Korg PXR-4 Pandora

I give the ease of use 5 out of 5 stars. The manual is ok, and so is the quick reference card. I am completely new at recording but still managed to get fine recordings right away. I use my Korg pxr-4 not only for home recordings of songs (guitar & vocal), but I write down musical ideas as well. Further on I record my band on this great little box, so we can hear and learn of our own skills and faults.

I use my strat, tele and taylor with this machine, and plug them in directly in this Korg pxr-4, or use the rec.out of my Roland cube 30. I give the effects 5 out of 5 stars.

So far so good. This very little plastic box should be handled with care though. The construction is one thing I recommend Korg to improve.

I have send them one email and got a reply within two weeks. I am still looking for upgrates and need some help with getting the files on my computer.

I play rock, blues and folk for 15 years and think this Korg is quite usefull for homerecordings. I compared it with a Boss and Zoom. Overviewing all the facts I have choosen the Korg due to the price andfeatures. Conclusion:
Features: 5 out of 5, great effects. Construction: 3 out of 5 stars. Sound: 4 out of 5 stars. Price-quality 5 out of 5 stars. Overall: 5 out of 5 stars.

This unit is typically complex due to it's many features and small size. The folks at Korg have packed what used to be a room full of gear into a space the size of three CD cases stacked! Pretty amaizing, but it does required multi-function buttons layered menus to acomplish this trick. Once you play with it a bit, everything is pretty well layed out if you bear what I said here in mind as you go along. The rating in this area is therefore hard to give because it is difficult to learn, but not to bad to operate once you do know it.

I play many Fender guitars (MIA Strat, MIA Tele, MIA Texas Special Fat Strat) through this unit, and I use it mainly as a scratch pad to catch ideas as i come up with them. I have been at this long enough now (32 years) to realize you cannot get a quality high-end tube amp + top-shelf pedal lineup sound out of a box the size of 3 CD cases. I didn't expect it to do that, but rather to give my ideas the general flavor they need to express my music. This it does wonderfuly. This unit was not really designed to lay down a professional grade, CD quality recording session. It was more designed to capture an artistic effort for work up later on. I am rating this unit based on it's intended purpose. If I want to create a CD of original work for sale/distribution, this would not be what I would use for it. Not a knock on the PXR4, just a dose of reality.

I have had mine for about a year now. No problems whatsoever thusfar. Understand that I don't use this everyday, but only when I have an idea hit me that I want to work out. The case is made of a rather brittle looking plastic, which seems contrary to it's stated purpose of being a portable recording studio. To me portable means that it will be subjected to some knocks and dings. I don't use mine in this way and so have no complaints, but if your purposes include taking this to the park or the baech to record, then you may want to get the new PXR4 Backpack unit that is available to prevent a catastrphic event from happening. My rating here reflects my perception of the abuse this unit COULD take without breaking.

I sent an email once to Korg to ask about using a Boss PSA power supply on my PX# Pandora, and after several days they answered it. Typical of a large company these days. As someone else here said, "better than some, worse than others". For an example of quality customer support, check out either Visual Sound or Tonebone products. Both of these companies know what customer service is really all about. I have talked to the president of both these companies -- and I wasn't even trying to get them. I just called their 800 number to ask a quaestion and they answered the phone. You won't get that at Korg (or Marshal or Vox)

Overall, I would say that this unit does it's job very well. This is of course according to what I think it's job is though. If you are looking for a comprehensive, professional grade recording studio solution, then look elsewhere. true, you might be able to produce a CD quality effort on this unit because it does contain all you would need to do that in theory. But the level of effort to do this on a repeatable basis seems to me to be too difficult because you would spend more time fiddling with the machine than actually creating music. Personally, I would want a quality DAW available to do this if I was going to do it myself. A better idea is to get a recording engineer to do the job if you really want a polished product at the end with the minimum headache possible. The PXR4 is a tool that will allow you to quickly record an idea with the basic kind of tone you want it to have before it escapes your head and is lost. This, it does exceptionally well I think.

I think I opened the manual 3 times in the last two months. Very well laid out, editing patches was a breeze. So far, the little bit I used the manual, it was fairly comprehensive.

I run this with a host of different guitars, 2 hamer usa's, a rogue guitar, rogue bass, and a hamer bass. The amp presets are nice, and the condenser mic is awesome in a pinch.

So far I have had no dependability issues, it's worked like a champ every time I fire it up.

I do a variety of different music styles, from jazz to hard rock to commercial jingles. If this thing were lost or stolen, I would buy another one in a heartbeat. It really is a songwriter's wet dream. The only complaint I have is the file format and structure. It would be nice if this recorded in 44k at least, and that you could transfer the individual tracks and vtracks to your computer, without having to mix them down first. But, you really have to keep a couple of things in mind. A) Price - cant beat 300 bux, you cant get a decent 4 track tape deck for that. B) Purpose - I doubt anyone would be cutting thier commercial CD on this, but that's why we have our daw's. Not to say you couldnt cut a CD on this if you really wanted to, I just dont see it as an ideal situation. I think media is so overrated anyways. I'd much rather hear a good song/performance on a bit lower quality, than some garbage tune recorded at 24/96. I'm really looking forward to the flood of songs that might end up in a user group for this pocket studio. Rock On

The PXR4 was pretty easy to use...when i got it, i started messing around and i recorded stuff without even looking at the manual...later i did and learned more. The manual is good...its organized well and it gives step by step instructions for the dummies like me. Getting a good sound out of this machine is a different story...i have a nice clean sound, but the distortion is a bit more challenging...as with every other digital piece of equipment, its to be expected.

I use usually a dimebag darrell culprit with the PXR4, but i also use a fender japanese strat with it. One thing for sure, you have to have different settings for both guitars...the pickups really change alot. Depending on what your recording, the PXR4 i found was a bit on the noisy side. The key to it is getting the program levels high enough without screwing ur sound over. I play alot of old school metal, yet i still haven't found the "perfect" sound with the machine. Clean, though, I have down. The one thing that pisses me off is that the drum tracks are unchangable during a song...call me a dummy, but i haven't figured out how to put drums in the mp2 file, and i dunno...i must be stupid or something. Help me out if at all possible with the distortion settings and/or the drum settings.

Hasn't broken down on me yet...

Didn't have to deal with them

I like it...you just have to tweak it around...good for new guys...i have played guitar for 6-7 years. Recording is easy

This unit is the easiest out of the box gadget I think I have ever purchased. One quick glance at the manual and I was already recording multiple tracks with effects.

Another more in depth look into the manual (15 minutes) I had a very clean rhythm track with 2 harmony tracks on top of it. Another 10 minutes and I learned how to convert the track to a stereo mp2 and transfer it to my computer for listening.

One great thing is the ability to convert all the mp2 tracks into wave for use in programs like Logic Audio with the handy little downloadable tool at the Korg site. One of the selling points for me.

Patches are very easy to edit and I really dig that you can use the faders to change your effect parameters.

The Manual is one of the best I have read ... and I should know - I am still trying to get through the Gibson Echoplex Digital Pro manual:)

My setup is a bit complex for live but for the PXR4, since I am using it as a scratch pad I am pluggin my Mexican Super Strat, and 52' Reissue Tele straight into the unit.

It's a bit noisy right now if you use the gain effects but it could be the fact that I am doing all this on my bed with other things turned on around the room (aquarium, computer blah blah blah ..) .. the clean effects are super quiet so I expect better positioning of ME, the Recorder and turning things off to bring down the gain noise level.

The effects are digital so you get what you paid for. In my opinion they did an excellent job with the quality of the effects. I think they lack a bit of bottom but look at the size of this thing :) You can get a bit more of a bigger sound by tweaking the track level under the mixer mode for each track.

My favorite effect setting would have to be the Tape Simulator for final mix down -- it gives you a bit of a warmer almost analog type sound which works for me since I primarily work with indie rock type stuff and ambient looping.

So far it seems to be holding up.

n/a

I was about to purchase a 16 track digital but recently lost my job so I figured I would get this one to keep me busy while out of work and not kill myself financially.

I've been playing guitar for about 16 years now and my main styles are indie rock / ambient looping.

The unit is perfect for what I want to do which is indie rock / space rock / ambient looping -- Mostly recording things in my little apartment. So the neighbors won't be complaining when I get that 2am inspiration. I also like the fact that you can just connect your guitar into the thing and start recording without having to break out the rack, and make all the connections (mine has to stay disconnected since my cat enjoys chewing on music cords).

If this was stolen or lost I would defenitley go out and buy a new one. I won't even sell it when I get my 16 track.

I love the fact that you can take it anywhere because of it's size but it the sound quality is way better than any cassete 4-track you can get PERIOD.

I don't like the fact that the rhythm tracks included on the unit can not be recorded to a track for final mixdown. At least at this writing this is my understanding since I can't find any way to do this in the manual.

The bounce features are probably my favorite. The sound quality when bouncing isn't as bad as it would be on a cassett 4-track.

Korg never seems to dissapoint, at first this tiny powerhouse mutha is difficult to operate. BUT, after an hour I was able to get some amazing results out of it.

No one seems to answer this question at all, so, let's give it a shot.. It's better than ANY cassette 4 track (that's a given!)
It's better than any mini disc recorder.. (I owned the yamaha md4, sheeesh - what a waste that was!)The recording quality is kinda like a dat cassette, it's rubbery, but sensitive. I found it to perform quite nicely.. . It's definately great sounding (in the hi quality recording mode)It's definately NOT as good as my ADAT, but it's somewhere close, and hell the thing sounds good! It has some fun onboard effects that can be tweeked to yer fancy, it's really juicy!

Again, Korg has to get off their asses and realize that musicians need tougher gear!These engineers are definately on DOPE! What's wrong with these engineers? HEY, KORG, MUSICIANS NEED STRONGER GEAR! THE CHASSIS IS MADE FROM RECYCLED MC DONALDS COFFEE LIDS! HEY KORG, THE DAMN THING WILL BREAK!
The chassis is brittle plastic, very CHEEEEEEP feeling! Man, better be careful with this unit. I think I'm gonna build a special case for mine. I feel like Korg is dropping the ball on many of their newer products, it seems like they want the darn thing to break so you'll go out and get another OR they're just too damn cheeeep!

Korg is alright, better than some, worse than others..

Great incredibly versitle piece of gear, definately! Poor weak plastic chassis, will crack or break. I wish Korg would use better quality plastics & use METAL. The brains of this machine are awesome to say the least... I will be using recordings from this ministudio on my next release. And finally,
Buy the damn thing, it's worth every penny.

Very easy to operate. The manuel is a bit confusing but if you
take time you will learn new things each time you operate it.

Good sound quality but be carefull that you adjust the trim and
other knobs so that you don't clip.

Very dependable

Hav not delt with the company

I play christian music ( worship and praise). This is an excellent machine
for just guitar and vocals. I would not recommend any percusion because
the the internal drum machine is poor and sometimes slows down. I
have had my machine about 6 months . I have mixed my songs on to
cassette and they sound excellent. I have also sent my smart card to
a friend in Ohio who mixes the tracks with pro tools and other software.
we have come up with some suprisingly good cuts.

Yes it's easy to use, if you read the manual. Quickly you become familiar with the interface... you need 5 minutes to make your first record ( but it'll suck ). Then with the experience, your recording become better... It has 1 guitar or bass guitar input, great for creating riffs, solos or working on compositions... You have the choice between 8 kinda of amp sound, cab sound, EQ 3 band, and presence & air controle available when you use a cab simulation. You can also use the incorpored mic, but i found it too much sensitive. FX are easy to use too, so it's really easy to edit your own sound and to record with it. The interface is useful, you just have to press right/left/up/down as a superNES paddle. Its fonctions are the same as a MD player ( edit, copy, erase... ). as it uses Smart Media card, all is numeric. You can transfer your stuff on your PC, mp2 format, under 3 recording qulaity ; eco > 128k/32khz ; std 256k/32khz ; high 384/32.
Manual is ok and useful.

I have never use the line up input, i just play my guitar in with a lot of sounds i have edited. But in the begining i have try to record my amp ( PV 5150 ) with its mic and the results was shity, because is too sensitive, it records all sounds you can make as your stomack rumble !!! It is a bit noisy when you put the master to the top and when you put the level of one track to the top. The FX are good, but sometimes a little bit "simple" this is not a Intelliflex ! While i can get a sound with the "Seatle" overdrive as Slayer on Reign in Blood album, but don't hope to have a pure tube amp sound, or just the "Gros Son" as we say in France ( Big Soooound ! ) In MP2 format sound is sometimes low, so take care to your level, try to have the less noise with the most power !

I depend on it cause i work with it, it's a pocket studio, you can go everywhere with it and play just for you, but not for a gig.

never dealt with em

I Play Thrash Metal, and the saturation are enough good for what i work. And i buy it again if it were stolen or lost ( and i'll kill to give it back to me ). I think it's really important to record our work, ( you can forget it !!! ) but you can see your problems, so you can work on them to get better.

It's really easy to use if you've used the previous Pandora versions. If you haven't it will take 15-20 mins to get familiar with the interface. The major addition to the controls is the addition of gain, volume and tone controls for the amp you select. it makes it really easy to change the amount of distortion as well as the levels. The've also added a dial for amp selection so you can change the amp you're using quickly although what makes no sense is why they only put some of the available amp types on the dial. It also lost points for it's phrase trainer function. When you try to record your own chord progression, it doesn't give you any time to get ready, it just starts recording. However if you choose the jam function, which alows you to record several bars of you playing overtop of a rhythym pattern, it gives you a ready time. I don't understand why they couldn't do that for the phrase trainer.

I'm using this with my Strat copy and it sounds pretty good. The variety of sounds you can get with this amp especially after the addition of a synth. My main gripe with the synth is that you can't set the decay and sometimes a note won't sound when you pick it. Other than that, the amp models are great, you can get anything from a vintage sound to a really hard rectifier distortion sound. The effects are pretty cool although the effects from the same group (eg phaser1 phaser2, etc) all sound pretty much the same, but that could just be me. There are some clunker effects, but there are tons of effects that are really fun to use.

It's built for bedroom jamming either though headphones or a practice amp. It's plastic so I doubt it would hold up under regular gigging, but it's pretty good since if your amp breaks down you can plug it directly into the PA. I've dropped it a couple of times and it still works, but I'm not sure if I'd gig w/o a backup. (Assuming I gigged in the first place)

never dealt with them

I like this thing. It's great for jamming along with the rhythym patterns. And since now you can also record some chord progressions the rhythym patterns won't get old as quickly. The effects are all really fun, I especially like the synth, except for the lack of a decay setting. The acoustic simulator is ok, but it sounds kind of wierd to me. Also the talk effect is kind of bogus. It basically just sounds like a wah pedal, I have yet to hear a difference. The distortions are great. It's way better than the PX-3, I would definitely suggest upgrading to this version.

I am new to digital recording, or any kind of recording for that matter. I found the manual instructive and the interface relatively easy to master. If only I knew how to get a good mix. Oh well. This is a good tool to practice on until you upgrade to an 8 or 16 track digital recorder. One note, you will need to convert your MP2 recording to a .wav file in order to burn your recording to CD. I suggest Acoustica's mp3 converter (also works for mp2). It's only $15.00 and you get 35 free trial conversions.

I'm finding the built-in sounds not so great, but with some tweaking they are not half bad. I guess a lot of people use distortion . . . there are like fifty distortion modes. Not great for someone like me who just wants a clean acoustic sound. Still, its fun playing around with all the effects. Maybe its me, but the guitars sound tinny . .. I'm playing a Fender Strat '82 with Kinman pickups direct into the unit. I do not recommend using the Bounce function . . . it really muddies up the tracks. I bounced one track of acoustic guitar, one track of electric, and one track of bass onto a drum machine track. What sounded great coming through four tracks sounded pretty bad on just two tracks. I think I'll overdub instead next time.

Seems reliable. Battery power is good.

Customer support was pretty responsive. I had a question about phantom power (there is none). I sent an e-mail and got an immediate response. I also called Customer Service in Long Island to determine how to burn an MP2 file onto a CD. You have to convert it to a .WAV file. They recommended Sound Forge but a cheaper program called Acoustica can do the same thing.

Despite the above, I love this machine. For someone new to recording, its great just to be able to plug in and play and record. I created my first stereo mix and burned it to a CD -- my wife was very impressed. I will definitely be upgrading to a bigger machine when I am more comfortable with my engineering skills and I have more dough. Definitely recommended to newbies, probably disappointing to pros.