[2][3] The DW-8000 was released shortly after Korg's previous polysynth, the DW-6000, and built upon its predecessor's sound engine by enhancing it with velocity sensitivity, a digital delay effect, and expanded eight-voice polyphony.

[4] The DW-8000 features a five-octave keyboard with aftertouch capabilities affecting modulation, filter, and volume, alongside 64 preset slots, a joystick, an arpeggiator, and MIDI.

These waveforms range from standard synth shapes like sawtooth, square, and sine, to more complex sounds including bells, clavinets, acoustic and electric pianos, organs, guitars, and saxophones.

A unique sample is utilized for each octave, and the waveforms were created using additive synthesis, which were then encoded onto the ROM chips.

The VCF's resonance produces a clear whistle at high settings and a warm sound at lower pitches.