Korg PX-3

Turn this bad puppy on and Wha-la, You'll be playing Creating & Composing Like a pro. Turn the knob for a completely unique sound.
Even the up-down & rotary selectors are swappable. Now turn on the drum machine & you'll probably miss Lunch & Dinner, Because you will be so engulfed pure exotic guitar soloing that time itself will fast forward.

Mainly I use this with headphones on (Great stereo sound).
But have Velcro attached to back of the px3 & to the top of my Vox Da5.
Now I have a completly battery powered setup. Great for jamming on the swing in the back yard. or taking to parties. Love the Shuffle Drum beat with the Feedback setting!

I got this used. Dropped it many times no problems yet.
It's plastic though, Be careful.

Great Sounds from this unit with no effort. I even prefer this to my Pod-XT It's Easier, Smaller & Portable. If broken or stolen I would look for another used Px3 on ebay or craigslist again.

very easy to get started making sounds with using the presets, about 1/3 of which are very cool out of the box ("JB" and "Eddie" in particular, 1/3 are just so-so ("jazz", "country"), and 1/3 of which are just dumb or useless ("ozric" and "flower")...

Best part is editing- if you have done any with this type of interface it is totally intuitive and practically foolproof

It's a very versatile unit that I got mostly for PC recording and practice but have ended up using live as well with various SS and tube amps and direct to house PA's.

The various effects mostly sound great with only a few exceptions; the pitch shifting is extremely glitchy and only really usable for octaves.

Biggest drawback is that the time based FX like delays and panning and tremolo all have the intensity/depth and speed tied together- so if you want a slow delay you are stuck with a low effect volume, or if you want a fast trem you are stuck with lots of it.

The choruses and rotary speaker settings are particularly nice, distortions are pretty canned sounding but worth having around, compressor is on the same bank so you can't have, say, fuzz *and* compression at the same time.

The auto wah's are actually kind of cool; not a replacement for a real one but an interesting effect that is less predictable and cheesy sounding than most auto wah/envelope followers.

I can't really speak to the accuracy of the cabinet modeling but the sounds are nice regardless, the 1x8 cab is the ballsiest of the bunch and really gets that old overdriven tube amp sound with the right presets.

never had any issues with it; battery life is good but I use an adapter live.

I feel it is at least as reliable as anything else I might use as a primary FX/preamp unit, and probably more so.

I play everything from jazz to country to art/noise rock and consider the PX-3 a valuable tool in any context. I've played for almost 30 years and have lots of FX going like Mutron Bi-Phases and other cool old stuff- and it pretty much all collects dust since I got the Pandora...the lower noise alone is worth any coolness factor I may be losing by going with the little blue box instead of the giant vintage ones.

I would definitely replace it if lost or stolen, although I would probably seek out something newer that had better control over FX parameters...hopefully Korg's later revisions will concentrate more on performance and less on all the training stuff, which is pretty much useless to someone like me except for the metronome.

I wish Korg would do like Digitech does and release different versions of the same platform, maybe one Pandora with all the phrase training and beat box drum/bass stuff for beginners and another one more dedicated to performance and production work that trades off that other stuff for better controls and more functional real time access to patches...the one thing that I hate that makes it way less functional live than it could be is that you have to scroll through all the patches and the sound isn't bypassed when you do, so you hear every patch go by...if you use it live you pretty much need to set it and forget it or set up all of your patches for your show sequentially and mute everything by hand when switching anything.

I had to set every patch to my style of playing.
Don't we all?
It's not that complicated to tweak the presets.
I think it's very linear.
I set my favorites in order 1 thru 20.
I never use the backlit screen. Saves on battery life.
Next I velcro it to my guitar. No pedals on the floor!

Reverb is fair. I prefer a Fender tank or the Boss RV-5.
I love the tremelo.
Delay is good as well as the chorus, phaser, and flanger.
The distortion sounds to digital to me.
The rotary sound is an interesting effect when combined with the phase shifter. Expermenting is the key. Everything sounds different on stage.

Never had a problem. Used it every weekend for several years.
By attaching to the guitar it looks like new.
I bought the PX4 and also have a PX1 & PX2.
Each has its own unique sound. I prefer the PX3.

Never needed it.
When dropped the case will break.

I play Rock,Country,and Surf.
Been playing since 1966.
I use mostly custom shop Fenders and customized Teles & Jazzmasters.
Amps,Fender tube or steel guitar amps. I prefer JBL D130 speakers.
I don't like cords and effects on the floor.
With a wireless bug and a Pandora attached to the guitar,you can do the ZZ Top spin. Its a cheesy trick but the crowd likes it.
I would buy another PX3 if needed.

Ok, ive got the unit 2 days ago, got it from an exchange (rp100 for this unit). Its really easy of use if you are used to the editing patches process... they all work the same way, no matter the brand... i turned it up, and in 2 minutes was recording my first patches, and editing the existing ones. I found the manual in the korg website... this unit sound VERY GOOD, for the price, the size, it gives you really good sounds...

the sound quality is really good (for the price/size). I??ve been playing for 16 years and had lots of units, this sound very good. Ive got really good sounds in just a minute. I use an Ibanez RG modified and played it with headphones and last night on a fender 30w amp (cheap one), but this sounds really good.

The dist/ods are ok, they sound almost real, the comp sounds ok, the modulations sound ok, the cabinet emulator is ok... i mean, all the effects are good quality (not the best but for the price is amazing).

This is a really good practice amp, line effects, recording unit... i use it live last night and sounded really ok!!!

ok, its a delicate unit i have to say. Ive got it used, it works perfectly fine, but i dont think it would resist too much on a gig... but hey, its the size of your wallet with lcd screen... if you take care of it, you can depend all you want... just... dont drop it...

never used

i play any kind of music from classic rock n roll (guns n roses, sttepenwolf, pinf floyd, etc) to pop rock (even prog rock), it can match any stile...

ive been playing for 16 years, ive had zoom 505, rp100, ax1000g, korg A4(the best one ever), boss pedals (still have), ibanez guitars, marshall valvestate 8040...

if it were stolen id try to get another one, this is a must have for any guitar player... i love the size/quiality of the sound. I use it when i dont want to bring the amp, with the boss effects... its too big... i just carry this unit, and even plug it in on the PA (have to modify a few programs to get it sound right)

the only issue i saw is that the cd inpunt its noisy...

its the best small unit, if you can get one, do it...

Can't be any easier to get a great tone. Plug in your guitar, plug in a amp or headphones. And just go to BLUES or HOTROD setting! You will immediatly get a great tone. Thats is how I bought this unit, There was the PX3 and the PX4D used, with a twenty dollar difference between the two![I plugged it in to a HR-DeVille to demo it]. I tried both. I immediatly got a great tone from the PX3. I set the 4D to a amp model and was immediatly trying to tweak it for better Tone? Si I bought the PX3. I don't have a manual but it can be downloaded from www.korg.com. I haven't needed it yet. If you been around multi rffect units, then you will have no problem getting up and running. To go deep into the memory you will need to read the manual. Pretty impressive unit! Key Transposer? I never seen one on any multi-effects unit. Allows you to play in key to whatever you are listening to...Pretty freakin cool! Unlike MOST multi units ALL THE PRESETS are good. And like all multi effect units it gets to those space effects that you just are NEVER gonna use! The Drum/Bass patterns are very usable. I been gigging live for 30 years, This is the FIRST unit I really liked playing along with! I owned Digitech RP series and Boss Jam-Station. This is a cool unit to jam with. If you are a BLUES player.....you will be in heavin with this unit! You can turn it off, unlike RP by Digitech. I just do not see anything I don't like about this unit.

Never heard a better multi effects unit. And trust me I am criticle! I have owned PODs, Digitechs, Behringer Vampire, Rocktron Chamilion, Johnson's, and so on. This unit I really like! This is one of those units that is discontinued and is now getting a LITTLE harder to find. I would buy this unit before you can't! The PX4Ds are all over the place and still in production. And basically sell for the same price! The presets on this unit are very good. You won't have to tweak this unit at all to find a good tone! Thats something I am NOT use to! With Stereo headphones the unit really sounds sweet. I have heard NO NOISE what-so-ever with this unit! The reverb is probly the best I have heard on any multi-effects. Better than most stomp-box reverbs. And I have a Holy-Grail here. This sounds better! Just a very good practice tool. Don't even think twice about this unit. As long as its NOT damaged, It is a super unit!

From what I see....No Problem!

I play Blues and Classic Rock. For my money I will play one of these units anyday over everything else I have heard out there! Most multi-units sound terrible in front of a amp. This sounds very good. With headphones you hear it in stereo. But not differently!I would buy another in a heartbeat. Matter of fact I am already pricing them on E-Bay! Portability and Practice? You will be hard pressed to find a better unit. For recording? You can record with it. But it doesn't have a USB port? Not that it would stop you from recording but it would be a bit easier. The delays, chorus, etc etc do not have adjustable paremiters. So that would be a issue recording, you would not be able to use the effects except as you hear them! Other than that, I see no negatives about the PX3. You will not get a METAL or Mesa Boogie tone with it! If thats important to you....look elsewhere! The PX3 will help you create. I turn on the Drum/Bass, turn to a pattern I dig, set the tempo to where I want to play behind. Then I am gone. And the Bass/Drum sounds very convicing.

Take a few minutes and you will discover a very easy concept indeed

well, this is gonna blow your mind now, i refuse to post a link but all i can say is that Korg has the best Marhsall JCM 800 saound out there.

Does not say JCM800 anywhere, or Marshall, but yo ube the judge after tweeking a bit one of the few dirty presets, sadly though that most metal fans look for overkill distortion to cover up there fowl playing, but ill say that this Pandora guitar tone has been on some major records and people swor it was line 6 when we told them t was a hand help amp mod., yeah right line 6, try this instead and see for yourself!

easy and never breaks
yes you can gig with it and yes you can record with it

Many people have said it again and again, If Korg work on improving there products to make them applicable in studios, like atleast adding USB and firewire options, then there products would be hot on the rise,

neve had too call

I give this a 9

while other products 4 times the price range have tons more amp mods, the only and most important amp everyone is crying abou is a Marshall JSM800., while they think they get there bargain with Line6 products since PODs have tons of sounds, forget them , if you need a direct from a box Marshall tone and maybe a few things then this is for you, nothing else comes close at all!!!!

It lacks USB cable and things like this though, but that hard edge amp sound is there..

First of all, I'm lazy. Secondly, I hate to read manuals. Third, I hate to browse through directories using buttons. If you are like me, this gadget will be nightmare to use. However, I belong to minority of people and that is what keeps Korg and similar companies in business. The fact that I've spent $100AUD for it made me read the manual. Suddenly, the device becomes more user friendly (or better - EDIT friendly). The technical writer obviously used Google translator to write manual. Occasionally I'd understand the meaning of individual words, but the sentences don't make sense.
With time and practice you'll learn to peacefully coexist with PX3.

Now, the good news. Most presets are very good. The noise is unobtrusive and barely noticeable. Ambience effects are excellent. I like Chorus a lot. Drives and distortions are 7 out of 10. Majority are good sounding, but may become blurred and unfocussed of badly overdriven. Rhytham and bass are good for practise, but I prefer good old metronome.

It looks stronger than average remote control. It even survived one drop to a timber floor without consequences.

N/A

Unless you limit yourself to presets, it hard to use. It's not for gig. It's not for studio either, but it's more fun then barrel of monkeys around home. It was not a love on first site, but I've learned to love it. The quality of sounds is light-years ahead of some other multiFX, though not as good as rack equipment. This is Jack-of-all_trades (and master of few). A Swiss army knife for any gutarist. Highly recommended!

This is a great practice tool for any guitarist, to be honest all i use it for is phrase sampling to learn riffs as far as using it as a headphone amp i dont as that is really bad for the ears and i have tinitis as it is. for learning riffs its the greatest but as you slow down the tempo the sound quality diminishes greatly but you can still pick out the notes most of the time. the manual is good and i understand the functions etc but like i said i use this to learn riffs and solos.

for learning riffs and solos as you decrease the tempo the sound quality deteriates quickly but still useable.

i have hours and hours on this thing! you discover that most lics,riffs and solos are not all perfect scales and the notes jump around from sharps to flats and you hear the note but want to play some other note but after you learn the passage and get it up to speed you find out thAT all the wrong notes they put in fit! really makes you a better player, but you sacrifice alot of time, of course if you want to be a star thats what it takes anyways, practice practice practice!

no problems with machine so no need for c.s.

its the cheapest thing out there for learning riffs and such, works pretty darn good! i come from the old school of slowing the turntable way down but this is way better than that and trying to learn somebody elses tabs w/mistakes drives me crazy. i play mostly rock for last 35 years,playing over 40 years now i have gibson and fender guitars about 100 different ones and many many amps but always use the old marshalls, i would buy again,not many products to compare this to the play along one that uses a CD well you need the CD,i record alot of stuff direct from the radio and put it in the PX,yeah,practice!wish it had a way of maintaining the sound quality as you slow down the tempo but hands down besta unit out there

just spend some itme with it and you'll get everything you're looking for it. certain drives work great with certain mods, like the tremolo and the fuzz distortion for instance. so try a lot of combinations, even if it doesn't initially seem like what you were looking for.

here's most of the features individually. the first score is how good a sound you can get. a 10 means don't hesitate to use it live. a 7 means great for practicing. the second score is how versatile the feature is, and how likely you are to find what you're looking for.
drive: 7 8
there's some good ones, there are some bad ones but you'll get what you're looking for. could never replace a distortion or overdrive pedal though. the compression is particularily nifty.

tone: 5 5
i think some people might like this, but i cant really feel anything with it

mod:
chorus: 8 5
there's a few choruses, not very versatile. it's hard to get the tempo you're looking for.
tremolo: 10 5
a very nice tremolo but very limited options.
pan: 5 5
there's jsut too much lack of control. i usually get so frustrated with it that i wind up using tremolo instead
vibrato: 7 7
nice but limited options
delayvib: 5 7
limited options, plus i never use it
octave: 4 3
isn't reliable at all, don't bother with it. just go get an octave pedal
pitch shifter: 2 2
if you don't know what a pitch shifter is you'll figure it out, but it's pretty off key, and again, has very limited options.
the chord things: 1 1
i haven't discovered a use for these.
autowah: 6 4
again, lack of control makes an otherwise ok-sounding feature less tolerable.
random effects: 9 1
there are 3 random effects, and they're all stellar stuff, that you probaly couldn't find elsewhere. great stuff.

reverb: 7 5
a few different reverbs that do the job, but should never be used live
delay: 6 1
there's a bunch of set times, so it sucks that you can't set the time yourself. also you can't control the feedback or anything. a delay pedal would definently be required.

amps: 3 3
don't really do much if you ask me

i've had mine for a few years now, and i'd use this in a gig but i'd definently use a bunch of pedals with it, and i wouldn't use a bunch of it's features. i don't think it would stop working or anything during the course of a gig. if i was in a serious band i would have to buy all the effects i want so i could stop using this though.

never needed'em.

i've been pretty critical throughout this review. i play pink floyd and hendrix, the smiths and the cure, jeff buckley, radiohead, mogwai, sigur ros etc. i don't get a lot of what i'm looking for. that said, this is just a little box, and there's a lot of great stuff. i got this as a gift a few months after i started playing, and it was great to be able to learn all the different effects it has so easily.
if it were stolen i would definently not buy another one. i think a used analog processor would be a much better idea than this.
the tuner is pretty nice, but it'd be a lot nicer if it would mute the guitar sound.
the drum & bass thing is ok for jamming, but there are a lot better values.
i wish it had more control. if i had the money to buy all the pedals i wanted i would sell this in a heartbeat. i'd definently not recommend this. there are some good features but nothing that makes it worth it's price.
feel free to e-mail me questions, but i've only been playing for a few years so don't expect too much :) make sure i dont mistake your letter for junk.

Once you sit down with the manual and play around, getting solid tones out of it is pretty easy... Sure, it's not completely perfect, but it's the best I've heard for a product this small! Right after I got it, I actually made a copy of the manual just in case...

I just plug my Strat straight in and jam... Most times I'll attach a cord to my discman, pop on my headphones and play along to Arch Enemy- How Swede it is! When I've jammed with other people, I'll use the PX-3 plugged into my 10 watt Vox amp and promptly blow people's minds with the sound coming out of it!

The sounds are pretty good overall- I ended up tweaking the SRV tone and it now sounds even more like him! The clean sounds are all shimmery and the dirty sounds aren't bad, much better than any Zoom pedal, but you'll need to spend a little time with them... Still worth it!

No problems at all, and I've had it since Sept '00... I'd use it for a gig in a second!

Haven't had to deal with the company yet, but at least the website is somewhat helpful with making a purchase decision... Soon I'll have the PXR-4!

Whenever I jam, it's a mix between melodic death metal and some blues... In the near 20 years I've been playing, this is the best effects unit I've seen, if it was stolen, yeah... I'd try to get a new one.

I've been so happy with it, and now that there's the PXR-4, I'm gonna be twice as happy! As long as you take it for what it is (A great practice tool and a decent live performance unit), you'll have a blast!