Yamaha FS1R, power synth of my dreams

[David Emm]

This custom Yamaha FS1R hardware controller is a major desert island item. With its voice formant aspect, I think of it as the ultimate FM synth. Its a major match with the E-mu Morpheus for previously unheard-of movement and tone. The sound demo is amazing and likely to make your GAS gland hurt.

 

It sure feels like a prize that needs to be turned into a softsynth, although that wouldn't necessarily address the unsane complexity. Remember the Jellinghaus DX7 controller, festooned with rows of knobs? Um, never mind. Anything that got even halfway towards the grail of the FS1R in a practical form would have my rapt attention. Mmm, exotic rare synth fun...  

 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fFcWGt21_Z8&t=4s

 

30-minute sound demo

 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XDFus85Uksk

[Mark Schmieder]

I only sold mine because it wasn't capable of storing performance settings, and it was a PITA to use via the front panel (and the software editor didn't work on my computer), not to mention a non-starter at gigs even with a cheat sheet of setting offsets for my custom sounds or setups. But the sound! Hard to match.

 

FM8 started getting closer to FS1R territory than FM7 had, but NI seems to have abandoned further development.

[mauriziodececco]

Mee too: i sold my TX802 and bought an FSR1, but finally sold it (for the same price for the same reasons as Mark), and bough NI Komplete (quite a few years ago).

 

Maurizio

 

 

 

[Jose EB5AGV]

On my synth GAS frenzy of 2018-2021 I bought, among other things, a pristine FS-1R. I have not yet really used it, but is installed on my rack system, ready to play (both MIDI and audio connected). Perhaps some day 😆

 

That controller thing is awesome. Kudos to the developer of such a great device 

[J.F.N.]

There's a great opportunity for Yamaha to stay on top of the FM league, they already have the chips, the software, the casing, the keyboards, just design a full blown commercial version of that controller, wack it all into a new 6 octave machine with a great aftertouch keyboard, and watch the credit cards flying in lightspeed all over the planet!

 

Where do I swipe my card?

[eric]

Someone on the forum shared a few of these videos from Yamaha a few months ago...great stuff on many of the Yamaha greats from yesteryear...DX1, VL1, CS80, SY99, etc...as well as the FS1R. In case you missed it.

 

 

[Jose EB5AGV]

An interview with the designer of that controller (in German, but can be translated on your browser)

 

https://www.amazona.de/mega-hardware-controller-fuer-yamaha-fs1r/

[J.F.N.]

Interesting with the same FM engine in the Electone HX1 (successor to GX1 ?), as those are found for a cpl of hundreds, and apparently fully programmable via MIDI...

 

[ElmerJFudd]

I recall our MPN friend Mike Martin also letting his FS1R go a few years ago which I contemplated briefly.  A hardware editor or even a well made software editor would make a big difference on that machine.  But then again - no shortage of FM synths in hardware or plugins these days.  

[Tusker]

Could we say that the eight-operator FMX on the Montage / MODX comes close to the FS1R? Or is it a different kettle of fish?

 

Paging resident expert Dr. Synth ... 😅

 

[YashN]

That part is the same. The FS1R has Formant Ops & Formant Filters and the sequencing of these for articulations.

 

If the FS1R was the evolution of FM at the time of launch, it is not known why they dropped the structure of 8-FM voiced + 8-unvoiced with Formant Filtering and Sequencing.

 

I don't know if there's a way to work that structure in a Montage, as I don't have the latter and may also have a few gaps in how the actual Formant Op + Formant Filter structures are in the FS1R architecture. However, from what I know so far, that kind of structure is implementable in newer Kurzweil V.A.S.T. synths and to a different extent the older ones (K2500 and K2600, barring the things I am still missing).

 

If someone could indeed describe the Formant Ops and Formant Filter in detail, that could help, e.g. in Formant Op mode, does each voiced FM op have its own Filter, and if so how many Poles? Are the unvoiced ones meant to be always used with the voiced FM/Formant Op in this Mode? Any other important thing I am missing in this Mode?

 

The normal filter is also implement at Component + Circuit modeling, like in the AN1X, that's also quite important. but I would like to know what the OP likes in this synth - it ceratinly quite versatile considering the FM + Formants mode, but it can be used in several ways. For instance, the 'unvoiced' group of 8 could be used in alternate ways instead of just 8 times processed noise if I'm not mistaken.

[UnderGroundGr]

Kawai K5000 has a formant filter. It works only for additive synthesis(not with PCM)...

[YashN]

It is the combination of FM and filtered Noise together with the Formant Filtering and the sequencing that is important in the FS1R.

 

FM is way more compact to synthesize with than additive.

 

Technically though, you could probably approach the sound of everything you can do on the FS1R via matching the Additive harmonics and dynamic behaviour to the FS1R's FM section and matching the K5000 Formant filter settings and behaviour to the FS1R's, provided you also do the sequencing if the sound relies on it. However, doing the Additive matching work is big work. Usually, to harness Additive, you'd leverage a computer Analysis program to do that automatically, or at least to show you the harmonics you need to recreate.

 

I'll drop a mention again for Kurzweil V.A.S.T., especially ever since the advent of Cascade and Dynamic V.A.S.T. Modes that were included in the PC3 series, because technically you can do all that in them if you're really good at V.A.S.T. & FM in V.A.S.T.

 

A caveat - and here I am not sure if the Component + Circuit filtering is used for the Formant Filter(s) of the FS1R but there is one type of filter there that uses it (correct me if I am wrong) but this type of modeling, which has its own characteristics and advantages - isn't in V.A.S.T. nor the K5000. Both of the last two use more traditional higher-level biquad-based filter implementations. It may or may not matter.

[felis]

I remember when Mars Music was blowing out the FS1R for $350 new.  I passed because the editor was for Mac only.

[YashN]

It was indeed heavily discounted after launch and there were opportunities to get one around that price then. There were few of those produced. It seems to have found a somewhat cultish status among those who have one. You'll hear many tell you, despite also mentioning the difficulty or actual impossibility to do full editing from the front panel, that they 'will never sell theirs'.

 

There's one selling for $1,820 near my place. I've seen similar prices on eBay, perhaps even more on Reverb.

 

I get the impression from soundsets heard on Youtube that this synth has been used for Vocal formants and electronic sounds but it is under-used for emulating Acoustic Instruments in an expressive way. It definitely does have that capability too IMO.