For each voice, the R3 provides two oscillators. Oscillator 1 (OSC1) gives you a choice of seven waveforms including sawtooth, pulse, formant, noise, and DWGS, as well as allowing you to select an external audio source connected to the AUDIO INPUT 1 and 2 jacks. To enhance the basic analog synthesizer waveforms such as the sawtooth, pulse and triangle waves, you can apply cross modulation, pulse-width modulation, unison voice-thickening, or even VPM (Variable Phase Modulation).

Oscillator 2 (OSC2) gives you a choice of four waveforms such as sawtooth and sine, and can also be used as a modulation oscillator to apply sync modulation, ring modulation or a combination of the two for distinctively analog synthesizer sounds. The noise generator (NOISE) produces white noise, and provides a useful way to create breath noise for wind instrument sounds, or to produce evocative sound effects. The sawtooth wave and pulse wave use the same basic low-aliasing design as the AL-1 Analog Synthesizer found in Korg’s flagship OASYS synthesizer.