Check out this full walkthrough of the Yamaha CS-80
Dave Spiers and CS-80 tech Kent Sprong take a deep dive on the legendary synthesiser
Vangelis, Kraftwerk, Brian Eno, Toto, Daft Punk and Stevie Wonder are just some of the prominent artists who crafted wonders with the Yamaha CS-80. Built in the 70s, the Yamaha’s 8-voice polysynth was considered to be the first great synth from Japan, thanks to its polyphonic aftertouch, patch memory storage and 16 tone generators.
In the video above, GForce Software’s Dave Spiers and CS-80 tech Kent Spong take us on a lovely long journey through the iconic machine. With occasional contributions from Ken Freeman and Matt Berry, you’ll be an expert on the might CS-80 after this one-hour walkthrough.
One of the greatest things about the CS-80 was its opportunity for expression, which can be best heard in compositions like those in the Blade Runner soundtrack. Although not everyone has access to such a magnificent machine, there are ways to recreate the tones in your DAW. You can try this out for yourself in our Blade Runner Emulation tutorial.
For more news in music technology, click here.
