Yamaha TX81Z

Very ease to use. The best factory presets are: eletric pianos,organs,analogs,digitals,bells,noises and bass. Ease to editing patches,too. good price: Us 146

No sequencer. 16 notes poliphony and 8 parts multimbral. Good efects are delay and chorus. Don't have expansion.

Good analogs,digitals,eletric pianos,organs,bells,bass and noises. The sounds are similar of Dx-7. I'm using day by day in Dance music and jingles. I love my Tx-81z

As with most FM synths, editing could be a bit tricky. But spending an afternoon or two learning it, this machine gets pretty nice over time.

Considering the age of this little machine, it's pretty good.
it's multitimbral, the velocity-sence gives it a lot of expreivness, and the midi works perfectly well (wich it doesn't always do on some roland machines)

The faktory-presets aren't that beauthiful, in fact most of them truly sucks, especialy the the emulations of acuostic instruments.
However if you have patienence to get inside the at least in the beginning, messy soundeditor, you can get some extremly cool sounds out of it. Despite the faktorypresets there's a lot of attitude and agression beneath the surface of this one, like killer-basses, chainsaw-drones and weird electronic sounds. The feedback operator adds a noisy edge or almost analogue warmth depending on wich algorithm you choose. It's perfect if you are playing hard electronic music and want some real hard-edged sounds. It can allso do the metallic trumpet-like sounds used by Front 242, Portion control and depeche mode in the mid 80's.

I never had a single problem with it

It's a nice synth, if you can coop with it's limitations. Never the less it's over 15 years old, so thats what you get buying any old synth. But if you have patience, you can have some realy fun times with it.

Many of the presets try to emulate actual acoustic instruments. Although FM was the best at this when this synth was new, it's laughable compared to current ROMplers in this category. THIS, HOWEVER, IS NOT A NEGATIVE (read on). The unit has 128 presets stored in ROM and there are some neat digital noise type effects and some really neat programming tricks that are impossible on a ROMpler.

The editing and menu navigation isn't too hard compared to present day synths, since there are fewer functions. Editing actual patches due to the quirks of FM is difficult if you aren't familiar with the family. My unit didn't come with a manual, but I downloaded one from Yamaha, so it's no problem. This is my first FM synth, so I could use more guidance in the programming area than the manual offers. I use MIDI Quest V8.0 on my MIDI setup and this eases programming quite a bit...however, due to my unfamiliarity with FM, it's still hit and miss. It is great fun to generate random patches and morph between two patches in MIDI Quest, however.

These units are known for their bass and bell-like sounds, great if you are into dance music. (I play classic rock and progressive rock and the unit is fun in my genres as well. In fact, my unit's 32 user modifiable patches were all programmed as various basses. My rating is based on a high ease of use for navigation, but difficult FM patch editing.

This unit has 8 voices and can be used as a 8 patch multi-timbral unit, but I haven't bothered. I'm happy using it as a straight patch system. You can set this in a monophonic mode and detune each of the 8 voices from each other which does in fact create GIANT lead sounds. Effects are easy to use, no expansion but this is an actual synth so you get to generate whatever you can figure out. MIDI isn't bad for the age of the unit and it does have pressure sensitivity and several MIDI controller options. My rating is based on this units intended purpose for me (it's NOT to replace my JV-2080 for instance) and the fact that I use MIDI for control and playing of the instrument and not for sequencing. For a simple source of FM synthesis sounds, this unit is great.

Some of the "realistic" instruments really aren't too bad...organs, basses, bells. However, for realism you are better off with a modern ROmpler or Sampler. I think that anyone who buys an FM synth today knows what the limitations and positives are. Onboard effects are fine for the age of the synth, I've used some external effects at times. These units are used frequently in dance and electronic music these days, it seems. However, my main interest area lies in classic rock, modern rock, and all forms of progressive rock (yeah, I'm a dinosaur!) and this little synth is great fun and a source of great and unusual sounds. Although I haven't done it yet, I'd love to use it as a sound source for MIDI bass pedals. As almost all of my keyboard playing is done live (no sequencing) I use this unit for weird noises, bells, synth organs, evolving pads (not like a wavestation, but there is neat stuff you can do), and the like. FM synths can be VERY responsive to your playing as are intrinsically modulation patching machines. There is a lot buried under the surface of this little guy. Don't be fooled by the units attempt to generate realistic sounds (a big goal of FM in its day, but overshadowed today by cheap ROMplers and Samplers). However, the moderns musicians desire to branch out from "built-in" sounds is well met by this machine. Sounds are similar to the bigger DX-7 synths, but have 8 built in waves instead of just the sine waves, which was actually appealing to me. This synth only uses 4 operators (for you FM nuts out there) but the multiple wavesforms is a fair trade.

Built like a tank. I'd use it on a gig with no worries...and I'm usually afraid to bring older synths out with me.

This is my first Yamaha, designed to quell my FM jones before I decide on what larger 6-operater DX- or possibly SY/TG synth to buy. I've never had to deal with Yamaha, but their website is quite good.

I would definitely buy again. The cost to fun and cost to benefit ratio is great! It would be great if you could store more than 32 presets of your own, but many of the 128 built-in presets are nice and battery backed RAM was expensive back then! I absolutely love this synth.

Hideously difficult. I use it as a mono-timbral device because I am not masochistic. If you have the patience to set up a "performance" have at it, but I find it horrible. FM in general is difficult to grasp when it comes to sound design but you can get the hang of it after a time. I like the programming layout at least, it does make sense in a weird way. Much easier if you have Sound Diver or Unisyn but still FM so... The presets are laughable but charming in their own way, and a couple are good for starting points. The manual is ambiguous and generally horrible like most Yamaha I have used. C'est la vie, it was cheap...

Decent features I guess. 8 note poly is plenty for mono-timbral use. Even in a multi setup, its probably plenty as some FM sounds can take quite a bit of sonic space if you program them that way... The effects are a joke but it is a pretty old synth. Decent midi implimentation but nothing great. Pretty much a run of the mill for '80s FM synths BUT it does have some unique things under the hood, but that info's in the sounds.

Ugh, forget the organs and electric pianos. Any sound module has replications of those. Go for the weird stuff! This unit creates some of the geratest oddities that are awesome for some weird one-hit type sounds. I have made some great Skinny Puppyeasque sounds with very little effort just by making some very minor alterations to some banks I DL'd off the internet. Deep bell sounds are great and some of the pad sounds are something else when run through effects.

One of the best uses for this synth I have found is as an additive for other synths. Adding a funky sound to another synths lead and bass sounds creates some great results when used with the right sounds. Another great thing is to run it through another synth's input. I have mine going into my Waldorf Micro-Q and using the filters and envelopes on the Micro-Q almost makes it into a new mega synth with some crazy sounds I haev NEVER heard before...

The sounds I use are generally very clangy and I feel this unit produces those types of sounds best. Hence it seems to be great for industrial/darkwave. It doesn't seem all that versatile in its sound generation but I have been somewhat lazy in programming it because I am a dunski when it comes to FM for the most part. The velocity and aftertouch are weird in their sensitivity. Its fine if you don't mind going over your sequences and fine tuning but its a bit of a drag for live play IMO.

The unit boasts 8 different operator waveforms as opposed to the normal 2. This is what separates this from other FM synths. Just changing the operator shapes can make dramatic differences to the sound. Again the sounds remain very clangy and FM sounding but they can add a new depth. Its a really nice thing to have on the bass sounds as it can make a nice rounded bass sound a nightmare stomping sounds with just the change of the operator shapes.

Its a tank. I've had mine for a year and a half and its been solid. Of course the thing is ancient and it works wonderfully.

No online community that I've seen but who cares? I DL'd 1500 sounds from Yamaha's website along with the manual. The fact that Yamaha still has stuff lingering around for this grandpappy of a synth gets them a high rating this time. I generally don't like Yamaha's tech support but 1500 patches (even if 90% are crap) for a 15 year old synth is pretty good.

Not easy to use but not that bad either. Some great sounds but you really do need some outboard effects to wet the sound up as you just can't rely on the onboard effects. Some great noise making ability really makes it shine. Although FM synths have TOO distinct a sound, this one is more versatile due to the additional operators. I can't complain much because these things are practically given away anymore and I have managed to put together some great sounds for various tracks. Its greatest strength though, is the fact that they are so rarely used anymore and as a result add a unique edge to a track that cannot be replicated by anything other than another FM type synth and even then it stands apart because of those extra waves. While people scramble to buy up all this vintage gear or new VA's these synths are being ignored so their sound is FAR from overused. If you do any kind of electronica and are looking for some new sounds to liven up your music, this is a pretty good synth to look long and hard at, especially if you already have a sampler and an analog or VA synth. It just might give your tracks that little extra that has been so elusive and as cheap as they are, its hard to justify NOT buying one.

Presets are very ordinary sounding (the DX11 keyboard version must have come out later because its preset are much better). Do try out the popular "Lately Bass" patch though. Editing patches is difficult with FM synths at the best of times. I defy anyone to stand up and admit that they really know how to get a particular sound from an FM synth. It has a small display )16 character by 2 line) and two cursor buttons and 2 +/- buttons so there is a lot of button pushing involved. An editor would be bliss.

FM synthesis. 8 note polyphonic. 8 way multitimbral. 4 banks of 32 presets and 32 user presets. FX are MIDI based delay, pan and chords. Not much fun though. 1 rack space. What more can be said?

If FM is good for anything then it is the expressiveness of the sounds. You can make a patch respond to velocity, aftertouch and modulation in a way that a sample playbakc synth will never achieve. Sounds are FM so that means no realistic instruments. What it can do is nice square waves, electric pianos (including the classic FM pianos from the 80's) and chunky basses. Try looking on the net for some soundbanks to download.

Must have had this thing for 10 years now and never a problem.

Well I've never had a problem so I don't need support. Check out the yamaha service site (via yamaha.co.jp I think)for a manual.

Probably not the first module you should buy but if you are looking for something that can do analog type basses and cant afford a modelling synth that give it a listen and download some patches. If you do bad eighties love songs then get it for the electric pianos.

No idea what the OS version is, or if there was even such a thing as OS upgrades back in the days when they cranked these out.
I imagine a patch editor would make this easier, but once you get used to the way the menus are set up, it's quite easy to navigate. Let's face it - no one made synths very easy to figure out back in the 80's, but after dealing with some of the machines of the 90's, this thing will seem a breeze comparitively - even from the front panel. Unless you have no idea what you're doing in the first place.

Polyphony 8 I believe. As practically every review in this section already mentions, effects are MIDI-based, not DSP-based. Delay and pitch shift which are fun to play with and a pseudo-reverb that's not useful for much. If you have the correct cable, you can dump your patches to CASSETTE (which gives you an idea how old this thing is)... pretty sure standard sys-ex dumps work fine, though I haven't gotten around to trying it. The noteworthy feature here is the multiple operator waveforms - even though it's only 4-op, this allows for some pretty complex modulations and enable you to get a lot dirtier more easily than with sine-only FM deals. This alone is worth the price if you're into any type of music which involves intensive sound-design (as I am). Another cool thing for people who can make use of it, is that it features the microtonal tuning capability that was also in the TX-802.

Fuck the presets. There are some decent basses and some cheesy sound-effects, but that's about it. All the presets are really good for are as a starting point for your own patches. This thing is absolutely killer for sound-design - I was considering selling it, then I made a couple new sounds on it and promptly changed my mind. This is great for bell sounds, sub-sonic bass noises, long evolving pads, scratchy/digital sounds of both the short and long variety... not too heavy on modulation routings, but A) there's already a lot of modulation going on with FM synthesis in general and B) what WAS in those days (with the exception of modular analog)? I'm still getting an FS1-R (which was going to replace this in my rig), but I'll keep this around just to have a pure-FM synth and for all the stuff it can do that the FS1-R can't.

Mine's firmly planted in a studio rack, but it looks like it took a hell of a beating before I got it, and it still functions without a glitch. The "built like a tank" term seems appropriate here.

Never dealt with them. But they have PDF manuals for this and other units on their Japan site (which is how I got mine), which is a nice gesture. However, I will refrain from a rating here since I've never had personal dealings with them.

Yeah, I'd replace this... bang for the buck is huge, and at the low low asking price, it's not like anybody couldn't afford one. I was torn between this and a TX-802 when I was looking for a rack FM synth, but after trying them both, this won out. The TX-802 has more output capabilities and 6-op. algorithms, but lacks the multiple waveforms - which is more than a fair trade off in my opinion. Sure the 802 is a bit cleaner sounding, but I'm not going for pristine productions here, and the FS1-R will pick up the slack in that department once I get one. As I keep saying, at this price, there's no reason not to at least try one - and with all the people snatching em up, it should be easy enough to unload if it ain't yer thang.

The presets of this machine are - except for some basses and organs - rather dull. T
The best thing to do is using and editor like Unisyn to produce some new sounds.
Try using some kind of randomize function if your editor allows this - you'll get some pretty weird results instantaneously !!!
(At least you don't have to crack your head about FM synthesis!)

Everything has been said here I guess...

If digital is going to make a comeback or if you like to use harsh, weird and unusual sounds - look nowhere else.
Using it along with some chorusing effect produces some really neato noises. I use it for basses and other otherworldly klingklangs.
I once put it through a Lexicon Vortex - a bizarre reverb/delay/pitch shift....all in one effects unit - and I ended up with some of the darkest
sounds around. (Some wonderful formant things happened like a chanting Robotic Gregorian Choir!!)
The reverb is a tad gritty but the delay is a good thing. There even is a chord function where you can stack up notes to play for example chordal
arpeggio's.

After all those years it still works OK - so I guess it's pretty reliable.

Never had to call.

I'd definately replace it when lost or stolen, it still remains an invaluable source for bizarro bleeps and klangs.
I put it through a Moogerfooger Ring Modulator or through the Sherman Filterbank to add some more quirckiness to it - this fattens the sounds up
too. I never use it for conventional purposes like pianos or organs. Weirdness and basses are what it does best. You might even use it for bell like
patches.
Did anyone mention the display shows "Good Morning!" when you turn it on??? (You can replace this - Mine says Aaarrgh now !)

Editing is pretty okay for a rackbox -- 2 line LCD and a couple sets of cursor keys. No data wheel of course. The menus for patch editing are a bit tricky to navigate but you get used to it. An external patch editor would probably be nice but I have yet to find a decent one (Unisyn maybe?). I had no manual, but there's a very handy little pull-out card on the thing that depicts all the algorithms and shows you a map of the menus. Nice touch.

Polyphony is something lame, 16 I think. No effects except for MIDI effects (MIDI delay and so on). You can do multitimbral, but it's a pain in the rear to set up -- these things are so cheap, don't bother, just buy 4 of 'em. :)

No expansion capabilities, no sequencer.

When I first got this thing, I couldn't figure out what to do with it. The presets are HORRENDOUS (remember, this was made in the days when synths were intended to simulate real instruments), and the somewhat irritating menus kept me from exploring too much.

So, I loaned it to a friend. One night we started playing with it, and managed to make some BEAUTIFUL little pads, soft flutey noises, hard electronic drum hits, cold digital basses, all kinds of neat stuff. For ice-cold buzzy FM noises, you cannot beat this thing. I'm using it for trance/industrial type stuff,
and it's just the thing. I plan to pick up a second one. Minor drawback: there seems to be a bit of digital noise on the output, and some slight high-end hiss on the notes themselves no matter what you do. I would put this through an EQ and a gate. I have mine hooked through a Peavey Spectrum analog filter to warm it up a little - some reverb and chorus do wonders for it, too.

As far as the guts details: it's a 4-op FM synth, but with more waveforms than your typical DX type sine/triangle/pulse -- there's like 8 waveform choices, and 7 or 8 different algorithms for combining the 4 oscillators. ADSR envelope and pitch detune for each osc. If you're used to more 'modern' synthesis architectures, this will be a fun excursion for you. Give yourself time with it and you'll find a lot of nice sounds in here.

The one I have seems very old and battle-worn, and it works like a charm. I'd gig with it no worries.

Never dealt with Yamaha. I doubt they'd acknowledge the existence of this bit of gear.

If it were lost or stolen I'd get another one immediately, and then CURSE myself for not making a sysex dump of my patches.

For the fairly limited range of digital FM-type sounds this thing can make, it might be hard to understand why I gave it such a high rating. The key lies in the accessibility. This thing makes no assumptions about what you want; it's just a raw sound-forging tool. No presampled waves, no presets of any value at all; just a straightforward set of oscillators and your imagination. This puts the fun back in sound design!

My only complaints are the bit of noise it produces, and the irritating don't-bother multitimbrality. But ignore that -- this thing is worth the little money you'll shell out for it.

Editing patch thru 6 button can be some kind of tiring labor (sometimes fun eventough). A software patch editor is useful to get the maximum of this "beast". Hours of tweaking fun garanteed...The manual is okay. The suggested performance presets are good to give new ideas.

Check the other reviews.

You get weird sounds for a small price. Do go for the piano thing in this box. The bass are good. Some good percusive sounds. Cool organs. I'm mainly in the industrial thing and the tx81z give me all the FM sound I need. Some FM can do some good to your mix from time to time...Yamaha did a good thing to reduce the noise in the TX81Z. The delay is useful. You can do arpegiator things with it.

Mine's got scratchs on the casing. I don't know if the battery has been changed. It has been obviously mistreated and it's still working as good as the mint thing.
There's a memory protection and it has never failed me while playing at my house. I actually gig with it with no backup.

I've e-mailed Yamaha Canada and I didn't have a response. They were to busy selling motorcycles I guess...

I give a fantastic value only for the price paid for this thing. You're looking for a cheap toy around 100$? Get a TX81Z. If it was lost, I would buy it again for the same price. I'm do not prize it enough to pay more. I like to get new sounds with a random patch generator. It doesn't need more thingies. If you want effects, use exteriors ones. I don't really use the yamaha to compose the main thing. However, I do program sounds in spare time that i can use to fix hole or add a little bit of clanginess. It's more a patching device. I use the bass, organ and FX sounds more often than anything else on this synth. Finally, this synth have relieved me the need for a bitch for a good to weeks. If you compare, the TX is more economic in that way...;)

what can i say...it's an awsome machine, if u know what u're doing...this thing can throw out some kick ass sounds, but only if u're willing to program it...doing it manually isn't too bad, just got to bear through many (MANY) menus...a pc editor is VERY helpful..manual is good to get u started, but u don't need one, u can learn by experimenting, it'll just take u a bit longer

8 note polyphony, 8 parts multitimbral...don't use this thing for the center of u're studio...it's a rackmount, non expandable (hey, it's early 80's technology)...it had built in effects, just not DSP effects..midi effects...their not too bad, but don't rely onthem..if u need to add efects use an external fx unit...

allright now...in my opinion, these sounds are AWSOME...i've created sounds that can kick ANALOG ASS!!!...looking for realistic instruments...wrong place...if ya want killer basses, organs, metallic sounds, blips and bleeps (industrial/jagged techno), this is where to go...presets SUCK!!!...(some are good, but most aren't)...MAKE U"RE OWN..it is't that hard..if u know what u're doing u can get the kewlest sounds out of it...

it's like 12 years old, and hasn't failed once...i don't even expect it to..battery supposd to die away after 5 yars, mine is fine, but i still backup my patches just incase...

never dealt with 'em b4

if it were lost/stolen, i would buy it again (if it cost me under $150)...it's one of the greatest synths i've ever used, it'd be hard for me to actually go on w/o it...i depend upon this puppy for a lot of my sounds...i've only had for a year, but it's felt like an eternity...i also own a tg-33, and it's hard to compare, both are totally differnt...i had a choice between this and a tg-55, but the tx kicked more ass...55 was too much of a preset machine ( I HATE SAMPLE BASED MACHINES!!!)...all i have to say is, if u're into industrial or anything like that, and see one of these for like under $150, take it...TAKE IT...u'll be glad in the long run