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Subject: RE: [yamahacs80] CS80 tuning party!!

From: Scott Metzger <scottmetzger3d@...>
Date: 2008-02-20

Yeah, that was loads of fun David. I am glad you could make it out. We all learned a ton about tuning the beast!! Can't wait to see Shawn's finished CS80.

To: yamahacs80@yahoogroups.com
From: david@...
Date: Sun, 17 Feb 2008 12:28:10 -0800
Subject: [yamahacs80] CS80 tuning party!!




















Hi everyone.



Well, yesterday may have been the first time a bunch of people got

together to learn to tune a CS80 since some training sessions at Yamaha

thirty years ago!



Scott (who's in this group, and whose CS80 I added the Kenton MIDI kit

to), wanted me to clean up a few voices that had drifted a bit since I

last tuned it (a little over two years ago). He figured we'd make it a

party, and invited a couple of other CS80 owners, including Shawn from

Analoghaven.com and Steve. It was a little crowded in Scott's studio

loft, with the ton of gear he has (and the Obie 4-voice wasn't even

there!), but we managed.



It took a long time, partly from schmoozing, partly from letting

everyone try tuning a voice card, and a lot from a D'oh! moment: Scott

has the MIDI in of the CS80 hooked up to a Kurzweil MIDIBoard. It's a

great setup for recording poly-aftertouch performances on his Mac and

then controlling the CS80. However, the spring-loaded pitch and mod

wheels of the MIDIBoard don't have a dead zone and don't always go back

to zero. Apparently, during our pizza break after the first four voices,

the wheels got hit, and the pitch-bend was slightly off for the next

four sets of cards.



In the end, it was all in tune. I think we also came up with a very nice

and fast tuning procedure which I'll write up in the next few days.

Looks like I may be putting in a couple more Kenton kits in the near

future, too. Then we have to get all three MIDI-ed CS80s in one room,

played from the MIDIBoard, plus Scott's Obie 4-voice via a Doepfer

MIDI-CV interface. I think the sound will violate several international

weapons treaties!



David























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