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70-515: The Roland Fantom-X features a 128-voice PCM-based synthesizer , a 16-track MRC-Pro sequencer , 6 effects processors, dynamic pads and infrared D-Beam, a stereo sampler and full on-screen editing. The Fantom X received an audio recorder upgrade with version 2.00 that allows for 8 stereo audio tracks integrated with the internal MIDI sequencer. All Fantom X series, except for Xa, accept up to four SRX-series wave expansion boards . Total of 12 different SRX boards were produced. There are five models in

140-567: A Moog to compose a soundtrack for the televised footage of the Apollo 11 moonwalk , creating a link between electronic music and space in the American popular imagination. ARP synthesizers were used to create sound effects for the 1977 science fiction films Close Encounters of the Third Kind and Star Wars , including the "voice" of the robot R2-D2 . In the 70s and 80s, synthesizers were used in

210-456: A bestselling album of Bach compositions arranged for Moog synthesizer by Wendy Carlos , demonstrated that synthesizers could be more than "random noise machines", taking them to the mainstream. However, debates were held about the appropriateness of synthesizers in baroque music , and according to the Guardian they were quickly abandoned in "serious classical circles". Today, the synthesizer

280-494: A commercial digital synthesizer, adding improvements such as the "key scaling" method to avoid the introduction of distortion that normally occurred in analog systems during frequency modulation , though it would take several years before Yamaha were to release their FM digital synthesizers. In the 1970s, Yamaha were granted a number of patents, under the company's former name "Nippon Gakki Seizo Kabushiki Kaisha", evolving Chowning's early work on FM synthesis technology. Yamaha built

350-403: A digital synthesizer generates a stream of numbers, often using some form of digital signal processor , which are then converted to sound using a digital-to-analog converter (DAC). A digital synthesizer is in essence a computer with (often) a piano or organ keyboard and an LCD as a user interface. Because computer technology is rapidly advancing, it is often possible to offer more features in

420-406: A digital synthesizer than in an analog synthesizer at a given price. However, both technologies have their own merit. Some forms of synthesis, such as, for instance, sampling and additive synthesis are not feasible in analog synthesizers, while on the other hand, many musicians prefer the character of analog synthesizers over their digital equivalent. The new wave era of the 1980s first brought

490-471: A major impact, both innovative and affordable, and thus spelling the decline of analog synthesizers . It used FM synthesis and, although it was incapable of the sampling synthesis of the Fairlight CMI, its price was around $ 2,000, putting it within range of a much larger number of musicians. The DX-7 was also known for its "key scaling" method to avoid distortion and for its recognizably bright tonality that

560-546: A pair of fast D/A and A/D converters, 12,000 (12k) bytes of core memory ( RAM ), backed up by a hard drive of 32k and by tape storage (DecTape). The earliest digital sampling was done on that system during 1971–1972 for Harrison Birtwistle 's " Chronometer " released in 1975. In 1972–1974, Dartmouth Digital Synthesizer was developed by Dartmouth College Professors Jon Appleton and Frederick J. Hooven, in association with NED co-founders Sydney A. Alonso and Cameron W. Jones. In 1977, Bell Labs Digital Synthesizer

630-558: A pop staple, used on songs by A-ha , Kenny Loggins , Kool & the Gang . Its "E PIANO 1" preset became particularly famous, especially for power ballads , and was used by artists including Whitney Houston , Chicago , Prince , Phil Collins , Luther Vandross , Billy Ocean , and Celine Dion . Korg M1 presets were widely used in 1990s house music, beginning with Madonna 's 1990 single " Vogue ". Synthesizers are common in film and television soundtracks. In 1969, Mort Garson used

700-463: A second ADSR envelope. An "envelope modulation" ("env mod") parameter on many synthesizers with filter envelopes determines how much the envelope affects the filter. If turned all the way down, the filter produces a flat sound with no envelope. When turned up the envelope becomes more noticeable, expanding the minimum and maximum range of the filter. The envelope applied on the filter helps the sound designer generating long notes or short notes by moving

770-405: A sound depending on how each module is connected to other modules by patch cables . Moog developed a means of controlling pitch through voltage , the voltage-controlled oscillator . This, along with Moog components such as envelopes , noise generators , filters , and sequencers , became standard components in synthesizers. Around the same period, the American engineer Don Buchla created

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840-581: A starting price of $ 13,000, its use was limited to universities, studios and wealthy artists. The Roland D-50 (1987) blended Roland's linear arithmetic algorithm with samples, and was the first mass-produced synthesizer with built-in digital effects such as delay , reverb and chorus . In 1988, the Japanese manufacturer Korg released the M1 , a digital synthesizer workstation featuring sampled transients and loops . With more than 250,000 units sold, it remains

910-574: A synthesized melody. Soft Cell used a synthesized melody on their 1981 hit " Tainted Love ". Nick Rhodes , keyboardist of Duran Duran , used synthesizers including the Roland Jupiter-4 and Jupiter-8 . Chart hits include Depeche Mode 's " Just Can't Get Enough " (1981), the Human League 's " Don't You Want Me " and works by Ultravox . In the 1980s, digital synthesizers were widely used in pop music. The Yamaha DX7, released in 1983, became

980-510: A wave of new software instruments. Propellerhead's Reason , released in 2000, introduced an array of recognizable virtual studio equipment. The market for patchable and modular synthesizers rebounded in the late 1990s. In the 2000s, older analog synthesizers regained popularity, sometimes selling for much more than their original prices. In the 2010s, new, affordable analog synthesizers were introduced by companies including Moog, Korg, Arturia and Dave Smith Instruments . The renewed interest

1050-545: A wide variety of realistic instrument and other sounds such as drums, string instruments and wind instruments to sequence and compose songs, along with popular keyboard instrument sounds such as electric pianos and organs. As there was still interest in analog synthesizers , and with the increase of computing power, over the 1990s another type of synthesizer arose: the analog modeling , or "virtual analog" synthesizer. These use computing power to simulate traditional analog waveforms and circuitry such as envelopes and filters, with

1120-455: Is a preamp that boosts (amplifies) the electronic signal before passing it on to an external or built-in power amplifier, as well as a means to control its amplitude (volume) using an attenuator . The gain of the VCA is affected by a control voltage (CV), coming from an envelope generator, an LFO, the keyboard or some other source. Voltage-controlled filters (VCFs) "shape" the sound generated by

1190-746: Is an electronic musical instrument that generates audio signals . Synthesizers typically create sounds by generating waveforms through methods including subtractive synthesis , additive synthesis and frequency modulation synthesis . These sounds may be altered by components such as filters , which cut or boost frequencies ; envelopes , which control articulation , or how notes begin and end; and low-frequency oscillators , which modulate parameters such as pitch, volume, or filter characteristics affecting timbre . Synthesizers are typically played with keyboards or controlled by sequencers , software or other instruments, and may be synchronized to other equipment via MIDI . Synthesizer-like instruments emerged in

1260-621: Is as important, and as ubiquitous, in modern music today as the human voice." As electricity became more widely available, the early 20th century saw the invention of electronic musical instruments including the Telharmonium , Trautonium , Ondes Martenot , and theremin . In the late 1930s, the Hammond Organ Company built the Novachord , a large instrument powered by 72 voltage-controlled amplifiers and 146 vacuum tubes . In 1948,

1330-411: Is credited to the appeal of imperfect "organic" sounds and simpler interfaces, and modern surface-mount technology making analog synthesizers cheaper and faster to manufacture. Early synthesizers were viewed as avant-garde , valued by the 1960s psychedelic and counter-cultural scenes for their ability to make new sounds, but with little perceived commercial potential. Switched-On Bach (1968) ,

1400-449: Is one of the most important instruments in the music industry, used in nearly every genre. It is considered by the authors of Analog Days as "the only innovation that can stand alongside the electric guitar as a great new instrument of the age of electricity ... Both led to new forms of music, and both had massive popular appeal." According to Fact in 2016, "The synthesizer is as important, and as ubiquitous, in modern music today as

1470-498: Is responsible for some of the very recognisable preset synthesizer sounds of the late 1980s, such as the Pizzagogo sound used on Enya 's " Orinoco Flow ." It gradually became feasible to include high quality samples of existing instruments as opposed to synthesizing them. In 1988, Korg introduced the last of the hugely popular trio of digital synthesizers of the 1980s after the DX7 and D50,

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1540-572: Is the ADSR (attack, decay, sustain, release) envelope: Low-frequency oscillators (LFOs) produce waveforms used to modulate parameters, such as the pitch of oscillators (producing vibrato ). Arpeggiators, included in many synthesizer models, take input chords and convert them into arpeggios . They usually include controls for speed, range and mode (the movement of the arpeggio). Synthesizers are often controlled with electronic or digital keyboards or MIDI controller keyboards, which may be built into

1610-558: The American Federation of Musicians (AFM). Robert Moog felt that the AFM had not realized that his instrument had to be studied like any other, and instead imagined that "all the sounds that musicians could make somehow existed in the Moog — all you had to do was push a button that said ' Jascha Heifetz ' and out would come the most fantastic violin player". The musician Walter Sear persuaded

1680-513: The Buchla Modular Electronic Music System . Instead of a conventional keyboard , Buchla's system used touchplates which transmitted control voltages depending on finger position and force. However, the Moog's keyboard made it more accessible and marketable to musicians, and keyboards became the standard means of controlling synthesizers. Moog and Buchla initially avoided the word synthesizer for their instruments, as it

1750-575: The M1 . This heralded both the increasing popularisation of digital sample-based synthesis, and the rise of ' workstation ' synthesizers. After this time, many popular modern digital synthesizers have been described as not being full synthesizers in the most precise sense, as they play back samples stored in their memory. However, they still include options to shape the sounds through use of envelopes , LFOs , filters and effects such as reverb. The Yamaha Motif and Roland Fantom series of keyboards are typical examples of this type, described as 'ROMplers'; at

1820-688: The OB-X (1979). In 1978, the American company Sequential Circuits released the Prophet-5 , the first fully programmable polyphonic synthesizer. Whereas previous synthesizers required users to adjust cables and knobs to change sounds, with no guarantee of exactly recreating a sound, the Prophet-5 used microprocessors to store sounds in patch memory. This facilitated a move from synthesizers creating unpredictable sounds to producing "a standard package of familiar sounds". The synthesizer market grew dramatically in

1890-624: The Roland TR-808 and TR-909 drum machines, became a foundation of electronic dance music genres such as house and techno when producers acquired cheap second-hand units later in the decade. The authors of Analog Days connect the synthesizer's origins in 1960s psychedelia to the raves and British " second summer of love " of the 1980s and the club scenes of the 1990s and 2000s. Gary Numan's 1979 hits " Are 'Friends' Electric? " and " Cars " made heavy use of synthesizers. OMD 's " Enola Gay " (1980) used distinctive electronic percussion and

1960-518: The 1980s. 1982 saw the introduction of MIDI , a standardized means of synchronizing electronic instruments; it remains an industry standard. An influential sampling synthesizer , the Fairlight CMI , was released in 1979, with the ability to record and play back samples at different pitches. Though its high price made it inaccessible to amateurs, it was adopted by high-profile pop musicians including Kate Bush and Peter Gabriel . The success of

2030-409: The 21st century, analog synthesizers returned to popularity with the advent of cheaper manufacturing. Synthesizers were initially viewed as avant-garde , valued by the 1960s psychedelic and countercultural scenes but with little perceived commercial potential. Switched-On Bach (1968) , a bestselling album of Bach compositions arranged for synthesizer by Wendy Carlos , took synthesizers to

2100-474: The AFM that the synthesizer demanded skill, and the category of "synthesizer player" was accepted into the union/ However, players were subject to "suspicion and hostility" for years. In 1982, following a tour by Barry Manilow using synthesizers instead of an orchestra, the British Musicians' Union attempted to ban synthesizers, attracting controversy. That decade, a few musicians skilled at programming

2170-682: The Canadian engineer Hugh Le Caine completed the electronic sackbut , a precursor to voltage-controlled synthesizers , with keyboard sensitivity allowing for vibrato , glissando , and attack control. In 1957, Harry Olson and Herbert Belar completed the RCA Mark II Sound Synthesizer at the RCA laboratories in Princeton, New Jersey. The instrument read punched paper tape that controlled an analog synthesizer containing 750 vacuum tubes. It

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2240-523: The Fairlight CMI or the Synclavier, its lower cost and portability made it popular. With the addition of sophisticated sequencers on board, now added to built-in effects and other features, the ' workstation ' synthesizer had been born. These always include a multi-track sequencer , and can often record and play back samples, and in later years full audio tracks, to be used to record an entire song. These are usually also ROMplers, playing back samples, to give

2310-680: The Fairlight drove competition, improving sampling technology and lowering prices. Early competing samplers included the E-mu Emulator in 1981 and the Akai S-series in 1985. In 1983, Yamaha released the first commercially successful digital synthesizer , the Yamaha DX7 . Based on frequency modulation (FM) synthesis developed by the Stanford University engineer John Chowning , the DX7

2380-472: The Fantom-X family: The X6, X7, and X8, apart from their keyboards, are almost identical in the controls they offer, the internal software they run, and the expansions they accept. In 2005 the 61-key Fantom-Xa was released. The Xa still uses the same Waveforms and the new X series Chip. The Xa comes with a smaller mpc style graphical green screen, the keyboard is not as professional, and lacks aftertouch. After

2450-615: The Fantom-X, Roland produced its successor, the Fantom-G, which included twice the waveform memory, more patches, 128 voice polyphony, advanced and easy to use sequencer. Fantom-G accepts new ARX wave expansion cards, has larger full-color screen, 16 insert effects per patch and other improvements. A partial follow up to the Roland Fantom-X is the Integra-7 sound module. It does not have sequencer, sampler or other functions, however it does contain

2520-788: The Minimoog, Pro-One , and TB-303 , and drum machines such as the TR-808 . Other synthesizer clones include the MiniMOD (a series of Eurorack modules based on the Minimoog), the Intellijel Atlantis (based on the SH-101 ), and the x0x Heart (based on the TB-303). Creating clones of older hardware is legal where the patents have expired. In 1997, Mackie lost their lawsuit against Behringer as copyright law in

2590-740: The United States did not cover their circuit board designs. Digital synthesis A digital synthesizer is a synthesizer that uses digital signal processing (DSP) techniques to make musical sounds, in contrast to older analog synthesizers , which produce music using analog electronics , and samplers , which play back digital recordings of acoustic, electric, or electronic instruments . Some digital synthesizers emulate analog synthesizers, while others include sampling capability in addition to digital synthesis. The very earliest digital synthesis experiments were made with computers , as part of academic research into sound generation. In 1957,

2660-553: The United States in the mid-20th century with instruments such as the RCA Mark II , which was controlled with punch cards and used hundreds of vacuum tubes . The Moog synthesizer , developed by Robert Moog and first sold in 1964, is credited for pioneering concepts such as voltage-controlled oscillators , envelopes, noise generators , filters, and sequencers. In 1970, the smaller, cheaper Minimoog standardized synthesizers as self-contained instruments with built-in keyboards, unlike

2730-483: The Yamaha DX7 found employment creating sounds for other acts. Synthesizers generate audio through various forms of analog and digital synthesis. Oscillators produce waveforms (such as sawtooth , sine , or pulse waves ) with different timbres . Voltage-controlled amplifiers (VCAs) control the volume or gain of the audio signal. VCAs can be modulated by other components, such as LFOs and envelopes. A VCA

2800-429: The advantage of a performance-friendly user interface (physical controls like buttons for selecting features and enabling functionality, and knobs for setting variable parameters). On the other hand, software synthesizers have the advantages afforded by a rich graphical display. With focus on performance-oriented keyboards and digital computer technology, manufacturers of commercial electronic instruments created some of

2870-527: The advent of high-speed microprocessor and digital signal processing technology. Two other early commercial digital synthesizers were the Fairlight CMI , introduced in 1979, and the New England Digital Synclavier II, introduced in 1979 as an upgrade to the original Synclavier. The Fairlight CMI was the one of the earlier sampling synthesizers, while the Synclavier originally used FM synthesis technology licensed from Yamaha, before adding

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2940-469: The amateur electronics market, such as a design published in Practical Electronics in 1973. By the mid-1970s, ARP was the world's largest synthesizer manufacturer, though it closed in 1981. Early synthesizers were monophonic , meaning they could only play one note at a time. Some of the earliest commercial polyphonic synthesizers were created by the American engineer Tom Oberheim , such as

3010-472: The bestselling synthesizer in history. The advent of digital synthesizers led to a downturn in interest in analog synthesizers in the following decade. 1997 saw the release of ReBirth by Propellerhead Software and Reality by Seer Systems , the first software synthesizers that could be played in real time via MIDI. In 1999, an update to the music software Cubase allowed users to run software instruments (including synthesizers) as plug-ins , triggering

3080-401: The digital synthesizer to the public ear. Bands like Talking Heads and Duran Duran used the digitally made sounds on some of their most popular albums. Other more pop -inspired bands like Hall & Oates began incorporating the digital synthesizer into their sound in the 1980s. Through breakthroughs in technology in the 1990s many modern synthesizers use DSP . Working in more or less

3150-410: The earliest digital synthesizers for studio and experimental use with computers being able to handle built-in sound synthesis algorithms. In 1973, the Japanese company Yamaha licensed the patent for frequency modulation synthesis (FM synthesis) from John Chowning , who had experimented with it at Stanford University since 1971. Yamaha's engineers began adapting Chowning's algorithm for use in

3220-450: The emergence of synth-pop from the late 1970s to the early 1980s. The work of German krautrock bands such as Kraftwerk and Tangerine Dream , British acts such as John Foxx , Gary Numan and David Bowie , African-American acts such as George Clinton and Zapp , and Japanese electronic acts such as Yellow Magic Orchestra and Kitaro were influential in the development of the genre. The Roland TB-303 (1981), in conjunction with

3290-488: The first programming language for computer music , MUSIC , was developed by Max Mathews on an IBM 704 at Bell Labs in 1957. It generates digital audio waveforms through direct synthesis. c.  1969 , EMS MUSYS 3 system was developed by Peter Grogono (software), David Cockerell (hardware and interfacing) and Peter Zinovieff (system design and operation) at their London (Putney) Studio. The system ran on two mini-computers, Digital Equipment PDP-8 's. These had

3360-730: The first string synthesizer , designed to emulate string sections . After retail stores started selling synthesizers in 1971, other synthesizer companies were established, including ARP in the US and EMS in the UK. ARP's products included the ARP 2600 , which folded into a carrying case and had built-in speakers, and the Odyssey , a rival to the Minimoog. The less expensive EMS synthesizers were used by European art rock and progressive rock acts including Brian Eno and Pink Floyd . Designs for synthesizers appeared in

3430-541: The first prototype digital synthesizer in 1974. Released in 1979, the Casio VL-1 was the first low budget digital synthesizer, selling for $ 69.95. Yamaha eventually commercialized their FM synthesis technology and released the company's first FM digital synthesizer in 1980, the Yamaha GS-1, but at an expensive retail price of $ 16,000. Introduced in 1983, the Yamaha DX7 was the breakthrough digital synthesizer to have

3500-577: The heads of a drum kit ; touchplates, which send signals depending on finger position and force; controllers designed for microtonal tunings ; touchscreen devices such as tablets and smartphones ; and fingerpads. Synthesizer clones are unlicensed recreations of previous synthesizers, often marketed as affordable versions of famous musical equipment. Clones are available as physical instruments and software. Companies that have sold software clones include Arturia and Native Instruments . Behringer manufactures equipment modelled on instruments including

3570-641: The human voice." The Moog was adopted by 1960s rock acts including the Doors , the Grateful Dead , the Rolling Stones , the Beatles , and Keith Emerson . Emerson was the first major rock musician to perform with the Moog and it became a trademark of his performances, helping take his band Emerson, Lake & Palmer to global stardom. According to Analog Days , the likes of Emerson, with his Moog performances, "did for

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3640-466: The keyboard what Jimi Hendrix did for the guitar". String synthesizers were used by 1970s progressive rock bands including Camel , Caravan , Electric Light Orchestra , Gentle Giant and Renaissance . The portable Minimoog (1970), much smaller than the modular synthesizers before it, made synthesizers more common in live performance. Early synthesizers could only play one note at a time , making them suitable for basslines, leads and solos. With

3710-489: The larger modular synthesizers before it. In 1978, Sequential Circuits released the Prophet-5 , which used microprocessors to allow users to store sounds for the first time. MIDI, a standardized means of synchronizing electronic instruments, was introduced in 1982 and remains an industry standard. The Yamaha DX7 , launched in 1983, was a major success and popularized digital synthesis . Software synthesizers now can be run as plug-ins or embedded on microchips . In

3780-503: The mainstream. They were adopted by electronic acts and pop and rock groups in the 1960s and 1970s and were widely used in 1980s music. Sampling , introduced with the Fairlight synthesizer in 1979, has influenced genres such as electronic and hip hop music. Today, the synthesizer is used in nearly every genre of music and is considered one of the most important instruments in the music industry. According to Fact in 2016, "The synthesizer

3850-576: The most popular examples of this type of instrument including the Nord Lead and Access Virus . Digital synthesizers can now be completely emulated in software (" softsynth "), and run on conventional PC hardware. Such soft implementations require careful programming and a fast CPU to get the same latency response as their dedicated equivalents. To reduce latency, some professional sound card manufacturers have developed specialized Digital Signal Processing ([DSP]) hardware. Dedicated digital synthesizers have

3920-521: The oscillators in the frequency domain, often under the control of an envelope or LFO. These are essential to subtractive synthesis. Filters are particularly important in subtractive synthesis , being designed to pass some frequency regions (or "bands") through unattenuated while significantly attenuating ("subtracting") others. The low-pass filter is most frequently used, but band-pass filters , band-reject filters and high-pass filters are also sometimes available. The filter may be controlled with

3990-423: The parameters up and down such as decay, sustain and finally release. For instance by using a short decay with no sustain, the sound generated is commonly known as a stab . Sound designers may prefer shaping the sound with a filter instead of volume. Envelopes control how sounds change over time. They may control parameters such as amplitude (volume), filters (frequencies), or pitch. The most common envelope

4060-450: The rise of polyphonic synthesizers in the 70s and 80s, "the keyboard in rock once more started to revert to the background, to be used for fills and atmosphere rather than for soloing". Some acts felt that using synthesizers was "cheating"; Queen wrote in their album liner notes that they did not use them. The Minimoog took a place in mainstream African-American music , most notably in the work of Stevie Wonder , and in jazz , such as

4130-463: The same time, they are also examples of "workstation" synthesizers. As the cost of processing power and memory fell, new types of synthesizers emerged, offering a variety of novel sound synthesis options. The Korg Oasys was one such example, packaging multiple digital synthesizers into a single unit. An analog synthesizer creates sound using electronic circuitry, such as voltage-controlled oscillators and voltage-controlled filters . In contrast,

4200-546: The scores for thrillers and horror films including A Clockwork Orange (1971), Apocalypse Now (1979), The Fog (1980) and Manhunter (1986). Brad Fiedel used a Prophet synthesizer to record the soundtrack for The Terminator (1984), and the filmmaker John Carpenter used them extensively for his soundtracks. Synthesizers were used to create themes for television shows including Knight Rider (1982) , Twin Peaks (1990) and Stranger Things (2016). The rise of

4270-399: The synthesizer led to major changes in music industry jobs, comparable to the earlier arrival of sound in film , which put live musicians accompanying silent films out of work. With its ability to imitate instruments such as strings and horns, the synthesizer threatened the jobs of session musicians . For a period, the Moog was banned from use in commercial work, a restriction negotiated by

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4340-509: The synthesizer unit or attached via connections such as CV/gate , USB , or MIDI . Keyboards may offer expression such as velocity sensitivity and aftertouch, allowing for more control over the sound. Other controllers include ribbon controllers , which track the movement of the finger across a touch-sensitive surface; wind controllers , played similarly to woodwind instruments ; motion-sensitive controllers similar to video game motion controllers ; electronic drum pads , played similarly to

4410-621: The waveforms of all SRX boards at a time. In 2019, Roland released the Fantom 6/7/8 series workstation which includes multiple synth engines, following the footsteps of Korg Kronos and Yamaha Montage. In March 2022, Roland released the Fantom-0 series (Fantom 06/07/08) with features inherited from the Fantom series. This article relating to electronic musical instruments is a stub . You can help Misplaced Pages by expanding it . Synthesizer A synthesizer (also synthesiser or synth )

4480-519: The work of Sun Ra . In the late 1970s and the early 1980s, the Minimoog was widely used in the emerging disco genre by artists including Abba and Giorgio Moroder . Sampling, introduced with the Fairlight synthesizer in 1979, has influenced all genres of music and had a major influence on the development of electronic and hip hop music. In the 1970s, electronic music composers such as Jean Michel Jarre and Isao Tomita released successful synthesizer-led instrumental albums. This influenced

4550-469: The world's first 16-bit, real-time hard drive streaming sampler later in 1982. The Fairlight CMI and the Synclavier were both expensive systems, retailing for more than $ 20,000 in the early 1980s. The cost of digital synthesizers began falling rapidly in the early 1980s. E-mu Systems introduced the Emulator sampling synthesizer in 1982 at a retail price of $ 7,900. Although not as flexible or powerful as either

4620-647: Was acquired by the Columbia-Princeton Electronic Music Center and used almost exclusively by Milton Babbitt , a composer at Princeton University . The authors of Analog Days define "the early years of the synthesizer" as between 1964 and the mid-1970s, beginning with the debut of the Moog synthesizer . Designed by the American engineer Robert Moog , the instrument was a modular synthesizer system composed of numerous separate electronic modules, each capable of generating, shaping, or controlling

4690-583: Was associated with the RCA synthesizer; however, by the 1970s, it had become the standard term. In 1970, Moog launched a cheaper, smaller synthesizer, the Minimoog . It was the first synthesizer sold in music stores, and was more practical for live performance. It standardized the concept of synthesizers as self-contained instruments with built-in keyboards. In the early 1970s, the British composer Ken Freeman introduced

4760-559: Was characterized by its "harsh", "glassy" and "chilly" sounds, compared to the "warm" and "fuzzy" sounds of analog synthesis. The DX7 was the first synthesizer to sell more than 100,000 units and remains one of the bestselling in history. It was widely used in 1980s pop music. Digital synthesizers typically contained preset sounds emulating acoustic instruments, with algorithms controlled with menus and buttons. The Synclavier , made with FM technology licensed from Yamaha, offered features such as 16-bit sampling and digital recording. With

4830-544: Was developed by Hal Ales at Bell Labs . In 1977, New England Digital (NED) released the Synclavier , the first commercial synthesizer to use purely digital sound generation and also the world's first commercial FM synthesizer. Early commercial digital synthesizers used simple hard-wired digital circuitry to implement techniques such as additive synthesis and FM synthesis . Other techniques, such as wavetable synthesis and physical modeling , only became possible with

4900-576: Was partly due to its high sampling rate of 57 kHz. It became indispensable to many music artists of the 1980s, and would become one of the best-selling synthesizers of all time. In 1987, Roland released its own influential synthesizer of the time, the D-50 . This popular synth broke new ground in affordably combining short samples and digital oscillators, as well as the innovation of built-in digital effects (reverb., chorus, equalizer ). Roland called this Linear Arithmetic (LA) synthesis. This instrument

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