I got a TX816 a month ago and its my new FM power house. I actually use Dexed to make music in my DAW and then take that midi information in the DAW and export the Dexed sysex patch I used into the TX816 and then record the TX816 playing it and processing it. It's fantastic and I've been having a blast designing sounds that compliment each other and then loading them all at the same time for a wall of sound that's got to be like 128 voices at once.
I love my TX816. And since they're so old now I went ahead and spent the time to recap the power supply and modules, including changing the batteries. Good as new!
Tower of bloody FM Power! Next up is to combine this with the two TX81Zs, your TX16W and my SY99 + FS1R. Watch out, south of Norway will explode in frequency modulation! ^_^
OMG FM HOLY GRAIL. Espen you continue to amaze us. With the depth of your love for 80s music tech. And history. Always wanted a TX816. But you also showed how great the TX802 is. And in reality for price and reliability. Its is probably a better option.
Proud owner of 2 x TX816, and a DX7 (had even 2 at a time!). I spoke with Wally Badarou few years ago who still use 2 TX816 for his famous power strings.
I always preferred the sound of a DX7IIFD over the original DX7, and thus the TX802 over the TX816. I'm glad that after all these years, your video has indeed verified my opinions from so many years ago. Thanks for capturing the nuance in your recording.
Same here! There's a very funny TH-camr named hedge who says "whichever one you like better, you're right." the 802 seems least noisy to my ears and the most clear.
Espen Kraft Haven’t stopped playing with it since it arrived - should have got one years ago ! . It has version 1.4 firmware in it so I’ve ordered a 1.5 EPROM to install inside to get it up to latest spec
Have both machines...but the king is the 816...the thing is not to use the same sound in each module and detune it..of course that can be nice too, but rather to build a massive expressive wall of sound from different sounds in the modules, detune and pan those to your liking and run some of them thru FX and it´s amazing. One superb player doing this is the great Jay Oliver. He were into "upper and lower structures" where some of the modules provided the "body" of the sound and others the "top details" without body to work together. Like a D-50 if you will...doing this, the expressiveness is UNMATCHED by anything
First of all, I need to thank you for having uploaded this video, Espen. It helped me realize that I was confusing two of Yamaha’s TX modules, the 802 and the 81z. I was aware that the Z was equipped with the DX7MkII engine, but I wasn’t sure what engine was in the 802. If I’m not mistaken, TX-816 should be given a medallion for being the first ever 128-note polyphonic model ever to hit the market, A good 15 or 16 years before E-mu started building Proteus modules that had the same polyphony. Something which I’ve written before and that some might tire of seeing from me is a fantasy that I had before. My fantasy was that someone with an 816 could program a 4-part multitimbral patch at 32-note polyphony that could be triggered from a vector synthesizer whose joystick controller could switch between the four tones. The word I received when I asked about whether or not such an idea could come to fruition is that this module cannot be configured that way.
The 81z does not have a DX7 engine of any kind, inside. The 81z is a 4-operator FM synth with some features the DX7 does not have, but it's not near the power of a 6-operator DX7. Cheers :)
No problem. The 81z is a fantastic FM module regardless and I like it a lot. It's been very much used by a lot of electro artists throughout the decades, for various reasons.
I got a TX802 as a gift from a friend recently and was curious how different it would sound from an 816, or if it were 'worse', but... nope can't hear a difference here! I'm really happy with my 802 and don't plan on a change over anytime soon ^^
Great looking gear setup. I think to quote Anders with the tower of FM power. I just can't persuade my wife I need more gear so I'm stuck with software and Dexed at this time for my FM fix. Luckily you have plenty to share.
Cool! I think that the most big difference between the simple module and top FM-rack is the details and level of expression. Anyway both are really good gear and in most cases sounds very close to each over. Respect and special thanks for the short retro-trip with an excellent arrangement of the Duck Tales NES game, level Moon =)
As always it's nice to learn about all equipment from you Mr. Kraft. cause you explain easily and in depth 💯.. Quick story.. FM blew up my car speakers..🤭 Trying to pulse the car's cheap speakers with FM Dexed on the laptop. Use too loud of a low signal and it popped the right speaker. 😳 but I still love that FM... Cheers... gonna try to use my yamaha Montage using FM-X as a TX816.
Man, you even found a DMP7! Talk about some classic icons! I’ve got a pair of DX7s, a DX5 which is my “Rolls Royce” DX, and a TX816. Nothing like 12 DX7s all playing at once, all slightly defined and panned apart!
@@EspenKraft indeed. The first tour I did with Smitty, that rig was massive, and all the synths were routed into a pair of DMP9/16's... the rack mount successor to the DMP7. They were great boxes!
Nice Jim, cool to know! They do sound good, even by today's standard. I've used so many Yamaha Digital mixers through the years and I've always enjoyed them.
Thanks for the great video as usual. It really makes you want to fire up the FM sound modules starting to collect dust in the rack. I have all these gear except the DMP7 which I sold away because the motorized faders became stuck and the higher end of the sound was quite restrictive. It must be hard to maintain these old kit in good condition.
Mind blown Espen, Yamaha FM sound is unique for sure, I still have a TX81Z, I hope you do a video on the TX81Z one day. Keep up the awesome content. Cheers!
wonderful!! immediately bought a TX816 on the bay after watching! Now you gotta buy a Rev1 for those! BTW, I also own an Yamaha CE20 and a CE35. Those are the earliest affordable FM performance synths, Yamaha ever made. They sound amazing! Like poor mans GS2. I also have a Rev1 and I can tell you it’s worth every penny. No comparison to Rev7, Rev5 or SPX. But this also would give a great comparison video on it’s own - best of Yamaha reverbs!
Many thanks Nick! All the patches used in this video are easily found and downloaded from the net. Free. Thousands upon thousands of patches online for the DX7.
That's a factory DX electric piano, nothing special in itself, but from the TX816 rack with multiple modules running the same patch detuned and lots of reverb and chorus it sounds mesmerizing.
So I got the quiz correct!!! You can tell when the sound is isolated, but in a large mix it would be hard to tell. Great video as usual, coming to Norway next year will pop in!
Thanks Espen, The 816 has way too many complex scary parts that could fail for my liking😊 I can’t hear any actual difference so 802 definitely my preference! ( plus display/programmability etc). Was weird seeing you playing the Juno alpha but very “non-Juno” sounds coming out of the speakers. I liked what you were playing with the 816, it’s it out of a song or just something you made up?
It's funny. The factory default sounds for these synths didn't really have any decent Pad or String sounds. But there are tons of user-made patches that sound great. I was kind of shocked when I came across a whole bank of good sounding pads. It's even better when you can stack synths :P
I bought an untested 816 from ebay for a lowish price. And got it up and running just yesterday. All the voice data and settings on each module was messed up from probably long dead batteries (I had a Wavestation A/D that lost its data as well). Needless to say I was worried about it, but it works.
You can't hear the difference because the A/B comparison were just using one module of the 816. Listen at 12:16 to see what happens when you stack. Now the 802 can stack, but the voice count is much lower.
Hey Espen, have you seen those crazy old Yamaha Electone "synth organs" from the late 80s? I just picked up one yesterday and was blown away with the FM synth in these. They are multi timbral Stereo FM synths (claims to have 16 operators), you can even make your own FM sounds via the manual switch panel, but you can dig even deeper into them via midi! What blew me away was that these old Yamaha instruments had insanely good keyboards with both Touch and After touch on ALL keybeds. I suspect they where too expensive back in the days, and the programming too hard to do for the average demographics these were meant for. Already after just ONE day with this monstrosity (I got a Yamaha HS-6 in brand new condition, from 1987) I already could make better examples than 99 percent of the youtube examples of the instrument - because everyone thought it was an organ, it's not an organ - it's a programmable multi timbral FM synth in Stereo! It's like having several DX7's in one. Back in the days, it retailed for 45000 SEK in sweden (1987), imagine what that monster would cost today. It was even so far ahead of its time - that every keybed it comes with - has its own MIDI channel, so you can in fact use it as a master-multi-keyboard setup with full Touch and Aftertouch support. Insane. Hope you find one - one day and lay your masterful fingers on it, so it at least get ONE last honor before every model has been thrown away in the bin like common organs.
@sneakydisco Yeah I suspect you are right. You have 16 combinations, I think thats what they meant in the advert. You can adjust some of the parameters in the "manual roll menu" to the right, but if you want to adjust ALL the parameters, you must do it via MIDI (yes you can do this via midi!) There are some software for the Atari ST series where you can adjust all the parameters for them, not made for PC yet, but who knows? Someone ought to be the first, it's fully programmable! Btw, did you know the HS6 (and respectively HS8) have individual touch AND after touch on each keybed? If you have the HS8 - you even have after touch on the PEDALS too! What blew me away, was that they have higher resolutions than can be played with the internal synthesizer, and the higher resolution touch levels are sent via midi - so I connected a modern Yamaha Montage to it, and the HS6-became a mind blowing Master keyboard for it. The Montage assigns Midi1 , 2 and 3 etc. via each patch you add to one instrument, so it can be played individually on each keybed on the HS6 or 8, amazing!
@sneakydisco Only the HS8 has the Pitch/Modulation wheel, and the HS6-8 series had spared no expenses, imagine being so ahead of your time that you decided to make your organ series with synthesizers inside instead? And to top it off - combine it with AWM (PCM sampling + fm synthesis?) and make your organ fully programmable, rythms, ROM/Ram cartridge upgrades and whatnot, back in the 87s? And midi with full control both ways, including full polyphony keybeds all 3 of them, with touch/aftertouch. WAAAY ahead of time. ELS-02C/X, ELS-01C/X och EL-900m. was the only ones according to an Electone enthusiast I know of that has similar traits.
@sneakydisco My friend told me to stay away from the HX ones as they are less capable than the HS series when it comes to things you "can do" with them, modify etc...I don't know the EL-90 myself, but looking at a few youtube videos - it sounds pretty sweet! Hope you got a good deal on it! Look at the manuals, look at the MIDI section, and the specs, and see if you can discover something useful!
@sneakydisco You're spot on! :) They thought the HS/HX series looked so futuristic, like a thing out of star-trek so it was used as a prop, indeed these where futuristic, also on the inside. The engineers did some amazing stuff, but people weren't ready!
@sneakydisco organforum.com/forums/forum/organ-building-repair-restoration/virtual-organs/38602-yamaha-electone-el90-as-virtual-hauptwerk-console check out that thread...might be of some help to you,
I don't hear significant differences. So I am happy that I have the 802, because I can add one of the moderne Cardridge with many soundbanks to load any Sound in shortest time. And I like the 8 Single outputs to get really crazy sounds out of the 802.
@Jon Goat And if we are talking about the "home studios" in these days (well for me early 90:s), don't forget about the usually really crappy and extremely noisy mixers. The Boss BX- 60 I had was notorius for being very noisy. And then it had to finally go into a normal tape (the consumer small ones) in the end which brought even more noise to it!
I couldn't hear any difference, I thought the mk1 sounded quite a bit different. I dont have any real use for the 816 even though I could have got one for very little many years ago, its a bit big and ugly and my 802 is more than enough in the age of DAWS.
I have a TX416. I hope to eventually load it up with TF1 cards but I’m in no hurry. There’s something I really like about its size, its weight, the connections, the user-unfriendliness. It is like a living thing that just wants to mind its own business. A 37-year old musical robot slave to do my FM bidding.
Be on the look out for a Beetle PR-7. They were made in the mid 1980s. They are a 3U rack unit the exactly duplicates the front panel of an original DX7 for use with the TX-816 Is an AWESOME addition to a TX-816
Still catching up - first, yeah, called it from the last video - the 802 and 816 do have a generational sound difference, and someone with experience with FM could pick it up on the right sounds and outside a mix. Not sure I reliably do it in a mix with other instruments of course. Oh, and I really like the touch of using the DMP7 mixer here - applause for completeness! I always wanted one of those back in the day too. (Eventually owned a DM1000, which cured me of that!)
There's a TX802 for sale locally (and, living on an island with nothing but sea in all directions, that is an advantage not to be underestimated), but I can't really justify it. Because it's not just the TX802, but also the extra audio inputs, the effects processing, the space...
Mit der Hcard-702 Speicherkarte von Hypersynth kann ein Yamaha DX7-II, DX11 & DX-7S um bis zu 6400 Speicherplätze erweitert werden, die sich auf 100 Bänke verteilen. In 100 Bänken zu je 64 Sounds finden sich nicht nur die originalen Werkspresets des DX7-II, sondern auch 16 Bänke mit sorgfältig ausgewählten neuen Klängen.
Yeah, I tried to buy one for my DX7 and they were out of stock. I really want one of those cards though :( Do these modules have card slots like the keyboards do? My TX7 module doesn't have a card slot. Automatische Übersetzung. Ich kann lesen, was du geschrieben hast, aber ich kann kein Deutsch. Ja, ich habe versucht, einen für meinen DX7 zu kaufen, und sie waren nicht vorrätig. Ich möchte wirklich eine dieser Karten :( Haben diese Module Kartensteckplätze wie die Tastaturen? Mein TX7-Modul hat keinen Kartensteckplatz.
Sure , I would be a rich man if I had dollar every time someone asks me that. ;-) Check gear4music. com and search for 19" racks, it'll pop up down the results.
@@EspenKraft Thanks! I took a good listen and looked at the sound files to see if I could hear/see the 12-bit vs 16-bit FM. Not really ;-) I did notice that drumtrack was shared, bit for bit (except the reverb) - the drums cancelled out completely when playing both files and phasereversing one.
I believe the TX802 is 16 bit and the TF1 is 12 bit. The sounds do sound alike, but if you were to crank the gain a LOT and listen to the fade out of the sounds you would hear a big difference in the noise level and smoothness. Try it for us please.
It's a performance preset. 8 different parts responding to the same MIDI channel. I use the same technique in my "Clair de lune" cover as well as on my track "Dreams" from my "Dreams" album.
Wow .. thanks so much. Will check that on my TX802 later today. Didn’t know. Also I’m glad I am not the only one still using a KX88 👍 (In case you are still using that)
Had a TX416 for a long time, ended up doing a recap job and moving on after picking up an 802. Wildly easier to use the 802. Slightly altered patch/panorama across the TF1s is The One Trick that the big box has over anything.
@@soupforare I've been recapping a TG77 and replaced some on the digital board and when I turned it on it the OS was completely hosed. :( I replaced the originals but no dice. Was it a mistake to mess with the digital board? Have no idea what happened.
Thanks! You should check out the commercial release of that track then. It's called "Sheeba" and you can find it through the links in the video description. It's on Spotify and other digital platforms. ;-)
I have been forced to downsize to a flat so am still hoping that I'll be allowed some discretely disguised gear. I had planned prior to this to add a TX802. Assuming I'm able to keep the following do you reckon that my FS1R will cover my TX802 / DX72 needs if in 6 operator mode & I could simply use 1 of the 8 modules on the TX816 to get a normal DX7 mk1 sound? I think I got my FB01 before the TX81Z came out so I'll stick with that for 4 operator sounds. It's actually a favourite module & saves space as I rack it with another 1/2 unit , an EMU Proformance + piano , my main piano module.
You play them with a Roland keyboard, which probably goes up to velocity level 127. Do both Yam racks only go to level 100 like the Mark 1 DX7, or was the TX802 already capable of distinguishing up to 127? What happens when you hit the ceiling of over 100 with the TX816 sounds?
I really don't know. I was never very concerned with this. I f I like the sound I hear I when I play I don't care what the MIDI velocity is. If I don't like the sound I just go into that patch and edit it until I do. That DX7 mk1 velocity = 100 never bothered me one bit. ;-)
@@EspenKraft Like that approach. With good keybeds from the 8ties and 9ties one seldom hammers into the top range anyway, unlike these new midi-controller only flimsies that go straight up to the top. (You mentioned the different velocity curve as well). THX for your excellent videos.
hey could you please demo the ys200? I just had a batery holder mod on mine and I love the sound of this machine so much! It is pretty warm for being only 4operator and it definitely has potential for sounding even better with all the free sounds online for it.
Welp, a couple of months late ;) But again, another great video! I like the pedagogics, a brief overview of two pieces of fine hardware (again, since Yamaha = Japan, it is by default great! Unless proven otherwise :p ) ! I was genuinely surprised about how good they sounded...I guess having all of that "FM power" available by the touch of a key really does makes a difference! I was pleasantly surprised about the guest appearance of Anders! You should do some serious collabs some day ;)
That clip with him is from my Yamaha TX81Z video. Didn't you watch it? ;-) Him and I talk for over 30 minutes about that synth. I might do more synth-talk videos with him in the future. Not working together on music though, I don't do that. ;-) Cheers mate
@@EspenKraft Ahhh really? No I must confess that I have quite a back log here as there are so many great videos ;) Thank you however for pointing it out! I'll add it to my to-watch list! :) I understand the thing about not collabing on music though talking about the hardware, or going over it together, sharing each others experiences, takes on sounds (demoing), usability, reminiscing about how so or so sound was used in this or that tune etc. would be cool! :)
Some like to collab, some don't. I generally don't like to collab on anything where I have to share the creative decisions. I've done that for so many years in the past and I hated every minute of it. Primarily I like to work on my own, in solitude and with no one but myself to answer too. Again, in the creative process. ;-)
@@EspenKraft Thanks for quick response. Havent heard before. Its a masterpiece as always and a pleasure to listen to. Thanks for inspiring me as always. Standing here in front of SY22 and SY77 :-) combining some sound and start learning that song. Greetings Chris :-)
@@EspenKraft Hm can`t find it in the tutorial section. How is the Video called? Thanks :-) -> ahh found it! Great: th-cam.com/video/ua0TXQ2_tjE/w-d-xo.html
The choice is easy. Buy a Yamaha MODX or Montage. You can convert sound libraries from either the TX816 or TX802 into these new synths, plus enjoy the new FM-X engine.
For some of us it's not that easy. It's like a kit-car or replica. Even if it's made by the same company, it's not the same if you want the original real thing. Beside that, the ModX does not sound the same.
@@EspenKraft It's plenty close enough for me. My uses are for live performance in a rock band. I first replaced my DX7 (TX7 module) with a soft synth, and even that was fine. The sounds I used in my bands were ridiculously close. Now the MODX can do the job, plus expanded FM synthesis with FM-X. Like anything, it would depend on your specific use. In a rock band, like Woody's challenge of soft synths vs hardware synths, it would be very difficult to distinguish. With the songs we cover, even if we used all the original keyboards of every song we played, there would still be slight differences anyway. The MODX is plenty good enough for the job of capturing the character of the sounds. "The Yamaha FM Converter (for Montage/MODX keyboards) allows you to use contents from the DX7, DX7II, TX802 and TX216/816 on your new Montage or MODX, instantly expanding the creative possibilities with thousands of additional sound" This would likely be good enough solution for the vast amount of synth players. But like any synth, only the original revision will be good enough for some people. There will be slight differences, but they will generally take some serious effort to hear those differences. The Montage/MODX engine is an excellent reproduction. But it's still a reproduction.
Sure, but if you WANT the original... ;-) It takes me 5 minutes to go to the store to get milk, in both my cars. But it's a lot more fun taking the Ford Mustang '69 than the 2015 Ford Fiesta.
@@EspenKraft I don't think one person in the audience would pick up on the difference in the mix of my live band if I alternated chords between the original or the Montage/MODX even if the audience were all musicians. "Easily" the best choice for most people. I've replaced several of my synths with replacements that are compatible with the original sounds in either modern hardware or software, and yet, I still feel like I have my original synths. On a platinum album, maybe.
But it's not ALL about the audience when you desire vintage gear, in fact, for many it's the experience of the vintage gear itself that inspires creativity. MY music is directly inspired by the nostalgia I get from using it. If you forced me to make a track using the ModX it would be done, I am a pro after all, but it wouldn't have my heart in it. So we use vintage gear because it affects us in a positive way. You use modern gear because that's what YOU like. Coming to a vintage hardware channel and pointing at the ModX won't win many over. ;-)
hello Espen, waht do you think about the Yamaha TG77 is that diferent to the older FM synths? i have on and i look for a good Hardware Programmer you know a good one?
(3:23) Hey, is that the Top Gun theme bell sound? I guess I have to say "original" Top Gun now, eh? 😉 I think it's modified a bit in the song, though. I'd love to hear how it was made. Anyway, what a lovely instrument. 😀
That is the original Top Gun bell sound. Except Harold Faltermeyer used all the TF-1 boards doing the same sound, all slightly detuned etc to get that extra fat big timbre. I'm only using one here. ;-)
thanks bro, im using also tx 802 and the tx 81z also have the mighty sr wave station and with the dx 7 II i wanna know on thees days let me just say that those machins are awesome sounds phenomenal better then tha all MODX ' iwanna know i would like to conect all of it again do i need to buy a midi station or like the yamaha mepeg 4? what do you reccomend sir?
Espen Kraft please can you recommend a midi processor? Like the mpeg4 yamaha? What midi station are you using to connect all the modules? I need your advice bro..
@@kfirtsairi3986 I don't know what you mean? You mean a midi patchbay or digital mixer or what? Check out my videos on audi and midi setups and routing. I have several videos on my channel about this.
@@EspenKraft yes sir would like to get recommend on a good midi patch bay that could hook everything and have an exit to usb to computer is the motu is good?
Another great video! Always wished to listen to a comparison like this! I have read that a famous artist used the whole TX-816 all for one realistic guitar patch, can't remember his name now. Just for curiosity: is that true that old Yamaha keyboards can send dynamic values only up to 120 instead up to 128, loosing the chance to a complete dynamic control on other gear linked?🤔
It can be different reasons for this. Bad batteries in the TF modules. I suggest you clear out all modules. Check manual page 34 for this and reload the factory presets (sysex) into each modules. These can be found online. I show the sysex load procedure in my video.
@@EspenKraft Awesome. Turns out, many of the modules are coated in some awful brownish-red goo, and it's created a film causing most of them to be monophonic in nature, as well as completely distorting the sound. I am going to have to manually clean each one up, which will be *so* much fun. I do appreciate you helping me, as I did end up removing all the batteries and finding the problematic TF modules. Appreciate it!!
@@EspenKraft Alrighty... I'm now on my second module to diagnose here... I set the output volume to 3 and the sound is completely distorted and awful. I recorded a video of it. The FM chip HAS to work, since when I change sounds on my DX7, the sounds do have different tonality. It's just completely disoriented and distorted. th-cam.com/users/shortsWjZf0ZSkTF8
@@EspenKraftFIrst, excellent video, great detail & clear explanations! So, I'm curious as to why MODX (Montage) is not interesting to you? I get FM-X may have disappointed people because it wasn't the FS1r engine or some new modern take of FM, but the real time controllabilty takes FM into vast & unique new areas. In the Montage (with the 128 note poly) you can actually port over a whole TX816 soundset (1 part per module) and now have filters, insert effects, EQ and controllability of like 40 FM parameters in real time from over a dozen controllers... it's really the modern TX816. That said, my personal preference is for the SY's AFM engine as it has the most versatile and broad timbre space of Yamaha's FM implementations.
@@DrSynth I just don't want to spend to my time on workstation gear, gear meant to do a little of everything. I gave up on workstations years ago. Besides, most new gear is not something I usually get excited about and this is no different. I want my FM sounds to come vintage gear. ;-)
@@EspenKraft I hear you... I just use the parts of new gear that I find interesting and ignore the rest ! I've had the Montage over 2 years and still haven't used anything other than the FM-X ;-)
@@DrSynth I think it's a good thing that we all see things a little different. In the end that means more beautiful music, regardless of the gear. :) Cheers!
I got a TX816 a month ago and its my new FM power house. I actually use Dexed to make music in my DAW and then take that midi information in the DAW and export the Dexed sysex patch I used into the TX816 and then record the TX816 playing it and processing it. It's fantastic and I've been having a blast designing sounds that compliment each other and then loading them all at the same time for a wall of sound that's got to be like 128 voices at once.
Put it on youtube so we can see
I love my TX816. And since they're so old now I went ahead and spent the time to recap the power supply and modules, including changing the batteries. Good as new!
Tower of bloody FM Power! Next up is to combine this with the two TX81Zs, your TX16W and my SY99 + FS1R. Watch out, south of Norway will explode in frequency modulation! ^_^
Haha! The country will never recover ;-)
@@EspenKraft Maybe set the earth off it's Axis...
Legend has it that such FM power is so strong, Saturn's rings started to ripple! True story! ;)
Oooo the FS1R! Formant FM!
Tarik Essamri Yeah, you should check out Espen’s earlier episode on that one. :)
OK ,so I guessed wrong the last Video. Thanks for showing ,FM Synthesis seems to be more impressive than I thought
Many were wrong. ;-) Cheers
of course you have these already! i just found out these even exists :)
OMG FM HOLY GRAIL. Espen you continue to amaze us. With the depth of your love for 80s music tech. And history. Always wanted a TX816. But you also showed how great the TX802 is. And in reality for price and reliability. Its is probably a better option.
Both are great, for different reasons. ;-) Cheers
Proud owner of 2 x TX816, and a DX7 (had even 2 at a time!). I spoke with Wally Badarou few years ago who still use 2 TX816 for his famous power strings.
I just got my TX816 up and running. Also have an fm synth museum collection I'm building. So far: DX7II, TX81Z, TX816. Waiting to get a TG77.
I always preferred the sound of a DX7IIFD over the original DX7, and thus the TX802 over the TX816.
I'm glad that after all these years, your video has indeed verified my opinions from so many years ago. Thanks for capturing the nuance in your recording.
Thanks! :)
Same here! There's a very funny TH-camr named hedge who says "whichever one you like better, you're right." the 802 seems least noisy to my ears and the most clear.
It's 2020 and it's *Still Worth It!* I'll take both! If i had enough money...
Thanks and Very Good video Espen. In France Éric Serra used the TX816 a lot for the movie :Le Grand Bleu where there is very good music...
Espen, Thanks for showing two of my favorite FM synths!
This is the best vintage keys channel of youtube .
Many thanks for saying!
Espen is the type of friend who knows it all and helps you out when you have a question 🥰. Great video again, stay safe!
Thanks for saying! :)
thanks so much for making this, helped me get one of these i found at a pawn shop with bad batteries back from the dead with new sysex patches
Excellent news. Cheers :D
Great video - good enough to convince me I need some FM synthesis in my life - got a TX802 coming in the next few days
Thanks! And congrats :)
Espen Kraft Haven’t stopped playing with it since it arrived - should have got one years ago ! . It has version 1.4 firmware in it so I’ve ordered a 1.5 EPROM to install inside to get it up to latest spec
@@TheGuitartwanger Sweet!
Have both machines...but the king is the 816...the thing is not to use the same sound in each module and detune it..of course that can be nice too, but rather to build a massive expressive wall of sound from different sounds in the modules, detune and pan those to your liking and run some of them thru FX and it´s amazing. One superb player doing this is the great Jay Oliver. He were into "upper and lower structures" where some of the modules provided the "body" of the sound and others the "top details" without body to work together. Like a D-50 if you will...doing this, the expressiveness is UNMATCHED by anything
First of all, I need to thank you for having uploaded this video, Espen. It helped me realize that I was confusing two of Yamaha’s TX modules, the 802 and the 81z. I was aware that the Z was equipped with the DX7MkII engine, but I wasn’t sure what engine was in the 802.
If I’m not mistaken, TX-816 should be given a medallion for being the first ever 128-note polyphonic model ever to hit the market, A good 15 or 16 years before E-mu started building Proteus modules that had the same polyphony. Something which I’ve written before and that some might tire of seeing from me is a fantasy that I had before. My fantasy was that someone with an 816 could program a 4-part multitimbral patch at 32-note polyphony that could be triggered from a vector synthesizer whose joystick controller could switch between the four tones. The word I received when I asked about whether or not such an idea could come to fruition is that this module cannot be configured that way.
The 81z does not have a DX7 engine of any kind, inside. The 81z is a 4-operator FM synth with some features the DX7 does not have, but it's not near the power of a 6-operator DX7. Cheers :)
Thank you for the correction, Espen. Nobody likes to make mistakes, but I appreciate when somebody informs me of one.
No problem. The 81z is a fantastic FM module regardless and I like it a lot. It's been very much used by a lot of electro artists throughout the decades, for various reasons.
I got a TX802 as a gift from a friend recently and was curious how different it would sound from an 816, or if it were 'worse', but... nope can't hear a difference here! I'm really happy with my 802 and don't plan on a change over anytime soon ^^
The 802 is great!
I was right all along. Thanks for an interesting video, Espen.
You knew it! Thanks Pekka! :)
Awesome Video as always, Mr Kraft 😎
Thanks Sam! :)
Thanks Espen! This was a really interesting video! Love taking a look at these old rackmount units
Cheers! :D
Great job Espen. Man, I think my 1983 DX7 needs a new friend lol
Cheers!
Great demo! Awesome FM racks! It's a sound! Thanks a lot, Espen! Well done!
Many thanks man! :)
The Yamaha Montage will give you the FM power of the 816... and a whole lot more. :-) Nice to see an interest in FM synthesis again.
But it won't give ME what I want. ;-)
Great looking gear setup. I think to quote Anders with the tower of FM power. I just can't persuade my wife I need more gear so I'm stuck with software and Dexed at this time for my FM fix. Luckily you have plenty to share.
Dexed does a very good job!
Cool! I think that the most big difference between the simple module and top FM-rack is the details and level of expression. Anyway both are really good gear and in most cases sounds very close to each over.
Respect and special thanks for the short retro-trip with an excellent arrangement of the Duck Tales NES game, level Moon =)
Thanks man, happy you liked it! :)
As always it's nice to learn about all equipment from you Mr. Kraft. cause you explain easily and in depth 💯..
Quick story.. FM blew up my car speakers..🤭 Trying to pulse the car's cheap speakers with FM Dexed on the laptop. Use too loud of a low signal and it popped the right speaker. 😳 but I still love that FM...
Cheers... gonna try to use my yamaha Montage using FM-X as a TX816.
Sorry to hear it. Cheers :D
They are cheap speakers.. jaja. So now I just listen to it in mono...
Thanks, great stuff as always Espen!
Many thanks man! Easy gear to be enthusiastic about ;-)
Yeah man, things a beast system! I am using a RX15 to distribute the midi and essentially have a dedicated 8 part FM drum machine!
Great video Espen as always, greetings from Argentina!
Thanks Marcelo! :)
What is love has come to my mind.
Whow ¡ Min: 12:21, What a sound ¡ Very inspiring....
Man, you even found a DMP7! Talk about some classic icons! I’ve got a pair of DX7s, a DX5 which is my “Rolls Royce” DX, and a TX816. Nothing like 12 DX7s all playing at once, all slightly defined and panned apart!
The DMP7 is historically significant so it was cool to be able to show this as well. ;-)
@@EspenKraft indeed. The first tour I did with Smitty, that rig was massive, and all the synths were routed into a pair of DMP9/16's... the rack mount successor to the DMP7. They were great boxes!
Nice Jim, cool to know! They do sound good, even by today's standard. I've used so many Yamaha Digital mixers through the years and I've always enjoyed them.
I like balanced XLR outputs on back of TX-816. I'm proud owner of 2 x TX-802. Beautiful, timeless machines. Cheers!
Cheers!
Same sound. Thank you for the review.
Cheers!
Yayyyyy! Rolling up my sleeves for this one. Here we go...
My mouth was watering all the way through this video...
You need therapy.
I don't blame you! :P
@@vjrei I'm pretty sure I do, yeah.
Excellent demo!
Thanks!
Really interesting comparison thanks
Thanks for the explanation , useful as always
Thanks for watching, happy you liked it! :)
Thanks for the great video as usual. It really makes you want to fire up the FM sound modules starting to collect dust in the rack.
I have all these gear except the DMP7 which I sold away because the motorized faders became stuck and the higher end of the sound was quite restrictive. It must be hard to maintain these old kit in good condition.
I dust every day, with a fine brush while using a hand vacuum cleaner just above the brush. ;-)
Mind blown Espen, Yamaha FM sound is unique for sure, I still have a TX81Z, I hope you do a video on the TX81Z one day. Keep up the awesome content. Cheers!
Thanks! I have done that already. 22 minutes long.
@@EspenKraft How could I have missed that! I will look for it, thanks again Espen you're the best!
Cheers!
wonderful!! immediately bought a TX816 on the bay after watching! Now you gotta buy a Rev1 for those! BTW, I also own an Yamaha CE20 and a CE35. Those are the earliest affordable FM performance synths, Yamaha ever made. They sound amazing! Like poor mans GS2.
I also have a Rev1 and I can tell you it’s worth every penny. No comparison to Rev7, Rev5 or SPX. But this also would give a great comparison video on it’s own - best of Yamaha reverbs!
Thanks! I actually know the Rev1, but don't own one. I don't plan to buy it either, but it's a great unit still.
tihinter Yamaha CE-25 was my first real fm synth back on the year 1988. I used to gig around with it a lot.
Amazing presentation. These synths and Mr Espen are magic and timeless. Is it possible to buy or download beautiful patches from video?
Many thanks Nick! All the patches used in this video are easily found and downloaded from the net. Free. Thousands upon thousands of patches online for the DX7.
@@EspenKraft Thank you for your quick answer
The Patch around 12:20,can one find that as a Plug On also?
That's a factory DX electric piano, nothing special in itself, but from the TX816 rack with multiple modules running the same patch detuned and lots of reverb and chorus it sounds mesmerizing.
One DX7 engine is satisfying
Two is great
Eight engines is EPIC
So I got the quiz correct!!! You can tell when the sound is isolated, but in a large mix it would be hard to tell. Great video as usual, coming to Norway next year will pop in!
Thanks man! :)
Thanks Espen, The 816 has way too many complex scary parts that could fail for my liking😊 I can’t hear any actual difference so 802 definitely my preference! ( plus display/programmability etc). Was weird seeing you playing the Juno alpha but very “non-Juno” sounds coming out of the speakers. I liked what you were playing with the 816, it’s it out of a song or just something you made up?
Thanks! The tune I play on the 816 is called "Sheeba". That both released commercially and I have a tutorial on this channel.
@@EspenKraft that's very cool! Thanks!
It's funny. The factory default sounds for these synths didn't really have any decent Pad or String sounds. But there are tons of user-made patches that sound great. I was kind of shocked when I came across a whole bank of good sounding pads. It's even better when you can stack synths :P
I bought an untested 816 from ebay for a lowish price. And got it up and running just yesterday. All the voice data and settings on each module was messed up from probably long dead batteries (I had a Wavestation A/D that lost its data as well). Needless to say I was worried about it, but it works.
You can't hear the difference because the A/B comparison were just using one module of the 816. Listen at 12:16 to see what happens when you stack. Now the 802 can stack, but the voice count is much lower.
Hey Espen, have you seen those crazy old Yamaha Electone "synth organs" from the late 80s? I just picked up one yesterday and was blown away with the FM synth in these. They are multi timbral Stereo FM synths (claims to have 16 operators), you can even make your own FM sounds via the manual switch panel, but you can dig even deeper into them via midi! What blew me away was that these old Yamaha instruments had insanely good keyboards with both Touch and After touch on ALL keybeds. I suspect they where too expensive back in the days, and the programming too hard to do for the average demographics these were meant for. Already after just ONE day with this monstrosity (I got a Yamaha HS-6 in brand new condition, from 1987) I already could make better examples than 99 percent of the youtube examples of the instrument - because everyone thought it was an organ, it's not an organ - it's a programmable multi timbral FM synth in Stereo! It's like having several DX7's in one. Back in the days, it retailed for 45000 SEK in sweden (1987), imagine what that monster would cost today.
It was even so far ahead of its time - that every keybed it comes with - has its own MIDI channel, so you can in fact use it as a master-multi-keyboard setup with full Touch and Aftertouch support. Insane. Hope you find one - one day and lay your masterful fingers on it, so it at least get ONE last honor before every model has been thrown away in the bin like common organs.
@sneakydisco Yeah I suspect you are right. You have 16 combinations, I think thats what they meant in the advert. You can adjust some of the parameters in the "manual roll menu" to the right, but if you want to adjust ALL the parameters, you must do it via MIDI (yes you can do this via midi!) There are some software for the Atari ST series where you can adjust all the parameters for them, not made for PC yet, but who knows? Someone ought to be the first, it's fully programmable!
Btw, did you know the HS6 (and respectively HS8) have individual touch AND after touch on each keybed? If you have the HS8 - you even have after touch on the PEDALS too! What blew me away, was that they have higher resolutions than can be played with the internal synthesizer, and the higher resolution touch levels are sent via midi - so I connected a modern Yamaha Montage to it, and the HS6-became a mind blowing Master keyboard for it. The Montage assigns Midi1 , 2 and 3 etc. via each patch you add to one instrument, so it can be played individually on each keybed on the HS6 or 8, amazing!
@sneakydisco Only the HS8 has the Pitch/Modulation wheel, and the HS6-8 series had spared no expenses, imagine being so ahead of your time that you decided to make your organ series with synthesizers inside instead? And to top it off - combine it with AWM (PCM sampling + fm synthesis?) and make your organ fully programmable, rythms, ROM/Ram cartridge upgrades and whatnot, back in the 87s? And midi with full control both ways, including full polyphony keybeds all 3 of them, with touch/aftertouch. WAAAY ahead of time. ELS-02C/X, ELS-01C/X och EL-900m. was the only ones according to an Electone enthusiast I know of that has similar traits.
@sneakydisco My friend told me to stay away from the HX ones as they are less capable than the HS series when it comes to things you "can do" with them, modify etc...I don't know the EL-90 myself, but looking at a few youtube videos - it sounds pretty sweet! Hope you got a good deal on it! Look at the manuals, look at the MIDI section, and the specs, and see if you can discover something useful!
@sneakydisco You're spot on! :) They thought the HS/HX series looked so futuristic, like a thing out of star-trek so it was used as a prop, indeed these where futuristic, also on the inside. The engineers did some amazing stuff, but people weren't ready!
@sneakydisco organforum.com/forums/forum/organ-building-repair-restoration/virtual-organs/38602-yamaha-electone-el90-as-virtual-hauptwerk-console check out that thread...might be of some help to you,
Yamaha REV7! Beautiful
I don't hear significant differences. So I am happy that I have the 802, because I can add one of the moderne Cardridge with many soundbanks to load any Sound in shortest time. And I like the 8 Single outputs to get really crazy sounds out of the 802.
@Jon Goat And if we are talking about the "home studios" in these days (well for me early 90:s), don't forget about the usually really crappy and extremely noisy mixers. The Boss BX- 60 I had was notorius for being very noisy. And then it had to finally go into a normal tape (the consumer small ones) in the end which brought even more noise to it!
I couldn't hear any difference, I thought the mk1 sounded quite a bit different. I dont have any real use for the 816 even though I could have got one for very little many years ago, its a bit big and ugly and my 802 is more than enough in the age of DAWS.
I have a TX416. I hope to eventually load it up with TF1 cards but I’m in no hurry.
There’s something I really like about its size, its weight, the connections, the user-unfriendliness. It is like a living thing that just wants to mind its own business. A 37-year old musical robot slave to do my FM bidding.
Be on the look out for a Beetle PR-7. They were made in the mid 1980s. They are a 3U rack unit the exactly duplicates the front panel of an original DX7 for use with the TX-816
Is an AWESOME addition to a TX-816
Yes, it's a very cool thing to get if you don't have a DX7. Which I have btw ;-)
Still catching up - first, yeah, called it from the last video - the 802 and 816 do have a generational sound difference, and someone with experience with FM could pick it up on the right sounds and outside a mix. Not sure I reliably do it in a mix with other instruments of course. Oh, and I really like the touch of using the DMP7 mixer here - applause for completeness! I always wanted one of those back in the day too. (Eventually owned a DM1000, which cured me of that!)
I think the DMP7 is mandatory in a rack of Yamaha DX gear. ;-)
There's a TX802 for sale locally (and, living on an island with nothing but sea in all directions, that is an advantage not to be underestimated), but I can't really justify it. Because it's not just the TX802, but also the extra audio inputs, the effects processing, the space...
I detected some Ducktales Moon theme during the introduction, nice. 😃
Cheers!
Monster patch 9:40 ... amazing; that’s a track right there.
Well, that IS a song already. ;-)
Yup. I guessed right on the previous video. Not even sure I can explain why, it was so close.
The 802 can be filter, EQ, ect to dull it down a bit if need it. And the winner is THE 802 👏👏👏👏👏
Mit der Hcard-702 Speicherkarte von Hypersynth kann ein Yamaha DX7-II, DX11 & DX-7S um bis zu 6400 Speicherplätze erweitert werden, die sich auf 100 Bänke verteilen. In 100 Bänken zu je 64 Sounds finden sich nicht nur die originalen Werkspresets des DX7-II, sondern auch 16 Bänke mit sorgfältig ausgewählten neuen Klängen.
Yeah, I tried to buy one for my DX7 and they were out of stock. I really want one of those cards though :( Do these modules have card slots like the keyboards do? My TX7 module doesn't have a card slot.
Automatische Übersetzung. Ich kann lesen, was du geschrieben hast, aber ich kann kein Deutsch.
Ja, ich habe versucht, einen für meinen DX7 zu kaufen, und sie waren nicht vorrätig. Ich möchte wirklich eine dieser Karten :( Haben diese Module Kartensteckplätze wie die Tastaturen? Mein TX7-Modul hat keinen Kartensteckplatz.
The FM cover of NES DuckTales' Moon theme @ 00:19 & 04:57 is very sweet!
Thanks!
@@EspenKraft I would love to hear a full version! ;)
Maybe some other time, but a longer version of this would just trigger the algorithms of TH-cam and Nintendo would shut it down. ;-)
I love your Red micro Phone
TX816 is a definite dream one for me.
How much was that rack back in the day? Heaps i remember
I had a Sy77 back in the day
816 is better to my ears. Beautiful melody you play with it. Is there a way to load the same sound into all the modules at the same time?
@espenkraft Is The Man ..! Just...Thank you...!
Great demo! I'm on the look for a tall and open rack like the one you use for the FM tower. Can you share what brand it is?
Sure , I would be a rich man if I had dollar every time someone asks me that. ;-)
Check gear4music. com and search for 19" racks, it'll pop up down the results.
@@EspenKraft Thanks! I took a good listen and looked at the sound files to see if I could hear/see the 12-bit vs 16-bit FM. Not really ;-)
I did notice that drumtrack was shared, bit for bit (except the reverb) - the drums cancelled out completely when playing both files and phasereversing one.
I believe the TX802 is 16 bit and the TF1 is 12 bit. The sounds do sound alike, but if you were to crank the gain a LOT and listen to the fade out of the sounds you would hear a big difference in the noise level and smoothness. Try it for us please.
You're right about that. I don't have anything more in terms of comparison planned at this point. Too many other things to do. ;-)
awesome.... 2nd :D both nice modules :D
how did you achieve that arpeggio at the end, playing randomly different parts on the TX802? (the marimba sequence) .. that was impressive
It's a performance preset. 8 different parts responding to the same MIDI channel. I use the same technique in my "Clair de lune" cover as well as on my track "Dreams" from my "Dreams" album.
Wow .. thanks so much. Will check that on my TX802 later today. Didn’t know.
Also I’m glad I am not the only one still using a KX88 👍
(In case you are still using that)
I have it, but I rarely use it these days due to space issues.
Had a TX416 for a long time, ended up doing a recap job and moving on after picking up an 802. Wildly easier to use the 802. Slightly altered patch/panorama across the TF1s is The One Trick that the big box has over anything.
What caps did you go with?
@@xfloodcasual8124 phew, million years ago... I don't remember the series but I'm sure they were panasonics.
@@soupforare I've been recapping a TG77 and replaced some on the digital board and when I turned it on it the OS was completely hosed. :( I replaced the originals but no dice. Was it a mistake to mess with the digital board? Have no idea what happened.
@@soupforare Oh figured it out! Needed to do a factory reset.
Awesome!!!
Thanks! :)
Nice! Sounds like a Jan Hammer Miami Vice tune at around 9:00...
Thanks! You should check out the commercial release of that track then. It's called "Sheeba" and you can find it through the links in the video description. It's on Spotify and other digital platforms. ;-)
I have heard that one on Spotify.... Reminds me a lot of the first part of ”The Trial and the Search”. Excellent!
Cheers!
Can you build a minidexed and compare it with the tx816? I'm really damn curious how they stack up side by side.
Sold the 816 a little while back.
@@EspenKraft Ah too bad, would've been fun to see.
You kept the 802 right?@@EspenKraft
I have been forced to downsize to a flat so am still hoping that I'll be allowed some discretely disguised gear. I had planned prior to this to add a TX802. Assuming I'm able to keep the following do you reckon that my FS1R will cover my TX802 / DX72 needs if in 6 operator mode & I could simply use 1 of the 8 modules on the TX816 to get a normal DX7 mk1 sound? I think I got my FB01 before the TX81Z came out so I'll stick with that for 4 operator sounds. It's actually a favourite module & saves space as I rack it with another 1/2 unit , an EMU Proformance + piano , my main piano module.
Your FS1R will basically cover all FM needs, but nothing sounds like a DX7mk1 so a TX816 with just one TF1 will cover that. ;-)
Ducktales Moon Theme, very nice!
Hi Espen Kraft, could you tell me where I can get those patches or if you could share them please?
These are all patches that are easily found online. I just dumped a couple of banks into the modules while doing this video.
There is a patch there called” Windens.1” that i like particularly, sounds very expressive. I’ll have a look from those found online..
You play them with a Roland keyboard, which probably goes up to velocity level 127.
Do both Yam racks only go to level 100 like the Mark 1 DX7, or was the TX802 already capable of distinguishing up to 127?
What happens when you hit the ceiling of over 100 with the TX816 sounds?
I really don't know. I was never very concerned with this. I f I like the sound I hear I when I play I don't care what the MIDI velocity is. If I don't like the sound I just go into that patch and edit it until I do. That DX7 mk1 velocity = 100 never bothered me one bit. ;-)
@@EspenKraft Like that approach. With good keybeds from the 8ties and 9ties one seldom hammers into the top range anyway, unlike these new midi-controller only flimsies that go straight up to the top. (You mentioned the different velocity curve as well). THX for your excellent videos.
hey could you please demo the ys200?
I just had a batery holder mod on mine and I love the sound of this machine so much! It is pretty warm for being only 4operator and it definitely has potential for sounding even better with all the free sounds online for it.
Don't have one. ;-)
where can i download these presets?
Welp, a couple of months late ;) But again, another great video! I like the pedagogics, a brief overview of two pieces of fine hardware (again, since Yamaha = Japan, it is by default great! Unless proven otherwise :p ) ! I was genuinely surprised about how good they sounded...I guess having all of that "FM power" available by the touch of a key really does makes a difference! I was pleasantly surprised about the guest appearance of Anders! You should do some serious collabs some day ;)
That clip with him is from my Yamaha TX81Z video. Didn't you watch it? ;-) Him and I talk for over 30 minutes about that synth. I might do more synth-talk videos with him in the future. Not working together on music though, I don't do that. ;-) Cheers mate
@@EspenKraft Ahhh really? No I must confess that I have quite a back log here as there are so many great videos ;) Thank you however for pointing it out! I'll add it to my to-watch list! :) I understand the thing about not collabing on music though talking about the hardware, or going over it together, sharing each others experiences, takes on sounds (demoing), usability, reminiscing about how so or so sound was used in this or that tune etc. would be cool! :)
Some like to collab, some don't. I generally don't like to collab on anything where I have to share the creative decisions. I've done that for so many years in the past and I hated every minute of it. Primarily I like to work on my own, in solitude and with no one but myself to answer too. Again, in the creative process. ;-)
Imagine if each of those modules were little DX7 500 series modules? That would be so sweet I’d totally buy one
what's the tune at 9:30....... its very familiar?
My song "Sheeba". Released commercially and I have a tutorial video about it on my channel as well.
How is the song called at 9:02 :-)
That's the intro of my song called "Sheeba". You can find that through the links in the video description. Cheers
@@EspenKraft Thanks for quick response. Havent heard before. Its a masterpiece as always and a pleasure to listen to. Thanks for inspiring me as always. Standing here in front of SY22 and SY77 :-) combining some sound and start learning that song. Greetings Chris :-)
Great synths! I have a full tutorial on "Sheeba" already on the channel. Let me know if you haven't seen that video. Cheers :)
@@EspenKraft Hm can`t find it in the tutorial section. How is the Video called? Thanks :-) -> ahh found it! Great: th-cam.com/video/ua0TXQ2_tjE/w-d-xo.html
Espen, any idea where one can get replacement crystals for the DX/TX series? And please don’t get heatstroke from your power plant!
Try Synthaur. Now that winter is coming I'm happy to have it to warm my house. ;-)
The choice is easy. Buy a Yamaha MODX or Montage. You can convert sound libraries from either the TX816 or TX802 into these new synths, plus enjoy the new FM-X engine.
For some of us it's not that easy. It's like a kit-car or replica. Even if it's made by the same company, it's not the same if you want the original real thing. Beside that, the ModX does not sound the same.
@@EspenKraft It's plenty close enough for me. My uses are for live performance in a rock band.
I first replaced my DX7 (TX7 module) with a soft synth, and even that was fine. The sounds I used in my bands were ridiculously close. Now the MODX can do the job, plus expanded FM synthesis with FM-X.
Like anything, it would depend on your specific use.
In a rock band, like Woody's challenge of soft synths vs hardware synths, it would be very difficult to distinguish. With the songs we cover, even if we used all the original keyboards of every song we played, there would still be slight differences anyway. The MODX is plenty good enough for the job of capturing the character of the sounds.
"The Yamaha FM Converter (for Montage/MODX keyboards) allows you to use contents from the DX7, DX7II, TX802 and TX216/816 on your new Montage or MODX, instantly expanding the creative possibilities with thousands of additional sound" This would likely be good enough solution for the vast amount of synth players. But like any synth, only the original revision will be good enough for some people. There will be slight differences, but they will generally take some serious effort to hear those differences. The Montage/MODX engine is an excellent reproduction. But it's still a reproduction.
Sure, but if you WANT the original... ;-) It takes me 5 minutes to go to the store to get milk, in both my cars. But it's a lot more fun taking the Ford Mustang '69 than the 2015 Ford Fiesta.
@@EspenKraft I don't think one person in the audience would pick up on the difference in the mix of my live band if I alternated chords between the original or the Montage/MODX even if the audience were all musicians. "Easily" the best choice for most people. I've replaced several of my synths with replacements that are compatible with the original sounds in either modern hardware or software, and yet, I still feel like I have my original synths.
On a platinum album, maybe.
But it's not ALL about the audience when you desire vintage gear, in fact, for many it's the experience of the vintage gear itself that inspires creativity. MY music is directly inspired by the nostalgia I get from using it. If you forced me to make a track using the ModX it would be done, I am a pro after all, but it wouldn't have my heart in it.
So we use vintage gear because it affects us in a positive way. You use modern gear because that's what YOU like.
Coming to a vintage hardware channel and pointing at the ModX won't win many over. ;-)
Heh, I guessed the mixes correctly in the last video.
I’ve done some dumb things in life, one was selling my TX816 with 8TF1s. Used MOTU Unisyn to manage the sounds.
hello Espen, waht do you think about the Yamaha TG77 is that diferent to the older FM synths?
i have on and i look for a good Hardware Programmer you know a good one?
TG77 is great. I have no idea what's out there for it in terms of controlling, if any. ;-)
@@EspenKraft ok thank you for ask me that fast
(3:23) Hey, is that the Top Gun theme bell sound? I guess I have to say "original" Top Gun now, eh? 😉 I think it's modified a bit in the song, though. I'd love to hear how it was made. Anyway, what a lovely instrument. 😀
That is the original Top Gun bell sound. Except Harold Faltermeyer used all the TF-1 boards doing the same sound, all slightly detuned etc to get that extra fat big timbre. I'm only using one here. ;-)
@@EspenKraft Thanks! 😎
Dear mr Espen Kraft this True testimony right here thank you what is the machine below the tx 802?
Thanks! That's a Yamaha Rev7 effects unit. From the mid 80s as well.
thanks bro, im using also tx 802 and the tx 81z also have the mighty sr wave station and with the dx 7 II i wanna know on thees days let me just say that those machins are awesome sounds phenomenal better then tha all MODX ' iwanna know i would like to conect all of it again do i need to buy a midi station or like the yamaha mepeg 4?
what do you reccomend sir?
Espen Kraft please can you recommend a midi processor?
Like the mpeg4 yamaha?
What midi station are you using to connect all the modules? I need your advice bro..
@@kfirtsairi3986 I don't know what you mean? You mean a midi patchbay or digital mixer or what? Check out my videos on audi and midi setups and routing. I have several videos on my channel about this.
@@EspenKraft yes sir would like to get recommend on a good midi patch bay that could hook everything and have an exit to usb to computer is the motu is good?
*Looks up Yamaha DMP7* =o] I recently traded my K2500rs for a TX802. I use Dexed to sysex patches into it, super easy and convenient.
Another great video! Always wished to listen to a comparison like this! I have read that a famous artist used the whole TX-816 all for one realistic guitar patch, can't remember his name now.
Just for curiosity: is that true that old Yamaha keyboards can send dynamic values only up to 120 instead up to 128, loosing the chance to a complete dynamic control on other gear linked?🤔
Thanks! Yes, the original DX7 can not transmit over 100 in velocity, so it's worse than you think. ;-)
I just got my TX816, and some of the modules are monophonic and playing one note at a time, and a slide between each note. Is there any idea why?
It can be different reasons for this. Bad batteries in the TF modules. I suggest you clear out all modules. Check manual page 34 for this and reload the factory presets (sysex) into each modules. These can be found online. I show the sysex load procedure in my video.
@@EspenKraft Awesome. Turns out, many of the modules are coated in some awful brownish-red goo, and it's created a film causing most of them to be monophonic in nature, as well as completely distorting the sound. I am going to have to manually clean each one up, which will be *so* much fun. I do appreciate you helping me, as I did end up removing all the batteries and finding the problematic TF modules.
Appreciate it!!
@@EspenKraft Alrighty... I'm now on my second module to diagnose here... I set the output volume to 3 and the sound is completely distorted and awful. I recorded a video of it. The FM chip HAS to work, since when I change sounds on my DX7, the sounds do have different tonality. It's just completely disoriented and distorted.
th-cam.com/users/shortsWjZf0ZSkTF8
Hello Espen, could you make a comparison with the Yamaha MODX
I don't have a MODX. Besides, the MODX does not interest me very much. ;-)
Have you tried the MODX? 8op FM synth engine. it is amazing.
The MODX is not interesting to me at all.
@@EspenKraftFIrst, excellent video, great detail & clear explanations! So, I'm curious as to why MODX (Montage) is not interesting to you? I get FM-X may have disappointed people because it wasn't the FS1r engine or some new modern take of FM, but the real time controllabilty takes FM into vast & unique new areas. In the Montage (with the 128 note poly) you can actually port over a whole TX816 soundset (1 part per module) and now have filters, insert effects, EQ and controllability of like 40 FM parameters in real time from over a dozen controllers... it's really the modern TX816. That said, my personal preference is for the SY's AFM engine as it has the most versatile and broad timbre space of Yamaha's FM implementations.
@@DrSynth I just don't want to spend to my time on workstation gear, gear meant to do a little of everything. I gave up on workstations years ago. Besides, most new gear is not something I usually get excited about and this is no different. I want my FM sounds to come vintage gear. ;-)
@@EspenKraft I hear you... I just use the parts of new gear that I find interesting and ignore the rest ! I've had the Montage over 2 years and still haven't used anything other than the FM-X ;-)
@@DrSynth I think it's a good thing that we all see things a little different. In the end that means more beautiful music, regardless of the gear. :) Cheers!
Does anyone know where I can get spare TF1 modules?? please help...
They come up on Ebay once in a while.
What a rack! Yum...
Yes maybe the 802 is a more "human" machine but I dream of a 816, the Absolute King of the TXs, since... hm... 37 years.
Do we still need this with Arturia dx7 ?
I don't know about "we", but I do.