Saturday Synth Porn: If there’s a King or Queen of Synths – the Yamaha CS-80 would probably be it.
New York vintage synth specialists The Analog Lab had this monster synth beast in for repair and shot some video that highlights not only why the CS-80 is such a capable synth, but also why it’s a beast to move and maintain.
Want to know why they don’t make ’em like this anymore? One look inside will give you the answer:
See The Analog Lab site for more shots of this monster.
Duke, maybe.
The Moog Modular is and will likely always be king.
But together, they could rule the world…..
Salivating;)
I passed up one of these on my local Craigslist last year, very stupid of me.
Your one chance…….
It costed the equivalent of 100 000 dollars back then!
I would be amazing if yamaha could make modern reissue of this beast, kind of Prophet8, analog and digital, modern features, between 12 and 16 voices (like Andromeda), the same look, great sound…for about 4000 / 5000 dollars. I think is possible. I would buy! If a PE8 costs about 2000!
Well, from Roland i expect nothing.
Maybe Korg, its a company with balls! And Tom Oberheim also!
Let's hope
I've seen pictures before but with this video, it looks like the insides of an an airplane! 🙂
Free e-recycling right now! Minimize your carbon footprint and feel oh so good inside when saving the planet of heavy toxic metals! Simply send your unwanted CS-80 to our team for proper recycling and earth management…. we pay all shipping.
Sigh… doubt that anybody will fall for it… but trucks are always standing by. 😀
Using today's technology, Yamaha, or any other big synth manufacturer, could easily make a CS80-like synth which would be lighter, cost effective and even more impressive sonically, thanks to custom analog ICs. ( ANALOG! ) Why they do not do it, is beyond my logic. They would sell like …. CS80s!!!! Imagine a light, modern, stable CS80 with built in reverb, step sequencer, 88 piano style weighted keys and THAT ribbon … oh well, back to my Arturia CS80V2, until then.
Having had the pleasure of playing a real CS80, one thing I can say for sure is that even with greatly improved electronics, enough hardware to truly recreate the immersive experience of it would cost more than most people could afford. Same with a real Hammond B-3 vs. software or clonewheels. There's a meaningful difference when you're in front of the real, humming and often HOT device.
What people really want is the thrill of the New Thing with the feel and clout of the Real one. Sorry, but those are on opposite sides of the room. Pure analog will stick around, but only in a few places, at hefty prices. Get a CS80v, buy a high-end weighted controller, put a ribbon controller on top and you'll be getting as close as practicality will allow. If you can even afford to MAINTAIN a real CS80, you can also afford to hot-rod your @$$ off with more current tools and still get 90% of the Synth Mystery Cachet.
Perhaps the people at Touch Digital Controllers could build a CS-80V controller next …
Obviously if a large firm like Yamaha isn't doing it is that, to them, it wouldn't be cost-effective. My guess is that one of these things could still be way north of $5,000 (I love the Prophet but comparing both is just silly) and they know that for most consumers, VA is "good enough". Yamaha (or Korg or Roland) is not going to waste time designing something that won't be worth a *LOT*.