K-Station complete reset
This is in three parts. Firstly, the factory OS needs to be reloaded, and then the sound banks will have to be restored from ROM. Please note that it is unlikely that the factory OS should ever need to be restored. Any problems which require a “reset” can usually be overcome by restoring the global data and/or the sound banks 1&2.
K-Station Factory installed OS Restore
Turn on with buttons 8, 9 and 0 held down. The screen should show “Original OS?” for factory OS. Press the write button twice to restore the OS.
K-Station Bank Restore
For a K-Station to be completely reset, Bank 1, Bank 2 and the Global data need to be restored individually - there is no total data restore. The init banks 3&4 are not stored in the K-Station ROM. When restoring banks of factory programs, the program entered before the utility menu was entered selects the bank the restore will go to - i.e. if program 152 was selected, B1 or B2 will be restored to Bank 1. Select Program 100.
Enter the Global mode and ensure that the memory protect is turned off. Enter the utility menu and find the restore page. The options are “1 Program, 1 bank, and Global D” Select 1 bank as the option to be restored. Press the write button. The screen will show rest ? B1
K-Station Global Data Restore
Enter the utility menu and find the restore page. With Global D selected, press the write button twice to restore the global data. The K-Station will restore the global data. This will automatically write protect the K-Station, as this is one of the restored global settings.
My K-Station arpeggiator is not running
Check the Clock Source (seventh page of the global menu). If this is set to “ext” for external, ensure that the K-Station is receiving MIDI clock. Check that the arp on LED is lit. See page 35 in the K-Station manual for full details on MIDI Clock source and MIDI Clock Input Status.
My K-Station vocoder does not work
If the vocoder is being used with a microphone double check that the input sensitivity has been switched from “LIN” (Line Level, the factory default) to “MIC”. This is the correct sensitivity for a microphone or for a guitar. Next, adjust the audio input trim for the best signal level. Open one of the vocoder presets - 259, 269 or 279 - and play notes on the K-Station at the same time as talking or singing into the mic. The vocoder effect should be audible. For more information on the input sensitivity and input, trim see page 36 in the K-Station manual.
How do I upload sounds to the K-station?
To load the sound bank into the K-station, you'll first need the following software:
- If you are on a PC, you'll need MIDI-OX (http://www.midiox.com/)
- If you are on a Mac, you'll need SysEx Librarian (http://www.snoize.com/SysExLibrarian/)
You'll also need a midi interface. Connect the midi out of your interface to the midi in of the k-station.
For Mac
Connect your K-station, open up SysEx Librarian, make sure your midi interface is selected at the top, then drag the .syx file into SysEx Librarian.
Select that file, make sure your K-station has memory protect set to off and then hit 'Play'. You should see it uploading onto the K-station.
For Windows
Connect your K-station, open MIDI-OX and make sure that your midi interface is selected in Option > MIDI Devices. Click OK.
Make sure your K-station has memory protect set to off.
Now go to View > SysEx… Then click File > Send SysEx File. Choose the file.
You should see it uploading onto the K-station.
If you are sending a single sound to the K-station, it will only be saved to the rack's RAM, therefore you need to go to 'global' then press 'write' for it to save permanently. If you are sending an entire bank, then it will automatically be saved in the K-station internal memory.
How to use the External input of the K-Station/KS Synth
In the “env's” menu on the K Station, you can set the audio input to trigger the envelopes using the 'ENV Aud Trig' option. If you then increase the level of the external input in the mixer section on the synth you will be able to combine the external input and the synth sound.
Alternatively, also in the “env's” menu, you can choose to send the external input straight to the effects section of the synth using the 'ENV In to FX' option.
You can set the external input sensitivity to Mic or Line level in the “Global” menu, where you will also find a trim control.
On the K-Station, how can a parameter of a stored program be displayed?
There is a bar graph that is displayed next to a parameter name. When this bar graph occupies the most screen space, the original value has been found. Alternatively, turn the local control off. This stops the K-Station from responding to its front panel directly. Instead, any changes you make are transmitted as MIDI messages. Usually, the local control is turned off to enable a MIDI device to be used in a full MIDI loop with a sequencer - it avoids a unit from receiving two change messages, one directly and one via MIDI
However, if you set the K-Station local control to off and do not route generated MIDI data back into the K-Station, then when you make a change from the front panel, the stored parameter value will be displayed. Remember to turn the local control back on once you have seen all the values you need, otherwise you will not be able to control the K-Station properly - you will not be able to change patches for example. See page 35 in the K-Station manual for full details on local control.
How to check the current operating system on my K-Station
The latest OS version for the K-Station is OS2.1.01. To check to see which version of OS is installed in a K-Station, power the K-Station up while holding down the number 5 button. The screen will show K-Station 2.1.01 if OS 2.1.01 is already installed. If it is not, this OS can be downloaded and installed using the files found on the K-Station downloads page.
With local off, the K-Station synthesiser can still be played by the keyboard
Check the version of the operating system installed in the K-Station (power the K-Station up while holding down the number 5 button). Update the operating system if this is not OS2.1.01.
K-Station doesn't respond to its front panel controls
The local control has been turned off and the K-Station is not being used in a complete MIDI loop. Check the sixth page in the global menu. This must-read Local Cntrol ON for the K-Station to respond to its own keyboard and controls unless there is a complete MIDI loop.
K-Station OS update has not worked. Screen is showing: 'PA Er.'
The K Station is showing a 'Packet Error' on the screen to show it has received a packet error during the data transmission. If this happens, the OS isn't uploaded to the K-Station's flash memory.
Switch off your K-Station and try again. If this happens repeatedly, try using a SysEx application to send the OS to the synth.
SysEx Librarian for Mac (snoize.com) and MIDI-OX for PC (midiox.com) are both free to download and will reliably send data to your K-Station. The latest OS is available in SysEx format from the downloads section of our website.
When using SysEx Librarian, ensure the synth is connected and ready to receive the OS before starting the program. In SysEx Librarian, select the relevant MIDI output from the 'destination' drop-down menu, click on 'Add…' and select the OS file to send to the synth. To send the data, click 'play'.
In MIDI-OX, make sure the synth is connected and ready to receive the OS before starting the program. In MIDI-OX, select 'SysEx…' from the 'view' menu to open the SysEx scratch pad window. In the SysEx scratch pad window, select 'load file…' from the 'command window' menu and select the OS file to send to the synth.
To send the data, click 'send SysEx file…' from the 'file' menu.
In MIDI-OX, you can increase the SysEx buffer size by selecting 'configure buffers…' from the 'options' menu. If you continue to get packet errors when using MIDI-OX, double the buffer size until the OS update completes.
When the octave buttons on my K-Station are pressed, a note gets stuck
This is not a fault with the K-Station. The K-Station has an option in the global menu “<> Kill”. If this is set to OFF, any notes which are played when the octave buttons are pressed will not be killed. This is a useful performance feature that allows a bass note to be held and a solo to be played from a higher octave on top of this note. This feature can be disabled if desired by setting <> Kill to ON.
With <> Kill set to OFF, hanging notes can be cancelled by switching back to the former octave and re-playing the same notes. As a safety note, when in this mode, all notes may also be turned off by pressing the PROGRAM button.