Big City Music reports via their blog that the Korg MicroKorg is now the most popular music synthesizer in history:
We were talking to our Korg sales rep. the other day and he mentioned that the 100,000th Korg MicroKorg keyboard just came off the assembly line. Unofficially that makes the MicroKorg the best selling synthesizer of all time. Amazing.
There’s no official ranking that I’m aware of for top-selling synths. If you’ve got more information on this, leave a comment.
And if you’ve got a Korg MicroKorg, leave a comment with your thoughts!
Here’s a audio demo of the Korg MicroKorg that highlights some of the instrument’s capabilities:
Image: Ivo Riemann
I'm pretty sure the Yamaha DX7 has sold a faire bit more than 100 000 units; wikipedia says 160 000, although they don't have source for that number.
it's obviously not true. DX7 sold more, as (I think) roland d50… maybe next year…
I had one and never could get used to the teeny keys. It always sounded weedy and thin as well. Figures it would be one of the best sellers of all time.
it's a cheap synth, $399… what do you expect? iPhone apps sound just as good…
I haven't seen official sales figures for either.
I haven't seen official sales figures for either synth – this post is quoting Big City Music's statement.
I'm not a fan of the MicroKorg's keys, though.
Diss it if you want, but it's affordable, sounds pretty darn good and has a vocoder. Tiny keys – so what? Think of a Casio VL-1 or a Roland TB-303. The microkorg is a classic that has brought synthesis within reach of a new generation. All things considered, I think this is one of the greatest synths of all time. It's toy enough to serve as a gateway into synthesis, yet instrument enough to be utilized by professionals.
I know for a fact the Yamaha Motif has sold more.
This little Korg Micro kicks butt. I just got one and wow! The bass alone is almost worth the price. Yeah – the knobs are cheap – (KORG – dudes, wake up – we need road worthy gear here). If you need big keys look somewhere else – or if you have a controller to drive this go for it. I think every self-respecting home recordist should have one wired into their DAW. I'll tell you what, the next time I have to fly to California, this sumbitch will be sitting in my lap – battery power option is great!
Getting my micro changed my life. Can't wait to get an XL. Fuck the haters.
Korg M1 = best selling synth of all time. D-50 Sold more than DX7 believe it or not. Then DX7 (both versions combined) sold the next best. Out of those the D-50 is the most magical, the DX7 the most legendary, the Korg M1 the most boring.
Microkorg doesn't even count, it's more like a preset toy keyboard.
Support is the main benefit of a popular synthesizer. You would expect it to have so many goodies and add-ons by the time it gets a title like most popular synth of all time. 100,000 does not seem like a lot to me. The Yamaha DX7 seemed like it made a far bigger splash in the industry, but that's because times have changed. Relatively speaking, though, the DX7 is still the leader in my opinion.
http://synthsale.com
The popularity of the Yamaha DX7, Roland D50 and Korg M1 in the 80s to early 90s would suggest one of these three should have the title. However, none of these synths had production runs as long as the original MK. I've heard that the DX7 (the original brown one) is the synth with the offical title of best seller of all-time. 4-note poly initially seemed limiting but this actually enforces creativity. This is a speciality synth that does excellent with leads, basses, analogue pads/strings and unusual hybrid analogue/digital textures. I say this synth is definitely a little gem!
The popularity of the Yamaha DX7, Roland D50 and Korg M1 in the 80s to early 90s would suggest one of these three should have the title. However, none of these synths had production runs as long as the original MK. I've heard that the DX7 (the original brown one) is the synth with the offical title of best seller of all-time. 4-note poly initially seemed limiting but this actually enforces creativity. This is a speciality synth that does excellent with leads, basses, analogue pads/strings and unusual hybrid analogue/digital textures. I say this synth is definitely a little gem!
Only 100,000? That doesn't sound right to me. Almost every musician I know has one. Personally, I can't stand it, the tiny keys make it ridiculously hard to play. The Alesis Micron is a much better alternative.
Only 100,000? That doesn't sound right to me. Almost every musician I know has one. Personally, I can't stand it, the tiny keys make it ridiculously hard to play. The Alesis Micron is a much better alternative.
ok, from what ive heard the Korg, Ventage, supernova are the most popular synthesizers. But i KGB what was the most popular ? and yes the Micro Korg is the top seller along with the Supernova synthesizer. Now what i wanna know is. What is THE best synthesizer that has a Large variety of tones, with like 81 or 66 keys, and is a legitimate professional synthesizer? got the answer? email me at [email protected]. Thank you.
guys wake up! it doesn’t even matter if it’s a toy or a fine piece of hardware! the football kicks are not the ones that make the football player professional skilled and tallented, the only thong that counts is the person itself! the microkorg and every synth is a unique individual synth and the sound and quality depends on the skills of the producer if any! i bet that many of the haters have a juno or a yamaha or even a prophet shitting around on the corner just for pose 😉 wake up, check around people that are maiking music without even monitors or a soundcard and sound better than the pros 😉 Keep up, sit down, turn of wifi, turn on your mind imagination and daw’s and improvise! 🙂
All yall saying 100,00 units isn’t much don’t realize that the synth market is a small (believe it or not) niche market, in the synth manufacturing industry selling 100,000 units is like making a record that goes platinum.
Yea maybe all your friends have one. But how many people is that? 5? 15? 30? Instead think of how many people in the world AREN’T musicians? Now of the musicians of the world, think of how many AREN’T keyboard players. and now of the keyboard players, how many AREN’T into synth-type sounds? and of the ones that are, how many DON’T own a microkorg? That puts things into a much more accurate perspective. Sure if your friends are a bunch of indie rockers yes, maybe everyone has one. Indie rockers eat this shit up. It’s cheap, retro-styled and screams “hip”. But go to the techno crowd and you’ll see that, although it’s still popular, it’s far from an “everyone has one” kind of thing. These aren’t like ipods, not everyone and their granny wants one. 100,000 units is HUGE in this market
Too many arrogant musicians here who believe an over-priced synthesizer alone makes good music. Maybe they need to compensate their non-existing talent with a 4000 dollar synthesizer to feel great…. Who knows.