I’ve been using the Monomachine for a while now and really love the FM machines, so I finally decided to get my hands dirty with a TX81Z. How would you compare the sound of the FM machines to the old Yamahas? From what I can tell, the FM machines are essentially based on a couple of set algorithms, but there seems to be much deeper flexibility within the iterations of FM that Yamaha made. Any tips for translating what I’ve gleamed from the Mono into the Yamaha architecture? Other thoughts about how Elektron’s FM stacks up to the vintage Yamahas, Casios, Korgs etc?
Been a long time since I used my TX81Z reckon it’s overdue a revisit. MM has 3 algorithms with limited but well chosen parameters & the Env behaves weird, like up to 64 it’s linear then log I think? There are more algorithms & depth to the TX81Z for sure but the joy of the MM is the interaction with the sequencer.
I have a Cirklon with an instrument def for the Yamaha so I’ll take another look this week & report back here.
Be really interested to hear from others also
not a lot similar , and for me I never end up getting comparable sounds
im using a korg ds 8 which is a 4 op fm with some nice effects and a couple of real time controls, has really nice sound imo
where the mnm fm shines is with using the lfo and plocks on those fm parameters
you can get some fantastically dynamic sounds, almost guitar like
I’m (still) playing and programming old DX7, and also programmed various 4op Yamaha synths (DX11, TX81z, DX100…). MnM is soooo different. Yes, DX7 has 6 operators, MnM only 3 (or 2, depending on the machine), but don’t forget that MnM has filters, a very simple and efficient way of manipulating your sound. DX7 (and other DX machines) doesn’t have such thing in architecture, if you want to simulate filter, you have to program modulator(s) envelope(s) very carefully, but - the results are really, really great. On 4op Yamahas (not all, DX11, TX81z, for instance, but not DX9) you even have various wave shapes for each operator (8, if I can recall), instead of only sine wave on DX7. Sound is, of course, very different, I doubt if you can emulate some nice 6op patch on MnM. However, MnM with its p-locks is excellent for sequencing the old DX7, and you can add effects on (otherwise) “dry” Yamaha. Note that DX7 isn’t great as a keyboard controller for MnM, for it transmits only on MIDI Ch1, so no multitrigs and such (devine) stuff…
Yamaha DX200 has filters and 6 operators plus drums and fx, so is perhaps the closest to the MnM, but still a very different beast.
Plenty of good comments here. The one area where the Mono wins is in the easy menu diving and accessibility. They ‘pre-cooked’ the FM so you can get gojng with it really easily. The Yama menu diving is harder to follow and can leave you scratching your head sometimes. On the other hand Yama gives you much more options and chords/polyphony are easy with the keys. You can always set the Mono to Poly mode and program in your chords but that usually either means you are following sheet music or you have a decent grasp of music theory and are comfortable composing chords in your head.
It should be pretty easy & fun to translate at least some of your Mono sounds to your Yama, and as others have mentioned it will probsbly sound a bit different.
I’m fairly new to the MNM, but have managed to collect one of each generation of the Yamaha boxes.
DX200: the filter didn’t impress me much, but wasn’t terrible either. Front panel programming is even more limited than the MNM, and the software doesn’t work with modern computers. But it is SYSEX compatible with the DX7/TX802 and is really just a PLG150-DX board in a box. Beware of sellers who have pulled the PLG board - they are selling a rompling drum machine on par with the MC303.
TG77: this is the one to get, unless you have room for an SY99. Loopable envelopes and arbitrary feedback points. Also, you can use ROM waves as operators. Easily the most powerful FM box outside of the FS1r. Everything is accessible from the front panel, and the slider is great for the cases when you want to move more than one increment at a time. The display back lights are all nearly dead by now, but you can get a new LED illuminated display from eBay for USD$50. A little soldering is required, but there are very detailed DIY guides out there.
TX802: less powerful than the '77, a multi timbal dx7mk2. Lots of individual outs. Easy to program from the front panel. Perhaps the best of the DX7 generation, unless you MUST have the exact 1st gen DX7 sound. The 802 has 16bit DA, like the Mk2 DX7.
TX81z: more flexible than the DX200’s front panel, much less flexible than the TX802. Small screen, 1U but quite deep.
FS1r: one of my rainy-day synths. You can’t program everything from the front panel, and most software editors don’t support editing Formant Sequences. Though it has eight operators, they are about half as strong as the DX operators, so you double them up if you want that classic DX grind. I can get more out of the TG77 than the FS1r, but more time with the FS may reverse that.
TG33: kind of a joke. 2-op with some samples. You do get a fun joystick, and that alone may be worth the price of admission. Can be a fun toy, and that’s not a bad thing.
Things to keep in mind:
[ul]
[li]DX envelopes aren’t ADSRs. Understand how they are different![/li]
[li]Once you understand how operators and algorithms work, none of the DX machines are hard to work with. Tedious perhaps, but sometimes it is good to slow down.[/li]
[li]DX boxes aren’t hard to program. They are difficult if you insist on achieving a preconceived sound, but reward the sonic explorer.[/li]
[li]The buttons are a feature, not just a way to save costs. FM sounds change radically in response to small input changes, so embrace the buttons![/li]
[li]FM is neither cold nor “digital” sounding. FM often sounds warmer and more analog than most VAs. Don’t listen to the haters, they know nothing![/li]
[li]These are my opinions. None of Yamaha’s FM boxes are bad, I just enjoy some more than others. You will probably have different preferences.[/li]
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I’m slowly getting my head around more traditional FM programming. The Mono is certainly a lot more “pre-cooked” than the Yammys, albeit more hands on, but I’m at least able to use it as a basis with the more involved TX81Z (via a Lemur programmer). Got a TX7 arriving this afternoon (also planning to use Lemur to program it), so hopefully I’ll be able to give my own comparison soon.