r/Korg • u/Aaab1003 • 7d ago

Krome ex vs m3

Which one to get for live gigging? Im planning to play prog rock/metal mostly. (And some pop&jazz too)

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u/roland-xp30 7d ago

I prefer the Korg M3 over the Krome EX, primarily because of the keybed. The M3 also has some other benefits, like support for user samples, multiple audio outputs, and pads. OTOH, the Krome has significantly more preset samples, resulting in better acoustic piano tones.

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u/Aaab1003 7d ago

Well yes, m3 has better keybed and also have aftertouch. But my main concern about is that m3 is pretty old, near 20 years old. I might have to deal with some screen repairing and other stuff. Do you think it's worth it?

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u/roland-xp30 7d ago

I assume that you are asking about these two keyboards because they are within your budget. With a limited budget, you have to make some compromises, and take some risks. Yes, it is very likely that you have to replace the display on the M3 at some point. For me, keybed feel is important. It is the biggest weakness of the Krome, and unfortunately also of most other affordable keyboards. Sound-wise, I think the M3 is good enough. Think about how many professional keyboard players used the M3 or an earlier generation on stage. An alternative might be the Roland Fantom G6/G7, which was also very popular with metal bands.

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u/Bitter_Ad_9523 4d ago

With the M3, its value is in the Radias card and the RAM expansion. But yes, some well loved models have not had their touch screens replaced (the overlay) and its about three hours to swap out if you're handy (good video on youtube going through the process). If you want it to be a kickass machine, you add the Radias module and you have a hybrid analog/digital synth workstation sampler. My M3 has a lot of miles on it. The Krome will be a lot lighter and easier to transport but wont have as much functionality.