Korg PX-1 Pandora

I've got it since Korg released them back in 95, Lord is this so far...
Main hassle is that you have to slide the main switch in-between to access the edit mode, and it's prone to slide all the way to off...
No backlight is annoying, but naming the patches is absolutely great.

What is better than on most following Korg multifx is that you can use the eq without using amp/drive block, this is great if you use the unit in a loop, or with a sans-amp. Then you have the best of both worlds.
Not much access to the effects, but Korg has made it right so no regrets at all. Simplicity is what you have, and it's great to be fast.
The cab simulator is independant from the drive/amp block, very well made Korg.
All in all a very useful unit, even 13 years later.

Main application is in the fx loop of a Fender deluxe 112(90 w ss amp), for noise reduction, delay or reverb, and master volume. With cab sim on I can also send the signal to the pa with good results. The send signal of the deluxe is way strong, and the px1 can cope (zoom 503/504, dod fx7, ibanez pt3 all can't).
Naming the patches helps in the long run, trust me.

In holidays with my Baja telecaster and AKG K240studio cans the pandora shines, enjoyable crunch and lead-heavy sounds. The noise reduction makes it possible to play the Baja no joke.
Stereo delays are very enjoyable, never stop playing.
Only bad points are the quantizing noise in the drive block, and the too strong compressor effect which flats everything even at the lowest setting.

Mine has seen bad times, and still works. When plugging/deplugging either in or output it reinitializes, but other than this no problem.

Works on two mignon batteries, easy to find, but expect a flatter/darker sound than with the psu.
The metronome is still better than rythmbox on my rp150 digitech, you only need it to work after all.
If only Korg could make it without quantizing noises, and with backlight (and with a remote jack while they are there)...
A useful unit, and I will buy another one(or its successor the px2) if given the opportunity.

I bought this little unit off ebay and absolutely love it. Set-up is simple, just an imput for guitar and headphones and a line-in for jammin' with cd's or what-have-you. Didn't come with a manual but found it on the net no problem. I use it for quiet practice, it's especially cool practicing on the train back and forth from work. My own oasis away from the stress of work life. I get a lot of people asking me about it and they are blown away with the sounds.

I'm using this with my Epi Les Paul, sounds great. I've dialed in some killer tones all the way from shimmering clean's, through growling blackface's to soaring searing jcm's. I play a lot of blues based 70's rock and metal...hendrix, iommi, page, perry/whitford, gilmour, etc. The delay options on this unit are particularily good.

For what I use it for it's great and that's practice. I would never use a unit like this for either gigging or recording because it's digital. Keeping that in mind, it's superb.

Never had to deal with them, unit has never given me any problems to need to. Company has a great reputation though. I will add here that I'm looking at upgrading to the newest product in their line, the px-5 pandora just because I love this one so much.

I've had a great experience with this product from just bidding on it on a whim on ebay. If it were stolen I'd replace it immediately but probably with a newer model in the Pandora line.

I'll keep it short. This unit is fairly easy to use, and if you don't use the distortions then noise ain't an issue.
What is great is the ability to use just the eq, and just the cab sim as well. The noise gate is convenient too, to keep your signal clean.
Time lag between patches is short, and speaking of those you can name them (Behringer, zoom, take notice...).
Tuner tracks ok, headphones output is ok but not loud enough with big phones such as AKG k240df and such.
Output level to drive a return of amps loop is okay too.
I like this unit.

Noisy distortions but very ok character of the different settings. Valve settings sounds good, crunch too, metal scooped named crush is also enjoyable, only quantization noise spoils it off.
Compressor too sensitive and flat-dull sounding, still nice to have.
I only use delays and reverbs and you can mix them to the dry sound, so yes you can actually use them even at loud spl.
I use the unit as interface between my tube factor pedal and the return of my amp's loop. It works wonderfully, no noise issues there.

Alone, because of the noise of distortion effects an honest 5, as I use it a solid 8.

I have it since 96, no problems to date except it reboots itself sometimes when plugging the jack.
It has taken some abuse, so a solid nine.

I play since a long time, semipro. Own a zillion gizmos and guitar stuff.
I like the pandora, useful as an interface between pedal and poweramp.
I would search for one used if ever mine were lost.
Much of the newest gear is too complicated to use, and sounds , well, quite bland.
Take a tube factor, this pandora, and a vox class a amp and I don't see the point of line6-digitech-god knows what else.
Make it simple! Ten for fantastic value indeed.

This thing is a pice of cake to operate.

The sound on this unit (now very outdated) is average. The effects are half assed and it has a huge "HUGE" time lag or latency if you will.

If you need something to plug in on the move, in the car, on the bus and or while riding your bike, its great for that. Just make sure you take a backpack full of batteries because this thing likes to eat.

Well it has had its problems over the last ten years. The worst problem is the input going to the shit. Huge crackling noize!

These days I play many styles. But my main style is metal; you can, get some cool metal sounds out of it:)

Played for over ten years.

If it were lost or stolen I would save a shit load on batteries. I could never find a AC/DC adapter to fit it other than the original Korg one which I never owned.

The thing I like most about it is portability.

The thing I hate is that latency, you hit a string and about two hours later the sound returns to your time frame.

Although this product is very old now, I would get something a bit more up to date. But hey, if you see one on ebay for 20 bucks (AU that is) I would grab it just for practice. Never ever try to use this for gigs:)

This Pandora is now a couple of generations old. As noted in some other reviews, it tends toward rather "digital" sounding effects. On the other hand, it's available on the used market for about 25% of the cost of a new version.

Although I'm not generally a fan of button-only effects, this unit is remarkably easy to edit. My unit came with an instruction manual (and a pretty darned good one by import standards!!), but I've managed to complete most programming tasks without it. In fact, the only thing you'll really need the manual for is to identify the buttons.

Admittedly, I was spoiled by my Digitec RP/RB series multi's as they offered places to save custom patches without discarding the factory patches. That is not the case here. With the Pandora, once you've manipulated a patch, it must be stored at one of the preset locations, thus overwriting a preset.

Before reviewing sound quality, I must note that I bought this unit to use as an outboard pre-amp/effects box for my bass. As such, I am using a limited number of effects, sounds and features.

After a number of years of lugging around tons of bass gear, I decided to go for the smallest rehearsal/gig package I could put together. In this case, I'm using an OLP MM3 (5-string) Music Man knock-off with the Pandora velcro-ed to my strap. I run the 1/4" unbalanced line out to our rehearsal studio PA head and play direct only. To date, this has worked very nicely. It's REALLY nice to only carry one gig bag to practice!

The only real downside I've found with this unit is the "digital" noise produced on most of the patches. I've found that most of the noise can be minimized by tweaking the gain and noise reduction levels in individual patches. As noted above, I'm currently only using three customized patches with the bass, so the noise level is not a huge concern (also only using it as a direct box at rehearsals at this point). HOWEVER, due to the noise, this is definitely NOT a good recording effects box! Several factory patches have an overwhelming amount of noise. It makes those patches unusable in my case (don't know if they would be reduced with a regular guitar).

The three paches that I'm using are:
1) #1 Modern- After tweaking the EQ, level and cabinet parameters, I've managed to get a pretty nice clean P-Bass sound with a touch of chorus (based on the delay). Very nice, full tone. Very little noise. Gives the MM3 an "active" sound.

2) The first "Misty" (I think this is the #3 or 4 factory patch)- Very little tweaking on this one. Getting a smooth jazz (not Fender Jazz Bass, just jazz jenre) sound. Almost like a fretless with some overriding effect and lots of compression.

3) Zombie- Easily the coolest distortion in the box for the metalheads. I really like the low, dense grind on my upper bass strings (think Boss Metal Zone) with a ton of sustain. Again, some tweaking to a couple of parameters, but pretty close to the factory setting.

I haven't found any other factory settings that work well with the bass yet. I really like the top-end squeal of the "Shenk" (I assume Michael Shenker) patch, but the squeal is drowning out the fundamental on the bass. If I ever figure out how to balance this out, it's going to sound great.

Although some of the effects are not up to snuff by today's standards, the amp emulators are pretty darned good! Cabinet emulation is OK, too, but I tend to use the CAB 2 on almost everything.

The lower rating for sound quality is based on the amount of noise generated by many of the patches.

Although I have limited experience with the box, it appears to be well designed and built. Buttons, jacks and switches are well located on a very small effects box. As well, it is a few years old and shows little wear from normal use.

Never dealt with these fellas.

A couple of items not noted above:

1) Great tuner. Even tunes up my 5-string bass accurately! Even if I decide to stop using it as an effects box, it could still play this role until it dies! (worst case scenario: I paid $52 for a tuner....)

2) The on/off switch is a NICE slider switch on the side of the unit (also used to go to EDIT mode). the switch engages firmly and should not turn off the unit or go into edit mode by accident. As well, the bypass button is very easy to manipulate and is protected by the 1/4" cable terminals. Again, won't be activated by accident. Also allows bypass (unaffected tone with tuner activated) and mute (mute with tuner activated).

3) Nice digital display. Took me about three minutes to get up to speed on the various parts of the display. Unfortunately, mine isn't backlit, so I need ambient light to edit. I do wish that Korg had screened small print labels on all of the buttons. They are not necessarily self-explanatory without reviewing the manual.

4) DA BOMB! The Pandora uses (2)AA batteries! I much prefer this to the standard 9v setup as I often have problems with the 9v terminals and terminal wires on used equipment. Kudos to Korg for this one!!!!! I can ALWAYS find a couple of AA's laying around the house or studio. Since my stomp pedals are the only things I own that use 9v, I've found that I don't keep enough of those on hand.

All in all, a nice little unit for the price. No doubt the newer versions have better sound and good interfaces (and, of course, there's a dedicated bass model now). However, at a quarter of the cost of a new one, this Pandora can do a real nice job of filling out or modifying sounds at a sweet price. Coupled with the fact that it's the size of a pack of cigarettes and can be attached to my strap with Velcro (not to mention doubling as a tuner and mute button), this unit does a good job of reducing my gear load to almost zero.

had mine for 4years
Reading the manual(just a bit of paper really) once should be enough "itz eazy".

great little tuner and metronome in built
needs signal boosting on its own (go through a pre-amp first)
bummer that it cant be switched for live so ive never used it live but for STUDIO its great(most noise can be balanced out pretty well)

good, a bit "digital harshness" but overall reasonably smooth.
DI is no prob, noise is reasonable, (nothing like unshieded single coils)
my PANDI now sits beside my bed so when im watching TV or i have late night "episodes" i can easily get some chops down
signal chain is
HOHNER G2T headless
(nice and light to lay on the bedplaying)
/PANDI PX1 (great JAZZY as well as VALVE style sounds/
ZOOM PS04 DIGI RECORDER (even though the ZOOM has heaps of efx, to get my primary sounds id rather use the PX1)/
KOSS TD65 COVERED HEADPHONES.
(damn satisfying SETUP)

wouldnt drop it too many times but have so a couple of times already and alls well so far

N/A never had to ask em

been playing 40yrs
own(electrics)
guitars---STRATS/57/63/81, 355SDSTV,
amps------VOXAC30, FENDER TWEED,ROCK PETROS AMPS
music i play----- JAZZ /BLUES/EXPERIMENTAL

yep id get it again for a few very special sounds i aint heard any thing else get
truly unique, subtle tonal, variance.

i got mine for free, and it didn't come with amanual, so at first it was difficult to edit the patches (can't complain about that though) blind-freddy needs to hear, not to see.

i've used this unit with my fender strat, fender tele, ric 330, ric 350, ovation breadwinner, 12 string acoustic, and nylon string, and they all sound great. i've got the pandora plugged in to a little peavey blazer amp, and it sounds fantastic.

my stage set-up includes a fender power chorus amp, with a digitech pro 21 processor, so you have to believe me when i say the pandora is a fantastic sounding effect.

others have said that the pandora's distortions are no good, they obviously don't know how to edit the pandora, i own a marshal stack, and the distortions i've created on the pandora are far better than my marshal stack. (far, far, better) i've also edited a few patches which makes my guitar sound just like a trumpet, and another makes it sound like a violyn, and thats without a user manual, watch-out jimmi, if i ever get my hands on one of those user manuals.

(touch wood) i've owned this unit for about eight years, and i have played it almost every single day for each of those eight years, it has never let me down.

i use a digitech pro 21 processor on stage, but i would consider, using the pandora on stage, if only it had a patch footswitch.

never had to, but i guess they'd be just like everyone else (it's not my problem it's out of waranty)

forgot to mention, to those considering buying one of these, don't consider it, just buy it, you will not be disappointed, this unit also has a digital metronome, and tuner, etc, etc, if i lost it, i'd be on ebay straight away, biding high, to get another, i couldn't live without it, it's become to much of my sound.

Super easy to use and figure out with no manual. The preset patches are kinda lame, a few are good, but you definitley need to dial it in. Very easy and quick to do. The only thing that sucks is that it doesn't have a foot switch capability. Every thing is push button, so you need to program your effects in groups the way you use them, but it's still cool.

The sounds are friggin awesome. I had one of these long ago and ran it through my KMD stack front input. It sounded so sweet it's all I used. Recently I bought another off ebay and can only play using the headphone feature because I have no amp yet, but it still sounds amazing. The sounds are different from a amp vice HP's. It's a cool sounding box and has every effect you could ever need and they are good quality effects. I am totally anal when it comes to tones and trying to find that perfect sound and this little thing to me sounds better than the high end floor units and rack mounts I've been sampling lately. ( GT6/8 - Line6 - ME50, etc... ) Also, there is absolutely no feedback or loud hum's when your idle and with your amp at 5-6-9 in volume levels! NOTHING !!!

rugged and dependable. Batteries last a long time if you don't use the AC adapter.

N/A

I play metal, to glam, to punk and this thing covers it all. My rig is a Jackson DKMG Archtop with EMG HZ's. No amp yet but I'm still looking. I love the total crushing distortions you can get out of this thing and the variations you can choose from, man there are so many. I've been playing off and on for about 15 years and this is by far the best sounding effects box I've ever had and I've owned many. I am trying to buy another off ebay in case this one ever gets lost, thats how much I love it. Every time I let some one try it out, they are sold on it immediately. The only thing I wish it did do was allow the user to control the volume. It is a set volume, only the effects volume can be adjusted. Its at a good level, but I want it to make me deaf. Buy it, they are cheap enough to where you won't be out anything and you will be totally glad you did, trust me..

The supplied patches are OK for demoing it's capabilities but you need to enter your own patches to get a set of sounds you like and which suit your gear.

Editing patches is very easy, once you have read the manual. I didn't have a manual supplied when I bought one off eBay but Jacqui (below) kindly supplied me with one. I have now put this online (with her blessing) if you need it:- http://homepage.ntlworld.com/clegg/px1

I am very pleased with the sounds I get for home use, even though I have the bits not strictly in the right order:-

Carvin DC127 -> various Boss Effects -> Pandora PX1 -> Mixing Desk -> Powered Speakers.

There is a noise reduction setting where compression is (indirectly) used in an effect, but I recommend you find a happy compromise with it versus the sound quality, rather than just setting it at max.

I have not tried it through my guitar amp in a hall or club yet - not sure if it is suitable for gigging, because of the difficulty in switching presets - although it could be taped to your guitar strap, I suppose.

Pity there is only one modulation effect and one delay effect at a time.

Great for home use and travel. Would not really recommend for gigging, except maybe as an emergency backup if your pedal board failed.

No manual on their web site :-(

In fact I could find no PX1 archive there.

I did not try emailing them for the manual.

Very satisfied. I might try getting another one and experiment with chaining them together.

If it was stolen I would not shove it up the thief's backside, as the corners are rounded, <heh><heh>.

I just read the manual, but I've been using it for 2 weeks. Very easy!

I use it with a Fender Strat and a Tele and a ES-335.
The noise people are talking about can be attenuated by using the noise reduction feature. The factory settings are not all that great, but once you tweak it to your likings... WOW!
Excellent tones and great amps and cabinet simulation!!!
Very realistic. I love the Gain, treble bass and volume knobs!
If you use it to record direct, you won't regret it...

It's only been 2 weeks but if you don't drop it, chances are it'll last a very long time! The front plate is metal, so I wouldn't worry about it too much.

N/A

I play jazz, rock, blues and other types as well...
I've been playing for 25 years now. My gear list is too long to include in this...
It's a great practice and recording tool... I haven't tried it on any of my amps yet, and probably won't. If it was stolen or lost, I would get another!
I love the range of tones in that little box. I wish they would have included a power supply... Othen than that, I wouldn't change a thing about it.