Archive of the former Yahoo!Groups mailing list: Yamaha CS80

Hi, group...

'Been awhile since I posted anything here, but I recently read some
exchanges on Analog Heaven about mixed opinions of the Mighty '80.
I, unfortunately, do not have an AH membership, therefore I could not
join in and add my dos centavos, but I thought I could at least post
them here. Obviously, those that belong to this forum will most
likely have a positive bias toward the Yammi, but I want to provoke a
less visceral, more analytical discussion of the CS80, trying to
review its virtues and flaws, and decide if this baby truely lives up
to its legendary image and if, indeed, current exhorbitant prices
asked for them are justified. The first disclaimer here is that I own
a fully-functional one, in very good cosmetic shape, which I have
never had to tune in the 19 months I've owned it (even after having
tossed it in the back of a U-haul truck, driven 2.5 hrs on a bumpy
road and then almost getting slipped lumbar disks and/or hernias
carrying it to my condo on a dolly!) yet has held its tuning
perfectly so far, and only set me back US $3500.
It shares the studio with other heavyweights including a JX8P, a
Prophet 8 and a Waldorf Q+, and used to have a Jupiter 8 right above
it.
I must, first of all, confess that I simply adore this beast. That
being said, I have played it simultaneously with its studio
companions, and would like to point out my (obviously subjective)
comparisons between it and these other icons of the analog
polyphonic pantheon.
For starters, I find the factory presets rather thin and cheesy, and
rarely use them, with the exception of the bass, piano and organ
patches. If anybody who is checking it for the first time bases
his/her opinion solely on these presets, then the verdict will be
that it's a heavy, cumbersome, expensive and wimpy-sounding turkey!
Of course, properly tweaked provides us with much thicker (I hate the
trite and over-used "fat" adjective, along with its spelling
variations....>:-( Of course, its synthesis engine is much more
limited than the other guys in my studio, as we only have two single-
vco voices layered together, without the modulation options of those
other polies, but nonetheless, I think the core, essential patches I
get from it (brass, strings, bass, clavs, flutes)are as thick and
rich as the aforementioned guys, but with a more distinctive
character, owing mostly to its filters. I've gotta say that the
strings are a little tougher to get "just right", as the PWM does not
sound as lush as the JP8 or the DCO-based JX8P or Prophet 8, and the
2-pole filters make it a rather unfair comparison in this category,
but yet, once I manage to find the sweet spot on the "detune ch II"
slider, I cam make it sound as lush and rich as the proph or the JX,
and more so than the JP8. It certainly does not give me the bright,
sparkling highs of these others, but the buzzy filter resonance makes
it shimmer in a way the others cannot.
A way where it is far superior is in its keyboard aftertouch, sliders
and ribbon control, IMO...
Put it all together and it was one sweet deal for the $3500 I paid,
but I would not have offered any more than that. It is a wonderful
instrument, but its sonic repertoire is rather limited, and needs to
be complemented by other instruments with a different character.

I read an entry in the AH thread of a guy who has owned two, and is
now glad to be rid of them....I don't think I would ever part with,
as it has such a unique character, and it is such a pleasure to PLAY,
much more so than the other guys. I did not hesitate to dump the JP8
(or the two MKS80's I've owned at different times), but this one I'd
NEVER part with.
I would like to get your take on this subject, and maybe one of you
might be willing to copy/paste some of these collective opinions on
the AH forum...

cuari