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# Sand, software and sound

Electronics and computing for the fun of it

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## Posts

- [AN200 patterns converted to Seqtrak](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/an200-patterns-converted-to-seqtrak/) - After rummaging through the AN200 crate, I cherry-picked eight favorite patterns and converted them to Yamaha Seqtrak. Yamaha Seqtrak doesn't have an AN synthesis engine, so you only get a close approximation. Still, why not? Converting Yamaha's AN200 patterns to Seqtrak is labor intensive. As I noted in my AN200 crate digging article, the AN200
- [Yamaha AN-200: Crate digging](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/yamaha-an-200-crate-digging/) - One of my favorite pastimes is finding and collecting patterns from vintage Yamaha beat boxes. It's been a long time coming -- the Yamaha AN200 Loop Factory. The AN200 is renown for its 5-voice Analog Physical Modeling (AN) engine. Yamaha provided patterns to get you started and to show off the AN engine. The AN
- [SEQTRAK MIDI controller power](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/seqtrak-midi-controller-power/) - In my last post about connecting a MIDI controller to Yamaha SEQTRAK over USB, I expressed concern about power draw. Measurements show that my initial concern is unfounded. I pulled out a trusty Klein Tools ET900 USB Digital Multimeter. For testing, I plugged my two MIDI controllers through the meter into the USB-A port of
- [SEQTRAK as sound module: Connections](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/seqtrak-as-sound-module-connections/) - A quick hit on the SEQTRAK front... I've been experimenting with Yamaha SEQTRAK as a sound module. The biggest trick is living within SEQTRAK's MIDI channel assignments: Channels 1 to 7: Drum, synth, or drum kit Channels 8 and 9: Synth Channel 10: DX 4-op FM Channel 11: Sampler Channels 1 to 7 can be
- [Comparison: SEQTRAK, EP-40 Riddim, Volca Sample](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/comparison-seqtrak-ep-40-riddim-volca-sample/) - I'm taking a break from the toys to compare: Yamaha AN200 Loop Factory Korg Volca Sample 2 Yamaha SEQTRAK Teenage Engineering EP-40 Riddim All four machines are deep so you're not going to get an in-depth analysis of features and so forth. I'm going to concentrate on immediacy and fun. Each box has its own
- [Review: Yamaha Seqtrak](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/review-yamaha-seqtrak/) - Yamaha Seqtrak went on sale last month -- at the fantastically low price of $250 USD. OK, that got me. :-) By now, there are a mess o' Seqtrak videos on-line. You've probably watched and heard the demonstrations and tutorials. Therefore, I will concentrate on my personal experience and reactions. It will be hard to
- [Review: HP OmniDesk AMD Ryzen 5](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/review-hp-omnidesk-amd-ryzen-5/) - Sooner or later, it happens to everyone. Your main computing machine won't boot. It was a self-inflicted wound in my case. We have had a series of power outages. Each time, I had to turn off the UPS, forcing the old HP Slimline desktop to cold boot. Each time, the CMOS (BIOS) memory got wiped.
- [Pop demo styles for Yamaha](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/pop-demo-styles-for-yamaha/) - The new Yamaha PSR-E483 and PSR-E583 have new styles which have not yet been released for Genos and the SX series. Since folks might be interested in hearing the new styles, Mark Wilburn and I teamed up to create a few quick and dirty Yamaha arranger styles based on the new E-series styles. Please think
- [Anavi Macropad8 QMK MIDI code](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/anavi-macropad8-qmk-midi-code/) - Two years ago (March 2024), I posted an article about using the Anavi Macropad8 for MIDI control. Everything worked, however getting there was a complete bear. The QMK (Quantum Mechanical Keyboard) toolkit is a huge download and it is difficult to use. Thus, by way of the Yamaha Musician's Forum, I received a request from
- [EP-40 Riddim: Jammin' (1)](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/ep-40-riddim-jammin-1/) - Teenage Engineering labelled the EP-40 Riddim "Original Layering Machine." The Riddim lives up to its mission -- jammin'. The first question I asked is "How are the factory songs?" The EP-40 comes pre-loaded with nine projects: # Abbrev Artist Sub-genre Key BPM -- -------------------------------------------------- ---- --- 1 JAMMY King Jammy Dancehall E 85 2 MPROF
- [TE Riddim and Ting outta the box](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/te-riddim-and-ting-outta-the-box/) - My version of an unboxing video... [Minus the boring video] Thanks to the folks at Alto Music, I've got a brand new Teenage Engineering EP-40 Riddim and EP-2350 Ting bundle. Both Riddim and Ting arrive in a brown box. Opening the brown box is like tearing into an overgrown Pocket Operator. It feels the same
- [TE and Alto Music: Success!](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/te-and-alto-music-success/) - Today's post is a positive customer service story -- the kind that I like to write! I purchased a Teenage Engineering EP-40 during the last few days of 2025. Alto Music was having a holiday coupon sale and I said, "What the heck?" This was my first order from Alto Music. They pop up in
- [Yamaha PSR-I510 and PSR-I610 keyboards](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/yamaha-psr-i510-and-psr-i610-keyboards/) - Yamaha sent the PSR-E583 and PSR-E583 to India to find themselves. Like the Beatles, they came back changed. You must check the PSR-I510 and PSR-I610 introductory video. Holy mother of funk! :-) Damn, I want more of that. More Indian demo tones. The overview video with Karthick Devaraj has some sweet moments, too. [Dude can
- [NAMM 2026: For those who wait](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/namm-2026-for-those-who-wait/) - Interesting products are still streaming out from NAMM 2026. Hammond XK-7/XK-7D organ As teased, Hammond Suzuki have a new top-of-the-line flagship -- the XK-7D. Multi-contact keyboard (6 physical contacts below each key) New XPK-250W mk3 pedal board (3 contact system) Four sets of harmonic drawbars Touch response percussion with vintage response Updated Leslie speaker models
- [NAMM 2026: Long boards](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/namm-2026-long-boards/) - Thank goodness the actual NAMM 2026 exhibition begins tomorrow! New keyboard stuff has been flowing like a river. Today's additions are long boards for the stage. Kurzweil SP8 Stage Keyboard Kurzweil Music Systems are introducing the SP8 Stage Keyboard. The SP8 joins a long line of 88-key Kurzweil stage keyboards. Some of the basic specs:
- [NAMM 2026: More little things](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/namm-2026-more-little-things/) - Stylophone On-The-Fly Dubreq also teased a black box. It's the Stylophone On-The-Fly "no menu diving" performance sequencer. On-The-Fly expands the CPM (Compact, Portable Modular) series (DS-2 synth, DF-2 analog filter). 16-, 32- or 64-step sequences Switchable directions: forward, reverse, bounce 24 sequence memories Hand-on control, real-time tweaking Loop record performances up to 1024 steps Eurorack-ready
- [NAMM 2026: Hunting the snark](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/namm-2026-hunting-the-snark/) - ASM Leviasynth announced True to the rumors, Ashun Sound Machines (ASM) have announced the Leviasynth®. ASM Leviasynth® is a 16-voice, 8 oscillator algorithmic synthesizer with analog filters. Hybrid digital/analog synthesis engine Eight oscillators per voice, 7 synthesis types, 140 algorithmic combinations Over 300 waveforms Vintage mode, Snap and analog feel Morphing including ability to morph
- [NAMM 2026: More new products](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/namm-2026-more-new-products/) - Nord Electro 7 Nord have spoken and they might get me back! I still have my Nord Electro 2 because of its superb playability. Electro's synth section has always been "Meh" and acoustic instrument representations have not had as much life as Yamaha synths. The Nord Electro 7 takes care of business with a new
- [NAMM 2026: PSR-E483 and PSR-E583 announcement](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/namm-2026-psr-e483-and-psr-e583-announcement/) - Here are a few details about the upcoming Yamaha PSR-E483 and PSR-E583. Yamaha Global have released an overview video. Yamaha Global also have a longer walkthrough video. 61-key velocity-sensitive keyboard Over 860 voices including Super Articulation Lite voices 345 accompaniment styles Auto Chord Play plays pre-programmed chord progressions 100 pre-programmed progressions or record your own
- [NAMM 2026: Yamaha PSR-E483 and PSR-E583, updates](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/namm-2026-yamaha-psr-e483-and-psr-e583-updates/) - Yamaha promotions have mentioned PSR-E483 and PSR-E583 models before next week's NAMM 2026 (January 20-24, 2026), so it's a safe bet that they will appear from the fairy dust. Many budget-conscious punters have awaited new E-series models and will be happy to see them. No specs or details yet, but stay tuned. Casper at Casper
- [NAMM 2026: Tis the season](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/namm-2026-tis-the-season/) - Time for a few NAMM 2026 musings. Tis the season. Hammond-Suzuki are teasing a new model. If the video shows the new model, you had better save up your pennies. The new model does not look entry-level. Gotta wonder how import tariffs (tax) will affect USA pricing? [Free the markets!] No new hardware (yet), but
- [Korg Volca Sample riddim?](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/korg-volca-sample-riddim/) - Teenage Engineering wisely got out ahead of everyone and released the EP-40 Riddim and Ting combo just before the holidays (and January 2026 NAMM). I went absolutely berzerk when I heard the EP-40 and quickly pulled out the Korg Volca Sample 2 to see what I could do. There's a lot to love about the
- [Ho, ho, ho, NAMM 2026](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/ho-ho-ho-namm-2026/) - Time for a pre-holiday ramble. NAMM 2026 -- also known as "Christmas in January" -- is now one month away, January 20-24, 2026. Certainly, November and December product releases will be featured at NAMM 2026. So, dropping into stream of consciousness mode... Behringer is great at stocking stuffers. The latest stuffer is the two DCO
- [Roland Go:Keys mini-review](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/roland-gokeys-mini-review/) - Maybe it's the visual aesthetic which keeps drawing me back to the Roland GO:KEYS 3 and 5. Yes, it's a box. The simple lines, however, are clean. The chassis colors are well-chosen and the turquoise is lovely. The pastel white keys are a good match. With time on my hands, I dropped by Kennelly Keys
- [Medeli profile](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/medeli-profile/) - Medeli Electronics Co. Ltd. is one of the largest developers and manufacturers of electronic musical instruments, but you might not know much about them. I investigated a few of Medeli's low-cost arranger instruments while searching for inexpensive gear to mod. For example, Medeli offers the new entry-level Nebula series instruments: MK37, MK49 and MK61. Medeli
- [SAM2695, A50 and NSX-39 thoughts](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/sam2695-a50-and-nsx-39-thoughts/) - I'm still kicking around ideas for small, ultra-low cost MIDI tone modules. Random thoughts to follow... I completed the SAM2695 project using the M5Stack U187 MIDI module. Using a nibbling tool and utility knife, I cut a few holes along the edge of a Hammond 1591CSBK plastic project box. I packed the MIDI module and
- [M5Stack U187 General MIDI module](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/m5stack-u187-general-midi-module/) - Getting right to the point, cabling the M5Stack U187 MIDI Unit was a straightforward breeze. I now have a tiny General MIDI (GM) module for less than $50 USD. Best of all, the audio is cleaner than other SAM2695 implementations and I have full access to the Roland GS-compatible engine within. Yep, I traced out
- [Sound test: Yamaha A50 vs. SAM2695](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/sound-test-yamaha-a50-vs-sam2695/) - The Yamaha A50 keyboard and the M5Stack U187 MIDI Unit (synthesizer) are based on two different ultra-low cost chips: the Yamaha SWLL (YMW830) and the Dream S.A.S. SAM2695, respectively. The SAM2695 implements the full General MIDI (GM) sound set replete with Roland GS control and System Exclusive (SysEx) MIDI messages. The A50 implements forty voices
- [M5Stack U187 MIDI in the house](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/m5stack-u187-midi-in-the-house/) - Here are a few pictures of the M5Stack U187 MIDI unit, U125 buck converter and cables. These M5Stack parts are tiny. I included an SD-sized adapter in one of the pictures in order to convey a sense of scale. The M5Stack modules interconnect by way of 4-pin JST connectors (GROVE). I plan to use the
- [Gettin' the itch to chop](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/gettin-the-itch-to-chop/) - I'm always in the mood for tiny noise makers and, possibly, mods. My latest fantasy is a good-sounding add-on module to be controlled by a Novation Launchkey 49 Mk4 or Arturia Keylab Essential 49 (both in my clutches). So, round up the usual suspects! I thought about taking the Mototool to the Yamaha PSS-A50 since
- [Yamaha MODX M6 snap review](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/yamaha-modx-m6-snap-review/) - Yes, I played one! Let's handle a few easy observations first. If you don't currently own an all-rounder keyboard, you owe it to yourself to try the new Yamaha MODX M. Be sure to set aside 2 to 3 hours to try all three engines: AWM2 (sample playback), FM-X and AN-X. It's a solid citizen
- [Yamaha MODX M waveforms vs. MODX](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/yamaha-modx-m-waveforms-vs-modx/) - So begins the tedious task of comparing Yamaha MODX M waveforms versus MODX waveforms. New waveforms are genuine, objective improvements to the AWM2 sound set. The table below summarizes the acoustic piano waveforms. MODX M MODX Velocity levels ----------- ----------- ---------------------- CF3 Stretch CF3 Stretch 3 levels stereo, mono CF3 Flat CF3 Flat 3 levels,
- [Yamaha MODX M update (v1.10)](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/yamaha-modx-m-update-v1-10/) - I'm pretty excited about the new Yamaha MODX M series. My original MODX6 gets played almost every day and is getting a little beat out. I have developed tons of Performances and content for MODX6 and a MODX M6 or M7 replacement would be a logical choice. The MODX M series Quick Guide, Operation Manual
- [Yamaha announce MODX M synthesizers](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/yamaha-announce-modx-m-synthesizers/) - Well, it turns out, yesterday's picture was not fake. :-) So, yes, eight sliders and six additional knobs (under the touch display). From what I've been able to gather, Yamaha MODX M is a nice slimmed down version of the Montage M series. Spiffy. It has three engines -- AN-X, FM-X, AWM2 -- and, ta-da!,
- [Yamaha MODX M -- Witching Hour?](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/yamaha-modx-m-witching-hour/) - With Halloween fast approaching, Yamaha announced new Yamaha MODX M models. We are heading into the Fall holiday sales season and YamahaSynth.com has scheduled a special Tech Talk on Wednesday, October 15, 1:00 PM PDT/10:00 PM CET. [PDT -- Go Mariners!] Here is a picture to whet your appetite. I can verify it's authenticity. Eight
- [Yamaha swallows Steinberg hardware](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/yamaha-swallows-steinberg-hardware/) - Well, you could see this one coming -- eventually -- and eventually arrived. Yamaha has subsumed the Steinberg hardware business (quoting Yamaha): Yamaha Corporation has decided to transfer the hardware product business previously handled by its wholly owned subsidiary, Steinberg Media Technologies GmbH to Yamaha. As a result, Yamaha will take over Steinberg's hardware product
- [Yamaha Extrack app now in the USA](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/yamaha-extrack-app-now-in-the-usa/) - Yamaha have announced the Extrack app in Europe and the USA. As I mentioned in my preview, Extrack is a practice buddy and a stem extraction tool. More from Yamaha itself: Yamaha Corporation announced today the U.S. and European launch of Extrack, an iOS/Android music app that allows users to practice and play their instruments
- [Review: TalentCell 12V battery pack](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/review-talentcell-12v-battery-pack/) - The wind-up First, let me explain... Our church was designed and built long before architects anticipated the switch from (pipe) organ to acoustic piano for liturgy. Nor did they ever expect guitars, drums, brass, woodwinds or electronic instruments. To add insult to injury, the original "church organ" -- rarely used -- consumes a huge amount
- [Yamaha Extrack playing partner](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/yamaha-extrack-playing-partner/) - EXTRACK is a Yamaha app which hasn't yet broken surface in the United States. It was released in Japan about five months ago. My guess -- Yamaha is in the process of "globalizing" the app for international release, including the subscription Extrack Pass service. In Yamaha's own words (translated from Japanese): Extrack is a music
- [Notating with deCoda and Sibelius](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/notating-with-decoda-and-sibelius/) - Mark Isham is one of my all-time favorite composers and artists. I first heard him play with Group 87 (1980) soon followed by his debut solo album, Vapor Drawings. Since then, he has contributed to many recordings and has composed over 200 scores. I listen to the local KING-FM classical radio station -- the HD2
- [Yamaha CE20 FM synthesizer (RIP?)](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/yamaha-ce20-fm-synthesizer-rip/) - I took a whack at repairing my 1982 Yamaha CE20 FM synthesizer. No joy, I'm afraid. I didn't spot any obviously bad (fried) components, e.g., leaking electrolytic capacitors. I re-seated two fuses on the main logic (DM) board. Nope. Well, the next step is to test the output voltage from the three voltage regulators. Fortunately,
- [Bored ape: Go:keys revisited](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/bored-ape-gokeys-revisited/) - All I can remember from grade school religion classes: "Avoid the near occasion of sin." Thus, I rolled into my local music store with trepidation. I had to get out of the house. :-) First, I want to say a few good words about Kennelly Keys, our local musical instrument chain. They have a decent
- [Reface DX acoustic instruments for ya](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/reface-dx-acoustic-instruments-for-ya/) - One of my long-term projects is to collect and prepare acoustic instrument voices for Yamaha Reface DX. There aren't as many high-quality acoustic voices as there are tons of bleeps and bloops. Most people associate FM synthesis with aggressive EDM sounds, but even 4-op FM is capable of so much more! The project has come
- [Everybody likes new stuff](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/everybody-likes-new-stuff/) - Everybody likes new stuff. Unfortunately, the pickins have been slim as of late. I suspect that the global tariff situation has made manufacturers cautious. It's tough to price products in a dynamic, uncertain business climate. Here's a couple of new products that caught my attention. Boss RT-2 Rotary Ensemble Boss (Roland) have announced the Boss
- [Adafruit Feather: Megavoice key switching](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/adafruit-feather-megavoice-key-switching/) - More experiments and I have the initial cut of a simple key switching program for Yamaha MODX and Genos/PSR guitar Megavoices. The program is written in CircuitPython and runs on an AdaFruit Feather M4 Express. Here is a link to the ZIP file with the code. Megavoice: Background information MODX, Genos and mid-range PSR keyboards
- [MIDI Event Processor -- Round 2](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/midi-event-processor-round-2/) - I've got a stable MIDI event framework up and running. Time to summarize a few lessons learned. CircuitPython The CircuitPython libraries are pretty decent overall. AdaFruit did a good job with on-line documentation and I can usually find a helpful example to copy, paste and modify. Python itself is a PITA. I don't know why
- [AdaFruit Feather: MIDI Event Processor](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/adafruit-feather-midi-event-processor/) - Just want to report about a work in progress. My favorite bugaboo is the lack of scripting in MIDI controllers and devices. Yeah, they're OK for 90 percent of the common use cases. However, you'll eventually run into the need for System Exclusive (SysEx) message support or some other MIDI functionality which doesn't fit the
- [Steinberg Etude vs. CSP-170: Quick demo](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/steinberg-etude-vs-csp-170-quick-demo/) - This post is a quick comparison between the main Yamaha CSP-170 grand pianos (CFX and Bösendorfer) and two patches from the new Steinberg Etude grand (Concert Grand and Gospel presets). Please pardon my under-caffeinated playing. You can tell that my fingers and brain got warmer from CFX to Gospel. :-) Simple set-up -- plug the
- [Free stuff from Steinberg](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/free-stuff-from-steinberg/) - I'm looking into the new Steinberg Etude (sampled Yamaha C3X) piano VST instrument. As usual, I'm trying to keep costs low and found a few free Steinberg downloads that may help you out. First, there is the free Steinberg Halion Sonic player. Like Halion Sonic, the player can run stand-alone. I don't feel like diving
- [Yamaha Montage M OS 3.0 update](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/yamaha-montage-m-os-3-0-update/) - The Yamaha Montage M series is getting another update: New Waveforms "ClavD6", sampled with different pickup positions New VCM Effect "GS1 Ensemble & Tremolo" from the Yamaha GS1 New VCM Effect "CS Ring Modulator" from the Yamaha CS80 New VCM Effect "Mid/Side EQ Compressor" Extension of the Scenes with the parameters "Note Limit" and "Note
- [Yamaha P-525: Mini review](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/yamaha-p-525-mini-review/) - Yes, I played one! I want to thank Kennelly Keys in Everett, WA who let me bang away at their floor model ($1,600 USD). Previously, I reviewed the P-515, CSP-170 and several other Yamaha digitals. I own and play the CSP-170 which has several features in common with the P-515: NWX keybed, 2017-era CFX and
- [Review: Behringer Dual-Phase](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/review-behringer-dual-phase/) - I was a Mu-Tron enthusiast back in the day, and I still am an enthusiast today. More so, after buying a Behringer Dual-Phase. I didn't have the bucks for a Mu-Tron Bi-phase in the 1970s and I sure as heck cannot afford a vintage original. Mu-Tron offer their own re-issue at an affordable $479 USD.
- [Smart Pianist: Sheet music tutorial](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/smart-pianist-sheet-music-tutorial/) - Whew! We've come a long way on our trip through the Yamaha Smart Pianist™ app. So far, I've covered three ways to play along with your favorite music: MIDI songs Audio songs (audio-to-score) Auto-accompaniment driven by a chord chart Today I'm going to discuss another way: playing along with PDF sheet music. And, guess what?
- [Smart Pianist: Re-image a song with style](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/smart-pianist-re-image-a-song-with-style/) - Today, I want to build on my Smart Pianist audio-to-score tutorial. The audio-to-score feature lets you play along with an audio song selected from your music library. Did you know, you can re-imagine an audio song using a CSP auto-accompaniment style? Let's find out how. Audio-to-score recap I assume that you read the audio-to-score tutorial.
- [Yamaha Torch T01 digital piano](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/yamaha-torch-t01-digital-piano/) - Sometimes Yamaha does cool projects. The Yamaha TORCH T01 digital piano "uses unused grenadilla (African blackwood), a rare wood used in woodwind instruments such as clarinets." If you browse through Yamaha's annual corporate report, you'll find several "green" initiatives. Oto no Mori is one of them. Quoting Yamaha: We use natural materials such as wood
- [Smart Pianist Audio-to-score tutorial](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/smart-pianist-audio-to-score-tutorial/) - The Smart Pianist audio-to-score feature generates playable notation (a score!) from an audio song (e.g., MP3, AAC, etc.) Check this short Smart Pianist demo video. Kraft Music has a longer demo video featuring Gabriel Aldort from Yamaha. Audio-to-score is so cool, Yamaha uses it to tease CSP series and CVP-800/900 series sales. That's right, you
- [Smart Pianist MIDI files and SysEx](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/smart-pianist-midi-files-and-sysex/) - Today's blog post is for MIDI nerds although other folks might want a peek at the tech behind Smart Pianist (SP) and CSP series digital pianos. MIDI doesn't get too much attention anymore, however, MIDI is a key player (pun intended) in SP/CSP. Smart Pianist communicates with a CSP piano over four different kinds of
- [Smart Pianist, CSP and ChordPro](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/smart-pianist-csp-and-chordpro/) - Yamaha repurposes hardware and software technology all the time. The Yamaha CSP series digital pianos (CSP-100 series and CSP-200 series) and Smart Pianist borrow a lot of technology from the Yamaha Genos and PSR arrangers. Yamaha Chord Tracker users know that Smart Pianist also has Chord Tracker technology inside. Chord Tracker provides a number of
- [Smart Pianist: MIDI song tutorial](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/smart-pianist-midi-song-tutorial/) - I have an extensive collection of MIDI songs that are tweaked for the PSR-S950 and Genos (gen 1) arranger workstations. Let's see what Yamaha Smart Pianist does with them! Transfer the MIDI files The first step is transferring the MIDI files from Windows PC to my iPad. I gathered about 100 Standard MIDI Files (SMF)
- [The quest for Backing Conductor](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/the-quest-for-backing-conductor/) - Yamaha released a new version of the Smart Pianist app. The release notes list three new features: Backing Conductor (CSP Series, CVP Series and P-S500 only) A-B Repeat for PDF scores Scores for the 50 Classics are distributed and displayed via PDF The Backing Conductor sounded intriguing and I was anxious to jump on it
- [NAMM 2025: ROLI discover 49 keys!](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/namm-2025-roli-discover-49-keys/) - The big reveal from ROLI is a 49-key version of the LUMI Keys, now known as the ROLI Piano M. Price is $599 USD/€599 (RRP) with a very limited-time introductory price of $399/€399. First orders will ship in May. Add color to your musical ideas with four octaves of full-sized, semi-weighted keys, each with per-key
- [NAMM 2025: NI free stuff](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/namm-2025-ni-free-stuff/) - Tomorrow (January 23) is when NAMM 2025 exhibits open. On to today's news! Native Instruments free stuff I was about to blow off the Native Instruments announcements when I realized, "Wait, I can get some free stuff." If you shuffle through the corporate-speak -- and there is plenty of it -- you'll gist that NI
- [NAMM 2025: ROLI teaser](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/namm-2025-roli-teaser/) - ROLI piano teaser ROLI are teasing a "Bigger, Brighter, Smarter, piano of the future" to be announced on January 23: AI-generated Pianoception advertisement. 👎 ROLI will be offering "early-bird deals". Hmmm, I smell crowd-sourced money to finish product development. I hate to be so darned cynical, but c'mon. There is even an adminition "to check
- [NAMM 2025: Wait, there's more!](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/namm-2025-wait-theres-more/) - Hope you've caught your breath. This year's NAMM (2025) has brought a bumper crop of new keyboard releases. Korg KRONOS 3 Nord Organ 3 Roland V-STAGE stage keyboards Viscount Legend One stage keyboard Just to list a few that we've seen. This is an exciting year for players! Nord Piano 6 Check your credit limit
- [NAMM 2025: Korg miniKORG 700Sm](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/namm-2025-korg-minikorg-700sm/) - My heart leapt with joy when I saw Korg's newly announced KORG miniKORG 700Sm. I've been fascinated with the design of electronic musical instruments since teenage. I haunted musical instrument stores trying this and trying that -- perpetually short on cash. So, imagine wondering into a music store in a downtown Cleveland organ store (1973?)
- [NAMM 2025: Korg New KRONOS](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/namm-2025-korg-new-kronos/) - NAMM 2025 rumors and new products. New Korg KRONOS 3 Korg have officially announced the new Korg KRONOS 3 workstation. Expected availability is June 2025, so save your pennies now. :-) Of course, the obligatory KRONOS 3 video introduction. Here is a brief list of top features: KRONOS OS Version 3.2 60% faster boot time
- [NAMM 2025: Roland V-STAGE](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/namm-2025-roland-v-stage/) - Well, if you can't beat 'em, then join 'em! Here's an interesting rumor by way of our friends at Yamaha Musicians Forum -- the Roland V-STAGE: 4 independent sections with Roland modelling technology: Organ, Acoustic Piano, Electric Piano and Synthesizer Each section with its own mixer and button for split point for transposition Organ section
- [NAMM 2025: Viscount Legend ONE](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/namm-2025-viscount-legend-one/) - It's raining stage keyboards (and organs) up in here! Viscount International are announcing the Viscount Legend ONE: Based on the Legend Soul engine Four sound sections: Organ, Sound 1, Sound 2, Pedals Sounds include acoustic piano, electric piano, synths, pad and strings Drawbars: SET A, PEDALS, SET B Synth parameter control via drawbars (cutoff, res,
- [NAMM 2025: Yamaha updates](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/namm-2025-yamaha-updates/) - Welcome OS v2.0 for the Stage CP series: CFX2 concert grand piano Improved Bösendorfer Imperial 290 Eight new Live Sets for the CFX2 and Bösendorfer USB HOST functionality Output gain control (-24dB to +24dB) Seamless Section Sound Switching in addition to SSS between Live Sets Twice as many User Live Set pages (increased from 20
- [More NAMM 2025 products and speculation](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/more-namm-2025-products-and-speculation/) - LD Systems ANNY powered speakers LD Systems will feature the ANNY Series of portable battery powered PA systems. There are two models: a small 8"+1" carry-about (8.8kg) with tilt-back and a larger 10"+1" roll-about (18kg) model. Buskers should check these out. Both models have well-featured mix and effect capabilities. The ANNY 8 is $550 in
- [NAMM 2025: More little things to come](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/namm-2025-more-little-things-to-come/) - NAMM Show 2025 coming up: January 21-25, 2025, Anaheim Convention Center. More new products, no rumors, no kidding. Haken EaganMatrix Micro Now, this is coolness. The Haken EaganMatrix Micro is a full-featured EaganMatrix sound engine in a tiny package: Polyphony: Nominal 1-3, Maximum 8 Stereo Audio Output: 3.5mm TRS EXT Connector: 3.5mm TRS Seven Segment
- [NAMM 2025: Little things](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/namm-2025-little-things/) - Last year we were excited to see a lot of pre-NAMM, post-pandemic product announcements. This year, not so much. Here's a few little things that you might have missed. NAMM 2025 is only four weeks away (January 21-25, 2025). Behringer GO MIDI HOST Behringer have rolled out a boatload of new products in the last
- [Yamaha NAMM 2025 pre-show announcements](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/yamaha-namm-2025-pre-show-announcements/) - Christmas time is near! That means pulling together a boatload of music for Christmas services and -- NAMM 2025 anticipation (Anaheim Convention Center, January 23-25, 2025). Can you think of a better season than Advent for anticipation? Yamaha have made two pre-show announcements via PR Newswire. It's the usual puff-speak and the usual quote or
- [Want vs. need: Yamaha Seqtrak](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/want-vs-need-yamaha-seqtrak/) - It doesn't cost anything to window shop! With the holiday selling season in full swing, I took another look at Yamaha Seqtrak. Ya never know when a bargain might present itself, so it's good to be ready. :-) Seqtrak is Yamaha's low cost alternative to the all-in-one Teenage Engineering OP-1 -- a battery-powered synthesizer, sampler
- [Review: Donner MOD Square II for keyboards](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/review-donner-mod-square-ii-for-keyboards/) - I'm crafting a small pedal "board" to augment keyboard voices. Primarily, I want to enhance the sounds from a 1010Music Tangerine -- a spiffy sampler that is rather light on internal effects (just delay and reverb). Discrete effect pedals appeal more than an all-in-one multi-effect which requires menu-diving. I want knobs and switches for interactivity.
- [Behringer UV300 pedal teardown](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/behringer-uv300-pedal-teardown/) - You've probably been wondering where I've been. Or, not. My latest gedanken experiment is a small, lightweight effect chain to add chorus and reverb after the 1010Music Tangerine. Tangerine is a great little sampler, but its effects processing is very basic. An external effects chain would make up for its shortcomings. I'm a fan of
- [October 8th -- How'd that turn out?](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/october-8th-howd-that-turn-out/) - Ableton Move Ableton Move is a new portable, stand-alone "music creation" surface. Move has four tracks (drum, sampler, or synth) and a step sequencer. Move has audio input and output (3.5mm), built-in WiFi, 64GByte internal storage, built-in speaker and microphone, and an OLED screen (128x64 pixels). Control gizmos include 32 pads with polyphonic aftertouch, 9
- [Floobydust: September 2024](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/floobydust-september-2024/) - Floobydust from the the music tech world... Arturia AstroLab update Arturia Astrolab got a major update to version 1.3. The update adds several engines: Avid V (Roland TB-303 emulation), MiniFreak V, Augmented Brass and Augmented Woodwinds. The Mini V (Moog Minimoog emulation) and Wurli V have remodeled engines, consistent with V Collection X. There are
- [New PSR-SX720 and PSR-SX920 models](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/too-good-to-be-true-new-psr-sx-models/) - I just found this information about the new Yamaha PSR-SX720 and PSR-SX920. It is now appearing on multiple on-line retailer sites. :-) I will have further in-depth comments after I get my hands on the manuals. Yamaha PSR-SX720 Arranger Workstation FSB keyboard, with 61 touch-sensitive keys 1,377 Voices + 56 Drum/SFX Kits + 480 XG
- [Yamaha stage keyboards: What's next?](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/yamaha-stage-keyboards-whats-next/) - Lately, I've been contemplating the future of the Yamaha Stage keyboard line: the YC organ and CP digital piano. Both keyboard lines are mature; the CPs were released in January 2019 and the YCs were launched a year later in January 2020. Both models have received updates (including new voices). The latest updates, however, feel
- [Yamaha PSR-SX920 new voices](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/yamaha-psr-sx920-new-voices/) - Yamaha arranger folks would like to know about the new(er) voices added to the PSR-SX920. Unfortunately, at the time of this writing, the PSR-SX920 Data List is not yet available. However! Yamaha did make available a new version of its MIDI Song to Style application, including voice list files for the SX920 and SX720. Here
- [Roasted and toasted](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/roasted-and-toasted/) - If you're missing the old PSR Tutorial Forum, C'mon over to Yamaha Musicians Forum. You'll recognize many of the familiar faces. :-) Saul's site has the same colleagiality as the old forum and chances are good you'll get answers to your questions. I'll continue to post my long opinion pieces here. Sorry if there hasn't
- [Whither PSR Tutorial Forum?](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/whither-psr-tutorial-forum/) - Thank goodness the Olympics are not held every year -- I wouldn't get anything done. This year's competition was outstanding. On to NFL football! If you're a Genos, Tyros or PSR person, you've certainly heard about the demise of the PSR Tutorial Forum by now. If it wasn't for the Olympics, I would have been
- [SampleRobot, again](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/samplerobot-again/) - Sampling pipe organ with 1010Music's tangerine renewed my interest in SampleRobot. I figured, what the heck, lets use SampleRobot to capture Yamaha CSP-170 pipe organ voices. Cabling The CSP-170 digital piano is located downstairs from my studio. I don't have a laptop at hand, so, I had to string long MIDI and audio cables between
- [1010Music tangerine: Sampling electric piano](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/1010music-tangerine-sampling-electric-piano/) - Before I get too far ahead of myself, here are a few tips, tricks and observations while sampling electric piano with 1010Music tangerine. Velocity levels In my initial review, I called tangerine "Samplerobot in a tiny box." As long as you are willing to live within tangerine's limitations, that impression is true. Samplerobot offers far
- [First gig: 1010Music tangerine](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/first-gig-1010music-tangerine/) - Thought I would pass along a few quick comments about gigging with the 1010Music tangerine. I got the urge to use tangerine at my church gig last Sunday. Gotta start sometime, somewhere. First step on Saturday, I played through Sunday's music and chose the most appropriate voice for each tune. I wasn't entirely happy with
- [MODX EP umph!](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/modx-ep-umph/) - This short post is for MODX/Montage people looking for a little more electric piano (EP) "umph". I haven't been all that happy with the factory stock suitcase and "Rd" patches. They seem to be lacking guts. So, I turned to the Genos 70s Suitcase Ballad voice for inspiration. Here are the EQ and effect settings:
- [A smorgasbord of electric pianos](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/a-smorgasbord-of-electric-pianos/) - I'm well into the process of sampling Genos/CSP electric pianos using 1010Music tangerine. I'll have more to say about the process of sampling the EPs in a later post. Today's blog is laden with enough detail about EP velocity levels to make your eyes roll. Suffice to say, one needs to know where the levels
- [1010Music tangerine: A rough edge here and there](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/1010music-tangerine-a-rough-edge-here-and-there/) - After sampling Genos woodwind voices with 1010Music tangerine, I moved on to horns, strings and simple pads: SeattleStrings mf 104 5 50 Live 1-127 Strings mf 0 118 49 Live 1-127 Strings 0 117 50 Live VP Soft 104 0 90 Regular 1-127 DarkLight 104 3 90 Regular 1-127 MellowPad 0 117 96 Regular 1-127
- [Free DJX-II styles: Version 2](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/free-djx-ii-styles-version-2/) - I'm happy to announce version 2 of my DJX-II styles for Yamaha Genos, Tyros and PSR arrangers. These DJ styles are converted from the original Yamaha DJX-II patterns. If you would like to know more about the conversion process, please see: Mining the Yamaha DJX-II. These are DJ styles, so they only respond to changes
- [Free DJX-II styles/patterns for PSR/Tyros](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/free-djx-ii-styles-for-psr/) - Once upon a time (around the year 2000), Yamaha was into beat boxes and other spiffy tools for creating dance, hip hop, and other forms of "electronic" music. The DJX-II groove machine was an entry-level keyboard designed for budding DJs and musicians. It combined a funky looking 61-key keyboard, pattern-based sequencer and basic sound engine
- [Performance styles for PSR-E443](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/perf-styles-e443/) - The PSR-E443 folks don't get enough love, so here is a collection of performance styles for the E443 and the E433. So, what is a "performance style?" The Yamaha Motif/MOX series of synthesizer workstations have hundreds of factory "Performances" to to help a composer get started with a new song. A Performance has up to
- [Peeling a juicy tangerine](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/peeling-a-juicy-tangerine/) - A few quick comments and lessons learned with the 1010Music tangerine. Gotta say, the audio quality is spot on. I haven't heard any glitches, hiccups, or buzzes. Everything sounds clean. Beauty. Factory content Everybody loves factory content! Here's a quick run-down: There are two acoustic pianos: 10Grand (435MBytes) and 1010Grand (2.24GBytes). 10Grand has three velocity
- [First take: 1010Music tangerine](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/first-take-1010music-tangerine/) - This is the droid I'm looking for. :-) 1010Music have released a line of colorful nanoboxes: razzmatazz drum sequencer (pink), fireball polyphonic wavetable synth (red), lemondrop polyphonic granular midi synth (yellow) and tangerine compact streaming sampler. All of the nanoboxes share the same 1.5" x 3.75" x 3" form factor, have a touch display, two
- [Yamaha announce the Clavinova CLP-800 series](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/yamaha-announce-the-clavinova-clp-800-series/) - Yamaha have announced the much-anticipated CLP-800 series Clavinova digital pianos. Personally, I was hoping for a significant bump over the CLP-785, the main reference point for this post. The CLP-785 -- and now the CLP-885 -- are the flagship "spinet" models. Although I enjoy my CSP-170, my dealer offers an attractive trade-in, trade-up plan which
- [Potential Yamaha P-525 gotcha!](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/potential-yamaha-p-525-gotcha/) - A few recent posts on the Piano World Forum brought a potential Yamaha P-525 issue to my attention. I like the upper-end P-series models, notably the now discontinued P-515 and the P-525. Both models embody good value and sound. The P-525 improves on the P-515 by adding Grand Expression Modeling (GME). The GME piano engine
- [Chord progressions for Yamaha Chord Looper](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/chord-progressions-for-yamaha-chord-looper/) - Hey, hey, more free content for Yamaha arranger keyboards! The Yamaha Genos and PSR-SX900 keyboards feature Chord Looper -- a chord sequencer that cycles through a user-defined chord progression. Yamaha provides a few example Chord Looper Banks, but folks always wish for more. So, I collected chord progressions from various public sources and created Chord
- [Yamaha Montage M internals: First look](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/yamaha-montage-m-internals-first-look/) - Thanks to Dmitry Ko on the Keyboard Corner forum, we have the first solid information about Montage M7 internals! Congratulations, Dmitry! We owe Dmitry a round of applause and gratitude for providing the first -- and extensive -- information about Montage M internals. He had to take extra steps to find and identify some components
- [Arturia AstroLab: Yes, I played one!](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/arturia-astrolab-yes-i-played-one/) - Right from the git-go, I thank Guitar Center Lynnwood for letting me plink away at an Arturia AstroLab. I dropped in to play before sufficient caffeine had kicked in and I wasn't really feeling the music. Nonetheless, I was glad to actually play an AstroLab and not watch its demo videos. :-) AstroLab and I
- [Arturia AstroLab announced](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/arturia-astrolab-announced/) - Arturia have announced its new Arturia AstroLab featuring many (most?) of their AnalogLab instruments and presets: 34 instruments, 1,300 presets. You'll find lots of pre-release demos on the Interwebs. I recommend the Arturia playthrough video which doesn't have any yakking. I'm excited by the AstroLab if, for no other reason, it's the first significant alternative
- [Ain't no April Fool: piano evoce ß](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/aint-no-april-fool-piano-evoce-s/) - The Japanese Yamaha site posted information about a new app called "piano evoce ß". I'm going to quote the site as translated by the Google: This is an AI ensemble app that extracts the vocal part of your song and plays it back along with your performance. Feel free to enjoy playing together with your
- [Anavi Macropad8 for MIDI control](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/anavi-macropad8-for-midi-control/) - Every now and again, ya need a simple, small device to send MIDI commands. The V3 Sound Yammex XXL sound module is one such use case. It requires full Bank Select plus Program Change message sequences to select a voice. You'd be surprised at how many MIDI controllers are incapable of sending a full three
- [A few words about my new PSR/Genos styles](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/a-few-words-about-my-new-psr-genos-styles/) - I promised to say a few words about the new styles in my free Performance Style Collection (Version 2). Motif/MOX, again Five of the new styles are converted from Motif/MOX Performances: Bubbly Dub 77 Dub reggae (Long live King Tubby!) Dresden At Night 91 Chill Poppyhanger 90 Mid-tempo electronica (minor key best) See The Show
- [Free Performance Styles for PSR/Genos](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/free-performance-styles-of-psr-genos/) - Been a while since I've posted. :-) That means I've been busy with a few hunker-down, wintertime projects. At long last, I pulled together the second version of my "Performance Styles for PSR/Genos" collection. The second version has all of the V1 styles plus a dozen new V2 styles. The V1 styles were translated from
- [Yamaha Reface DX in the house](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/yamaha-reface-dx-in-the-house/) - UPS surprised me and delivered Yamaha Reface DX one day early. Hurray! As I've mentioned before, I owned and played a Yamaha DX21 back in the late 80s and early 90s. (The 4-op, FM DX21 was released in 1985.) The DX21 was the first synth that I took to church. I remember playing string, brass
- [More DX/FM learning resources](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/more-dx-fm-learning-resources/) - While waiting and waiting for the Superbowl, I went on a treasure hunt through my archives. I found and scanned a few old Yamaha DX learning resources for people who want to learn FM programming. Yamaha DX21 Play Book The Yamaha DX21 Play Book is a more user friendly manual for the DX21. It's closer
- [Reface DX: No static at all](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/reface-dx-no-static-at-all/) - If you've browsed Yamaha Reface at on-line retailers, you'll know that Reface DX and Reface CS are currently on sale. The DX and CS are the two Katzenhammer kids which share the same internal design, using a Yamaha-proprietary SSP-2 processor as the central compute engine. The Reface DX price is startling: $250 USD (MAP). Wow!
- [NAMM 2024: KORG Nu:tekt NTS-1 MkII and NTS-3 kaoss pad](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/namm-2024-korg-nutekt-nts-1-mkii/) - KORG NTS-1 MkII If you're like me, you don't have time to watch a zillion product videos in order to learn even the most basic information about a shiny object. Here's a quick take on the new KORG NTS-1 MkII programmable synthesizer kit. Check out my first look at the NTS-1 Mk1, too. Let's get
- [NAMM 2024: Briefs](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/namm-2024-briefs/) - Just "Meh" So far, I'm feeling just "Meh" about NAMM 2024. Last year's NAMM opened the floodgates of new, post-pandemic product. Among the daikaiju (大怪獣), KORG dominates with the most new releases. We shouldn't forget these new toys: Nord Grand 2 ($4,500 USD MAP) stage instrument, action by KAWAI New Casio Celviano pianos PX-S7000HM, AP-750
- [NAMM 2024: KORG-fest](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/namm-2024-korg-fest/) - Unless you've been stuck in a snowdrift with no cell service, KORG have dropped a truckload of products in last few days. KORG have heard the call for "modules" and have announced: KORG wavestate module MKII, $650 USD (MAP) KORG opsix module MKII, $700 USD (MAP) KORG modwave module MKII, $750 USD (MAP) These aren't
- [Yamaha SEQTRAK: Quick reaction](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/yamaha-seqtrak-quick-reaction/) - I've already gotten requests to comment on the new Yamaha SEQTRAK™ Ideastation. Mind you, I haven't touched one, but here goes. How does SEQTRAK compare to the old QY-70/QY-100? I would say, they are different beasts for different compositional processes. The QYs are the early predecessors of the Motif and PSR, Tyros, Genos sequencers. The
- [NAMM 2024: Yamaha SEQTRAK Ideastation](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/namm-2024-yamaha-seqtrak-ideastation/) - Remember, folks, you saw it here first in October 2023. :-) As I mentioned way back when, Yamaha SEQTRAK™ comes in two color schemes: black and orange/grey. Yamaha did a decent job on the price: $599 USD (MSRP) and $399 USD (MAP). It's available for pre-order at on-line retailers. The front panel is divided into
- [NAMM 2024: In sight](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/namm-2024-in-sight/) - It's that time of year again! NAMM 2024 starts January 25th. Unlike 2023, the run-up to NAMM 2024 is much shorter. Fewer manufacturers have pre-announced new products. The daikaiju (Yamaha, Korg, Roland) rolled out a number of major products during the pre-holiday period: Yamaha Genos2 Roland Fantom EX upgrade with ACB emulation Yamaha Montage M
- [New year, new piano](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/new-year-new-piano/) - Happy New Year! It's been a pleasure to ring in the new year with a Yamaha CSP-170 Clavinova Smart Piano. If you're not familiar with the CSPs, check out my articles about the CSP-100 series and the now current CSP-200 series. In short, the CSP pianos combine Yamaha's Clavinova piano technology, learning features (score display
- [Genos2: Behind the scenes video](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/genos2-behind-the-scenes-video/) - Yamaha's Genos2 Story - Behind the scene video is now available on Youtube. As you might expect, it's a combination of useful, factual information and sales puffery. So, here is my summary of the actual informational content minus marketing B.S. :-) 00:00:00 Introduction 00:00:04 Martin Harris, R&D Center London 00:03:41 Junichiro Murata, DMI Strategy Planning
- [Genos2 R&B styles converted for Genos1](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/genos2-rb-styles-converted-for-genos1/) - Styles got a major update in Yamaha Genos2. The original Yamaha Genos (generation 1) had 550 styles when it was released. Genos2 grows that number to 800 preset styles. Although many people use styles for cover songs, the 800 styles comprise an amazing library of musical phrases and ideas for songwriting. If you live in
- [Yamaha CSP-170 in the house!](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/yamaha-csp-170-in-the-house/) - At long last, my Yamaha CSP-170 Smart Piano arrived! Classic Pianos Bellevue Before saying anything else, I want to give a shout-out to Classic Pianos in Bellevue, Washington. I got a friendly and welcoming reception when I visited their showroom in August during my piano quest. I like to support local dealers when possible and
- [Genos2: ¿Si o No?](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/genos2-si-o-no/) - A bit tardy with my first take on Genos2. I've spent waaay too much time on forums and need to get back to work. :-) Genos2 information and videos abound on the Web, so I'll be skipping a lot of details here. I recommend getting your information from reputable sources, not the self-appointed experts on
- [Yamaha Genos2: New voices](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/yamaha-genos2-new-voices/) - So, what are they? I did a quick scan through the Genos1 and Genos2 Data List files and compared. Because this is a manual scan, I don't guarantee completeness. [Too lazy to write a script...] I ignore certain voice categories like synth pads and leads. When a new synth voice is named "Blippity Bloop", what
- [Genos 2 is here](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/genos-2-is-here/) - Key features: Steinberg's REVelation reverb Over 1900 voices Over 800 styles Style dynamics control Ambient drums FM synthesis Three assignable buttons (above the 3 articulation buttons) Updated playlist features and interface Bluetooth audio Support by Rec'N'Share app HDMI port Front panel buttons for Chord Looper MIDI song to style converter (computer-based application) Let's get the
- [Genos2 pre-game](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/genos2-this-week/) - Gotta say upfront, I don't have a horse in the race when it comes to Yamaha Genos2 (to be announced Wednesday). Montage M8x, on the other hand, really seized my attention because it potentially could fit a real need -- an 88-key piano for home. All of the Montage M extras (AN-X, big sub display,
- [Kaiju news (November 2023)](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/kaiju-news-november-2023/) - As usual, the kaiju have been up to various antics. Roland Fantom update Not to be outdone by Yamaha, Roland have released a $199 USD update for the Roland Fantom line. Since the news is everywhere, you know that Roland have added ACB Jupiter 8, SH-101 and JD-800 ACB emulation. "ACB" stands for "Analog Circuit
- [Patents: GEX, InfiniQ, DX7](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/patents-gex-infiniq-dx7/) - I apologize for not posting recently. I expended way too much energy on Yamaha Montage M. Don't get me wrong, Montage M is a worthy subject and I gave it careful consideration as an 88-key piano solution for home. In the end, I decided to venture into Clavinova-land and have ordered a CSP-170. [That's another
- [Montage M8x review: Yes, I played one!](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/montage-m8x-review-yes-i-played-one/) - Grabbed this week's music binder and tried out a Yamaha Montage M8x for an hour. Overall, a good experience. The demo M8x was set up at Guitar Center with two Yamaha HS-8 monitors. Here are my observations... Pianos galore I dove into the pianos first, because acoustic piano (AP) sounds and practice are my primary
- [Montage M8x: Key notes](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/montage-m8x-key-notes/) - Yamaha rarely invent a new technology and not reuse the same tech in a different product line. So it goes with the key sensor tech in Yamaha Montage M8x. We all got an important clue from the most recent Music Production Guide: The model MONTAGE M8x features a newly developed, special keyboard called "GEX", which
- [Review: KApro London Symphonic Orchestra](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/review-kapro-london-symphonic-orchestra/) - While we were discussing Minutiae, Korg released the KApro Iconic Suite "London Symphonic Orchestra" expansion library for Korg Module: KApro Iconic Suite "London Symphonic Orchestra" features the brilliant blockbuster sound of a large symphonic orchestra of up to seventy-seven musicians. It offers 17 diverse programs and 10 stereophonic multi-samples, encapsulating vibrant and expressive orchestral sounds,
- [Montage M: Fan on, fan off](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/montage-m-fan-on-fan-off/) - When my nephew was four years old, he was positively obsessed with fans. Whenever the forced-air furnace would kick on at my sister's house, he would immediately say, "Fan on!" When the furnace kicked off, we'd hear "Fan off!" We always knew the status of the heating system. Later in life, he became obsessed with
- [Montage M APs and EPs](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/montage-m-aps-and-eps/) - I'm starting to compare Yamaha Montage M waveforms against Montage/MODX waveforms. Montage M acoustic (AP) and electric pianos (EP) got a very big bump! The table below has my raw, working notes. Montage Montage M Strike levels ----------- ----------- --------------- CF3 Stretch CF3 Stretch 3 Soft/Med/Hard CF3 Flat CF3 Flat 3 Soft/Med/Hard S6 Stretch S6
- [Montage (M)usings](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/montage-musings/) - Just in case you don't have enough to read, here are links to the latest Music Production guides: Music Production Guide, Montage M Montage M Essential Knowledge Guide Montage M New Features Guide It's raining in The PNW (as usual) and I'll kick back with these as should you. Now for a few random thoughts.
- [Yamaha Montage M8x: Initial take](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/yamaha-montage-m8x-initial-take/) - Well, my site got hammered last night while I was trying to live blog a few details from the Yamaha Montage M documentation. Thanks for visiting SSS. By now, everyone has downloaded the documentation and watched Blake's Take on the Montage M. There isn't a need to rehash that information here. Below are a few
- [Happy birthday, Montage M!](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/happy-birthday-montage-m/) - Sunday was our grandson's birthday party. At age six, this kid is already an automotive gearhead. We watch car racing and Motortrend together. "No street racing!" -- your Mom said so. [And, go to college!] I got him a spiffy red Ferrari 812 Competizione. Lego, of course, his other love. Kid takes one look. Says,
- [Montage M: It's official](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/montage-m-its-official/) - Yamaha Montage M documentation is now on-line: Quick Guide, Operation Manual and Data List. The M8x is really hefty. Weight M8x: 28.1 kg (61 lbs. 15 oz.); M7 Weight: 17.6 kg (38 lbs., 13 oz.); M6 weight: 15.3 kg (33 lbs., 12 oz.) Basic specs are confirmed as to keyboard type (M8x only is GEX
- [Montage M (emulated)](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/montage-m-emulated/) - Thanks, again, to Saul at Yamaha Musicians Forum. Quoting: Yamaha has created a software version of the Montage M. This is a 1:1 emulation with all features present. My understanding is that the software will come free with the purchase of a new Montage M but that it will also be available as a standalone
- [The fair, the Princess and the unicorn](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/the-fair-the-princess-and-the-unicorn/) - Yamaha at Synthfest UK 2023 Yamaha have issued the following statement regarding their participation at Synthfest UK 2023 this weekend: "Yamaha are looking forward to joining SynthFest UK this weekend to display a wide range of hands-on products along with Yamaha specialist staff to support any enquiries. We will be exhibiting our recent releases including
- [The other unicorn in the room](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/the-other-unicorn-in-the-room/) - With discussion focused on the upcoming Yamaha Montage M, we've forgotten about the other unicorn in the room: Yamaha SEQTRAK™. It's a Yamaha trademark Before I add anything new, here's a brief review of what we know from the public record. As many others have cited, "SEQTRAK" is a trademark registered by Yamaha. The "SEQTRAK"
- [Montage M: More early info?](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/montage-m-more-early-info/) - Congrats to Saul and the folks at Yamaha Musicians Forum for snagging leaked Yamaha Montage M specs. We won't have to wait too much longer for details. Maybe next week's Yamaha Tech Talk will explain all? Caution is recommended at this stage. Some of the numbers in the leaked specs don't add up for me
- [Yamaha P-525 digital piano announced](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/yamaha-p-525-digital-piano-announced/) - As predicted, the Yamaha portable digital piano line has a new flagship -- the Yamaha P-525 -- replacing the popular P-515. Lucky for all of us, the price has not gone up. USA MAP is $1,600 USD ($2,000 MSRP). It is already appearing on retailer sites for pre-order. The P-525 web page is up. Here
- [Hammond M-solo announced](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/hammond-m-solo-announced/) - For some reason, the best news pops up over the weekend. In this case, it's announcement of the four-octave Hammond M-solo tone-wheel organ+. You got your drawbars, percussion and scanner controls, and four-octave keyboard in one compact unit. Hammond is pitching the M-solo as a second board to add over your other stage instruments (e.g.,
- [Isn't this awkward?](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/8272-2/) - I checked out an interesting observation made on the Yamaha Musicians Forum. The Steinberg Online Shop is currently (and temporarily) kaput. "Our online shop is run on our behalf by a third party, Asknet Solutions AG. Unfortunately, Asknet has entered into self-administered insolvency, and consequently Steinberg has decided to engage a new trusted business partner to
- [KORG Keystage MIDI 2.0](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/korg-keystage-midi-2-0/) - Thank you Gearnews and KORG for rescuing us from endless discussions about the meaning of "M". [Be Zen. Labels are useless and wrong. Accept.] A retailer slip-up previewed the new KORG Keystage line of MIDI 2.0 controllers. The retailer's page is now gone. Hmm, Gearnews and other big-name sites have been rather quiet about the
- [Ridin' the E-bus](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/ridin-the-e-bus/) - Jan was kind enough to send me his thoughts about the "M" in "Montage M". He hears evidence of MPE -- MIDI Polyphonic Expression -- in at least one of the audio examples posted by Yamaha. Well, my ears probably aren't as finely tuned as his, but his conjecture ("M" for "MPE") makes sense. By
- [Yamaha synthesizer sneak peek](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/yamaha-synthesizer-sneak-peek/) - Blake comes through! [Thanks, Blake.] If you're interested in Montage M, go direct to the official sneak peek on YamahaSynth.com. Do not pass GO. Save $200 for your new Montage M, if you collect it. :-) The sneak peek page has Soundcloud audio demos. The "Vegas nightline" shots pretty well confirm the leak pictures. I
- [Yamaha NU1XA upright hybrid](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/yamaha-nu1xa-upright-hybrid/) - Yamaha's big reveal of the week is the AvantGrand™ NU1XA with a "renewed sensor and sound system" -- a substantial update to the NU1X hybrid piano. The NU1XA combines the action of an acoustic upright piano with sensors, digital sound generation and immersive audio system. Yamaha claim improved key touch and repeatability. The updated double
- ["M" for multi-core? Multi-touch?](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/m-for-multi-core-multi-touch/) - One phrase from the Sayonara Montage announcement sticks in my mind: "As much as we would have liked to, we cannot develop the current MONTAGE any further." So, how might the current Montage platform be improved? SWP70 Standard Wave Processor The current Montage platform has two SWP70 Standard Wave Processors arranged in a so-called --
- [Random weekend thoughts](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/random-weekend-thoughts/) - A bunch of crazy thoughts after the long holiday weekend… Yamaha P-S500 price drop The Yamaha P-S500 is a baby Clavinova Smart Piano (CSP) in the P-series portable digital piano line. The P-S500 has a greatly simplified front panel: ten touch-sensitive control buttons and a 2 line by 16-character display. [Hey, the 1990s called and
- [Yamaha P-225 review: It's not for me](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/yamaha-p-225-review-its-not-for-me/) - One of the drawbacks of playing high-end instruments is that it is hard to go back to entry- and mid-tier keyboards. Therefore, I'm going to use the Yamaha DGX-670 as my reference point in this review. Comparing the new Yamaha P-225 against DGX-670 is both fair and informative. Both instruments feature the CFX grand, both
- [Yamaha P-525 on the way](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/yamaha-p-525-on-the-way/) - Most eyes are on the Yamaha Montage M series leak. However, the list of new Yamaha products revealed on Yamaha Musicians Forum includes "P-525B" and "P-525WH", indicating a successor to the P-515 digital piano. (The P-515 was released in 2018.) Further evidence popped up on a Yamaha regional site. The digital piano accessories page shows
- [Montage M preseason](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/montage-m-preseason/) - Forum folks are picking over the Yamaha Montage M leak photos, so no need to duplicate that here! Wish we spent as much attention on world peace. :-) Many comments -- my own included -- are reading personal hopes and dreams into the new boxen. My own special hope is a decent keybed action for
- [Patience is a virtue](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/patience-is-a-virtue/) - But, wait! There's more! mx49 posted this list of new product names extracted from a Yamaha warranty registration site: 147641 - MODX6+ //E 147642 - MODX7+ //E 147643 - MODX8+ //E 147752 - P-125AB 147753 - P-125AWH 147970 - CK88 147971 - CK61 149017 - P-143B 149018 - P-145B 149019 - P-225B 149020 - P-225WH
- [Yamaha Montage M6, M7, M8X](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/yamaha-montage-m6-m7-m8x/) - Is this the real life? Is this just fantasy? Pictures of the new Montage M8X have surfaced on the Facebook. I thank the folks at Yamaha Musicians Forum and the Musicplayer Keyboard Corner for the pictures and off-the-cuff comments. I suggest reading the ongoing discussions at these fine and well-informed Web sites. The names "Montage
- [Field trip: N1X and CLP-785](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/field-trip-n1x-and-clp-785/) - Having tried Yamaha's lower-end digital pianos, I decided to try the upper end. So, I took a short field trip to Classic Pianos Bellevue, WA. First, a shout out to Classic Pianos! They have a huge piano showroom in Bellevue, WA covering the full range from entry-level to the concert stage. Their manager was super
- [Yamaha VRM technology](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/yamaha-vrm-technology/) - I would love to write a "PJ explains all about VRM" article, but the more I learn, the more I recognize the breadth and depth of the technology. If you would like to know more about Yamaha's Virtual Resonance Modeling from a player's perspective, please see my earlier article about VRM Sampling and modeling We
- [Yamaha VRM vs. VRM Lite](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/yamaha-vrm-vs-vrm-lite/) - Virtual Resonance Modeling (VRM) is one of one of Yamaha's strongest differentiating technologies. Many of Yamaha's home and portable digital pianos implement some form of VRM. Up to this point, the CP series stage pianos and other products in the synthesizer (music production) product families do not have VRM. Perhaps this will change in CP
- [Yamaha multi-touch patents](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/yamaha-multi-touch-patents/) - I was on a quest for information about Virtual Resonance Modeling (VRM) when I encountered two interesting Yamaha patents. Both patents have the same obtuse title: "Musical sound information outputting apparatus, musical sound producing apparatus, method for generating musical sound information." The U.S. Patent numbers are: U.S. 11,398,210 B2, July 26, 2022U.S. 11,657,791 B2, May
- [Floobydust (August 2023)](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/floobydust-august-2023/) - A round-up of random thoughts… Patent vs. Trademark From a post on YamahaSynth.com Folks, to clarify, "A trademark protects names, short slogans, or logos. A patent protects new inventions, processes, and compositions of matter (such as medicines). Importantly, ideas cannot be patented -- your invention must be embodied in a process, machine, or object." "AN-X"
- [MODX: Character Pianos](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/modx-character-pianos/) - As part of the Yamaha MONTAGE bon voyage, Blake announced the availability of a free MONTAGE expansion pack: Character Pianos. The pack contains three pianos: U1 Upright, Nashville C3 and Felt Piano. There are fifteen Performances based on the new pianos. I really dug the Felt Piano from the get-go, so I had to get
- [Montage: Thank you for playing!](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/montage-thank-you-for-playing/) - Splashed all over the Interwebs -- Yamaha Montage is discontinued after a seven year run. A tribute I quite liked Montage from the moment I played it. I opted not to buy it because I need a light-weight gigging instrument and the 61 was simply too much to schlep and set up every week (and/or
- [Korg Nautilus AT -- Upgrade!](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/korg-nautilus-at-upgrade/) - Korg have announced the Nautilus AT music workstation. As the name suggests, Nautilus AT 88 and 61 have aftertouch. For some reason, the Nautilus-73 doesn't get an AT version. Well, of course, you can read all about it on Korg's web site. Two points to be made here. First, I was smacked by the first
- [Yamaha CSP Gen 2 digital pianos](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/yamaha-csp-gen-2-digital-pianos/) - Yamaha are on a tear. In recent months, they have announced major additions to their digital piano product lines: DGX-670 Portable Grand PianoClavinova CLP modelsClavanova CVP-900 series digital pianosNew P-series models P-S500, P-143/145 and P-223/225Piaggero NP-15 and NP-35 portable keyboards That is an impressive list of new product announcements. Clearly, Yamaha's engineering and manufacturing teams
- [Yamaha P-145 and P-225 digital pianos](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/yamaha-p-145-and-p-225-digital-pianos/) - Last week, Yamaha announced two new members of the P-series portable pianos: Yamaha P-145 and P-225. The Australians got to roll out new models first this time around. The P-145 replaces the old P-45 and the P-225 replaces the old P-125. Both pianos feature a new slim, minimalist design with forward-firing internal speakers. Yamaha must
- [Ludlow, VT (7/10/2023)](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/ludlow-vt-7-10-2023/) - My heart and prayers go out to family, friends and other folks in Ludlow, Cavendish, Perkinsville and Weathersfield VT. I just spent several days in Ludlow and the surrounding area. Today, Ludlow and the region have been devastated by heavy rain and flooding. The area was struck hard by Hurricane Irene (August 2011). The steep
- [MODX: Rotary speaker (part 5)](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/modx-rotary-speaker-part-5/) - It should go without saying -- the Leslie rotary speaker sound is critical to getting a good drawbar organ sound. The Montage/MODX and Genos/PSR product lines have two rotary speaker effects in common: MODX effect name Genos effect name ---------------- ----------------- Rotary Speaker 1 ROTARY SPEAKER 1 Rotary Speaker 2 REAL ROTARY Yamaha's naming scheme
- [Yamaha Genos: Tone generation](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/yamaha-genos-tone-generation/) - After visiting the Genos CPU complex yesterday, let's take a look at the two Yamaha SWP70 tone generators in Genos. The SWP70 is the latest generation, top-of-the-line Yamaha tone generator. We know that the SWP70 is capable of both sample-playback AWM2 synthesis and FM-X synthesis as demonstrated by the Yamaha Montage and MODX. [Click image
- [Yamaha Genos: Main CPU](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/yamaha-genos-main-cpu/) - After a long move and a hiatus from writing, it's time to dig into digital design. I get a little anxious when I see people speculating about the internal operation of synthesizers and arrangers. They often assume that: A keyboard instrument is organized just like a PC. Samples are streamed from some kind of magnetic
- [Yamaha Montage: Internals revisited](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/yamaha-montage-internals-revisted/) - I liked the Genos block diagrams which I posted the other day. The diagrams summarize the Genos main CPU and tone generation subsystems in a compact form. So, let's move on to Montage. The diagrams below are taken from the Yamaha Montage Service Manual. I scrubbed non-essential detail (e.g., power rails) in order to focus
- [Kawai MP11: Digital electronics](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/kawai-mp11-digital-electronics/) - Let's take a brief look at the electronics inside the Kawai MP11 digital piano. The Kawai MP11 is a pro-level 88-key stage piano with Grand Feel wooden key action and triple sensor detection. The MP11 has 40 voices total including Kawai concert and studio acoustic pianos, electric pianos and the usual motley crew of non-piano
- [Digital piano: Tear the roof off](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/digital-piano-tear-the-roof-off/) - Long-term readers know that my mind will eventually turn to tear-downs and electronics. So it goes with digital pianos. Thanks to the Piano World Forum, I found two links of interest to deep divers. Inside Yamaha P-515 First up is a long-ish Yamaha P-515 repair video. I've got to say, tearing down a P-515 is
- [Yamaha DGX-670: Do you love me?](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/yamaha-dgx-670-do-you-love-me/) - Yes, I played one! The pandemic has let up to the point where I can drag my old bod to music stores, again. Fortunately, I haven't worn out my welcome with local shop owners and clerks (yet). I don't intend to run down the DGX-670 features in detail. The Yamaha DGX-670 has been on the
- ["P" is for "piano": Yamaha P-S500 digital piano](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/p-is-for-piano-yamaha-p-s500-digital-piano/) - While we're distracted with "CK", "AN", and whatnot, Yamaha sneaks out a new P-series digital piano in Europe: the Yamaha P-S500. Natch, you can read all about the P-S500 at Yamaha's European web site. Physically, it's a minimalist slab that's designed primarily for the home or small studio market segments. Cost is about 2,100 Euro
- [Yamaha CK88: Yes, I played one](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/yamaha-ck88-yes-i-played-one/) - I always hesitate calling one of these posts a "review," especially when the actual trial is serendipitous. Had to stop at Whole Foods and decided to drop into Guitar Center just to see what they had on the floor. Lo and behold, a Yamaha CK88! It was a nice surprise, but I didn't have the
- [Yamaha P-515: I played one](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/yamaha-p-515-i-played-one/) - I've been toying with the idea of a digital piano at home in order to improve my meager piano skills. Too many years of organ, synths and lead sheets have let my piano skills go to seed. I want an instrument that provides a comfortable transition to the acoustic grand at the church. [After trying
- [MODX: Overdrive slight return (part 4)](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/modx-overdrive-slight-return-part-4/) - Today's post is part of a short series of articles relating to MODX drawbar organ sound: MODX drawbar control MODX drawbar waveforms Drawbar overdrive I'm trying to recreate the experience of playing the new Yamaha CK keyboards with MODX. A bird in the hand is worth two in the bush… I received a few comments
- [Yamaha Stagepas 100/100BTR](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/yamaha-stagepas-100-100btr/) - Yamaha have announced the Stagepas 100/100BTR Portable PA System. The 100BTR model has a built-in lithium-ion battery pack. It's a good size and weight for busking or stage monitoring. The straight stuff: 100W Class-D amplifier 6.5" woofer plus 1.4" tweeter Frequency response: 70 Hz - 20 kHz Coverage area: 90º H x 90º V 3
- [Yamaha Piaggero NP-15 and NP-35](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/yamaha-piaggero-np-15-and-np-35/) - The new Yamaha Piaggero digital pianos aren't in the same sonic league as the Yamaha P-515, but they're a lot easier to carry. The Yamaha Smart Pianist app supports both instruments. NP-35 NP-15 ----------------- ----------------- Keys 76 keys 61 keys Action Graded soft touch Natural touch Main piano CFIIIS CFIIIS Tone gen AWM stereo AWM
- [Yamaha keyboards: Which amp (sim) is that?](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/yamaha-keyboards-which-amp-sim-is-that/) - While diving into overdrive and distortion effects for drawbar organ, I challenged readers to identify the real-world amplifiers on which Yamaha based its MODX (Montage, Genos) amp simulators. I took my own challenge over a cup of coffee today and made my own list of best guesses. Yamaha introduced several new amp simulators during the
- [Single coil, double coil](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/single-coil-double-coil/) - Today's exploration is practical even if it is excessively wonk-ish. Last week, I decided to update MIDI sequences for a few classic tunes by The Alan Parsons Project. Parsons and Eric Woolfson laid down 70s progressive rock tracks with serious groove: "I Wouldn't Want To Be Like You," "What Goes Up", and "Breakdown". Classic in
- [MODX: Drawbar overdrive (part 3)](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/modx-drawbar-overdrive-part-3/) - So far on our tour of MODX (Montage) drawbar organ tech, I've discussed drawbar control and drawbar waveforms. Convincing overdrive and distortion are essential to an authentic drawbar organ sound (B-3 plus Leslie). Technically, the overdrive (or distortion) is produced by the tube electronics in a Leslie rotary speaker. We synthesizer types must use amp
- [Arturia Keylab Essential mk3](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/arturia-keylab-essential-mk3/) - Why do I like Arturia? First, they make great products and I use 'em. I own and play both an Arturia Keylab Essential mk2 and an Arturia Keystep -- not to mention the software! Second, Arturia really care about customers. Recently, I posted about the new Arturia Keylab Essential mk3 and how it needed to
- [MODX: Drawbar waveforms (part 2)](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/modx-drawbar-waveforms-part-2/) - Last time, we looked at the drawbar programming in MODX Performance "The Basics". The first five voice Elements are each assigned a single drawbar waveform: 16', 5 1/3', 8', 4' and 2'. A lot of folks (me!) frequently build on a foundation like pulling the first three or four drawbars and then pull higher bars
- [MODX: Drawbar control (part 1)](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/modx-drawbar-control-part-1/) - Test driving Yamaha's CK88 motivated me to get off my tail and learn how to make the experience of playing MODX more CK-like. In particular, I want to make better use of the MODX front panel sliders for drawbar control. This requires the most basic knowledge of MODX (Montage) Performance structure. All MODX folk should
- [Just because...](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/just-because/) - It looks cool -- the limited edition Korg microKORG Crystal synthesizer and vocder. Videos: Ooh and Aah. No word of new content. €539 transparent bag included. Available July 2023. Yeah, Superbooth 23 has commenced. I don't intend to make a big deal out of it. After NAMM 2023, I need a break from chasing shiny
- [Korg NTS-2: Initial review](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/korg-nts-2-initial-review/) - I'm happy to make a first report about the Korg NTS-2 Oscilloscope kit. The NTS-2 is bundled with the book "PATCH & TWEAK with KORG", by Kim Bjorn. Whatever the reason for the delay, it took Korg several months to deliver after the NTS-2 was first announced. Fortunately, the bundle finally hit my doorstep. :-)
- [NAMM 2023: Little things](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/namm-2023-little-things/) - Roland Gigcaster Turn your back for one second after NAMM 2023 and Roland slip out the Boss Gigcaster 5 and Gigcaster 8. These are audio streaming mixers aimed at the podcasting community. Astutely, Roland recognize that these mixer have application beyond podcasting. They are, after all, mixers! Gigcasters have all the features one might want
- [NAMM 2023: Pickin' up the pieces](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/namm-2023-pickin-up-the-pieces/) - NAMM 2023 is a wrap with all of the major products rolled out. Here are a few items that might have escaped your attention and are worth checking out on-line. Hammond 122H Heritage Leslie You just can't buy a new Hammond XK-4 and not connect its 11-pin speaker port to a new Hammond 122H Heritage
- [NAMM 2023: IK AXE I/O ONE](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/namm-2023-ik-axe-i-o-one/) - It would be easy for a keyboard player to blow off the IK Multimedia AXE I/O ONE. It is so obviously pitched at guitar and bass players. Not so fast. Where else can you get a 1-in/3-out USB audio interface -- with MIDI -- for $130 USD? If you're an iPad-toting keyboard player who needs
- [NAMM 2023: Round-up](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/namm-2023-round-up/) - And the big Yamaha reveals are -- new Transacoustic™ pianos and the Clavinova™ CVP 900 series digital pianos. Thank you for playing. Given the long run-up to NAMM 2023 (April 13-15), I expected manufacturers to trickle out new product announcements. [Not the usual supernova explosion nebula.] Thus, I've collected a round-up of pre-NAMM announcements: Yamaha
- [Yamaha CK61™ and CK88™](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/yamaha-ck88-unverified-leakage/) - Update: Product pages and manuals are now available at Yamaha sites everywhere. Pre-announcement information is breaking out all over. I recommend the GAK Music CK series video with Luke Juby. It gives a great overview and demonstrates the preset sounds and effects. The CK has sliders, knobs and buttons dedicated to program/effect selection and tweaking
- [NAMM 2023: Hammond XK-4](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/namm-2023-hammond-xk-4/) - Hammond have dropped the XK-4 hammer just before NAMM, April 13-15, 2023. Quoting the Hammond XK-4 web pages: New Modelled Tone Wheel 2 (MTW2) sound engine Virtual multi-contact keyboard New digital Leslie™ speaker algorithm New tube modelling system User-assignable knobs and switches Pitch bend and modulation wheels Color display 11-pin Leslie jack AUX INPUT jack
- [NAMM 2023: Small stuff](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/namm-2023-small-stuff/) - Instead of talking about the big kids, here are a few boutique, cottage industry MIDI gizmos. My current fixation is finding a fully programmable, tiny MIDI controller to send patch changes (Bank Select MSB, Bank Select LSB and Program Change messages). If you're ready to buy, try tindie.com -- an Etsy for independent, boutique electronics.
- [AWM, AN and VL in one Yamaha synth](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/awm-an-and-vl-in-one-yamaha-synth/) - What if you could buy a Yamaha synth with AWM2, AN and VL synthesis and buy it today? It's not the unicorn super-Montage, it's the Yamaha EX5 (released in 1998). The EX5 supports: AWM tone generation VL tone generation AN tone generation, and FDSP tone generation. The EX5 had brothers, the EX5R rack module, and
- [Guess again: AN-X (tm)](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/guess-again-an-x-tm/) - Various forums are buzzing about Yamaha's latest trademark application: AN-X™. The application was filed 9 June 2022 and must go through several steps before approval. Like "CK61™" and "CK88™", the primary class is "Musical Instruments" and the trademark registration is "intended to cover the categories of musical instruments, namely, electronic musical keyboards, electronic pianos, music
- [Where to put AN-X™?](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/where-to-put-an-x/) - Let's not miss the forest for the trees… Wishful thinking abounds -- Let's add an AN-X™ engine to the Yamaha Montage and/or MODX+. From the comments, you would think this is a done deal. Well, the frenzied demand is certainly there. :-) With demand wafts the smell of money. How will Yamaha make money with
- [New montage pictured!](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/new-montage-pictured/) - Naaaaaaaaaaaaah! Made you look. :-) Here is a special Yamaha Electone StageA organ. "The Electone LUNA project, which started in October 2022 based on your questionnaire, has been completed! As decided by Twitter vote, the motif is a 'princess costume.'" The design is based on the Electone ELC-02 and is "a design that can be
- [Yamaha MX vs. CK](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/yamaha-mx-vs-ck/) - I've spent waaaaaay too much time on this already, so here's a quick observation on Yamaha CK's position in the Yamaha line-up. Blake Angelos (Yamaha) mentioned that the CK does not replace MX. I take him at his word because CK and MX are aimed at two different use cases: live (CK) and studio (MX).
- [NAMM 2022: Your guess is as good as mine](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/namm-2022-your-guess-is-as-good-as-mine/) - Update: If you're looking for information about the new Yamaha CK61 and CK88, see my specification and snap review articles. With NAMM 2022 coming up (June 3-5), it's time for rumors. :-) Yamaha filed for two new trademarks in June 2021. The trademarks are words in stylized form. The scope is "Musical instruments, namely, electronic
- [Yamaha CK random bits](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/yamaha-ck-random-bits/) - I'm reading through the CK documentation and posting random observations here. The Yamaha CK series are a response for a full-sized keyboard melding the Reface YC and Reface CP with a little bit of additional ROMpler thrown in. The Reface series shine with immediacy of control coupled with decent PRO-quality sounds. No sign of Spectral
- [CK: It's almost here](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/ck-its-almost-here/) - Thanks to Saul's recent post at Yamaha Musicians Forum, it looks like tomorrow is the day for CK. By Tuesday evening, we'll all be laughing at the ridiculous predictions and wishful thinking that we've all posted. So, here's some more wishful thinking. :-) Knowing the price points, about $1,250 USD for the 61 and $1,920
- [CK: Scraps from the dustbin](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/ck-scraps-from-the-dustbin/) - Today's tidbits are from Jason at the YamahaSynth.com forum. First, a major shout out to Jason. Every forum has one or two people who energetically answer questions and keep a forum community alive. Jason is that guy on the Yamaha synth forum, especially after Phil's (Badmister's) retirement. Thank you, Jason! Have you thanked a forum
- [Review: Akai LPK25 Mk2](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/review-akai-lpk25-mk2/) - Here's a mini review for a mini keyboard! The Akai LPK25 Mk2 is proving to be quite useful. This is a surprise because I initially bought the LPK25 Mk2 as an "organ donor" for one of my other Akai MPKs. I intended to transplant its Gen2 dynamic keyboard to either the Akai MPK Mini Play
- [NAMM 2023: Roland go uptown](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/namm-2023-roland-go-uptown/) - Roland's big announcement this week is the GP Series Grand Inspiration digital pianos. The GP digital pianos cover a range of players and prices: GP-3 Micro Grand: $4,000 USD (available now) GP-6 Mini Grand: $6,300 USD (available March 2023) GP-9 Grand Piano: $11,000 USD (available March 2023) GP-9M Grand Piano: $19,000 USD (available May 2023)
- [Inside Akai LPK25 Mk2](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/inside-akai-lpk25-mk2/) - Akai Professional have sliced and diced its mini-controller technology in every way possible: MPK Mini Plus, MPK Mini Mk3, LPK25 Mk2, LPD8 Mk2, and more. The latest keyboard-equipped minis -- including the LPK25 Mk2 -- sport a new Gen2 dynamic keybed. The original keybed (Gen1) is grudgingly tolerable and nothing to write home about. Judging
- [NAMM 2023: Korg want to sell you (a) kit](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/namm-2023-korg-want-to-sell-you-a-kit/) - Korg have announced the ARP ODYSSEY FS synthesizer kit. In case you're Rip van Winkle, the ARP ODYSSEY is a classic 2-VCO duophonic synthesizer played by the greats like Herbie Hancock. Korg have been manufacturing and selling the ARP ODYSSEY Full Size (FS) and will now offer the FS as a kit. The Korg ODYSSEY
- [NAMM 2023: Roland SH-4D](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/namm-2023-roland-sh-4d/) - This week's launch Thursday goes to the Roland SH-4D Desktop Synthesizer (AKA a "module"). I don't know which is worse: the over-the-top marketing-speak, the seizure inducing media, or endless scrolling through pop-up site graphics. Save some eyestrain and go right to the Soundcloud demos. We report the facts without glitz: 11 oscillator models: SH-4D, SH-3D,
- [NAMM 2023: Mini-bites](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/namm-2023-mini-bites/) - Astatic M2 from CAD Audio If you need a small format mixer and USB interface for mobile, the new Astatic M2 from CAD Audio might fit the bill. The Astatic M2 is a multipurpose 2-channel (2 mic/line) analog mixer with a built-in USB interface: USB Type C interface for data and power (rear panel)2 XLR
- [Nord Stage 4 preview](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/nord-stage-4-preview/) - Nordic hearts are a flutter as the new Nord Stage 4 breaks cover. The official premiere is 16 February 2023, and, as usual, details are escaping early. Surely, Nord will feature the NS4 at NAMM 2023 (13-15 April 2023). The Nord Stage 4 has three models: Fully-weighted 88 keys ($5699 USD MAP) Fully-weighted 73 keys
- [Flight tracking: Lake Huron incident](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/flight-tracking-lake-huron-incident/) - Of course, I'm interested in learning more about the recent aerial incidents over North America. I hope the U.S. and Canadian governments release more information and images, soon. Surely, someone had a camera. :-) Recovery in Alaska and Yukon will be difficult. The objects are relatively small, the weather has been bad and the days
- [In the works: Kiviak WoFi](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/in-the-works-kiviak-wofi/) - Not much is known about the new sampling instrument from Kiviak Technologies in France. Their Instagram page touts: Classic sampler emulation and player modes. Sampling from the built-in microphone or LINE IN. Connectivity: Stereo audio, MIDI, USB, CV, Gate, Clock. Filter, assignable envelope generator and LFO. Texturer [chaos, dirt, density, and spatiality]. Patch/content sharing via
- [NAMM 2023: Buchla LEM218v3](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/namm-2023-buchla-lem218v3/) - Looking for an alternative to everybody's plain-Jake MIDI controller? Try the Buchla Lunar Excursion Module (LEM 218v3). LEM218v3 is version 3 in the ancestral line with an improved, redesigned touch bed. The LEM has touch-capacitive "keys" including channel pressure. It has a host of I/O ports: USB-C, MIDI IN/OUT via 3.5mm jacks and four 3.5mm
- [NAMM 2023: Korg EK-50U and EK-50CSA](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/namm-2023-korg-ek-50u-and-ek-50csa/) - The slow NAMM 2023 roll-out continues. Today, it's Korg, again. Korg are introducing two new models in the 61-key Entertainer Keyboard line. The EK-50 U focuses on musical genres with "American roots", that is, jazz, country, alternative, dance and rock. Korg breaks down the main features: New styles New sounds: electric and acoustic guitars, electric
- [NAMM 2023: Korg HD-S and TR-S Nu:tekt](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/namm-2023-korg-hd-s-and-tr-s-nutekt/) - Korg Nu:Tekt have two new offerings: HD-S Harmonic Distortion Effect Pedal Kit TR-S Power Tube Reactor Effect Pedal Kit The Harmonic Distortion kit was developed by Fumio Mieda. It consists of three different distortion circuits which can be combined "to create harmonic modulation that goes beyond the traditional concept of distortion." So, there. The Power
- [NAMM 2023: Yamaha AG08](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/namm-2023-yamaha-ag08/) - Products for NAMM 2023 continue to trickle out. Here is the new Yamaha AG08 Live Streaming Mixer. The AG08 is an extension of the successful AG06MK2 and AG03MK2 streaming console mixers. I use a MK1 AG06 every day and appreciate the number of I/O and control options that it offers. Yamaha are definitely chasing the
- [Gestalt: ROLI Lightpad M](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/gestalt-roli-lightpad-m/) - Alright. I bought a cut-rate ROLI Lightpad M. :-) I spent the day charging, registering, downloading, installing, and updating. Over 3 gigabytes later… I will eventually blog about the ROLI Lightpad M itself. For the moment, I'm going to ramble about the ROLI gestalt. And you may ask yourself, "Where is that large automobile?" And
- [Review: ROLI Lightpad M](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/review-roli-lightpad-m/) - Having worked with and played ROLI Lightpad M, I'm ready to write this review! Starting out The first thing you notice out of the box -- ROLI Lightpad M has some heft. If Stanley Kubrick had invented a palm-sized talisman to take humankind to the next level in evolution, Lightpad would be it. It's dark
- [NAMM 2023: Roland FP-E50 piano](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/namm-2023-roland-fp-e50-piano/) - Is it an arranger? Is it a digital piano? Is it a synthesizer? Yes -- sort of. :-) The new Roland FP-E50 combines elements from all of these product categories -- a true hybrid. Basic specs: Roland SuperNATURAL Piano engine PHA-4 88 full-size keys (hammer action, escapement, ivory feel) ZEN-Core sound engine 256 tone polyphony
- [NAMM 2023: Yamaha STAGEPAS 200](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/namm-2023-yamaha-stagepas-200/) - Buskers and coffee house players should take note of the new Yamaha STAGEPAS 200 portable PA system. The STAGEPAS 200 is a compact unit packing 2-way bi-amplification, 5 mixing channels (3 mono + 1 stereo), SPX digital reverb, a low frequency driver (8" cone, 150W) and a 1" high frequency driver. Dial in parameters with
- [A cheapster for MPE](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/im-a-cheapster-for-mpe/) - Like the undulating Seaboard surface, ROLI (the company) has had its ups and downs. ROLI made waves with its innovative alternative controllers like the Seaboard and Lightpad. Hardware is a tough, unforgiving business and, no doubt, the COVID recession hit ROLI like SARS-CoV-2 itself. ROLI reorganized in September 2021 becoming "Luminary." ROLI sifted through the
- [Review: KMI QuNexus](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/review-kmi-qunexus/) - So. KMI QuNexus RED. What happened? Ever since I started playing SWAM software instruments on iPad, I wanted to begin experimenting with MIDI Polyphonic Expression (MPE). Like most folks on a budget, I established a price threshold -- $200 or less -- and cast around for likely candidate controllers. $200 is a bit more than
- [Artiphon Orba MPE](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/artiphon-orba-mpe/) - Is a bird in the hand worth two in the bush? I bought an Artiphon Orba (version 1) when the Orba first hit mainstream retailers. Orba implements MIDI Polyphonic Expression (MPE) and transmits MIDI over USB-C or Bluetooth BLE. Might the Orba be an interim MPE controller? The Orba is pitched as a musical tech
- [Synthesizer heaven](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/synthesizer-heaven/) - I have seen synthesizer heaven and its name is "Patchwerks". Patchwerks was my go-to source for synthesizer gear during the pandemic. I have placed several on-line orders with them and each time their customer service was spot on. I finally had an opportunity to visit their Seattle showroom at 4129 Stone Way North in Seattle's
- [God Rest Ye, Merry Gentlemen (ChordPro)](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/god-rest-ye-merry-gentlemen-chordpro/) - "God Rest Ye, Merry Gentlemen" by Jon Batiste, Judith Hill, and Stay Human really grooves and I wanted to get in on the fun(k). So, I started with Yamaha Chord Tracker and worked out a similar chord progression. Wanting to hear the progression and jam on it, I wrote the progression and lyrics in Extended
- [ChordPro auto-accompaniment](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/chordpro-auto-accompaniment/) - Before we close out the year, a Christmas gift! Last January, I developed and wrote about "cp2mid", a Java program to convert extended ChordPro files to a Yamaha accompaniment MIDI files. cp2mid lets someone compose in extended ChordPro format and play the composition on a Yamaha arranger in an auto-accompaniment style of your own choosing.
- [Adding zones to Keylab Essential with EPP](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/adding-zones-to-keylab-essential-with-epp/) - My current light-weight rehearsal instrument is a Yamaha Reface YC. Although I have put the YC to work at many a rehearsal, the Reface YC has three major limitations: It's organ all the way and I can vary tone color only with drawbars. The three octave keyboard is maddingly too short and chops either the
- [Audio Modeling: Camelot and SWAM Flute](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/audio-modeling-camelot-and-swam-flute/) - I hope you took advantage of Audio Modeling's Black Friday sale. I took the plunge and bought Camelot Pro and SWAM Flute for IOS. Why did I wait all these years? :-) Camelot Pro (IOS) Obviously, I've only been working with Camelot Pro for a short time. However, I now get why many iPad musicians
- [V3 Sound YAMMEX: Progress report](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/v3-sound-yammex-progress-report/) - Here's a quick update on my progress with the V3 Sound YAMMEX XXL sound module. The V3 Sound XXL series are very compact, light-weight MIDI sound modules based on the Dream S.A.S. SAM5716B synthesis engine. The YAMMEX and its sister, the V3 Sound Grand Piano XXL, have hundreds of high quality voices -- 3GBytes of
- [New Fall 2022 Products](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/new-fall-2022-products/) - A few products of interest… The Behringer Bi-Phase has done its Houdini act and has returned as the Behringer "Dual-Phase". I was a lover of all things Mu-tron back in the day. I still have a Musitronics MU-TRON Micro V poor man's envelope-controlled filter, a MU-TRON C-200 volume-wah pedal, and an original MU-TRON T-shirt! The
- [In the house: V3 Sound YAMMEX XXL](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/in-the-house-v3-sound-yammex-xxl/) - Thought I would post a quick note about the new unit under test -- the V3 Sound YAMMEX XXL tone module. The YAMMEX is a member of the V3 Sound XXL family of tone modules. They all share the same triangular shape and are light as a feather: The lump-in-the-middle power supply is roughly the
- [Review: Korg Module General 128](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/review-korg-module-general-128/) - Korg have released a new expansion pack for Korg Module -- General 128. General 128 is one of those expansions where you say "Why didn't they release this on Day One?" Essentially, General 128 is a 108MB General MIDI sound set minus drums. Most of us will not sequence MIDI tunes using Korg Module. However,
- [Yamaha MODX: Zone Master](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/yamaha-modx-zone-master/) - If you mix and match your gear over MIDI, you will eventually need to send a program change message. Yesterday, I wanted to audition the sounds in my hacked Akai MPK Mini Play and needed to send a full Bank Select MSB (CC#0), Bank Select LSB (CC#32) and Program Change message sequence to the Akai
- [Out Of The Shadows](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/out-of-the-shadows/) - I've been working on backing and lead instruments for the classic Del Shannon song "Keep Searchin'". Yamaha Genos™ is made for this tune. First off, its "ShadowedPop" style is the perfect fit for that old 1950s rock'n'roll vibe. It has just the right amount of swing and attitude. Next, Genos has very good electric guitars
- [Mid-September new products](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/mid-september-new-products/) - Korg dropped two new products for Fall 2022: The Liano digital piano and drumlogue hybrid drum machine The Liano is about as minimalist as it comes. The Liano is a sleek monolith with just a few simple controls. This keyboard absolutely does not require a user manual! You get the standard eight preset voices (two
- [What if CS and SK had a baby?](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/what-if-cs-and-sk-had-a-baby/) - Got a PM from Jan, a long-time reader. Jan found a page on YamahaSynth about the Yamaha MX product line. The page features the phrase "CK -- Classic Keyboards". CK? I suspect that CK61™ and CK88™ refer to a new line of keyboards, not a refresh of the MX series. I have to agree that
- [Akai MPK Mini beauty products](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/akai-mpk-mini-beauty-products/) - Well, at first, I was going to strip it for parts. Then I changed my mind. My original plan was to mod and customize an Akai MPK Mini Play (Mk1), making it a stand-alone synthesizer. As to cosmetics, I wanted to jazz it up with colorful knobs and a reverse white-on-black keybed. I would either
- [MODX+: Glad that's over!](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/modx-glad-thats-over/) - Yamaha launched its MODX+ keyboards today. The MODX+ has a few modest improvements over the MODX (Mk1): 1.75GB user waveform memory Rubberized pitch and mod wheels New livery (black end-cheeks) 128 tone FM-X polyphony (maximum) Seamless Sound Switching (SSS) is the same as MODX (limited to 4-part Performances). There are a few on-line videos that
- [Akai MPK Mini Play: GM/GS MIDI mod](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/akai-mpk-mini-play-gm-gs-midi-mod/) - In order to make your Aka MPK Mini Play (Mk1) into a GM/GS module, you must modify its hardware. As it is with all mods, modifications void the warranty, could damage the keyboard, and may affect resale value. The risk is yours alone. That said, I've now thoroughly tested my Akai MPK Mini Play (Mk1)
- [Yamaha MODX+ madness](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/yamaha-modx-madness/) - Thanks to a few pages posted from the Yamaha MODX+ user manual, the new MODX+ is a bit of a nothing-burger -- a product spiff. The MODX+ got a few bumps over MODX (Mark 1): more expansion memory (1.75GB), FM-X polyphony on-par with Montage (128), and a way to add rhythm patterns: Also, the MODX+
- [Is MODX+ on the way?](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/is-modx-on-the-way/) - [Updated 18 August 2022.] Rumors are circulating about Yamaha MODX -- either replacement or refresh. Now pictures of a misdelivered "MODX8+" have appeared. Naturally, one asks "fake or real?" Cosmetically, the only external differences are: A different product model legend on the right side of the top panel, e.g., "MODX8+ Music Synthesizer".Black plastic end-cheeks instead
- [Akai MPK Mini Play: MIDI over USB implementation](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/akai-mpk-mini-play-midi-implementation/) - I performed experiments to discover how the Akai MPK Mini Play behaves when controlled through its USB port. I wanted to build on what I had already learned about the MPK Mini Play's MIDI implementation. As mentioned in earlier posts, the Mini Play's host Arm microcontroller communicates with a Dream S.A.S. SAM2635 synthesizer chip: Arm
- [Review: Akai MPK Mini Play (Mk1)](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/review-akai-mini-play-mk1/) - Now that Akai have introduced the new Akai MPK Mini Play Mk3, original first generation Mini Plays are going on sale. Being a notorious bottom-feeder (doing the most with the least), I cashed in a few loyalty points and bought one. Sound On Sound magazine recently reviewed the new mk3. Many of their comments apply
- [Inside Akai MPK Mini Play (mk1)](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/inside-akai-mini-play-mk1/) - Akai MPK Mini Play (first generation). Let's take a look inside. The Akai MPK Mini Play splays open just like an Akai MPK Mini. Check out one of the fine MPK Mini disassembly videos if you want to crack open your MPK Mini Play. Here are a few quick tips: Gently remove the knobs from
- [Akai MPK Mini Play mod: MIDI IN success](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/akai-mpk-mini-play-mod-midi-in-success/) - I performed a few more quick experiments over the weekend and I'm happy to report further success! Although the Akai MPK Mini Play has an internal Dream S.A.S. SAM2635 synthezier chip, the Akai microcontroller software blocks full access -- a true shame because the SAM2635 firmware is a complete General MIDI/GS implementation. I modified an
- [Akai MPK Mini Play MIDI mod (1)](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/akai-mini-play-midi-mod-1/) - Yesterday, I took a quick look inside the Akai MPK Mini Play MIDI controller and synthesizer. I would like to discover a way to drive fully the Dream S.A.S. SAM2635 synthesizer chip without interference by the Arm microcontroller. My initial investigation concentrated on the set of test points connected to key SAM2695 inputs and outputs:
- [Akai MPK Mini Play MIDI mod (2)](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/akai-mini-play-midi-mod-2/) - I'm happy to report progress with breaking out the internal MIDI traffic within the Akai MPK Mini Play (first generation). Before reading ahead, I recommend reading my previous posts about Akai MPK Mini Play internals: Inside the Akai Mini Play Mk1 Akai Mini Play MIDI mod (1) The second post, in particular, shows how I
- [2019 market data (NAMM)](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/2019-market-data-namm/) - The National Association of Music Merchants publishes the annual NAMM Global Report, a summary of market data from the USA and 28 countries and regions around the world. NAMM makes its best effort to collect market data, but there isn't a single authoritative reporting mechanism or source. I'm browsing through the 2020 NAMM Global Report
- [You spin me right round](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/you-spin-me-right-round/) - Spot product shortages have sparked speculation about discontinued products, new products, etc. Given the human propensity to look for and find patterns, it's no wonder that conspiracy theories take hold! The on-line inventory picture is mixed. Some retailers show Yamaha Montage/MODX, for example, in stock, some show them out of stock pending September availability and,
- [STEP EDIT → Chord Looper](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/step-edit-chord-looper/) - Yamaha Genos and PSR-SX900 arranger workstations have a feature called "Chord Looper". Chord Looper records your left hand chords and saves them in a memory slot. (8 slots per Chord Looper bank.) Once recorded and saved, you can play back the chord progression and play over the changes. Neat. Obviously, one way to enter a
- [Yamaha YC series: Tonewheels](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/yamaha-yc-series-tonewheels/) - overall Speculation about future Yamaha product reminded me of some unfinished business -- analyzing the design of the Yamaha YC stage organ series. Design of the YC series put some of Yamaha's best minds to work including Dr. Toshifumi Kunimoto. "Dr. K" and his team are well-known for Virtual Circuit Modeling (VCM) and physical modeling
- [Review: Arturia Keylab Essential](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/review-arturia-keylab-essential/) - Oh, did I fail to mention, I added an Arturia Keylab Essential 49 to my iPad rig. I wanted a super light-weight MIDI controller with knobs, sliders, and a minimum of 49 keys with good action. The Keylab Essential 49 fits the bill at 6.6 pounds (3kg), eight pads, nine encoders and nine faders (sliders).
- [New toys: Roland E-X50 and Moog Mavis](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/new-toys-roland-e-x50-and-moog-mavis/) - While Sud Claviers are teasing the release of a new arranger keyboard, Roland -- of all manufacturers -- have announced a new entry-level ($400) arranger: the Roland E-X50 arranger keyboard. And a new synth kit from Moog. Arranger forums are anticipating a new Korg flagship arranger, the Korg Pa5x, on 30 June 2022. Sud Claviers
- [Yamaha PSS-A50 stereo mod](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/yamaha-pss-a50-stereo-mod/) - I want to give a shout out to Lionel on the PSR Tutorial Forum. He posted a very nice PSS-A50 mod -- stereo! Yep, the PSS-A50 is stereo and, as Lionel discovered, the in-built samples are also stereo. Check out Lionel's PSS-A50 stereo mod video. His video begins with a great close-up of his changes
- [SDR flight tracking with ADS-B](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/sdr-flight-tracking-with-ads-b/) - Watching ADS-B "flight radar" has been cheap entertainment and a window into the larger world. ADS-B, in case you didn't know, is an alternative means for tracking aircraft. ("ADS-B" stands for "Automatic Dependent Surveillance-Broadcast". Who came up with that acronym?) Aircraft carry an ADS-B transmitter which broadcasts identification and positional information. Aircraft are identified by
- [NAMM 2020: Casio sneak peek](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/namm-2020-casio-sneak-peek/) - Casio get arty! Casio's pre-NAMM 2022 press release mentions a few art projects to be released and shown during NAMM 2022, June 3-5. Music Tapestry creates pictures from musical performances -- a modern day color organ, for you old-timers like me. Music Tapestry is triggered by musical pitches and keyboard touch. Casio Sound Developer Hiroko
- [Roland and Korg make candy](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/roland-and-korg-make-candy/) - Superbooth 2022 is underway -- candy for everyone! Roland Roland's new Aira Compact modules are a license to print money. Korg have successfully mined the low-cost, small module field with its Volca series. Now Roland have joined the fun. ("Aira" is pronounced "eye-ra". OK.) These suckers are tiny! There are three initial modules in the
- [CT-S1000V: Tremolo EP](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/ct-s1000v-tremolo-ep/) - I spent a little time with the Casio CT-S1000V this morning, trying to dial in a mellow Rhodes EP with tremolo. The Stage E.Piano tone is nice, but has auto pan instead of tremolo. I like tremolo since I usually go MONO into the live sound system. Studying presets is always informative. The DSP tones,
- [Casio CT-S1000V: Free registration banks](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/casio-ct-s1000v-free-registration-banks/) - I hope today's post will help liturgical musicians who want to play the Casio CT-S1000V and CT-S500 at church services. I invested a fair amount of effort building patches and registrations which fit contemporary and traditional church music. The sounds would also be compatible with soft pop and gospel-tinged genres, too. I've gig-tested there sounds,
- [RTL-SDR: Earth ground are easy](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/rtl-sdr-earth-ground-are-easy/) - If you're into software defined radio and you're looking for better HF reception, invest time in your antenna system and grounding. I don't have the space to string a dipole, so I'm working with a simple (random) long wire antenna. The long wire antenna is connected to an RTL-SDR receiver through a Nooelec Balun Nine
- [Casio CT-S1000V: Master EQ](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/casio-ct-s1000v-master-eq/) - Beware, this post is going to bury you in numbers. :-) I've been investigating master equalization in the Casio CT-S1000V. The CT-S500 has the same master EQ, so everything discussed here applies to the CT-S500, too. The CT-S1000V master EQ is a four band, semi-parameteric equalizer. The four bands are: LOW, MID1, MID2, and HIGH.
- [Casio CT-S1000V: More tips](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/casio-ct-s1000v-more-tips/) - A few new Casio CT-1000V tips and observations. Hope they're helpful. Portamento The CT-S1000V (CT-S500) has portamento. Control over portamento is quite flexible. Be prepared to experiment, however, as the interaction between portamento settings is not immediately obvious. Unfortunately, the User Guide is not super helpful as it refers to several terms with "portamento" in
- [Casio CT-S1000V: Drawbar organ tones](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/casio-ct-s1000v-drawbar-organ-tones/) - I'm choosing and dialing in the Hammond B-3 organ tones for church tunes. The Casio CT-S1000V (and CT-S500) provides over thirty electric organ tones. Most of the organ tones incorporate an Active DSP effect. Choosing tones is a process of selection and elimination. Some sounds just aren't suitable for church, e.g., distorted rock organ, combo
- [Casio CT-S1000V: About them effects](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/casio-ct-s1000v-about-them-effects/) - Casio gave the CT-S Casiotone series a major boost with the new CT-S500 and CT-S1000V models. The new models include the acclaimed CT-S1 voices. Even better, Casio added a wide range of editable DSP effects. The DSP effects are in addition to the three system effect units: reverb, chorus and delay. Up to two DSP
- [Casio Lyric Creator: Pronunciation](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/casio-lyric-creator-pronunciation/) - You might decide to fine tune the Casio CT-S1000V's pronunciation of certain words or syllables. Crack open Casio Lyric Creator, select a lyric phrase, and long-press a word or syllable. Lyric Creator opens the "Edit Phonemes" display. If you're working in English, Lyric Creator shows the word's phonetic translation above a peculiar looking on-screen keyboard.
- [Casio Lyric Creator: First experience](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/casio-lyric-creator-first-experience/) - Here are some observations after getting my feet wet with Casio Lyric Creator and Casio CT-S1000V. Connection As several other folks have mentioned, you must connect your iPad (Android device) to the CT-S1000V with a USB cable. Right now, Casio Lyric Creator cannot communicate with the CT-S1000V over Bluetooth. It's a little weird. Casio Music
- [Casio singing synthesis in pictures](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/casio-singing-synthesis-in-pictures/) - I'm slowly immersing myself in the singing synthesis technology behind the Casio CT-S1000V. Heck, ya need somethin' to do during TV advertisements while watching sports. :-) There are two major approaches to speech (singing) synthesis: unit-selection and statistical parametric. Most people are familiar with unit-selection systems like Texas Instruments old Speak and Spell or the
- [Casio speech synthesis technology](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/casio-speech-synthesis-technology/) - The voice synthesis in Casio's new CT-S1000V keyboard raised quite a bit of interest on the Web, including my own curiosity. I installed the Casio Lyric Creator app on my iPad just to see what I can see. Lo and behold, there is a long list of open source licensing statements which identify some of
- [Casio CT-S1000V: Quick tips](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/casio-ct-s1000v-quick-tips/) - One feels "all thumbs" when starting in with a new keyboard. The Casio CT-S1000V has a lot of functionality and customization below the MENU button and within the SETTINGS item in the main MENU. I made a map to help me get around: MENU SETTINGS My Set-up Transpose Active DSP Touch Off Velocity Balance Split
- [Casio CT-S1000V: Observations](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/casio-ct-s1000v-observations/) - Gonna post a few notes while I take an ear break. I'm rather pleased with the sound and play-ability of the Casio CT-S1000V. For now, I'm focused on sound design and playing, having only dipped into the auto-accompaniment rhythms and vocal synthesis. Patches Sounds, not the song. (Sorry, Clarence Carter.) My first order of business
- [Casio CT-S1000V, anyone?](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/casio-ct-s1000v-anyone/) - Update: Here is the latest information about the CT-S500 and CT-S1000 from Casio. The forums are alive with rumors about the yet unannounced Casio CT-S1000V vocal synthesizer. Casio have posted a teaser video indicating a "January 2022" announcement date. I say "announcement" because the world-wide supply chain crisis will likely hold up deliveries. As in
- [Recent Casio patents (AiR/AiX)](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/recent-casio-patents-air-aix/) - Update: Here is the latest information about the CT-S500 and CT-S1000 from Casio. After visiting the U.S. Patent and Trademark site, I normally do a deep dive into a few patents. Given the upcoming announcement of Casio's new keyboards (Casio CT-S1000V and CT-S500), time is of the essence. Thus, here is a short list of
- [New Casio portable keyboards](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/new-casio-portable-keyboards/) - Casio CT-S1000V Casio have announced the new CT-S1000V keyboard with vocal synthesis: 61 full-size touch response keys plus pitch bend wheel 64 voice polyphony3 assignable knobs for controlling modulation, effects, filters, and more 800 AiX-powered Tones and 243 full accompaniment Rhythms Advanced Tones (including vintage keyboardsEditable DSP effects (100 effects) Split and layer (Upper 1/2,
- [Casio CT-S1000V: First impressions](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/casio-ct-s1000v-first-impressions/) - After test driving the Casio CT-S1 and CT-S410, I took the plunge and bought a Casio CT-S1000V (AiX Sound Source with Vocal Synthesis, $450USD street). The price was irresistible after making a trade-in. (The Yamaha SHS-500 Sonogenic retired.) In terms of build quality, the Casio CT-S1000V is robust enough for light to moderate gigging. It
- [Ye olde Yamaha Dance Kit](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/ye-olde-yamaha-dance-kit/) - Ya learn somethin' every day. Thanks for to Mark -- my neighborhood to the north in Vancouver -- who looped me in. As one might expect, Yamaha have updated their drum kit samples over the years. Who knew -- the DanceKit circa 2000 is more heavy, punchy and analog than present-day DanceKit. According to Mark
- [Yamaha PSR-E473 and PSR-EW425](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/yamaha-psr-e473-and-psr-ew425/) - The PSR-E473 and PSR-EW425 continue the evolution of the Yamaha E-series arranger keyboards. Main features are: PSR-E473: 61 keys, PSR-EW425: 76 keysSuper Articulation Lite voices and articulation button820 voices (including 43 Super Articulation Lite)Category access buttons to select voices290 auto-accompaniment stylesTwo DSP effect channels (DSP1 and DSP2)DSP1: 41 types of DSP insertion effectsDSP2: 12 effect
- [PSR-E473 speculation](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/psr-e473-speculation/) - Update: Yamaha PSR-E473 and PSR-EW425 announcement. Yamaha have had a busy few years updating their entry-level models, most notably, the PSR-E373 and the DGX-670. We have yet to see the PSR-E473 and PSR-EW425 models which will replace the PSR-E463 and PSR-EW410, respectively. No doubt, supply chain and global shipping problems have delayed product launch. Prior
- [Akai MPK mini play mk3](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/akai-mpk-mini-play-mk3/) - Even though Winter NAMM 2022 is postponed (or just outright moved) to June, a few manufacturers are sticking to their release schedule. Include Akai on the list of schedule keepers. Akai have revamped the MPK mini play giving it a new front panel layout and a better speaker. The mini-keyboard has been upgraded to Gen-2,
- [ChordPro auto-accompaniment: Uses](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/chordpro-auto-accompaniment-uses/) - The ChordPro to Yamaha auto-accompaniment program, cp2mid, translates an extended ChordPro song file to a MIDI file containing Yamaha-compatible auto-accompaniment messages. The MIDI file is compatible with recent mid- and high-end Yamaha arranger workstations like Yamaha Genos™. Once you transfer the MIDI file to the arranger, it plays like any other Standard MIDI File (SMF).
- [ChordPro auto-accompaniment: Implementation notes](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/chordpro-auto-accompaniment-implementation-notes/) - I'm prep'ing my ChordPro to Yamaha accompaniment program (cp2mid) for distribution. Please check out the demo. In the meantime, here are a few comments about the implementation. Command line interface cp2mid doesn't have a fancy graphical user interface (GUI). A GUI is too much for a simple tool that translates an extended ChordPro file into
- [Roland Micro Cube GX speaker size](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/roland-micro-cube-gx-speaker-size/) - A quick project while booting Windows… The speaker in the Roland Micro Cube GX is just OK and I think I can do better. Roland specs claim 5 inches (12cm), but folks have tried 5 inch replacement speakers and have found the speaker hole to be too small. Remove four screws and the grill. Watch
- [Hidden arranger smarts: file system SysEx](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/hidden-arranger-smarts-file-system-sysex/) - What to do with the ennui that sets in on New Years Day? Explore unexamined territory! Yamaha Musicsoft Downloader is a valuable tool for Yamaha arranger keyboardists. Downloader lets you transfer MIDI song files, registrations file, text files, etc. between a Windows PC and a compatible Yamaha arranger keyboard. It even works with digital home
- [Wired USB iPad rig](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/wired-usb-ipad-rig/) - After investigating a wireless iPad-based rig for church gigs, I decided to take a 180 and try wired! The urge was inspired by a recent thread in the MusicPlayer Keyboard Forum about taming the rat's nest of wires that engulf our keyboard set-ups. My approach goes all-in with MIDI over USB. Both the Korg Microkey
- [ChordPro to MIDI accompaniment: Demo](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/chordpro-to-midi-accompaniment-demo/) - Work continues on my Java program to translate ChordPro songs to Yamaha accompaniment (SMF). The code is fairly stable and mostly I've been writing example songs in ChordPro format for testing. The range and variety of musical craziness is amazing: weird chords ("Superstition", "Michelle"), changing time signatures ("Two Of Us"), changing key signatures ("My Girl"),
- [ChordPro auto-accompaniment: MIDI messages](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/chordpro-auto-accompaniment-midi-messages/) - I've made quite a bit of progress with my Java program that translates extended ChordPro songs into a Yamaha-compatible accompaniment MIDI file. This blog post describes the stuff inside the MIDI files produced by the program (cp2mid). The MIDI file contains MIDI meta and SysEx (System Exclusive) messages which drive the Yamaha accompaniment engine. When
- [ChordPro for Yamaha accompaniment](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/chordpro-for-yamaha-accompaniment/) - Time to take the wrapping paper off my current development project. It starts with ChordPro. ChordPro Format is perhaps the most popular notation for rock, pop, soul and folk tunes. A ChordPro format song contains lyrics and chords, usually formatted for easy display and reading. Strummers and plinkers everywhere use ChordPro songs as lead sheets.
- [Review: The Beatles: Get Back](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/review-the-beatles-get-back/) - Well, I'm about half-way through Peter Jackson's The Beatles: Get Back and I suppose that I should watch all of it before writing a "review." You'll find plenty of fawning reviews on line -- this isn't one of them. As to actual film criticism, the The Guardian review gets it right. This is an over-stuffed
- [Black is back: Software sales](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/black-is-back-software-sales/) - With hardware in short supply -- even a liquor shortage! -- 2021 could be the biggest year for software Black Friday. Sales abound! Lately, I've focused on pulling together an Apple iPad rig: Wire Less: Part 1, Korg Microkey Air 49Wire Less: Part 2, Belkin RockStar™Wire Less: Part 3, Boss EV-1-WL wireless MIDI expression pedalKorg
- [Wire Less: Part 3, Boss EV-1-WL wireless MIDI expression pedal](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/wire-less-part-3-boss-ev-1-wl-wireless-midi-expression-pedal/) - Halleluia, the slow boat from Malaysia arrived and it brought a Boss EV-1-WL wireless expression pedal. The EV-1-WL (henceforth, "EV") is a compact expression pedal which sends MIDI Continuous Controller (CC) messages over Bluetooth BLE, USB and conventional serial MIDI. Boss has quite a bit of information on-line, so I won't repeat too many of
- [SampleTank IOS and Miroslav vs. Korg Module Pro](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/sampletank-ios-and-miroslav-vs-korg-module-pro/) - Just like finding a 20 dollar bill in a drawer full of old socks, it's a pleasant surprise to discover that you already own a useful iPad music app and simply forgot about it. Thus, I installed IK Multimedia SampleTank IOS on my iPad and gave it a try. (Again) Even better, I restored in-app
- [Critique: Genos™ drawbar organ](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/critique-genos-drawbar-organ/) - I like the Korg Module Pro "GospelOrgan" patch, so I tried to create a sound-alike voice on Yamaha Genos. Genos and MODX share the same waveforms and DSP effects, and I may port the result to MODX, too. The experience recalled my previous misgivings about the rotary speaker simulation and limitations of the Genos DSP
- [Wire Less: Part 1, Korg Microkey Air 49](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/wire-less-part-1-korg-microkey-air-49/) - With the pandemic raging, I'm searching for ways to reduce my physical gig footprint and schlep factor. I thought I would share my adventure in battery-lowered, almost wireless keyboard-land. Months ago, I had a good experience with Korg Module Pro. It has the range of high quality sounds that I need for my church gig.
- [Wire Less: Part 2, Belkin RockStar™](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/wire-less-part-2-belkin-rockstar/) - Well, as you might have guessed, your Apple iPad synthesis rig cannot be entirely wireless (at least inexpensively so). The audio part ain't there yet. Bluetooth audio has too much latency and Apple does not provide any other built-in solution. So, it's wires, again, folks. In my first post, I discussed the MIDI part: an
- [Korg Module Pro for church](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/korg-module-pro-for-church/) - Over the last several weeks, I've been practicing and playing through church tunes. Our liturgical group covers genres from pop, light rock, classical and traditional hymns to gospel. I'm trying to keep up my chops while our group awaits its post-pandemic return. This has been a good opportunity to wring out any issues with Korg
- [Review: Future Kit FK651 stereo simulator](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/review-future-kit-fk651-stereo-simulator/) - The Yamaha PSS-A50 is strictly MONO OUT and needs a little spice. After trying the Haas effect via a Synthrotek Dev Delay, I ordered a Future Kit FK651 Stereo Simulator. Future Kit -- also known as "Thai Kits" -- offers a range of audio kits including the FK651. I ordered through Amazon with Future Kit
- [Review: Synthrotek Dev Delay](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/review-synthrotek-dev-delay/) - I'd like to add more animation to the distinctly sound of the Yamaha PSS-A50. I really like the Korg Volca Mix stereo width effect and want to add something similar as either a mod or an external effect. My intuition suggests the Haas effect or as Wikipedia would have it, the precedence effect. This well-known
- [Steinberg WaveLab Cast bundle](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/steinberg-wavelab-cast-bundle/) - This deal is too good to go unnoticed. If you bought a Yamaha AG03 or AG06 mixing interface, I hope you saved (or used) the Cubase AI download access code. It's your ticket to a free copy of Steinberg Wavelab Cast. Yamaha added Wavelab Cast to the AG series software bundle during August 2021. You
- [Random answer day (1)](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/random-answer-day-1/) - Maybe it's the first day of the regular NFL season or the phase of the moon. Here's a recap of a few questions that came into the forums. How are arranger/synth preset voices stored? First, one may ask, "How is a preset represented?" Typically, a preset voice consists of waveforms (AKA "samples") and voice (meta-)data.
- [PSS chorus: A dusty look back](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/pss-chorus-a-dusty-look-back/) - Here's a look into the past -- and maybe, the present. A PSR Tutorial Forum member inquired about the chorus effects in the PSR-E463. The PSR-E463 has the usual system chorus effect and the newer DSP chorus effect. I'm going to focus on the older system chorus effect. The PSR-E series chorus system effect date
- [PSS-A50 MIDI mod](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/pss-a50-midi-mod/) - Sometimes you get very lucky when searching the Web! A Japanese blogger (darekasan_net) posted a review of the Yamaha PSS-A50 and a mod adding 5-pin MIDI OUT. [Google translation of the review] There are a set of test pads in the upper left corner of the A50 main board (DM) as shown in the picture
- [Review: Mystic Circuits 0HP Envelope](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/review-mystic-circuits-0hp-envelope/) - As promised, here is a review of the Mystic Circuits 0HP Envelope module. I won't go through build details, etc., since I discussed these aspects of the 0HP line in my review of the Mystic Circuits 0HP 0ttenuator. The 0HP modules all share the same micro form factor. The 0HP Envelope has four jacks: IN:
- [Review: Mystic Circuits 0ttenuator](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/review-mystic-circuits-0ttenuator/) - I discovered Mystic Circuits while browsing Patchwerks. Mystic Circuits make and distribute a line of analog synthesis modules including its "0HP" micro-modules. Time to take a look. But, first. Patchwerks? Patchwerks was a great little find, too, and a synthesizer lifeline during the pandemic. Patchwerks has a small Seattle-based brick-and-mortar retail store as well as
- [Inside Yamaha PSS-E30 Remie](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/inside-yamaha-pss-e30-remie/) - Now let's take a first look at Yamaha PSS-E30 Remie inside. My Remie is a seasoned world traveller. It was designed in Japan, made in India, distributed by Rellingen, Germany, sold by Amazon UK and played in Washington state, USA. Physics and electrons are indeed universal. The PSS-E30, PSS-F30 and PSS-A50 are essentially the same
- [Review: Yamaha PSS-E30 Remie](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/review-yamaha-pss-e30-remie/) - One of the big benefits of moving out west is time with our grandson. The lad went to Kindermusik as a pre-toddler and already has a good sense of rhythm and an appreciation for music. I dropped a few quick beats with the MODX and he started dancing with a big smile on his face!
- [Review: Yamaha PSS-A50](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/review-yamaha-pss-a50/) - Before taking a screwdriver and soldering iron to the A50 (Ahem), I'd better write a short review first. :-) The Yamaha PSS series keyboards are inexpensive, entry-level instruments which are super lightweight, battery powered, portable and fun. The PSS line is like a small group of fantasy characters where each character has its own super-powers.
- [Yamaha PSS-A50: Look inside](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/yamaha-pss-a50-look-inside/) - Let's take a quick tour of the Yamaha PSS-A50. The A50 has two main boards: the digital and analog electronics board (DM) and the front panel board (PN). After removing nine screws -- don't forget the screw hidden in the battery compartment -- the A50 splays into two halves: the bottom half containing the battery
- [PSS-A50: Power to the people](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/pss-a50-power-to-the-people/) - Today's topic -- power -- may seem rather mundane. To a modder, though, power gives our circuits life. I'm going to make a few comments of general interest before diving into details that are relevant to the Yamaha PSS series keyboards, including the PSS-A50 and PSS-E30 Remie. Most of us don't think too much about
- [Yamaha PSS-A50 Motion Effects](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/yamaha-pss-a50-motion-effects/) - As I mentioned in my PSS-A50 review, the Yamaha PSS-A50 arpeggios date back to the first Motif keyboard (2001). Yamaha -- like most manufacturers -- recycle content and these arpeggios (arps) have (re-)appeared in several synthesizer and arranger products. The arps even made an appearance in the now unavailable Yamaha Synth Arp and Drum Pad
- [Yamaha PSS-A50 MIDI limitations](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/yamaha-pss-a50-midi-limitations/) - My last post about the Yamaha PSS-A50 MIDI implementation covered the basics. Now for a few advanced topics. First, the bad news. The PSS-A50 does not have a way to save and restore recorded MIDI data. Thus, you can't save a song and reload it later. It is possible to SYNC a DAW (like Sonar)
- [Yamaha PSS-A50 MIDI notes](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/yamaha-pss-a50-midi-notes/) - To learn more about the Yamaha PSS-A50's MIDI implementation, I monitored its MIDI output stream using MIDI Ox and Sonar. Here are my notes. They are quite terse! After inital start-up, the A50 sends MIDI timing clock and active sensing messages. The default transmit data and channel settings are: Assignment Ch# ---------------------- --- Live keyboard:
- [Summer NAMM 2021](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/summer-namm-2021/) - Even though Summer NAMM 2021 is a live event, the global pandemic still has the business world topsy-turvy. The vaccinated parts of the United States are shaking off cob-webs, but large parts of the world remain in the grasp of COVID-19. Japan -- a major source for electronic musical instruments -- is in near crisis
- [Mining the Yamaha DJX II](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/mining-the-yamaha-djx-ii/) - Update: Follow this link to download a free collection of PSR/Tyros DJX-II styles. Time to party like it's 1999! The Yamaha DJX II was the second generation of Yamaha "DJ" keyboards that were targeted for musicians/producers working in "dance" styles (e.g., tekno, hip-hop, drum'n'bass, etc.) Thus, the DJX II uses loop-like "patterns" as its basic
- [Modal Skulpt SE: Review](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/modal-skulpt-se-review/) - True to their word, Modal Electronics are shipping the first Skulpt SE virtual analog modules, and I've got one. Initial impressions… Arrival The Modal Skulpt SE arrives in a neat brown box, well-protected from the strains of travel through the package delivery system. With the pandemic all about, most of us are buying on-line and
- [littleBits for audio mods?](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/littlebits-for-audio-mods/) - Here are a few experiments testing littleBits audio post-processing. In the first few cases, audio is produced by a Yamaha SHS-500 synthesizer fed into the LINE IN of a littleBits Microphone module. Outgoing audio is sent through a littleBits Speaker module connected to an external amplified speaker. I did not draw the littleBits Power module
- [PSS modding: A few ideas](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/pss-modding-a-few-ideas/) - I'm still thinking about Yamaha PSS mods, most notably, the PSS-A50. Open box A50s are coming on the market and I get the itch to modify an A50. I don't want to buy a brand new unit since I will immediately tear into it with a screwdriver, drill, and worse! :-) Here's a few more
- [Combo organ: Top octave emulation](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/combo-organ-top-octave-emulation/) - Given the scarcity of combo organ top octave generator ICs, what's a hack supposed to do? Emulate! I posed a "bar bet" against myself -- can I emulate a top octave generator chip with an Arduino? The Arduino is a bit slow and I wasn't sure if it would be fast enough for the task.
- [Review: zplane deCoda](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/review-zplane-decoda/) - A recent thread on the Keyboard Forum ("What was the first song you figured out by ear?") brought up memories of high school and combo organs. One of the most popular tunes of the time was "Space Rock Part 2" by The Baskerville Hounds. Air play on Ghoulardi was a big boost to its popularity
- [Combo organ: Top octave generator](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/combo-organ-top-octave-generator/) - So far, we're taken a short trip through combo organ technology from early days in the 1960s to modern day workstation voices: Combo organ tone generationCombo organ: Montage, MODX and GenosCombo organ: Reface YC I hope you enjoyed those articles! This post fills in the middle bits -- how large scale integration changed combo organ
- [Arpeggio to style conversion](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/arpeggio-to-style-conversion/) - Let's get one out of the vault… :-) The Motif XS/XF (MOX/MOXF) and Montage (MODX) arpeggios and performances are a great source of inspiration. Unlike Yamaha's arranger series, the built-in phrase library is rich in urban and chill patterns. For some odd reason, one of the classic XS/MOX performances -- "Dresden At Night" -- never
- [Combo organ: Reface YC](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/combo-organ-reface-yc/) - Checking out organ-related threads in the music forums, combo organs get short shrift while most folks focus on the Hammond B-3 tonewheel sounds. Today's post will (almost) ignore the B-3… Organ-focused keyboards from Nord, Hammond, Yamaha and others have combo organ emulations in addition to tonewheel synthesis. All offer two vintage flavors: Vox and Farfisa.
- [Combo organ: Montage, MODX, Genos](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/combo-organ-montage-modx-genos/) - Contemporary workstation instruments offer several options for combo organ emulation. Every workstation has at least a few internal combo organ waveforms. Korg Kronos, for example, has two Vox organ waves built in. Even the lowly Korg microKorg XL+ has two Vox waveforms (DWGS single cycle). Yamaha MODX and Montage -- my focus in this article
- [Sonogenic voice editor](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/sonogenic-voice-editor/) - The Yamaha SHS-500 Sonogenic is a good sounding syntheizer which lets you jam along with ChordTracker songs. The SHS-500 includes a General MIDI Level 1 multi-timbral tone generator that is accessible over MIDI (Bluetooth, 5-pin or USB). Yamaha doesn't promote the General MIDI capability, but it's there! Update: I added a post showing how to
- [Customizing the Sonogenic voice editor](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/customizing-the-sonogenic-voice-editor/) - Back to the Yamaha SHS-500 Sonogenic voice editor… Thanks to Brent at Keyboard Corner for suggesting a different set of default voices in my MIDI Designer-based Sonogenic voice editor. Back when I released the editor, I was hoping that folks could customize the user interface, changing or adding their own buttons and controls. Brent downloaded
- [Combo organ tone generation](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/combo-organ-tone-generation/) - Combo organs got me into this mess. :-) Back in the day, I played a Farfisa Mini Compact Deluxe. Even though it didn't have many tabs or reverb, it was enough to cover Wooly Bully and the rest of the Top 40 hits. I always wanted a Vox, but the Jaguar and Continental were always
- [Curtis Electromusic Specialties](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/curtis-electromusic-specialties/) - Tom Oberheim plans to bring back the TVS-Pro in the form of the TVS Pro Special Edition. The TVS-Pro Special Edition consists of a 3-octave keyboard, sequences and two Synthesizer Expansion Modules (SEM). The two modules are flexibly assigned to the keyboard, sequencer, etc. Designed by Tom Oberheim and manufactured by Marion Systems. Gordon Reid
- [E-mu Systems and SSM ICs](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/e-mu-systems-and-ssm-ics/) - E-mu Systems and Solid State Micro Technology for Music (SSM) were pioneers in analog synthesis. E-mu Systems was founded in 1971 by Dave Rossum, Steve Gabriel and Jim Ketcham. Solid State Music Technology was founded by Ron Dow and John Burgoon in 1974. E-mu, of course, is renown for its ground-breaking Emulator keyboard. E-mu and
- [SN76477 Complex Sound Generator](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/sn76477-complex-sound-generator/) - Things are going to take a vintage turn during the next few weeks. I'm knocking out a few 60's backing tracks, returning to classic combo organ sounds. As a teen, I owned and played a Farfisa Mini Compact Deluxe. As a neophyte engineer, I was also interested in rolling my own gear -- a great
- [RPi 4 tuning: The code](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/rpi-4-tuning-the-code/) - I hope you have enjoyed my series of articles about Raspberry Pi 4 performance events, measurement and tuning: ARM Cortex-A72 tuning: IPC Cortex-A72 tuning: Data access Cortex-A72 tuning: Branch mispredictions Cortex-A72 tuning: Memory access ARM Cortex-A72 fetch and branch processing ARM Cortex-A72 execution and load/store operations Raspberry Pi 4 Performance Events Today, I want to
- [ARM Cortex-A72 tuning: Memory access](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/arm-cortex-a72-tuning-memory-access/) - Today's post characterizes read access time to three different levels of the Raspberry Pi 4 (Broadcom BCM2711) memory hierarchy. The ARM Cortex-A72 processor has a two level cache structure: Level 1 data (L1D) cache and unified Level 2 cache. There is one L1D cache per core and all four cores share the L2 cache. Primary
- [Linux clock and temperature: An interlude](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/linux-clock-and-temperature-an-interlude/) - I'm in the midst of investigating a performance anomaly which seemingly pops up at random. I wrote a pointer chasing program to exercise and measure cache miss performance events. As part of the testing regimen, I run the program several times in a row and compare run time, event counts, etc. and look for inconsistencies.
- [ARM Cortex-A72 tuning: Branch mispredictions](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/arm-cortex-a72-tuning-branch-mispredictions/) - Back on the old day job, I developed and tested software and hardware for program profiling. Testing may sound like drudge-work, but there are ways to make things fun! Two questions arise while testing a profiling infrastructure -- software plus hardware: Does the hardware accurately count (or sample) performance events for a given specific workload?
- [Performance events on Raspberry Pi 4: Tips](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/performance-events-on-raspberry-pi-4-tips/) - Performance measurement and tuning experiments with Raspberry Pi 4 are well-underway. Here are a few quick observations and tips. Linux provides two entries into performance measurement: Performance Events for Linux (PERF) and the kernel performance counter interface (perf_event_open()). PERF is an easy-to-use tool suite and is the best place to start explorations. If you want
- [ARM Cortex-A72 fetch and branch processing](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/arm-cortex-a72-fetch-and-branch-processing/) - Let's take a closer look at instruction fetch, decode and dispatch in the Cortex-A72 micro-architecture. These are the "front-end" stages of the core pipeline. The "back-end" of the pipeline consists of the register file(s), execution units and retirement (reorder) buffer. Branch prediction is frequently associated with the front-end since it directly affects instruction fetch. [Update:
- [ARM Cortex-A72 execution and load/store](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/arm-cortex-a72-execution-and-load-store/) - I hope you had an opportunity to read about ARM Cortex-A72 fetch and processing. ARM Cortex-A72 is the high performance application core in the Broadcom BCM2711, also known as the Raspberry Pi 4. In this post, I'm going to continue my exploration of the A72 micro-architecture, concentrating on the execution units and load/store operation. Execution
- [ARM Cortex-A72 tuning: IPC](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/arm-cortex-a72-tuning-ipc/) - If you read my posts about ARM Cortex-A72 micro-architecture: ARM Cortex-A72 fetch and branch processing ARM Cortex-A72 execution and load/store operations you're probably wondering, "How I do I reduce all of this to practice on Raspberry Pi 4?" Program performance tuning is experimental and is measurement-based. Our goal is to reduce program execution time by
- [Cortex-A72 tuning: Data access](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/cortex-a72-tuning-data-access/) - In my discussion about instructions per cycle as a performance metric, I compared the textbook implementation of matrix multiplication against the loop next interchange version. The textbook program ran slower (28.6 seconds) than the interchange version (19.6 seconds). The interchange program executes 2.053 instructions per cycle (IPC) while the textbook version has a less than
- [Winter NAMM 2021: Do you believe?](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/winter-namm-2021-do-you-believe/) - Whew! Writing articles about ARM Cortex-A72 took quite a bit of time and effort (Part 1: Fetch and branch, Part 2: Execution and load/store). If you drop by my site for music tech and synth info, never fear, I'm still playing with musical toys. The holiday gift return season is upon us and there are
- [Raspberry Pi 4 ARM  Cortex-A72 processor](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/raspberry-pi-4-arm-cortex-a72-processor/) - Raspberry Pi 4 (RPi4) is a big step beyond the earlier models 1, 2 and 3. Both desktop interaction and browsing are snappier and don't have that laggy feel. I haven't even thought (yet) about the RPi4's music making and synthesis potential! The Raspbeery Pi 4 is powered by a new processor from Broadcom: the
- [A short trip through ARM cores](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/a-short-trip-through-arm-cores/) - Digging around in the kernel and PERF source code, I got lost in the labyrinth of ARM products. So, I took a little time to learn about ARM's naming conventions. ARM have always been good at separating architecture and implementation (code technology). Architecture is what the programmer sees, rather, the behavioral standard which includes the
- [Raspberry Pi 4 mini-review](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/raspberry-pi-4-mini-review/) - Success with the RTL-SDR Blog V3 software defined radio (SDR) inspired me to try SDR on Raspberry Pi. I pulled out the old Raspberry Pi 2, updated to the latest Raspberry Pi OS (Buster), and installed CubicSDR and GQRX. Both CubicSDR and GQRX ran, but performance was unacceptably slow. Audio kept breaking up, possibly due
- [RTL SDR Blog V3 HF reception](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/rtl-sdr-blog-v3-hf-reception/) - I wanted to spend more time experimenting with HF before posting a follow-up about the RTL-SDR Blog V3 software defined radio. Due to shifting ionospheric conditions and such, a 5 minute snap evaluation is no evaluation at all. Here's the scoop after really working with the V3. Yes, the V3 does HF -- with limitations.
- [RTL SDR Blog V3 Radio](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/rtl-sdr-blog-v3-radio/) - Based on my positive experience with the nooelec Nano 2+ software defined radio, I bought an RTL-SDR Blog V3 receiver bundle. I meant to write a quick review of the RTL-SDR Blog V3 (henceforth, the "V3"), but I wound up having too much fun with the new toys! For $35USD, you get the USB receiver
- [Nooelec Nano 2+ Software Defined Radio](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/nooelec-nano-2-software-defined-radio/) - One side-benefit of unpacking after a move is getting reacquainted with old electronic gear, in this case, a Drake R8 shortwave receiver. HF is definitely alive, but it whet my appetite for more listening, more action. Rather than pull out the old Radio Shack 2006PRO -- another old acquaintance -- I decided to give software
- [Review: Roland Micro Cube GX for keyboard](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/review-roland-micro-cube-gx-for-keyboard/) - You'll find plenty of rave on-line reviews for the Roland Micro Cube GX -- the go-to battery-powered practice amp for guitar.You won't find a review covering the Micro Cube GX as a portable keyboard practice amp -- until now. Here's a quick rundown (from the Roland site): Compact guitar amp with a 5 inch (12cm)
- [COVID-19 Washington State August 14, 2020](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/covid-19-washington-state-august-14-2020/) - Although I'm posting about music technology again, I still track the local COVID-19 situation. This disease, unfortunately, is still out there with months to go until a safe, tested vaccine. The Washington State Department of Health web site is changing the way it counts and reports negative tests. The DOH site has left us blind
- [Keystep for littleBits](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/keystep-for-littlebits/) - My last blog post took a look at the Pitch and Gate control voltages (CV) generated by the Arturia Keystep. Keystep's Pitch and Gate behave conventionally. I also took note of how they differ from the littleBits gate CV signal, which combines pitch and gate control into a single signal. I mentioned two potential approaches
- [Arturia Keystep CV](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/arturia-keystep-cv/) - My post about Arturia Keystep teardown and cleaning attracted a fair number of page views; it must have hit a common chord. :-) Today's post continues with Arturia Keystep. Although the Keystep Gate and Pitch control voltage (CV) signals are conventional, I wanted to visualize them with an oscilloscope. I strongly recommend getting an oscilloscope
- [COVID-19 Numeracy: Comparability](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/covid-19-numeracy-comparability/) - % Positive New Cases Per Day It's time to show some numbers of my own! Thanks to The Seattle Times and the Washington State Department of Health (DOH), I have built a table that summarizes COVID-19 case statistics since late February. Data before March 10 is somewhat spotty and lacks the number of tests per
- [Arturia Keystep tear-down and cleaning](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/arturia-keystep-tear-down-and-cleaning/) - As part of the littleBits revival, I pulled the Arturia Keystep from storage. The Keystep has a nice keybed and sequencer, and supports a wide range of interface options: 5-pin MIDI, CV, gate, sync and USB MIDI. Although I love its industrial design, the Keystep keys have always been somewhat unreliable. Straight out of the
- [littleBits envelope generator](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/littlebits-envelope-generator/) - In my last post, I investigated the gated CV signal produced by the littleBits MIDI Module. Now, let's take a look at the Envelope Module. The littleBits Envelope Module is rather basic with only attack and release controls (no decay or sustain controls). The module has two inputs: The primary input at the left end
- [littleBits Control Signals](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/littlebits-control-signals/) - I got the itch to experiment with analog audio processing and finally unpacked the old littleBits synth modules. Folks hack the Korg Monotron series, so why not hack littleBits modules instead? The modules are inexpensive when compared with Monotron and are easily reconfigurable while experimenting. Since I last wrote about littleBits (circa 2017), Sphero purchased
- [COVID-19: Washington State July 12](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/covid-19-washington-state-july-12/) - The graphs below summarize the Washington State COVID-19 positivity rate through July 12, 2020. Data are taken from the Washington State Department of Health (DOH) and the University of Washington Virology Lab (UW). The DOH data are complete through July 4, 2020 and that is what is shown here. [Click images to enlarge.] I don't
- [Best things in life are free](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/best-things-in-life-are-free/) - Yep, still here and no trouble staying busy! We've been hit by a tsunami of free on-line content and software sales. The good news -- it's free (or at a discount). The bad news -- the amount of time required to download, install, activate and maybe, gasp, actually use some of these samples, plug-ins, etc.
- [Mini review: Korg Module](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/mini-review-korg-module/) - Korg have extended their summer apps and software sale. Sale is on starting today (June 24) and ending Wednesday, July 15, 2020. They finally got me with Korg Module Pro. The backstory… I installed the free version of Module when I assembled the Korg NTS-1, hoping that it would unlock a few extra instruments in
- [COVID-19: Washington State June 24](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/covid-19-washington-state-june-24/) - Here is my COVD-19 update taking us through June 24, 2020. Data are taken from the Washington State Department of Health (DOH) and the University of Washington Virology Lab (UW). The DOH data are complete through June 16, 2020 and that is what is shown here. [Click images to enlarge.] We're seeing a small uptick
- [What did you do in self-isolation?](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/what-did-you-do-in-self-isolation/) - Yes, this site still does music! :-) Several weeks ago, I decided to record the church tunes that I enjoy playing. It's best to start with favorites, as most of you know how you come to detest a track after playing it over, and over, and over again during production. Energy quickly dissipates when micro-editing
- [COVID-19: Washington June 6](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/covid-19-washington-june-6/) - Here is my latest update for the COVID-19 positivity rate in Washington State. The Department of Health (DOH) data are relatively complete through June 6, 2020 and the University of Washington Virology Lab (UW) data are complete through June 14. [Click images to enlarge.] The DOH rate was roughly 5% at the beginning of June.
- [COVID-19: Washington State May 26](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/covid-19-washington-state-may-26/) - The Washington State Department of Health (DOH) and the University of Washington Virology Laboratory have done some data cleaning in recent weeks. I decided to bite the bullet and import the latest data from both sites. I also updated my spreadsheet -- changes that were long overdue. [Click images to enlarge.] The DOH positivity has
- [COVID-19: Washington State May 16](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/covid-19-washington-state-may-16/) - As noted in previous posts, data from the Washington State Department of Health (DOH) lags a little bit as reports arrive from county health departments. So, the DOH chart (below) covers the period up to May 16 (about ten days ago at the time of this writing). The trend in the DOH daily positivity rate
- [COVID-19: Washington State May 8](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/covid-19-washington-state-may-8/) - Here is my weekly update for Washington State using data from the Department of Health (DOH) and the University of Washington UW) Virology Laboratory. The DOH reports (relatively) complete data through May 8. That's why the title of this page refers to "May 8" even though I'm posting these charts on May 18. The UW
- [COVID-19: Washington State May 1](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/covid-19-washington-state-may-1/) - After making slow progress against COVID-19, Washington State lost a little ground during the last two weeks. We aren't heading up the steep slope, but the unusually good weather has brought people out of isolation. First up is the graph of the daily positivity rate using data from the Washington State Department of Health. [Click
- [COVID-19: Washington State April 21](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/covid-19-washington-state-april-21/) - To kick things off, here are my latest graphs for the Washington State COVID-19 positivity rate. The positivity rate is the daily percentage of positive COVID-19 tests. Like the daily new case count, we're hoping to see a downward trend over time as community mitigation (AKA "social distancing") slows the effective infectiousness (REFF) of SARS-CoV-2.
- [COVID-19: Genetic tests](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/covid-19-genetic-tests/) - COVID-19 testing is very much in the news these days. Let's take a look. There are two main types of testing: detection of the pathogen (SARS-CoV-2) itself and antibody testing. In detective-speak, the first kind of testing looks for the perpetrator while the second kind of testing looks for the perpetrator's footprints. The science and
- [COVID-19: Washington State April 15](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/covid-19-washington-state-april-15/) - Time for this week's Washington update. I'm tracking the daily positivity rate for Washington State using data from the Washington Department of Health, the University of Washington Virology Laboratory and the Snohomish Health District. The daily positivity rate is the percentage of positive COVID-19 test results for each 24 hour period. The rate adjusts for
- [COVID-19: Washington State April 8](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/covid-19-washington-state-april-8/) - My weekly chart showing the positivity rate for Washington State is a tad late. The Washington Department of Health (DOH) has been busy fixing and upgrading its web site. The new site is a quite an improvement with informative charts, graphs and tables. Looking at their data, I can appreciate the depth of their collection
- [COVID-19: Know Your Foe](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/covid-19-know-your-foe/) - OK, that's a little bit over the top. I was trying to find a way to work NPH into this post. :-) Viruses are the simplest biological forms. Viruses are obligate parasites. A virus must invade a host cell in order to reproduce. Viruses contain genetic material, but do not have ribosomes which replicate the
- [COVID-19: Washington April 6](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/covid-19-washington-april-6/) - Another week has past and it's time for new charts. I've been tracking the daily positivity rate for Washington State. The "positivity rate" is the percentage of positive test results for each 24 hour period. Dividing by the number of tests each day adjusts for variations in daily testing throughput, i.e., the number of tests
- [COVID-19 Numeracy: Round-up](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/covid-19-numeracy-round-up/) - Time for what's known in the journalism biz as a "round-up." I started blogging about COVID-19 numeracy (AKA "by the numbers") as a way to get my head around all of the data thrown at us by media outlets. Blogging also gave me a way to have the illusion of control over that which I
- [COVID-19 Numeracy: Seattle scene](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/covid-19-numeracy-seattle-scene/) - A New York Times article (March 29) suggests that social distancing is beginning to pay off in the Seattle area. The NYT article refers to work performed at the Institute for Disease Modeling in Bellevue, WA. The authors are cautious saying that data is preliminary and unpublished. Quoting the IDM web site: IDM shapes global
- [COVID-19 Numeracy: New York City](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/covid-19-numeracy-new-york-city/) - Yesterday, Governor Jay Inslee issued a full, statewide "stay at home" order for Washington State. Up to this point, home-stay was recommended and did not have the force of law. Now it does. Thank goodness. When I first glanced at the percentage of new positive cases per day (Washington State), I felt optimistic. After reflection,
- [COVID-19 Numeracy: Epidemiologic Testing](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/covid-19-numeracy-epidemiologic-testing/) - Epidemiologic testing Yesterday, CNN carried interviews with Dr. Anthony Fauci and Bill Gates. Both gentlemen called for community-wide epidemiological studies of COVID-19. We need to know the prevelance of the disease in our communities in order to assess the effectiveness of community mitigation (i.e., social distancing). Broadly speaking, there are two kinds of COVID-19 testing:
- [COVID-19 Numeracy: More NYT](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/covid-19-numeracy-more-nyt/) - As I mentioned earlier today, The New York Times staff has published some excellent maps, charts and interactive simulations. Their latest interactive simulation illustrates the effect of community mitigation (i.e., social distancing) for varying periods of time. I took snapshots at weekly intervals (social distancing for 7 days, 14 days, 21 days, etc.) [Click to
- [COVID-19 Numeracy: Geography](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/covid-19-numeracy-geography/) - Updated March 26, 2020. State-by-state Governor Cuomo, in his briefing today, asked why New York State is leading the United States in positive COVID-19 cases. Let's compare the top four states: Total Total Percent State Tests Cases Positive Date ------------- ------ ------ -------- ---- New York 38,390 14,904 38.8% 3/24 Massachusetts 13,749 1,159 8.4% 3/24
- [COVID-19 Numeracy: Charts](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/covid-19-numeracy-charts/) - New York, New York Life has dropped into a bit of a routine. Get up, start the coffee pot and watch the briefing by Andrew Cuomo, Governor of New York. The Guv can be a little tedious and pedantic (well-known characteristics to New Yorkers), but he is a wonderful communicator. First, he speaks slowly and
- [COVID-19 Numeracy: Time](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/covid-19-numeracy-time/) - On March 16, President Trump warned that the COVID-19 outbreak could last until July or August 2020. This was the first official recognition that the outbreak could take months to quell, not a few weeks. On March 18, The New York Times and other media outlets published the U.S. Government COVID-19 Response Plan. The plan
- [COVID-19 Numeracy: Testing](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/covid-19-numeracy-testing/) - Current situation: 18 March 2020 The United States continues to struggle with COVID-19 testing. Communities do not have sufficient COVID-19 test kits and they are, effectively, rationing tests. Generally, a patient must satisfy several criteria before a COVID-19 test is authorized and performed. Example criteria include cough, fever (high temperature), shortness of breadth, exposure to
- [COVID-19 Numeracy: NYT curve flattening by country](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/covid-19-numeracy-nyt-curve-flattening-by-country/) - The New York Times published a collection of graphs comparing new COVID-19 cases over time by country. The article asks the question "Which Country Has Flattened the Curve for the Coronavirus?" If you are interested in COVID-19 numeracy, I suggest reading the comments section. There are good insights there. Here is my own response. Thank
- [COVID-19: KPI](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/covid-19-kpi/) - First off, I would like to say how sad I am for those who have lost their lives to COVID-19, offering my support and empathy to their loved ones. We live in Sonomish County, Washington, not very far from King County and Kirkland. We've already seen the devastation which COVID-19 can wreak on care facilities
- [Back In The Day](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/back-in-the-day/) - A Keyboard Corner member asked what people did for keyboard amplification before PA. Man, that question really kicked off some memories. Back in the day (1966), I played a Farfisa Mini Compact Deluxe through an Ampeg SB-12 bass amp. It was all I could afford. Mom and Dad lent me the money and I mopped
- [SHS-500 Sonogenic MIDI](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/shs-500-sonogenic-midi/) - The Yamaha SHS-500 Sonogenic has hidden (undocumented) MIDI abilities! This post covers "What mother didn't tell you." I'm working on a MIDI Designer-based user interface for the SHS-500 and spent time exploring its MIDI implementation. Here's the results. For those who are "tl:dr", The MIDI implementation is similar to (based on?) the Yamaha PSR-E463/-EW410. If
- [Korg NTS-1 Assembled](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/korg-nts-1-assembled/) - Twas a nice bright morning in our kitchen -- lot's of good light for assembling the Korg NTS-1 Digital Synthesizer Kit. If you have watched the Korg video assembly instructions, you know that there isn't much to the actual assembly process. The printed circuit boards (PCBs) are fully populated, tested and ready to go. All
- [Korg NTS-1: First look](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/korg-nts-1-first-look/) - Just received the Korg NTS-1 Digital Synthesizer kit. Here's the first pictures including a close-up look at the main logic board. The kit arrives in a plain grey box with simple line graphics. Inside the box, you'll find the circuit boards to be broken apart and assembled, the ribbon strip, the corner brackets (spacers) and
- [Sonogenic UI MIDI flow](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/sonogenic-ui-midi-flow/) - My Yamaha SHS-500 Sonogenic user interface (UI) is coming along quite well and is nearly complete. Before presenting the UI itself, I want to explain the overall concept of operation from the MIDI perspective. The diagram below shows the flow of MIDI messages between the Sonogenic and the apps running on the iPad. The iPad
- [YC61 Developer's Comments](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/5599-2/) - I just finished watching the "Yamaha Stage Keyboard YC61 Development Story" on Youtube. It's a twelve minute video of three developers behind the new YC61 organ: Takashi Mori - Sound Synthesis Algorithm Toshifumi Kunimoto - Sound Synthesis Algorithm Akinobu Shibuya - Software Engineering Dr. K, of course, is well-known for his work in physical modeling
- [Winter NAMM 2020 prequel](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/winter-namm-2020-prequel/) - Feels like Winter NAMM 2020 came and went already. Here's a short round-up of products that don't or won't get big press. BeatBox by rhythmo is a do-it-yourself cardboard MIDI controller drum kit. The BeatBox is just $159USD. For that tidy sum, you get a BeatBox with a 4x4 grid of pad-like (arcade) buttons, 4
- [Sonogenic: General MIDI](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/sonogenic-general-midi/) - After jamming with the Yamaha SHS-500 Sonogenic, I'm glad that I chose it over the Yamaha PSS-A50. Sure, the A50 could be fun, but the Sonogenic panel voices are definitely step up from the A50. The Rhodes electric piano sounds great and I'm warming to the synth voices like Analogon -- good for classic R&B,
- [Yamaha YC61 stage organ](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/yamaha-yc61-stage-organ/) - Not to be out-done, Yamaha have announced the YC61 61-key Stage Keyboard. MSRP is $2,499 and MAP (Street) is $2,000. The YC61 has waterfall keys and drawbars with VCM out the wazoo. The YC61 also includes FM synthesis for FM electric pianos. Speaking of pianos, the YC61 has acoustic pianos as well as electric: Acoustic
- [Korg unpops the NAMM 2020 cork](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/korg-unpops-the-namm-2020-cork/) - Just when I'm ready to tuck into a new toy, someone -- Korg -- announces another pair of new keyboards for NAMM. Let's see, the new Korg spawn now include: i3 Music Workstation XE20SP Digital Ensemble Piano wavestate SV-2 Stage Vintage Piano EK-50 L Entertainer Keyboard Catch all of the action on Korg's web site.
- [SHS-500: Snap review](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/shs-500-snap-review/) - After analyzing the Yamaha SHS-500 Sonogenic from every possible angle (even the service manual!), I finally got one. On-line retailers are currently flooded with post-Christmas returns and bargains can be had. And so it was. First, I must compliment Sweetwater for their prompt service and excellent packing. The SHS-500 was double-boxed. (The inner box was
- [Let's get small!](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/lets-get-small/) - I'm always looking to lighten the load and I'm pleased to see the new JBL Professional IRX Series portable PA speakers, announced for Winter NAMM 2020. There are two models: 8" IRX108BT and 12" IRX112BT. More class D amplifiers, no doubt, with JBL claiming 1,300 Watts. Connectivity includes two combo XLR/TRS inputs, XLR loop-out, and
- [Korg Wavestate leak?](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/korg-wavestate-leak/) - It's been difficult to sniff out any big reveals at Winter NAMM 2020 (January 16-19, 2020). There's one credible looking leak -- the Korg Wavestate. It's a 37-key 'board with lots of knobs, buttons, mod wheel and pitch wheel. A modern re-make of the venerable Wavestation? Filters include MS-20 and POLYSIX settings along with the
- [Early wave table and FM synthesis](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/early-wave-table-and-fm-synthesis/) - Discussions about Yamaha Montage/MODX AWM2 and FM-X sent me digging into the past to unearth early AWM and FM implementations in order to get insight into today's tone generation hardware. Although Yamaha do not publish design information about their proprietary SWP, SWX, SWL, etc. processors, they have published datasheets for their merchant line of LSI
- [Remie: A Christmas Story](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/remie-a-christmas-story/) - My Yamaha PSS-E30 Remie review promised updates about how Remie works out in the real world with a two year old. Here's a the first update (and why we moved out west to be with our grandson). Background: Our grandson attended Kindermusik classes while he was an infant and, man, we can see the effects
- [Musing about Montage VA](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/musing-about-montage-va/) - There's been an extended discussion in the YamahaSynth.com Montage Forum about the ability to add Virtual Analog (VA) synthesis to the current Montage and MODX platforms. It's been a good discussion and it encouraged me to jot down a few musings about the hardware support for AWM2 and FM-X. In case you don't visit YamahaSynth.com,
- [SHS-300: The PSS keytar?](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/shs-300-the-pss-keytar/) - I made a little more progress delineating Yamaha's mini-key product lines. The PSS series is built for low manufacturing cost. Thanks to PSS-E30 (Remie) and PSS-A50 tear-downs, we know that the PSS series is based on the ultra-small, relatively inexpensive SWLL (YWM-830) processor. So, what to make of the Yamaha SHS-300 and SHS-500 keytars? The
- [Modding the PSS series](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/modding-the-pss-series/) - I promised a few thoughts about modding the new Yamaha PSS series keyboards. Here goes… As shown in my PSS-E30 Remie tear-down, a PSS family keyboard consists of four major parts: Mini keybed Digital logic board (DM) Front panel board Plastic skin and parts For comparison, I recommend this excellent PSS-A50 demo and tear-down on
- [SHS-500 Sonogenic voices](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/shs-500-sonogenic-voices/) - With Yamaha PSS-E30 Remie at hand, I'm still comparison shopping the PSS series against the Yamaha SHS-500 Sonogenic. The Sonogenic has better build quality, has 5-pin MIDI as well as MIDI over USB/Bluetooth, and integrates with Chord Tracker. Then there is the issue of sound quality. Remie and the rest of the PSS series (PSS-F30
- [Yamaha Genos V2.0 Update](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/yamaha-genos-v2-0-update/) - The Yamaha Genos™ V2.0 update is available for download from your regional Yamaha musical instrument site. Reading through the list of changes, the Yamaha engineers have changed many of the internal data structures and file formats in order to support new features. Thus, like the MODX update, you will need to save your user data
- [Yamaha MODX: Inside stuff](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/yamaha-modx-inside-stuff/) - Time for a quick look at the MODX internal hardware. I'm going to be brief, so please read my Yamaha Genos articles (main CPU and tone generation) and my Montage internals article for more details and background information. The MODX main CPU subsystem should look familiar. It is essentially the same as the Montage main
- [Just like starting over](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/just-like-starting-over/) - I'm playing with a new group of liturgical musicians and am having great fun. The two biggest challenges when playing with a new group are 1. listening and 2. picking up new music. Both challenges are opportunities for growth. Listening is always key. As a synth player, I'm a bit of a frustrated orchestrator. Instruments
- [Update about the updates](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/update-about-the-updates/) - Yamaha Genos V2.0 is on the way Yamaha have updated their short video about the Genos V2.0 update. The release date is now specific: 15 November 2019. There was considerable squabbling on the forums as to what "Winter 2019" meant. I'm glad that Yamaha has put the question to rest. The other big tidbit from
- [Yamaha Genos, Montage, sample compression](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/yamaha-genos-montage-sample-compression/) - Sample compression is a bit of a hot topic among tech heads on the PSR Tutorial Forum and the YamahaSynth.com Forum. Yamaha recently pre-announced the Yamaha Genos V2.0 update. Features will include: Increased expansion memory from 1.8GBytes to 3.0GBytes Genos V2.0 Superior Pack (50 styles, more than 25 voices including SuperArticulation 2) Chord Looper Style
- [Another tiny toy from Yamaha: SHS-300](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/another-tiny-toy-from-yamaha-shs-300/) - Yamaha keeps cranking out mini-keyboards! The SHS-300 Sonogenic is squarely in the musical toy category. The SHS-500 keytar is a solid, well-built instrument with 28 melodic instruments, 2 drum kits (House and Power), and DSP effects. The SHS-300, on the other hand, is a plastic, reduced rendition. Both keyboards interface with Yamaha's ChordTracker app and
- [Where in the world?](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/where-in-the-world/) - Been quite a while since the last post, eh? :-) All I can say is that moving is a long journey! I'm currently holed up in a hotel outside Everett, WA -- 3,000 miles west of our old home. Fortunately, our former house sold quickly and we found a new house in just two weeks
- [Yamaha Genos update v1.4](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/yamaha-genos-update-v1-4/) - Yamaha have posted Genos™ update v1.4 to their support sites. I'm in the process of downloading and installing the update. [More later.] Yamaha have also updated the Genos manuals and the AudioPhraser program. AudioPhraser definitely needed some touch-ups. Hopefully, there is a new version of Yamaha Expansion Manager (YEM) and ChordTracker just around the corner.
- [MODX, Ratt, guitar tone](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/modx-ratt-guitar-tone/) - This post is a welcome escape from the mental anguish of cleaning, packing, moving, etc. A member of the YamahaSynth.com MODX forum asked for help in obtaining a particular guitar tone for Rock/Metal. I confess that Metal is not a genre that I dip into and I was somewhat at a loss to help out.
- [Superbooth 2019](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/superbooth-2019/) - Most of my days are now spent prep'ing our house for sale and an eventual move. If you've been there before, you know quite well why my blog posts have become infrequent! Rest assured, my eyes are still gazing at new music technology and, especially, the gizmos announced at Superbooth 2019. Korg's recent announcements caught
- [Genos sound alike voices on MODX](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/genos-sound-alike-voices-on-modx/) - I love kicking back in the afternoon and playing some old classic tunes from the 60s and beyond. The Yamaha Genos™ is a great machine for producing backing tracks and for jamming against them. I spent a fair amount of time selecting the appropriate instrument for each cover tune. Now, I'd like to play the
- [Genos/PSR organ registrations](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/genospsr-organ-registrations/) - I'm deep in another one of those "cross-platform" projects in which I share voice programming between Yamaha Genos™ and Yamaha MODX. In this case, I'm recreating some of the PSR/Genos "organ flutes" registrations on MODX. "Organ flutes" is Yamaha-speak for drawbar organ emulation. Genos and S-series PSR arranger workstations implement two kinds of drawbar (Hammond
- [Yamaha MODX gospel organ](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/yamaha-modx-gospel-organ/) - I've been woodshedding an up-beat gospel tune, "Stop By, Lord" by Doris Wesley Bettis. It needs a brighter B3 registration than my typical church registrations. So, I turned to Genos™ for inspiration. Two Genos voices stood out: GospelOrgan and UpsideDownSmile. They are similar and the drawbar settings form an arching curve (i.e., the upside down
- ["Joy, beauty, confidence, and discovery"](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/yamaha-2019-annual-report/) - I've been reading Yamaha's 2018 Annual Report to investors and would like to pass along these observations. Yamaha, the business, is in transition. It reorganized its by-product line structure into a function-specific structure: production, sales, marketing, R&D, design. These functions have centralized management and are not distributed into product line units. Hopefully, this change and
- [Pacific Northwest Vintage Computer Festival](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/pacific-northwest-vintage-computer-festival/) - I apologize for the pause in blog posts. Between travel and prep'ing the house for sale, the last few weeks have been insane. The painters are wrapping up their work today, leaving a little bit of time for writing. Our trip took us to the Seattle area for a visit with family. Fortunately, our trip
- [PSR-EW410: Tour of its electronics](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/psr-ew410-tour-of-its-electronics/) - Last August, I took an in-depth look at the internal design of Yamaha's entry-level, low-cost keyboards. Up until the last few years, Yamaha's low-end keyboards were based around its proprietary SWL01 processor. The SWL01 is a high volume LSI part which combines a microprocessor, tone generation and DSP resources into a single integrated circuit. The
- [LSI, LSI](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/lsi-lsi/) - More fun with large scale integration (LSI). I went mad with desire when I heard about the Switch Science eVocaloid eVY1 shield for Arduino. The bad news is Switch Science is out of stock and is not making the board any longer. I started to deep dive the Yamaha NSX-1 eVocaloid IC at the heart
- [Sampleson Reed200 and Markus88](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/sampleson-reed200-and-markus88/) - I like to give shout outs to companies and people who are doing unique work. Sampleson® have developed and are selling two spectral modeled electric piano VST instruments: Reed200 modeled Wurlitzer Markus88 Stage 88 They are modestly priced and I recommend giving them a listen. Spectral modeling came into light through the Yamaha CP1/CP40 and
- [Winter NAMM 2019: Random Youtube videos](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/winter-namm-2019-youtube-videos/) - I'm going to post a random selection of Youtube videos here as I stumble into them. First up are a couple of Yamaha Sonogenic SHS-500. The first video featuring Gabriel Aldort from Yamaha is funny, but shows the essence of the Sonogenic -- a fun instrument to play along with tunes. One tidbit -- Android
- [Yamaha SHS-500 follow-up](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/yamaha-shs-500-follow-up/) - The Yamaha SHS-500 Sonogenic keytar won a Winter NAMM 2019 Best In Show "Gotta Stock It" award. Congrats! The for-real (PDF) Yamaha SHS-500 Owner's Manual and Reference Manual are available on Yamaha's Web site. Yamaha just published text manuals at launch. Now that I can see pictures (!), there's a few things worth mentioning. The
- [Yamaha piano voice programming](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/yamaha-piano-voice-programming/) - Most of my live playing adds orchestral instruments or B-3 organ to our liturgical church group (synth plus 12-string guitar plus grand piano). Thus, I don't dip into either acoustic piano or electric piano too often. Recently, we prepared a number of gospel tunes in honor of Dr. Martin Luther King. Rather than jump to
- [Winter NAMM 2019: Yamaha Sonogenic](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/winter-namm-2019-yamaha-sonogenic/) - Drop what you're doing right now and take a look at the Yamaha Sonogenic SHS-500. [Update: Yamaha SHS-500 Pre-review] "Sonogenic SHS-500 is a new type of instrument from Yamaha that is perfect for music lovers who want to participate in making music, but maybe haven't learned how. This Keytar ("Key"board + Gui"tar") gives you the
- [Yamaha SHS-500 Sonogenic (pre-review)](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/yamaha-shs-500-sonogenic-pre-review/) - [I had a chance to think about yesterday's SHS-500 Sonogenic announcement. Please think of this blog post as a pre-review.] The Yamaha SHS-500 Sonogenic is a fun instrument for people without musical training. It could very well be fun for musical amateurs and pros, too! The SHS-500 is an interesting alternative to arranger keyboards. With
- [Winter NAMM 2019: You Komplete me](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/winter-namm-2019-you-komplete-me/) - Native Instruments are trolling the low end and that ain't bad. I haven't jumped into the deep end of the NI pool. Over the holidays, I downloaded the free player versions of Guitar Rig 5, Kontakt and Reaktor 6. I believe in the low end theory which says that you can make good music without
- [Winter NAMM 2019: Super fly](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/winter-namm-2019-super-fly/) - In the portable amps category, Blackstar are launching the Super Fly mini amp: two 3 inch speakers, 12 Watts, Bluetooth, battery power (eight AA cells), tilt back stand, optional rechargeable battery pack. [Click image to enlarge.] Mini amps are usually designed for electric guitar. So, if you're a keyboard player looking to put your synth
- [Winter NAMM 2019: Today's catch](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/winter-namm-2019-todays-catch/) - Given all of the on-line resources and forums, I don't really try to cover the music tech universe. Sites like MusicRadar, etc. have staff for that. I prefer to take note of products that I will visit again in the future. Shucks, my memory ain't so good anymore. One product worth another look is the
- [Winter NAMM 2019: Make it redder](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/winter-namm-2019-make-it-redder/) - Just in case the world isn't red enough for you, Nord have introduced the Nord Piano Monitor by Audio Pro. [Click image to enlarge.] The monitors mount directly on the Nord Piano 4 using (optional) mounting brackets. The brackets also allow attachment to mic stands. Specs are (courtesy of Nord): Dual inputs for keyboard and
- [Spectral (component) modeling](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/spectral-component-modeling/) - The subject of Yamaha's Spectral Component Modeling (SCM) technology comes up from time to time. Yamaha have successfully employed SCM in its CP1/CP4 stage pianos and Reface CP instrument. Players love SCM because it avoids sonic discontinuities due to velocity switching, giving a more natural and dynamic character as the player digs in or strikes
- [Yamaha CP73 and CP88: Da manuals](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/yamaha-cp73-and-cp88-da-manuals/) - The Yamaha CP73 and CP88 Owner's Manual (PDF) and Supplementary Manual (PDF) are now on-line at the CP products download page. The Supplementary Manual has a compact list of CP voices, including the new voices added in OS Version 1.10. All right, all right, you're wondering about the organ voices: # Name CC# -- --------------
- [Winter NAMM 2019: Short bits](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/winter-namm-2019-short-bits/) - The Effigy Labs MIDI foot controller is a pedal that frees your left hand from MOD wheel and pitch bend duties. The pedal sends MIDI on both USB-B and DIN-5 outputs. The pedal takes power from either USB, internal 9V battery or external AC adapter. Although the pedal is programmed at the factory to send
- [Winter NAMM 2019: Akai Pro Force](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/winter-namm-2019-akai-pro-force/) - Wow! Winter NAMM 2019 is one week away and we've seen major new products everywhere. The Akai Pro Force is a much-anticipated product -- a standalone, Ableton Live-like workstation. Force is a clip-oriented production workstation with real-time pitch and time stretch. Force will include FX plug-ins from AIR Music Technology. Synth engines include TubeSynth, Bassline,
- [Winter NAMM 2019: Korg get spiffed](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/winter-namm-2019-korg-get-spiffed/) - spiff, verb, make someone or some thing attractive, tidy or stylish By now, you've heard and seen the Korg Kronos SE (Special Edition) with the new love it or hate it paint job. I hope it looks better in person than its pictures! The Kronos SE adds the Italian piano which first appeared in the
- [Winter NAMM 2019: Interfaces](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/winter-namm-2019-interfaces/) - With 15 days until Winter NAMM 2019, no bombshell products other than unverified rumors on the forums. Here's a few announced products which will be promoted at Winter NAMM 2019. Inexpensive audio/MIDI interfaces Readers of Sound On Sound may covet audio/MIDI interfaces with 4 figure price tags, but it's the low end of the price
- [Winter NAMM 2019: Yamaha CP73 and CP88](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/winter-namm-2019-yamaha-cp73-and-cp88/) - As I mentioned in my last post, Yamaha have announced two new stage pianos: CP73 and CP88. Features in common are: Three premium grand pianos: CFX, S700 and Bösendorfer Imperial 290 Two upright piano Voices: vintage U1 and flagship SU7 Five electric pianos for covering all music genres back to the 1970s Yamaha CP OS
- [Winter NAMM 2019: Korg and more](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/winter-namm-2019-korg-and-more/) - Back on the streets at home just in time for Korg to drop its newest products. The details are up on the Korg Web site, so there isn't a need to deep dive the details here. The Kog Minilogue brings a smile to my face whenever I play it. Since I don't have an actual
- [Noted in passing](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/noted-in-passing/) - A recent post about the Venova™ wind instrument reminded me about a few patent applications from last summer. In addition to technology patents, Yamaha have been actively filing for and obtaining design patents on the physical industrial design of their products. Here are a half-dozen recently awarded design patents: US D837,282: VKB-100 Vocaloid™ keytar US
- [Zoom Q2n-4K: Wow!](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/zoom-q2n-4k-wow/) - January 2nd and I've started my Web-scrape in advance of Winter NAMM 2019 (24-27 January 2019). I came across a short blurb for the Zoom Q2n-4K Camera for Musicians and all I can say is "Wow!" A lot of this "Wow" comes simply from my awe at the amount of high definition functionality -- video
- [Genos to 60 in 4 seconds](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/genos-to-60-in-4-seconds/) - Well, maybe two minutes. :-) Let's say that you want to use Yamaha Genos™ solely as a synthesizer. Here's a quick start or at least enough to get you familiar enough to get into the Owner's Manual. Turn accompaniment off If you want to use Genos as a synth, I recommend turning the accompaniment features
- [Crumar D9U: Electro 2 Sketch (Part 5)](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/crumar-d9u-electro-2-sketch-part-5/) - Finally, after all of the testing, the first Crumar D9U Drawbar Controller application sketch! The sketch below changes the drawbar settings for the Nord Electro 2. The Arduino on board the D9U sends a complete snapshot of all nine drawbar settings to the Electro 2 at start-up and whenever the tactile switch is depressed. Thereafter,
- [Crumar D9U: Testing MIDI (Part 4)](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/crumar-d9u-testing-midi-part-4/) - Apologies for the delay between posts. It isn't for lack of enthusiasm for the Crumar D9U Drawbar Controller. It's preparation for the approaching holidays. Today's post is another aspect of unit testing -- MIDI. The D9U has a 3.5mm MIDI OUT jack. The MIDI signals conform to the MIDI "Type B" pin-out for 3.5mm jacks.
- [Crumar D9U: What went wrong? (Day 3)](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/crumar-d9u-what-went-wrong-day-3/) - People who build stuff are optimists. Even just a little. After slaving over a hot soldering iron (or bit of code), there comes the moment of truth. Of course, we all hope and believe that everything will run just fine when power is turned on. Thus, I was a little bit bummed when I ran
- [Crumar D9U: Slip slidin' (day 2)](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/crumar-d9u-day-2/) - Today I completed most of the remaining assembly of the Crumar D9U Drawbar Controller. The work entailed: Combining the Arduino control board and the main PCB. Installing the drawbar slide pots on the bottom of the chassis. Soldering the main PCB to the slide pots and soldering the DIL connections to the Arduino control board.
- [Crumar D9U: Day one](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/crumar-d9u-day-one/) - This time of year, the Sun is low in the sky and its morning rays shine bright in the dining room, AKA my downstairs work area. The morning sunlight is perfect for close-in soldering. I started to assemble the Crumar D9U Drawbar Controller today. Wow, the pads are small, so if you're following my lead
- [Crumar D9U in the house!](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/crumar-d9u-in-the-house/) - When I saw the Crumar D9U Drawbar Controller, I knew "Man, I have got to get one of these." Und, I did. In short, the D9U is an Arduino-based drawbar controller done right. It has nine real drawbars, a MIDI OUT mini-jack and is USB powered through the Arduino Pro Micro which provides the brains.
- [MODX: Quick thoughts](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/modx-quick-thoughts/) - The Yamaha synth folks recently posted an IdeaScale appeal for people willing to participate in a phone interview concerning Montage and synths. Fortunately, I was able to snag an interview slot. Here's just a few thoughts that are on my mind. I'm quite happy with both the MODX sound and user interface (UI) although I
- [MULTI FX: It's for organ, too!](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/multi-fx-drawbar-organ/) - Every now and again, a question pops up on a forum that is worth reposting here. A member of the YamahaSynth.com MODX forum inquired about distortion effects for drawbar organ. Yamaha has introduced new DSP effects with every generation of synth and arranger. Unless you don't have a life (and I resemble that remark), you're
- [MODX: Sampling Genos pipe organ](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/modx-sampling-genos-pipe-organ/) - Sample Robot for Montage (SRM) is a very useful addition to the Yamaha MODX (Montage) product ecosystem. After my initial start-up experience: Creating a new MODX waveform Creating a new waveform by importing samples with SRM Setting up to collect samples via SRM Using MODX libraries I went on to produce two sampled pipe organ
- [MODX: Going to the library](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/modx-going-to-the-library/) - After resolving yesterday's Sample Robot teething issues, I pulled together two new sampled pipe organ voices. Each voice is stored into its own MODX Library file as exported by Sample Robot for Montage (SRM). At this point, I realized that libraries and voices are going to stack up quickly. So, I dipped into a few
- [Sample Robot: Quick feedback](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/sample-robot-quick-feedback/) - I'm deep into the next phase of my experiments with SKYLIFE Sample Robot -- automatically sampling a pipe organ voice from Yamaha Genos™ Two mundane, yet important observations: The license allows up to 3 simultaneous installs -- quite generous. Sample Robot is 64-bit only. (?) I intended to install Sample Robot on my "upstairs" PC.
- [MODX: Get started with Sample Robot](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/modx-get-started-with-sample-robot/) - In my last post, I created a new Yamaha MODX Performance from a handful of WAV files. The new Performance had shortcomings, mainly due to short loops in the samples themselves. I tossed the first one away. What the heck -- it's only bits. :-) Last time, I did all of the work on the
- [MODX: Creating a new waveform](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/modx-creating-a-new-waveform/) - Whether it's scientific papers or Web how-to's, you would think that no one ever made a mistake or tried something and failed. The path to success is really crooked. So, here is a blog post about an experiment that almost worked out. I've been hoarding pipe organ samples for decades (literally). For example, some of
- [MODX: Select Performance from MMS](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/modx-select-performance-from-mms/) - Between shopping for Halloween candy and the dentist, there's just enough time for a few quick experiments with Yamaha MODX and Mobile Music Sequencer (MMS). I've explored MMS MIDI messages in earlier blog posts. MMS transmits MIDI messages that by and large conform to the Yamaha XG voice and effects architecture. The MMS software synth
- [Yamaha MODX: Creating a split](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/yamaha-modx-creating-a-split/) - Yesterday, we learned how to make a two voice layer and how to control one of the Parts using the Super Knob. Today, I go over the steps to create a two Part split: 1. Press the CATEGORY button and find the Performance that will be used as the left hand voice. For this example,
- [Easy MODX Super Knob example](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/easy-modx-super-knob-example/) - I recommend watching one of the MODX tutorial videos recorded by Yamaha's Blake Angelos. After getting through the usual preliminaries, Blake shows how to create a simple piano and synth pad layer with Super Knob control. Back on the job, I had a saying when I or another team member got overly enthusiastic during design
- [MODX Performance: Latin Flutist](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/modx-performance-latin-flutist/) - To better understand voice programming, you'll need to know a few of the abbreviations which appear in waveform names: Abbreviation Meaning Stac Staccato (detached) Of Offset (start after attack) St Stereo L Left R Right Sw Velocity switched NV No vibrato Yamaha have never published an official key for their waveform naming convention, so this
- [Paul Allen: 1953-2018](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/paul-allen-1953-2018/) - To be sure, you'll find many obits for Paul Allen, who died on Monday, October 15, 2018. I'd like to take a moment to reflect on his work and life. Sure, he struck it rich with Microsoft, but he quickly turned to philanthropy after an early bout with cancer. Disease and the Grim Reaper have
- [MODX Theatre Orchestra](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/modx-theatre-orchestra/) - Today's project is reconstructing one of my favorite voices stolen from Genos/PSR: TheatreOrchestra. This voice first appeared in Tyros 3, using waveforms that are roughly contemporaneous with Motif XS (MOX). The following table summarizes the eight voice elements in TheatreOrchestra. The voice parameters are pulled from the Genos UVF file for the voice. Element Low
- [Akai Professional MPK Mini Play](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/akai-professional-mpk-mini-play/) - Compared to the Yamaha MODX, the Akai Professional MPK Mini Play is a piece of Halloween candy. The MPK Mini Play is a tiny 2-octave keyboard with eight MPC drum pads, four knobs and a joystick. It's battery powered (3 AA batteries). And get this, it has an internal sound engine (128 voices and 10
- [MODX after the first gig](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/modx-after-the-first-gig/) - This weekend's gig with MODX went reasonably well. Among the patches that I tried live, there were many hits and a few misses. Inevitably, there are misses. Some patches sound great at home, but just don't quite cut it when playing with a painist and/or guitarist. I've been editing and A/B testing my own patches,
- [Blazin'](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/yamaha-modx-all9bars/) - Baby, I'm amazed at how fast I have pulled together enough MODX Performances to take MODX to my gig tomorrow. This is definitely a set up record and testimony to efficient workflow through the touch screen user interface. Of course, being familiar with the Yamaha AWM2 synthesis architecture (and its many parameters) is a big
- [And we're off!](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/modx-effects-screen-capture/) - The exploration begins! Starting in with a new keyboard is like landing on the Moon. What should I explore first? First stop: Reverb Effects are critical to good sound. I've fallen in love with the Genos™ "Real Small Hall+" effect preset. It just sounds nice to my ears and I want to incorporate it into
- [Relationship: Committed](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/yamaha-modx-snap-review/) - I went in to play the 88 and walked out with the 61. It isn't because I don't like the Yamaha MODX8 -- it comes down to repertoire, need and gamey heart rhythm. If I could schlep the Montage 6 (33 pounds), I would have bought the Montage ages ago. :-) I dropped by my
- [Yamaha MODX vs. Montage](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/yamaha-modx-vs-montage/) - I'm pretty well convinced that the Yamaha MODX leak is legitimate. BTW, I think Yamaha will pronounce the name "MO D X" to reflect a continuation of the MO heritage and to emphasize the FM-X technology by recalling the DX synth line. Here's a quick table comparing MODX versus Montage. There are still a few
- [Yamaha MODX announcement](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/yamaha-modx-announcement/) - I'm going to update this page as information rolls out. The Yamaha MODX Owner's Manual is now available in the Yamaha manual library. No Data List PDF (yet). Once we have the Data List, we'll be able to do a better comparison of effect types versus the Montage. Yamaha added a number of effect algorithms
- [MODX aftermath](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/modx-aftermath/) - After a veritable explosion of Yamaha MODX information on the Web, there isn't too much new to say! One useful tidbit is MODX availability. Yamaha expect MODX to be available at retailers around September 27. Another tidbit is to download the MODX version 1.10 updater from the Yamaha support site, if you need it. Folks
- [Mobile Music Sequencer mixer](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/mobile-music-sequencer-mixer/) - In recent posts, I mentioned that Yamaha Mobile Music Sequencer (MMS) sends MIDI messages which conform to the XG voice and effects standard. Here's a few screen shots to illustrate my observation. The first thing everyone sees is the MMS Phrase Viewer. This is where you assemble phrases into sections. (It's kind of like the
- [Getting started with style files](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/getting-started-with-style-files/) - The question of getting started with the creation and editing of PSR/Tyros/Genos style files arose on the PSR Tutorial Forum. I'm re-posting my reply here. The best suggestion that I can make is reading Jørgen's style creation course: Style creation course (PDF) Style file reference (PDF) If folks don't like PDF, there are on-line versions
- [MMS: Pack voices and drum kits](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/mms-pack-voices-and-drum-kits/) - I've been mining the Yamaha Mobile Music Sequencer (MMS) patterns. Yamaha themselves mined these patterns from the old "Mini Mo" mm6/mm8 keyboards. The mm6 and mm8 are a somewhat unique hybrid of a Yamaha arranger and cut-down Motif MO synth. I plan to post several PSR-compatible styles based on the MMS patterns. In the meantime,
- [Yamaha QY-70 anatomy](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/yamaha-qy-70-anatomy/) - My ancient Yamaha QY-70 is a handy XG-compatible MIDI module. Quite useful when knocking out a track or two in the dining room. [Table space is tight.] After 21 years, the back-up battery is nearly kaput and the dreaded "Back-up battery low" message appears whenever I turn on the QY. Fortunately, I'm paranoid as heck
- [Yamaha MODX Version 1.10 Update](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/yamaha-modx-version-1-10-update/) - Yamaha just posted the MODX Data List, Reference Manual, Supplementary Manual, and Synthesizer Parameter Manual. You'll find them in the Yamaha manual library or linked from the MODX page on your regional Yamaha site. The Supplementary Manual describes the new functions added with the MODX Version 1.10 update. Quoting the manual: Yamaha has upgraded the
- [Yamaha MODX audio demos](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/yamaha-modx-audio-demos/) - The folks at AudioFanzine.com have posted 40 audio snippets demonstrating the new Yamaha MODX synthesizer. Merci beaucoup, AudioFanzine.com! Pretty much sounds like a Montage! Strings, horns, brass, organ -- I can't hear much difference from the Montage. I love the woodwind demo. Nicely played with a contemporary cinematic flair. Très bon! Having spent a lot
- [Yamaha MODX: A few more details](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/yamaha-modx-a-few-more-details/) - A few more pre-announcement details are coming out about the new Yamaha MODX synthesizer. Official prices will be announced tomorrow. MODX6 MODX7 MODX8 Price 1,399€ 1,599€ 1,799€ Weight 6.6kg 7.4kg 13.8kg For 'mercans, that's: MODX6 MODX7 MODX8 MSRP (list) $1,649 USD $1,899 USD $2,399 USD MAP (street) $1,299 USD $1,499 USD $1,899 USD Weight 14.6
- [Roland Drops a Keytar](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/roland-drops-a-keytar/) - I'm sure you've seen it elsewhere by now... Special thanks to the chap who posted this image on Gearslutz! 9 pounds, eh? I'm still trying to get rid of my Les Paul copy. Too old for this... :-) I did have a chance to check the Roland Juno DS line. Nice mid-range product and can
- [Korg EK-50: Meh](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/korg-ek-50-ewwwwwh/) - As I mentioned in my last post, both Roland and Yamaha have new product announcements and events scheduled for this week (September 13 and September 14, respectively). No Roland rumors to far, but there was a slip uncovering the Yamaha MODX. The holiday sales musical instrument sales season seems to have come early this year,
- [Yamaha MODX pictures](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/yamaha-modx-pictures/) - There are some very nice pictures of the new Yamaha MODX on AudioFanzine.com. Good close-ups of the front panel and screen. Here's a few additional thoughts to go along with my earlier comments about the Yamaha MODX. Yamaha have moved the pitch bend wheel, modulation wheel and assignable buttons to the upper left. The MOX/MOXF
- [Yamaha MODX event?](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/yamaha-modx-event/) - Yamaha have scheduled a new product event on September 14 at 1PM EDT. See YamahaSynth.com for more details. Meanwhile, please check out the preliminary, unofficial MODX information below. Looks like Korg and Roland have been busy, too. Roland is announcing some new products on the 13th, the day before the Yamaha event. A taste of
- [Do you question?](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/yamaha-modx-real-or-hoax/) - The latest hot rumor. Do you question whether this is real or a hoax? An on-line retailer is running the text below with a price of 1,399 British pounds for the 76-key model. The Keyboard Magazine Forum has a picture of a 61-key model. Real or not? I'll post more thoughts later. I've gotta gig
- [Mobile Music Sequencer revisited](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/mobile-music-sequencer-revisited/) - Yamaha Mobile Music Sequencer (MMS) is an app that doesn't seem to get as much love as it deserves. MMS is a rather complete MIDI sequencing tool to create new songs using a phrase-based approach. (Cost: $15.99USD) The MMS user interface has a superficial resemblance to Ableton Live. It has a phrase screen which lets
- [Baby's are cute!](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/suzuki-baby-leslie/) - I have got to get me one of these for my Yamaha Reface YC. Cost (12,000Yen / $108USD) is no object. :-) Quoting Suzuki: The Baby Leslie Bluetooth speaker inherits the look of the original Leslie 122 speaker, developed exclusively for Hammond Organs. Although the "Baby Leslie" does not provide the Rotary Effect of traditional
- [All is swell (SWL)](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/swl-micro-architecture/) - Yamaha develop a wide range of keyboard products from low-cost entry-level 'boards to high-end synthesizers and digital workstations (AKA "arrangers"). Within a market segment, the engineering challenge is to develop, manufacture and test a product with the desired feature set at the target selling price. I won't discuss profit margin here since no one really
- [MIDI TRS pin-out](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/midi-trs-pin-out/) - The MIDI Association has released Recommended Practice #54 covering the use of TRS connectors for standard current loop MIDI. If you're not a member of the MIDI Association, I strongly recommend becoming a member. Among other benefits, members have access to the Association's on-line specifications and recommended practices. Without putting too fine a point on
- [Yamaha VKB-100 redux](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/yamaha-vkb-100-redux/) - OK, sooner or later, you knew I would circle back to the Yamaha VKB-100 VOCALOID keyboard. This little gem is a vocal keytar that lets you play pre-loaded lyrics using an installed Vocaloid library sound. Up to five libraries may be installed including the VY-1 library that ships with the VKB-100. The VKB-100 can be
- [Montage update v2.5](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/montage-update-v2-5/) - Just when the summer seemed truly boring, Yamaha drops the Montage v2.5 update. I think Yamaha engineers have heard many user comments and requests. They have continued to beef up legacy (Motif XF) Performance support in Montage, providing all of the original Motif XF Performances as presets. The legacy Performances have Super Knob assignments. Good
- [Insertion effects for MIDI songs](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/insertion-effects-for-midi-songs/) - The new Yamaha Genos™ platform greatly expands the number of DSP insertion effects for styles and MIDI songs. No doubt, you would like to put these insertion effects to work in your own styles and MIDI songs. This blog post should help you get started. There are 28 insertion effect units at your disposal: Insertion
- [Summer snoozer?](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/summer-namm-2018-snoozer/) - Summer NAMM 2018 starts in a few days and so far it looks like a snoozer. I haven't found many preliminary announcements of interest. I'm tempted to predict Yamaha's MOXF replacement (or upgrade), again. However, at some point, one starts to look like a broken clock being right twice a day. :-) Yamaha have announced
- [Time stretching applied to rotary speaker sound](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/yamaha-patent-rotary-speaker/) - "Sí, sí, I am very intrigued." With Summer NAMM 2018 one week away, I cast the net to see what I can catch. I did a quick sweep of recent patents and came up with a good 'un. When folks mention Yamaha, "tonewheel clone" does not immediately come to mind. Other players like Nord, Hammond
- [Boston Music Expo 2018](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/boston-music-expo-2018/) - After having so much fun last year, I couldn't pass up the 2018 Boston Music Expo (Saturday, June 9). Music Expo brings people together -- artists, producers, engineers, composers, tech companies -- the whole panoply of folks at the intersection of musical art and technology. Sound On Sound Magazine is the chief sponsor. This year's
- [Which guitar is which?](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/which-guitar-is-which/) - I hope my recent post about single coil and double coil guitar tone and amp simulators was helpful. Today, I want to further reduce theory to practice. A quick recap Guitar pickups are important to overall guitar tone. There are two main types of pickup: single coil and double coil. Players generally describe the sound
- [Review: Business class air service](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/review-business-class-air-service/) - Ah, life has been busy. I've spent a fair amount of time traveling over the last few months. Soon, I'll be posting code for a major new project that I've had in the works. My post today is somewhat out of character for this site. However, I'd like to take the opportunity to review and
- [Audio Style file format](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/audio-style-file-format/) - Yamaha introduced audio styles in the PSR-S950 arranger workstation. Audio styles are both loved and hated. Loved when they sound good, but hated when people try to change or repurpose them in new styles. The term "audio style" is a bit of an overstatement. Only the percussion track is audio. At least, that's how audio
- [Back in the U.S.](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/back-in-the-u-s/) - If you sense a dearth of recent posts, you're right. February and March have been insanely busy, including two long trips. The first trip took us to Seattle to see our grandson who grows by leaps and bounds every day. The second trip was to South Africa where we married off our nephew and welcomed
- [Code: Display Genos UVF voice info](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/code-display-genos-uvf-voice-info/) - February and March have proven to be a very busy months. On top of everything, the weather in the U.S. Northeast has been atrocious and we have suffered through long power outages. One rapidly realizes how dependent we are on electricity for light, heating and even water. Our house has its own well and we
- [Genos: Needed DSP improvements](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/genos-needed-dsp-improvements/) - I've really enjoyed playing Genos. The Super Articulation 2 (SArt2) voices take emulative synthesis to a new level of realism. Although Yamaha have added the new rotary speaker effect to the Genos, there is still work needed to make the drawbar organ experience realistic and competitive with Hammond clones. Yamaha needs to bring the drawbar
- [Genos master compressor](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/genos-master-compressor/) - There is an on-going discussion at the PSR Tuturial Forum about the Yamaha Genos™ master compressor. I did a little "effect sleuthing" and determined that the Genos master compressor is the same algorithm as the Yamaha Montage parallel compressor, PARALLEL COMP. This effect is part of the Montage v1.5 update. The same update added the
- [Genos voice editing: Blending the split point](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/genos-voice-editing-blending-the-split-point/) - Recall that our goal is to create a Yamaha Genos™ custom voice with an overlapping split zone between upper and lower instruments. The first step started with factory preset voices to build a split voice using Yamaha Expansion Manager (YEM). The second step used XML Notepad to change the high and low note limits. These
- [Genos voice editing: XML Notepad](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/genos-voice-editing-xml-notepad/) - In my previous post about Yamaha Genos™ voice editing, I introduced the voice editing features provided by Yamaha Expansion Manager (YEM). This post describes a way to work around the shortcomings in YEM. YEM stores low-level voice programming information in XML files with the "UVF" file name extension. In case you're not familiar with XML,
- [Genos voice editing: An example](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/genos-voice-editing-an-example/) - Welcome to the third article in a short series about Yamaha Genos™ voice editing with Yamaha Expansion Manager (YEM). The first article introduces YEM and the second article discusses work arounds for a few shortcomings in YEM. Time for an example! Let's create a voice similar to the "2 Oboes & Bassoon" voice on the
- [Genos voice editing: YEM](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/genos-voice-editing-yem/) - To date, my experience with Yamaha Genos™ has been generally positive. I've got a basic set of registrations set up for church tunes and I just converted the PSR-S950 registrations for rock, pop, jazz, funk tunes. Everything -- customized styles, WAV files, and registrations -- reside in the Genos' internal memory. Although some Genos players
- [NAMM 2018: Montage 2.0](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/namm-2018-montage-2-0/) - Check out the obligatory Yamaha video which summarizes the OS 2.0 update. Also, catch Yamaha's Blake Angelos in the Sonicstate video. [Hold that camera steady, dude!] Catch Blake (again) in the Ask.Audio video -- wormholes in the sonic universe. Gratefully, there isn't too much background noise behind either interview and Blake is still fresh! Sample
- [NAMM 2018: Spin me 'round](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/namm-2018-spin-me-round/) - Aside from the teased iRig Stomp I/O, IK Multimedia are offering the official Leslie® collections for AmpliTube and T-RackS. What makes it "official," I suppose is the co-branding with Hammond USA and Suzuki Music Corporation of Japan. You get 5 amp and 6 cabinet simulators with can be used in AmpliTube and T-RackS. [This capitalization
- [NAMM 2018: And now Yamaha](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/namm-2018-yamaha-keyboards/) - Yamaha have revamped nearly every model in its previous digital and arranger keyboard line: PSR-S975 Arranger Workstation (MSRP: $2,599 USD) PSR-S775 (MSRP: $1,699) Arranger Workstation PSR-EW410 (MSRP: $599) adds Quick Sampling function - 5 samples (1 Key Follow type + 4 One shot/Loop type) 9.6 sec/sample (maximum) - and Groove Creator PSR-E463 (MSRP: $479) adds
- [NAMM 2018: The 'wheels roll out](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/namm-2018-tonewheels/) - The teased Dexibell keyboard is the Dexibell S9 flagship stage piano. It combines the Combo J7's tonewheel engine with Dexibell's piano technology. Features include: 88 weighted keys Nine motorized faders Over 100 preset sounds 320 oscillators Extra long piano samples 3GBytes memory for preset and user sounds and samples Bluetooth, USB to Host (MIDI), USB
- [NAMM 2018: Rainin' tonewheels](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/namm-2018-nord-electro-6/) - In addition to the Dexibell S9 flagship stage piano and the Studiologic Numa Compact 2x, Nord have announced the Electro 6. The NE6 continues the Nord tradition by adding more memory (512MB sample memory) and functionality: Seamless transitions, 3-part multi-timbral, extended synth voice polyphony, two pipe organ models, and dual organ mode. Up to six
- [NAMM 2018: Ain't kiddin' around](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/namm-2018-aint-kiddin-around/) - "It's a music toy. It's a synthesizer. Actually, it's both." With an integrated drum machine. The Playtime Engineering Blipblox looks like a modern-age version of the busy-box that I built for our son way back when. (Importantly, without sharp edges and other hazards.) Specs include: MIDI input for an external keyboard or sequencer controller. Eight
- [NAMM 2018: Today's catch](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/namm-2018-todays-catch/) - Terrada Music Score is launching the GVIDO electronic paper dual screen score reader. Basically, it's a dual screen (13.3-inch) tablet and stylus. The low-reflection display mimics paper and if the real thing is as good as the photo on their web site, it looks fabulous. The GVIDO stores PDF music scores. Terrada Music Score has
- [Winter NAMM 2018: More fun toys](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/winter-namm-2018-more-fun-toys/) - The closer we get to Winter NAMM 2018, the closer we get to nerd-vana. A few fun toys worth a look... Korg have been busy: The prologue polyphonic analogue synthesizer The volca mix analogue performance mixer The KR-55 Pro rhythm machine ($299.99) The Konnect portable stereo PA system ($399 street) The D1 digital piano ($799.99
- [Winter NAMM 2018: Melo Audio MIDI Commander](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/melo-audio-midi-commander/) - OK, OK, I know about the Arturia MiniBrute 2 and Moog Drummer From Another Mother -- and so do you. :-) You may not have heard about the Melo Audio MIDI Commander, which was teased last year. Melo Audio's teaser targets guitar players, but this ten button foot controller might appeal to keyboard players who
- [CES 2018](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/ces-2018/) - The Consumer Electronics Show (CES) always trickles out a few products of interest to musicians. (Not just stereo systems!) Roland R-07 The Roland R-07 handheld recorder might knock my trusty Micro BR from its perch. The R-07 supports mono and stereo WAV recording at rates up to 24-bit / 96 kHz and MP3 recording at
- [Right on the heels of Genos](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/psr-s975-announced/) - Yamaha are announcing two new models in the arranger workstation line: The PSR-S975 and the PSR-S775 The PSR-S975 is an update to the current PSR-S970. New features include: Half bar fill-in Mono legato operation Store and recall of Live Control settings in registration memory More preset styles (523, up from 450) More Super Articulation voices
- [Special Executive for Counter-intelligence, Terrorism, Revenge, and Extortion](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/special-executive-for-counter-intelligence-terrorism-revenge-and-extortion/) - As a few industry news sites have noted, the SPECTRE patch developed and pushed by Microsoft causes some older AMD processors to hang during boot up (or worse). I live in what could charitably be called a "computer museum." Yes, one of my machines -- a 1.6GHz AMD Athlon 64 processor 2600+ -- was bitten
- [100 percent Genos](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/genos-funk-alto-sax-demo/) - Now that I've gotten past the busy Christmas season, it's time for a quick Genos demo. And I do mean quick! I was anxious to try the new Yamaha Genos™ FunkAltoSax and FunkBaritoneSax voices as well as the JazzFlute. All three are Super Articulation 2 voices designed for solo lines. For alto sax, what could
- [Genos internal memory: A speculation](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/genos-internal-mem-speculation/) - Update: 23 December 2017 The article below illustrates the danger of speculation based on a few specifications. It is so easy to convince oneself that "This must be the way they did it!" Thank goodness for service manuals. I will eventually write a longer description of the Genos™ compute complex. Here's a few facts to
- [A little Genos Christmas music](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/genos-christmas-music/) - Here are a few musical samples of Genos in action. Think of them as a Christmas gift to you. Peace. Jesu, Joy Of Our Desiring Angels We Have Heard On High O Little Town Of Bethlehem Joy To The World O Come, All Ye Faithful The First Noel Hark The Herald Angels Sing Hope you
- [Java note mapper (v0.1)](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/java-note-mapper-v0-1/) - Here's a little bit of Java code to brighten your day. Two weeks ago, I described the additional hi-hat notes in the Yamaha Genos™ Revo drum kits. The hi-hat sounds replace noises like sequence click, etc. in the lowest numbered notes of the MIDI scale. Thus, a Genos factory style wheezes, zings and clicks when
- [NAMM 2018: Half Monty, Full Monty](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/namm-2018-half-monty-full-monty/) - Winter NAMM 2018 is January 25 to 28 in Anaheim, California. Get your ear protectors ready! Even though I've been concentrating on the Yamaha Genos™, two Yamaha promotions have not escaped my attention. Back in October, Yamaha began offering a MOXF promotion: Buy a MOXF and get an FL512M flash memory expansion board and the
- [Pocket Miku (Thanks, David!)](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/pocket-miku-thanks-david/) - I usually unwind with a book or Keyboard Magazine before turning out the light for a good night's rest. Some of you know Keyboard Magazine as Electronic Musician. :-) Imagine my surprise when I read David Battino's "Adventures in DIY" and it's about Gakken's Procket Miku. And further, David gives a shout out to your's
- [Pocket Miku: Module review](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/pocket-miku-module-review/) - So far, I've posted several articles with resources for the Yamaha NSX-1 eVocaloid integrated circuit and the Gakken Pocket Miku (NSX-39), which is based on the NSX-1 chip. (See the bottom of this page for links.) This post pulls the pieces together. Pocket Miku is both a vocal stylophone and a Yamaha XG architecture General
- [Genos: Hi-hat happiness](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/genos-hi-hat-happiness/) - If you're following all of the Genos™ hoopla, you know that Revo! drums are one of the major features extensively advertised by Yamaha. You probably know that Revo (I'm dropping that darned exclamation point :-) ) drums use wave-cycling to to help remove the mechanical, robotic sound of MIDI drum and percussion parts. All true.
- [A few after action thoughts](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/a-few-after-action-thoughts/) - A few more thoughts after writing my Genos snap review... Articulations are gonna take practice The Yamaha Genos™ is a mini, ready-to-play, orchestral library. The player has a large number of physical controllers including joystick, articulation buttons and aftertouch. This is what draws me to Genos. One big take away: exploiting all of this capability
- [Genos: First contact (snap review)](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/genos-snap-review/) - Before I dive into Yamaha Genos™, I need to send a big shoutout to Frank Ventresca of Audioworks CT. I tested and bought my PSR-S950 from Audioworks CT. I'm ba-ack, having had a good experience the first time -- largely due to Frank's customer service. If you're interested in trying and buying an arranger keyboard,
- [Genos: Position and promotion](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/genos-position-and-promotion/) - The first public European demos started over the weekend. I've been watching Peter Baartmans and Sander Tournier put the Genos through its paces. The whole experience has me thinking about how the Genos is being positioned in regional markets, mainly, western Europe versus North America. First off, the arranger keyboard culture is completely different in
- [First look at new Genos effects](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/first-look-at-new-genos-effects/) - New Genos effect algorithms To my way of thinking, Genos/Tyros/PSR DSP effects consist of two parts: an effect algorithm and sets of preset parameters for the algorithm. That's my mental model. Genos adds a number of new effect algorithms and effect presets versus Tyros 5. Here is a terse summary of the additions: Reverb block
- [First glance at Genos voices](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/first-analysis-genos-voices/) - The Yamaha Genos™ Reference Manual and Data List PDF files are now available. Please see your local Yamaha support site. When I check out a new keyboard, I ask, "What's truly new and what's recycled?" The Genos breaks new territory and draws heavily on new Montage waveforms, as well as recycling the good stuff from
- [Genos has landed](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/genos-has-landed/) - Thanks to Frank at Musik City for a video showing the Genos™ user interface in action. Aside from seeing the Genos UI, the screenshots reveal a number of new styles and voices. With respect to the styles, some of the new styles may be a reworking of a previous Tyros 5 style. We'll see and
- [Genos and the future of Montage](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/genos-future-of-montage/) - A member of the Yamaha Synth forum asked me for some thoughts about the future of Montage given what we know about Yamaha Genos™. Here is my reply with a few additions. What's in the future? I tend to think about the Genos and Montage as brother and sister in the same way that Tyros
- [Genos quick hits 1](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/genos-quick-hits-1/) - Just a few quick Genos™ hits to get the day started. Thanks for Gerard on the PSR Tutorial Forum and Frank at Audioworks CT, we have the Yamaha Genos Product Guide. This is a slick brochure put out by Yamaha Europe and went out to dealers. A lot of the information is known, but the
- [The future looks bright](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/genos-articulation-future/) - After reading the owner's manual and watching the first demonstrations, it's clear that the Yamaha Genos™ is a beautiful face-lift over the Tyros series, but where is the sonic breakthrough? As usual, the answer was right in front of my face all along. First, a few facts and figures: Feature Tyros 5 Genos --------------------------- -------
- [Creating a Mega Voice in YEM](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/creating-mega-voice-yem/) - With all of the Genos™ hoopla, let's not forget about technique and skills! A few interesting questions popped up on the PSR Tutorial Forum and I'm reposting my answers here. Today's blog describes how to create a Mega Voice for PSR/Tyros using Yamaha Expansion Manager (YEM). With this background information in mind, I go on
- [Genos news from Germany](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/genos-news-from-germany/) - Heidrun Dolde is a musician, performer, composer and music educator in Stuttgart, Germany. Heidrun has a wonderful Web site dedicated to technique and workshops with an arranger keyboard focus. The epicenter for the Genos™ roll-out is Rellingen, Germany, So, it makes sense that Heidrun would be right in the middle of the action. She collected
- [Yamaha Genos USA pricing](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/yamaha-genos-usa-pricing/) - News flash! The Yamaha Genos™ will come in one model: 76 keys. USA manufacturer's suggested retail price, also known as "MSRP" or the retail "list price," will be $6799. The minimum advertised price, known as "MAP" or the "street price," will be $5,499. All prices are U.S. Dollars (USD). Until October 31, 2017, purchase a
- [Genos: After the fireworks](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/genos-after-the-fireworks/) - So, how do I feel about Genos now that the Genos manuals are rolling out and emotions have cooled down? The Yamaha Genos™ is a significant update on the Tyros 5. The brand new user interface (UI) should be easy to navigate through the brand-spanking new touch screen. The assignable knobs and sliders are very
- [A few quick Genos links](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/a-few-quick-genos-links/) - Just wanted to offer a few quick Yamaha Genos™ links. If you haven't seen the Genos demo by Martin Harris, please don't wait any longer. Martin is one of the key Genos developers. Pay close attention! His demonstrations always hit the sweet spots in a new Yamaha keyboard. There is a no talking, all playing
- [Genos genesis](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/genos-genesis/) - After fits and starts due to early leaks, Yamaha have launched the Yamaha Genos™ digital workstation. You can check out Yamaha's content through the Genos concept site or the Genos product pages. [Click images to enlarge.] There's no point in regurgitating Yamaha's on-line content, so I will just summarize highlights here. Size: 48-9/16"W x 5-7/16"H
- [Genos teaser video four](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/genos-teaser-video-four/) - Alex Christensen & The Berlin Orchestra - Turn The Tide Actually, should be titled "Turn the knobs." OK, Genos™ fans, here are bookmarks for the Genos video snippets: Turn knobs and touch the screen (1:03) The power cord (1:54) By the desk (2:01) Logo close-up (2:12) More twiddling (3:09) Times are approximate. All of the
- [Yamaha Reface YC on the go](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/yamaha-reface-yc-on-the-go/) - Trumpet? No, Yamaha Reface YC! I finally had enough time 'shedding with the Yamaha Reface YC to have the confidence to take the YC to rehearsal with me. [Click images to enlarge.] I need to write a long review, but here's a few quick thoughts. The Reface YC makes a good, lightweight rehearsal rig. Usually,
- [Take control of your music](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/genos-take-control/) - With nine drawbar sliders, six knobs, three articulation buttons, and an assignable rotary speed button, I wonder if Yamaha are making a play against the Nord Stage? Both products (will) command a premium price. However, with superior acoustic and electric pianos, drawbar organ using Reface technology, an incredibly expressive sample-based synth engine, and capacious expansion
- [Genos teaser video three](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/genos-teaser-video-three/) - Yamaha Genos™ teaser video number three: Alex Christensen & The Berlin Orchestra - Infinity Treat yourself to the video first before reading. There is a spoiler ahead! Another track with orchestra and the occasional driving four on the floor. The video follows up with the visual and musical themes established in the second teaser video.
- [GENOS unverified image](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/genos-unverified-image-1/) - The following unverified image has appeared on the Web. It seems to have been taken at a presentation. Physical features are similar to other leaked images of GENOS™ and the teaser videos (one and two). The keyboard in this unverified image very much looks like a prototype -- or at best, pre-production -- model. Remember,
- [It's a matter of timing](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/genos-launch-timing/) - I want to expand on some remarks that I made in the Genos section of the PSR Tutorial Forum. The GENOS section, by the way, is currently accessible only to forum members. Please join; it's a great community! A few posters noted that a well-known UK retailer had viewed a "prototype model" of the new,
- [Mega Voice in PSR/Tyros styles](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/mega-voice-in-psrtyros-styles/) - Yes, this site still answers questions and doesn't just publish rumors and FUD. :-) Recently, a member of the PSR Tutorial Forum needed help using a Megavoice in a custom Tyros style. My answer seemed to be useful to a broader audience, so I decided to post my answer here. The information applies to PSR
- [This is the place(ment)](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/genos-teaser-video-2/) - Alex Christensen & the Berlin Orchestra, Classical remake of "Snap! Rhythm Is a Dancer." Now that's what a big production budget and product placement will buy you! Wot? It's not an ad for Yamaha headphones? This is the second teaser video for the new Yamaha GENOS™ Digital Workstation. I found three video clips showing the
- [A hoax image?](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/a-hoax-genos-image/) - An unverified image of the Genos™ surfaced on the Web overnight. I will not publish this image here until I'm sure of its veracity. If this image is genuine, it confirms features seen in the teaser video. Although the image depicts familiar PSR/Tyros features (e.g., style/section control buttons, registration buttons, One Touch Setting buttons, and
- [Genos is coming soon](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/genos-is-coming-soon/) - Well, it's official. Yamaha have created a special web site for Genos™ related announcements. The first posting is the teaser video which was accidentally released over the weekend. New videos will appear on September 15, 22 and 29. Dealer previews are scheduled during the last two weeks of September. Of course, we're all dying to
- [Flash dance?](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/genos-flash-dance/) - So, is someone having a good laugh at us or is someone in trouble for accidentally releasing the Yamaha Genos teaser video? Or, is this a planned flash dance to get the fan base stirred up? Debate is already raging on the PSR Tutorial Forum about the authenticity of the video. If it's a fake,
- [Inside Reface YC and CP](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/inside-reface-yc-and-cp/) - Like the Yamaha Reface DX and CS, the Reface YC and CP are brother and sister. The Reface DX and CS use the Yamaha proprietary SSP2 integrated circuit (IC) for sound synthesis. A few minor hardware differences and the front panel aside, the main difference between DX and CS is software. The YC and CP
- [Vocaloid keyboard announced](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/vocaloid-keyboard-announced/) - At long last, Yamaha have announced their Vocaloid™ keyboard, the VKB-100. The VKB-100 is a keytar design similar to the prototype shown at the "Two Yamahas, One Passion" exhibition at Roppongi Hills, Tokyo, July 3-5, 2015. More details will be released in December 2017. However, this much is known: Lyrics are entered using a dedicated
- [Vox VX50KB keyboard amplifier](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/vox-vx50kb-keyboard-amplifier/) - With all of the new Korg keyboards, I missed the announcement of the Vox VX50KB keyboard amplifier. The VX50KB is part of the new Vox VX50 series of amplifiers. All the amps in the series have a street price of $229.99 and are currently shipping. The VX50KB is a three channel keyboard amplifier that drives
- [September 1st goes to Korg](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/september-1st-goes-to-korg/) - September 1st. While rumors of Yamaha GENOS abound and Roland prepare to redefine the future (again), Korg drop: Korg PA1000 arranger workstation Korg PA700 arranger workstation Korg KROSS 2 Vox Continental Keyboard Holy smokes! Normally this much excitement is reserved for Winter NAMM. Everybody wants a piece of Christmas season sales! The KROSS 2 is
- [Montage tidbits](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/montage-tidbits/) - Martin Harris. Now, there's a person who loves his job! Even though the camera work is a little shaky, I recommend the Montage demonstration by Martin Harris of Yamaha. Martin's demo concentrates on acoustic and electric pianos, section and solo strings, brass, Irish whistle and pads -- all from a cinematic perspective. Not much EDM
- [Reface MIDI pin-out](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/reface-midi-pin-out/) - The Yamaha Reface series keyboards have a small DIN-6 connector that carries both MIDI IN and MIDI OUT signals. The keyboards ship with an adapter that converts DIN-6 to two standard 5-pin DIN connectors. Plug in the adapter cable, connect with standard MIDI cables, and you're good to go. A few people on the Yamaha
- [Yamaha CSP pianos: First take](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/yamaha-csp-first-take/) - Yamaha just announced the Clavinova CSP series of digital pianos. There are two models: CSP-150 and CSP-170. The main differences between the 170 and 150 are keyboard action (NWX and GH3X, respectively) and sound system (2 x 45W and 2 x 30W, respectively). USA MSRP list prices are $5,399 to $5,999, and $3,999 to $4,599
- [A jaunt into Cold War history](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/four-leaves-project-offices/) - This started out as a simple investigation. Then ... Folks who usually visit this site will wonder if their browser landed in the right place. Fear not. In addition to music and computation, I dabble occasionally as an amateur historian -- computation and communications, mainly, early Cold War. First, two book recommendations: Garrett M. Graff,
- [Pocket Miku software resources](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/pocket-miku-software-resources/) - This page is a collection of resources for using and programming Gakken Pocket Miku, also known as the "NSX-39". It starts out with a cheat sheet for using Pocket Miku, moves on to Web-based applications, and finishes with customization and MIDI System Exclusive (SysEx) messages. Be sure to read the Pocket Miku user's guide before
- [Summer NAMM 2017: Two new toys](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/summer-namm-2017-two-new-toys/) - So far, Summer NAMM 2017 is turning out to be a total sleeper for keyboard players. Here's a couple of new toys that could be fun for musicians on the run. Looks like the Yamaha SC-02 SessionCake is coming to North America ($99 USD). The SessionCake is a battery-powered brick which, by itself, it a
- [Pocket Miku pictures](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/pocket-miku-pictures/) - Thanks very much to our friends at japan24net on eBay! They did a superb job of packing and Pocket Miku arrived at our house in record time. どうもありがとうございました Now, the obligatory pictures! Please click on the images for higher resolution. Front: The back: With the rear cover off: And finally, the money shot: That looks
- [Yamaha NSX-1 resources](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/yamaha-nsx-1-resources/) - Here are some of the Yamaha NSX-1 resources that I've found on-line. It took a lot of browsing to find English language resources! I apologizing for writing a rather terse blog post -- just the facts, documents and links! NSX-1 Brochure NSX-1 (YMW820-S) Data Sheet NSX-1 MIDI Implementation Yamaha Web-Music Applications Please check out my
- [Pocket Miku hardware resources](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/pocket-miku-hardware-resources/) - Pocket Miku, also known as "NSX-39," has three major integrated circuit components: Generalplus GPE3101A CPU Yamaha YMW820 NSX-1 eVocaloid processor Macronix MX25L1635E flash memory Here is the Pocket Miku NSX-39 circuit schematic. The Generalplus GP3101A is a system on a chip (SOC) advanced multimedia processor. The GPEL3101A is an ARM7TDMI processor with integrated RAM and
- [Summer NAMM 2017 preview](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/summer-namm-2017-preview/) - Time for a brief Summer NAMM 2017 preview. Summer NAMM is rarily as exciting as Winter NAMM, so I don't expect much in the way of new product announcements. Roland just recently had their "Future Redefined" [whatever] event, so I doubt if Roland will announce anything new. Korg are promoting their Grandstage stage piano. Be
- [Real Acoustic Sound](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/real-acoustic-sound/) - As mentioned in my earlier post, the Yamaha NSX-1 integrated circuit implements three sound sources: a General MIDI engine based on the XG voice architecture, eVocaloid and Real Acoustic Sound (RAS). RAS is based on Articulation Element Modeling (AEM) and I now believe that eVocaloid is also a form of AEM. eVocaloid uses AEM to
- [And your keytar can sing](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/your-keytar-can-sing/) - A day with excessive heat and humidity can strand you indoors as effectively as a New England snow storm. Time for a virtual quest into parts unknown. I stumbled onto this beautiful web page on the Japanese Yamaha web site. Lo and behold, a Vocaloid™ keyboard in the shape of a keytar. I strongly suggest
- [Roland GO:KEYS - First impressions](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/roland-gokeys-first-impressions/) - I'm happy to write what may be the first end-user review of the Roland GO:KEYS. The GO:KEYS is one of two new entry-level keyboards from Roland. The GO:KEYS has a street price (MAP) of $299 USD and is intended to inspire new keyboard players without a big out-of-pocket outlay. The hook is the five zone,
- [Roland GO:KEYS is GONE:KEYS](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/roland-gokeys-is-gonekeys/) - As I mentioned in my initial review, my GO:KEYS had a defective key right out of the box. The key was in a particularly bad spot: A below middle C. While practicing music for Sunday, the key was nearly dead and I just couldn't live with it. So, I returned the GO:KEYS to Guitar Center.
- [Ableton Live: 2 books, head2head](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/ableton-live-2-books/) - I'm ramping up my Ableton Live skills. Being somewhat old fashioned, I like to have a good print manual or guide by my side. Recently, I had a chance to compare two books, both worthy of recommendation: Ableton Live 9 Power! The Comprehensive Guide by Jon Margulies (publisher: Cengage Learning, 2014) Ableton Live 9: Create,
- [Music Expo Boston 2017](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/music-expo-boston-2017/) - Saturday was a glorious warm day in Boston -- perfect for a trip to Cambridge and Music Expo Boston. Music Expo is a series of mini-conferences produced in association with Sound On Sound magazine. Boston is fortunate to have Music Expo this year along with Miami and San Francisco. Loic Maestracci is the main organizer
- [Out with the old...](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/out-with-the-old/) - I apologize for the dearth of new blog posts. Springtime brought the usual crush of yard work and the double whammy of spring cleaning. We hope to move to Seattle sometime in the next few years and we need to scrape off decades of old stuff. I've gotten to the point where it's a no-brainer
- [MOX performance to PSR style (part 1)](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/mox-perf-to-psr-style-part-1/) - After my initial success with the SmoothItOver style, I decided to convert several more Yamaha MOX workstation performances to PSR-S950 styles. I will post the new styles real soon now. I changed tactics. Some of the Yamaha MOX performances are based on phrases from older model, non-arranger keyboards. For example, I suspect that the "Club
- [MOX performance to PSR style (part 2)](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/mox-perf-to-psr-style-part-2/) - In part one, I described how to capture Yamaha MOX arpeggios (musical phrases) in a standard MIDI file (SMF). In this part, I discuss the translation of the SMF to a Yamaha PSR/Tyros style file. This process should work for any SMF, not just an SMF from the MOX workstation. The SMF produced by the
- [MOX performance to PSR style (part 3)](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/mox-perf-to-psr-style-part-3/) - In parts one and two, I described a way to capture Yamaha MOX performances into a Standard MIDI File (SMF) and how to translate the SMF to a PSR/Tyros style. Part three discusses Mega Voices and how to program MIDI data for a Mega Voice part such that the special articulations and effects (FX) play
- [New Yamaha patents](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/yamaha-patents-apr2017/) - Raining like crazy today, so it's a good chance to look for new patents and patent applications. First, here are a few new technical patents assigned to Yamaha. US Patent 9,536,508 titled "Accompaniment data generating apparatus," awarded on January 3, 2017, describes accompaniment generation using a combination of MIDI and audio waveforms. The accompaniment generator
- [Another reason to stop smoking](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/sr-jv-electrolytic-capacitors/) - I stumbled across this item on the Japanese Roland site as translated by Google Translate: To Expansion Board SR-JV80 Series Customers (Published January 27, 2017) Thank you very much for your patronage of our products on a daily basis. The Expansion Board SR-JV80 series has been in production for more than 20 years since the
- [First glimpse: Yamaha MX88BK](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/first-glimpse-yamaha-mx88bk/) - Thanks to Michael at the PSR Tutorial forum, we have the first glimpse of the newest member of Yamaha's MX synthesizer family -- the MX88 in black (MX88BK). The MX88BK is an 88-key version of the popular MX49 and MX61 keyboards. The MX88BK has a GHS graded hammer action. It has the same 128 voice
- [Less talk, more action](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/less-talk-more-action/) - Your Youtube product demo can either help you or kill you. And a lot rides on style. Some folks stumbled onto the DEXIBELL COMBO J2 lounge demo and immediately trashed the COMBO J2 as "cheese," writing it off. Yeah, but click a little further and Ralf Schink positively shreds the DEXIBELL COMBO J7. This dude
- [An interesting bit of plumbing, that](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/musikmesse-2017-venova/) - Frankfurt Musikmesse 2017 is off and running! Yamaha Europe have a web page for their new product launches at Musikmesse 2017. You can find links to all of the new products on that page, so I won't reproduce them here. In addition to new CLP pianos, Yamaha have announced five portable musical instruments: PSR-E263 YPT-260
- [Livings computers indeed](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/living-computers-visit/) - Just back from a long trip to Seattle. I had a great time seeing family, friends, old and new. Of course, there are always a few nerd-stops along the way. I had the pleasure of visiting the Living Computers: Museum + Labs on the south side of Seattle. Just take the Sound Transit Link light
- [THAT Corporation](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/that-corporation/) - No, not the pronoun. Just want to give a shout out to a local company which makes audio ICs for the professional equipment market: THAT Corporation of Milford, MA. They manufacture a line of integrated circuits including: Balanced Line Receivers Preamplifiers Digital Microphone Preamplifier Sets Digitally Programmable Gain Controllers OutSmarts® Balanced Line Drivers Analog Engine®
- [Welcome CS teachers and students!](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/sigcse-2017/) - [Be sure to visit Living Computers in Seattle. SIGCSE 2017 attendees are admitted free during the conference. I visited the museum today and it was a lot of fun! K-12 teachers will enjoy the hands on exhibits.] The annual ACM Special Interest Group on Computer Science Education (SIGCSE 2017) Technical Symposium is next week (March
- [Tuning up a littleBits oscillator](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tuning-littlebits-oscillator/) - I'm starting to experiment with the littleBits oscillator and synth bits. I'd like to control the oscillators using an Arturia Keystep either through MIDI or through the Keystep's control voltage (CV) and gate outputs. Perusing the littleBits forum, I noticed several complaints about how difficult the oscillators are to tune. Setting the basic pitch is
- [The Arduino combo organ is back](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/littlebits-arduino-combo-organ/) - If you have a taste for cheesy 1960s combo organ sounds, I just posted the littleBits MIDI organ project. This project is an updated littleBits take on my old Combo Organ project. It uses the same "bottom octave generator" technique to squeeze five sample playback voices out of an Arduino. Here's an MP3 demo of
- [Add SPI to littleBits Arduino 3](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/add-spi-to-littlebits-3/) - At some point, you'll want to go beyond the few inputs and outputs provided by the littleBits Arduino bitSnaps. The stock littleBits Arduino module has twelve unpopulated signal pads: Three analog inputs: A2, A3 and A4. Three digital inputs/outputs: D10, D11 and D13. Six ICSP signals: GND, MOSI/D16, VCC, RESET, SCK/D15, and MISO/D14. Three of
- [A tale of three keyboards](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/compare-key-size/) - First, another customer service success story! I was watching and waiting for a controller keyboard to complement the littleBits Synth modules. I especially wanted a keyboard that generates gate, control voltage (CV) and standard 5-pin MIDI all-in-one. The Arturia Keystep fit the bill and it's been getting rave reviews. So, when I saw a "mint"
- [Add SPI to littleBits Arduino 2](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/add-spi-to-littlebits-part-2/) - Music makers working with littleBits Arduino will almost certainly want to add a high(er) resolution digital-to-analog converter (DAC) to their Arduino. Part 1 shows how to add an ICSP header to your littleBits Arduino module. The ICSP header is where you find the SPI signals -- MISO, MOSI, and SCK -- along with Vcc (+5
- [Sing "Do Re Mi" using an Arduino SPI DAC](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/sing-do-re-mi-arduino-spi-dac/) - After a few months away from electronics, I dusted off the littleBits Arduino project that I completed way back in September. Just as I completed the project, we took a short vacation trip -- just enough time away to break the creative flow and to procrastinate about a write-up. The old-new project uses the Arduino
- [NAMM 2017: Yudo Kami-OTO](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/namm-2017-yudo-kami-oto/) - You won't be seeing this from Yamaha, Korg or Roland. It's the Yudo Kami-OTO. The Kami-OTO is a DIY musical instrument keyboard made from cardboard. The cardboard construct sits over a computer ("ASCII") keyboard. The cardboard keys hit the computer keyboard keys. An app interprets the key taps and makes the noise. Yudo also make
- [Preparing audio waveforms for Arduino PROGMEM](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/preparing-waveforms-progmem/) - The Arduino lo-fi Beat Box is kicking up some activity and comments on the littleBits site. (Follow this link to the Beat Box project page at littleBits.) Two littleBits inventors have made considerable progress in suppressing the noisy buzz which seems to plague the el-cheapo lo-fi DAC design. I eventually gave up fighting the buzz
- [Tip-toe through the tech](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/yamaha-patents-summary-2017/) - Last year 'bout this time, we were all holding our collective breath awaiting the new Yamaha Montage. There are two products which I expect to see from Yamaha sometime in the next one to two years: The successor to the mid-range MOXF synthesizer, and The successor to the top-of-the-line (TOTL) Tyros arranger workstation. NAMM 2017
- [Round and round they go](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/round-and-round-they-go/) - Here's a couple of new products to be announced at NAMM 2017. The first product is a rotary speaker system that doesn't use any rotating elements. It's the Moon Amplification Skamp®. The Skamp® has nine transducers in total: six speakers and four horns. There are two speakers and one horn per side. The DSP models
- [Won't be long, yeah!](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/wont-be-long-yeah/) - Winter NAMM 2017 starts in two weeks (January 19). As usual, we gear freaks can't wait to get our annual new product fix! Roland jumped the field and announced a few new products at the 2017 Consumer Electronics Show (CES). They appear to be rolling out a new consumer-oriented product line, "GO:", for amateur musicians
- [All's well ...](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/leaking-batteries/) - ... that ends well. Staying in the literary groove, this is a tale of two batteries. And two manufacturers who stood behind their products. I was hunting in the deep reaches of my gear closet looking for a TS mono to XLR cable when I came across my old You Rock Guitar (gen 1). I
- [FreePlay style deconstructed](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/freeplay-style-deconstructed/) - Yamaha FreePlay styles for PSR and Tyros are terrific for music without rhythm instruments and strong rubato (variation in tempo to achieve a musical or emotional effect). I'm customizing a few FreePlay styles with the intention of using them for liturgical music. In the first pass, I'm changing the OTS voice settings and I'm making
- [Review: MIDIPLUS miniEngine USB](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/review-midiplus-miniengine-usb/) - First, I must apologize to the folks who drop in regularly to see what's up. Between the holidays, new music, and final preparations for winter, there hasn't been a a heck of a lot of time to blog. That doesn't mean that there aren't new toys around the house! One of these little gems is
- [The long view](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/yamaha-long-view/) - Here's some information attributed to Martin Harris from Yamaha. Martin is one of the key sound developers at Yamaha: Better Pianos New Strings - 70 piece Seattle Symphony Orchestra Mega New Orchestral Brass - highly dynamic New Tuned Percussion - Glock, Xylo, Marimba and Vibes (with motor on) New Mega guitars - Telecaster with Finger
- [Rainy day ramblings](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/rainy-day-ramblings/) - A rainy New England day and the leaves and pine needles are piling up. Can't do much of anything outdoors today, so off to GC. (Not that I really want to do yard work.) No real agenda. I've been thinking about Yamaha Montage vs. Tyros 5++ vs. Nord Stage 2 ex vs. Electro 5d. That's
- [Dr. Synth and the SC-33: An appreciation](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/dr-synth-sc33-appreciation/) - Every now and again, we poke around in the closet and rediscover a lost gem. So it is with the Boss DS-330 Dr. Synth. The DS-330 dates back to 1994 (!) and is an almost (maybe) GS-compatible Sound Canvas. It is the smaller brother to the Roland SC-33 Sound Canvas which is GS-compatible. The SC-33
- [Motif styles for your arranger!](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/motif-styles-for-your-arranger/) - I'm pleased to announce my collection of Motif performance styles for the Yamaha PSR-S950 arranger and its close cousins: Tyros 5, PSR-S770 and PSR-S970. Motif and MOX are great song-writing machines with thousands of built-in musical phrases. In Motif-speak, these phrases are called "arpeggios." Motif/MOX also have built-in "Performances" which combine these musical phrases into
- [Montage: The hardware platform](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/montage-hardware-platform/) - The Yamaha Montage is one heck of a fine keyboard! Let's take a quick look inside. The Montage hardware is a new platform. Sure, there are a few things borrowed from older products, but that's like blaming Apple for reusing a USB controller. The digital and analog electronics are all new. There are several printed
- [Add SPI to the littleBits Arduino](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/add-spi-to-littlebits-arduino/) - Gain access to the SPI port by adding a 2x3 header to your littleBits Arduino.
- [Beat Box at littleBits!](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/beat-box-at-littlebits/) - Apologies in advance as I spend more time remembering to be a musician, not a technology blogger. I bought a few MIDI files during the last Yamaha Musicsoft sale and I'm massaging them into PJ-approved backing tracks. Plus, I'm learning about the joys of the key of D-flat! I posted the Beat Box drum machine
- [Inside Reface DX and Reface CS](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/inside-reface-dx-and-cs/) - Find out what's inside of a Yamaha Reface DX and Reface CS.
- [Arduino lo-fi beat box](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/arduino-lo-fi-beat-box/) - Arduino Beat Box is a lo-fi, TR-808 drum machine. It used TIMER1 16-bit PWM to generate audio through a passive low pass filter.
- [Polyphonic Arduino synthesizer](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/arduino-rompler/) - If you're interested in building an Arduino-based ROM-pler, this next project is for you! One of my long term dreams is to build a low-cost 60s-style combo organ. My latest project uses an Arduino UNO as a sample playback, sound synthesis engine. Although the waveforms are taken from the old VOX Continental and Farfisa Mini
- [Audio via Arduino 16-bit PWM](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/audio-via-arduino-16-bit-pwm/) - Most of my project postings described a project in a completed state with full code, electronic design, etc. This post covers some things that I've learned during my current open investigation. Think of it as a "breather" before the next push. Audio folks who get into Arduino often ask, "Gee, why not use PWM to
- [Add a filter and envelope to the tone sequencer](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/filter-envelope-tone-sequencer/) - The tones produced by my littleBits tone sequencer are too basic. So, I decided to add a littleBits filter module and envelope module to spice things up. I built the Arduino part of the project on one mounting board and built the synthy part of the project on a separate board. Three wire modules connect
- [littleBits Arduino tone sequencer](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/littlebits-arduino-tone-sequencer/) - The littleBits Arduino module has the potential to be a MIDI-driven tone generator for a mono or paraphonic synthesizer. After getting the module, I was anxious to try it out even though I haven't built a MIDI interface for it (yet). Here is a picture of the littleBits hardware. (Click the image to get full
- [Aw, shucks.](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/littlebits-project-page/) - It's nice to get recognition for your work especially when it's unexpected. This week the littleBits project page is featuring my Arduino tone sequencer project. This is a good project for people just starting out with the littleBits Arduino and sound. Not very much hardware is absolutely required -- just a littleBits Arduino, a power
- [Connect a MIDI shield to littleBits Arduino](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/connect-midi-shield-littlebits-arduino/) - My do-it-yourself MIDI interface for littleBits Arduino probably isn't for everyone. Constructing the DIY interface requires circuit layout skills and not everyone wants to whip up a board from scratch and a schematic. Fortunately, there are a couple of alternatives: the Olimex SHIELD-MIDI and the Sparkfun MIDI Shield. I don't have any direct experience with
- [littleBits Arduino MIDI interface](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/littlebits-arduino-midi-interface/) - I thought, "When it comes time to test the 5-pin MIDI interface with the littleBits Arduino, just hook it up. Download the sketches. Take a victory lap." Instead, I got an "opportunity" to discover and learn. Not so fast, but not so bad, either. Please recall that a few posts ago I described the design
- [MIDI sequencer: Testing your MIDI interface](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/arduino-midi-sequencer-testing/) - Now that you've assembled the MIDI interface for your Arduino, it's time to try it out. That means you need a few basic sketches to test and debug the interface. First, a philosophical word or two. Testing is one of the most neglected and least emphasized topics in engineering. Other than careful design, assembly and
- [5-pin MIDI IN/OUT for Arduino](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/5-pin-midi-interface-arduino/) - I hope you enjoyed the last post about a simple tone-based sequencer for littleBits Arduino. My next goal is to make the littleBits Arduino fluent in MIDI. Then we can turn the littleBits Arduino into the heart of MIDI-based tools like real time controllers and synthesizers. At the time of this writing, littleBits does not
- [littleBits Arduino: More observations](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/littlebits-arduino-more-observations/) - Back with a few more quick observations as I get started with the littleBits Arduino module. (Please see my first review.) I decided to see how much stuff I could cram around the littleBits Arduino. (Click on the image below for full resolution.) This configuration starts with the power module on the left hand side.
- [littleBits: First review](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/littlebits-first-review/) - Some things are inevitable... I taught undergraduate and graduate hardware design for many years. It was always a challenge to give students hands-on experience with digital logic circuits, especially for large-scale digital systems. Gosh, I could write several long blog posts that recount the various breadboarding, prototyping and simulation approaches that my students used in
- [Explicit Sax](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/motif-mox-sax-programming/) - Hope you got your Motif XF. The current stock is gone, gone, gone. Comparing waveforms (Montage vs. XF) got me interested in the tenor sax samples and voices. The Yamaha MOX has the basic tenor sax samples (Med, Hard, Growl) while the Motif XF rounds out the set with Soft dynamic samples and falls. The
- [Tenor to the max!](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tenor-to-the-max/) - A few posts ago, I deconstructed the Yamaha MOX (Motif XS) tenor saxophone patches. The article summarizes the waveform assignment and Expanded Articulation (XA) control for each element within a preset voice. I'm not going to dive into the basics here, so I recommend reviewing the article for background information on XA and its behavior.
- [Montage review: Yes, I've played one!](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/montage-initial-review/) - The Yamaha Montage synthesizer is now hitting stores in North America. One of the local retailers (GC in Natick) have a Montage set up for demo. Let's go! The demo unit is a Montage8 with the 88-key balanced hammer effect keyboard. I have always liked Yamaha's upper-end "piano" actions and the Montage8 is no exception.
- [Montage: New waveforms](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/montage-new-waveforms/) - Well, well. Interesting times, again. Yamaha have now released the Montage Reference Manual and the Data List Manual. Download them from your local support site. At the same time, the Motif XF is being blown out. Not only have retailers dropped prices, Yamaha itself is saying "Sayonara" with a promotional rebate of its own. If
- [New Yamaha workstation at NAMM 2016?](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/new-workstation-namm-2016/) - True gearheads are already making predictions and plans for 2016 Winter NAMM, January 21-24, 2016. Winter NAMM rumors abound including "Montage," the rumored name for the rumored new Yamaha synthesizer workstation. See the list of new waveforms in the Montage and read my initial review of the Montage8. Update: May 10, 2016. Find the latest
- [We need "code-able" MIDI controllers!](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/code-midi-controllers-rant/) - All MIDI controllers for sale are rubbish! Eh? OK, here comes a rant. I've been working on two Arduino-based MIDI controllers in order to try out a few ideas for real time control. I'm using homebrew microcontrollers because I need the flexibility offered by code in order to prototype these ideas. None of the commercial
- [Inside the DGX digital pianos](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/inside-dgx-digital-pianos/) - Thanks to SeaGtGruff in the PSR Tutorial Forum, I took a chance to deep dive a few members of the Yamaha DGX portable grand family. The DGX is a "value" line of electronic keyboards offering a digital piano experience at affordable prices. Polyphony depends on the available processing power and memory bandwidth (i.e., the ability
- [Tutorial: Soft synths on Linux and Raspberry Pi](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tutorial-soft-synths-linux-rpi/) - Stepping back a little bit, I realized that my recent series of articles add up to a "Getting started with soft synths on Linux" tutorial. Here are the links: Get started with Raspbian Jessie and Raspberry Pi 2 Get started: Linux ALSA and JACK Raspberry Pi soft synthesizer: Get started USB audio for Raspberry Pi
- [RPi MIDI bridge](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/rpi-midi-bridge-idea/) - [Update: See Send MIDI from USB-B to 5-pin.] Here's a vexing problem that many electronic musicians face. Let's say that you own a lot of gear, some of which uses the old school 5-pin DIN MIDI interface. For example, there are a ton of classic (and not so classic) tone modules and keyboards that have
- [Send MIDI from USB-B to 5-pin](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/send-midi-from-usb-b-to-5-pin/) - Please see the bottom of this page for an update. Way back in January 2014, I outlined a way to send MIDI from a USB-B only controller to a keyboard or module with classic 5-pin MIDI using Raspberry Pi as a bridge. Finally, one year later, I got to try out this idea. It seems
- [Raspberry Pi soft synthesizer: Get started](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/rpi-soft-synth-get-started/) - Now let's make some noise! This article shows how to install, configure and play a simple software synthesizer (amsynth) on Raspberry Pi 2. The first part in this series is a quick installation and configuration guide for Raspbian Jessie Linux. The second part is an introduction to the Linux audio infrastructure (ALSA and JACK). Please
- [Qsynth and FluidSynth on Raspberry Pi: The basics](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/qsynth-fluidsynth-raspberry-pi/) - The first four articles in this series are a quick guide to getting started with audio and MIDI on Raspberry Pi 2: Get started with Raspbian Jessie and Raspberry Pi 2 Get started: Linux ALSA and JACK Raspberry Pi soft synthesizer: Get started USB audio for Raspberry Pi Although the articles address Raspbian JESSIE, the
- [USB audio for Raspberry Pi](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/usb-audio-raspberry-pi/) - In the first few articles of this series: Get started with Raspbian Jessie and RPi2 Get started: Linux ALSA and JACK Raspberry Pi soft synthesizer: Get started we used the built-in, 3.5mm audio output from the Raspberry Pi 2 (RPi2) to produce sound through powered monitors. If you tried this with your own RPi2, you
- [Get started: Linux ALSA and JACK](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/get-started-alsa-jack/) - Before we dive into specific music applications, I need to provide a little background information about audio and MIDI support on Linux. If you're coming from Mac OS X or Windows, you may not have heard very much about the Linux way of doing audio and MIDI. Seems like the "mainstream media" don't want to
- [Get started with Raspbian Jessie and RPi2](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/get-started-raspbian-jessie-rpi2/) - The Raspberry Pi 2 Model B (RPi2) is a computational gem. For $40 USD, you get a 900MHz quad-core ARM processor, a built-in graphics core, 1GBytes of RAM, 4 USB ports, HDMI, an Ethernet port, audio output and a Micro SD card slot. (The RPi2 does not have a built-in audio input.) This platform can
- [Montage wave memory](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/montage-wave-memory/) - Folks are speculating about the wave memory in the new Yamaha Montage. Without the actual service manual in hand, it's impossible to be definitive. However, I think it's reasonable to assume that: The Montage uses the new SWP70 tone generator, and The wave memory interface is the same as the PSR-S970. Here's a few details
- [NAND flash data retention](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/nand-flash-data-retention/) - In my previous post, I raised the issue of NAND flash data retention. Even though vendors describe NAND flash memory as "non-volatile," data can and will eventually be lost. The issue is "When?" If this question peeks your interest -- and it should -- please read the Spansion Practical Guide to Endurance and Data Retention
- [Nord Stage 2 ex: Test Drive](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/nord-stage-2-ex-test-drive/) - The Yamaha Montage announcement got me thinking about the kind of "all-in-one" keyboard that I would like to play. I still enjoy playing my Nord Electro 2, but the NE2 falls short as an all-in-one. My all-in-one needs to be strong in B3 organ, pipe organ, acoustic sounds, and to a lesser extent, electric pianos.
- [What you might have missed...](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/montage-missed-items/) - Here's a few small items that you may have missed in the deluge of Montage-related videos and forum comments. Stephen Fortner -- former editor of Keyboard Magazine -- shot an interview and demo with Yamaha's Nate Nate Tschetter back in December 2015. It's a sneak peak. Here's the link: Montage sneak peak with Keyboard Magazine
- [A Montage of quick thoughts](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/yamaha-montage-quick-thoughts/) - Video demos Finally had a chance to watch a few of the longer video demos and interviews with Blake Angelos (Yamaha). He's got that nice guy from the Midwest charm and is a heck of a player. I'm beginning to get the idea of macro control and the Super Knob. One needs to understand the
- [Yamaha Montage: It's here](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/yamaha-montage-specs/) - Here are a few links to start your day and mine. The best new resource on the Montage is the latest issue of the Yamaha Music Production Guide. Well, we have to get the question of money out of the way sometime: Montage 6 $3,499.00 USD MSRP Montage 7 $3,999.00 USD MSRP Montage 8 $4,499.00
- [Apple Music Memos: Snap Review](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/music-memos-demo/) - Just had to give Apple Music Memos a try. Apple Music Memos records your performance, figures out the tempo and chord progression, and plays back the original audio plus a bass and drum accompaniment. Pretty neat. After installing Music Memos on my iPad, I went up to the studio, turned on my Yamaha PSR-S950 arranger
- [Some other goodies to appear at NAMM 2016](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/goodies-namm-2016/) - Hey, hey, just flipping through a few media press kits (NAMM 2016) and wanted to jot down some notables. This site is not just about Yamaha after all. The Roland A-01 controls MIDI and CV/Gate-equipped analog gear, has a 192mm X 40mm LCD screen, onboard tone generator, built-in speaker and 16-step sequencer. The A-01 is
- [Dessert topping? Floor wax?](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/montage-prelim-4/) - Ah, we're starting to hit the silly phase of keyboard micro-analysis and Web discussion vis a vis the not yet, not quite announced Yamaha Montage. So, is it a floor wax or a dessert topping? Should we follow the holy sandal or the holy gourd? Any other comedy bits I can rip off? :-) Frankly,
- [So much better in hi-rez](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/montage-prelim-3/) - Ahhhh, those folks at motifator.com! They have managed to access the high resolution images that accompanied the briefly revealed information on the Yamaha music production synthesizer pages. Thanks, folks. I'm sure that you will cruise over there to see all of the images. However, here are a few things that struck me. The Motion Seq
- [Through a gap in the curtain...](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/montage-prelim-2/) - Another day, another brief slip. The following Yamaha Montage information is taken from a credible posting at the gearslutz.com web site. It adds to the information that was inadvertently revealed earlier. Of course, all news before the official unveiling is unverified! If I'm all wrong about this, I will be the first one to have
- [Yamaha Montage: First (leaked) glimpse](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/montage-first-glimpse/) - Looks like the first credible leak about the Yamaha Montage has appeared on the gearslutz.com web site. There is a post taken from the February 2016 issue of the Music Trades NAMM Show special edition, including a small amount of text paraphrased from a Yamaha press release. Here is a short list of product features
- [(Re)take the stage](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/new-yamaha-workstation-2/) - A good show starts in the dressing room And work its way to the stage -- "Get Dressed" by George Clinton With Winter NAMM 2016 just a few weeks away, I started thinking about how Yamaha might position a new synthesizer workstation (rumored to have the name "Montage"). Motif has had a long run as
- [Reface YC and DX teardowns](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/reface-yc-dx-teardowns/) - Markus Fuller posted two Yamaha Reface teardowns (YC and DX) to Youtube: Reface YC teardown Reface DX teardown In case you're not familiar with the term "teardown," think of a teardown as a casual tour through the insides of a keyboard. Both Reface keyboards have an ARM FM3 handing the user interface panel. The switch
- [Multi-effects for electric piano (Part 3)](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/psr-effects-electric-piano-3/) - This is part 3 of a multi-part series about PSR/Tyros effects for electric piano. PSR effects for electric piano (Part 1) presents a basic approach to grunging up an electric piano sound with distortion (amp simulation). Editing and saving PSR effects (Part 2) describes how to save a custom PSR/Tyros effect to USER EFFECT memory.
- [Editing and saving PSR effects (Part 2)](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/edit-save-psr-effects-2/) - In my previous post, PSR effects for electric piano (Part 1), I give some tips and ideas for improving PSR electric piano sounds through customized DSP effects. Before going any further, you need to know how to edit and save a DSP effect. Newer Yamaha arranger workstations (e.g., PSR-S970) have a graphical interface for guitar
- [PSR effects for electric piano (Part 1)](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/psr-effects-electric-piano-1/) - A common complaint about the electric pianos on the Yamaha PSR arranger workstations is their lack of "guts" or "grit." The voice samples are reasonably good, but the effects programming is vanilla and way too polite, especially for rock and soul styles. Here is a table showing the default DSP effect for some of the
- [Copy PSR DSP effects (part 4)](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/copy-psr-effects-part-4/) - This is part 4 of a series of articles about DSP effects for electric pianos and other electrified instruments like guitar. The first three articles are: PSR effects for electric piano (Part 1) Editing and saving PSR effects (Part 2) Multi-effects for electric piano (Part 3) This article covers two more techniques that should help
- [SSP1 and SSP2: Designated hitter](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/ssp1-and-ssp2/) - One notable absence from the Yamaha PSR-S970 design is the "SSP2" integrated circuit (IC) which handles vocal harmony processing. The SSP1 and SSP2 appeared in the Tyros series and PSR series coincident with Vocal Harmony 2. For you signal sleuths, the PSR-S950 and Tyros 5 microphone input is routed to an analog-to-digital converter (ADC) where
- [The SWP70 tone generator](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/swp70-tone-generator/) - As I mentioned in an earlier post, the Yamaha PSR-S770 and PSR-S970 arranger workstations have a new tone generator (TG) integrated circuit (IC) -- the SWP70. ("SWP" stands for "Standard Wave Processor.") The SWP70 is a new TG family in a long line of Yamaha tone generators. The SWP70 replaces the SWP51L, which has been
- [PSR-S770 and S970 internal architecture](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/s770-s970-internal-arch/) - Yamaha just recently introduced the new PSR-S770 and PSR-S970 arranger workstations. As usual, I'm always anxious to dive into the service manual and see what's up. First, I'd like to thank Uli and capriz68 on the PSR Tutorial Forum for their help. Uli made a very nice table from my ramblings, so be sure to
- [Sending performance data via audio](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/wireless-midi-by-sound/) - It's a challenge to get one's head around the recent patents filed and obtained by Yamaha. In this post, I concentrate on one kind of communication technology that pops up in several patents. Most people would like to get rid of the cables in their studio or living room. Radio-based communication technology like wi-fi (e.g.
- [Chord Tracker revealed](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/chord-tracker-revealed/) - I am using the Yamaha Chord Tracker app to figure out the chords to some tunes. Chord Tracker analyzes the music in an MP3/audio file and displays a chord chart. This is great for learning new tunes and working out arrangements. Chord Tracker can do much, much more! Yamaha really needs to produce a manual
- [Why not high-end x86?](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/why-not-high-end-x86/) - Last time around, I broke down the computational core of the Korg Kronos and Krome workstations. The Kronos is one of the few (only?) current synthesizer workstations based on the x86. The Kronos 2 is built around an Intel mini-ITX motherboard with a 1.86GHz dual-core Atom running a custom version of Linux. Since the x86+Linux
- [Innards of Krome and Kronos](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/innards-krome-kronos/) - Plenty of discussion about Korg Kronos and x86 on the Keyboard Magazine forum, so it's time to study up on Korg architecture and formulate an opinion. Before diving in, I should say that I try to get my information from primary sources (e.g., service manuals) and to not rely on Internet "truthiness." The Web is
- [TC-Helicon Play Electric](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tc-helicon-play-electric/) - Sometimes the best inexpensive multi-effect stomp box is pitched as a vocal harmony processor. The built-in effects on the Korg Triton Taktile (TT) are rather plain and unpronounced. So, I cast the net for stomp boxes to beef up the keyboard sounds with reverb, chorus, phaser, flanger, tremolo and the rest of the usual suspects.
- [Clear the decks?](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/clear-the-decks-motifxf/) - Yamaha have announced a truly stellar promotion to move Motif XF workstations. The Motif XF Fully Loaded expansion pack includes a FireWire expansion board, two FL1024M memory modules and an USB drive filled with content including Chick Corea's Mark V electric piano. (See the promotions page at the Yamaha web site for additional details.) Wow!
- [Whither XG?](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/whither-xg/) - Once upon a time, the hardware tone module was king of "desktop music production." A wide range of options were available from pro-level tone modules to desktop tone generators to ISA/PCI cards. The General MIDI (GM) standard came about in this era because people wanted to have consistent playback across hardware platforms. Every manufacturer offered
- [DigiTech Trio needs a quick upgrade](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/digitech-trio-needs-upgrade/) - The DigiTech TRIO is one of those product that I want to love. The basic idea is commercially viable -- an assistant that learns a simple song then adds bass and drum parts. There is some smart technology and smart people behind the TRIO. It is truly innovative. (Does the world really need another distortion
- [Reface CP: Yes, I played one!](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/reface-cp-snap-review/) - Finally got a chance to try a Yamaha Reface CP and a Reface DX. Given the genres of music that I play, I'm the most interested in the Reface CP and YC models. The CP and DX were on the floor at Guitar Center, so I decided to try the DX, too. I'll catch the
- [Serial memory and tone generation](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/serial-mem-tone-gen/) - Ah, September. Soon it will be time to speculate about new products at the Winter 2016 NAMM! Every now and again, I take a pass through recent patent filings from Yamaha to get an idea about future product developments. Of course, the tech in a filing may never make it to product. However, a few
- [Scat voices the newest Yamaha arrangers](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/scat-voices-yem-alpha/) - The original Jazz Scat voices expansion pack for the Yamaha PSR-S950 arranger workstation remains a popular part of the site. With the Tyros5, Yamaha took a different direction and format for expansion packs. The new approach to expansion pack development and use is embodied in the Yamaha Expansion Manager, or "YEM" for short. Up to
- [XG effects: SYSTEM mode](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/xg-effects-system-mode/) - The last time that I took a look at Yamaha XG effects, I discussed using the VARIATION effect as a channel insertion effect. I'm now working on a PSR/Tyros style where I would like to apply an amp simulation effect to two channels. So, it's time to learn about the configuration of VARIATION effects in
- [Arranger memory: One more time!](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/arranger-memory-one-more-time/) - OK, OK, not everyone reads service manuals and schematics for their keyboard. However, I do get a little frustrated when posters compare apples to oranges, and make statements like "I can buy 1GByte for $1 (USD), so why is Yamaha so stingy with wave memory?" Here is some information from the S750/S950 and Tyros5 service
- [Crunchin' da drums](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/crunchin-da-drums/) - In my last post, I discussed Motif/MOX eight zone (8Z) drum kits. The eight zone concept lets you assemble eight different percussion sounds into a custom kit. The waveforms are assigned to voice elements and are stretched/limited to eight different keyboard (MIDI note) zones. The Motif/MOX have matching arpeggios that work with the 8Z kits.
- [Groovin' in eight zones](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/groovin-in-eight-zones/) - I heard a great interpretation of Chris Isaak's "Wicked Game" by Groovy Waters. Their work inspired me to create a down-tempo PSR/Tyros style with break beats that would let me jam over the changes (Bm-A-E-E). And that led me into a whole new exploration in Motif/MOX and PSR/Tyros styles! While goofing around with the Yamaha
- [MOX interview: Follow up](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/mox-interview-follow-up/) - Here's a quick follow up after my interview with Yamaha marketing. First, the word "conversation" is a better description than "interview." I had a really enjoyable, high-bandwidth conversation with fellow gear-heads. What could be better than that? The Yamaha team members are friendly, extremely knowledgeable and open. They are also good listeners and had read
- [Yamaha MOX6: Retrospective](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/yamaha-mox6-retrospective/) - Yamaha are inviting MOX/MOXF owners to sign up for interview sessions about their experience with the MOX/MOXF series instruments. Participants must fill out a pre-interview survey. I decided to sign up and just completed the pre-interview survey. (It's not too different from the recent public Motif/MOX customer survey, BTW.) This got me thinking about playing,
- [Yamaha Reface (No, I haven't played it)](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/yamaha-reface-havent-played-it/) - It's Internet de rigueur to comment on the new Yamaha Reface keyboards -- whether you've played them or not! So, here goes... I'm in fat city with an original AN-200 (Prophet-5 plus beat machine in a box), a P-50m (pianos in a box), a CS-01 (monophonic analog synthesizer) and a Nord Electro 2. Although a
- [What's in a name?](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/yamaha-speculation-montage/) - Anything that we want to go from just a beginner to a pro, You need a montage (montage) Oh, it takes a montage (montage) -- Team America Lyrics Back in January before Winter NAMM 2015, there was a lot of speculation about a new Yamaha workstation to replace the venerable Motif product line. Yamaha filed
- [Footloose and fancy free](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/portable-synth-rig/) - Maybe you would like to play your music in the great outdoors at a family picnic. Or, like me, you would like an extremely light, battery-powered rig for quick set-up at rehearsals. Modern battery technology to the rescue! More musical instruments and portable speakers than ever run on battery power. Many of these devices sport
- [Triton Taktile: A few more thoughts](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/triton-taktile-more-thoughts/) - A quick follow-up to my earlier snap review about the Korg Triton Taktile. I've spent more time playing the Triton Taktile and generally remain pleased with many of the on-board preset sounds and the keyboard feel. The only major disappointment is a way to toggle the rotary speaker speed for B-3 organ sounds. Speed changes
- [Korg Triton Taktile: Snap Review](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/triton-taktile-snap-review/) - The Korg Triton Taktile has a double personality. On one hand, the Triton Taktile (TT) is a MIDI controller with eight knobs, eight sliders, eight buttons, sixteen pads and a set of DAW function buttons. (These are the specs for the 49-key model, the model that I'm using.) On the other hand, it is a
- [MidiVOX: An appreciation and review](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/midivox-review/) - They just don't make 'em like they used to. In the case, of the Narbotic Instruments MidiVOX shield for Arduino, I really mean it! The MidiVox is a bit of a blast from the past as Narbotic no longer manufacture and sell the MidiVOX shield kit. Major bummer. Luckily, I purchased one of these little
- [PERF tutorial part 3 is now on-line](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/perf-tut-pt3-available/) - Just wrapped up Part 3 of the Linux-tools PERF tutorial. The tutorial now consists of three parts. Part 1 covers the most basic PERF commands and shows how to find program hot-spots using software performance events. Part 2 discusses hardware performance events and performance counters, and demonstrates how to measure hardware performance events using PERF
- [PERF tutorial part 2 now available](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/perf-tut-pt2-available/) - Part 2 of a three part tutorial about Linux-tools PERF is now available. Part 1 of the series shows how to find hot execution spots in an application program. It demonstrates the basic PERF commands using software performance events such as CPU clock ticks and page faults. Part 2 of the series -- just released
- [RPi2: Work in progress 1](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/rpi2-work-in-progress-1/) - Here's a quick status update on working with Raspberry Pi gen 2. The installed operating system is Raspbian Wheezy 3.18.7-v7+ built on 16 February 2015. I'm happy to report that I could profile programs using PERF software events. I'm disappointed to report that PERF does not recognize any hardware (performance counter) events. This distro has
- [Second generation RPi is here](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/second-gen-rpi-is-here/) - The second generation Raspberry Pi (RPi2) is now shipping in large quantities! Given the excitement on the Web, this machine should be at least as popular as its first generation parents. Although the RPi2 model B has the same overall form factor as the first generation model B+, the designers made two substantial improvements which
- [Make music with MMS on a PSR](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/mms-and-psr/) - Yamaha Mobile Music Sequencer includes features for Motif, MOX and Tyros5, but did you know that you can create music using MMS on your PSR arranger? Yes, you can! I'm using MMS with both the Yamaha PSR-E443 and PSR-S950 and I have written up a tutorial on making music with MMS on PSR/Tyros. This article
- [Scat voice expansion pack](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/scat-voice-pack-v1/) - I'm pleased to release version 1 of my jazz scat voice expansion pack for Yamaha PSR-S950 and PSR-S750 arranger workstations. The expansion pack has five PSR voices which let you create "Take 6" style, a cappella arrangements and other kinds of jazz voice performances. Give the MP3 demo a try! Four of the PSR voices
- [Sampling "scat"](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/sampling-scat/) - In this post, I describe the process and tools that I used to capture samples for my jazz scat voice. I will eventually release the voice (for the Yamaha PSR-S950 workstation) and its samples under the Creative Commons attribution license. I'm not the best singer, so I've had to rely on technology as much as
- [Vocaloid is not just for anime!](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/vocaloid-not-just-for-anime/) - As I mentioned in my last post, I'm developing a new sample-based voice for the Yamaha PSR-S750/S950 arranger workstations. Roland is famous for its "jazz scat" voice which uses velocity-switching to trigger syllables like DOO, DAT, BOP and DOW at pitch. This synth voice is good for a cappella-like arrangements (think "Take 6") or free
- [A dive into some old Roland gear](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/dive-into-old-roland-gear/) - I haven't taken a deep dive into any gear lately and my ears need a break! So, here goes. The Web is a wonderful source of distractions. After discovering the new Roland Sound Canvas app for iPad, I was searching for some information about the later model Sound Canvas modules and came across the Roland
- [PSR-E443: Snap review](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/psr-e443-snap-review/) - Ah, it's always fun to post a "first impressions" review of a new toy! In this case, the Yamaha PSR-E443 portable arranger. I like to use a battery powered keyboard at rehearsals since an all-in-one sets up and tears down without a lot of work. Up to this point, I've been playing an old Yamaha
- [Prototino in progress](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/prototino-in-progress/) - This week I got rolling on my next MIDI project -- a mini MIDI controller with two knobs (potentiometers) and two buttons. I intend to mount the electronics in a Hammond 1991XXBBK enclosure, also known as an (ABS) stompbox. Plastic is OK because the box will reside by the pitch and modulation wheels on the
- [DangerShield Drawbars](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/dangershield-drawbars/) - Just a quick post to mention the new Arduino section of the web site. The first page in the new section describes the DangerShield Drawbars project that I started last March! This project uses the Sparkfun DangerShield (3 sliders, 3 buttons, 2 LEDs and a seven segment display) and an Arduino UNO to implement a
- [MOX construction kits update: version 2](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/mox-const-kits-update-v2/) - I hope that you have downloaded and are using the MOX construction kits. It's no secret that many of the Motif/MOX arpeggios are taken from Tyros/PSR workstation styles. If you scan through the MOX data list, you'll notice that many arpeggios share a similar name. These musical phrases belong to the same family. A construction
- [SA and SA2: Is Motif up to the task?](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/sa-and-sa2-yamahas-words/) - Every now and again, the subject of Super Articulation and Super Articulation 2 voices come up on the Motifator site. Here are some rather lengthy comments that I posted in response to a recent inquiry. First, here is some background information from the S950 and Tyros 5 manual. The descriptions of Super Articulation (SA) and
- [More new phrases for MMS](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/more-new-phrases-for-mms/) - If you enjoyed the last batch of phrases for Yamaha Mobile Music Sequencer, here's some more! All of the phrases are taken from funky, jazzy styles on the PSR-S950 arranger keyboard. FunkPoppin ZIP FunkPopRock ZIP JazzFunk ZIP JazzPop ZIP KoolFunk ZIP These loops are free and ready for download -- 250+ phrases for drum, bass,
- [Yamaha voice of the customer](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/yamaha-voice-of-the-customer/) - The Yamaha synthesizer site has come to life, again. The site has resources for current Yamaha synthesizer products, blogs and a forum. One the forums is seeking input for future Yamaha synthesizer products. Here is my post to that forum. It's kind of terse, but the Yamaha marketing people already have so many long messages
- [How to import new MIDI phrases into MMS](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/import-new-mms-phrases/) - The Yamaha Mobile Music Sequencer (MMS) app for iPad is a fun tool, but it cannot import MIDI files or new musical phrases. This limits its real-world usefulness. One way to import MIDI is to slave MMS to another sequencer and play MIDI track by track into MMS. If your goal is new phrases for
- [MOX internal architecture](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/mox-internal-architecture/) - Curiosity finally overcame inertia and I ordered the service manual for the Yamaha MOX6 and MOX8 workstations. (The Yamaha 24x7 part number is "S M MOX6/MOX8".) If you remember from my previous discussion about workstation internal architecture, the Motif XS synthesizer is Linux-based and has a 400MHz Toshiba TX4939 RISC CPU as its main processor.
- [Ancient weapons and tools](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/ancient-weapons-and-tools/) - Back in the mid- to late-1990s, Yamaha developed and manufactured a wide range of plug-in cards and modules. In many cases, the technology is unique and is still useful today. I have two old Yamaha modules: The VL70m analog modeling synthesizer module and The AN200 desktop beatbox and analog modeling synthesizer. Both are based on
- [Yamaha: The business](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/yamaha-the-business/) - We musicians like to dream about new electronic musical instruments or even just simple improvements to the instruments that we already own. Everyone likes to think that their specific needs are indicative of the general market, and gosh, "Why doesn't Yamaha (or whoever) realize that this is important?" Well, like any other business, Yamaha or
- [Smooth It Over](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/smooth-it-over/) - Here's a Yamaha PSR-S950 style for funky jazzers -- SmoothItOver. As some of you know, many of the Motif/MOX arpeggios are based on what once were PSR/Tyros arranger keyboard styles. SmoothItOver is a little payback going the other way. The MOX has about a dozen or so jazzy/funky Performances that are fun to jam to.
- [Transferring QY70 style to PSR](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/transfer-qy70-style-to-psr/) - Some of us are trying to mine our old beat boxes (like the Yamaha QY70) for styles and phrases. I tried transferring a QY70 "style" to an S950. "8Detroit" is an 8-beat QY70 style. A QY70 style has only six sections: Main A, Main B, Fill In AB, Fill In BA, Intro, Ending. There is
- [Giving DetroitBeat "Soul"](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/detroitbeat/) - I decided to have another go at Yamaha audio style conversion. This time I converted the PSR-S950 "DetroitBeat" audio style to an all-MIDI style called "DetroitSoul". The name "DetroitSoul" seemed appropriate since most of the MIDI rhythm parts are taken from the Yamaha preset style "Soul". The conversion process was a little different. Load DetroitBeat
- [60sSuperGroup mash-up](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/60ssupergroup-mash-up/) - In my last post, I started the process of converting the PSR-S950 audio style "60sSuperGroup" to all MIDI. I like the 60sSuperGroup audio style, but the really strong back-beat in MAIN A makes it hard to use that section on anything other than the Beatles song "Ticket To Ride." In order to make this style
- [S950 audio style mash-up](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/s950-audio-style-mash-up/) - The Yamaha PSR-S950 and Tyros 5 arrangers provide audio styles as well as conventional, pure MIDI-based backing styles. Audio styles replace the MIDI-based rhythm tracks with an audio track of a (human) drummer playing a kit. The remainder of the backing track is provided by MIDI. On the up side, the audio rhythm parts have
- [PSR/Tyros XG effects](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/psrtyros-xg-effects/) - I've been busy making my PSR-S950 gig-ready. I'll describe the overall set-up in a separate post as soon as I have a little more time. Part of the job involves converting some of my General MIDI 2 backing tracks to the PSR-S950 sound engine. The PSR (and Tyros) sound engine follows the Yamaha XG architecture
- [Sparkfun Danger Shield](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/sparkfun-danger-shield/) - Sparkfun is one of my favorite companies. I like their products and their service is very good and reliable. I've learned a lot by studying their designs and I especially like their commitment to education. Previously, I built two Sparkfun kits: the Redboard PTH Arduino and the MIDI break-out board. I have several more kits
- [MMS as a tool](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/mms-as-a-tool/) - I've got a lot more experience with the Yamaha Mobile Music Sequencer (MMS), so it's worth passing along an update. I've been composing backing tracks for classic soul jazz tunes. If you would like to hear the results, please browse over to the Music Gallery. MMS is a phrase- and section- oriented composition tool. A
- [Tyros 4 teardown](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tyros-4-teardown/) - I stumbled across this Yamaha Tyros 4 teardown on Youtube. Although the video is a little bit long-winded, you get a peek under the hood of the Tyros 4 and see a few of the circuit boards. Unfortunately, the video is short on the kinds of details that you would find in a Yamaha service
- [Yamaha arranger product family](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/psr-product-family/) - Even I found the last post to be down in the weeds and confusing. So, here's a better summary. I went on an Internet dumpster dive over the weekend to find more service manuals for Yamaha keyboards. I've always been interested in the architecture of product families and curiosity got the best of me, again.
- [A follow-up on the Yamaha SWP51](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/psr-whats-inside-2/) - Here's a follow-up on the Yamaha SWP51 tone generator. Sound On Sound (SOS) mentioned that the SWP51 tone generator was first used in the Yamaha Motif XS family. The Motif XS has two SWP51 ICs with a master/slave relationship. Each SWP51 has 8MBytes of dedicated DSP SDRAM. The two SWP51s share wave ROM arranged in
- [What's inside of a Yamaha arranger?](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/psr-whats-inside/) - Curiosity finally got the better of me and I decided to find out what's inside of the Yamaha PSR-S750/S950 arranger keyboards. Fortunately, Yamaha provides service manuals for its products. The manuals have block diagrams and schematics as well as disassembly information, etc. My first impression is that the S750 and S950 are quite different beasts
- [Music gallery](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/music-gallery/) - If you would like to hear some of my work, please head over to the new music gallery page. The music gallery has MP3 demos, MIDI files and Yamaha Mobile Music Sequence (MMS) project files. Feel free to download the MIDI files and MMS projects. I've also posted a few production notes for each track.
- [Mobile Music Sequencer is here](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/mms-is-here/) - The Yamaha Mobile Music Sequencer (MMS) is a fun tool for roughing out arrangements. MMS is an iPad app that uses a phrase- and section-oriented approach to building up full arrangements. A lot of rock, pop and dance music is repetitive, so once you have the basic building blocks (phrases), you can create loop-like musical
- [Arrangers need respect!](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/arrangers-need-respect/) - Sometimes I like to kick back and jam to a simple chord progression and a groove. It's a lot more fun to play to a groove than it is to practice to a boring old metronome. The Yamaha MOX workstation is full of delicious factory performances where you can play a progression with the left
- [Way back in '97...](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/qy70-shrine/) - Way back in the 1990s, Yamaha developed and sold the QY series of ultra-portable MIDI sequencers. The penultimate model in the QY series is my pal the QY-70 (purchased in 1997). I still occasionally use the QY today and this post is my mini-shrine. The QY-70 combines a MIDI sequencer, a tone module, a Chiclet
- [And now for something completely different](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/music/) - Been a while since the last post, eh? After the intensive push to publish courseware, I took a little "dreadlock holiday" and spent the last few months devoted to music. (Ahhh, the privileges of retirement!) In particular, I decided to deep dive into the Yamaha MOX workstation which is now my main gigging instrument. I
- [Topics in computer architecture](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/topics-in-computer-architecture/) - A new courseware page -- topics in computer architecture -- is now available. This page covers a wide mix of topics from RISC vs. CISC to non-von Neumann languages and architectures. You might just find an interesting lecture or two for a special topics seminar about computer architecture. Way back when in the early eighties,
- [VLSI systems course](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/vlsi-systems-course/) - The syllabus and notes for my VLSI systems course is now available in the courseware section of the site. This is a "Mead and Conway" course on VLSI systems and CMOS circuit design. Mead and Conway led the world with their approach to VLSI design. Instead of focusing on device electronics and physics, this approach
- [Wanna design a computer?](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/wanna-design-a-computer/) - The next installment in the courseware section -- computer design -- is now available. This course shows how to design a computer starting with an abstract specification of the instruction set architecture (ISA) and ending with a gate-level implementation. The course teaches a method which successively translates a higher-level representation for the machine into a
- [Courseware is here](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/courseware-is-here/) - Finally, the courseware section of the site is open for business! The first course is undergraduate data structures. I taught this course twice at Tufts University. Topics include the most important elements of the old ACM 2001 "CS2" curriculum along with a basic introduction to software engineering. The course is compatible with the "new" ACM
- [Science!](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/science/) - And shout that word like Thomas Dolby! I'm in the process of transitioning the site to its new domain name, sandsoftwaresound.net. So, here's just a few philosophical thoughts in the meantime. I've been reading "Weird Life" by David Toomey. His book is very well written -- one of the best bits of science writing that
- [Raspberry Pi tips and tricks](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/raspberry-pi-tips-and-tricks/) - If you're new to the world of Raspberry Pi, you should check out the page about Raspberry Pi tips and tricks. The page has all of the things that I did to configure Raspberry Pi and get started with the operating system, Raspbian Wheezy. One of the most important things you should do is to
- [ARM11 microarchitecture](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/arm11-microarchitecture/) - You probably know by now that the Raspberry Pi uses an ARM processor. In particular, the Raspberry Pi model B uses the Broadcom BCM2835 system on a chip (SoC). The BCM2835 is a member of the ARM11 family. Its name is the ARM1176JZF-S. (Whew!) Like all computers, the BCM2835 has an internal processor structure called
- [Building a loadable kernel module](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/building-a-loadable-kernel-module/) - I needed to design, implement and build a loadable kernel module in order to access the ARM11 performance counters from user-space. I will slowly roll out the design and code for the kernel module. But, first, I've posted my notes for building a loadable kernel module. It's easier to explain the process of building the
- [An introduction to performance tuning (and counters)](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/an-introduction-to-performance-tuning-and-counters/) - My latest page is an overview of performance tuning on ARM11. The Raspberry Pi is a nifty little Linux box, but it's kind of slow at 700MHz. Therefore, I suspect that programmers will have an interest in tuning up application programs and making them run faster. Performance tuning is also a good opportunity to learn
- [Performance counter kernel module](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/performance-counter-kernel-module/) - As promised, I've described the design of a Linux loadable kernel module that allows user-space access to the Raspberry Pi (ARM 1176) performance counters. By the way, the design of the module is not specific to Raspbian Wheezy or even the Raspberry Pi for that matter. I believe that the kernel module could be used
- [Raspberry Pi performance counters (part 1)](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/raspberry-pi-performance-counters-part-1/) - Finally, an example to show the Raspberry Pi performance counters in action. My friends will no doubt chuckle because the first example is an analysis of matrix multiplication. ("He always starts with matrix multiplication...") Matrix multiplication is a good place to start because it is a small easy to build and easy to analyze program
- [Faster matrix multiplication (part 2 of 2)](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/faster-matrix-multiplication-part-2-of-2/) - Part 2 of two parts on matrix multiplication demonstrates a fast matrix multiplication program. The algorithm is a simple transformation of the textbook algorithm -- the olde loop nest interchange. The transformation changes the slow access pattern to one of the arrays so that the program steps sequentially through the array elements in memory. Execution
- [Perils of performance analysis on single core](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/perils-of-performance-analysis-on-single-core/) - A new article on the Raspberry Pi (Broadcom BCM2835) memory hierarchy is almost ready. The first code has already been posted. I've been working on multi-core processors for so long that I forgot what it's like to take measurements on a single core machine like the Raspberry Pi. In the ideal world, a benchmark or
- [Memory hierarchy and performance events](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/memory-hierarchy-perf-events/) - My latest set of experiments with Raspberry Pi use the BCM2835 performance counters to exercise and observe the behavior of the RPi memory system. The experiments use a simple microbenchmark that traverses a linked list. This technique is often called pointer chasing because list traversal chases the pointers through the linked list from beginning to
- [Memory access time](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/memory-access-time/) - In my last post, I used a simple pointer chasing loop to characterize the different levels of the BCM2835 (Raspberyy Pi) memory hierarchy. I ran the pointer chasing loop for a range of linked list sizes where the list size determines the storage level to be exercised. For example, a linked list occupying 16KB or
- [rpistat: RPi event monitoring tool](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/rpistat-monitoring-tool/) - [At the time of this post, Performance Events for Linux (PERF) supports only software events on Raspberry Pi. Rpistat is a tool that counts hardware performance events in the style of perf stat and is a poor man's substitute.] So far, my example programs for the Raspberry Pi (matrix multiplication, pointer chasing) are instrumented with
- [A sweet one-liner for histograms](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/one-liner-histogram/) - Here is a shell script one-liner that is just too sweet to go unrecognized. I've written a program (latency.c) to measure the execution time of individual chase operations in a linked list pointer chasing loop. The program writes the execution times into a file named samples.dat. The distribution of the execution times should show the
- [Performance events and Zen](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/performance-events-and-zen/) - It's always interesting to get started with a new microarchitecture and the ARM 1176 inside of the Raspberry Pi is no exception. Back when we were in school, we all dutifully went to computer architecture class and learned about memory hierarchy, read/write access, cache memory, and the translation lookaside buffer (TLB). A hit was a
- [The fine print in the TRM](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/the-fine-print-in-the-trm/) - I've been busy writing up the first example showing how to use the Raspberry Pi performance counter kernel module and the ARM11 performance counters. These write-ups always take longer than I think, so here's a few small things that I've learned along the way. Run, don't walk, to the ARM web site and download a
- [What's this all about?](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/whats-this-all-about/) - Electronics and computing are great hobbies. You can even make a career out of them! I'm a computer scientist and engineer who is exploring Raspberry Pi, Arduino, Papilio and other terrific, low-cost toys. I'm hoping to share my knowledge and discoveries as I go along so that you can benefit from my experience, too. Students

## Pages

- [DJX-II styles for PSR/Tyros](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/music/yamaha-psr-arrangers/read-me-djx-ii-styles/) - Thanks for downloading PJ's DJX-II patterns for Yamaha PSR/Tyros arranger workstations! (Download the ZIP file here.) There are 15 DJX-II patterns in this collection. All of these DJ styles are on the jazz tip and are good for funkin' around and jamming. These styles behave differently than standard arranger styles, so I recommend reading the
- [Performance styles for PSR-E443](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/music/yamaha-psr-arrangers/read-me-mox-for-e443/) - Thank you for downloading the MOX performance styles for the PSR-E443! (Download the ZIP file here.) Getting started Each of the Yamaha Motif/MOX series workstations have hundreds of factory "Performances" to be used for live performance, jamming or song-writing. A Motif/MOX Performance consists of four independent voices, usually drum, bass, and one or two other
- [ARM11 microarchitecture](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/raspberry-pi/arm11-microarchitecture/) - This page is a very brief summary of the Broadcom BCM2835 microarchitecture. Processor microarchitecture has many important effects on program performance. A well-tuned program should make good use of the underlying microarchitecture and should avoid known performance pitfalls. The Raspberry Pi uses the Broadcom BCM2835 system on a chip (SoC). The Raspberry Pi model B
- [RPi performance event monitoring: rpistat](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/raspberry-pi/raspberry-pi-gen-1/rpi-perf-event-monitor/) - Source: Makefile, rpistat.c, readme Common code: test_common.h, test_common.c, rpi_pmu.h, rpi_pmu.c The matrix multiplication and pointer chasing programs use the BCM2835 (Raspberry Pi) performance counters to self-monitor their own behavior. The programs configure and start the performance counters before entering a critical loop and stop the performance counters after leaving the loop. This approach is intrusive
- [Memory hierarchy and access time](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/raspberry-pi/raspberry-pi-gen-1/memory-hierarchy/) - PMU measurement source: Makefile, chase.c, readme Latency measurement source: Makefile, latency.c, readme Common code: test_common.h, test_common.c, rpi_pmu.h, rpi_pmu.c This page takes a closer look at the Raspberry Pi memory hierarchy. Each level of the memory hierarchy has a capacity and speed. Capacities are relatively easy to discover by querying the operating system or reading the
- [Textbook matrix multiplication (part 1)](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/raspberry-pi/raspberry-pi-gen-1/textbook-matrix-multiplication/) - Source: Makefile, naive.c, readme Common code: test_common.h, test_common.c, rpi_pmu.h, rpi_pmu.c Now that we have a kernel module and user-space functions to use the Raspberry Pi (ARM11) performance counters, let's take some measurements! Sure, matrix multiplication is a bit of a trivial example, but there are a number of reasons why it's a good place to
- [Performance measurement and tuning](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/raspberry-pi/raspberry-pi-gen-1/performance-measurement-and-tuning/) - Performance measurement and tuning is practical because programmers often need to improve the performance of their programs. By now, you know that the Raspberry Pi is not the fastest machine in the world and programs running on the RPi need a tune up to make users happy. Performance tuning is a bit of a game:
- [Tips and tricks](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/raspberry-pi/raspberry-pi-gen-1/raspberry-pi-tips/) - The Raspberry Pi is just about the most Linux fun that someone can have for $35. If you just purchased your Raspberry Pi (RPi), congratulations! Here are some tips and tricks which will help you to get the most out of the RPi and to make life easy. Accessories I started out with just the essentials:
- [Arduino](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/arduino/) - This is the landing page for Arduino-related projects and topics. The first Arduino project is a simple MIDI drawbar controller for the Yamaha PSR-S950 arranger workstation. Controller hardware is simple: an Arduino UNO microcomputer, a Sparkfun DangerShield with sliders, buttons and LEDs, and a minimal MIDI OUT circuit. This project is a "proof of concept"
- [Arduino Lo-fi Beat Box](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/arduino/arduino-lo-fi-beat-box/) - A lo-fi TR-808 Beat Box using littleBits Arduino (PWM audio)
- [60s Combo Organ (MidiVOX)](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/arduino/60s-combo-organ-midivox/) - There's nothing like the visceral thrill of pulling out all of the stops on a 60s combo organ and shrieking away! If you own one of these vintage keyboards, you also know the agony and the sorrow of old, failing electronics. When I was a teenager, I always wished for a Vox Continental or Jaguar
- [Combo organ](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/source/arduino-project-source/combo-organ/) - My dream is to build a low-cost 60s combo organ with the era-appropriate look and sound. The organ would look like a Vox Continental with a Z-shaped chrome stand and bright red Tolex covering. It would sound like either a Farfisa or a Vox -- nothing too nuanced with all of the drawbars or tabs
- [Beat Box: BeatBox.ino](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/source/arduino-project-source/arduino-beat-box/beat-box-beatbox-ino/)
- [Arduino Beat Box](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/source/arduino-project-source/arduino-beat-box/) - Source code for an Arduino TR808 sound-alike Beat Box (drum machine)
- [Beat Box: patterns.h](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/source/arduino-project-source/arduino-beat-box/beat-box-patterns-h/)
- [Beat Box: kits.h](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/source/arduino-project-source/arduino-beat-box/beat-box-kits-h/)
- [Tone sequencer with envelope and filter](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/source/arduino-project-source/tone-sequencer-with-envelope-and-filter/) - This is the source code landing page for the littleBits tone sequencer with an envelope and filter module. The sketch demonstrates how to control the littleBits envelope and filter modules with an Arduino. Read about the hardware and software design. There are three source code files: ToneFreq.h: Symbolic constants for note pitches (e.g., NOTE_C4) ToneNote.h:
- [Simple Arduino tone sequencer](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/arduino/simple-tone-sequencer/) - Here is the design of my first project with littleBits Arduino. I wanted to pull together a quick audio project to check out the littleBits modules and to hear some square waves through the littleBits synth speaker. Pretty much, I wanted to test the Arduino as a simple note sequencer and oscillator (tone source). The
- [Sequencer with trigger and modulation](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/arduino/sequencer-trigger-modulation/) - I hope you had a chance to try the littleBits Arduino tone sequencer because it's the starting point for my next project. The simple tone sequencer was featured as a project on the littleBits site. The simple sequencer generates square waves through the Arduino's digital pin D5 where the audio signal is sent to the
- [Tone Sequencer: GateModSeq.ino](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/source/arduino-project-source/tone-sequencer-with-envelope-and-filter/tone-sequencer-gatemodseq-ino/)
- [Simple sequencer: ToneTest.ino](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/source/arduino-project-source/simple-sequencer/simple-sequencer-tonetest-ino/)
- [Simple MIDI sequencer: MidiSeq.ino](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/source/arduino-project-source/simple-midi-sequencer/simple-midi-sequencer-midiseq-ino/)
- [Simple sequencer: ToneFreq.h](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/source/arduino-project-source/simple-sequencer/simple-sequencer-tonefreq-h/)
- [Simple MIDI sequencer](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/arduino/simple-midi-sequencer/) - This project is a simple MIDI sequencer sketch. It assumes that you have a 5-pin MIDI OUT interface attached to Arduino pin D1 (also called "TX"). If you don't have a MIDI OUT interface, check out the design of my basic MIDI IN/OUT interface for Arduino. Then come back here. This sketch is a good
- [Simple MIDI sequencer](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/source/arduino-project-source/simple-midi-sequencer/) - This simple MIDI sequencer is based on the simple Arduino tone sequencer sketch. Like that sketch, it stores a musical sequence in a two dimensional array. Each row in the array represents either a note or a rest. The first column of the array is the note pitch or REST sentinel value. The second column
- [Simple MIDI sequencer: MidiNoteNum.h](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/source/arduino-project-source/simple-midi-sequencer/simple-midi-sequencer-midinotenum-h/)
- [Simple sequencer](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/source/arduino-project-source/simple-sequencer/) - Here is the source code for a simple Arduino-based sequencer and tone generator. I used this code to check-out and test the littleBits Arduino module as a note sequencer and tone generator (square wave oscillator). The sketch uses the Arduino tone() function for tone generation. Thus, the tuning is not super-precise and the sound of
- [Simple sequencer: ToneNote.h](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/source/arduino-project-source/simple-sequencer/simple-sequencer-tonenote-h/)
- [MidiVOX organ: Tables.h](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/source/arduino-project-source/combo-organ/midivox-organ-tables-h/)
- [MidiVOX organ: ComboOrgan.ino](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/source/arduino-project-source/combo-organ/midivox-organ-comboorgan-ino/)
- [MidiVOX organ: Vox.h](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/source/arduino-project-source/combo-organ/midivox-organ-vox-h/)
- [MidiVOX organ: Farf.h](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/source/arduino-project-source/combo-organ/midivox-organ-farf-h/)
- [MidiVOX diagnostic sketch: MidiTest.ino](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/source/arduino-project-source/combo-organ/midivox-diagnostic-sketch/)
- [PERF](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/perf/) - Performance Events for Linux, called "PERF," is the standard profiling infrastructure on Linux. PERF consists of a kernel SYSCALL to collect performance data and a suite of user-space tools (linux-tools). Most users want to analyze program performance and concentrate on the off-the-shelf tools for performance measurement and profiling. You can, however, dig deeper and use
- [PERF tutorial: Profiling hardware events](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/perf/perf-tut-profile-hw-events/) - This article is the third part of a three part series on the PERF (linux-tools) performance measurement and profiling system for Linux. Part 1 demonstrates how to use PERF to identify and analyze the hottest execution spots in a program. Part 1 covers the basic PERF commands, options and software performance events. Part 2 introduces
- [PERF tutorial: Counting hardware performance events](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/perf/perf-tut-count-hw-events/) - This article is part 2 of a three part series on the PERF (linux-tools) performance measurement and profiling system. In part 1, I demonstrate how to use PERF to identify and analyze the hottest execution spots in a program. Part 1 covers the basic PERF commands, options and software performance events. Part 2 introduces hardware
- [PERF tutorial: Finding execution hot spots](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/perf/perf-tutorial-hot-spots/) - This article is the first of a three part series on the PERF (linux-tools) performance measurement and profiling system. Part 1 demonstrates how to use PERF to identify and analyze the hottest execution spots in a program. It covers the basic PERF commands, options and software performance events. Part 2 introduces hardware performance events and
- [interchange.c](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/source/rpi-user-space-counters/faster-matrix-multiplication/interchange-c/)
- [Build a kernel module (redux)](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/raspberry-pi/raspberry-pi-gen-2/build-kernel-module-rpi2/) - Now that the Raspberry Pi 2 (AKA "gen 2") is here, it's time to build a loadable kernel module for it. A loadable kernel module is a good way to implement a device driver. Maybe you've constructed some fantastic new device for the Raspberry Pi and you need a driver for it. Or, maybe you
- [Raspberry Pi gen 2](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/raspberry-pi/raspberry-pi-gen-2/) - New content for second generation Raspberry Pi (RPi2) will be added here.
- [Build a kernel module](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/raspberry-pi/raspberry-pi-gen-1/build-a-kernel-module/) - Linux device drivers reside in loadable kernel modules. A kernel module is a collection of C language routines which implement the device driver functionality while adhering to the Linux conventions and interface for driver software. Pretty much any functionality can be captured in a loadable kernel module, not just software that communicates with devices like
- [Faster matrix multiplication (part 2)](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/raspberry-pi/raspberry-pi-gen-1/faster-matrix-multiplication/) - Source: Makefile, interchange.c, readme Common code: test_common.h, test_common.c, rpi_pmu.h, rpi_pmu.c Part 2 of the matrix multiplication example introduces and demonstrates a faster algorithm. The faster algorithm walks sequentially through the elements of the operand arrays, thereby reducing the number of performance robbing data cache and TLB misses. Why is the textbook algorithm slow? The number
- [Performance counter kernel module](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/raspberry-pi/raspberry-pi-gen-1/performance-counter-kernel-module/) - Kernel module source: Makefile, aprof.c, readme User-space source: rpi_pmu.h, rpi_pmu.c Although we may have an inkling about the behavior and performance of a program, nothing beats measurement for objectivity. The Linux time command reports the elapsed, user and system execution times for a program: > time ./small real 0m17.015s user 0m16.510s sys 0m0.020s This is
- [Raspberry Pi gen 1](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/raspberry-pi/raspberry-pi-gen-1/) - The first Raspberry Pi took the world by storm -- a truly great little computer for education and learning. I wrote a series of articles to help people get started with Raspberry Pi. In addition to the usual tips and tricks, these articles covered some deeper subjects: ARM11 architecture, program profiling, and how to build
- [Make music with MMS on PSR/TYROS](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/music/mms-on-psr-tyros/) - Yamaha Mobile Music Sequencer (MMS) is an iPad app for pattern- and loop-based music composition. It's a great tool for electronic dance music (EDM), pop, and other musical genres with repetitive song and phrase structure. MMS consists of a sequencer and a sound engine. The sequencer plays phrase-based sections and songs by translating notes and
- [Yamaha PSR/Tyros arrangers](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/music/yamaha-psr-arrangers/) - Check this area for free PSR/Tyros content like styles, expansion packs, voices, samples and audio files. Expansion pack: ScatVoices The ScatVoices expansion pack for Yamaha PSR-S750 and S950 arranger workstations is a set of voices suitable for jazz background and scat vocals. The expansion pack has five voices: DooLoops, GetLayeredUp, DatStuff, BopOnBop, and Dow2008 --
- [Mobile Music Sequencer Reference](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/music/yamaha-mms/) - The Yamaha Mobile Music Sequencer (MMS) is an iPad app developed and supported by Yamaha. MMS is a music composition tool that is based upon a few simple, structural ideas: a song is composed of a sequence of sections and each section is composed of one or more phrases that play concurrently. Each section has
- [Music Gallery](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/music/music-gallery/) - The Music Gallery is definitely a work in progress! Listen to demos and examples. Download MIDI tracks and songs. It's all here. Memphis Underground This is one of my all time favorite groove and jam pieces (one chord: C7). It was first recorded by Herbie Mann who is backed by the famous American Sound Studios
- [DangerShield drawbars](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/arduino/arduino-dangershield-drawbars/) - The Yamaha PSR-S950 arranger workstation provides two different kind of Hammond B-3 organ voices: Regular, sampled organ voices Organ flute voices An organ flute voice is similar to a true Hammond voice. It consists of nine independently controlled organ pipes, percussion, vibrato and rotary speaker effect. The S950 edit page displays nine drawbars which are
- [Arduino projects](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/source/arduino-project-source/) - You will find source code for Arduino projects in this section of the site. Hammond B-3 organ is one of those classic sounds that never seem to go out of style. Some synthesizer and arranger workstations provide a "drawbar mode" in which the musician can adjust the setting of nine virtual B-3 drawbars. When a
- [DangerShield drawbars](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/source/arduino-project-source/dangershield-drawbars-code/)
- [Import MIDI phrases into MMS](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/music/import-midi-phrases-into-mms/) - The Yamaha Mobile Music Sequencer (MMS) uses two file types for user data: project files with the "yms1" extension and phrase files with the "yms2" extension. These files are accessible through either iCloud and/or iTunes file sharing. This note tersely describes the phrase file format. A yms2 file is an Apple binary property list (plist)
- [RPi kernel module](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/source/rpi-kernel-module/) - These are the source and make files for the [amazon asin=B009SQQF9C&text=Raspberry Pi] performance counter kernel module. Don't forget to do all of the preparation steps that are needed to perform an out-of-tree kernel module build! The make file will not build the kernel module without kernel header files and the rest of the steps. As
- [Raspberry Pi](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/raspberry-pi/) - The [amazon asin=B009SQQF9C&text=Raspberry Pi] (RPi) is a spiffy little Linux machine that's great for hardware and software experiments. Due to its ultra-low cost, the RPi looks to be an ideal platform for students, educators and self-directed learning. Right out of the box, students can write and run C, C++ and Python programs. Advanced students can
- [Music](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/music/) - Music is the spice of life! My alter ego is a musician who likes to play rock, funk, and gospel music. I play keyboards and, of course, technology slips into the whole mix. This page has links to observations and notes about a wide variety of musical topics. My main gigging instrument is the Yamaha
- [Getting started with the Yamaha MOX workstation](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/music/mox/) - The MOX is a music production synthesizer designed and manufactured by Yamaha. The MOX is part of the Motif line of keyboard workstations. It has the same voices and performances as the Yamaha Motif XS and they sound terrific. It has a sequencer that records notes and other aspects of your performance into patterns and/or
- [Courseware](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/courseware/) - This is the landing page for the "courseware" section of the site. I've had the pleasure of teaching several undergraduate and graduate courses. This part of the site contains the raw material for a few of those courses. Students and instructors are invited to dive in, browse and borrow. The first set of material is
- [Topics in computer architecture](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/courseware/topics-in-computer-architecture/) - This page has links to lecture material and notes about computer architecture. This is not a syllabus for a standard undergraduate or graduate course in computer architecture. The topics are appropriate for a seminar on computer architecture. There are a few major themes. There is a strong interplay between architecture, operating systems and compiling. The
- [VLSI systems](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/courseware/vlsi-systems/) - VLSI systems revolutionized the modern world! The table below is the syllabus for an entry-level graduate course about VLSI systems and design. It was taken by senior-level undergraduates and first year graduate students. All were required to have a background in digital logic design. I taught this course for several years at Case Western Reserve
- [Computer design](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/courseware/computer-design/) - The syllabus below describes a one semester undergraduate course about computer design. I taught this course for several years at Case Western Reserve University to junior year computer engineering and computer science students. The course was preceded by a one semester, prerequisite course on combinational and sequential logic. Students were expected to know about the
- [CS2 data structures](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/courseware/cs2-data-structures/) - Welcome to my source material for a one semester undergraduate course about data structures. This course roughly corresponds to the old ACM CS2 curriculum. The programming language is C++ although the examples were originally derived from Java. Therefore, it shouldn't be too difficult to translate the examples back to Java, again! The course covers the
- [rpi_pmu.c](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/source/rpi-user-space-counters/common-code/rpi_pmu-c/)
- [test_common.h](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/source/rpi-user-space-counters/common-code/test_common-h/)
- [test_common.c](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/source/rpi-user-space-counters/common-code/test_common-c/)
- [rpi_pmu.h](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/source/rpi-user-space-counters/common-code/rpi_pmu-h/)
- [Common code](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/source/rpi-user-space-counters/common-code/) - Here are two sets of utility definitions and functions. These utilities are called by the example benchmark/application programs. test_common.h and test_common.c contain definitions, declarations and functions to perform everyday tasks such as creating/closing the results file, writing platform information to the results file, writing run statistics to the file, and so forth. A few of
- [Makefile](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/source/rpi-kernel-module/makefile/)
- [rpistat.c](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/source/rpi-user-space-counters/rpistat-performance-monitoring/rpistat-c/)
- [Makefile](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/source/rpi-user-space-counters/rpistat-performance-monitoring/makefile/)
- [rpistat performance monitoring](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/source/rpi-user-space-counters/rpistat-performance-monitoring/) - Rpistat launches a workload and monitors system activity through the Raspberry Pi (BCM2835) performance counters. Rpistat needs user-space access to the ARM1176JZF-S performance counters. The aprofile kernel module must be loaded before running rpistat. The aprofile kernel module enables user-space access when it is load and disables access when it is unloaded. Rpistat does not
- [naive.c](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/source/rpi-user-space-counters/naive-matrix-multiply/naive-c/)
- [histogram.c](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/source/rpi-user-space-counters/pointer-chasing-memory-latency/histogram-c/)
- [latency.c](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/source/rpi-user-space-counters/pointer-chasing-memory-latency/latency-c/)
- [Makefile](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/source/rpi-user-space-counters/pointer-chasing-memory-latency/makefile/)
- [Pointer chasing (memory latency)](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/source/rpi-user-space-counters/pointer-chasing-memory-latency/) - The program latency.c is a clone of the pointer chasing program. It uses the AMR1176 Cycles Counter Register (CCR) to measure the execution time of individual pointer chasing operations (i.e., the reference through the next pointer in a linked list). The program traverses the linked list many times (default: 1000 traversals). Each time it traverses
- [Pointer chasing (PMU events)](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/source/rpi-user-space-counters/pointer-chasing-pmu-events/) - The program chase measures the elapsed time and key memory-related performance events for a linked list pointer chasing loop. The linked list is laid down in a dynamically allocated, contiguous array. Each linked list item is an ARM11 cache line (32 bytes). The list is traversed multiple times to increase run time. The size of
- [chase.c](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/source/rpi-user-space-counters/pointer-chasing-pmu-events/chase-c/)
- [Makefile](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/source/rpi-user-space-counters/pointer-chasing-pmu-events/makefile/)
- [Makefile](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/source/rpi-user-space-counters/faster-matrix-multiplication/makefile/)
- [Faster matrix multiplication](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/source/rpi-user-space-counters/faster-matrix-multiplication/) - Here is the code for a faster matrix multiplication. It uses the loop nest interchange algorithm.
- [Makefile](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/source/rpi-user-space-counters/naive-matrix-multiply/makefile/)
- [Naive matrix multiply](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/source/rpi-user-space-counters/naive-matrix-multiply/) - This program implements the textbook (naive) matrix multiplication algorithm. The algorithm mirrors the textbook definition of matrix multiplication in linear algebra. The algorithm has known performance issues (data cache misses and data translation lookaside buffer misses). These issues slow down memory access. The program calls the user-space ARM11 performance counter functions in rpi_pmu.c. It also
- [RPi user-space counters](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/source/rpi-user-space-counters/) - These pages contain the source for the user-space performance counter code. The code is meant to be called by a user-space application program like a benchmark or some other program that you want to analyze. Include the file rpi_pmu.h to define the ARM11 (ARMv6) performance events and function prototypes. The file rpi_pmu.c implements the functions
- [aprof.c](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/source/rpi-kernel-module/aprof-c/)
- [Source](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/source/) - Ahhhhhhhh, WordPress! Even though I like the formatting in WordPress, it is not particularly source code friendly. I would love to make each of the source and make files available for download, but WordPress is rather paranoid and forbids that. I'm still looking for a work around. In the meantime, the menu items under "Source"
- [About](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/about/) - Hi! I'm Paul Drongowski AKA "pj". I'm a computer scientist and engineer who has worked in industry and has taught college-level computer science and engineering. My industrial gigs include Advanced Micro Devices (AMD), Hewlett Packard and Siemens. During the last several years, I specialized in program profiling and performance tuning. I've had the pleasure to

## Categories

- [Uncategorized](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/category/uncategorized/)
- [Raspberry Pi](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/category/raspberry_pi/)
- [RPi performance](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/category/rpi_performance/)
- [PERF](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/category/perf/)
- [Courseware](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/category/courseware/)
- [Music](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/category/music/)
- [Mobile Music Sequencer](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/category/mobile-music-sequencer/)
- [Music technology](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/category/music-technology/)
- [Arduino](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/category/arduino/)
- [MOX](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/category/mox/)
- [PSR/Tyros](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/category/psrtyros/)
- [Triton Taktile](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/category/triton-taktile/)
- [Montage](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/category/montage/)
- [littleBits](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/category/littlebits/)
- [Reface](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/category/reface/)
- [Genos](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/category/genos/)
- [MODX](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/category/modx/)
- [Sonogenic](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/category/sonogenic/)
- [PSS-A50](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/category/pss-a50/)
- [CT-S1000V](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/category/ct-s1000v/)
- [Smart Pianist](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/category/smart-pianist/)
- [CSP-170](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/category/csp-170/)
- [MODXM](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/category/modxm/)
- [SEQTRAK](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/category/seqtrak/)

## Tags

- [biography](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/biography/)
- [author](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/author/)
- [getting started](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/getting-started/)
- [configuration](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/configuration/)
- [change timezone](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/change-timezone/)
- [change locale](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/change-locale/)
- [change keymap](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/change-keymap/)
- [shut down](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/shut-down/)
- [ARM11](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/arm11/)
- [ARMv6](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/armv6/)
- [BCM2835](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/bcm2835/)
- [microarchitecture](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/microarchitecture/)
- [cache](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/cache/)
- [translation lookaside buffer](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/translation-lookaside-buffer/)
- [TLB](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/tlb/)
- [pipeline](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/pipeline/)
- [branch prediction](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/branch-prediction/)
- [loadable kernel module](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/loadable-kernel-module/)
- [module build](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/module-build/)
- [version information](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/version-information/)
- [Raspberry Pi](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/raspberry-pi/)
- [performance tuning](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/performance-tuning/)
- [performance counters](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/performance-counters/)
- [microarchitectural events](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/microarchitectural-events/)
- [ARM1176](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/arm1176/)
- [kernel module](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/kernel-module/)
- [source code](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/source-code/)
- [data cache](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/data-cache/)
- [instruction issue](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/instruction-issue/)
- [hit under miss](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/hit-under-miss/)
- [performance events](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/performance-events/)
- [matrix multiplication](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/matrix-multiplication/)
- [compiler options](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/compiler-options/)
- [floating point coprocessor](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/floating-point-coprocessor/)
- [VFP](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/vfp/)
- [SIMD](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/simd/)
- [VFP coprocessor](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/vfp-coprocessor/)
- [vector floating point](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/vector-floating-point/)
- [performance analysis](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/performance-analysis/)
- [single core](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/single-core/)
- [multi-core](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/multi-core/)
- [memory hierarchy](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/memory-hierarchy/)
- [L1 data cache](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/l1-data-cache/)
- [L2 cache](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/l2-cache/)
- [primary memory](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/primary-memory/)
- [Access time](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/access-time/)
- [latency time](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/latency-time/)
- [Cycles Counter Register](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/cycles-counter-register/)
- [RDTSC](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/rdtsc/)
- [pointer chasing](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/pointer-chasing/)
- [rpistat](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/rpistat/)
- [monitoring](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/monitoring/)
- [data structures](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/data-structures/)
- [undergraduate course](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/undergraduate-course/)
- [lecture notes](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/lecture-notes/)
- [projects](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/projects/)
- [computer design](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/computer-design/)
- [slides](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/slides/)
- [VLSI systems](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/vlsi-systems/)
- [courseware](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/courseware-2/)
- [graduate course](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/graduate-course/)
- [simulation](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/simulation/)
- [simulator](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/simulator/)
- [computer architecture](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/computer-architecture/)
- [seminar](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/seminar/)
- [Yamaha MOX](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/yamaha-mox/)
- [arpeggios](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/arpeggios/)
- [construction kits](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/construction-kits/)
- [Rapsberry Pi](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/rapsberry-pi/)
- [MIDI](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/midi/)
- [MIDI bridge](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/midi-bridge/)
- [MP3](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/mp3/)
- [music gallery](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/music-gallery/)
- [SMF](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/smf/)
- [arranger keyboard](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/arranger-keyboard/)
- [arranger](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/arranger/)
- [tone generator](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/tone-generator/)
- [wave ROM](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/wave-rom/)
- [PSR-S950](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/psr-s950/)
- [Tyros](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/tyros/)
- [audio style](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/audio-style/)
- [MIDI style](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/midi-style/)
- [conversion](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/conversion/)
- [QY70](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/qy70/)
- [PSR](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/psr/)
- [style](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/style/)
- [transfer](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/transfer/)
- [style creation](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/style-creation/)
- [arpeggio](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/arpeggio/)
- [Mega Voice](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/mega-voice/)
- [Yamaha](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/yamaha/)
- [market segments](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/market-segments/)
- [musical instruments](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/musical-instruments/)
- [analog modeling](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/analog-modeling/)
- [software compatibility](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/software-compatibility/)
- [software plug-ins](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/software-plug-ins/)
- [internal architecture](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/internal-architecture/)
- [wave memory](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/wave-memory/)
- [phrase](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/phrase/)
- [import](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/import/)
- [free loops](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/free-loops/)
- [PSR-E443](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/psr-e443/)
- [review](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/review/)
- [content creation](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/content-creation/)
- [arranger styles](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/arranger-styles/)
- [MIDI songs](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/midi-songs/)
- [Roland XP](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/roland-xp/)
- [Sound Canvas](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/sound-canvas/)
- [Yamaha Vocaloid](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/yamaha-vocaloid/)
- [voice synthesis](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/voice-synthesis/)
- [sampling](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/sampling/)
- [scat](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/scat/)
- [syllables](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/syllables/)
- [vocoder](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/vocoder/)
- [formant](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/formant/)
- [pitch correction](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/pitch-correction/)
- [tools](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/tools/)
- [jazz scat](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/jazz-scat/)
- [voice](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/voice/)
- [expansion pack](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/expansion-pack/)
- [samples](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/samples/)
- [multi-samples](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/multi-samples/)
- [free](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/free/)
- [PSR-S750](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/psr-s750/)
- [compose](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/compose/)
- [Raspberry Pi 2](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/raspberry-pi-2/)
- [RPi2](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/rpi2/)
- [second generation](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/second-generation/)
- [linux-tools](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/linux-tools/)
- [tutorial](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/tutorial/)
- [tuning](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/tuning/)
- [combo organ](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/combo-organ/)
- [MidiVOX](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/midivox/)
- [sketch](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/sketch/)
- [Arduino rom-pler](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/arduino-rom-pler/)
- [direct digital synthesis](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/direct-digital-synthesis/)
- [synthesizer](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/synthesizer/)
- [waveform](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/waveform/)
- [Korg Triton Taktile](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/korg-triton-taktile/)
- [MIDI controller](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/midi-controller/)
- [Triton sound engine](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/triton-sound-engine/)
- [USB powered](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/usb-powered/)
- [portable](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/portable/)
- [keyboard](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/keyboard/)
- [battery powered](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/battery-powered/)
- [portable speaker](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/portable-speaker/)
- [workstation](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/workstation/)
- [speculation](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/speculation/)
- [Yamaha DJX-II](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/yamaha-djx-ii/)
- [styles](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/styles/)
- [patterns](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/patterns/)
- [download](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/download/)
- [Reface](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/reface/)
- [organ](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/organ/)
- [portability](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/portability/)
- [interview](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/interview/)
- [PSR-E433](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/psr-e433/)
- [8 zone drum kit](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/8-zone-drum-kit/)
- [8 zone arpeggio](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/8-zone-arpeggio/)
- [Yamaha Motif](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/yamaha-motif/)
- [MOXF](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/moxf/)
- [PSR/Tyros](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/psrtyros/)
- [effects](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/effects/)
- [drums](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/drums/)
- [hardware](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/hardware/)
- [architecture](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/architecture/)
- [memory](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/memory/)
- [tone generation](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/tone-generation/)
- [XG effects](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/xg-effects/)
- [system mode](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/system-mode/)
- [insertion mode](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/insertion-mode/)
- [Tyros5](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/tyros5/)
- [PSR-S670](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/psr-s670/)
- [PSR-S770](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/psr-s770/)
- [PSR-S970](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/psr-s970/)
- [alpha version](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/alpha-version/)
- [patents](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/patents/)
- [serial memory](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/serial-memory/)
- [Yamaha XG](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/yamaha-xg/)
- [MidRadio](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/midradio/)
- [tome module](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/tome-module/)
- [CP](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/cp/)
- [YC](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/yc/)
- [DX](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/dx/)
- [CS](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/cs/)
- [DigiTech TRIO](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/digitech-trio/)
- [customer experience](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/customer-experience/)
- [Motif XF](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/motif-xf/)
- [TC-Helicon](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/tc-helicon/)
- [TC-Electronic](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/tc-electronic/)
- [stomp box](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/stomp-box/)
- [Korg Krome](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/korg-krome/)
- [Korg Kronos](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/korg-kronos/)
- [x86](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/x86/)
- [ARM](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/arm/)
- [synthesizer architecture](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/synthesizer-architecture/)
- [synthesizer workstation](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/synthesizer-workstation/)
- [Yamaha arranger](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/yamaha-arranger/)
- [Chord Tracker](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/chord-tracker/)
- [iPad](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/ipad/)
- [accompaniment](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/accompaniment/)
- [patent](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/patent/)
- [CDMA](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/cdma/)
- [ultrasonic communication](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/ultrasonic-communication/)
- [SWP70](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/swp70/)
- [arranger workstation](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/arranger-workstation/)
- [Tyros 5](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/tyros-5/)
- [Motif](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/motif/)
- [Montage](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/montage/)
- [SWP51L](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/swp51l/)
- [electric piano](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/electric-piano/)
- [DSP effects](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/dsp-effects/)
- [user effects](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/user-effects/)
- [DSP](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/dsp/)
- [multi-effects](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/multi-effects/)
- [Winter NAMM 2016](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/winter-namm-2016/)
- [rumor](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/rumor/)
- [Yamaha Reface](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/yamaha-reface/)
- [Reface DX](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/reface-dx/)
- [Reface YC](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/reface-yc/)
- [ARM FM3](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/arm-fm3/)
- [new synth workstation](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/new-synth-workstation/)
- [Yamaha Montage](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/yamaha-montage/)
- [leaked details](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/leaked-details/)
- [NAMM 2016](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/namm-2016/)
- [new workstation](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/new-workstation/)
- [Apple Music Memos](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/apple-music-memos/)
- [Nord Stage 2 ex](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/nord-stage-2-ex/)
- [Nord Electro 5d](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/nord-electro-5d/)
- [test drive](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/test-drive/)
- [Raspbian Jessie](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/raspbian-jessie/)
- [Linux](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/linux/)
- [ALSA](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/alsa/)
- [JACK](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/jack/)
- [software synthesizer](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/software-synthesizer/)
- [soft synth](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/soft-synth/)
- [amsynth](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/amsynth/)
- [qjackctl](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/qjackctl/)
- [Raspbian Linux](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/raspbian-linux/)
- [DAC](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/dac/)
- [ADC](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/adc/)
- [USB audio](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/usb-audio/)
- [Qsynth](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/qsynth/)
- [FluidSynth](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/fluidsynth/)
- [SoundFont](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/soundfont/)
- [multi-timbral soft synth](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/multi-timbral-soft-synth/)
- [soft synth host](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/soft-synth-host/)
- [Yamaha DGX](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/yamaha-dgx/)
- [processors](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/processors/)
- [scripts](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/scripts/)
- [code](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/code/)
- [MIDI key mapping](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/midi-key-mapping/)
- [articulations](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/articulations/)
- [programmability](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/programmability/)
- [waveforms](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/waveforms/)
- [rebate promotion](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/rebate-promotion/)
- [tenor sax](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/tenor-sax/)
- [voice programming](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/voice-programming/)
- [Expanded Articulation](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/expanded-articulation/)
- [Super Articulation](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/super-articulation/)
- [littleBits](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/littlebits/)
- [Ardunio](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/ardunio/)
- [sequencer](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/sequencer/)
- [MIDI interface](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/midi-interface/)
- [5-pin DIN](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/5-pin-din/)
- [schematic](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/schematic/)
- [prototype](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/prototype/)
- [MIDI sequencer](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/midi-sequencer/)
- [MIDI THRU](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/midi-thru/)
- [littleBits Arduino](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/littlebits-arduino/)
- [MIDI testing](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/midi-testing/)
- [5-pin MIDI](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/5-pin-midi/)
- [simple MIDI sequencer](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/simple-midi-sequencer/)
- [echo MIDI](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/echo-midi/)
- [Sparkfun MIDI shield](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/sparkfun-midi-shield/)
- [Sparkfun MIDI breakout board](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/sparkfun-midi-breakout-board/)
- [PWM](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/pwm/)
- [audio](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/audio/)
- [low-pass filter](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/low-pass-filter/)
- [filter module](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/filter-module/)
- [envelope module](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/envelope-module/)
- [tone sequencer](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/tone-sequencer/)
- [Synth kit](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/synth-kit/)
- [drum machine](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/drum-machine/)
- [PWM audio](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/pwm-audio/)
- [Reface CS](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/reface-cs/)
- [Reface CP](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/reface-cp/)
- [SSP2](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/ssp2/)
- [Beat Box](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/beat-box/)
- [TR-808](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/tr-808/)
- [SPI port](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/spi-port/)
- [ICSP](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/icsp/)
- [SPI](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/spi/)
- [digital-to-analog conversion](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/digital-to-analog-conversion/)
- [hardware platform](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/hardware-platform/)
- [free download](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/free-download/)
- [Roland Dr. Synth](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/roland-dr-synth/)
- [Roland SC-33](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/roland-sc-33/)
- [tone module](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/tone-module/)
- [expander](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/expander/)
- [Korg Minilogue](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/korg-minilogue/)
- [sound set](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/sound-set/)
- [Next Tyros](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/next-tyros/)
- [GENOS](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/genos/)
- [MIDIPLUS](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/midiplus/)
- [miniEngine](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/miniengine/)
- [DREAM synthesis](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/dream-synthesis/)
- [MIDI expander](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/midi-expander/)
- [FreePlay style](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/freeplay-style/)
- [PSR/Tyros styles](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/psrtyros-styles/)
- [Leaking battery](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/leaking-battery/)
- [alkaline battery](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/alkaline-battery/)
- [IK Multimedia](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/ik-multimedia/)
- [Duracell](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/duracell/)
- [entry-level arranger](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/entry-level-arranger/)
- [entry-level piano](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/entry-level-piano/)
- [Roland](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/roland/)
- [Moon Amplification](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/moon-amplification/)
- [Skamp](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/skamp/)
- [turntable](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/turntable/)
- [Jimi Hendrix](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/jimi-hendrix/)
- [garage band](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/garage-band/)
- [next generation arranger](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/next-generation-arranger/)
- [new arranger workstation](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/new-arranger-workstation/)
- [PERF](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/perf/)
- [Mobile Music Sequencer](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/mobile-music-sequencer/)
- [Arduino](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/arduino/)
- [MOX](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/mox/)
- [PROGMEM](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/progmem/)
- [Do-Re-Mi](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/do-re-mi/)
- [Yudo](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/yudo/)
- [Kami-OTO](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/kami-oto/)
- [NEUMAN-2](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/neuman-2/)
- [SPI DAC](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/spi-dac/)
- [mini-keys](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/mini-keys/)
- [Arturia Keystep](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/arturia-keystep/)
- [MicroKORG XL+](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/microkorg-xl/)
- [Roland SK88Pro](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/roland-sk88pro/)
- [MCP4921](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/mcp4921/)
- [sample playback](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/sample-playback/)
- [synthesis](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/synthesis/)
- [oscillator](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/oscillator/)
- [intonation](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/intonation/)
- [MIDI to CV](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/midi-to-cv/)
- [control voltage](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/control-voltage/)
- [SIGCSE 2017](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/sigcse-2017/)
- [Free lecture notes](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/free-lecture-notes/)
- [Living Computers Museum](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/living-computers-museum/)
- [vintage computers](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/vintage-computers/)
- [computer science education](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/computer-science-education/)
- [audio integrated circuit](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/audio-integrated-circuit/)
- [balanced input](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/balanced-input/)
- [balanced output](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/balanced-output/)
- [Yamaha MX88BK](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/yamaha-mx88bk/)
- [SR-JV80](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/sr-jv80/)
- [expansion boards](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/expansion-boards/)
- [electrolytic capacitors](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/electrolytic-capacitors/)
- [Arturia](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/arturia/)
- [Ableton](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/ableton/)
- [Ableton Live](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/ableton-live/)
- [books](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/books/)
- [book review](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/book-review/)
- [Roland GO:KEYS](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/roland-gokeys/)
- [Vocaloid](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/vocaloid/)
- [AEM](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/aem/)
- [NSX-1](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/nsx-1/)
- [eVocaloid](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/evocaloid/)
- [NP-12](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/np-12/)
- [NP-32](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/np-32/)
- [SWX02](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/swx02/)
- [SWX03](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/swx03/)
- [Real Acoustic Sound](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/real-acoustic-sound/)
- [Pocket Miku](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/pocket-miku/)
- [documentation](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/documentation/)
- [Summer NAMM 2017](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/summer-namm-2017/)
- [NSX-39](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/nsx-39/)
- [teardown](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/teardown/)
- [circuit board](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/circuit-board/)
- [Yamaha SessionCake](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/yamaha-sessioncake/)
- [Boss Rhythm Partner](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/boss-rhythm-partner/)
- [MIDI SysEx](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/midi-sysex/)
- [Yamaha CSP-150](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/yamaha-csp-150/)
- [Yamaha CSP-170](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/yamaha-csp-170/)
- [music analysis](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/music-analysis/)
- [Kittar](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/kittar/)
- [Yamaha NSX-1](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/yamaha-nsx-1/)
- [MIDI pin-out](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/midi-pin-out/)
- [MIDI circuit](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/midi-circuit/)
- [Korg](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/korg/)
- [Vox Continental](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/vox-continental/)
- [Vox amplifier](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/vox-amplifier/)
- [Vocaloid keyboard](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/vocaloid-keyboard/)
- [SWX08](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/swx08/)
- [Yamaha Genos](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/yamaha-genos/)
- [teaser video](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/teaser-video/)
- [JBL Charge 2](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/jbl-charge-2/)
- [MSRP](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/msrp/)
- [MAP](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/map/)
- [list price](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/list-price/)
- [street price](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/street-price/)
- [Martin Harris](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/martin-harris/)
- [waveform memory](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/waveform-memory/)
- [YEM](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/yem/)
- [voice editing](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/voice-editing/)
- [drum programming](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/drum-programming/)
- [Revo drums](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/revo-drums/)
- [style conversion](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/style-conversion/)
- [Winter NAMM 2018](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/winter-namm-2018/)
- [Java](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/java/)
- [note mapper](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/note-mapper/)
- [demo](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/demo/)
- [CES 2018](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/ces-2018/)
- [Roland R-07](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/roland-r-07/)
- [AMD Athlon](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/amd-athlon/)
- [SPECTRE](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/spectre/)
- [Microsoft gaff](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/microsoft-gaff/)
- [PSR-S975](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/psr-s975/)
- [PSR-S775](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/psr-s775/)
- [teasers](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/teasers/)
- [Korg prologue](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/korg-prologue/)
- [Korg volca mix](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/korg-volca-mix/)
- [Soundware ELZ_1](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/soundware-elz_1/)
- [Nintendo Labo](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/nintendo-labo/)
- [Blipblox](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/blipblox/)
- [Dexibell](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/dexibell/)
- [Studiologic](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/studiologic/)
- [Nord Electro 6](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/nord-electro-6/)
- [Leslie](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/leslie/)
- [AmpliTube](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/amplitube/)
- [T-RackS](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/t-racks/)
- [PSR-E463](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/psr-e463/)
- [PSR-EW410](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/psr-ew410/)
- [Yamaha Expansion Manager](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/yamaha-expansion-manager/)
- [master compressor](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/master-compressor/)
- [parallel compression](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/parallel-compression/)
- [drawbar organ mode](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/drawbar-organ-mode/)
- [improvements](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/improvements/)
- [UVF](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/uvf/)
- [Computer history](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/computer-history/)
- [Style file](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/style-file/)
- [Audio style file](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/audio-style-file/)
- [Business class](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/business-class/)
- [JetBlue](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/jetblue/)
- [Delta](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/delta/)
- [Alaska Airlines](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/alaska-airlines/)
- [Virgin Atlantic](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/virgin-atlantic/)
- [JetBlue Mint](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/jetblue-mint/)
- [guitar waveforms](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/guitar-waveforms/)
- [single coil](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/single-coil/)
- [double coil](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/double-coil/)
- [amp sim](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/amp-sim/)
- [cabinet sim](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/cabinet-sim/)
- [Boston Music Expo](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/boston-music-expo/)
- [Yamaha patent](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/yamaha-patent/)
- [tone wheel](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/tone-wheel/)
- [rotary speaker](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/rotary-speaker/)
- [Summer NAMM 2018](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/summer-namm-2018/)
- [Insertion effects](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/insertion-effects/)
- [Yamaha QY-70](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/yamaha-qy-70/)
- [update](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/update/)
- [DAW integration and control](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/daw-integration-and-control/)
- [Yamaha vkb-100](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/yamaha-vkb-100/)
- [Arranger architecture](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/arranger-architecture/)
- [SWL processor](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/swl-processor/)
- [Suzuki Baby Leslie](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/suzuki-baby-leslie/)
- [Yamaha Reface YC](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/yamaha-reface-yc/)
- [Yamaha MODX](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/yamaha-modx/)
- [Yamaha MOXF](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/yamaha-moxf/)
- [Korg EK-50](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/korg-ek-50/)
- [Roland keytar](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/roland-keytar/)
- [Roland Ax-Edge](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/roland-ax-edge/)
- [MODX Version 1.10 update](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/modx-version-1-10-update/)
- [XG architecture](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/xg-architecture/)
- [Akai Professional Mini Play](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/akai-professional-mini-play/)
- [Super Knob](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/super-knob/)
- [split](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/split/)
- [layer](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/layer/)
- [Performance editing](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/performance-editing/)
- [Sample Robot](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/sample-robot/)
- [Crumar D9U drawbar controller](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/crumar-d9u-drawbar-controller/)
- [Zoom Q2n-4K](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/zoom-q2n-4k/)
- [Winter NAMM 2019](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/winter-namm-2019/)
- [Yamaha Venova](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/yamaha-venova/)
- [Mackie Onyx Producer](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/mackie-onyx-producer/)
- [PreSonus Studio 24](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/presonus-studio-24/)
- [Roland GO:PIANO](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/roland-gopiano/)
- [Korg Minilogue XD](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/korg-minilogue-xd/)
- [Yamaha CP73](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/yamaha-cp73/)
- [Yamaha CP88](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/yamaha-cp88/)
- [Korg Kronos SE](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/korg-kronos-se/)
- [Akai Pro Force](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/akai-pro-force/)
- [Ace Tone](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/ace-tone/)
- [Effigy](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/effigy/)
- [Spectral Component Modeling](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/spectral-component-modeling/)
- [Nord Piano Monitor](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/nord-piano-monitor/)
- [Blackstar Super Fly](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/blackstar-super-fly/)
- [Native Instruments](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/native-instruments/)
- [Yamaha Sonogenic](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/yamaha-sonogenic/)
- [Yamaha SHS-500](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/yamaha-shs-500/)
- [Yamaha Reface CP](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/yamaha-reface-cp/)
- [Sampleson](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/sampleson/)
- [SWX03 processor](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/swx03-processor/)
- [Yamaha annual report](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/yamaha-annual-report/)
- [Organ flutes](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/organ-flutes/)
- [MODX](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/modx/)
- [Korg nu:tekt](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/korg-nutekt/)
- [Superbooth 2019](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/superbooth-2019/)
- [Ratt](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/ratt/)
- [Warren DeMartini](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/warren-demartini/)
- [Desert island synthesizer](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/desert-island-synthesizer/)
- [Yamaha SHS-300](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/yamaha-shs-300/)
- [Sample compression](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/sample-compression/)
- [WXC](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/wxc/)
- [Yamaha PSS-E30](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/yamaha-pss-e30/)
- [Yamaha Remie](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/yamaha-remie/)
- [Yamaha PSS-A50](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/yamaha-pss-a50/)
- [Yamaha PSS-F30](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/yamaha-pss-f30/)
- [Yamaha YMF278](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/yamaha-ymf278/)
- [AWM2 architecture](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/awm2-architecture/)
- [FM architecture](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/fm-architecture/)
- [hardware tone generation](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/hardware-tone-generation/)
- [Winter NAMM 2020](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/winter-namm-2020/)
- [Korg Wavestate](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/korg-wavestate/)
- [JBL IRX Series](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/jbl-irx-series/)
- [Roland Jupiter-Xm](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/roland-jupiter-xm/)
- [Yamaha YC61](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/yamaha-yc61/)
- [General MIDI](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/general-midi/)
- [Virtual Circuit Modeling](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/virtual-circuit-modeling/)
- [VCM](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/vcm/)
- [Physical modeling](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/physical-modeling/)
- [MIDI Designer](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/midi-designer/)
- [User interface](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/user-interface/)
- [Korg NTS-1](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/korg-nts-1/)
- [Farfisa Mini Deluxe Compact](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/farfisa-mini-deluxe-compact/)
- [Ampeg SB-12](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/ampeg-sb-12/)
- [Classic Keys (book)](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/classic-keys-book/)
- [COVID-19](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/covid-19/)
- [Coronavirus](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/coronavirus/)
- [Key Performance Indicator](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/key-performance-indicator/)
- [KPI](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/kpi/)
- [SARS-CoV-2](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/sars-cov-2/)
- [Steinberg Cubase](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/steinberg-cubase/)
- [Lester K](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/lester-k/)
- [Demo songs](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/demo-songs/)
- [Korg Module](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/korg-module/)
- [iOS Apps](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/ios-apps/)
- [Freeware](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/freeware/)
- [plug-ins](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/plug-ins/)
- [trigger](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/trigger/)
- [gate](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/gate/)
- [MIDI module](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/midi-module/)
- [littleBits Envelope](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/littlebits-envelope/)
- [littleBits Filter](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/littlebits-filter/)
- [littleBits control voltage](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/littlebits-control-voltage/)
- [littleBits Oscillator](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/littlebits-oscillator/)
- [Roland Micro Cube GX](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/roland-micro-cube-gx/)
- [Nooelec Nano 2+](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/nooelec-nano-2/)
- [software defined radio](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/software-defined-radio/)
- [RTL SDR Blog V3 radio](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/rtl-sdr-blog-v3-radio/)
- [Raspberry Pi 4](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/raspberry-pi-4/)
- [Cortex-A72](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/cortex-a72/)
- [BCM2711](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/bcm2711/)
- [RPi performance](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/rpi-performance/)
- [Winter NAMM 2021](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/winter-namm-2021/)
- [ARM Cortex-A72](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/arm-cortex-a72/)
- [Instructions per cycle](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/instructions-per-cycle/)
- [SN76477 Complex Sound Generator](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/sn76477-complex-sound-generator/)
- [Vintage IC](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/vintage-ic/)
- [E-mu Systems](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/e-mu-systems/)
- [SSM](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/ssm/)
- [Solid State Micro Technology](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/solid-state-micro-technology/)
- [Curtis Electromusic Specialties](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/curtis-electromusic-specialties/)
- [top octave generator](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/top-octave-generator/)
- [Mostek MK50240](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/mostek-mk50240/)
- [zplane deCoda](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/zplane-decoda/)
- [Free DJ styles](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/free-dj-styles/)
- [Boss EV-1-WL](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/boss-ev-1-wl/)
- [Summer NAMM 2021](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/summer-namm-2021/)
- [MIDI implementation](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/midi-implementation/)
- [Motion effects](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/motion-effects/)
- [SWLL](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/swll/)
- [YMW-830](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/ymw-830/)
- [Mystic Circuits](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/mystic-circuits/)
- [0HP 0ttenuator](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/0hp-0ttenuator/)
- [0HP Envelope](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/0hp-envelope/)
- [Yamaha PSR-E473](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/yamaha-psr-e473/)
- [Yamaha PSR-EW425](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/yamaha-psr-ew425/)
- [Korg Microkey Air 2](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/korg-microkey-air-2/)
- [Steinberg WaveLab Cast](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/steinberg-wavelab-cast/)
- [Yamaha AG06](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/yamaha-ag06/)
- [Synthrotek Dev Delay](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/synthrotek-dev-delay/)
- [Future Kit FK651 stereo simulator](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/future-kit-fk651-stereo-simulator/)
- [Miroslav Philharmonik](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/miroslav-philharmonik/)
- [iSymphonic Orchestra](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/isymphonic-orchestra/)
- [SampleTank IOS](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/sampletank-ios/)
- [ChordPro](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/chordpro/)
- [ChordTracker](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/chordtracker/)
- [Musicsoft Downloader](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/musicsoft-downloader/)
- [Auto-accompaniment](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/auto-accompaniment/)
- [Casio CT-S1000V](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/casio-ct-s1000v/)
- [Casio CT-S500](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/casio-ct-s500/)
- [Winter NAMM 2022](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/winter-namm-2022/)
- [Casio Lyric Creator](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/casio-lyric-creator/)
- [Korg NTS-2](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/korg-nts-2/)
- [Roland Aira](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/roland-aira/)
- [NAMM 2022](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/namm-2022/)
- [Moog Mavis](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/moog-mavis/)
- [Roland E-X50](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/roland-e-x50/)
- [Arturia Keylab Essential](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/arturia-keylab-essential/)
- [Chord Looper](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/chord-looper/)
- [Yamaha MODX+](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/yamaha-modx-2/)
- [SAM2635](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/sam2635/)
- [Akai MPK Mini](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/akai-mpk-mini/)
- [Yamaha P-S500](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/yamaha-p-s500/)
- [V3 Sound YAMMEX XXL](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/v3-sound-yammex-xxl/)
- [boss FS-1-WL](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/boss-fs-1-wl/)
- [Behringer Dual-Phase](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/behringer-dual-phase/)
- [SWAM Flute](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/swam-flute/)
- [Camelot Pro](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/camelot-pro/)
- [Event Processor Plus](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/event-processor-plus/)
- [Patchwerks](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/patchwerks/)
- [Keith McMillen Instruments](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/keith-mcmillen-instruments/)
- [QuNexus](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/qunexus/)
- [K-Board C](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/k-board-c/)
- [MPE](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/mpe/)
- [Artiphon Orba](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/artiphon-orba/)
- [Roli Noise](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/roli-noise/)
- [MIDI Polyphonic Expression](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/midi-polyphonic-expression/)
- [ROLI Lightpad M](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/roli-lightpad-m/)
- [NAMM 2023](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/namm-2023/)
- [Yamaha STAGEPAS 200](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/yamaha-stagepas-200/)
- [Roland FP-E50](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/roland-fp-e50/)
- [Yamaha AG08](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/yamaha-ag08/)
- [Korg EK-50U](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/korg-ek-50u/)
- [Korg EK-50CSA](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/korg-ek-50csa/)
- [Buchla LEM218](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/buchla-lem218/)
- [Buchla Lunar Excursion Module](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/buchla-lunar-excursion-module/)
- [Kiviak Technologies WoFi](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/kiviak-technologies-wofi/)
- [Roland SH-4D](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/roland-sh-4d/)
- [Akai LPK25 Mk2](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/akai-lpk25-mk2/)
- [Roland GP Series](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/roland-gp-series/)
- [Yamaha CK61](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/yamaha-ck61/)
- [Yamaha CK88](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/yamaha-ck88/)
- [Hammond XK-4](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/hammond-xk-4/)
- [re.corder](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/re-corder/)
- [Yamaha P-515](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/yamaha-p-515/)
- [Yamaha Piaggero](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/yamaha-piaggero/)
- [Yamaha DGX-670](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/yamaha-dgx-670/)
- [SWX09](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/swx09/)
- [Kawai MP11](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/kawai-mp11/)
- [Korg Nautilus](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/korg-nautilus/)
- [Virtual Resonance Modeling](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/virtual-resonance-modeling/)
- [VRM](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/vrm/)
- [Yamaha P-525](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/yamaha-p-525/)
- [Yamaha Montage M](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/yamaha-montage-m/)
- [Yamaha P-225](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/yamaha-p-225/)
- [Yamaha P-145](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/yamaha-p-145/)
- [Yamaha SEQTRAK](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/yamaha-seqtrak/)
- [Yamaha Genos2](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/yamaha-genos2/)
- [NAMM 2024](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/namm-2024/)
- [Korg NTS-3](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/korg-nts-3/)
- [Yamaha Reface DX](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/yamaha-reface-dx/)
- [Anavi Macropad8](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/anavi-macropad8/)
- [piano evoce ß](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/piano-evoce-s/)
- [Arturia AstroLab](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/arturia-astrolab/)
- [free chord progressions](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/free-chord-progressions/)
- [1010Music tangerine](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/1010music-tangerine/)
- [ROLI Lumi](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/roli-lumi/)
- [Ableton Move](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/ableton-move/)
- [ROLI](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/roli/)
- [Behringer UV300](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/behringer-uv300/)
- [Behringer pedal](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/behringer-pedal/)
- [Donner effects](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/donner-effects/)
- [NAMM 2025](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/namm-2025/)
- [Korg KRONOS 3](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/korg-kronos-3/)
- [Korg miniKORG 700Sm](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/korg-minikorg-700sm/)
- [Smart Pianist](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/smart-pianist/)
- [Yamaha Torch T01](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/yamaha-torch-t01/)
- [Steinberg Etude](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/steinberg-etude/)
- [AdaFruit Feather](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/adafruit-feather/)
- [Key switching](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/key-switching/)
- [Yamaha CE20](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/yamaha-ce20/)
- [TalentCell battery pack](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/talentcell-battery-pack/)
- [Yamaha Extrack](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/yamaha-extrack/)
- [Extrack](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/extrack/)
- [Yamaha MODX M](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/yamaha-modx-m/)
- [M5Stack MIDI](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/m5stack-midi/)
- [Medeli](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/medeli/)
- [Medeli A5](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/medeli-a5/)
- [Medeli MK49](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/medeli-mk49/)
- [NAMM 2026](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/namm-2026/)
- [Korg Volca sample](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/korg-volca-sample/)
- [Teenage Engineering](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/teenage-engineering/)
- [EP-40 Riddim](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/ep-40-riddim/)
- [Yamaha PSR-E483](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/yamaha-psr-e483/)
- [Yamaha PSR-E583](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/yamaha-psr-e583/)
- [Nord Electro 7](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/nord-electro-7/)
- [Stylophone VOICE](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/stylophone-voice/)
- [ASM Leviasynth](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/asm-leviasynth/)
- [Yamaha PSR-I510](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/yamaha-psr-i510/)
- [Yamaha PSR-I610](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/yamaha-psr-i610/)
- [EP-2350 Ting](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/ep-2350-ting/)
- [QMK Toolkit](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/qmk-toolkit/)
- [HP OmniDesk](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/hp-omnidesk/)
- [AMD Ryzen 5](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/amd-ryzen-5/)
- [Yamaha AN200](http://sandsoftwaresound.net/tag/yamaha-an200/)