Korg Polysix

The Korg Polysix is a six voice programmable polyphonic analog synthesizer released by Korg in 1981.

Features

The synthesizer's main features are six-voice polyphony (with unison and chord memory voice assignment modes), 32 memory slots for patches and cassette port for backing up patches, and an arpeggiator.

On its release it was, along with the Roland Juno 6 which was released around the same time, one of the first times a polyphonic analog synthesizer was available at a cost effective price 'for the masses'. It cost about twice as much as the competing Juno 6 but had far more features and 'real' VCOs in place of the Juno's DCOs. It also had on-board patch storage and back up which the cheaper Juno lacked until the upgraded Juno 60 model.

Korg developed the Polysix with an eye on the Sequential Circuits Prophet 5, trying to provide some of the features found on the more expensive synth in a compact, reliable and much cheaper design. While not as powerful, it used SSM2044 4-pole voltage-controlled filters, giving the Polysix a warm, rounded and organic sound.