Korg M1

• Synth Name — M1 • Synth Manufacturer — Korg • Synthesis Type — Digital sample-based subtractive • Polyphony — 16 voices, 16 oscillators • Timbrality — 8 part • Oscillator — 16 oscillators, 16-bit 2 Mword (4 MB) PCM waveform ROM (100 multisounds + 44 drum sounds) • Filter — VDF (variable digital filter), low-pass velocity-sensitive (non-resonant) • Attenuator — 3 independent AADBSSRR envelope generators • Left Control — Spring-return joystick (pitch and modulation) • Keyboard — 61 keys (Yamaha FS keybed) • Velocity — Yes • Aftertouch — Yes • Memory — 100 programs / 100 combinations / 4400 sequencer notes or 50 programs / 50 combinations / 7700 sequencer notes depending on global settings, and 10 songs + 100 patterns • Ext Control — MIDI IN/OUT/THRU • Connectors — Headphones (stereo jack 6.5 mm), 1/L, 2/R, 3, 4 (mono jack 6.5 mm), damper pedal, assignable footswitch pedals 1/2. • Display — Backlit LCD (40 characters × 2 lines) • Fx — Reverb, delay, phaser, tremolo, exciter, ensemble, overdrive, EQ, chorus, flanger, rotary speaker • Dimensions — 1058 × 356 × 110 mm • Mass — 13,5 kg • Power Consumption — 11W • Dates — 1988–1995 • Price — US$2,166 est. street (1988)/$2,749 MSRP (1990) £1,499 ¥248,000

Korg's chief engineer, Junichi Ikeuchi, led the hardware engineering design of the M1. Whereas many previous synthesizers had shipped with sounds chosen for different markets, the Korg chairman, Tsutomu Kato, and his son, Seiki, decided that their synthesizers should use the same sounds internationally. Korg assembled an international team to develop the sounds. To create a deep blown bottle sound, the team played a pan flute over a large sake bottle.

The M1 features a 61-note velocity- and aftertouch-sensitive keyboard, 16-note polyphony, a joystick for pitch-bend and modulation control, an eight-track MIDI sequencer, separate LFOs for vibrato and filter modulation, and ADSR envelopes. Data can be stored on RAM and PCM cards. The M1 has a ROM with four megabytes of 16-bit PCM tones — a large amount at the time — including instruments that had not been used extensively in mainstream music. The sounds include sampled attack transients, loops, sustained waveforms and percussive samples. The timbres include piano, strings, acoustic guitar, woodwinds, sitar, kalimba, wind chimes, and drums. Fact described the sounds as "wonderfully, endearingly wonky... each one managed to sound simultaneously realistic and synthetic all at once". The M1 also features effects, including reverb, delay, chorus, tremolo, EQ, distortion, and Leslie simulation, an innovative inclusion at the time. According to Sound on Sound, none of the M1's features was unique, but each was implemented and combined in a new way.

Korg M01 Following the success of the M1, Korg released several new workstations, including the T-series in 1989, the 01-series in 1991, the X-series in 1993, and the N-series in 1996. The 01/W built upon the M1 AI synthesis with the enhanced AI2 system, which introduced additional effects and digital waveshaping. Rack-mountable versions of the M1 include the M1R and the more affordable M3R. Additionally, Korg released the M1EX and the M1REX rackmount, both featuring sounds from the T-series. In 2005, Korg released a software version of the M1 as part of the Korg Legacy Collection. This digital version features 8-part multitimbrality, 256-note polyphony and presets from all 19 optional ROM cards. In December 2010, another software version, Korg M01, was released for the Nintendo DS handheld game console. It was developed by AQ Interactive and featured 8-part multitimbrality, 12-note polyphony, and the 300 original M1 PCM sounds.