Well, the only difficulty i had is to set on the polyphonic aftertouch. But once you get that it is organised around "tracks", its not difficult to configure it. The RAM disc i installed is a plus compared to the slow floppies. This way, i just have to switch it on to have my MIDI setup running without any boot floppy in the driver.
I found the sound editing pages logically designed.
The internal samples sound standard to me: mostly similar to what you can have in a Emu of this era (Proteus I 1989).
The double filter is surprisingly good for a digital filter of the early 90s : it can be deeply modulated with high resonance. It sounds much better than a Chamberlin filter - that was widely used in the late 90s - with its stability issues that forced to limit its modulation depth and/or resonance. Maybe, they used the good old step invariant transform, the filter performances are consistent with this almost forgotten design.
There is only one LFO but, the envelopes can have a loop that makes them act like LFOs.
Well, now, i will use it with the Axoloti. I will make some patches designed for it using attack and release velocities, poly aftertouch and the 7 sliders .
@axoman I got the Yamaha A3000 too. Been messing around with it a lot lately. Haven taken out the fan, whihc made it sound like a jetplane. I read that this was no problem and I havent had any problem with it. I also took out the harddisc, which made it sound like the was a second jetplane inside my house.
And I JUST got a floppy to USB-stick converter, to store patches on instead of the internal drive..... This is pretty nice, like 15€ i think it was. I just got it and going to try to install it tonight, hopefully it works SO overall now I think it is in the best shape it has ever been
Oh.. I forgot about the knobs... Sometimes I have to turn them 4-5 rounds before they actually start to work....... Haha
So yeah I agree a lot it is a weirdo of a sampler. I also had a Akai sampler and an Emu sampler. Emu sampler was about the same as the a3000. VERY problematic.
But I think actually I am mostly just going to use it for the effects now, the A3000. As you say pretty decent effect section in it...
But I have actually only payed 30€ for it, so I dont complaint(too much)
I meant to reply to this yesterday, so just in case any of my own adventures of installing Axoloti has put you off a bit, really, don't let it. Axoloti was actually quite painless to install on my other machine, and even then, I was one of the unlucky ones cause I had to flash it before it would work. When you come to install it, chances are it will just go as easy as installing any other peice of hardware - you pessimist
Sounds like you have a faulty fan then, mine's nice and quiet, I can hear it but it's just a whisper! I've not got a hard disk in mine, in fact a hard disk is the only feature I haven't bothered with. I was extremely lucky when I got mine, She's completely 100% mint condition, not a single mark anywhere, still has the proctective film over the display even. It's an official V2 ROM version as well, has every expansion board fitted, and the maximum amount of RAM. I chose not to go for a hard disk when I saw those Floppy Emulator drives you just mentioned, much better, silent and no moving parts! I just haven't gotten around to buying one yet.
Yup, it's definitely a weirdo sampler, lol, but it's power makes up for it (it's crazy powerful). When you consider that it has a Parametric EQ for each individual sample, then a bunch of Parametric EQ's in each of the Multi-Effects blocks, three completely independent Aphex Aural Exciters, a Master Parametric and 24 Digital Filter types, it's quite a beast!
Here's a little tip to help you out there, one that will prove it's the OS and not the encoders (they're actually very high-grade encoders). When it appears to go to sleep and stops responding, just stop twisting the knob and count to two, then try again and it will work perfectly. Like I said, I'm pretty sure it's because the OS is doing something (probably some sort of house-keeping), but that's the best way to deal with that annoying encoder thing whenever it happens.
You got a bargain, and it would be crazy not to use it as a sampler. I actually paid double that amount but like I said she's completely mint, V2, and has all the boards etc. Other than me not installing the hard disk, she's "fully loaded" as they say
A strange beast, super-powerful but at the same time often cryptic and frustrating (but I still love her)
Yeah mine had the harddisk installed when I got it. And it works fine, but it is making an AWEFUL lots a noise. So not worth it. Those SCSI drives......
I dunno if mine is V2. But I guess I should find out
I got this one:
I think the same as you found, just a bit cheaper:
Well a friend of mine bought one for an old school 8-bit sampler, Ensoniq Mirage. He had to flash it before using it. And his set up seemed to work perfectly. That sampler, the Ensoniq has got some character to it But for the A3000, from what I understood there is no need for flashing it for A3000.
Yes super powerful. Maybe I will use it as sample also when I actually get it working.
I just installed it and it seems to light up as supposed, now I just need to test with some samples, which is next step. Hopefully everything works. I'll keep you updated. Maybe in PM, not to take over this thread
First it'll say YAMAHA A3000 PROFESSIONAL SAMPLER V1
Then the 1 will scroll away and be replaced by a 2 so that it says V2.
There's a guy on ebay sells the V2 ROM if you cannot find a Yamaha branded one. Just bear in mind that you won't get the extra user manual that comes with the official Yamaha upgrade. If you're curious as to what you get in V2, you can see these two reviews for comparison. Good write-ups as well cause they're written by Chris Carter of TG, who originally wrote these for SoundOnSound:
Regards the Floppy Emulator, thanks, and yes that looks the same, but I'm not ordering from China if I can help it, I might as well just pay the extra and get it from the UK a lot quicker. Thanks for the heads-up about not needing to flash it for the A3000, that's a relief, makes it plug'n'play!
You could let my know how it goes by PM if you want, but to be honest I doubt it would matter posting it here after all we've posted already!
If Marc goes crazy again, maybe I could just send him a beer and tell him to relax
Yep: findign the quick step to the poly aftertouch was also a bit of a bore to me and it alwys take sa few keyabstroeks but boy is it woth it.
Automatically configuring it floppy-less is indeed a good idea.
Sounds like you already went deeper into it then I did anyway. My main task for it also is to use it as a polyphonic aftertouch generating MIDI keyboard for the Strarship One but it should serve the Axoloti equally well.
If one uses it's internal sounds the reponse is however even more direct and really on a par with that of the Yamaha CS80.
An example: I did all the brassy bits in part 1 of my Zamsidat Suite (http://www.brassee.com/electronicmusic.html#zamisdat.) I pumped it out in one improvised go but it all sounds so measured and controlled that it gives the impression of somehting fully orchestrated. Now that is the sort of exprssion I am looking for.
Another very good example is foctory Performance B2; ThinShocks. The response is so fine one can actaully make a conventional analog type sound move in an almost vocal-like way. That's alwys alwys a very good measure of a synths potential.
Maybe you could help me out: I have not yet worked out how to actually load WAV's into the S-series, although I have prepared a complete set of CS80 samples in WAV (3 samples per octave, per waveform, etc.).
OK. That floppy drive emulator is pleasantly cheap for such a nifty device. But how does one configure it? And what about compatibility and connectivity? Will it also fit in less regular machines like the Technics WSA and the GEM S-series? If so I'll probabaly still upgrade my setup.
I'm not sure you need some waveforms to get a BladeRunner sound or some other CS80 famous sound. I obtained very nice results by using the first filter as a highpass without resonance and the second with mid resonance and pressure control. The character of this bloody filter makes the detuned sawteeth sound great (especially with slight pitch deviations thanks to the looped envelopes). Sadly, the Gem S does not support SysEx Dumps ! (or rather it is not documented and readily available from the synth). So i can't link a MIDI file for you to try my patch.
As far as I understood the Gem S turbo uses a special 1.62Mb format for the setup/presets floppies but it can read MS/DOS 1.44Mb floppies to import wavs and Akai format. The subtype of wav is not really clear to me (you know, the number of bytes per sample, big or little endian issues... i read that it is signed 16 bit little endian mono). I think that maybe you can find some software that handles Akai format.
It seems that sample dump by MIDI (SDS) is possible.
It might be a good idea to access the A3000's Test Mode and do a Factory Reset just in case the previous user set or disabled anything in a menu somewhere, or you need to reset it after screwing something up.
To do a Factory Reset:
Hold down the Program and Audition buttons while powering it up.
Use the left-most encoder to scroll through the various tests until you see Full Reset.
Push the encoder under where it says Automatic.
Push the encoder under where it says Yes.
There's a whole bunch of stuff hidden in there, hardware tests, memory wiping etc.
Yeah, the exampels I described are actually proof of how near an S-series can come to a CS80 (however much sacrilege that remark might be to many people). It's more that I made the CS80 sample pool just in case the real thing becomes unavailable to me. So it woudl be nice if I could then also include these samples into my setup's arsenal.
Come to think of it. The Axoloti could also do that.
By the way: I have even come so close to the CS80 on the Technics WSA that I coudl even fool myslef if I had't programmed the sounds myself. So the amtter becomes ever more arbitrary.
But still: Do not underestimate those CS80 waveforms as such. The CS has very specific, so called "charged pump"oscillators that give it a rather distinct sound. It's not always only the filters that do it, you know. I am sure soem very specific sounds will still be difficult to make on another platform.
Hm, what about an Axoloti CS-emulator. Not the sort of retro-project I'd go for myself but it could be a nice technical challenge for some of the programmer dudes out there. One would for intance need the very Yamaha specific 5-stage envelope generators for the filters.
No who said that this sort of babbling cannot feed back possitive idea's into the Axoloti user-community.
A tiny parcel arrived today, and inside the box was, IMHO, the most amazing little device you can add your SCSI retro synth gear!
I was discussing with Jaffa about that USB Floppy Emulator, but then I thought to myself, I wonder if there's such a thing as SCSI to SD card adaptor yet? I did check years back but they were non-existent at the time, but that's no longer the case! I found this SCSI to SD Card adapter, which basically turns an SD Card into a SCSI Hard Drive with all the benefits that come with SD, including no moving parts, and complete silence!
And because it's designed for internal installation, it means you get to keep the original Floppy Drive in your gear as well, which is good, cause a floppy can hold 8 bars of music at 44.KHz stereo - and it's just nice to be able to pick out a floppy with a label on it.
So anyway, installed it without a problem, worked first time, absolute luxury
I purchased it from an Amiga dealer, and if you look at the reviews for the product on their site, you'll notice people commenting who have installed it in all sorts of retro synth and sampler gear. Akai, Roland, Yamaha etc. Really is awesome, cannot recommend it highly enough!
Anyway, thought it might also be of interest to Marc and ST since you're into keeping the retro gear alive.
here a single instance of a grain player I used (4x times) rest of objects in the patch are made to interact with the controller + filtering / mixing. check out also the help file for [graintable]
I have at last installed the software on my PC, started up the Axoloti and am now getting to grips with the programming interface. I've just been way too buzy with other stuff during the last half year.
Furthermore this is my first serious attempt to use a computer based musical solution since years. Normally I only work with user-dedicated hardware systems. They might be just as digital below the surface but one does not have to concern oneself too much with typical computer issues. It for instance took me hours to hunt down a double Male USB connector cable to only find out that the Axoloti actually communicates via / is fed by the micro USB connector. Stuff like that.
But like I already said on YouTube: This should be a good starting point to actually create my first own model.
I've at last found time to turn back to the Axoloti again. Mine is actually fully runnig ny now! hurray!
Now I'd like to take this thread back to my initial intentions. I have namely refined my thinking about how to implement the original idea into the Axoloti
Bascially I have, also thanks to all your inputs, come to 3 main conclusions:
1 - As already expected from the start pure resynthesis is a very difficult proposition. Granular sampling however forms a good, practical alternative since Axoloti already offers solutions for that.
2 - A very interesting insight was triggered by @SirSickSik (if I remember correctly). He said that creating resonator responses for the Axoloti environment would be very time consuming. So I wondered which solution could be constructed form more standard components. What is a resonator actually? Normally it exists of an algorithm that imitates then complex echo response of a virbrating body. The specific character is then obtained from recreating the typical overtones / fixed harmonics of such an acoustic environment. Basically we are however always talking about a sort of short delay / reverb trail. So why not use flexible delay / fx processor setup in stead? Then one will actually be able to shape his own "responses" on the spot. One can compare it it to doing Karplus Strong modeling and impuls synthesis approximations on an analog modular synth.
The sketch above shows my initial concept for a general programming tool. It combines a bunch of submenu selection swtiches and 4 general prameter controls and layout for a sort of advanced loopable envelope generator / LFO combination (working title BrassEG). Note that this layout can be connected to the Axoloti's 5 digital and 15 analog inputs. The afformentioned additional discussion focusses on the possibilitiy of implementing such a solution.
If this does not work one can of course come up with a layout that "only" takes care of 20 parameters/ setting throughout the whole setup and still do the rest via the computer screen. Do however please note that my solution focusses on a general hardware controller with 5 switches 7 pots and 8 sliders, which would be a very nice general solution anyway (so also for other Axoloti instruments).
This is a quick stab at a possible parameter matrix as assigned to the 4 parameter pots per section/page.
I hope this stuff inspires you guys a bit as well.
I know, I know. Of course it is still not clear if a polyphonic model of such an instrument can be run on a single Axoloti, especially with the additional demand of a menu driven system added to it, but we'll see. Dreaming (still) costs nothing and a reduced version of the concept must always be possible. For instance a monophonic version without a menu driven user matrix.
I already got a karplus-strong delayline and you could use (live-recorded) wavetables or repeating identical noise-bursts to feed this to produce static new waveforms
I've at last build my first Axoloti instrument. It is basically a version of the above concept with conventional single waveform "analog" oscillators (sine, saw, PWM, noise).
The parallel use of an effects section as a resonator works very much like I expected, even tough I have until now only tried out the standard reverb effect! It however already is a great synth now while it only (?) uses 35 % of the processing power in it's monophonic form. Does anybody have an idea what sort of polyphony one can then expect?
The next steps will be: 1 - to find out how to replace the oscillators with one of the available granulators 2 - to find out how to make it work polyphonically.
I know, I know. A piece of cake for all you old experts out there but I could surely still use a few step by step tips because the more basic an operation is the poorer it seems to be documented. So can anybody out there PLEASE point me into the right direction?
This is basically my idea(l) put in overdrive. Ah well, at least the Axoloti is way cheaper. About 1/30 including shipping!
In the mean time the polyphony nut has been cracked (see "Poly Power User Tips" and "Free Yamaha CS80" posts). So it's high time to crack the granular nut. In the mean time I have also been building a custom enclosure. More about that in a separate post soon.
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SO overall now I think it is in the best shape it has ever been 
