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Yamaha DX7

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TheYamaha DX7is asynthesizermanufactured byYamaha Corporationfrom 1983 to 1989. It was the first successfuldigital synthesizerand is one of the best-selling synthesizers in history, selling more than 200,000 units.

Yamaha DX7
ManufacturerYamaha
DatesMay 1983–1989
Price$1,995US
£1,495GBP
¥248,000JPY
Technical specifications
Polyphony16-voice
TimbralityMonotimbral
Bi-timbral (DX7 II)
Oscillator6 digital sine wave operators per voice, 32 patching algorithms[1]
Synthesis typeDigitallinearfrequency modulation/
Additive synthesis(alg. #32)
Filternone
Attenuator1 pitch envelope & 6 amplitude generators per voice
AftertouchexpressionYes (channel)
Velocity expressionYes
Storagememory32 patches in RAM (battery backup); front panel ROM/RAM cartridge port
Effectsnone
HardwareYM2128 (OPS)operator chip
YM2129 (EGS)envelope generator
Input/output
Keyboard61-note with velocity
and aftertouch sensitivity
Left-hand controlpitch-bend and modulation wheels
External controlMIDIin/out/thru, input for foot controller x2, input for foot switch x2, input for optional breath controller

In the early 1980s, the synthesizer market was dominated byanalog synthesizers.FM synthesis,a means of generating sounds viafrequency modulation,was developed byJohn ChowningatStanford University,California. FM synthesis created brighter, glassier sounds, and could better imitate acoustic sounds such as brass and bells. Yamaha licensed the technology to create the DX7, combining it withvery-large-scale integrationchips to lower manufacturing costs.

With its complex menus and lack of conventional controls, few learned to program the DX7 in depth. However, its preset sounds became staples of 1980spop music;in 1986, it was used in 40% of the number-one singles on the USBillboard Hot 100.Its electric piano sound was particularly widely used, especially inpower ballads.The English producerBrian Enowas proficient at programming his own sounds, and it was instrumental to his work inambient music.Chips based on the DX7sound chip,such as theYM2612,were used in technologies such as theSega Genesisgame console.

The DX7 was succeeded by FM synthesizers including theDX1,DX21,DX27andDX100.In later years, the DX7 sounds came to be seen as dated or clichéd and its use declined.

Development

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By the mid-20th century,frequency modulation(FM), a means of carrying sound, had been understood for decades and was widely used tobroadcast radio transmissions.[2]In the 1960s, atStanford University,California,John ChowningdevelopedFM synthesis,a means of using FM to generate sounds different fromanalog synthesis.In 1971, to demonstrate its commercial potential, Chowning used FM to emulate acoustic sounds such as organs and brass. Stanfordpatentedthe technology and hoped to license it, but was turned down by American companies includingHammondandWurlitzer.[3]Chowning felt their engineers did not understand FM.[4]

At the time, the Japanese companyYamahawas the world's largest manufacturer of musical instruments but had little market share in the United States.[4]One of their chief engineers visited Stanford to view the technology. According to Chowning, "In ten minutes he understood... I guess Yamaha had already been working in the digital domain, so he knew exactly what I was saying."[4]Yamaha licensed the technology for one year to determine its commercial viability, and in 1973 its organ division began developing a prototype FMmonophonic synthesizer.In 1975, Yamaha negotiated exclusive rights for the technology.[3]

Ikutaro Kakehashi,the founder of the Japanese companyRoland,was also interested, but met Chowning six months after Yamaha had agreed to the deal. Kakehashi later said Yamaha were the natural partners in the venture, as they had the resources to make FM synthesis commercially viable.[2]

John Chowning,who developed the frequency modulation technology used in the DX7

Yamaha created the first hardware implementation of FM synthesis.[4]The first commercial FM synthesizer was the Yamaha GS1, released in 1980,[5]which was expensive to manufacture due to itsintegrated circuitchips.[4]At the same time, Yamaha was developing the means to manufacturevery-large-scale integrationchips. These allowed the DX7 to use only two chips, compared to the GS1's 50.[4]Yamaha also altered the implementation of the FM algorithms in the DX7 for efficiency and speed, producing asampling ratehigher than Stanford's synthesizers. Chowning felt this produced a noticeable "brilliant" sound.[4]

Yamaha displayed a prototype of the DX7 in 1982, branded the CSDX in reference to the Yamaha CS range of analog synthesizers.[6]In late 1982, Dave Bristow and Gary Leuenberger, experts on theYamaha CS-80,flew to Japan to develop the DX7'svoices.They had less than four days to create the DX7's 128 preset patches.[7]

Features

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The settings buttons include controls for effects such asportamento.

Compared to the "warm" and "fuzzy" sounds ofanalog synthesizers,the digital DX7 sounds "harsh", "glassy" and "chilly",[8]with a richer, brighter sound.[9]Its presets constitute "struck" and "plucked" sounds with complextransients.[9]Its keyboard spans fiveoctaves,[7]and thekeyboard expressionallows for velocity sensitivity and aftertouch.[7]The DX7 has 16-notepolyphony,meaning 16 notes can sound simultaneously. It has 32 sound-generating algorithms,[1]each a different arrangement of its sixsine waveoperators.[9]The DX7 was the first synthesizer with aliquid-crystal display,and the first to allow users to name patches.[7]

Sales

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The DX7 was the first commercially successful digital synthesizer[10][11][12]and remains one of the bestselling synthesizers in history.[11][13]According to Bristow, Yamaha had hoped to sell more than 20,000 units. Within a year, orders exceeded 150,000 units,[7]and Yamaha had sold 200,000 units after three years.[14]

The DX7 was the first synthesizer to sell more than 100,000 units.[7]Yamaha manufactured units on a scale American competitors could not match; by comparison,Moogsold 12,000Minimoogsynthesizers in 11 years, and could not meet demand.[14]The FM patent was for years one of Stanford's highest earning.[15]Chowning received royalties for all of Yamaha's FM synthesizers.[3]

According toDave Smith,the founder of the synthesizer companySequential,"The synthesizer market was tiny in the late 70s. No one was selling 50,000 of these things. It wasn't until the Yamaha DX7 came out that a company shipped 100,000-plus synths."[16]Smith said the DX7 sold well as it was reasonably priced, had keyboard expression and 16 voices, and was better at emulating acoustic sounds than competing products.[16]Chowning credited the success to the combination of his FM patent with Yamaha's chip technology.[4]

Impact

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At the time of release, the DX7 was the first digital synthesizer most musicians had used.[8]It was very different from the analog synthesizers that had dominated the market.[17]According toMusicRadar,its "spiky" and "crystalline" sounds made it "the perfect antidote to a decade of analog waveforms".[17]It was praised for its accuracy in reproducingtubular bells,metallophonesand theharpsichord,and took over theelectric pianomarket.[18][19]

"Danger Zone",a 1986 single byKenny Loggins,uses the DX7 "BASS 1" preset.

With complex submenus displayed on an LCD and no knobs and sliders to adjust the sound, many found the DX7 difficult to program.[20]MusicRadardescribed its interface as "nearly impenetrable", with "operators, algorithms and unusual envelopes... accessed through tedious menus and a diminutive display".[17]Rather than create their own sounds, most users used the presets.[8]

The presets were widely used in 1980s pop music.[9]The "BASS 1" preset was used on songs such as "Take On Me"byA-ha,"Danger Zone"byKenny Loggins,and "Fresh"byKool & the Gang.[8]The "E PIANO 1" preset became particularly famous,[8][21]especially forpower ballads,[22]and was used by artists includingWhitney Houston,Chicago,[22]Phil Collins,Luther Vandross,Billy Ocean[8]andCeline Dion.[23]In 1986, it was used in 40% of the number-one singles on the USBillboard Hot 100,40% of country number ones, and 60% of RnB number ones.[24]The preset imitates aRhodes piano,prompting some to abandon the Rhodes in favor of the DX7.[25]

A few musicians skilled at programming the DX7 found employment creating sounds for other acts.[26]The English musicianBrian Enolearned to program the DX7 in depth and used it to createambient musicon his 1983 albumApollo: Atmospheres and Soundtracks.[8]He shared instructions for recreating his patches in a 1987 issue ofKeyboard.[20]Eno used the DX7 on records he produced byU2andColdplay.[8]In later years, the DX sounds came to be seen as dated or clichéd, and interest in FM synthesis declined, with second-hand digital synthesizers selling for less than analog.[8]The development ofsoftware synthesizerssuch asNative InstrumentsFM8 led to a resurgence in the popularity of FM synthesis.[27]

Successors

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According toSound on Sound,throughout the mid-1980s, "Yamaha flooded the market with a plethora of low-cost FM synths."[6]In 1987, Yamaha released the DX7II, which did not match the success of the DX7.[7]Further successors included theTX81Z,DX1,DX11, andDX21.[6]Yamaha manufactured reduced versions of the DX7sound chip,such as theYM2612,for use in technologies such as theSega Genesisgame console.[28]In 2015, Yamaha released a smaller FM synthesizer, the Reface DX.[29]

References

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  1. ^ab "Chapter 2: FM Tone Generators and the Dawn of Home Music Production".History, Yamaha Synth 40th Anniversary.Yamaha Corporation. 2014. Archived fromthe originalon October 23, 2014.At that time, a number of Yamaha departments were developing different instruments in parallel,... the direct forerunner of the DX Series synths was a test model known as theProgrammable Algorithm Music Synthesizer(PAMS). In recognition of this fact, the DX7 is identified as aDigital Programmable Algorithm Synthesizeron its top panel. / As its name suggests, the PAMS created sound based on various calculation algorithms—namely, phase modulation, amplitude modulation, additive synthesis, and frequency modulation (FM)—and from the very start, the prototype supported the storing of programs in memory. However, this high level of freedom in sound design came at the price of a huge increase in the number of parameters required, meaning that the PAMS was not yet suitable for commercialization as an instrument that the average user could program. / In order to resolve this issue, the Yamaha developers decided to simplify the synth's tone generator design by having the modulator and carrier envelope generators share common parameters. They also reduced the number of algorithms—or operator combination patterns—to 32.
  2. ^abReid, Gordon (December 2004)."The History Of Roland: Part 2".Sound on Sound.RetrievedFebruary 5,2020.
  3. ^abcReid, Gordon (September 2015)."John Chowning".Sound on Sound.RetrievedOctober 19,2018.
  4. ^abcdefghDarter, Tom."John Chowning"(PDF).Stanford University.
  5. ^Curtis Roads (1996).The computer music tutorial.MIT Press.p. 226.ISBN0-262-68082-3.RetrievedJune 5,2011.
  6. ^abcReid, Gordon (September 2001)."Sounds of the '80s Part 2: The Yamaha DX1 & Its Successors (Retro)".Sound on Sound.Archived fromthe originalon September 17, 2011.RetrievedJune 29,2011.
  7. ^abcdefgVail, Mark (2014).The Synthesizer.Oxford University Press.p. 59.ISBN978-0195394894.
  8. ^abcdefghi"The 14 most important synths in electronic music history – and the musicians who use them".FACT Magazine: Music News, New Music.September 15, 2016.RetrievedOctober 19,2018.
  9. ^abcdBrøvig-Hanssen, Ragnhild; Danielsen, Anne (February 19, 2016).Digital Signatures: The Impact of Digitization on Popular Music Sound.MIT Press.ISBN9780262034142.
  10. ^ Edmondson, Jacqueline, ed. (2013).Music in American Life: An Encyclopedia of the Songs, Styles, Stars, and Stories that Shaped our Culture [4 volumes].ABC-CLIO. p.398.ISBN9780313393488.In 1967, John Chowning, at Stanford University, accidentally discovered frequency modulation (FM) synthesis when experimenting with extreme vibrato effects in MUSIC-V.... By 1971 he was able to use FM synthesis to synthesizer musical instrument sounds, and this technique was later used to create the Yamaha DX synthesizer, the first commercially successful digital synthesizer, in the early 1980s.
  11. ^ab Shepard, Brian K. (2013).Refining Sound: A Practical Guide to Synthesis and Synthesizers.Oxford University Press.ISBN9780199376681.The first digital synthesizer to make it into the studios of everyone else, the Yamaha DX7, became one of the most commercially successful synthesizers of all time.
  12. ^ Pinch, T. J.;Bijsterveld, Karin(July 2003).""Should One Applaud?" Breaches and Boundaries in the Reception of New Technology in Music ".Technology and Culture.44(3): 536–559.doi:10.1353/tech.2003.0126.S2CID132403480.By the time the first commercially successful digital instrument, the Yamaha DX7 (lifetime sales of two hundred thousand), appeared in 1983...(Note: the above sales number seems about whole DX series)
  13. ^Holmes, Thom (2008)."Early Computer Music".Electronic and experimental music: technology, music, and culture(3rd ed.).Taylor & Francis.p. 257.ISBN978-0415957816.RetrievedJune 4,2011.
  14. ^abWeiner, Sophie (October 20, 2017)."Minimoog: The First Truly Portable Synthesizer".Red Bull Music Academy Daily.Archivedfrom the original on October 19, 2023.RetrievedOctober 19,2023.
  15. ^Pinch, Trevor; Trocco, Frank (2002).Analog Days: The invention and impact of the Moog synthesizer.Harvard University Press.p. 6.ISBN0674008898.
  16. ^ab"Dave Smith".KeyboardMag.RetrievedOctober 20,2018.
  17. ^abc"The top 10 classic synth presets (and where you can hear them)".MusicRadar.RetrievedOctober 19,2018.
  18. ^Russ, Martin (2012).Sound Synthesis and Sampling.CRC Press. p. 356.ISBN9781136115103.
  19. ^Biedny, David (February 2007)."Native Instruments FM8 – Get Your Synth On".MacLife.p. 84.RetrievedDecember 13,2023.
  20. ^ab"Sound like Brian Eno with his Yamaha DX7 synth patches from 1987".FACT Magazine: Music News, New Music.May 12, 2017.RetrievedOctober 19,2018.
  21. ^"The top 10 classic synth presets (and where you can hear them)".MusicRadar.RetrievedOctober 19,2018.
  22. ^abSimpson, Dave (August 14, 2018)."More synthetic bamboo! The greatest preset sounds in pop music".the Guardian.RetrievedOctober 19,2018.
  23. ^Saxelby, Ruth."Borne into the 90s [pt.1]".DMY.Archived fromthe originalon January 28, 2023.RetrievedJune 14,2023.
  24. ^"Yamaha's DX7 synthesiser changed modern music".The Economist.December 31, 2020.
  25. ^Verderosa, Tony (2002).The Techno Primer: The Essential Reference for Loop-based Music Styles.Hal Leonard Corporation. p. 120.ISBN978-0-634-01788-9.
  26. ^Roger T. Dean, ed. (September 16, 2009).The Oxford Handbook of Computer Music.Oxford University Press. p. 81.ISBN9780199887132.
  27. ^Stevens, Blake (August 16, 2021).Teaching Electronic Music: Cultural, Creative, and Analytical Perspectives.Routledge.ISBN978-1-000-41727-2.
  28. ^Stuart, Keith (February 13, 2020)."Super Sonic: creating the new sound of Sega's hedgehog hit".The Guardian.ISSN0261-3077.RetrievedFebruary 14,2020.
  29. ^Goldman, Dan 'JD73' (October 13, 2015)."Yamaha Reface DX review".MusicRadar.RetrievedFebruary 2,2020.{{cite web}}:CS1 maint: numeric names: authors list (link)

Further reading

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