Tutorial: Making a sawtooth bass on a 4 op FM synth (TX81z)

[douro20]

It takes a pretty good mathematician to completely understand these settings...it's all based on linear algebra and calculus.

[bio2451]

Must feel great to make that thing do what you tell it to do, I'd really love to express my ideas with something like that but is all too complicated for my little brain

[timtico]

what kind of infernal machine is that?

[muzik4machines]

@timtico Yamaha TX81z fed into an AKAI MFC42 filter unit

[timtico]

@muzik4machines

isn't it incredible inpractical to program a synth with an interface like that?. It's cool from a nostalgic and historical perspective point of view... but usability would seem an issue right?

[muzik4machines]

@timtico it is, but there are free editors available for the faint of heart, i was raised with 2x16 characters display and parameter buttons, so no big deal for me, and once the patches are done, they are done, i haven't changed a think in there in 1 year lol

[yohppoy]

@muzik4machines

hi man

what are the free editors you reccomand? i tried some very old and frankly they're very difficult (for me). if you have some advice about them plase go ahead.

thanx

[muzik4machines]

@yohppoy try this one bit ly dGQYAQ

[yohppoy]

@muzik4machines

sorry, didn't find anything about it...are you sure is the correct name?

thanx again

[muzik4machines]

@yohppoy are you serious? its a web address just add the . and the /

[yohppoy]

@muzik4machines

thanx

i knew this TX81Z Programmer v1.20, it's just shareware, not free.

indeed i never tried it and it seems well done.

do you know some free -and useful- softs to program the tx81z?

cheers again man

[InsertName125]

@timtico Also, I'll wage the lifespan of something like a TX81Z against your hard drive and CPU any day.

I went from hardware to software and now I'm going back to hardware (although not completely).

[timtico]

@muzik4machines

It seems incredible impractical to program a synth with such an userinterface, isn't it?

[VacTrooper]

Good work mang, I really like that distortion by the way, what is it?

[muzik4machines]

@VacTrooper the distortion on the sawtooth wave is usually from the mfc42 filter(there is a distortion built in)

I now use a SYB3 in waveshaper mode, way more dirty

[VacTrooper]

Good work mang

[muzik4machines]

@VacTrooper thanks

[TW909]

shit, that things going mental.

[muzik4machines]

thanks a lot :)

[NexXxus86]

cool, can you make a tut for a nice trance lead?

[muzik4machines]

i would need an example of it so i can try to make it, not a hoover isn't it?

[roadcommander132]

Thanks muzik4machines! This helped immensely for creating a nice sawtooth tone with a DX100!

[muzik4machines]

hapy to help :)

[clubhappybest]

just acquired a dx7 a couple months ago, programming it is AWESOME, but i'm afraid it's MIDI in/out is shot, which would be a heartbreaker cuz lord knows i was gettin excited to sequence that baby...

[plasmaforce11]

weee! phatness :P

[muzik4machines]

thanks

[dibsandduchamp]

This is cool!

I have been programing synths for some time and may have just been bitten by the fm bug. Anyway... If you are not into the mini screen editing thing, spend the 20 bucks and get the editor from the all-org guy named Matt Gregory. It is awesome and the librarian/snapshot manager is fantastic.

[MadCobraProductions]

i have owned a fb01, tx81z and tx802. i love fm for some reason.

[muzik4machines]

welcome aboard the FM lovers cruise, i started with a dx21, then fm7 was my to go synth, then i got the TX and a DX200, i think i too love FM

[metabog]

The only thing holding this back is that you have to do it on a tiny non-intuitive screen. NI FM8 has a really good interface for programming FM sounds.

[muzik4machines]

non intuituve to you, i program fm synth since the dx7 came out in the 80's, for me it's second nature, but yeah, for most of the human population, it,s horrible

[metabog]

Well it's easy for you because you've been doing it for a long time, but it's obviously easier if you're not confined to a tiny screen. It's definitely less straight forward than a subtractive synth or a sampler. For the general population the word operator is enough to say 'too hard, stay away'. Of course FM synthesis is much more in depth than subtractive because you're building your sound from the ground up. Programming it definitely falls in the techy category.

[locobeis]

dont be afraid of the word, be afraid of not knowing what it is. :-)

[dearypain]

WOW!

[muzik4machines]

thanks

[Astrodan2600]

Wow. Had no idea you could get these sounds from this little module. Very cool.

[muzik4machines]

yep, i was pretty impressed the day i tought of it, it's a nice rounded saw, not as harsh as some real analog on the edges (but none of that sweet variation due to circuit and stuff, but nice compromise for the 50$ the synth costs(i bought it for the solid bass, kept it for the saw))

[psound79]

Anybody out there get anything similar with a DX7 / TX7?

[muzik4machines]

on a dx7 its algo 31 IIRC (one modulaor with 5 carrier) so it' seven louder than on the TX (1 mod, 3 carriers)

[psound79]

Cheers. I got a decent enough facsimile going now. You da man.

[muzik4machines]

try to replicate the settings on al 6 (the ones in the description) it should sound exactly the same(but louder)

[whisperingvenus]

AAArrgghh !! so friggin complicated yet so interesting and great result you've made .. did you make the bass lines by esx's step sequencer? how did you make that sliding sounds? Thanx

[muzik4machines]

i recorded real time, then edited the gate lenght to get the glide(with long-ish portamento)

[Atomicskull]

FM in this synth is far more capable than the ym2612 used in the Genesis/Megadrive. I don't know why people keep repeating this.

[skapoosh]

forgot to mention, great tutorial~!

[muzik4machines]

thanks a lot :)

[skapoosh]

love it! specially the transients. Its unbelievable how cheap this synth can be. It sure sounds big!

[JosephGallagher]

I've been looking forever to make my actual electric bass sound like a synth!! Those Bass Synth pedal FX don't sound like one at all!!

Any idea how I could get this sound? If rack-mounted hardware might me needed?

[muzik4machines]

the syb5 stays the best alternative (or a nord modular COULD maybe do it, but its fucking expensive)

[JosephGallagher]

Thanks a lot!! I'll look'em up =D

[psound79]

Love that sound. Is there anyway you could upload the sysex somewhere? I would love to drop it into FM8 and see how it compares.

[muzik4machines]

if i ever get to plug a midi cable in the tx to the computer maybe, bu tit takes a whole 3 minutes to do it from the text in the description on a real tx, and it took my about 2 to copy it in fm7/8, so you should be able to do it pretty quickly, i mean, it's just the same thing on all ops except the modulator one

[sweepstakes]

if you don't have a TX81z, google tx81z editor and go to the first link. I believe you can use that editor w/o a TX - you just need to save to an .syx file.

[muzik4machines]

he could also just copy my values in fm7/8 and save a step :lol:

[sweepstakes]

hehe...isn't the scaling different though?

[muzik4machines]

good question lemme check yeah, in fm8 everything goes to 100, so use a feedback of 100 (7 being the max on the tx)

plus in fm7/8 you get the filter built in, no need for another piece

[muzik4machines]

id say in fm 8, feedback at 48 on op a (serving as modulator) and osc a level in osc b c and d at29-39 to taste, with B C and D at full out level in the filter for the hi pass sound

[sweepstakes]

cool! good to know :)

[stanbekker]

mannn I want a hardware synth

[muzik4machines]

these tz go for like 50$

[stanbekker]

yeah that's very cheap indeed. How do you like the sounds? Are they usefull? I'm really into spacy, melodic type of sounds, is it easy to create such sounds with this unit?

[stanbekker]

"This synth has almost exactly the same chip as the one found in the Sega Genesis. It has the same specs, so if you ever want to make genesis-like music, buy one."

That makes it even more interesting! Do you find this unit capable of creating 8 bit sounding "game music"?

[muzik4machines]

never tried the 8 bit sounds on that one, but i guess it could

it's not easy to make any sound on an FM synth without either an editor or huge knowledge of fm synthesis

it can do all kind of sounds, from dirty subs to saw bass to (the most over used sound ever) FM epianos and bells

[perspeeks]

Very informative, and great sounds :)

[muzik4machines]

thanks a lot :)

[tiskateudenhaut]

musique de sauvage!...c ben bon ce que tu fais mr le voisin den bas

[muzik4machines]

j'irais pas jusqu'a appeler ce video la de la musique lol

merci ti skateu d'en haut :P

[boisbrut]

oh shit! d'autres québecois!!!

[Thalassa77]

Hello, I've posted this video on stichedonsynthesizer.blogspot . com

[muzik4machines]

you made a typo

it's switchedonsynthesizer . blogspot . com

[Thalassa77]

you are right :) , I wrote that almost sleeping :P (2am here in Spain )

[hsifylleg]

I hadn't realized the TX81z was an FM synth until this morning :-) I've got an FB-01 sitting gathering dust on the other side of the room which I'm inspired to give a blast to get a good bass out of now.

I like your bass sound anyway and it's good to see how you make it :-)

[muzik4machines]

thanks for watching

it's a pleasure sharing those sounds as I always like toteach things

[drbenway]

Well done.

Maybe is possible create a program with this preset and use it in "unison" mode.

I used this technique to make more fat (with some detuning) the LATELY BASS preset and the result was great.

Soon as possible I will try...

Thanks.

[muzik4machines]

yeah i had tought of that but was too lazy to implement it, lemme try next day off :)

thanks for watching

[drbenway]

I try the "unison "Mode now.

Sound really fat, remeber me the ms20 sound.

I used 3 saw :

Detuning : +1 , -7 , +7

One octave down of the first saw (note -12) for add the subosc effect.

A little bit of portamento and ... where is the filter!?!?!

:-P

[muzik4machines]

in my case the filter is just a couple rackspaces over the TX81z(the MFC42, which also receives the note on and trigs the enveloppe of the filter(for the lowpass))

[muzik4machines]

did it, really fat, also varying(2 saws, 2 squares, 2 pWM, even one with 4 say, the solid bass and an organ sound, mighty bass

i also did the 4th 5th 7th and so on, and chords while i was in performance mode lol

[vanitypolice]

WOW. I've watched this twice now. This is such a good patch and such an inspirational video! WOuld it be possible to get the the sysex/midi for this patch? :-) I'd love to not have to program it by watching the video and pausing constantly.

[muzik4machines]

ALGO 6 all sines op1 level 99 op2, op3 level 99 op4 level 77 feedback osc 4: 7 ratio op 1, 2 3 1.00 ratio op 4 1,00 for saw, 2,00 for square envelope is just on and off without any release as for the SYSEX, if i'm not too lazy on my next day off i'll try to transfer it and upload it

[beaker808]

Well done! Programming the FM synthesis of the DX/TX has always been a mystery to me (and many others). You got a very respectable TB style bass out of it. Impressive.

[muzik4machines]

thaks, that was the goal at first(in 2003-4 when I got the TX and then the MFC42, with heavy low pass quacking and distortion, no verb or pumping compression) , then the benassi bass came in fashion, so i started using it unfiltered a la electro, with hi pass, reverb(LOOOOONG tail) and a pumping sidechain compressor)

I added the annotation too