The Yamaha AN1x Synthesizer mailing list

I owned a TX81z 4-Op back in the day, but I'd be hard pressed to recall an programming 
tips either... that said, here are some links of interest:

Don't know if Ski is on the list right now, but here's a thread from our friends at EX5Tech

http://www.ex5tech.com/ex5ubb_cgi/ultimatebb.cgi?ubb=get_topic&f=21&t=000005

Searched Wikipedia and found some related link...

A couple of good articles at SOS

http://www.soundonsound.com/sos/apr00/articles/synthsecrets.htm

http://www.soundonsound.com/sos/1997_articles/sep97/synthschool3.html

Some theory

http://ccrma.stanford.edu/software/snd/snd/fm.html

http://www.sfu.ca/~truax/fmtut.html

and a forum dedicated to the topic

http://www.soundshock.se/phpBB2/

Jon

--- In AN1x-list@yahoogroups.com, "Ed Edwards" <gleobeam@...> wrote:
>
> Dear Mr. Bing Beng Bong,
> 
> Congratulations for stepping into the mysterious, unexplored world of FM
> systhesis – hereby barely touched on this list.
> 
> We all should admit that there's been very little discussion about this
> powerful parameter that Yamahaha has provided.  After all, Yamahaha owns the
> patent on "FM synthesis"… they were kind and foresighted enough to enclude
> it with the AN series… but they committed the sin that so many manufacturers
> make: They didn't explain it very well.
> 
> Pages 58 and 59 of the manual are where the parameters are provided.
> However, they didn't provide an overview of how FM synths work, their
> implementation, the "operators" the "algorithms", etc.
> 
> I never owned a DX7 but I had a Korg Z3 guitar synth which had the same
> engine as a DX11.  Both of these are extremely more powerful than what the
> AN series has, but I learned a tiny bit about how to program.
> Unfortunately, that was so long ago it's all vaporized in my head.
> 
> Maybe you could provide a link or two to good explainations of FM synthesis
> so the list members might try to discern what Yamahaha was trying to say in
> the manual.  Over the years I've collected many patches for my AN1x and I
> must say that some of the strangest ones involve the FM section… and I've
> never been able to figure out what's going on at all.
> 
> 
> Ed²
> 
> PS – if you need the manual, it is in the files section of the list
> 
>  
> 
> (Wow – it wasn't there!  So I took the liberty to upload it and the Data
> List document.  Both are essential for AX1x programmers.  Under the
> "Documents" section.)
> 
>   _____  
> 
> From: AN1x-list@yahoogroups.com [mailto:AN1x-list@yahoogroups.com] On Behalf
> Of buenlimon
> Sent: Tuesday, October 21, 2008 2:39 AM
> To: AN1x-list@yahoogroups.com
> Subject: [AN1x] Question about FM
> 
>  
> 
> I own an AN1x since about 1 Year and the only synthesizing I did so 
> far was changing existing sounds, be they factory presets or 
> downloaded in internet. 
> 
> I went and had a professional teach me the basics of FM theory 
> (which he kindly showed me on a Nord Modular). I think I have 
> understood the most important things. 
> 
> I am particularly interested in developing different piano sounds 
> which implies creating "bing", "beng", and also "bong" sounds. 
> 
> So far I have understood that you need (as a minimum): 
> 
> - a carrier which is near to sine wave formed 
> - a modulator which is fix tuned to a number of octaves (or part of 
> octaves above the carrier, near to sine wave formed 
> - a narrow envelope for the modulator (fast attack, fast decay) 
> - a somewhat broader envelope for the carrier (fast attack, somewhat 
> fast decay) 
> 
> If done properly you won't necessarily need much filtering. To 
> change the sound of the above algorithm you can vary the fixed 
> interval between carrier and modulator, or you can add a further 
> sine wave synchronized to the carrier by some interval. 
> 
> This will generally provide you with a good "bong" sound, am I 
> right. 
> 
> ==== 
> 
> Now to my simple question: 
> 
> Can anybody be so nice and to explain me in simple words how I am to 
> understand the various settings of AN1x such as "master", "slave", 
> "both", "only fm", "fm source" etc. These don't seem to fit into 
> the things I described above. How do you set the envelope of the 
> modulator in an AN1x? 
> 
> Even if I don't understand the AN1x-specific terms very well I still 
> seem to have created quite nice bong-sounds anyway. But to create 
> good pianos I want to know the whole truth. 
> 
> By the way, the DX-Piano which is factory preset I find is a 
> beautifully sounding instrument which I can use a lot in my band, be 
> it for solo playing or accompanying a singer. But I still feel the 
> need of developing more of the same stuff - from marimba over 
> e-piano to bells of various kinds. 
>