Synth: Korg Trident and Korg Trident MK-II Review by: Anders Wikholm Summary: Combination instrument containing a programmable analog synth, strings and brass. One knob for each parameter. Fat analog sound in a very big and heavy box. {Where Trident MK-II differs it's noted between brackets.} Years Made: 1979--1985? Polyphony: 8 Multitimbrality: Two different sounds is possible with keyboard split. Outputs: 4: synth, strings, brass and mix. MIDI: no. Kits available from Kenton. Note on/off: MIDI controllers (aftertouch, CC, etc): Sysex patch dumping: Sysex parameter control: Other external control: CV/Gate: no Clock: no Other CV: Expression (volume) for synth, brass, strings and total. Filter frequency for synth and brass. Trig in for brass envelope and synth sustain. Audio input: no Proprietary (DCB, etc): no Programmer: Patch storage: 16 patches. {MK-II: 32 patches} Patch dumping (tape, MIDI, etc): no {MK-II: tape} Voice architecture: General: LFO/JOYSTICK: (sine, square) speed, depth, delay. FLANGER: speed, depth, manual, feedback Synth: VCO-1 (Square, PW/PWM, Saw) VCO-2 (Saw) LFO (sine) speed, depth, routable to PWM only VCF: LPF with freq, reson, env mod, keyb mod ENV: 1 ADSR, gate {MK-II: 2 ADSR} Strings: VCO: (16', 8', 4') VCF: Non resonant LPF w keyboard tracking. ENV: 1 AR LFO: (sine) rate, depth, delay Bowing effect Ensamble effect Brass: VCO: (16' 8') VCF: LPF with freq, reson, env mod. Shared by all voices. ENV: 1 ADSR Sequencer/Arpeggiator: no Keyboard/rack: keyboard Known problems: The stretched tuning may need adjustment every ten years or so. Accessories: Foot switch, Foot pedal (0-5 V). The best accesoire is a Korg MS-20. Related synths/gear: Korg Polysix: Approximately the synth part from the Trident with only one VCO per voice and more noise & distortion. Korg Mono/Poly: Similar sounding oscillators but better sounding filter, and a more flexible architecture. Generally considered a very powerful "lead" synth. Monophonic/pseudo polyphonic. Price range: Very low. Hard to find more bang for the buck. Availability: Scarce. {MK-II: really scarce.} Comments: Strengths: Big fat beautiful shimmering sounds, analog soundwalls, triggered patterns. Stretch tuning makes wonders with two fisted chords. Weaknesses: Not much bottom in the sound, so it generally isn't usable for bass sounds. Limited synth architecture. Don't expect to mimic acoustic instruments with this one... Overall: Easy to use and powerful. Other: