Massive Soundscape With A Korg Volca Keys

This video, via Metatron’s Cube, captures an massive ambient soundscape performance, Snow Drift.

It features Korg Volca Keys, with big help from the TC Electronic T2 & Transition pedals. 

Video notes:

Bundled in blankets, watching the snow drift past windows. Something for those in cold places. Keys time with some delay( TCE “the reel thing” tone print) and reverb (TCE “Interstellar” tone print). The stereo pedals that keep giving.

21 thoughts on “Massive Soundscape With A Korg Volca Keys

  1. What makes this sound big isn’t the Volca Keys, it’s the reverb. You can put whatever through so much reverb, it’ll sound not much different.

    1. Possibly, but it wouldn’t be this soundscape. I think you might be missing just how great of a little saw synth the Volca Keys is and I don’t think you’re alone. If it had an actual keyboard (or no keyboard at all) and sold for $299 I bet lots of folks would have a different opinion of it.

    2. Volca sounds great through the right gear, as with any guitar, voice, any instrument really. I think people all judged the Keys with the sterile environments synth-heads seem to expect as the norm. Plug one of these into a nice big set of speakers and you’ll be amazed at the comparison to a digital synth. The full vco waves are uncomprimised and they get right into the depths of ear, nice and meaty. People also criticize the Minilogue in the same way, tho I haven’t tried it yet to know it’s character.

      I looked hard comparing all the budget synths in the last few years and found my favourite one of them was the volca keys, that’s beating out the bass station minibrute and even the Minitaur. It has most in common with the ‘wooly’ sound of the Minitaur. It is not a ‘tight’ synth like some, but it is a very sponge-y and full-of-life synth. Turn it up loud and fill your house or venue with deep colorful waves of sound trust me…

  2. annnd here we go again … i’ll just copy and paste my comment from all the other videos about a huge soundscape from a cheap budget synth (by running it through several expensive high quality effects)

      1. granted. it’s not like the $20 garage sale toy synth through $2000 of eventide hardware. but there’s also the delay, at least another $100, and i think you have to pay for those presets? i’d say you’re looking at least twice the price of the volca in processing here.

    1. At least someone gets it 🙂

      It’s not like he was showing this as a demo of how great the Korg Volca is. It’s just awesome and that’s all that matters.

    2. Yeah it’s called “synthesis” and “sound design” and that TC Hall of Fame is one of those must have reverb pedals that I don’t have and dying to get my hands on.

  3. have to agree that this is less about the Volca Keys and more about the FX chain. Had a Volca Keys, found it to be okay, but certainly not in the Evolver, Slim Phatty, or Minibrute range of capabilities. Good little piece of equipment for $100 though, nothing really special. I think the Monotron sounds much more interesting.

    1. I also had one. I couldn’t agree more. It was nothing special. The lofi buzzy noise it maked renders it pretty useless comparatively. You can make great sounds with it or any instrument when you add effects, but as far as other applications you expect from a synth, the Volca Keys falls short. For the price you can’t go wrong, but once you start adding up al these cheap synths, you could have bought one that sounds great. Instead you have of a bunch of mediocre instruments that only shine through pedals, or buried in a mix.

  4. Very nice. I find the volca keys to be the gem of the line, it’s so versatile. I have all volcas except for the sample, and will definitely be getting the volca FM. And I will likely grab a couple more volca keys. For the price and footprint, it’s so worth it. The Bass is the weakest of the bunch, but still usable.

Leave a Reply to southpole Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *