To see the current firmware version in the Prologue, turn it off and then hold down the "8" button (the rightmost program sort/edit mode button) while turning it on. You'll see three versions, for "System", "Panel", and "Voice".

If there's a minus sign by the "Panel" version number, it needs to be updated. Turn the synth off, and then hold down "6", "Exit", and "Shift" while turning it on. There is no progress display while the panel firmware updates (since the display is part of the panel whose firmware is being updated), but it will say "Update Complete" after a bit when it has finished. Turn off once this is done.

If there's a minus sign by the "Voice" version, you need to update the voice card firmware. Turn the synth off, and hold down "5", "Exit", and "Shift" while turning it on. This will update the voice cards (and show progress). Once it's done, turn it off and back on.

This whole process is described in the instructions that accompany the firmware updaters.

I suspect the combination of the tuning bug being fixed, the fairly significant price drops and a new source of user oscs (the XD) will lead to a few more people considering buying the Prologue. I’m glad i’ve picked one up again, it’s got tons of character and very much does it’s own sound.

I’m sure the XD will sell like hot cakes and that can only be a good thing for further custom osc/fx development. Personally, I would never buy a poly with only 4 voices again so I was never going to pick up an XD - struggled with the limitations of a Tetra for many years, never again!

Turns out it was user error... Thanks everyone for commenting. I guess I should learn to follow instructions a bit better. All working great and this synth sounds incredible.

I wonder: even though I never got a “-“ next to Panel Version, should I still update it? Because sometimes on complex patches the oscilloscope freezes up for a moment. But maybe that’s just how it is?

Hello everyone!

I'm new in this Forum and i'm new to synthesizers. I got my Prologue a while ago. I choose it because for me it was the easiest to understand. All important knobs are arranged in a very logical way. And the sound is killer! I love it.

Here are some patches i made, feel free to use them:

Crocket (split sound), Filter Beast(Lead), Night Glide(Poly), Plck Analog(Poly)

This seems to be normal behavior. I suspect this happens when there’s lots of digital oscillator & fx action in a patch and the processor simply runs out of juice to update the scope (but haven’t investigated it further, just a guess.)

So, I'm reviewing the 10 Polysynths that I've made Patches for and this time it's the turn of the Prologue, maybe I'm being too harsh or maybe not enough?

I don't think you were too harsh concerning the Prologue design and functionality: you nailed it completely from my view. All the limitations are true, especially
- only one LFO with only three basic, single destinations
- tiny display
- idiotic patch switching access
etc.

The only point of disagreement, being decisive for my use of the Prologue, is sound character:
I just happen to like the basic sonic character of the analogue part a lot, because I think it is quite useful for actual music styles.
From my view that's true even for the areas you consider weak: if the Prologue can't deliver deep Moog bass quality, it still CAN deliver a lot of juicy ARP-like and and TB303-like kind of bass stuff, with still more than sufficient punch and dirt. In contrast to the Behringer Deep Mind (which for my ears has a much more "nice", "harmless" and one-dimensional "paddy" soft sound, with a complete no go for me of only one ADSR control field), the Prologue is NOT just mainly a pad synth IMO: I use it for bass, lead, polysnth, brass, pluck and pad sounds alike.

And looking at how much I can do with a Prologue in band context or a mix, based on its sound character, it would get a significantly higher rating from me. But that's only, because basic sound character, in connection with fast and easy control of all the main functionality, is more decisive to me, than all the rest - and not because I would disagree with your criticism concerning advanced functionality.

To me the prologue is a package similar to the OB-6, simplicity, narrow focus, with however significantly more voices, among other goodies. I was expecting it to have an overall similar score with an edge in value for money... but it's not the case. The OB-6 beats it on everything, at times by quite a lot.

I don't understand the big discrepancy here, and I don't know if you're being too harsh on the prologue, or not harsh enough on the OB-6.

OB-6

Features - 14
Workflow - 18
Sound Design - 16
Versatility - 15
Value For money - 13

DSI (Sequential) gets - 76/100

prologue

Features - 13
Workflow - 14
Sound Design - 13
Versatility - 12
Value For money - 11

Korg Prologue gets - 63/100

I can see your point, however I wouldn't put it in the same category as the OB6, that has a greater amount of flexibility and has a 3D quality to the sound. I bought the OB6 because of the State Variable Filter which just sounds great for textures and while I really do like 12db Filters, just using a low pass design on the Prologue was a bit odd.

The score is made up of 5 different areas and when you make over 100 Patches for a Synth, you quickly get to know what it's good at and what it isn't...of course, all of these reviews are just my opinion and while it might not score as high as others, it doesn't mean it's no good...if it wasn't any good I wouldn't make Patches...there's plenty of Synths I've decided not to make Patches for, even if commercially it makes sense to do so...

The OB6 has 1 LFO yes, but it can be routed to multiple destinations, you can also use Oscillator 2 as an LFO or in audio rates to modulate other destinations at the same time and reuse the Filter Envelope for other destinations, so there's a lot more flexibility.

Voice count and the ability to layer is great and I did mention it a few times in the review, as I did the quality of the FX, but all of this is from a Sound Designers point of view, I paid the full price just like everyone else, I don't get "sent" anything.

Things like not having a Bank System is annoying, plus I'd love to make Patches using the other Digital Oscillators, but that means users will need to buy them and more importantly, have them in the exact same slot otherwise the patches don't work properly.

The price it's at now is about right and it is a good Synth, it's not a "zero sum game" but I'm trying to be objective as much as possible, but again, it's still just my opinion.

Thanks for watching and commenting.

It's 16 slots for digital oscs to me puts at the top use for everything now. I have them all filled with so many poly crazy sounds that my modular gets much less use. It cuts through all my mixes and when listening back to tunes I use it in, can't believe it both did a big bass, wavetable shifting, ambience, lead and sci fi sounds.

And against the OB-6; The analog sound of the Prologue is very vintage sounding to me. I really expected the OB-6 to sound a bit like TO SEMS but was very disappointed.

Dan

What wavetable oscillators are available for the PL? There really needs to be a central repository of user oscs with downloads and links to the pro ones.

Good to see you doing these reviews. I'm sure they will be very useful and help a lot of people

(Are you going to do the Prophet 6 as well?)

I tend to agree with @ jimknopf in that I don’t necessarily disagree with your review but also that it’s the sound that does it for me - which is why I guess Prologue owners are “ok” with the 1 x LFO and limited LFO shapes and destinations etc. It kinda overrides the features and obvious limitations.

One thing I was confused about is the low mark you gave for “workflow” because to me it’s an incredibly simple workflow. Value for money is also a confusing low mark when you consider it's a 16 voice VCO. Other than that, I tend to agree with your review for the most part.

I have to disagree here. To my ears the Prologue is thoroughly modern sounding - which is what I love about it. The OB-6 on the other hand instantly sounds like it’s from the 80’s to my ears.

Funny how we all hear things differently.

The Prologue workflow is similarly direct and hands on as in my Prophet 6, with two exceptions mentioned in the review:
- the silly knob patch bank management. I heavily dislike Korg's way of doing this nonsense, which isn't really cured by the favorites function.
- the tiny display and some secondary function menu diving. But here the OB6, just like my Prophet 6, shoud get a FAT minus as well: showing big 3 digit numbers instead of patch names is about as stupid as stupid can get, and that in such expensive 6-voice synths. That's a massive letdown for patch loading and patch management. I mean, managing patches with pen and paper 2019, besides the synth, seriously?????

All in all the workflow on the Prologue is VERY smooth IMO for the most used functionality. So yes, overall the OB6 seems to get a bit too much for wortkflow and the Prologue too little. That could be adjusted either way. On the other hand, the most important part of these reviews is, that they contain a lot of useful information, no matter how you weigh the results yourself.

Does the PL still have the shift function for fliipping through presets faster? I've only had my Mini for a week or so, but I haven't really had an issue navigating saved patches that way. I mean, it would be nice if you had banks or something and could use the 8 seq buttons to quickly switch to a new preset, I guess.

It is simple on the front panel for building the majority of the Patch, but when it gets to adding the 2nd layer, the parameters for the Digital Oscillator and then the FX etc then you need to use the tiny little screen. That's not so much an issue if tweaking or making a couple of Patches, but when you're making 100 Patches, it becomes very tiring and slows things down.

Granted I made the patches on the 8 Voice which has a bit more limitation, but the times I was making patches and on the wrong layer, just did my head in...On contrast with the Workflow of the OB6, it's all on the front panel, no hidden menus, because there are any!

What I was hoping people would take away is that it's not a 1 Synth is great and the other is crap, if I thought the Prologue was Crap I wouldn't have bought it and made Patches, but when I'm reviewing and scoring, i'm thinking of the experience I've had with the other Synths I've made Patches for...Just my opinion that's all.

@ jason moyer
Yes , it has the shift function. But when I want a patch, I simply want to choose, and and not browse through irrelevant stuff each and every time. My acceptance for the secondary Korg way (it's better on my Kronos with direct bank management) is exactly at ZERO: it's just completely arbitrary, unnecessary nonsense to do patch management like that from my view.

Yes, I have the Roland System 8, Prophet 12, Korg KingKorg and then the Prophet 6 to do...then i'm done!

The review themselves do a good job conveying your overall experience, likes and dislikes, and what you think are the strengths and weaknesses of the synths. No issues there, I really like them. It's the scoring that at times leave me scratching my head.

• It's not clear what all the categories mean ("value for money" is pretty self-explanatory but "sound design"?)
• It's not clear what the scores mean (is "15" good/bad? above/below expectations? How do I interpret that?)
• It seems inconsistent. That's why I brought up the OB-6 and prologue comparison earlier but maybe a different example will be clearer:

  
  You say the Peak is fantastic all round for doing all sort of sounds... versatility: 16
  You say the OB-6 is narrow in the types of sound it can do... versatility: 15
  
  How does that work? Is 1 point really the difference between being super versatile or having more of a niche?

You're putting specific numbers here, and those numbers will be compared because numbers in a vacuum don't mean anything. However the measuring sticks seem poorly defined. I actually think you should skip numbers altogether and replace with a list of pros and cons or such as summary. As I've said, the reviewing itself does a great job.


Well. That's just like, my opinion, man

Exchanged my Prologue16 for another due to shipping damage. Did updates and reloaded custom oscs on replacement unit. Still love this synth, brings me back to A6 territory in terms of the layering with simpler patches, except that on the Prologue16 the FX are actually wonderful. Gainstaging is key on PL16, huge variety of sounds obtainable with drive etc. and even the master volume as it relates to LF Comp. Really wish for either a one-shot LFO option OR envelope to shape, or maybe even more velocity destinations. Arp also needs more than just 16th notes. But I think people underestimate the Prologue16, what with the previous tuning gate and all that. The onboard layering switches are absolutely vital for fast creating textures and pads. And even if not complex sounds, one can kinda cheat to create an 8-voice thing where LFO’s can be used for different oscillator etc. Last but not least the custom oscillators simply open a whole new world of fun, once you’re bored of the pure analog textures. And did I mention the filter sounds wild!? The orange phaser is awesome too.

EDIT: Custom tuning scales would also be a welcomed improvement

Ah yes. The front-panel switches for swapping layers on the P16 would be a much nicer experience I’m sure. It would frustrate the hell out of me to use the P8 for that.

Reporting another dead Prologue 8.
Since yesterday I can not turn on my Prologue. Bought my in february.

So many issues here, Korg. Really made in Japan?

I have the 8 voice and agree that the editing set up for layers is pretty confusing. It's very easy to wind up tweaking the wrong layer and get a bit lost - no doubt this is less of an issue with the inclusion of the switches on the 16 voice. However, I actually find it a very user friendly interface otherwise and I don't even mind the teeny weeny screen. It's certainly better than the 3 digit minimal approach of my OB6.

I've been using the mono voicing quite a lot, it gets you into some excellent gnarly MS20-esque territory. 1st time around I primarily approached it as a poly, this time I'm finding it has a lot of cool uses as a chunky mono - especially with the double sub osc option)))))). Lack of sequencer and the limited arp haven't bothered me at all since I use a DAW for that sort of thing. The digital osc is great but I get the feeling that even with the launch of the XD we're not going to see much more variation on what's already out there...

I do understand why some people might feel a little short changed if they bought it at the full whack release prices. I picked mine up second hand for £800 and feel that's about the right price for the 8 voice. It's definitely not a contender for your one "do-it-all" synth but as a characterful addition to other gear I think it's a winner. I have other gear that does the all rounder thing much better but maybe lacks the vibe of the Prologue - different tools for different jobs etc.

I'd also argue that it's very capable of doing both vintage and modern sounds but that all depends on what you consider "vintage".

Have you tried physically unplugging it from the mains socket, leaving it for 2 minutes and plugging it back in?

The Prologue has an auto-off feature (which everyone should turn off in the Global menu) which has caused many issues with power cycling so if you have that turned on, that’s probably the culprit.

Wow, KORG announce today that they will release an option LFO for prologue!
As I understand it will come as an extra module that you by your self can attach on the right side of your prologue.
Just remove the wood end gable and attach the new module there.
The price will be around 100 Euro.
This is fantastic news today!

Fantastic news for April the first

If you are good at remembering numbers, there is no problem.

Well, I am not exactly good at remembering 500 user patch numbers, like most people I know aren't. And by the way, each and every Prophet 6 owner I personally know, has a hard time swallowing this early 80s display format for the patches. To be honest, even my willingness, to accept such a display instead of patch names in 2019, is very close to zero. It's just not up to date, and not up to the required task one bit, and all that without ANY technical or financial obastacle preventing a much better and appropriate nowadays solution.

I love my Prophet 6, but I regard this design decision as quite a bizarre complete blackout from the Sequential team. It is one of two serious flaws, the other one being the incredible speaker harming burst when switching on the Prophet 6: that's just unprofessional crap in a device designed for professional use. I always have to remember to mute the Prophet 6 channel befor switching the synth on.

Bottom line: even fantastic synths like the Prophet 6 or Ob6 have some serious flaws to consider, when comparing them with synths like the Prologue (which has its own problem zones).