I wish Yamaha would do more focused TRUE synths like this again. This thing was hard to program because of the interface, but it was one of THE most powerful and incredible FM synths ever made by far.
@zzzxtreme I could never get rid of my 85. If I was homeless I'd find shelter for it first, then look for a place to sleep. I almost bought a second one once. I settled on the TG500, which is pretty much the same synth with a few more sounds but no sequencer.
Nice demo of the FS1r, I'd love to have one to add to my collection. Can I just say that the YS200 gets my vote for ugliest synth ever. Whenever I saw one in a music shop it made me feel ill! ;)
Are these factory patches or added? I bought an FS1R (eBay) recently and very few of the sounds listed here are on my unit. I'd like to know where i could grab some of these. Thanks, K
There are thousands of ROM voices, and one bank of 128 RAM voices. There are four banks of performances, all of which can be edited. You can reset the voices and one of the four performance banks by executing the "Initial:FactSet" command.
I might have the original voices on a disk somewhere. I just don't have a floppy drive anymore, haha.. I believe I can dump the .syx files from my RM1x into logic and put them on the web if you need 'em.
Thanks for the info. I reset mine to factory defaults and now they are all present. Thanks for the vid. If not for that, i would have never known i was missing out here.
I bought one of these about twelve years ago for around £250. That was expensive back then, because Yamaha couldn't give them away. VA was making itself felt, and FM seemed to have gone out of favour. I didn't really know what I was buying, but I was glad that I bought it, because it offers something completely different to the VA and sample-based synths that seem to proliferate music these days.
It has some very good sounds and I like FM but I don't hear anything to support the price and hype behind it. Perhaps it sounds complex for an FM synth but its nothing much that a V-synth couldn't handle imo. Combine this with the FM7 plugin or a real DX7 and you pretty much have everything here.
@maccagrabme FM7 and FM8 don't really approach the functionality of the FS1R, except that they are compatible with the 6-op DX7. You can't really compare them. But if all you want is the EP and organ DX7 sounds, you don't need an FS1R.
I don't use soft synths at all because I don't trust/like computers in the studio. But a rack module is probably useless to anyone without a studio.
You can get an FS1R today for a little more than the cost of a DX7; you just have to be patient and thorough.
@TheMindOfPat In my office are all kinds of fox decor. A new coworker from England eventually worked up the nerve to ask why I was such a fan. Apparently they are not generally considered all that lovable over there! "Vicious little sociopaths" was the term she used, I think. Foxes really don't have a whole lot of significance in US culture, but I never gave much thought to what it's like elsewhere. Interesting...
You've got me on the 8-op synths. I'd love to know more.
@stickyfox Yikes! I've always liked them personally. :) I have one that shows up from time to time in my back yard, it's kinda cute (although it's slacking off on keeping the woodchuck population at bay!).
The FVX-1 was 8-operator, if that even counts, alongside Electone HX. Seems part of the STAGEA (see: 16oaGSltUPE) was set up that way too, though I can't find any evidence as I look now.
Kinda wonder why there aren't more. Complexity? Cost? Necessity?
I wish Yamaha would do more focused TRUE synths like this again. This thing was hard to program because of the interface, but it was one of THE most powerful and incredible FM synths ever made by far.
Astralwurksdk 2 months ago
SY85 at the bottom? had SY85 and FS1R, both sold a long time ago. really miss the SY
zzzxtreme 6 months ago
@zzzxtreme I could never get rid of my 85. If I was homeless I'd find shelter for it first, then look for a place to sleep. I almost bought a second one once. I settled on the TG500, which is pretty much the same synth with a few more sounds but no sequencer.
stickyfox 5 months ago
Dude EarthLead is that EXACT Moog lead that is my favorite synth sound ever!
pHr33kAcHu 6 months ago
Really enjoyed that. I want one of these now.
Solarlite 8 months ago
Nice demo of the FS1r, I'd love to have one to add to my collection. Can I just say that the YS200 gets my vote for ugliest synth ever. Whenever I saw one in a music shop it made me feel ill! ;)
davedagreat69 11 months ago
@davedagreat69 I like the way it looks, it's exotic and different.
pHr33kAcHu 6 months ago
Are these factory patches or added? I bought an FS1R (eBay) recently and very few of the sounds listed here are on my unit. I'd like to know where i could grab some of these. Thanks, K
KManJapan 1 year ago
@KManJapan Congrats!
There are thousands of ROM voices, and one bank of 128 RAM voices. There are four banks of performances, all of which can be edited. You can reset the voices and one of the four performance banks by executing the "Initial:FactSet" command.
I might have the original voices on a disk somewhere. I just don't have a floppy drive anymore, haha.. I believe I can dump the .syx files from my RM1x into logic and put them on the web if you need 'em.
stickyfox 1 year ago
@stickyfox
Thanks for the info. I reset mine to factory defaults and now they are all present. Thanks for the vid. If not for that, i would have never known i was missing out here.
KManJapan 1 year ago
@KManJapan Awesome! I am really glad this was helpful to you. It makes it totally worth the effort and embarrassment.
stickyfox 1 year ago
@KManJapan Oh yeah, and these were all factory sounds. I have not dared to do much beyond knob tweaking yet.
stickyfox 1 year ago
I bought one of these about twelve years ago for around £250. That was expensive back then, because Yamaha couldn't give them away. VA was making itself felt, and FM seemed to have gone out of favour. I didn't really know what I was buying, but I was glad that I bought it, because it offers something completely different to the VA and sample-based synths that seem to proliferate music these days.
Needless to say, I've kept my FS1r.
leslawrenson 1 year ago
It has some very good sounds and I like FM but I don't hear anything to support the price and hype behind it. Perhaps it sounds complex for an FM synth but its nothing much that a V-synth couldn't handle imo. Combine this with the FM7 plugin or a real DX7 and you pretty much have everything here.
maccagrabme 1 year ago
@maccagrabme FM7 and FM8 don't really approach the functionality of the FS1R, except that they are compatible with the 6-op DX7. You can't really compare them. But if all you want is the EP and organ DX7 sounds, you don't need an FS1R.
I don't use soft synths at all because I don't trust/like computers in the studio. But a rack module is probably useless to anyone without a studio.
You can get an FS1R today for a little more than the cost of a DX7; you just have to be patient and thorough.
stickyfox 1 year ago
Cool demo, thanks! (Yes, Jexus does excellent demos too! ;-)
JohnLRice 1 year ago
GREAT SOUNDS DEMO !!! GREAT PLAYING !!!!
dragoste747 1 year ago
Yes, quite underrepresented! Thanks for sharing, I've drooled over the rack FS1r for a while!
The TX-816 is another great piece of gear, that nobody seems to own / know what to do with. :) Maybe I should put something up with mine. :)
There are a couple obscure 8-op yamahas, but yeah, really rare. My guess is most people are confused enough by 6 operators. :)
I hear foxes are innocent.
TheMindOfPat 1 year ago
@TheMindOfPat In my office are all kinds of fox decor. A new coworker from England eventually worked up the nerve to ask why I was such a fan. Apparently they are not generally considered all that lovable over there! "Vicious little sociopaths" was the term she used, I think. Foxes really don't have a whole lot of significance in US culture, but I never gave much thought to what it's like elsewhere. Interesting...
You've got me on the 8-op synths. I'd love to know more.
stickyfox 1 year ago
@stickyfox Yikes! I've always liked them personally. :) I have one that shows up from time to time in my back yard, it's kinda cute (although it's slacking off on keeping the woodchuck population at bay!).
The FVX-1 was 8-operator, if that even counts, alongside Electone HX. Seems part of the STAGEA (see: 16oaGSltUPE) was set up that way too, though I can't find any evidence as I look now.
Kinda wonder why there aren't more. Complexity? Cost? Necessity?
Anyway. Cool stuff. :)
TheMindOfPat 1 year ago
@TheMindOfPat
I have a fully populated TX816 and love it. The TX816 Yahoo group has some activity these days.
KManJapan 1 year ago