(moving this part of the discussion to this thread where such discussion is on topic)
Given that Korg has released not one but two new Wavestate models and they plan to update the Modwave and OPSIX (according to the summary of the above video) we have enough information to re-evaluate the situation.
Roughly a year ago, Korg kicked off a fire sale for the OPSIX in the USA and marked the Wavestate as discontinued. Some sales people told customers that Korg complained about supply chain issues.
Putting all of this together, a likely sequencer of events is as follows:
- The Korg OPSIX / Wavestate / Modwave line met or exceeded Korg’s sales expectations. This was despite (or perhaps because) of the pandemic.
- At the same time, Korg encountered enough supply chain difficulties to discontinue the Mk1 models.
- Korg engineering was likely already planning on an alternative to the original Raspberry Pi Compute Modules that they used. Either they expected to upgrade to newer and more powerful CMs as they became available, or they wanted to decouple from Raspberry Pi and fab up their own ARM based SBC/SoC (Single Board Computer or System on a Chip).
- One year is a fast timeline to finalize a new iteration of a product, get it manufactured and then into the hands of retailers. It is likely that this was already in progress when Korg started the discontinuations last year.
Overall, I’m very pleased with these developments. I got a firesale OPSIX and a decent price on a used Wavestate from an Elektronaut. Both are excellent synths given what I paid. There are numerous ways in which they could be improved, but I’m far from dissatisfied. It is good to know that there will be more of these devices coming. While some people will be satisfied with plugins, I find the hardware to be superior to the VSTs and doubt that I’m alone. I’m satisfied with the light 37-key devices. It would be nice to have a keyless module version as an option without having to take a saw to my device, but keys can be convenient too. I probably won’t go for the larger SE versions, but once again I can see why people might want that.
These new devices imply that Korg is in good financial health and has been making solid strategic decisions through the pandemic. Say what you will about corporations, but Korg has been making great synths for decades. I hope everyone involved is rewarded with long and satisfying careers.
I’m not an insider at Korg or anywhere else in the industry. I’ve been building software for a long time, and have worked on a few hardware-adjacent projects. Most of the above is just low-speculation first principles reasoning. I’m skeptical and encourage you to be skeptical of claimed insiders offering information. People who actually know don’t usually say except via official channels, and people who do talk often know less than they think they do. Speculation is fun, but it looks like my assumptions of possibly poor financial health for Korg were unfounded.