou wrote:
| much better vid imo: https://youtu.be/xHlYvj0Ge7I
|
| without the heavy crushing effects
| afandian wrote:
| They have visible pickups, which presumably have a permanent
| magnet core.
|
| But how are the resonators getting 'plucked'? Is it the same
| electromagnet as the pickup or a separate one? I can't imagine
| those two modes would work well. (i.e. dumping current across the
| coil would make the magnet want to escape)
|
| Perhaps there's a field coil instead of a permanent magnet?
| jimmyjazz14 wrote:
| My guess is that it uses magnetic fields to resonate the bars
| (kinda like an ebow). Any plucking types sounds are probably
| done with filter/envelopes within the electronics.
| CamperBob2 wrote:
| The visible coils provide the stimulus, I think. The pickups
| are mounted near the top (middle?) of the resonators and not
| directly visible.
| racl101 wrote:
| If Kraftwerk were still doing their thing this would be right up
| their alley. But they probably got their own special gear.
| Lio wrote:
| Kraftwerk _are_ still doing their thing.
|
| I know because I totally failed to get tickets to see them at
| the Royal Albert Hall in June[1].
|
| https://www.royalalberthall.com/tickets/events/2026/kraftwer...
| glimshe wrote:
| Physical hardware is fun, sounds better (when analog or acoustic)
| but I can't go back after a long time with a streamlined VST-
| based workflow. For playing without a computer, I simply use
| romplers for the convenience. So, while I have a gut desire for
| this gear, I won't ever actually buy it...
| waffletower wrote:
| Unfortunately, I definitely disagree with the "sounds better"
| argument, particularly for this instrument. I do own a
| vibraphone, and happen to also design synthesizers, and I did
| not find the Phase8 sound to be compelling. One of the appeals
| of a synthesizer is its spectral plasticity, and the output of
| the Phase8 relies too heavily on the sonic characteristics of
| the resonator medium. My vibraphone definitely suffers from
| this, and has the cultural baggage of being a recognizable
| instrument, but it is a much more pleasing sameness than the
| Phase8.
| jimmyjazz14 wrote:
| Seems like the bars are just there to produce the (almost) sine
| wave oscillation part of the synth which is neat I guess but it
| just seems like a gimmick if I am being totally honest. I still
| respect them trying new ideas though.
| kennywinker wrote:
| I mean... this is pretty similar to how a rhodes works... are
| those a gimmick?
| jimmyjazz14 wrote:
| Doesn't the Rhodes use hammers to hit the bars though?
| asdhtjkujh wrote:
| Glad to see this has finally been released after years of R&D :)
| can't wait to see what Takahashi-san and team cook up next.
|
| In principle, Korg Berlin looks like a great model for satellite
| incubator within an established organization. Would absolutely
| love to work there.
| kennywinker wrote:
| I was wondering to myself why korg berlin exists. Like i would
| be shocked if they sell enough of these to pay for the
| preceding five years of rent much less the salaries. Is it
| genuinely moonshot r&d, like a bell labs or xerox parc? Is it
| just to prevent Takahashi from starting a competitor? Something
| else? Whichever reason, i'm glad it exists... it just feels
| improbable.
| asdhtjkujh wrote:
| Agreed, its existence is implausible, but I assume they're
| consulting on other projects for Korg Japan in addition to
| developing Phase8 and other prototypes. They're undoubtedly
| taking a loss (despite low European salaries) but their
| contributions across the board could also scale non-linearly.
|
| I also imagine that it's the olive branch that brought
| Takahashi back to the company after he left. He brought Korg
| back from the dead and they were probably and rightfully
| desperate to find a way to retain their top performer.
| ericwood wrote:
| It's honestly incredible they're bringing this to market!
| This style of incubator tends to work on a lofty goal and the
| research and ideas explored on the way trickle down into
| other parts of the company and find their way into more
| accessible products. Really similar in theory to the over the
| top concept cars manufacturers build that never see the light
| of day.
| H1Supreme wrote:
| Wow, this is really innovative. It really takes "physical
| modeling" synths to another, more literal level. Would love to
| have been a fly on the wall when the idea was proposed.
|
| This + an Ekdahl Moisturizer would be an interesting pairing.
| hackomorespacko wrote:
| Congrats, this was news more than 2 years ago. Maybe next time
| post an Wikipedia article instead.
| kennywinker wrote:
| It's news because you can actually buy one now. If you're gonna
| be mean it's best not to be mean AND wrong.
| techblueberry wrote:
| And here I told myself I wasn't going to buy anymore
| synthesizers.
| zgniatacz wrote:
| Cheap Eurorack ersatz version
| https://gieskes.nl/eurorack/?file=4-relay-module ?
| ben_ wrote:
| This website is horrific I love it
| r0me1 wrote:
| Maybe i'm not fully grasping how it works, but i don't really see
| the acoustic part, aren't the resonators just turning the steel
| vibrations into an electric signal via coils in the same way an
| electric guitar works? basically what's the advantage of this vs
| plugin an electric guitar as a signal input to an analog synth?
| kagakuninja wrote:
| Guitar strings do not generate sound, unless plucked. However
| there are devices like the Sustaniac and the short-lived Moog
| guitar that do use electromagnets to induce vibrations in the
| strings. So you could compare this to the Sustaniac.
|
| EDIT - forgot about the ebow
| NoSalt wrote:
| My son and I are both fascinated by synthesizers and what they
| can do. I bought this:
|
| https://www.sweetwater.com/store/detail/Nts1Mk2--korg-nutekt...
|
| For us to build and play with, and we have a ball with it. This
| phase8 would be a ton of fun as well.
| ofalkaed wrote:
| Years ago I used to make things like this, I discovered sites
| like 120 years of Electronic Music[0] and the Experimental
| Musical Instruments Journal[1] which my local library bizarrely
| had and went to town. Spent a lot of time digging through the
| local surplus shop that was a goldmine for cheap stuff for such
| things. The last project I started in on was a tuning fork organ,
| made my own tuning forks and coils and pickups to drive them, had
| big dreams with it but only ended up making about an octave
| worth, which I had great fun with. Most of these random
| instruments I controlled with my old Arp Odyssey which I even
| added CV outs for the LFO/Envelopes so I could modulate them and
| ran the output into the filter input, fun times.
|
| I might buy this, not really my interest these days but it really
| looks like great fun.
|
| [0] https://120years.net
|
| [1] https://barthopkin.com/experimental-musical-instruments-
| back...
| oori wrote:
| Reminds me of the original Korg Wavedrum from the 90s, which was
| by far the best e-drum ever, you can lightly scratch it or hit it
| with a strong stick, endless tone and amplitude possibilities.
| import wrote:
| Looks cool but kinda seems like a baby of Intellijel plonk and
| rings with a different physical interaction.
| wendgeabos wrote:
| This needs to be mashed up with the Daxophone. Like, can I clamp
| pieces of wood into it and bow them?
| vegabook wrote:
| cool, but doesn't sound that great when you close your eyes and
| just listen. Other synths beat this hands down especially at >
| $1000, and can easily bring in the physical world already,
| including live workflows. The thing to remember is that when we
| get into the physical analogue world, craftsmanship, materials,
| shape, often age, and of course the varied kinetic interactions
| with the sound solicitor, bring depth and richness which no
| little electrically-excited xylophone will ever get anywhere
| close to.
___________________________________________________________________
(page generated 2026-01-23 23:00 UTC)