Yamaha CS-80

The Yamaha CS -80 is a synthesizer of Yamaha company. When he came on the market in 1976, he was one of the first commercial devices that allowed polyphonic playing.

The CS- 80 is a milestone in the development of the synthesizer; earlier polyphonic synthesizer, such as the Polymoog, use organ technology and are not very flexible, or how about the Yamaha GX -1, very experimental.

The CS -80 is the top model of the CS series, which included even the four-part CS- 50 and the eight-part CS -60. The discrete GX -1 circuits were first tested in IC form in the CS -50 and later perfected in the CS- 80. His tone generation based on the then usual analog subtractive synthesis, with over 16 oscillators ( saw, square and sine wave) two sounds were independently produced and mixed together in eight parts. The other sound editing was done via a resonant envelope -controlled high - and low-pass filter (12 dB / octave ) and LFO ( sine, sawtooth wave ) and ring modulator. At the end there were still a tremolo and chorus to round out the sound available.

All controllers of sound production were found in small under a cover again four times what you could program the four sounds and recall. A real digital storing the programs, as later, the Prophet 5 offered was not possible. Together with the main regulators made ​​the six freely programmable to which are 22 pre-programmed sounds ( presets) came.

The CS -80 had a weighted, velocity sensitive keyboard with polyphonic aftertouch, over which one could very diverse influence on the sound and its history. Furthermore, there was a so-called ribbon controller, on which one could influence the pitch. The new thing was that the zero point was always there where you hung up his finger first.

Disadvantages of the CS -80 were the high price, the high weight of 100 kg, and the unpleasant property to go out of tune, which was further enhanced by temperature problems in the housing. Therefore, the CS -80 was a studio and not a tour device. Today he is regarded as a great rarity, especially since only 2,000 were built.

The sound of the CS -80 is still one of the milestones in analog sound generation today. It is the CS -80 heard on many recordings by Vangelis, such as on the soundtrack to the movies Blade Runner and Chariots of Fire. Also on various pop - music recordings, such as on the album SO by Peter Gabriel or the song Billie Jean by Michael Jackson. The French company Arturia has since 2003 with the CS - 80V an emulated software version of the CS -80 in the program which can be used on Windows or Mac PCs.