Nu:Tekt NTS-1 Digital Synth Kit

Not sure what I can add to the mny glowing reviews the Korg NTS-1 has already received on this Amazon product page. The NTS-1 is a small, self-assembly synth with built-in effects engine giving you chorus, flanger, phaser, reverb and delay effects right out of the box. Putting together this little flat-pack marvel took around 20 minutes and it only took that long because I have rubbish eyes and was straining a little with some of the smaller screws and the placement of the keyboard ribbon. A small screwdriver is included in the package along with instructions and I don't think many people would struggle to make it. The only really scary bit is snapping the boards apart when you first start making it. I was worried I would damage something, but I needn't have worried. It was a relief though plugging it in and getting power - and sound. The only real issue I had, which was frustrating for half-an-hour or so, was my PCs inability to detect the NTS-1 when it was plugged into a USB port. I had already downloaded the Korg Librarian software and the updater. Seems that I had previously installed too many midi devices onto my PC and the Korg needed to be in the "top ten" of midi devices, so I had to uninstall some older Midi devices I no longer used. That sorted the problem, but it was pretty frustrating for a while. Once I'd got the synth hooked up to my headphones and Arturia Keystep via a TRS/Midi Cable (annoyingly not supplied) then I was blown away by the sound and range of this little marvel. Due to the size, you have to get used to using muti-function buttons, for instance, holding down certain buttons and turning knob A or B, gives you more options than simply just twiddling those knobs. The ribbon keyboard is pretty dire, but I never expected it to be great, but you can easily play it with a stylus rather than fingers. The Arp works brilliantly with multi play modes available. There is a single digital oscillator and multiple mode filter with high, low and band pass options, plus three LFO types. While I love the sound of this little synth, for me, the icing on the cake and the main reason for purchase was the on-board effects. They sound stunning and the beauty of the NTS-1 is the ability to route external hardware through the box, so you can use other external synths with the effects. And, there's more, there's a thriving community of enthusiasts who have created custom oscillators and effects that can be loaded onto the NTS-1 via the aforementioned Librarian software. Some are paid for, some ask for donations and some are totally free. This makes a brilliant products even more brilliant. As my review heading states, this Korg seems too good to be true, it really is one of those rare products that comes along and blows all its competitors out of the water. For around £80 you can get a multi effects pedal/engine and a brilliant mono synth with arp, with the ability to load literally hundreds effects and oscillators! I'd give this ten stars if I could. Buy. One. Now.

It’s 2021, the silicon shortage is still impacting all areas and you can’t buy a graphics card or a car for a sensible price. Not a great year. The Korg NTS-1 has been out for a couple of years now but what’s remarkable is it’s still available for its original retail price. Buy one now before it goes up in price or becomes available. What you get for the price is almost unbelievable. Yes you build it (screw it together, no soldering required) yourself. Yes it’s monophonic. Yes it’s digital. Yes it looks like a toy with its skeletal design and tiny ribbon keyboard. But none of that matters. What you’re buying is an expandable, open-sourced synthesiser with a phenomenal effects unit capable of processing external audio, possibly making it the audio bargain of the decade. Thanks to the open-source design the downloadable librarian software allows you add new third-party oscillators, modulators, delays and reverbs, and if that’s not enough you can create your own. Out of the box and powered up for the first time it sounds like it looks. As basic as a square wave. And then moments later you’re listening to a rich, expansive sound that belies its looks and price. It’s far more fully featured than you’d guess with a comprehensive MIDI implementation allowing external parameter control via CC. It only features a single MIDI-IN via 3.5mm jack but this is sufficient for a sound module at the end of a chain. Sync-in and out ports are present for compatibility with analogue equipment and it’s an obvious choice for any Volca owner. There’s a micro-USB port for power and unlike the Volcas there’s no provision for batteries so you’ll need a USB power bank, USB 5v mains adapter/charger or a computer. The USB port allows uploading/downloading sounds and effects, as mentioned, but it also acts as a USB MIDI interface alongside the 3.5mm input socket. No USB audio I/O but that’s not a problem. As a stand-alone device it’s a capable monophonic synth with great effects which absolutely transform and lift the sound, but it’s big selling point for many will be that effects section. I’ve already mentioned the Korg Volca series a couple of times but the NTS-1 is a no-brainer for any Volca owner, especially the Volca Keys. It works with any audio souce though and there are a range of input attenuation settings available in the global options, just another example of how feature-packed the NTS-1 is. It’s a steal at the price.

Good things come in small packages & this tiny, but powerful monophonic synthesizer by korg, certainly lives up to that saying. It's worth buying, purely for it's filter and effects, which you can access with an 'audio in' 3.5mm socket and plug any headphone level audio into. The synth itself is far from shabby, It boasts an arpeggiator & the sounds you can conjure up with this are bassy, clear and limited only by your imagination. It comes as a kit, but it's extremely easy, if a little fiddly, (tiny screws..), to assemble. No soldering required and the only scary bit is splitting the circuit boards. (a straight edge like the edge of a book helps a lot). My only criticism of the whole package, concerns the 'free' software package thats bundled with the hardware. It entails opening several 3rd party web accounts, downloading several "authorisers/installer" programs, and jumping through many, many, VERY irritating hoops, in order to use the plug ins, and software synths within your DAW. I actually gave up.. and won't care if I never hear the words 'izotope', 'iLOK' or 'UVI' in my life ever again.. (As 'security' goes, they seem to be the single most effective way of ensuring that NOBODY uses the software they're supposed to be protecting, EVER..). That said..., I'd have been quite happy without the software anyway, so color me happy. :) My advice to anyone buying this great little synth is to pick out the card bearing a serial number, and the offer of the free software, ....and frisbee it into oblivion. You'll save yourself a lot of frustration, and there are many better, free.., software synths out there anyway. (Check out 'Vita' as an example). Concentrate on the actual hardware you bought, and you'll have fun with it. All in all, a great purchase, of a satisfying little music making synth.

It’s an interesting concept. It’s sort of DIY but not really. You do have to partially assemble it, nothing too taxing, you are really only building the case and pushing the two sets of PCB connectors together. It doesn’t take long and is not very difficult although sticking down the tiny keyboard is nerve racking. YouTube videos are available. It has no internal battery, nor any battery housing so it has to be powered via micro usb. It comes with a short inflexible cable just to be annoying. Out of the box the onboard sounds are initially exciting but extremely limited. More interesting are the ones you can add to NTS-1 that have been made by the community. To access them you have to install Korg’s software, which requires registration etc. Once you do that, there is a list of ‘units’ on Korg’s website with links. A lot are free or chose your own donation, some are paid for ( with extremely optimistic pricing ). Most are hosted on GitHub, you need the files with .unit in their name. You use the Korg librarian app to add them to the NTS-1. You can also download the SDK if you are competant at coding in C or C++ and compile your own. Using it whilst plugged into a computer has on occasion introduced additional unwanted noise to audio signal, so I only use the computer usb to transfer .units to it, and power it via a usb wall plug. This highlights further how annoyingly short and inflexible the included cable is. Another annoying quirk is that it is set to power off as default so you have to access the power setting mode to turn off this feature. Google it for specifics on how to do this. It’s not hard to do. Once you have done all of that set up the fun begins. This little box is capable of producing sounds that usually only come on bigger synths and cost considerably more. I think it’s a bargain and I have had more fun using it than I do using a pocket operator. Although using them together you can get some nice crunchy drum sounds. I find the keyboard too small for my fingers, it’s too easy to hit multiple notes, so I don’t play it directly but use a midi device to trigger it. If you are still reading this you probably should get one.

I bought the NTS to try and find out what synths are about. It’s easy to assemble and once you’re used to the abbreviations on the LED easy to muddle through, sit, twiddle and work things out! The Korg install software is easy, no problem. I’ve downloaded, a few 3rd party oscillators and modulation effects. They can be difficult to find and load but It’s a learning curve, I’ve got a dozen or so of each now. Most of the oscillators are fantastic but I found the factory default, Waves, a bit quite. However I discovered the Waves Edit mode, it’s not mentioned in the manual, odd. Select Waves hold down osc, and you’re in Edit. Play around, get some great effects. Unfortunately these are lost when you power down. I wired it up to my guitar amp via the headphone jack, awesome! I play along with the arp running as a drone. I’ve a "few" guitar pedals and the effect here are comparable, pretty good and suit the synth. The keyboard works well enough to demo the sounds, but something more substantial is needed. A Utube vid shows connection to an Iphone/ipad with an Apple lightening to USB connector. I’ve done it, It works. BUT only with the Apple version, the cheap copycats are NOT the same, I know, I’ve tried. I'm happy with the build quality, I’m not taking it anywhere and I think it good enough for desk top. That said I do think the jacks a bit flimsy and will invest in some short extension leads which will stay in place. I have a 3rd party front end loaded on my laptop, a great GUI, but frequently locks up both the app and the Korg, a bit scary, however it can store settings. If only Korg could do one, that would be great. Doug

Simply, this is the most synth you can buy with the least money, even when compared to some of Behringer's budget gear. I've been messing about with synthesizers for 25 years and I'm blown away by the quality of the Nts-1 for the price. Amongst other studio gear I like to this of it as an excellent effects unit with a fun, customisable digital synth thrown in. The Nts-1 is great fun and hugely versatile courtesy of the uploadable content. Also, no-one should be put off by the simple assembly, though good eyesight is an advantage for working with the tiny screws (the kit even comes with a screwdriver).

So firstly, a little context- I'm a very average guitar player and would not describe myself as a musician. I bought this to play around with, have some musical fun and to try to make some very basic music for my audio mini documentaries. I also have the Korg Volca sample and thought this might pair well. The assembly is a tiny bit fiddly, mostly because the screws are tiny, better to use a longer, higher quality screwdriver than the included one, and you need to take care with the screws as they are quite soft and the heads strip easily. That being said, and using a video instead of the included instructions, it was pretty straightforward to assemble. I've been using youtube demos to learn more about the possibilities and this unit can do so much if you add a midi controller and download some of the software addons. So, a very affordable, versatile and tiny beginner synth which I think can grow a little with you.

The performance of this device is great. Really good quality and easy to assemble with good instructions to assist with the build. There are so many sonic capabilities you can explore with this by using it as both an fx system that you can plug other things into or even as a stand alone unit for exploring synthesis and sound design. The real beauty of it is how portable it is. It’s easy to take everywhere with you. I wish you could put batteries in it though so you didn’t have to have a power bank with you all the time on your travels but that really is a minor niggle for such an amazing sounding and powerful device. I wouldn’t hesitate in purchasing. It’s perfect for both beginners and more advanced musicians too because there really is so much you can do with it. I imagine for a total beginner it could be a little challenging to get your head around initially, but once you get there it will be insanely rewarding.

Excelente artículo pero llego con un pequeño corte en la cinta del circuito eléctrico de las teclas . No me quejo del producto ni de la paquetería ni de l entrega pero tuve la de malas que me toco a mi esa pieza . Me di cuenta cuando arme todo el kit y no sonó . Pido mi reembolso o el cambio por otro igual pero ya sin pieza defectuosa . Mi conclusión es que no duden en comprar pero chequenlo bien antes de armarlo

A lot of fun and sound in this little synth. Great for a beginner, I would recommend getting a midi adapter though and using it with a keyboard. The keyboard strip is not the best way to play it, but will do in a pinch.

Este cacharrín es una pequeña maravilla que puede dar mucha vida a tu setup DAWless, a otros sintes, cajas de ritmo o incluso tu guitarra eléctrica. Tiene una entrada de audio estereo de 3.5mm y puedes poner efectos de reverb, delay y modulación a lo que quieras, y aplicar los 3 de forma simultánea. Es muy divertido de usar. Y por si fuera poco, hay muchos efectos de terceros que puedes meter a través del software de KORG. Recomiendo mucho el Cathedral Reverb. Aparte de eso es un sintetizador digital monofónico y tiene bastantes posibilidades para sacar sonidos interesantes. Y al igual que con los efectos, puedes añadir osciladores de terceros gracias a su entorno de desarrollo opensource llamado logueSDK Me lo compré para añadir efectos a un volca sample2 y por añadir otro sonido de sinte. Pero también lo veo como un punto de entrada muy interesante para aprender programación DSP y crear efectos y osciladores custom. Divertido, compacto y con un sonido genial, lo recomiendo al 200%

L'ho acquistato perché di buona marca e dai video che ho visto mi ha colpito il suono, poi è anche piuttosto economico rispetto a tanti altri. Ebbene, la possibilità di creare suoni è davvero vastissima, alcuni inimmaginabili... e l'ho provata poco ma ho visto i pregi. Purtroppo (è per fortuna!) uscirà a brevissimo un modello più avanzato, per cui l'ho resa e acquisterò l'altra che è più completa, funzioni extra ed inoltre l'uscita MIDI. L'unica nota dolente dell'nts è che non è possibile salvare i pattern, una volta spenta è tutto perso. Certo, a meno che non ci si segni i vari percorsi ogni volta che si va in esplorazione... ma diventa un po' macchinoso e noioso. Però è fattibile. Oppure un esperto creatore di suoni. Questa lacuna sarà dovuta probabilmente ad una strategia di marketing, venderla come una sorta di "tester" come un profumo... se poi interessa si compra tutta la boccetta (magari qualcosa di più grosso). Cmq buon prodotto, anche nell'estetica, è affascinante. E i materiali, nonostante sia da assemblare, sono molto buoni. Insomma il marchio Korg è sempre una garanzia.

Etant un piètre bricoleur, je craignais un peu le montage de ce Korg NTS-1. C'est finalement très facile, et si j'y arrive, n'importe qui peut y arriver. Il n'y a que quelques pièces à monter, et si on suit attentivement la notice, rien de compliqué, le plus délicat étant la séparation des pièces et la pose du clavier autocollant. Le reste est affaire de vissage. Les fonctionnalités reprennent la partie "MULTI-ENGINE" des Korg Prologue et Minilogue XD. Les paramètres de bases (Shape, cutoff, résonnance ainsi que LFO) sont présents et fonctionnent parfaitement. Il propose plusieurs types de formes d'onde, SAW, SQUARE, TRIANGLE et VPM, et sur certaines, le potard B offrira un SUB pour alourdir le son. On peut y ajouter également des oscillateurs externes (USER) disponibles sur Internet à l'aide d'une prise MIDI (non fournie). Attention, il n'y a qu'un MIDI-IN, et pas de MIDI-OUT. Et si on ne peut pas sauvegarder ses sons, il existe un éditeur VST dédié au NTS-1 qui permet de le faire (je ne l'ai toutefois pas encore testé). On retrouve également dans la machine un arpeggiateur ainsi que des effets : de la modulation (Chorus, Ensemble, Phaser et Flanger), mais aussi des delays (stereo, mono, ping-pong) et des reverbs. Contrairement au Prologue, on peut combiner delay ET reverb. Les différentes reverbs comportent entre autre les fameuses "Submarine" et "Riser" qui sont tout simplement spectaculaires. Si on alimente le NTS-1 avec le câble USB branché dans un PC, le synthé va générer des bruits parasites assez forts qui empêcheront de travailler correctement. Mais à l'aide d'une batterie externe (voir photo), les bruits parasites disparaissent. Branché dans une carte son et sur des moniteurs de studio, on ne peut pas imaginer la taille de cet appareil tant il sonne bien ! La qualité est là et bien là. C'est bien plus qu'un simple gadget. Le NTS-1 est monophonique, ce qui signifie que vous ne pourrez jouer qu'une seule note à la fois. Ne comptez toutefois pas sur le clavier pour vous amuser. Il n'est pas fiable et pas précis. Pour tirer tout le parti du NTS-1, procurez-vous un câble MIDI et utilisez un clavier maître externe. Vraiment un très chouette petit synthé qui tient dans la paume de la main. Je suis ravi de mon achat.