DrSynth

Marinelli's channel is great. Nick Batt and Alex Ball are top of the top as well:

Hubba Hubba... or is that Giggity Giggity?!? Looks like I won't have to wait for a Matrix 12 reissue

So many great mentions -- the original white Oberheim 8 Voice & pinstripe OB-Xa; the DX1, PPG's & 3rd Wave, MatrixBrute, JP8, GX1, Chroma, Synclavier, C-15. The 2500 will always be a gold-standard icon. And I've always liked the sleek look of the Akai AX80 w/ the fluorescent bar graph displays (an underrated synth overall) Manny

Jim, I totally agree, it's the first thing I noticed with the PolyBrute (and my MatrixBrute as well)-- it's weirdly 'klunky' with shallow depth of travel especially of the white keys. I'm a 'pounder' with little technique and find it fatiguing compared to all my Yamaha keybeds. And god forbid I play the Arturias immediately after playing the Osmose

Not that this makes it easier -- they hit the threshold for all the CV ins/out as well, so now you need to think how versatile the Omega will be as a controller in addition to the sound engine. Manny

Just DO it... I've still got an Osmose coming (...eventually...) and at this 30% off for 16 note PAT advanced digital synth it's a no brainer ! I also have the Iridium, no real overlap. GAS doesn't require logic! Manny

That is correct. The crossfading through the frames emulated having realtime control of those aspects of the 24 harmonics. A cool thing in the Regen -- now there is the capability to set the Phase independently for each Harmonic in the Additive engine. Can allow for some cool spacial 'binaural' tricks in 2 Partial patches, but more importantly this is a really big deal for doing FM. Shifting the phase of certain harmonics in your Modulator and/or Carrier shapes the timbre in a completely different way than Ratio/Index

Nubile Augmented Modified Models ?

Noisy Artist Mashup Mishaps Normal Annual Musical Madness No Artists Making Money Nerds Associate Midst Musicians

Drew, Congrats and welcome! Manny

Matt, Welcome, what you've acquired is a good start ! Manny

Love mine. Huge timbre palatte, fantastic controllability, It is one of the best purchases I've made. So much so I have both version (KB and DT). The flavors of phase modulation in the various mutants have some unique implementation/versatilities that even the Quantum/Iridium can't do (BTW the KB is a great controller for the Iridium). I don't find any issues with it's 'sound' per se, though you do have to explore balancing the gain staging and filter overdrive to massage the sonic character at times (not unlike the MoogOne so I'm told) My particular reason for getting is was Wavetable - Wavetable FM, and the way you can set up the individual sequences of waves and dynamically modulate them interactively from so may controllers giving ever changing Modulator-Carrier waveform interactions makes it a textural pad monster (really enhanced with the poly AT) Two thumbs (way) up! Manny

If you"re already looking at it anyway, the MODX is the best solution. If want a true rack option, the TX802 is the straightforward, most economical way. Manny

Well Doc, back into the FM weeds for a bit. If you look at algorithm 2 on a DX-7, you"ll notice that it isn"t just one sine wave modulating another sine wave. Modulating operator 4 is being modulated by operator 5, which is being modulated by operator six. Each layer of modulation added more upper harmonics to the result. The operator 1 and 2 pair isn"t enough by itself. But the feedback on operator 2 makes up for the lack of additional modulators that you find in the 3, 4, 5, 6 stack. And my hearing is just fine. It had the silky smoothness that my Oberheim had. Now if you are talking about buzzy sounds like on the song Jump, then you aren"t talking about typical string patches that had some low pass filtering to take the edge off. And I assure you, my DX-7 patch had plenty of upper harmonics for a good analog string patch. And if was good for many octaves. The highest octave had some aliasing in it, but how many people play analog string sounds in the highest octave? The trick that gave it some analog randomness was using fixed frequently on the carrier operators anyway. And the DX-7 was strictly speaking phase modulation, instead of true frequency modulation, so maybe that had something to do with it. Radagast, Apologies, no intent to come across as 'that guy' on the internet to troll/diss your perspectives. Trying to be helpful in outlining the characteristics of FM/PM and differences/advantages in various implementations, like MOD7. Thought I'd used emoji's in a way to indicate some tongue and cheek, and was trying to poke light fun at your friend's hearing not yours. Anyway, yes the DX7 is capable of very nice string sounds, done many of them my self . Nice as they are, given my experience with the DX7 --'silky smooth' and Oberheim-esque is just not what comes to mind in describing the timbre space of that version of Yamaha's FM implementation, IMHO. Manny

I had a DX-7 for many years and I found the secret to making analog sounds. I had a string patch that my diehard Oberheim friends couldn"t distinguish from a string patch on my Oberheim Xpander, which was based on the Matrix 12. It does individual string instruments reasonably well because it captures the rosin/bow attack (one of the reasons Cello was a factory patch). But it wasn't good at the lush strings like the OB or SC subtractive ala Lyle Mays. I'd love to hear how you did yours if you could show the algorithm and settings or still have audio you could post. I used algorithm #2. All operators were tuned to a 1 to 1 ratio. Operator 2 had feedback turned up. So it was close to 2 sawtooth waves. Then I switched the two carriers (operators 1 and 3) to fixed frequency of zero (or 1). I had to tweak it a bit. Playing with it some more I came up with sound like the growling synth sound on Tom Sawyer. I may have used the pitch envelope for that. It was switching the carriers to fixed frequency that did it. Quick hijack of the thread into the FM weeds... it's Bessel functions, not Fourier coefficients, that creates the behavior quirks many find hard to internalize. And DX7 sine wave FM, even with the the tricks Radagast mentions, won't yield string sounds anywhere near the Oberheim timbres. Your ears will be somewhat fooled say for maybe 12-18 notes worth of range maybe an octave, octave and a half above middle C. But the low notes are nowhere close, harmonically, as you can easily hear the 'gaps' in upper harmonics that your ears can't hear are missing in the upper registers. I'm guessing if your Oberheim centric friends were fooled, they've likely spent way too much time in front of loud Marshall stacks There's adding on chorus and reverb that helps; a DX7II can get a bit better; a TX816 could get to 'reasonably close but noticeably different' if you know what to do, but in the end there's no way to really get the type of high order harmonic density of those awesome Oberheim saw waves in that original sine wave only FM implementation. So, back on topic -- MOD7 in the Kronos is an exceptionally well implemented FM/PM engine. It has a deeper implementation of what Yamaha did in the SY77/99 -- complex waveforms, phase control, patchable feedbacks, filtering etc. which allow you to overcome the harmonic density issues of sine wave only FM. You have to use the computer based editor to get down and dirty into those nuts and bolts. And then learning how multiple feedbacks and phase offesets interact with everything is a whole 'nother ball of wax, definitely quite 'timey wimey" type stuff. So, to your point, how many are aware of the capabilites and utilized it ?!? 0.1% might be extremely generous I've always fancied a dedicated "MOD7 in a box" and was hopefull with the Opsix. But nice as it is, they cut the parameter set a bit too much (no Op phase control !) So if they do ever 'blow them out' I could easily see picking up a Kronos61 just for MOD7 Manny

Nicely done ! Dig the inclusion of the Essence and the Hydra, I really enjoy them both. Have been considering the Rev2 for a while... not sure why I can't quite pull the trigger on one. Manny

Last week finally got the Essence FM MkII. 300 notes of poly for FM layering goodness.... Manny

Stephen, Cool stuff, can't wait for the rest of the series! Manny

That's cool that they have the waveform mixing/blending in the oscillators. My specifics of interest re: mod matrix is how the morph handles continuous data morphs vs. categorical data morphs. One instance could be morphing between souces in the mod matix, or things like LFO waveshape. Can they actually 'blend' everything as they are essentially voltages -- one thing that is interesting in doing morphing on an analog synth vs digital is I could see in the appropriately designed analog synth structure/signal flow all parameters could be continously morphed. This in contrast to digital synth engines which typically have a lot of categorical parameters as part of their configurability/flexability i.e. Montage/MODX. The issue with morphing in these systems (SmartMorph) is transitions of the categorical parameters create stepped discontinuities in the morph. Of course, one can build the morph analysis data set (Parents in SmartMorph-speak) with identical categorical parameter values (algorithm, feedback, filter type etc) thus giving results without any categorical parameters changes, and the results will be fully continuous. Manny

I'm really curious how it handles the morphing in regards to the mod matrix source/destination assignments. From what demos I've seen so far, it's the kind of thing that could redefine what an analog polysynth can be. It has a few quirks that can be accomodated. I would have liked a longer ribbon (I'm spoiled by the Hydrasynth). Not a fan of 'above the keyboard' Pitch/Mod wheel placement. I would have extended the case width & put them between the Morphee' and the keyboard so you could play the Morphee' with your pinky and/or ring finger and still reach the Pitch/Mod with your index & thumb. Maybe that would have given them room for a bit more electronics inside, as it's killing me it's not 8 voices Manny PS - Hopefully it will be a big success, so they'll release an XL version with 12-16 voices, 73 note Poly AT keyboard, repositioned wheels and 4 octave ribbon. That would make me give up my FM synths... Just kidding, but I'd lay out $5-6K for that in a second!

Ooof - when you've been it it long enough, the game changes a few times. When I started the game was Minimoogs, Odysseys, Prophets 5's and OBx's. So my first game changer was the Rhodes Chroma for the configurability and touch sensitity. Very shortly thereafter the next 'changer' was the fully loaded Buchla 200 system we had at college. It really expanded the concepts of signal/modulation routing, timbre shaping & performance. Truly opened my eyes about what a syntheziser could do. Then, the DX7 (no explanation needed ) Next was the K2000. I don't think VAST gets enough love for what it's capable. In a way the architecture is like a DSP Buchla. Not 'changers' per se, but exquisitely capable refinements advancing the game were the SY99 and FS1r So the next game changer for me was the Yamaha VL1, but unfortunately not many willing to play in the Physical Modeling game with the rise of large memory ROMplers. Honestly, even acknowledging tons of significant refinements and enhancements since those synths, nothing truly game changing for me for a long time, partially because most of the biggest advancements were in soft synths. IMHO the next game change will be enhanced performance expression / controllability. We've started down that path with the rise of the multitude of alternate controllers picking up from the performance dynamics of the Physical Modeling thing. I think timbre spaces are pretty well covered. Really looking forward to the Osmose Manny

No, all Opertor Levels are independent - the cool thing about the Opsix interface is that each Operator has a dedicated Knob for Ratio and Slider for Level, plus the Red/Blue LED lightning to let you know if tit's a Carrier or Modulator. Very quick editing access for core timbre tweaking. Manny How do you independently control the amount of a modulator feeding 2 carriers with one slider? Ah, now I get what you were referring to Markyboard... I initally read it the other way around. So, the original DX architecture has always been 'source' routing, meaning that you set up the Ratio, Level and Envelope for the Modulator (i.e. source Operator) and yes, for the algorithms where that Modulator is 'patched' to multiple other Operators it will 'feed' those operator identical values. FM-X in Montage/MODX is the same as original DX architecture (unfortunately) Not having an Opsix and only looking at the manual, the 'preset' algorithms seem to follow the original DX archecture in this regard, unclear if there is a back door via the User algorithm to set up like AFM. Now, AFM in the SY77/99 does allow for independent control of how each Operator feeds into another as each Operator's 'input' can be attenuated as well. So If Op 4 Mod level is 85 feeding into both Ops 2 and 3, there is a setting for Ops 2 and 3 to let that be, say, 100% for Op 2 and 50% for Op 3. This is also present in the 3 Feedback Loops/Patchable Operators in AFM. This is one of the 4 key differences in AFM (along with individual phase offset for each Op, a DC offset/waveshaping Operator mode, & looping envelopes) that make it the most timbrally versatile FM implementation Yamaha has done. Hope that gives more clarity. Manny

Tusker, If you're using Classic Yamaha FM hardware pre-Montage/MODX, your only realtime options are the EG Bias parameter for control of Operator Level via the AMS depth with BC, Aftertouch etc. So in these situations in the 'classic' FM arcitecture I find a useful approach is using (original) DX7 algorithm 18, using AMS on Ops 2 & 6, with the higher AMS sensitivity on Op 2. Then a Ratio of 2 to 5 on Op 2 with lower Level 45-70 and AMS of 4-7; then Ratio 1 to 3 on Op 6 with moderate levels 65-80, AMS of 1-3. If using 4-Op TX81z & related, try it with the building the basic sound using sine waves and the EG Bias controlled OP with one of the complex waves Better yet if using an SY77/99 because with AFM you get direct control of Operator Phase along with alternate waveforms, which allows pretty much for the ability to modulate any region of the harmonic spectra that you choose. Montage/MODX is extremely versatile for this because every Operator can be controlled independently by different/multiple controllers, with various controller curve responses, plus there's 8 of them. I know that's still kinda generalized, but hope it gives you some ideas. Manny

No, all Opertor Levels are independent - the cool thing about the Opsix interface is that each Operator has a dedicated Knob for Ratio and Slider for Level, plus the Red/Blue LED lightning to let you know if tit's a Carrier or Modulator. Very quick editing access for core timbre tweaking. Manny

Tusker, first a sincere thank you for the compliment, I truly appreciate it. One of the reasons I'm so passoinate about FM is that it's so damn playable, responsive and expressive regardless of timbre space-- imitative or otheriwise, It would be very well suited to your example (of course VL would be ideal, but more time consuming). BTW for me the most remarkable thing about the piano exercise was it was programmed by repeated playing of individual notes to get the dynamic timbre, transient and decay/sustain behaviors essentially in isolation. I'm not an accomplished player by any means compared to most everyone on the forums here. Sure, I'd pound out (literally) a few riffs and motifs here and there but that was mainly to check it sounded 'right' to my ears and to see that things meshed in chords. The Moonlight Sonata is a MIDI file I found -- unedited other than some velocity tweaks to match the Montage velocity curves I used. And it just meshed with the patch ! The harmonic textures and interactions of the overtones of all those sustaining notes at 11:40 were just 'there' - no analysis of the spectra, just that those individuals notes sounded proper when I'd let them ring out. That is something that is part of the inherent musicality of FM. I don't think DEXED would necessarily be the way to go. Nothing I can think off the top of my head patch-wise that might be out there as I always roll my own. The controllers you'd prefer to use might dictate a particular platform being more suited than another. What other FM gear/ VI's do you have ? PM me, we'll chat. Good point! Thank you for your comment Theo. True, those electric piano tine sounds are very forgiving. You can add something at 31.5 semitones above the fundamental, or (going from memory), at 27 semitones. If it's soft enough, it will quickly begin to evoke your electric tine without affecting the body of sound. By contrast, these mid-range modifications of the "blare" or "flare" are quite subtle and they change the spectra in multiple ways simultaneously. That's why I thought that if anyone has cracked this problem for FM, it might be Manny. I will neither confirm or deny, as I'd have to kill you :) But seriously, this is solved by what I call the 'harmonic component modeling" approach to synthesis. Applied to FM it's using different groups of Operators for specific areas of the desired timbres and blending them together. Manny