Monday 2 March 2015

Korg Mini Pops 7

The Mini Pops 7 was Korg's (Keio's) flagship Mini Pops.
It was also manufactured under the names Univox SR-95 & The Contessa Mini Pops.
The year was 1966.
The Univox SR-95 is virtually identical to the MP7, except that the Rimshot is not present and the Beguine rhythm also sounds different.
This is the Jean-Michel Jarre OXYGENE machine.
If you are looking for the original OXYGENE grooves, you can not get them without the Minipops 7

There are a total of 20 rhythms. The 10 rhythm white keys are assigned twice via the two pole selector switch on the right.
The top rhythms are: Waltz, Samba,Mambo,Rumba,Tango, Bossanova, Rock 1, Rock 2,  March 2/4 & swing.
The lower rhythms are :JAZZ WALTZ, MERINGUE, CHA-CHA, BEGUINE, HABANERA, SLOW ROCK, ROCK2, ROCK4, MARCH6/8, LATIN SWING
The rhythms can be combined with each other to create new patterns. This is how Jean-Michel Jarre created the rhythm for Oxygene, Part II.

The MP7 is the only model that offers all the 15 different drum sounds.
These are produced using inductors.... making this little drum very difficult to clone.
 I think the tonal variety in this machine is very impressive.
The sounds are: Bass, Snare 1, Snare 2, Rimshot, High-Hat, Cymbal 1, Cymbal 2, Cowbell, Conga, Large Bongo, Small Bongo, Claves, Quijada, Guiro, Tambourine.


I especially like the three distinct sounds Quijada ,Tambourine and Guiro.
These give it loads of character.
You can also mix these sounds with their own faders. This is rare a feature.
 Roland's CR-78 has a similar mixer.

For stage use , the device can also be set up vertically - The bottom has a carrying handle which can be flipped open .

The underside of the MP 7

Sadly the outputs are limited to just high & low impedence. But there are plenty of mods on the internet that describe how to obtain outs for each voice.

Inside the machine there are also lots of trimmer resistors which allow tweaking of the individual drum sounds.

Rhythmus - this is a free VST plug in that was inspired by the MP7
 
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For more info on the history of Korg Drum Machines Click Here

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