Korg C-720 user manual Introduction, Main features

Introduction > Main features

Introduction

Main features

Wide range of sounds

Forty different and expressive high-quality sounds, including a Stereo Concert Grand Piano. You can use the Layer and Split functions to simultaneously play a combination of two sounds. Sounds and sound combinations can be freely modi- fied.

Performances

Sound combination can also be saved into performances, giv- ing you an additional set of 30 timbres (3 banks of 10 perfor- mances). Performances also store a custom split point, for custom combinations of sounds over the keyboard.

Four zones keyboard

The new high-quality, realistic Korg RH3 keyboard features four zones with different weights. This gives you the same re- alism and feeling as a grand piano keyboard.

Touch control

You can choose from nine different settings to adjust how the sound will respond to your keyboard playing dynamics.

Piano eXperience (or EPx) effects are particularly evident in sounds like GrandPiano, BriteGrand and MelloPiano.

One-hundred eighty-five songs

The C-720 includes a huge library of songs, based on famous pieces and lesson books. These songs are perfectly suitable for piano lessons, being recorded into two separate parts (left hand on Part 1, right hand on Part 2) that you can easily turn off and play on the keyboard. In addition, you can change the metronome’s tempo and let a defined passage play in cycle.

SongBook included

The SongBook album is also included as a printed music book

–a great resource for practicing and playing along with your preferred tunes.

Onboard recorder

A multi-track, easy-to-use onboard recorder, lets you record your own songs, or read Standard MIDI Files that you can transfer via the integrated USB port from an external comput- er.

Pedal effects

The C-720 provides the same three pedals as a grand piano, controlling the soft, sostenuto, and damper functions respec- tively. The damper pedal simulates the natural string reso- nances and noises of an acoustic piano, by means of the innovative Korg EPx (Piano eXperience) technology. Both the damper and soft pedals let you vary the amount of the effect by how far you press down on them (“half-pedal” function). In addition, pedals can be freely assigned to other functions, like starting the recorder or changing the speed of the rotary speak- er.

Metronome

The built-in metronome allows you to select the time signa- ture, tempo, and volume, and use a bell sound as the accent. It can even give you a drum accompaniment in a musical style of your choice (drum patterns).

Data transfer via USB

When connected to a personal computer via the USB port, the C-720’s internal memory can be seen as a USB disk. This way, you can backup your data, or transfer files between the C-720 and the personal computer.

Piano eXperience

While existing piano sampling techniques have resembled an audio snapshot, our new “Piano eXperience” technology is more of a hologram, accurately reproducing every dimension- al detail of the sound. All piano sampling for the C-720 is done in stereo to preserve the natural imaging of the sound. Differ- ent dynamic levels are captured to extend the instrument's ex- pressive vocabulary.

Going even further, the C-720 uses the sound of the key being released and the hammer returning, as well as the sympathetic damper resonance of the strings to create all of the subtle shad- ings that create a superior instrument sound. This attention to detail defines the sound of the new C-720, providing an instru- ment that can interpret every nuance of touch into a meaning- ful musical gesture.

MIDI capabilities

The C-720 supports the MIDI protocol, the standard that al- lows music data to be transferred between musical instru- ments and computers. MIDI allows two or more devices to control or be controlled by each other, and also allows you to use the C-720 as a 16-part multitimbral tone generator.

MIDI over USB

The USB port also carries MIDI data, so that you can connect the C-720 directly to your personal computer with a single ca- ble and without the need of a dedicated MIDI interface. A ded- icated KORG USB MIDI Driver is freely available for full use of the C-720’s MIDI features.

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