Piano EffectKorg Pa: the voice and the effects for each genre
Which kind of voice to pick and which effects to put on it on your Korg Pa to get the keyboard sound of gospel, neo soul, worship, jazz, lo-fi, synthwave or cumbia. It works for Pa600, Pa700, Pa900, Pa1000, Pa4X and Pa5X.
Where the effects are
On the Pa series, each sound sends to the master effects — usually one reverb and one modulation effect (chorus, delay…) — with a send level set in the mixer; the higher-end models add per-sound insert effects, which is where tremolo, rotary or drive go.
Table by genre
| Genre | Recipe | Voice to look for | Effects on the Pa |
|---|---|---|---|
| Salsa | Salsa montuno | Piano | Compressor + Reverb Room · 0.9 s |
| Salsa | Bright salsa piano | Piano | Reverb Plate · 1.3 s |
| Cumbia | Cumbia organ | Organ | Rotary Speaker slow + Reverb Room · 0.9 s |
| Cumbia | Cumbia sonidera | Synth Lead / Synth | Chorus · 0.6 Hz + Delay · 500 ms + Reverb Hall · 2 s |
| Cumbia | Cumbia accordion (synth) | Organ | Tremolo · 5.5 Hz + Reverb Room · 0.8 s |
| Bachata | Bachata piano | Piano | Chorus · 0.4 Hz + Reverb Hall · 2.2 s |
| Bachata | Bachata strings | Synth Pad | Chorus · 0.5 Hz + Reverb Hall · 2.8 s |
| Merengue | Merengue piano | Piano | Compressor + Reverb Room · 0.8 s |
| Banda | Banda brass (synth) | Synth Lead / Synth | Chorus · 0.5 Hz + Reverb Room · 1.4 s |
| Norteño | Norteño accordion (organ) | Organ | Tremolo · 6 Hz + Reverb Room · 0.8 s |
| Norteño | Norteño keyboard | Organ (drawbar / jazz) | Rotary Speaker slow + Reverb Room · 1 s |
| Grupero | 90s grupero keyboard | E.Piano (DX / FM-style) | Chorus · 0.5 Hz + Delay · 380 ms + Reverb Hall · 2.4 s |
| Grupero | Grupero electric piano | E.Piano (Rhodes-style) | Chorus · 0.7 Hz + Reverb Hall · 2.2 s |
| Duranguense | Duranguense keyboard | Synth Lead / Synth | Chorus · 0.5 Hz + Delay · 250 ms + Reverb Room · 1.2 s |
| Tejano | Tejano organ | Organ | Chorus · 0.6 Hz + Reverb Room · 1.2 s |
| Bolero | Bolero piano | Piano | Reverb Hall · 2 s |
| Bolero | Bolero organ | Organ | Rotary Speaker slow + Reverb Hall · 1.8 s |
| Ballad | Romantic ballad | E.Piano (DX / FM-style) | Chorus · 0.6 Hz + Reverb Hall · 2.6 s |
| Piano blues | Bar-room blues piano | Piano | Overdrive / Amp Sim light + Reverb Room · 1 s |
| Piano blues | Blues Rhodes with tremolo | E.Piano (Rhodes-style) | Tremolo · 4.5 Hz + Reverb Room · 1.2 s |
| Piano blues | Blues Wurlitzer | E.Piano (Wurli-style) | Overdrive / Amp Sim medium + Tremolo · 5 Hz + Reverb Room · 1 s |
| Jazz | Jazz club piano | Piano | Reverb Room · 0.9 s |
| Jazz | Jazz Rhodes | E.Piano (Rhodes-style) | Chorus · 0.4 Hz + Reverb Plate · 1.6 s |
| Jazz | Jazz organ (B3) | Organ (drawbar / jazz) | Overdrive / Amp Sim medium + Rotary Speaker slow + Reverb Room · 1 s |
| Bossa nova | Bossa nova Rhodes | E.Piano (Rhodes-style) | Chorus · 0.5 Hz + Reverb Plate · 1.8 s |
| Bossa nova | Bossa piano | Piano | Compressor + Reverb Hall · 1.8 s |
| Gospel | Gospel organ | Organ (drawbar / jazz) | Overdrive / Amp Sim medium + Rotary Speaker fast + Reverb Hall · 2.2 s |
| Neo soul | Neo soul Rhodes | E.Piano (Rhodes-style) | Overdrive / Amp Sim light + Tremolo · 3.8 Hz + Chorus · 0.35 Hz + Reverb Plate · 1.4 s |
| Worship | Worship pad | Synth Pad | Chorus · 0.3 Hz + Delay · 450 ms + Reverb Hall · 4 s |
| Worship | Worship piano | Piano | Compressor + Reverb Hall · 2.6 s |
| 80s pop | Eighties electric piano | E.Piano (DX / FM-style) | Chorus · 0.7 Hz + Delay · 375 ms + Reverb Hall · 2.4 s |
| 80s pop | Eighties pad | Synth Pad | Chorus · 0.4 Hz + Reverb Hall · 3.5 s |
| Pop | Pop piano | Piano | Compressor + Reverb Plate · 1.6 s |
| Rock | Rock organ | Organ (drawbar / jazz) | Overdrive / Amp Sim heavy + Rotary Speaker fast + Reverb Room · 1 s |
| Rock | Seventies phaser piano | E.Piano (Rhodes-style) | Phaser · 0.4 Hz + Reverb Room · 1.2 s |
| Reggaeton | Reggaeton pluck | Synth | Delay · 316 ms + Reverb Plate · 1.4 s |
| Funk | Funk clavinet | E.Piano / Clav | Compressor + Phaser · 0.5 Hz + Reverb Room · 0.7 s |
| Lo-fi | Lo-fi piano | Piano | Overdrive / Amp Sim light + Chorus · 0.25 Hz + Reverb Room · 1 s |
| Lo-fi | Lo-fi Rhodes | E.Piano (Rhodes-style) | Overdrive / Amp Sim light + Chorus · 0.3 Hz + Reverb Room · 1.2 s |
| Synthwave | Synthwave pad | Synth Pad | Chorus · 0.5 Hz + Delay · 450 ms + Reverb Hall · 3.2 s |
| Synthwave | Synthwave lead | Synth Lead / Synth | Chorus · 0.6 Hz + Delay · 450 ms + Reverb Hall · 2.4 s |
Menu and effect-type names change between models and firmware versions: if you can't find one, look for the closest in your keyboard's manual. There are no voice numbers here because we have not checked them model by model. Each recipe has all its values (mix, feedback, predelay…) on its page.
The song you want
The recipes are starting points by genre. For the sound of a specific song, scan it with Piano Effect: in 10–30 seconds it tells you the timbre and the effects with their measured values, and you carry them over to your Pa with this table of names.
Android: get it on Google Play
Frequently asked questions
How do I get a gospel organ on a Pa?
Pick a Organ (drawbar / jazz) voice and set: Overdrive / Amp Sim medium + Rotary Speaker fast + Reverb Hall · 2.2 s. All the values in its recipe.
What is the Leslie called on a Pa?
"Rotary Speaker". Slow for comping (≈ 0.8 Hz) and fast for the build-ups (≈ 6.7 Hz).
And the neo soul Rhodes?
A E.Piano (Rhodes-style) voice with Overdrive / Amp Sim light + Tremolo · 3.8 Hz + Chorus · 0.35 Hz + Reverb Plate · 1.4 s. If your keyboard shows tremolo rate as 0–127 instead of Hz, set it by ear against the sound in the app.
Does Piano Effect connect to my Pa?
Over USB MIDI, your keyboard plays the app's sounds with your own hands, velocity and sustain pedal included. Loading the keyboard's own sound and writing effects into it is, for now, only done with the Roland JUNO-DS.
Why no voice numbers?
Because they change between models and we have not checked each one. On the JUNO-DS we have: its 1157 sounds were read one by one (JUNO-DS table).
Other keyboards
- Roland JUNO-DSwith sound numbers
- Yamaha PSR and Genos
- Casio CT-X and CT-S