The DX200 only gives you limited access to the PLG FM board, the Volca FM is a much better FM synth.
Edit: on the grooverbox side, the DX200 skips the first note of the new pattern every time you switch patterns.
Like the FS1r, the DX200 is great for your money is no object complete collection of DX synths, but worth neither time nor effort for people who want to play with sound and music.
Edit2: if you must get a DX200, confirm that it still has the PLG 150DX board that it shipped with. For a while, sellers were extracting the PLG board and selling the boards and DX200 shells separately. A DX200 without itâs PLG board either wonât boot or is just a rompling drum machine that doesnât know how to correctly change patterns.
hydrasynth can do 7op FM patches (3 oscillators, 2 of them with 2 mutants/modulators each), with your âalgorithmâ patch programmed to taste in the mod matrix with dynamic control available over every node. curious why the assertation that hydrasynth is not an FM synth?
Hydrasynth is just key latched to send my Cobalt the same few notes which plays some basic random arpeggio patch.
The Oscillator 1 is wavescanning with the LFO between some random waves and the FM-Lin takes the CV Mod In at the max with depth and feedback.
I start with the basic generic synth patch as heard by the Hydrasynth and then switch over to the FM one which is much more industrial sounding then I just play around with effects and filter.
But you could also use it to join up your other FM synths into a monster FM synth. When you use the Mod In though thereâs no ratio so you need to take the oscillator you are feeding into the Mutant and adjust itâs pitch.
I like the two knob solution for coarse/fine ratio control.
It would also be cool if for each operator ratio knob there was some kind of âstep modifierâ: maybe a setting that could dictate whether the slider/knob function increased only by integers, or only by halves, quarters, thirds, tenths, and so on. I always find fun timbres in different fractions in between the integers. For example on the Digitone ratio offsets, which have a three decimal point resolution, I find myself painstakingly entering 0.250 or 0.125 to find sweet spots. I would totally appreciate an interface that would allow this to be customized.
Understood. Small incremental ratio changes are where a lot of magic (and chaos) happen in Yamaha-style FM.
Re interface for a âstep modifierâ setting, my first instinct would be to have a two knob setup, for operator integer and fine tune settings. Then offer an advanced setting to adjust how finely the âfineâ tune knob moved between settings.
My thinking with the two knob setup is that an FM beginner can easily zero the fine tune knob (and reduce modulator level if itâs maxed) if the timbre gets too crazy, to quickly get back to a familiar pitched sound.
Very intresting machine, but it still has only one LFO per layer? (understood that a sound can be multiple layers, but LFO to pitch on 2 operators for example is not possibe on this thing?)
Each operator has a modulation page where you can can apply the single lfo to the pitch and amplitude. So yes LFO to pitch on two (or six) operators is possible. There is also an eight slot modulation matrix per layer (kodamo calls each layer a voice) so any of the many envelopes in that voice can also be used as a mod source for up to eight destinations. Plus all those envelopes can be looped.
So modulation is really extensive and flexible within a voice. Not so much between voices.
It concept with it sounds totally powerfull, like fm8 in a box, 8 Out complete gig ready solution., with some external midi controller. Cheap for what it is overall.
It seems to be a lot of work though, not many jam videos out there.
@Soarer maybe you can put your insight on it, saw you did some videos on the essence fm.
I really like the MEGAfmâs interface and would love to see a deluxe version thatâs bigger with more stuff like a mod matrix for the LFOs. Having full and immediate control over the operator parameters is such good idea.
FM enthusiast & programmer here, i feel i was on the same quest for hands on fm so i wrote a supercollider program to map all dx7 parameters to an akai apc40 mk1 with sysex and then tried adding some clever tricks too, envelope/ operator settings copy paste, coarse calculating and preset morphing via the fader.
I tried it with
-dx7 mk1: receives sysex way too slow
-dexed: at the time of testing dexed didnt receive the sysex properly
and finally,
-volca fm: the one. with unofficial firmware 1.09 it can take sysex like a pro. it isnt real time control but each note holds the settings when its was triggered, but that way its sorta multitimbral.
if anyone is interested I can test it some more and share it, but you would need the akai apc40 mk1, a computer running supercollider and most likely a volca fm to actually have fun
I donât know if George Hearn is into FM synthesis as much as subtractive but I could imagine UDO making an FM battleship of a synth sometime in the future, with great hands-on control design. That would be awesome.
I really just want to see more manufacturers take inspiration from the MEGAfm and put full operator controls in blocks like on that synth. That way you can see at a glance what is going on and makes programming and performing more intuitive. Hidden parameter settings are just a pain.
