The Yamaha AN1x Synthesizer mailing list

hi, all...

when i carry out the voice initialize function and tap the keyboard
repeatedly, the voice comes in and out, as if the amp is being
modulated by a square wave. when i press the keys 8 times, the first
four times yield notes and the next four produce silence, and this
pattern keeps repeating. i've checked the filter and amp adsr, the
lfos, the ctrl matrix, the efx, the arp and the seq, and nothing is
modifying the voice. i know it's not an lfo, 'cause when i speed up
the lfo rate, nothing happens to the sound.

anyone run across this? what am i missing? i much prefer programming
from scratch than modifying a preset, so this irritation is dampening
my enthusiasm for this synth...

tia

--- In AN1x-list@yahoogroups.com, "robotunes" <robotunes@y...> wrote:
> 
> hi, all...
> 
> when i carry out the voice initialize function and tap the keyboard
> repeatedly, the voice comes in and out, as if the amp is being
> modulated by a square wave. when i press the keys 8 times, the first
> four times yield notes and the next four produce silence, and this
> pattern keeps repeating. i've checked the filter and amp adsr, the
> lfos, the ctrl matrix, the efx, the arp and the seq, and nothing is
> modifying the voice. i know it's not an lfo, 'cause when i speed up
> the lfo rate, nothing happens to the sound.
> 
> anyone run across this? what am i missing? i much prefer programming
> from scratch than modifying a preset, so this irritation is 
dampening
> my enthusiasm for this synth...
> 
> tia

I've never read any such problem description in regards to the AN1x.  
When you perform a Voice Initialization which template are you 
using?  I would hazard a guess you've used the Sync or Bass template 
and the current scene is in MONO Mode as opposed to POLY - the 
symptom you described is problably nothing more than the polyphony 
being exceeded.

Jon

--- In AN1x-list@yahoogroups.com, "Jon" <jondl_2000@y...> wrote:
> 

> I've never read any such problem description in regards to the AN1x.  
> When you perform a Voice Initialization which template are you 
> using?  I would hazard a guess you've used the Sync or Bass template 
> and the current scene is in MONO Mode as opposed to POLY - the 
> symptom you described is problably nothing more than the polyphony 
> being exceeded.
> 
> Jon

thanks, jon. turns out i think i was sold a bum synth. the problem
also shows up on presets (i didn't notice before because i was playing
mono patches). i should be getting 10-voice polyphony but i'm getting
only 5 voices before note-stealing starts. i've tried a factory reset,
to no avail. i cannot possibly express how bummed i am.

Hi Tia,

The AN1x is a very powerful audio unit contained in just a few chips.  When I
got mine I was amazed at how light the weight was... I can almost hold it with
two fingers.  As an experienced electronics tech, I've opened it up and taken a
good look around the insides (one time I opened it to replace the ROM chip - a
freebie from Yamaha).

The way your synth is behaving makes me suspious as to the problem being a major
failure.  Being so compact in the circuit design, it seems to me that there
would be for the most part an "all or nothing" situation: either you would get
no output at all if there was a problem or everything is working fine but some
connection may be bad.

Try this: open it up and re-seat all chips and cables.  Corrosion is the enemy.
If anything has a bad connection, either from a poorly seated cable or chip, or
thru some corrosion the result may be the voice loss you are experiencing.  Be
brave.  You may have plugged in cards to your computer and the procedure I'm
speaking of is very similar.  Pull out any chips which are in sockets using a
small screwdriver and then replace them.  Unplug and then replug all connectors.
Then try it out.

Although I've yet to see a circuit diagram of the AN1x (come on, group, there
must be someone out there who has the service manual), I suspect that it is all
built on a single CPU and support chips.  That's why I think you should make
sure all of the internal connections are working.  IIRC there was someone on
this list who was able to repair distortion or some other problem by merely
securing all internal connections.

Ed Edwards
Leader: Ezekiel's Wheel  \ufffd\ufffd\ufffd\ufffdRetro-Progressive Rock\ufffd\ufffd\ufffd\ufffd
http://www.ezekielswheel.com
http://www.untiedmusic.com/ezekiel
http://www.headholemines.blogspot.com
\ufffd\ufffd.\ufffd\ufffd\ufffd.\ufffd\ufffd\ufffd.\ufffd\ufffd\ufffd.\ufffd\ufffd\ufffd.\ufffd\ufffd\ufffd.\ufffd\ufffd\ufffd.\ufffd\ufffd\ufffd.\ufffd\ufffd\ufffd.\ufffd\ufffd\ufffd.\ufffd\ufffd\ufffd.\ufffd\ufffd

--- In AN1x-list@yahoogroups.com, "robotunes" <robotunes@y...> wrote:
> 
> --- In AN1x-list@yahoogroups.com, "Jon" <jondl_2000@y...> wrote:
> > 
> 
> > I've never read any such problem description in regards to the 
AN1x.  
> > When you perform a Voice Initialization which template are you 
> > using?  I would hazard a guess you've used the Sync or Bass 
template 
> > and the current scene is in MONO Mode as opposed to POLY - the 
> > symptom you described is problably nothing more than the 
polyphony 
> > being exceeded.
> > 
> > Jon
> 
> thanks, jon. turns out i think i was sold a bum synth. the problem
> also shows up on presets (i didn't notice before because i was 
playing
> mono patches). i should be getting 10-voice polyphony but i'm 
getting
> only 5 voices before note-stealing starts. i've tried a factory 
reset,
> to no avail. i cannot possibly express how bummed i am.

Okay, two thoughts occur to me: first, are you certain the voices you 
are audition are not in DUAL SCENE mode, i.e., scene 1 and 2 layered 
togethered (this would halve the polyphony) - or - second, is your 
AN1x MIDI'ed up to a host computer or other device? If so, is it 
possible you've inadvertantly created a MIDI feedback loop which 
could also account for note stealing?

If neither of these scenario's apply then I would suggest you take a 
step back, let it sit until you've a fresh set of eye's and then 
tackle Ed's practical, hands on recommendations detailed in his 
reponse to this thread.

regards,

Jon

--- In AN1x-list@yahoogroups.com, "Ed Edwards" <edward.edwards@v...>
wrote:

> The way your synth is behaving makes me suspious as to the problem
being a major failure.  

...(snip)...

> Try this: open it up and re-seat all chips and cables.  Corrosion is
the enemy.

brilliant diagnosis, doctor. i opened her up and the first thing i saw
was a board that had become unseated. after a 10-minute operation, the
patient is saved! and the prognosis is excellent!

thanks, ed and jon, for the quick and calming replies. i had contacted
the seller (a very cordial lad) and was about to walk out of the house
to ship it back to him for a refund when i saw your posts. instead of
rushing off to ups before it closed, i tried out ed's ideas after
reading jon's suggestion that i calm down and try ed's suggestion. the
result? a happy an1x and a very happy new owner!

apparently, the keyboard's trip to my doorstep was an eventful one.
when i picked up the keyboard saturday, only 1 of the 8 knobs could be
depressed. upon discovering this, that's how i felt: depressed.

after pulling knobs off stalks and putting them on new stalks, i was
able to somehow get 7 of the 8 to work. the final one was coaxed into
behaving with a couple of slips of paper tucked under the knob. voila!
8 out of 8 worked fine!!! time for some sound-mangling. what's that?
only 5 of the 10 voices work? NOOOOOOO!!!! after searching all these
years for the keyboard of my dreams, to have the AN land on my
keyboard stand impaired really shook me up. thanks to you guys, the
story has a happy ending. now i know i'll appreciate the AN even more
than if it had arrived in one piece.

thanks again, guys...

Very cool.  Thanks for the thanks.

Enjoy your new super synth.  Let's see, I've had mine for 5 years and can't find
many others that can out perform it.  Every instrument has it's personal
voicings, and I certainly give a nod to Novation and other performance oriented
keyboards, but so far the AN1x is enough of an analog emulator for my stack.
YMMV

Ed Edwards
Leader: Ezekiel's Wheel  \ufffd\ufffd\ufffd\ufffdRetro-Progressive Rock\ufffd\ufffd\ufffd\ufffd
http://www.ezekielswheel.com
http://www.untiedmusic.com/ezekiel
http://www.headholemines.blogspot.com
\ufffd\ufffd.\ufffd\ufffd\ufffd.\ufffd\ufffd\ufffd.\ufffd\ufffd\ufffd.\ufffd\ufffd\ufffd.\ufffd\ufffd\ufffd.\ufffd\ufffd\ufffd.\ufffd\ufffd\ufffd.\ufffd\ufffd\ufffd.\ufffd\ufffd\ufffd.\ufffd\ufffd\ufffd.\ufffd\ufffd

> -----Original Message-----
> From: robotunes [mailto:robotunes@...]
> Sent: Monday, December 06, 2004 9:32 PM
> To: AN1x-list@yahoogroups.com
> Subject: [AN1x] Re: disappearing voice
>
>
>
>
> --- In AN1x-list@yahoogroups.com, "Ed Edwards" <edward.edwards@v...>
> wrote:
>
> > The way your synth is behaving makes me suspious as to the problem
> being a major failure.
>
> ...(snip)...
>
> > Try this: open it up and re-seat all chips and cables.  Corrosion is
> the enemy.
>
> brilliant diagnosis, doctor. i opened her up and the first thing i saw
> was a board that had become unseated. after a 10-minute operation, the
> patient is saved! and the prognosis is excellent!
>
> thanks, ed and jon, for the quick and calming replies. i had contacted
> the seller (a very cordial lad) and was about to walk out of the house
> to ship it back to him for a refund when i saw your posts. instead of
> rushing off to ups before it closed, i tried out ed's ideas after
> reading jon's suggestion that i calm down and try ed's suggestion. the
> result? a happy an1x and a very happy new owner!
>
> apparently, the keyboard's trip to my doorstep was an eventful one.
> when i picked up the keyboard saturday, only 1 of the 8 knobs could be
> depressed. upon discovering this, that's how i felt: depressed.
>
> after pulling knobs off stalks and putting them on new stalks, i was
> able to somehow get 7 of the 8 to work. the final one was coaxed into
> behaving with a couple of slips of paper tucked under the knob. voila!
> 8 out of 8 worked fine!!! time for some sound-mangling. what's that?
> only 5 of the 10 voices work? NOOOOOOO!!!! after searching all these
> years for the keyboard of my dreams, to have the AN land on my
> keyboard stand impaired really shook me up. thanks to you guys, the
> story has a happy ending. now i know i'll appreciate the AN even more
> than if it had arrived in one piece.
>
> thanks again, guys...
>
>
>
>
>
>
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