Retro Synth Ads

Sequential Circuits Inc. Model 610 Six-Trak, Model 400 Drumtraks and Model 64 "Your Personal Orchestra" ad, Keyboard 1984

noreply@blogger.com (RetroSynthAds) — Thu, 16 May 2013 17:34:00 +0000

Sequential Circuits Inc. Model 610 Six-Trak, Model 400 Drumtraks and Model 64 sequencer "Your Personal Orchestra" 2-page full colour advertisement from pages 50 and 51 in the February 1984 issue of Keyboard Magazine.

The Sequential Six-Trak (with a hyphen) and DrumTraks (without a hyphen) are both pieces of kit that played a huge role in the early music I was creating in the 90s. By that time, their prices had plummeted to all-time lows and could be found in pawn shops and on the used instruments shelves in my local synth shop. And I snatched up both as soon as I came across them.

I was already familiar with multi-timbral instruments thanks to my Casio CZ5000 and Yamaha TX81Z, but it was that purchase of my Six-Trak that really helped me learn subtractive synthesis. Even through that wee little programming display panel it was relatively easy to come up with deep bleepy analogue sounds.

This two-page centerfold ad received a four-month run from February to May 1984. And was totally worth every inch of ad-space. Sequential Circuits was really pushing the "Traks Music System" during this time period, a system "tailored to fit your specific music needs one step at a time as you can afford it".

The layout of the ad itself is a feat of ingenious design - even with two pages to work with, the designer had to fit a wack of ad-copy around two feature-sized instruments as well as two smaller images. All while keeping the font size large enough for old people like myself from putting on their reading glasses. The ad-copy for the Model 64 gets a little lost from the photo of the computer and interface, but I can live with that.

As good as the layout is, the ad-copy is even better. From the introductory questions that would be right at home coming out of a fast-talking host of a two-minute television gadget commercial, through the flow of text covering each piece of gear, the reader can actually take away a fair bit of information.

In particular, I love the section on the Six-Trak - the name drop of the more famous Prophet synthesizers right at the beginning, as well as the focus on it's features such as the sequencer, arpeggiator and stack mode (my favorite mode!).

But what I absolutely love best best best, is the fact they included retail prices. And with that, the fact that the Drumtraks drum machine was actually $200 more expensive than the Six-trak synthesizer. $1,295.00 compared to $1,095.00. A great example of the price musicians paid for "digitally recorded real drums" in 1984. Ouch.

The Model 64 sequencer, which I blogged about early last week in it's featured ad, had already ended its ad-run by the time this ad appeared, but the little sequencer box got a bit of an extra push because it also got a Spec Sheet promo in this February issue. It's really interesting to look at from an historical perspective to see just how much we take sequencing technology for granted now. Back then, the tech was so new that this Spec Sheet promo became a lot longer just so it could all be explained properly. Truly amazing.

"SCI MIDI sequencer. the Model 64 MIDI sequencer is a cartridge that plugs into the memory expansion port of a Commodore 64 personal computer, taking advantage of that system's portability, memory capacity, cassette or disk storage, and video interface. The unit records whatever is played by storing the MIDI information sent from any MIDI-equipped instrument compatible with the rev 1.0 MIDI spec. Up to 400 notes can be recorded. The unit also stores velocity, pitch-bend, and modulation information if the synthesizer is so equipped. For playback, the sequencer sends MIDI information back to the synthesizer either as recorded in real-time or as auto-corrected for subtle timing errors. The playback tempo can be varied by using either the internal clock or an external clock from some device like a drum machine. The sequencer memory can be allocated to 8 independent variable-length sequences, each of which can have 5 tracks for over-dubbing. These are 8 timing error-correct values. Lowest resolution is a quarter note; highest is a sixty-fourth-note. A sequence can be transposed over a 6-octave range. A library of songs can be built by chaining sequences together and storing them on disk or cassette. The unit can be operated with or without a video monitor. LEDs on the cartridge identify up to four sequences and indicate record, play, overdub, and storage functions. Price is $195.00 for the cartridge and manual. Sequential Circuits, 3051 N. First St., San Jose, CA 95134."

Best thing I learned from this spec sheet - that you could actually use the sequencer WITHOUT a video monitor. I'm not too sure how easy that would have been - but just the fact that Keyboard made the point of including that in the Spec Sheet is bonkers-crazy cool!

I'll leave you with a cool video of the Model 64 sequencer controlling Moog's Animoog synth. Nice.

Korg General Catalog, 1979

noreply@blogger.com (RetroSynthAds) — Mon, 13 May 2013 17:40:00 +0000

Korg 1979 (?) General Catalog featuring PS-3300, PS-3200PS-3100 and PS-3010 polyphonic synthesizers, PS-3040 dual foot controller, PS-3050 60p junction box, PS-3001 60p cord, PS-3060 programmer remote controller, MS-10, MS-20,MS-50, Korg Sigma, M-500SP, 800DV, and 770 monophonic synthesizers, SQ-10 analog sequencer, MS-03 signal processor, MS-02 interface, MS-01 foot controller, VC-10 vocoder, PE-2000 and PE-1000 polyphonic emsembles, KA-180 keyboard amplifier, V-C-F effects, Mr. Multi effects pedal, SE-500, SE-300 stage echos, EM-570 echo mixer, SP-2035 speaker system, SM-20 Doncamatic Stageman, Mini Pops 120W and 120P, Mini Pops7, Mini Pops45, Mini Pops35, Mini Pops Junior, Korg Quartz tuning fork, WT-10A and GT-6 guitar tuner, RT-10 rhythm trainer, FK-3 2-channel volume pedal, FK-1 VCF pedal, Type S foot swtich, Type J foot switch, cords, hard cases, soft cases and stands.

Well... that was a mouthful.

I've posted a few vintage Korg general catalogs, including this one from 1984, and this cooler one from 1982, but the one I'm posting today is really really special. This little mini-catalog only measures about 4"x5", but it holds a big space in my heart. And it also holds a wack of juicy vintage Korg products. Unfortunately I couldn't find a print date, but based on the gear promoted (and more about what wasn't promoted) I came to the conclusion it was probably printed in early 1979.

For example, gear released by Korg in 1980 (according to Vintage Synth Explorer's interactive timeline) such as the Korg Trident and X-911 are not listed in the catalog. But the Korg Sigma, released around 1979, is included. Interestingly, other Korg gear released in 1979 like the Lambda and Delta are not included either. Which is why I considered an early 1979 print date for the catalog.

The catalog is tattered and worn - water-damaged to the point that the staples have left rust marks around the binding. But I still treasure it. And I knew that eventually an occasion worthy of such a celebratory posting would finally present itself.

So, what exactly am I celebrating, you ask?

The arrival of my Korg MS20 Mini!

Look over there (yay!) ----->

In fact, this catalog would be a great blue-print for Korg on all the gear they should reissue in their mini resurgence. Please, Korg? Pretty please? :)

You might recall that I also celebrated when Korg first announced the perfectly replicated MS20 Mini last January at NAMM, when I posted a lovely (and in much better condition) Korg MS-10/MS-20/SQ-10 brochure. As time went on after that announcement, rumors of short supplies and slow pre-order deliveries only made me want one more. And made me think that an early possession date was probably not going to happen.

My wishing apparently paid off, because it was with great happiness and surprise that one happened to land in my lap last week. And luckily it fits very nicely on my lap because that is where it will continue to sit until I can find time to rearrange my studio to fit it in. It's small, but not that small.

First-world problems, right?

There are a lot of great things about this mini-catalog. First and foremost, it makes all the products in the catalog look... well... mini. Just like the adorable new Korg MS20 Mini (did I mention I already got mine? :). And I can only hope that there are more Korg Mini products on the way.

Another reason this catalog is fantastic is that it is bilingual - English and what I'm gonna guess is Japanese. Very unique.

The products in the catalog are split up into logical sections, including my favorites - the poly synths, the mono synths (including the original MS20 of course!) and the rhythm machines sections.

It's that rhythm machine section that peaks my interest the most. I've had the opportunity to play on some of those Korg synths, but all of those Mini Pops rhythm machines have continued to elude me. My curiosity with drum machines in general is usually a good eight out of ten, and these Mini Pop machines push it to eleven.

The real problem is that older drum machines are like a drug - they are relatively cheap compared to vintage synths, and take up a lot less room in the studio. My growing drum machine collection is proof of my addiction. No, its not anything near Moby-scale [yet!], but lets just say there has been more than few vintage drum machines popping up locally for very reasonable prices. Can't turn that down.

I honestly didn't even realize the Mini Pops series was so varied until I had finally come across this catalog. I thought there was maybe one or two different machines, tops. Not six. And many of the series are quite different from the others in looks (mmmm... wood panels) and sound. The catalog, in particular, makes the Mini Pops45 sound intriguing: "Original circuitry for natural metallic percussion".

One day I'll finally get my hands on 'em.

But until them, I'll just keep this YouTube video bookmarked :D

Sequential Circuits Inc. Model 64 Sequencer "The $195.00 Sequencer" ad, Keyboard 1983

noreply@blogger.com (RetroSynthAds) — Thu, 09 May 2013 17:03:00 +0000

Sequential Circuits Inc. Model 64 Sequencer "The $195.00 Sequencer" full page black & white advertisement from page 13 in the November 1983 issue of Keyboard Magazine.

Not so long ago a friend came over with his Commodore 64. No, not for music-making, but for a night of Donkey Kong-ing and other retro-gaming. Good times... good times...

I do recall that one of the first MIDI systems I ever saw running was a Model 64 with a Commodore 64. I hardly remember anything about that system except the small dark brick sticking out of the computer with MIDI cords attached. It was cool, and I was definitely hooked as soon as I saw it.

My first computer sequencer was Master Tracks running on an Apple IIe - I had to borrow money from my parents to pay for it. Then, when I finally upgraded to a Mac IIci, I purchased MOTU Performer 3.61 which soon became 3.64.

Then at work I had to learn Twelve Tone System's CakeWalk Dos, and then an early Windows version. Since then, I've never really left CakeWalk and would probably be considered one of those outspoken Sonar users everybody hates to be in a room with. I will admit I also have licenses for ReNoise, Reason (just ordered 7!) and a few other sequencer packages, but I usually end up powering up Sonar for the heavy lifting.

But lets get back to the Commodore 64. After playing those games that night, I knew I had to find a Commodore 64 of my own to play around on. I waited very patiently for a clean one to make it's way onto eBay Canada, and pounced as soon as one popped up. It came with A TON of software - cartridges and disks - including the way-cool GEO OS with it's graphic user interface. Think early Apple Mac. Just look at that drawing program screen shot if you don't believe me. Look over there ----->

Alas, there was no MIDI software or hardware included in the box that showed up on my door step. And so I wait... and wait... and wait... for a reasonably-priced Model 64 or similar Commodore 64 sequencer to come my way.

I would even consider the original $195.00 price tag featured in the title of this advertisement a reasonable price to pay for the enjoyment of again seeing a Commodore 64 MIDI system in action. And I'm guessing that if you are musician that already had a Commodore 64 and a Prophet-600 synthesizer, $195.00 probably wasn't going to blow the bank account either.

BTW - not sure if you noticed it, but if you look under the Commodore 64 in the ad photo, what do you see? A Linn LM-1 drum machine! It's not often you see other company's products in an advertisement, but you can probably look at this as one of the earlier pairing of Roger Linn and Dave Smith. A partnership that would bear fruit years later. :)

The ad-copy provides us with a great glimpse into the early history of one of the major forces behind the development of MIDI - Dave Smith and SCI. Even nine months after the SCI launched the first commercial MIDI synthesizer, the Prophet-600, the whole idea that there was now this one musical standard available called MIDI that *any* manufacturer could build into their products to connect directly to other manufacturer's products was still very alien.

So, what did an early computer-based sequencer get you?

4000 note storage, including velocity, pitch bend and modulation amounts
storage of nine independent polyphonic, real-time sequences of variable length with up to five overdub tracts available per sequence
song composition: sequences may be linked together to build up to nine different songs of variable length
auto-correct, transpose, and playback features
save and load to tape
select clock pulse, up to eight settings available for optimum drum box interfacing

Not too shabby.

Although a rare beast in 1983, by 1987 the computer-based sequencer was firmly catching on, and a flourish of products had became available. For the Commodore 64 alone there was Moog's Song Producer that used the Moog Manybus MIDI interface, MIDI/8 Plus by Passport that used its own interface, Keyboard Controller Sequencer by Dr. T's Music software that used its own interface, and Studio One by Syntech Corp that used MIDI interfaces produced by Syntech themselves, as well as Dr. T's, Passport, Sequential or Yamaha.

But sequencers weren't the only MIDI programs available. A number of MIDI patch librarians for DX/TX and CZ synths by many of the companies already mentioned above became available by 1987. There was also algorithmic MIDI composers, MIDI echo/arpeggiators, MIDI filters/channel-reassigners, and even a mini-sampler called Sound Sampler by SFX Computer Software Commodore Business Machines Ltd. that included a microphone and 1.2 seconds of sampling.

And that's just for the Commodore 64. Hardware and software for the IBM PC and compatibles, Apple Macintosh (Performer - yay!), Apple II, Atari ST and even the TI 99/4a were also out of the gates and getting into the hands of computer musicians.

Why do I know this? Not because I saw all of these programs in action. But because a long while back I was lucky enough to be given the 1987 book "The Complete Gudie to MIDI software" by Howard Massey and the staff of PASS (Public Access Synthesizer Studio) in New York. If you are into retro computer MIDI software, definitely search out a copy.

While I'm waiting for a vintage Commodore 64 sequencer (hardware and software) to come my way, I have to say I am quite curious about the more recent MSSIAH MIDI SID hardware/software from 8bitventures.com. It looks like it could keep me busy while I wait.

Yup. Gonna have to order it.

Right after I'm done with this post. Which is now.

Yup. :)

Roland MKB-1000, MKS-80 Super Jupiter, MKS-30 Planet S and MKS-10 Planet P "MIDI to the Max" ad, Keyboard 1984

noreply@blogger.com (RetroSynthAds) — Mon, 06 May 2013 18:15:00 +0000

Roland "MIDI to the Max" two page colour advertisement featuring the MKB-1000 MIDI Keyboard, MKS-80 Super Jupiter synthesizer, MPG-80 Super Jupiter Programmer, MKS-30 Planet S synthesizer and MKS-10 Planet P from page 6 and 7 in the December 1984 issue of Keyboard Magazine.

Five months before this ad began to run in Keyboard, Roland had officially announced their love of MIDI with an extended fold-out promo piece that appeared in the July 1984 issue of Keyboard. That piece unfortunately seemed to have made a one-time-only appearance.

Well, in the meantime, true to their tag-line, the company had definitely been continuing to "make it happen" when it comes to MIDI, and wanted readers of Keyboard to know. This time with a proper two-pager that began appearing in the December 1984 issue, and continuing on in 1985 from January to March, as well as the July issues.

Normally I try to scan the best version of the ad possible, but in this instance I decided to go with this version. Why? To make a point about the bad print job in that December 1984 issue. In all subsequent occurrences, this ad appeared as a centrefold that allows for one continuous 2-page print. So, for example, that long MKB-1000 keyboard that spans the two pages will look like... er... one continuous keyboard. But in that December issue, the ad appeared on pages 6 and 7, so those two pages end up being printed separately, and then only through the binding does it end up sitting next to each other. If the binding of the magazine doesn't line up (exactly what happened here), you end up with that big white line running down the middle. To make matters worse, that white line is emphasized due to that hip black background used in the design.

I'm guessing Roland made the conscious decision to move the ad to the centrefold spot after that first run because of this issue. Just a theory, but it makes sense.

So why is Roland all over MIDI? Well, with MIDI, the keyboard and front panel controls no longer need to sit in the same box as the guts of a synthesizer. Put them in separate boxes and let the consumer pick and choose. Already have a keyboard with MIDI like a Roland MKB-1000? Then just get the guts of your next synthesizer in a box. All with the added benefit of decreased cost to the consumer. And those little stackable 19 inch racks take up much less real estate in a studio.

Although this ad focuses on the MKB-1000 for the most part, it's those 19 inch rack mounts that got my attention. Those were and still are a dream come true for a bedroom computer musician such as myself. All that synthesis power in little boxes, controlled by my Apple IIe and Master Tracks. It was a whole new world.

Those poor racks can hardly be seen in the ad, but luckily readers could at least read up on all the juicy details in one of the longest Spec Sheet promos ever, that appeared in the same December 1984 issue. I can't even type it all in there is so much, so I'll give you the summary:

MKB-1000 ($2,195.00) and MKB-300 ($1,295.00) MIDI keyboard controllers feature 128 programs, keyboard split points with separately assignable MIDI channel, and transposition.
MKS-30 Planet S synth module ($1,195.00) features 6 voices, 64 patches, memory cartridge, 32 synth parameters. Can get the external PG200 programmer.
MKS-10 Planet P rack electronic piano module ($1,195.00) features 16 voices, eight presets, stereo chorusing, flanging, and tremolo.
MKS-80 Super Jupiter synth module ($2,495.00) features 8 voice, 16-VCO, velocity and aftertouch, memory cartridge, 96 programs.

Hey - where's the MPG-80 programmer specs? Price? Booo. I'm feeling a little bajiggity without that info being included. It's just the way my brain is programmed. Its like that spec sheet isn't complete without it. Geeez.

The MKS-80 and MKB-1000 also managed to get a shared Keyboard Report in the February 1985 issue of Keyboard, and Dominic Milano begins the article with a great opening remark on how MIDI has begun to change the music and recording landscape:

"Who would have guessed that something as simple as MIDI could cause so many ripples in the way electronic musical instruments are designed? What was originally intended as nothing more than a system for playing one instrument from another's keyboard has stood the synthesizer world on its ear. We're seeing multi-track sequencers designed to mimic the function of multi-track tape recorders, sequencer programs for personal computers, synthesizers (sans keyboard) in a rack, and a plethora of MIDI-equipped controllers, some keyboard-oriented, some not."

The report also provides that missing piece of info on the MPG-80 programmer for the MKS-80. The price: $495.00.

Aaaaah - finally. Bajiggity-ness is decreasing.

Now I just have to go back in time and get that price included in the Spec Sheet.

Roland "Enter the world of MIDI" three-page fold-out, Keyboard 1984

noreply@blogger.com (RetroSynthAds) — Thu, 02 May 2013 15:40:00 +0000

Roland "Enter the world of MIDI" three-page fold-out featuring the TR909 drum machine, Jupiter-6, Juno-106, and JX-3P synthesizers, MSQ-700 sequencer, MD-8 MIDI/DCB interface, MPU-101 computer interface, MM-4 MIDI through box, and GR-700 guitar synthesizer, attached between pages 18 and 19 in the July 1984 issue of Keyboard Magazine.

1984 was a good year. Two words - Sixteen Candles.

Another reason is that Roland officially announced it *hearts* MIDI with this promotion fold-out piece.

Really what else is there to say?

Okay - a lot actually. :)

What a nice surprise to open up the July 1984 issue of Keyboard and find this tucked nicely between pages 18 and 19. Its a pull-out, but stuck so tightly in there that its more of a fold-out. So that's what I called it. Sure, Roland had a few ads before this featuring MIDI gear, but I think this really was Roland's defining moment - proprietary DCB is out and the MIDI standard is definitely in. So long, suckas!

I hope the scan makes sense. Basically, when you flipped to page 18, rather than viewing page 19 on the opposite page, you would be presented with that first lovely front page with the inviting welcome message "Enter the World of MIDI". Flip the page and you really do enter that strange new world, greeted with two and a half pages of inner-promo-goodness. Then, if you flipped that over, you could view the back-side page and a half fold-out.

This is Roland announcing to the world that it has embraced MIDI. And indeed it has. Just look at that list of gear Roland has pumped out since MIDI was introduced to the word - TR-909, Juno-106, Jupiter-6, JX-3P, MSQ-700, MD-8, GR-700, MM-4 and MPU-101. And, lets not forget a few walk-on appearances by none other than the grand-daddy of 'em all - the Jupiter-8, but also a Juno-60 and even an Apple II computer (and PC - both using special Roland software).

And if putting all that gear together in one place isn't enough, Roland tied it all together with a gorgeous bow by including an infographic - before the word "infographic" even existed.

Just look at the design. Gorgeous black background with a pre-Photoshop neon glow. It's so soothing. I want to just bathe in the glowing light.

And best of all - Roland includes not one, but two diagrams. I loooooove diagrams. The first includes imagery of each group of instruments, and the second is more of a classic diagram illustrating Roland gear used in a basic set-up, multi-keyboard set-up, guitar set-up and home computer set-up.

To make it easy on us readers, Roland colour-coded everything and included a legend on page three under the heading "Choose your weapon!".

MIDI keyboard - blue
MIDI guitars - purple
MIDI drums - green
MIDI computers - orange
MIDI keyboard interfaces - red

Another nice touch.

Roland - it doesn't get much better than this.

Roland Juno-106 "Synful" ad, Keyboard August 1984

noreply@blogger.com (RetroSynthAds) — Mon, 29 Apr 2013 17:30:00 +0000

Roland Juno-106 synthesizer "Synful" full page colour advertisement from page 7 in the June1984 issue of Keyboard Magazine.

This ad ended up running in Keyboard Magazine for five months starting in the June1984 issue of Keyboard (skipping July). I had a subscription to Keyboard, but I ended up going down to my favourite gear store and buying a second copy just so I could cut out the big colour front cover photo of the Thompson Twins as well as a few of the black and white photos from the feature article on Tom Bailey. I remember being particularly angry when, coincidentally, a girl with the last name of Bailey drew a moustache on both Tom and Alannah Currie when I put up that photo in my locker at school.

True story - you can't make that sh!t up.

Roland had regularly advertised on the coveted inside front cover of Keyboard Magazine from around March 1980 (starting with a Jupiter-4 ad) until around January 1983 (ending with a Jupiter 8/MC-4 ad). Then it more sporadically took over the page 7 spot with ads for the Juno-60, SH-101 and this ad for the Juno106.

If the inside front cover of a 1984 issue of Keyboard Magazine was equivalent to living on a private island, then page 7 was like living in the South of France. Still a pretty good gig if you can swing it. And early on it was clear the Juno-106 deserved a nice little property in the South of France.

The Juno-106 is kind of a big deal and it really is amazing just how iconic it has become. There are a number of ways to measure the popularity of a vintage synthesizer. Some use the new-to-now price ratio, others the number of times it pops up in interviews with artists in magazines. And of course, you can measure it by looking at the number of comments that can be found on such sites as Vintage Synth Explorer. In the case of that latter measurement, the number of comments would be 176 at the time of this writing.

Let me throw out another number at you: 11. That would be the number of comments that the Siel DK600 (another synth that came out around 1984) has managed to pull together on VSE.

Poor thing. :)

If you believe the ad-copy for this Juno-106 advertisement, you would think this thing was packed to the brim with features.

"Roland's JUNO synthesizers are known for packing them in. More features, (and followers) than you can count. But this time, the JUNO has outdone even itself"

Wait... what? More features than I can count? Like multiple oscillators? Nope. Just one. Loads of modifiers like ADSRs and LFOs? Nope. Again, just one of each. Arpeggiator? Sequencer? Nope. Nope.

Truly, not feature-rich. In fact, if all I had were the specs of the machine written on a piece of paper, I would more likely turn my nose up at this single-oscillator synth. And many readers only had just that when the Spec Sheet promo for the Juno-106 appeared the following month in the July 1984 issue of Keyboard. More than a few probably stopped reading after that second sentence:

"Roland Synthesizer. The Juno-106 polyphonic synthesizer is the latest addition to the Juno line, which includes the Juno-60 and Juno-6. The 106 features a 61-note, 5-octave keyboard with six DCOs - one per voice. each voice has its own VCF, VCA, and envelope generator. There is also an LFO and a chorus circuit. Performance controls include a portamento section, pitch-bend, LFO trigger sensitivity control, and master volume. The instrument features 128 user-programmable memory positions, arranged in two groups of eight banks each. Each bank holds eight patches. Hands-free switching between memory positions can be accomplished via a rear panel patch shift jack. A cassette interface for off-loading programs is also included. The unit is equipped with MIDI in, out and thru ports. The instrument can receive note event, pitch-bend, LFO modulation, and program change information via MIDI. Stereo and mono outputs as well as a headphone jack are provided. Measurements are 29.68" wide, 4.6" high, and 12.6" deep. Price is $1,095.00. RolandCorp., 7200 Dominion Circle, Los Angeles, CA 90040."

But, to cast aside the Juno-106 based purely on specs misses the point I'm trying, and as yet, to make.

The rest of the ad-copy doesn't hit this point either, but does tell readers a few other things. The 106 includes 128 programs - double that of the Juno-60. It has polyphonic portamento. And MIDI (This is 1984! A new era!).

But like I said. It still doesn't really get to the real point of the Juno-106.

Keep on reading that August 1984 issue of Keyboard Magazine, and you will eventually hit page 78 with a Keyboard Report on the Juno-106 by Dominic Milano.

Right at the beginning, he points out what could have been the Juno-106's Achilles heel. But quickly puts that myth to rest - well, at least as far as the Juno-106 is concerned.

"Polyphonic synthesizers that feature a single oscillator per voice have been looked on with disdain for years by experienced synthesists. the contention is that somehow they don't sound as good as the "standard" two-oscillator-per-voice instruments... But it's also true that there are single-oscillator instruments that offer a lot more than just relatively low cost. Roland's new Juno-106 is one of them."

And finally we get to the point.

THE SOUND!

The Juno-106 offers sweet sweet sound. Enough to make this $1095 synthesizer worth every penny. And more. And to help get that sound, the Juno-106 includes low and high pass filters, a noise source, a stereo chorus unit built in, and a juicy sub-octave generator. As Dominic states:

"For a single-oscillator instrument, it really punches."

Got that right. Super yummy punchy bass!

End note: Oh. And like I mentioned before - this thing has sweet sweet MIDI as well. Or as Dominic puts it in his keyboard Report:

"...the instrument packs more control over MIDI functions than any instrument we've seen to date".

In fact, apparently one little known feature of the Juno-106 even among my fellow 106-fanatics is the ability to hook two 106s together with MIDI such that the front panel controls of the master can affect the controls of the slave. And even though I tend to use my Juno-106 mostly for bass sounds - never holding down more than one note at a time - I'm always on the look out for another realistically-priced 106 just so I can hook them together and try this out.

I'm still waiting. :)

Boss Play Bus HA-5 "A rough audience" ad, Keyboard 1984

noreply@blogger.com (RetroSynthAds) — Thu, 25 Apr 2013 16:45:00 +0000

Boss Play Bus HA-5 portable amp and PA system "A rough audience" full page colour advertisement from page 7 in the February 1984 issue of Keyboard Magazine.

Two boss ads in a row... and you can see why.

Even though I don't really have that much of an interest in portable amps, I do really enjoy these Boss ads. I have to say that the Dr. Rhythm advertisement that can be found in the December 1984 and January 1984 almost pales in comparison to this HA-5 ad that immediately followed in the February and March 1984 issues. Its almost disappointing that each ad only received two months of ad space. They both deserved so much more.

The Dr. Rhythm ad featured only one frame, but we get five gorgeous frames of story line with the studly Mr. Play Bus and his... er... Playbus. I'm comfortable enough in my heterosexuality to say that's one good-looking man.

Everything about this ad leads back to the pop-culture of the moment. The kid's clothing looks right out of a Duran Duran poster with their bright shirts and sports jackets. And the reference to Dallas, a show popular amongst the not-so-hip adults, rocks. And kicking them out of the garage for being too loud cracks me up. Even the Betty and Veronica look-a-likes sitting in the sand adoring the boys screams pop culture.

The details within each frame are also a pure joy to discover. The one guy stepping in kitty litter. The cat freaking out because of the noise. The one kid with "The Kools" t-shirt. And.... a TR-808! Go Roland/Boss!

I'm guessing this was Boss's answer to Yamaha's portable "Producer Series" of gear that included the portable MA10 headphone amplifier and MM10 Mic Line Stereo Portable Mixer. And its interesting that Boss also chose to use artwork in their ads.

The Boss Area Web site is a good resource for many Boss products, the HA-5 included. Some good specs for the HA-5 as well as the RH-11M can be found there.

Like I said at the beginning - not much of an interest in portable amps... and not much else to say.

This awesome ad speaks for itself anyways. :)

Boss Dr. Rhythm DR-110 "Lousy guitar playing" ad, Keyboard 1983

noreply@blogger.com (RetroSynthAds) — Mon, 22 Apr 2013 17:00:00 +0000

Boss Dr. Rhythm DR-110 drum machine "Lousy guitar playing" full page colour advertisement from page 7 in the December 1983 issue of Keyboard Magazine.

Wow, if my blog labels are any indication, this is my first ever Boss post. It's even more of a wonder this ad hasn't been posted yet since I have such an infatuation with vintage (and not so vintage) drum machines. My drum machine shelf is overflowing but the collection just keeps growing. Its a good thing that many of these 80s drum machines are so small. :)

I distinctly recall this ad from 1983 - that's gotta say something. Maybe I identified with the teen struggling as a bedroom musician. Or maybe I was already infatuated with drum machines. Or maybe it was the comic-style artwork used to market to its target audience with pin-point accuracy. Probably a bit of all three. And those are the exact same reasons I like this ad today. Especially the artwork (see the blog's "artwork" label for other ads based around artwork).

The DR-110 seems to be at or near the beginning of what I call the third "wave" of compact drum machines. I don't know if you can actually call it "waves", but my mind always wants to categorize everything. In my head, the initial wave included first gen machines like the Ace Tone FR7L or Roland TR-33/55/77 series. Then the second wave included more compact machines like the Boss DR-55, Korg KR-55 (1981), Sound Master SR-8 (1982) and Clef Master Rhythm (1982). And the third wave included drum machines like the Roland TR-606 (1982) or Korg KPR-77 (1983).

Well then, you may ask, where does the LinnDrum fit in? Or the Roland TR-808?

That's the thing - they don't fit into those waves. To me it seems like after that first wave or so, drum machines split off into two streams. The first stream consisting of lower-priced drum machines like those above. The second stream consisting of higher-priced professional drum machines like the Linn LM-1 (1980) and the Linn Drum, as well as the Roland TR-808 (1981), and Oberheim DMX (1981). And then later drum machines like the Sequential DrumTraks (1984). But as higher-end technology such as sample memory got cheaper, the two streams merged again later in the 80s to bring us drum machines like the Korg DDD-1 (1986), Roland TR-505 (1986) and Kawai R-100 (1986).

Now, like I said - this is how my mind categorizes them - and not necessarily how they should be categorized. Don't email me angry letters. :)

So, like I said, I kinda fit that DR-110 into that third wave of cheaper drum machines that weren't necessarily made for professional use. You only have to look at this DR-110 ad to know Boss was also thinking along these lines. The whole theme of the ad is NOT one of a professional musician in a studio, recording a hit record. Nope. It's one of a father telling his "98 pound [bedroom] musician" that his rhythm sucks donkey balls. And although the ad-copy does describe the sounds of the DR-110 as "studio quality", even Boss doesn't go as far as saying it could be used on professional records.

"Whether it's a bedroom jam, or a drum sketch for the studio..."

Luckily, myself and many others didn't listen to the ad and didn't stop at just using it to form drum sketches.

My DR-110 gets used regularly, either sampled clean or pumped through my modular, or my ever-growing Boss half-rack effects tower (see right with my 303). I bet they could make those effects racks even smaller now - maybe 1/3 or 1/4 racks with itty-bitty knobs. How adorable would *that* be attached to a Monotron.

I really enjoy the sound of the DR-110 and often when I'm asked about it, I compare it favorably to the TR-606. And it looks like I'm not the only one that makes this comparison. Through Vintage Synth Explorer's DR-110 page, I came across a nice short video by AnalogAudio - a lovely way to end this blog post:

End note: You can also listen to my 303 being pumped through that Boss micro-effects rack tower on the Retro Synth Ads SoundCloud page. Scroll to the bottom and look for "Short bit" and "Boring stuff" (which includes a few notes so you can tell when each effect is applied).

Roland "The Creative Answer" Original Stickers, 1977 or 1978

noreply@blogger.com (RetroSynthAds) — Thu, 18 Apr 2013 16:52:00 +0000

Roland "The Creative Answer" Original Stickers from approximately 1977 or 1978.

If you haven't guessed by now, I don't just love old synth ads. I've posted brochures, catalogs, newsletters, sell sheets and even belt buckles. But I'm pretty sure this is the first sticker set.

So.... like, awesome. Where to begin?

Well, that small middle sticker is a good place to start. Yup - that's a circular System 100 sticker with an actual little System 100 photo. Looks almost like a poker chip. When I was first getting into synths, a good friend had a System 100 in his basement and I loved going over there to noodle on it. I think it was the modularity of it that interested me most. Especially the sequencer. It was in great condition too.

The dude with the headphones and the guitar are also fantastic because the imagery is a great reflection of the time period. The bandana/scarf around the neck, the hair cut, the v-neck shirt. All of it. Even the boots with the stars on them.

But, with no date included on the sticker sheet, I had to estimate the year it was printed.

The colouring is still so bright that a part of me is still not convinced this is from the 70s. I did a few Google searches to see if I could find anything similar and nothing came up. A few Roland Orzabal (Tears for Fears) stickers came up though. I almost got sidetracked looking for other 80s new wave band stickers.

I also decided a few MATRIXSYNTH searches were in order. LOTS of great stickers there from a lot of synth companies. I recommend doing a few searches yourself if you are interested. But again, nothing resembling this Roland sheet came up.

With my suspicion *almost* subsided, my first idea to estimate a print date was to look at the tag line found in some of the stickers - "The Creative Answer" - to narrow down the time period. But I'm writing this part of the blog post in a hotel room and don't have access to my library of documents. I tried a couple of quick Google searches with the tag line but it didn't bring up anything.

Reviewing other Roland ads already posted on the blog found that by 1979 Roland was already using the "We Design The Future" tagline in brochures and ads. Earlier ads like this 1977 MicroComposer ad, this 1977 System 100 ad, or this 1978 "You simply don't outgrow the best" family ad don't seem to mention "The Creative Answer" anywhere in the ad-title or ad-copy. But my blog posts still make up a small sample size of world-wide Roland ads, so that tag line could still very well have been used somewhere else in print. Very likely, I'd say.

In the end, I had only the few pieces of gear that were included on the sticker sheet to help me. And based on the System 100 - introduced around 1976, and the SB-100 - introduced around 1977, I decided that most likely the sheet was printed in 1977 or 1978.

Even now I'm still a little suspicious that these stickers may not be from the 70s at all. But they look nice, especially that System 100 sticker.

And I'm keeping 'em. :)

Yamaha CS-01 "Full Synthesizer Performance You Can Take Anywhere" brochure, 1982

noreply@blogger.com (RetroSynthAds) — Mon, 15 Apr 2013 18:05:00 +0000

Yamaha CS-01 synthesizer "Full Synthesizer Performance You Can Take Anywhere" two-side colour brochure from 1982.

While searching through my Yamaha brochure pile I came across this two-sider. Gah - can't believe I didn't add this one to the rest of the Producer Series blog posts!

If you recall, back at the beginning of March I was going through a bit of a Yamaha Producer Series fetish that included some great artwork that could be seen in ads (they look so juicy lined up in a row like this)...

... as well as in an awesome brochure that also pushed the mobile aspects of each piece of gear...

Artwork so good that I threatened to make T-shirts, or get a tatoo, or something. I don't really recall that part.

Anyways, the final blog post in the series concluded with an new ad that came out a fair bit later, pushing some of Yamaha's new Producer Series gear while at the same time pushing aside those lovable characters. Instead we got actual humans photographed with the gear as Yamaha tried to swing the professional/studio angle.

What's interesting about this just-added CS-01 brochure is that although it came out at roughly the same time as the original 1982ish ads, it didn't include the characters. Instead we get a nicely dressed human using the synthesizer against an anonymous grey wall or while awkwardly sitting on a chair in the middle of a park. Neither of which I think helped create that connection with the reader. Luckily those were small photos.

I also find this brochure interesting because you can't really tell which side is the front. The gorgeous half-page photo probably should be the front, but then the specifications, and all those additional components (excellent!) and accessories (even more excellent!) are usually found on the back of these types of brochures or sell-sheets. My only guess is that the page was meant to be folded in the middle so that you had a front, back and inside.

As I stare more closely at that photo, a few other freaky things pop out at me. For example, that BC1 Breath Controller and CS01 strap aren't following that whole law of gravity thing that seems to be affecting the CS01 itself and the headphones. It messes with the brain a little seeing them floating around like that.

Another freaky thing involves the background image that frames the photo. None of those synth knobs and switches seem to have come from any Producer Series equipment. Instead it looks like they have taken the front panel of a CS40m to use as a pattern - probably to help subtly introduce some higher quality aspects to the CS-01. I'm not saying the CS-01 is cheap, its just not *as* high quality as something like the CS40m.

Just saying. :)

Short post - because I have to get ready for the snow storm that's coming.

Yeah. Snow.

Roland "Eschew mediocrity" ad, Contemporary Keyboard 1979

noreply@blogger.com (RetroSynthAds) — Thu, 11 Apr 2013 16:45:00 +0000

Roland JP-4, MP-600 and RS-505 (and family) "Eschew mediocrity" two-page full colour advertisement from pages 42 and 43 in the April 1979 issue of Contemporary Keyboard.

Eschew? Gazoontite.

That has to be one of the best ad-titles I've come across in a long time. Someone needs to get that tatoo'd to their ass. And make it about the same size as the ad-title in this two-page, one-time-only centrefold ad that popped up in the April 1979 issue of CK.

This advertisement features three of Roland's "newest line of Professional Keyboards", but it's really about the promotion of the "FREE-Deluxe, full-color 58-page Roland Catalog of the largest, most diversified line of electronic music equipment in the world". A catalog you can get for a mere dollar (shipping and handling charges :)

As a centrefold should, this ad's focus is on that one big lovely photo of the three featured keyboards. There is some good detail to be found.

One of the most interesting details I found was the green colour framing around most of the controls of the RS-505. My recollection told me that these were gray, not green, and I was excited that this photo may contain a prototype. Like the grey colour found on the photo of the RS-505 on Vintage Synth Explorer.It makes me wonder if that colouring changed on other Roland synths during their life spans.

This was actually the first ad to feature the RS-505, but the keyboard itself seems to have been around a lot longer than when it first appeared in advertisements.

For example, it showed up in the December 1978 Spec Sheet section of Contemporary Keyboard. It's not the best Spec Sheet I've seen, but it includes the basics as well as the coveted retail price. Not gonna argue with that:

"Roland Paraphonic-505. The RS-505 Paraphonic keyboard has a splittable 61-note keyboard with three voicing possibilities - a string synthesizer section, a lead synthesizer and a bass synthesizer are included int he unit. A number of different settings are available on the string section, a 24dB-per-octage filter is supplied on the lead synthesizer, and the bass synthesizer has two 16' settings and one 8' setting. There is also an independent three-state ensemble mode for creating effects ranging from flanging to chorusing. Re-tail price is under $1800.00. Roland Corp, U.S., 2401 Saybrook Ave., Los Angeles, CA 90040."

But that's not even the earliest sighting of the RS-505 this side of the pond. It actually appeared even earlier in the What's New section of the Summer '78 issue of Synapse Magazine. And it contains something REALLY weird about another synthesizer featured in this advertisement. Read it right to the end:

"...Roland Corp US, 2401 Saybrook, LA, CA 90040, has released several new synthesizers recently. The SH-7 is a duo-phonic keyboard instrument with dual sample and hold, so that both notes will hold pitch after the keys have been replaced. The $1,895 unit features a 24dB fVCF with external signal envelope follower, and a "bender" that can control VCO, VCF, and VCA. The RS-505 "is a paraphonic ensemble, a strings and synthesizer combination," with a tag of $1,895. The PO-44 Space Bird is a "four-voice polyphonic synthesizer with a computer memory," listing for $2,695. No further information has been furnished on these instruments yet. Roland has also announced plans to introduce additional guitar synthesizer models later on this year..."

Did you catch it? The PO-44 SPACE BIRD. When I had first read that name, I could only assume that Synapse was referring to the Jupiter-4 - it was the only 4-voice Roland released soon after. Could you imagine if the Jupiter-4 has been named the SPACE BIRD?!?!? Pure awesomeness. I can only assume a Rave band of the same name would have sprung up in the late 80s or early 90s. Oh - and dibs on the domain name!

I had no idea. But apparently Simon James and Matt Ford of TheSimonSounds twitter account did back in 2011. Gah.Was I the only one that didn't know this?!?!

I used to want Roland to reissue the TB303 or SH101 as part of the new craze to build on old brands - like the new Korg MS-20 or even Novation's just announced Bass Station II. But now I just want Roland to create a 4-voice polyphonic analogue synthesizer called the Space Bird.

Pleeeeeeeeeese Roland!

Roland Saturn SA-09 "The Hot Sound of the Saturn" ad, Contemporary Keyboard, 1980

noreply@blogger.com (RetroSynthAds) — Mon, 08 Apr 2013 20:05:00 +0000

Roland Saturn SA-09 "The Hot Sound of the Saturn" full page colour advertisement from the front inside cover of the July 1980 issue of Contemporary Keyboard.

Hmmmm. Interesting.

This was the last Roland ad of in this campaign series. And unlike the other ads in this series that saw only small, inconsistent runs for the most part, this Saturn SA-09 advertisement ran consistently through the second half of 1980 - July to December. And always in that most excellent front inside-cover position. Not too shabby.

Roland had taken over that front inside cover position only two months earlier with the Jupiter-4 ad from this same series (see below for image) running in May and June, before handing the reigns over to The Saturn.

[Side note: Roland would keep the front inside cover position pretty much exclusively until February 1983. That's almost three years. Not a bad run for Roland.]

This SA-09 advertisement is slightly different from the previous ads in the series. It's all subtle, but still significant. First, Roland decided not to put the name of the synth at the very top of the ad, instead using 'Roland Presents".

Secondly, Roland decided to switch up the background of the photo to be more "hot" looking - a carry-over from the ad-title no doubt. Its almost like there are embers glowing underneath the keyboard. All the rest of these ads featured very solid, subdued colours, with a very subtle slight shading or glow.

But the big news to me has to do with the Saturn SA-09 keyboard itself. In particular those lovely Roland buttons in beautiful bright red, yellow, white, green and blue! You can find similar colours tucked underneath the keyboard on the Jupiter-4, but this time Roland proudly displays those colours right on the front panel. There isn't a lot of them, but its a start.

When I think early-80s Roland, I think of those buttons. Those are pretty much the colours that appear in my dreams whenever I'm lucky enough to have caught up on my sleep and hit REM. Similar buttons can be found on Roland's TR-808, Jupiter-6 and Jupiter-8. I associate this button style so closely with Roland that I went into a kind of confused state when I first came across Korg's X-911 guitar synth. Those do look like Roland buttons, don't they!?!?

I also really like this ad because Roland acknowledges New Wave music. Sure, they talk about it kinda like grandparents, adding a "the" in front of it. Kinda like "Hey son, have you been on the Twitters today?" or "Use the Google to find out that info". Yeah yeah... not really, but that is how I read it in my mind. The fact that this new music style is being acknowledged can only be a good thing.

Roland actually went even more "pop culture" on our asses earlier in this ad series when they dropped "squadron of Cylons" out of the blue in that Vocoder Plus ad. Reading it today immediately puts the ad into it's historical perspective. And made me happy.

Very happy.

Roland Organ/Strings RS-09 "The Sensible Addition" ad, Contemporary Keyboard 1979

noreply@blogger.com (RetroSynthAds) — Thu, 04 Apr 2013 19:40:00 +0000

Roland Organ/Strings RS-09 "The Sensible Addition" full-page colour advertisement from page 11 in the December 1979 issue of Contemporary Keyboard.

Roland made a lot of keyboards during this era, and their series of ads to promote all this new gear is a testament to this. The Jupiter 4 synth. Vocoder Plus with strings and voice. The RS-505 strings, brass, bass/synth. And now the RS-09 organ/strings machine.

I've gone on endlessly about the design/style of this ad series. No need to start up on that *again* (psst: really really good, especially as more ads get added to the series). But as the series begins to include more keyboards, another curious pattern begins to develop - the look of each keyboard itself.

The Jupiter-4, Vocoder Plus, and RS-505 all look "similar" to me. I know, there are distinct differences - but they all look like they belong to the same family. But, the RS-09 looks distinctly different. Gone are the wood side panels and left-side controls. Sure, with less features (and a price tag of $795.00 to match), there are less controls in general. But to me, lacking any splashes of colour or wood, it takes on more of the look of two Roland synths that came before it - the SH-01 or SH-02 - or the SH-09 synth that followed.

I know its wrong, but it is those physical details that, in my mind, allow me to throw the RS-09 into Roland's "synth" bucket rather than the "string machine" bucket. Even with the organ-like flip-switches (I don't even know the proper name for them is), it still evokes that warm fuzzy feeling I get when I think of Roland synthesizers. On the reverse side of this weird brain behaviour is that my brain puts the Jupiter-4 into the string-machine bucket when compared to the look of the Jupiter-6 and Jupiter-8. The younger me immediately dismissed the Jupiter-4 for looking too string-machine-like next to the totally synth-y look of the Jupiter-6 and -8.

What's really messed up about this whole situation is that once I actually listened to the RS-09, my brain wanted to immediately throw it back into the string machine bucket. I just wasn't impressed. Seriously. And I should have know better - it does say "organ" right in the name on the front panel of the instrument.

Its like in all those 80s movies when the dude puts the girl on the pedestal at the beginning of the movie, but then when he finally meets her he begins to see all the flaws. And like that guy, who at first denies the flaws and continues to try and make the relationship work, so did I do the same thing with the RS-09.

I first decided to listen to the RS-09 on Vintage Synth Explorer - they have a few audio samples on the right side of the RS-09 page. The first sample sounds okay to me, but I just couldn't get into the others. Just not my thing. But as soon as I looked back at that lovely image of the machine, my mind flipped right back into "synth" mode. I put it right back on that pedestal.

I decided to give it another chance through YouTube. I found a decent demo with a guy who could even play.

Again, very organ-y. It just doesn't do it for me. Yet I want to buy this machine. And I want to like it.Just because of how it looks.

I know its a problem. I know its discrimination. I'm embarrassed.

Help. :)

Roland Paraphonic RS-505 "It Starts as a Symphony Orchestra" ad, Contemporary Keyboard 1979

noreply@blogger.com (RetroSynthAds) — Mon, 01 Apr 2013 16:00:00 +0000

Roland Paraphonic RS-505 string synthesizer "It Starts as a Symphony Orchestra" full page colour advertisement from page 5 in the September 1979 issue of Contemporary Keyboard.

This wasn't the first advertisement to feature the RS-505, but it made sense to post it now since it's part of the Roland series of ads I'm currently infatuated with. In fact, I probably should have started with this ad since it was the first of the series to appear in the September 1979 issue. The Jupiter-4 ad started a month later in October, and the Vocoder Plus the following November.

On its own, it is a pretty ordinary looking ad. But as you put the series of ads together, they start looking a lot more like a set of Pokemon cards you want to collect and preserve. Distinctly different, but yet definitely complimenting each by following a tried and true formula - Ad title/photo/three columns of ad copy.

For the longest time I couldn't put my finger on it - but it must have been sitting there in my subconscious for a while. What I finally figured out was that one of the big reasons I'm drawn to these ads is that they all contain the retail price of the instrument. In the case of the RS-505 its $1,695.00. I have a lot of respect for a company that is willing to put a price in a magazine ad. And I think consumers, even more than 30 years ago, realized that this was the retail price and chances were that they could pick it up in-store much cheaper.

Flipping through the rest of the September 1979 issue of CK with this in mind (a great activity for an Easter Sunday while sipping a coffee and beheading a white chocolate bunny) one will quickly realize that none of the other big ads had included the price:

Another interesting point about this ad (and some other RS-505 advertisements I've run across) is that Roland itself never refers to the RS-505 as the "Paraphonic RS-505". "Paraphonic" is not only a cool word that balances on that fine line between technology and art, it's also clearly labelled RIGHT ON THE FRONT PANEL OF THE INSTRUMENT. Why not include it in the ad-copy? Even today, my small circle of synth addict friends always refer to the machine the Paraphonic 505. Time has spoken. Its a well-liked term.

In the past I've had a bit of a chip on my shoulder for string machines. They didn't offer the full control of a synthesizer and so as a youngin' I probably wrongly considered them like toys. I'm not sure if it was when I got my Korg Trident, or maybe when I starting paying more attention to bands that regularly used string machines like The Cure, but I've grown wiser with age. But, there is only so much real estate in the studio, and if I have to choose between making space for a keyboard like Roland's Jupiter 4 or 6, or the RS-505, the true synthesizer is going to win most of the time. I'm sure I'm loosing out through my discriminating behaviour.

Maybe its just time to take down a wall or two (figuratively and physically) and just double the size of the studio.

But first, Time to start on the legs of that bunny.

Roland Vocoder Plus "The Human Factor" ad, Contemporary Keyboard 1979

noreply@blogger.com (RetroSynthAds) — Thu, 28 Mar 2013 15:35:00 +0000

Roland Vocoder Plus "The Human Factor" full page colour advertisement from page 7 in the November 1979 issue of Contemporary Keyboard Magazine.

This Roland Vocoder Plus ad has a lot in common with other Roland advertisements from the same time period, like that Jupiter-4 ad I blogged about last Monday. Title, large photo of gear with coloured background and three columns of well-written white ad-copy all on a black background.

Unfortunately, lasting power was not one of the features it has in common with the Jupiter-4 ad. The JP4 ad ran five or six times over a year or so, but this Vocoder ad only lasted through one winter - October, November, December and January 1980.

Some would say that four ads in consecutive issues is better than five or six spread out over a longer period of time. Plus, the Vocoder Plus also had the additional promo bump with it's appearance in the December 1979 Spec Sheet.

"Roland Keyboard. The Vocoder Plus is a polyphonic instrument which has a built-in vocoder and two tone-generating systems, one for strings and one for human voice-like sounds. Each of the three sections may be independently assigned to cover the whole keyboard or one of its halves, top or bottom. Each half of the keyboard also feeds into its won output so that the Vocoder Plus can be run in stereo. The tone and attack time of the strings section is independent of that of the human voice section. The two sections share release times. The upper half of the keyboard has one female and one male chorus and the lower half has two male choruses. The vocoder section processes the spoken or sung human voice and uses this program information to modify the carrier signal (which for the instrument is provided by the human choir tone-generating system). A balance control is supplied for balancing the output levels of the different sections. The microphone input to the vocoder section accepts either a phone plug or an XLR connector. Price is $2,695.00. Roland, 2401 Saybrook Ave., Los Angeles, CA 90040."

Enough about the ad. I'm more interested in the machine itself.

I love vocoders. Probably because many of the things I love in this world revolve around vocoders. Kraftwerk. Robots. Eeeerrr... Did I mention robots?!? Robots are awesome. Okay, maybe I also love vocoders because I can't sing and its really the only excuse I have to to put a mic in front of me.

Believe it or not, my love for vocoders started with a Korg DVP-1. I picked it from a friend who found it too limiting, but I was more than happy to take it off his hands for a nice price, and it got the job done when needed. I don't even remember what happened to it. Must have lent it to someone a long while back once I found a Roland SVC-350 - in the city even!

What I didn't know (according to Vintage Synth Explorer's page on the Vocoder Plus) is that the SVC-350 is related to the Vocoder Plus! I've never hunted down a Vocoder Plus to listen to but VSE commenter "mike" came up with an ingenious way to get the SVC-350 to sound very similar to the Vocoder Plus:"

"Here is what I done so I can get same tone out of VP-330 in a SVC-350. I bought a AKAI S5000. There is a AKAI CDROM called “History of Roland” in S1000 format. It has all the VP-330 sounds. Load the VP-330 programs up on the S5000 and Plug this S5000 up to your SVC-350 and BAM you have a VP-330 with the same carrier sound on a SVC-350. That is just if you want to have the same sound you get when you turn on a VP-330 and use vocoder without any ext sound. 5/5"

Smarty-pants! Gonna definitely try this!

This then got me even more curious to exactly how the Vocoder Plus sounds. Especially when the ad itself says that "The Human Voice section literally defies description with its uncanny resemblance to a chorus of human voices". Add to this the fact that another commenter from VSE says that the Vocoder Plus was used extensively by Vangelis on the Bladerunner soundtrack. And another says it was used extensively by Underworld. I just had to know how this thing sounds.

Thank you Youtube and Retrosound.de for a great little demo of its functionality.

Yup. Very Vangelis.

I'm hooked.

Roland Jupiter-4 "Never has the universe been so near" ad, Contemporary Keyboard 1979

noreply@blogger.com (RetroSynthAds) — Mon, 25 Mar 2013 16:10:00 +0000

Roland Jupiter-4 synthesizer "Never has the universe been so near" full page colour advertisement from page 23 in the October 1979 issue of Contemporary Keyboard.

So it seems that after the blog's latest run of Roland SH-101 ads, I'm still on a bit of a Roland kick. Not even a dude in tight blue spandex traveling at high speeds down a hill playing a keytar using ski gloves could stop me.

Initially this Jupiter-4 advertisement ran inside the October and November 1979 issues of CK, but then Roland seemed to have decided to give the synth a bit of a boost the following spring by making it the first Roland advertisement to be placed in the coveted front inside cover of the magazine. It ran in that spot through March, May and June 1980, and then, to put icing on the cake, Roland decided to run it again in the January 1981 issue.

An okay run by most standards.

It might not be the most creative advertisement with a basic title/photo/3-column layout on a black background, but at least its in colour. Unlike the Jupiter-4's first ad that appeared almost a year earlier. To me, Roland's Jupiter series is all about the colour pallet. Even the small amounts of colour on those buttons "pop", and you need to see a photo of the Roland Jupiter-4 in a colour advertisement to really appreciate it's beauty.

Another thing about layouts in general that I always notice is when an ad doesn't use all of its space. I've tried to scan this ad with as much of the outside edge of the ad as possible so you can get an idea of just how much space was left on all sides. It's almost too much. Almost.

The theme of this advertisement is about as creative as the design - price/performance/function. You may be inspired to yawn at this point, but as my friend Dave would always do to me, if you don't cover your mouth while you are yawning, I'm going to stick my finger in it. And then slap you across the face.I started covering my mouth pretty quickly.

My point is, it may be an old message previously used with ads for monophonics developed and their prices began to fall, but its also an effective message to be used on polyphonics that are now starting to follow similar price drops.

If there is one thing that bugs me about this ad, it's that tag line "Never Has the Universe Been so Near". First, because they've decided to only capitalize some of the words. Sure, some style guides will tell you to do this - but I'd be more inclined to keep everything in small letters after he first word.

Never has the universe been so near.

Or, break the rule book altogether capitalize everything.

Never Has The Universe Been So Near.

But its not just the capitalization. It's that the tag line doesn't really have anything to do with the rest of the ad-copy. The "universe" is never referenced again.

Yes, I get it. Roland is telling me I can have it all with the Jupiter-4. It costs half as much as a similar synth from another company, and yet includes features not found in the competition. But just pull the "universe" into that first paragraph somehow. You've got the room.

In the big picture though, capitalization and on-going references to the universe are small potatoes. The ad-copy in this ad is all grown up. First and foremost, another Roland product, the Compu-Rhythm makes a great cameo appearance. And its not just thrown in there in some half-assed way, its used as a tool to keep the main focus on the Jupiter-4, and one of its most awesome features - the arpeggiator!

Also, many foreign companies got razed a little for their disjointed ad-speak back in the 70s, but this one from Roland definitely isn't one of them. Not only does it speak well to a North American audience with lines like "rolling in money", Roland also seems to be getting a little scrappy, willing to poke the eyes of the other big synth companies by throwing in cheeky comments like "features our competition somehow forgot". And that final paragraph delivers the final blow:

"But if all of this still isn't enough to make you try out a Jupiter-4, this one fact will be: It costs $2895.00. Why do the others cost so much more? You'd better ask them that question."

Bam! Yo mamma!

Roland BLUE SH-101 "Takes you where you want to go" ad, Keyboard 1984

noreply@blogger.com (RetroSynthAds) — Thu, 21 Mar 2013 16:00:00 +0000

Roland BLUE SH-101 synthesizer "Takes you where you want to go" full page colour advertisement from page 7 in the March 1984 issue of Keyboard Magazine.

Okay...lets recap.

The first blog post in this series of SH-101 ads included that guy on the scooter who looked a little uncomfortable. And, I think we also all generally agreed that 80s contemporary dancing was an all-around bad idea.

Then, in the second ad of the series, the hottie blonde skateboarder playing the SH-101 was, if not a bit more practical, at least a little more natural looking.

But in this third and final ad in the series... Skis? Really...? SKIS!?!?! This dude is cruisin' for a bruisin' traveling at high speeds down a hill while trying to play his SH-101.

I just can't believe that the the marketing geniuses behind the "mobility" concept running throughout this ad campaign couldn't come up with something better than skis?!?! It's a good thing I'm not a genius, or someone may ask me to come up with a substitute. :)

Like the previous silver SH-101 ad, this blue advertisement only appears to have ran once, in the March 1984 issue.

Red in January. Silver in February. Blue in March. And then red again in April. And Roland was lucky enough to land that blue ad back on page 7 after the dismal page 91 showing of the silver ad.

This Q1 1984 campaign wasn't the first showing for the SH-101. If you go through the SH-101 label on the blog, you will see that it was beginning to appear in print as early as November 1982 when it popped up on the back page of the now-classic Roland Rhythm Machines brochure, that was highlighting the TR808, TR606 and TB303. Sure, it has a small foot print on the back page, but it is sitting there right next to other Roland big guns like the Jupiter 8, Juno-60 and Juno-6. I dare say it's holding its own.

The next month in December 1982, the SH-101 was also featured in its own "We Design the Future" brochure, sitting there on a futuristic chair and drinking Jack Daniels (no kidding!). But it's the inside pages of that brochure, with its large photo of the SH-101 and all those juicy specs that steal the show. Gah! I can't stop thinking about it.

I so want to go on eBay right now and just buy the first one I see. The only thing stopping me is the $1000.00 price tag for a good condition synth with mod grip.

As you might expect, if the SH-101 started popping up in brochures as far back as Q4 1982, it must have made its advertising debut earlier than these Q1 1984 "Takes you where you want to go" ads. Sure enough, it looks like it first made it into a Roland ad in a supporting role for Roland's "Product line of 1987" - a cheeky-titled 1983 ad campaign promoting Roland's family of products as so futuristic that users would be able to sync them up together for years to come (remember, MIDI was just launching and syncing all the pre- and post-MIDI gear was a real mind-bender at the time). The SH-101 gets listed first in the ad, so maybe Roland already had it destined for greatness in some solo ads.

It also received some more face time with readers in Keyboard a month after that Roland "Product Line of 1987" ad started appearing when it appeared in the August 1983 issue of Keyboard report.

This one-page review, written by the always informative Dominic Milano, goes through the synth's features in quite the detail, including sections on the keyboard itself, left-hand controls, panel controls, LFO, VCO, Source mixer, filter, ADSR, VCA, sequencer and arpeggiator, outputs & inputs, and miscellaneous (modulation grip and batteries). After reviewing all that... his conclusion?

"The SH101 is small and surprisingly inexpensive. It would make a great instrument for beginners as well as for experienced players who want something portable to play onstage. It has a great punchy sound and some surprising features , including a choice of keyboard triggering modes, adjustable modulation amounts, and a versatile, transposable sequencer and arpeggiator. The body is made of gray molded plastic that feels fairly strong and impact-resistant".

And that "surprisingly inexpensive price"? $495.00. OR $595.00 with optional hand-grip. Not too shabby.

The SH-101 definitely got a good ride from 1982-1984. It probably would have even had a longer shelf life if MIDI hadn't come along and punch all those cv-gate synths in the face.

But, there is always hope for a re-run. Just like Korg brought back the MS-20, I think the SH-101 would be the pefect synth for Roland to resurrect in 2013 - with MIDI of course.

And, just to show they have a sense of humor, Roland should add army-green to the colour pallet. :)

Roland SILVER SH-101 "Takes you where you want to go" ad, Keyboard 1984

noreply@blogger.com (RetroSynthAds) — Mon, 18 Mar 2013 17:50:00 +0000

Roland SILVER SH-101 synthesizer "Takes you where you want to go" full page colour advertisement from page 91 in the February 1984 issue of Keyboard Magazine.

Ah, yes. And so Roland's "Takes you where you want to go" 1984 campaign for their SH-101 continues to rock the Miami Vice among us with this second ad in the series.

The previous month, Roland's Red SH-101 promo (right) appeared on page seven of Keyboard, but this February advertisement got pushed almost to the very back of the magazine on page 91. A shame because it's just as powerful as that first advertisement.

No, there are no bright splashes of red (or any other bright crayola colour for that matter), but the silver colour is still such a contrast to the black background that it would catch the eye just as easily. Plus, let's not lie to ourselves, the mostly male-readership's eyes of Keyboard would be instantly drawn to the low-cut t-shirt of the young 80s blonde hottie riding the skateboard. And I'm not convinced the pattern on her shirt isn't a deliberate attempt to pull the eye downward toward the SH-101 itself either. But I'm a full-on conspirator when it comes to ad design. In a good ad, *everything* is done for a reason.

Unlike the previous ad, where *everything* down to the socks and shoes were also red in colour, the photographer decided that white socks and shoes were acceptable, not to mention the black skateboard. The reason I point this out is that it makes this image almost believable. She is standing the way a person would be standing on a skateboard, and she is playing an SH-101 the way a person would be playing a synthesizer strapped around her neck. The photo becomes more natural, and to me anyways, easier to look at. Now compare that to the red SH-101 advertisement, with it's uncomfortable contemporary-dancer-like positioning, and this silver ad becomes even easier on the eyes.

The theme remains the same as the original - it's all about mobility (compact design, lightweight) and battery-poweredness (so too is a word!).

The ad-copy remains the same between the two ads as well, but its still interesting to look at because it's a good exercise in how design can dictate how lines and paragraphs are broken up. In the red SH-101 advertisement, the column of text slowly gets thinner, and it actually becomes more readable to split the ad-copy into more paragraphs - in particular the break between the third and four paragraphs at "With the Source Mixer...". But in the silver SH-101 ad, the width of the ad gets slowly wider, and those two paragraphs are merged even though there is easily enough room to keep the two separate. Part of it is probably that the final line of the third paragraph would have left the word "ways" hanging by itself. But for me, the decision to merge the two paragraphs would have been made just because it "looks better" from a design point of view.

There are a lot of things that annoy me in the world besides 80s contemporary dancers, and one of my little synth pet peeves is when the silver SH-101 is referred to as "gray". Or "grey" for that matter. Many sites and auctions use the "G" word when describing the colour. I know... a piddly thing to get ruffled over, but that's why they call them "pet peeves". It's not like I loose sleep over it.

Wikipedia's page is guilty of this (as of the date of this blog post):

"The SH-101 was produced in three colors: gray, blue, and red."

As is Vintage Synth Explorer's SH-101 page:

"They come in three different flavors - gray, blue or red..."

The VSE page also mentions that the synthesizer also came in a "very rare white version". This was news to me, and a quick Google search brought up a few pages of white SH-101s. One on Synthfind.com includes a photo (including white mod grip), but it was customized - not factory-original. Same with one I found on Analogue-Addict's site.

Looking through the comments section, back in back in April 2010 "Skunk3" also mentions a rare green version:

"It should also be noted that there are white SH-101s in existence, as well as SUPER rare green ones, which were released in Japan only. (As well as many versions of sunbleached red and blue 101's that range from pink to light blue)"

White and green?!?!

That made me recall a very recent forum post on Vintage Synth Explorer around an army green SH-101.

Back on Wednesday, March 6, "cre8tor" posted in the forum that he/she had an army green SH-101, noting that it was not painted or discoloured - "clearly army-green" - and wondering if collectors would pay a premium for it.

Reading through the comments, which include a few photos of the apparently army green SH-101s, some suspected that maybe it was a bad batch of the gray (SILVER!) plastic pigmentation in the factory. Others theorized that the gray (ahem - SILVER :) plastic naturally turns green over time, possibly due to exposure to UV or sunlight, noting that the inside of the battery compartment, or optional modulation grips, did not turn green.

One of the best pieces of evidence is presented by "Cumulus" - a close-up photo of blue switches on a Minimoog that have partially turned turned green over time. You can clearly see the blue-to-green discolouring depending on what position the switches were in during the discolouration process.

That photo was pretty much the slam dunk for me - definitely discolouration and not factory green.

Myths about synthesizers, like white and green SH-101s - are like any other Internet meme, recycling over and over again. I've seen this happen ever since I came across rec.music.synth back in the early days of the Internet.

Poster Stab Frenzy probably said it best in the forum:

"I love that this topic comes up like clockwork every year or so."

Roland RED SH-101 "Takes you where you want to go." ad, Keyboard 1984

noreply@blogger.com (RetroSynthAds) — Thu, 14 Mar 2013 17:35:00 +0000

Roland RED SH-101 synthesizer "Takes you where you want to go." full page colour advertisement from page 7 in the January 1984 issue of Keyboard Magazine.

I guess I still have a little bit of my battery-operated synth fetish bubbling deep in my gut. The anti-dramatic ending to Yamaha's Producer Series blog posts, with the once-featured CS01 synthesizer pushed to the side lines, left me wanting more.

In other words, I have a fever and the only prescription is more battery-operated synthesizers. And while flipping through old issues of Keyboard this advertisement for Roland's SH-101 synthesizer caught my eye.

I mean, really, how could it not catch a reader's eye. This ad scream's "80s" from top to bottom. The large bright splashes of solid colour. The angular design elements. Even the angled ad-copy with lines like "get up and move", "no strings attached" and "more than just a pretty face" - all very 80s.

But its those contemporary elements that today makes this ad look so dated. Kind of like looking back at your 80s haircut. You may still think you looked cool and bad-ass back then, but you sure don't want your coworkers to find your school yearbook.

In particular, I'm talking about the dude on the scooter. His clothes, even how he is sitting... er... dancing...?
Very 80s contemporary-dancer-like. He looks a little uncomfortable actually. Like he's about to fly off because they are taking a sharp corner.

But whatever emotions might be evoked now doesn't really matter. The ad is well past its expiry date - it served its purpose. Like most magazine advertisements, inherently had a short shelf life.

Looking at the ad now just like I did back then, I can't help but only think about how much I still want an SH-101. I've always wanted one. Forever. And regretably never picked one up when they were going cheap way back when.

For some reason they weren't that common around these parts - or at least people weren't selling them once they got them. But I recall a time when I could walk into a pawn shop or music store and it wouldn't be too uncommon to see a used 202, 303, 606, 808 or 909 sitting on the shelf. And sometimes, even as a student, I would have enough cash to actually buy one when I saw it. Probably the best investments I've ever made - if I could ever actually convince myself to ever sell 'em. :)

This is actually the first in a series of SH-101 ads. Like the SH-101 itself, the ads came in a variety of colours and imagery. And interestingly, only the red version seems to have appeared more than once. Twice to be exact. In the January and April 1984 issues of Keyboard.

Up next - silver!

End note: Hmmmm - look at that scooter again - I wonder if "TB303" is available as a vanity license plate in my province.

Yamaha Producer Series "Production Values." ad, Keyboard 1984

noreply@blogger.com (RetroSynthAds) — Mon, 11 Mar 2013 19:20:00 +0000

Yamaha Producer Series "Production Values." full page colour advertisement from the back cover of the February 1984 issue of Keyboard Magazine.

Interesting fact: It's 1984, and yet this appears to be only the second Yamaha synthesizer advertisement to appear on the back cover of Keyboard Magazine. But once Yamaha got this ad onto the back cover, it kept it there pretty regularly from February all the way through to October.

It seems that Yamaha decided it wasn't exactly through with the promotion of its Producer Series line of products. But instead of reanimating those fun, illustrated ads from a few years ago, they decided it might be better to switch gears a bit and begin promoting both the old and new Producer Series gear towards the professional studio musician. And probably a good thing, because you can't really roller skate with a four-track recorder. At least not this Yamaha four-track.

It was time to bring those roller skaters back into the studio to cut all those tracks people had been working on for the last two years with their CS01 synthesizer, MA10 headphone amp, MM10 portable mixer and MH10 headphones. They are all still available as part of the Producer Series, so they must have been selling okay.

But the bulk of this advertisement's ad-copy is all about the new studio gear:

MT44 4-track cassette recorder.
MM30 4x2 mixer with built-in analog delay, 7 band equalizer.
RB30 system rack with patch bay and accessories compartment.

I really became intrigued with this 4-track system after seeing this ad a few days ago. I loved my Tascam four-track - I cut my teeth in music production on that that thing. But this system with patch bay and mixer sounds and looks really cool.

It didn't take long for a Google search to bring up that RB30 manual and it turns out the RB30 is the Ikea equivalent of studio furniture. It makes me want to find all the parts and recreate it even more! Gah!

Also - I found a great little German blog that included some good pics. Google's Chrome browser with its Translation feature is *awesome*.

Almost as intriguing as this studio system is the one other piece of gear they kind of just slipped in here. As far as I can tell, it wasn't part of the original line up of Producer Series gear, but yet never really got any promotion on its own whenever it came out.

I'm talking about that MR10 drum machine! It kind of just got thrown into this ad

Well, in Yamaha's defense, it has been two years since that last batch of ads ran and they were releasing products as fast as humanly possible. And then some. They probably just didn't have enough ad space. But, we can get an idea of when that MR10 drum machine was actually released from when it appeared in the Spec Sheet section of the magazine in February 1983.

It actually appeared as part of a long series of Yamaha new gear, including mixers and power amplifiers, but those other items were not part of the Producer Series (but maybe precursors to them?), so I've only included the drum machine info:

"Yamaha Drum Machine, Mixers & Power Amps. The Yamaha MR10 is a battery-operated rhythm unit with twelve preset rhythms, plus five finger pads for playing live fills or entire rhythm parts. Preset rhythms, which can be combined with one another for greater variety, include disco, jazz, swing, waltz, march, and several Latin rhythms. In addition to the master volume, there are separate volume controls for the bass drum and cymbal. A tuning control governs the pitch of the snare drum, high tom-tom, and low tom-tom, and a tempo control governs the speed of the automatic rhythms. automatic fills can be activated every four or eight bars if desired...."

What the devil? No price?

Boooooo!

That's enough Producer Series for now. On to something else in the next blog post.

Yamaha "Producer Series" 12-page brochure, 1983

noreply@blogger.com (RetroSynthAds) — Thu, 07 Mar 2013 19:20:00 +0000

Yamaha "Producer Series" 12-page brochure from 1983 featuring the MA10 Headphone Amplifier, MM10 Mic/Line Stereo Portable Mixer, and CS01 Micro-Monophonic Synthesizer.

Just in case you couldn't get enough of the illustrations from Yamaha's 1982 "Producer Series" ads that ran in the June, August and October issues of Keyboard Magazine, I thought I would post this awesome 12-pager. It took a bit more time than normal to scan, but I figure that allows me to blog a little bit less. :)

Illustrations aside for a second, this brochure is also currently in my top 10 because it also gives readers an up close and personal look at each piece of gear. Labels for every knob, lever, dial and input and output are all clearly visible. And each piece of gear has a page or two devoted to detailed info. Can't beat that.

But as much as I like that first half of the brochure, its the last half that is a joy to read. I really like diagrams. But I *love* these diagrams. I'm talking about the "Six Producer Series set-ups". The illustrator that sketched the imagery in those Yamaha ads was clearly running on all cylinders when asked to come up with more imagery for this brochure.

To me, the punch line comes in that sixth set-up (bottom of page 10) for "Amplifying TV sound". Two couch-potatoes lounging in front of a TV, beer and cigarette in hand, and head-phones securely on their heads so they can listen to their TV "privately and in synthesized stereo". Brilliant. And I'm also kinda crushing a little on the country singer in the second set up. Those are some serious birthin' hips.

The brochure was the perfect end to this series of illustrated Yamaha ads. If they had kept them going on longer, they might have become as epic as the John Mattos period of Sequential Circuits ads and brochures. Almost.

My biggest problem now is trying to decide which one of these illustrations to make my avatar on Facebook and the Cakewalk forum I just joined.

Yamaha CS01, MA10, MH10 and MM10 Producer Series "Before. After. Affordable Alternative..." ad, Keyboard 1982

noreply@blogger.com (RetroSynthAds) — Mon, 04 Mar 2013 16:50:00 +0000

Yamaha CS01 Synthesizer, MA10 Headphone Amplifier, MH10 Stereo Headphones and MM10 Stereo Mic/Line Mixer "Before. After. Affordable Alternative..." Producer Series two-page colour advertisement from page 8 and 9 in the October 1982 issue of Keyboard Magazine.

Okay, it definitely wasn't Yamaha's original intent, but I *really* want that synthesizer the dude in the bucket is playing in the "Before" illunstration. It's like a cross between a Kord MS20 and some computer panel from an early James Bond flick that some anonymous henchman would be controlling. It actually brings back some great memories of a time when all my available income would go towards that one... special... synth (which would change when the next best synth came out). A time when I would honestly consider wearing a bucket if it meant I could buy it. Although I'd never not pay for a good haircut.

But Yamaha once again does a fine job of literally illustrating their point - the Producer Series gear wouldn't cost an arm and a leg. It was truly an "Affordable Alternative".

This was the third and final ad in this particular series of "Producer Series" ads. If you recall, each in the series dealt with one particular advantage that the gear held over its competitors. The "Rolling Sound" ad was all about the mobility of the gear, and the "Private Practice" ad pushed the idea of being able to practice without disturbing others.

Rolling Sound. Private Practice.

Each of these ads appeared only once - June, August, and October 1982. And its a shame, because the illustrations are really nice and they all deserved more airtime. But I'm sure part of the problem was that Yamaha was pumping out tons of gear all the time, and needed to advertise all those products. To make the point, during the time these ads were running, Yamaha was also throwing advertising dollars at Keyboard Magazine for the CS70m, Electone 7000, CE20 combo, CP11 and CP12 electric pianos, and PS10 and PS20 portable keyboards. They were running two to four ads per month.

All those different products probably made it a little confusing for the consumer. And I'm not the only one who thought so.

Dominic Milano says as much in the introduction of his March 1983 Keyboard Report on three Yamaha offerings - the PC-100, MP-1 and the lovely CS01.

"Companies, as they get larger, tend to split themselves up into smaller divisions internally, for administrative reasons. This may make perfect sense for their own purposes, but it can be confusing for anybody from the outside who deals with them. Case in point: Yamaha International (which is itself a division of Nippon Gakki Co., Ltd.) has no less than three separate divisions selling keyboard instruments. Depending on what instrument you want to talk about, your phone call may be routed to either the Keyboard Division (pianos and organs), the Combo Division (rock and jazz keyboards), or the Special Products Division (portable battery-operated keyboards)."

Over-lapping departments in a large organization is never a good thing. It just leads to silos. I've not just seen it, I've experienced it.

So, guess which division the portable, battery-operated CS01 synthesizer was a part of. Nope, not the Specialty Products Division which specialized in portable, battery-operated keyboards. It belonged to the Combo Division, which includes rock and jazz keyboards. Go figure. Well, enough griping about that.

Dominic's report on the CS01 is pretty standard, concentrating on the functionality of the synth. And he did touch on one aspect of the CS01 that really interests me - the breath control. The VCF and VCA can both be controlled with Yamaha's $35 breath controller accessory.

"This handy little accessory, which you blow into, turns the CS01 into a very expressive lead instrument. The amount of signal from the breath controller that is opening up the filter or VCA can be continuously adjusted with a pair of knobs at the left end of the keyboard. Thus you can easily use the ADSR to control the loudness while your breath controls the filter cutoff, or vice-versa. Or you can mix the two for some subtle inflections."

Yeah, sure, you might look a little odd running around the stage with the CS01 around your neck and a giant soother in your mouth... wait... actually, now you wouldn't look that odd.

I'm going to have to investigate that breath control a little further...

Yamaha CS01, MA10, MH10 and MM10 Producer Series "Before. After. Rolling Sound..." ad, Keyboard 1982

noreply@blogger.com (RetroSynthAds) — Thu, 28 Feb 2013 17:05:00 +0000

Yamaha CS01 Synthesizer, MA10 Headphone Amplifier, MH10 Stereo Headphones and MM10 Stereo Mic/Line Mixer "Before. After. Rolling sound..." Producer Series two-page colour advertisement from page 36 and 37 in the August 1982 issue of Keyboard Magazine.

Yamaha must have known they were on to a good thing with the artistic direction taken for the Producer Series of advertisements, and decided to keep the ball rolling after the first ad appeared in the June 1982 issue of Keyboard Magazine - ---see right --->

In that first advertisement, Yamaha focused on the theme of "Private practice", where using only Yamaha Producer Series equipment, a band could practice without annoying the neighbours, or apparently, the pet dog.

In this second advertisement, again appearing only once, this time in the August 1982 issue of Keyboard, the theme switches to "Rolling sound", aka the ability to take your music on the road. And not on now-fasionable inline skates, but old-skool roller skates - toe-brakes and all. Whether we are talking about the skates or the... ahem... cleavage... it is truly all in the details. Hubba! The point is, this battery-operated gear is light and easy to take on the road.

Both this ad and the previous one follow the same "Before/After" layout, with only two splashes of colour to be found. In the "Producer Series" name and the gear itself. Those splashes of colour save the ad in some ways, allowing the readers' eyes to find a focal point. Something that could be rather difficult without the colour in a two page advertisement this busy.

I have to give Yamaha credit. They went to great lengths to make these ads unique. And not just the imagery, but the ad-copy as well. The story pulls each piece of gear from the Producer Series into the ad, even if it is not part of the artwork. Nice.

At some point I'll pick up all these pieces just to fiddle with, but as can be seen in my previous blog post, my obsession is really all about the CS01 synthesizer.

Side note: I went through a period where I was really fascinated with mini-synthesizers and at one point was ignoring all my other gear and creating music based only around my CZ101, DX100, MC202 and Prophecy. Kind of concept album. Never went anywhere, and probably a good thing since that last one I mentioned, the Korg Prophecy, may not be a true mini. Someone would have called me out on that. But it is monophonic. And great sounding. And adorable - just like the rest in this group. :)

Anyways, my obsession is really about the CS01. But the others were definitely along for the ride. For example, all four pieces appeared in the same Spec Sheet promo in the May 1982 issue of Keyboard (a month before the ads started to appear). The promo focuses on the most important aspects of each piece - the size and weight. Plus, us historical freaks get some retail pricing info too!

"Yamaha products. Four new miniaturized sound reinforcement components have been introduced by Yamaha. The portable battery-operated CS01 Monophonic Synthesizer, is 19 3/4" wide by 6-3/8" deep, with a 32-note keyboard, pitch and mod wheels, LFO, variable glissando, pitch, and waveform controls, pulse width modulation, full VCF, VCA, and envelope generator controls, an octave selector for adjusting keyboard range, and an interface allowing modulation of both VCF and VCA functions by breath. A build-in amp and speaker system is also included. Price is $249.95. The MH10 Headphone Amplifier, weighing 17 ounces and measuring 8-3/4" by 5" by 2-1/16", features four line inputs and outputs, separate volume controls, bass and treble controls, and input and master volume controls that permit intentional distortion effects. A built-in analog delay line can create a stereo-like effect. The MA10 sells for $124.95. The MH10 Stereo Headphones weigh two ounces, and feature adjustable headband and a 9' cable. Price is $29.95. Finally, the MM10 Mic/Line Stereo Portable Mixer weighs 17 ounces, measures 98-3/4" by 5" by 2-1/16", with capability of mixing up to four signals. Each powered product runs on either AC or battery. Yamaha, Boxx 6600, Buena Park, CA 90622."

$249.95?!?! That's an amazing price for what the portable CS01 can do. And the timing couldn't have been better either. In this May issue alone, we have advertisements for the Roland TB303/TR606 and SCI Remote Prophet. And the article on Jonathan Cain (Ex-Babys Keyboardist touring with Journey) features a large photo of him with an ARP Odyssey strapped around his neck (and looking like he's experiencing severe back problems). Technology was getting to the point where the luxury of portability was starting to kick in. Yamaha was catching the wave.

I'm curious though... can I really get a power generator harness for my dog? I could see how that could come in handy.

Yamaha CS01, MA10, MH10 and MM10 " Producer Series: Before. After. Private practice..." ad, Keyboard 1982

noreply@blogger.com (RetroSynthAds) — Mon, 25 Feb 2013 17:55:00 +0000

Yamaha CS01 Synthesizer, MA10 Headphone Amplifier, MH10 Stereo Headphones and MM10 Stereo Mic/Line Mixer "Producer Series: Before. After. Private practice..." two-page colour advertisement from page 8 and 9 in the June 1982 issue of Keyboard Magazine.

This advertisement was the start of Yamaha's "Producer Series" two-page ads that would begin appearing in Keyboard Magazine in the summer of 1982 and run intermittently through the fall. Above all else, the reason these ads are so awesome is the great artwork - and you know how much I love synthesizer advertisement artwork. More on that in future Producer Series blog posts. :)

Today I'm posting this advertisement for one reason: Celebration! Lately I've kinda resembled the dude playing the guitar in the "Before" picture. Like life had just kept kicking me in the 'nads. Or maybe I resembled the dog more...

No matter. With life going the way it is at the moment, I have to take any "win" that I can get. And right now, this one is about a 7 out of 10 on the "celebration" scale.

Have I built up the suspense enough yet? Probably too much.

You see, I recently re-found an old non-functioning Yamaha CS01 synthesizer in my basement. I had originally picked it up so long ago I can't even be sure where I got it. I think it was a freebie that came along for the ride when I locally purchased another synth. I'm sure I had high hopes of taking it in one day to see if it could get repaired, but in the end it quickly ended up out-of-sight and out-of-mind.

Fast forward 20+ years later (no kidding!), I'm searching for a hacksaw blade - don't ask - and this thing literally drops on my head. At least it wasn't a Jupiter 8 that fell on my head... although that would have been worth the concussion. I brought the CS01 upstairs and there it sat on my living room table for a week or so when I finally decided to take a closer look.

First I decided to wipe off the decades of dirt with a damp cloth. That took a while in itself. But it looked almost like new after I was finished. Only faint letters written on each key in permanent marker remained.

I then plugged the sucker in to see what would happen. The red power/volume light instantly came on, but there was no sound from the keyboard whatsoever or out of any of the controls. Just the way I left it oh so long ago. I even tried the "Author Fonzarelli" - gently tapped the back of the unit a few times. From his Wikipedia page:

"Fonzie would at times demonstrate an almost magical ability to manipulate technology with just a nudge, bump or a snap of his fingers for things such as starting a car, turning on lights, changing the song selection on a juke box or getting free sodas from a vending machine."

No such luck.

So I figured it was time to take out my screw driver and see what was happening inside.

One word - rust.

It was like one side of the synth had been dipped in water. Ugh. You can see the damage in the close up picture. Cool thing about this circuit board is everything is labelled well. Envelope generator, VCF, VCA, Osc - everything. Very cool. There is even smaller labels indicating inputs and outputs of different functions.

Now, please remember - I don't know what I'm doing. I'm not a technician. But I figured if I could at least get it to make a sound then I would know it was probably worth taking it in to get fixed.

I unscrewed the keyboard mechanism and everything looked fine. I took a cloth and wiped all the dirt off everything and screwed the keyboard back on. Then, without closing it back up, I plugged it in ... and... noise! And musical noise even! The keys even seemed to be functioning fine.

I put everything back together and started testing the controls.

VCO - check.

VCF - check.

VCA - check.

LFO - check.

Pitch bend and modulation wheels - check.

EG - check. Well, kinda.

Turns out everything is working except the Glissando (portamento) in the VCO section, and the attack time and release time in the Envelope Generator. All the keys except for the highest and lowest work as well, although they are a little dirty still.

So, maybe I do have the Fonzie-touch afterall. Excellent. I look forward to dating twins at some point in my future.

All that good news means one thing - this CS01 is definitely worth saving. I'll take it in to my tech along with my Minimoog (which for some reason just konked out on me) sooner rather than later.

A pretty good Sunday morning project.

Yamaha FS1R "New Sounds for the New Millenium" six-page colour brochure, 1998

noreply@blogger.com (RetroSynthAds) — Thu, 21 Feb 2013 20:15:00 +0000

Yamaha FS1R "New Sounds for the New Millenium" six-page colour brochure, 1998

As I begin writing this blog post, apparently it's President's Day in the U.S.of A. Because I'm Canadian, I could be excused for forgetting this tidbit of knowledge every year until Facebook friends and Twitter start buzzing about holiday plans. But when I called my Canadian parents this cold Monday morning, who are retired and living in the Southern US through the winter months, they were a little surprised because they didn't realize it was also a holiday these parts.

For the longest time there wasn't a holiday in February, which meant having to survive more than two months without a holiday after Xmas and New Years. Yeah, I know... in this cold weather. It really did make for a long winter.

Then some genius came up with a fake February holiday called "Family Day" or some such nonsense and the next thing you know, it seemed like every province was scrambling to get in on the action. I have a general hatred of human beings, and that definitely includes families of the Homo Sapiens variety. But if you are going to go and include a day off work, you can be sure I'll bring my shiny gold short-shorts and Keytar on that bandwagon.

Point being - just happy to have another day off and planning on keeping this blog post short so I can enjoy the day.

Now, I know what your first question is - WTF does family day mean?!?! But, brushing that question aside, I know what your second question is - Is this really a Vintage Synth ad?

Nope. But vintage synth brochure? Maybe. :)

And it doesn't matter, 'cause the Yamaha FS1R has been one of the only things on my mind lately. Since it came out in the late 90s, I've wanted one. I've craved it. Hurts my liver I crave it so much. But I've never managed to come across one locally. Sure, a month or two will go by when it leaves my mind, but thought of owning one always pops back in to my mind.

I believe this sickness is known as GAS (Gear Acquisition Syndrome). And the only prescription is NOT more cowbell. It's slapping down a grand on eBay on the rare occasion that they do come up. Really rare on Ebay Canada.

The brochure itself isn't in that great a shape. But again - I don't care. I want one. The green colour even hurts my eyes when I try and read it. But I don't care. I want one.

I cut the scans up into six pages rather than two long pages because of the way Blogger shrinks images above a certain pixel size. But I will put up the images of the long images when I get home today.

The first thing I noticed when I flipped open the front page was the title - and in particular the word "Millenium". Sure enough it came up as a spelling error when I typed it for the blog post. A quick Google check and... yup. "Millennium".

Ouch.

But I don't care. I want one.

I could go on and on - but why not just read the brochure. And check out Sound on Sound's detailed review of the yamaha FS1R from 1998. Vintage Synth Explorer's FS1R page includes a few sound demos too.

Also, check out this YouTube video of the demo songs.

Even simple Google searches make me want this baby more and more each day.

One day I'll bit the bullet. One day...