thedigitalpurrgatory

Bread and Tuna with Yamaha DX100 and RX7

Orange cat on a Yamaha DX100 synthesizer. Black cat on a Yamaha RX7 drum machine. All are on top of a checkered tablecloth

Bread (orange) and Tuna (black) team up again. Bread is playing the Yamaha DX100 FM synthesizer and Tuna has his paws on the RX7 drum machine. Together, they are ready for some retro-1980s Yamaha-synth fun. From thedigitalpurrgatory on Instagram.

The RX7 is quite similar to the RX5 drum machine we have here at CatSynth HQ, and a fine instrument in itself – the only main differences are that the RX5 has separate outputs for different pads and more complex envelope editing. You can find out more about the RX5 (and by extension the RX7) in our recent demo and tutorial.

Bread with Yamaha DX100 and DX7

Bread is back, and this time he is playing two of Yamaha’s classic FM instruments, the legendary DX7, and the smaller DX100. From thedigitalpurrgatory via Instagram.

Bread likes his frequencies modulated.

The DX100 is a four-operator FM synthesizer, similar to the DX27 and DX21, but lacking the extended features of the TX81Z. The DX7 is, of course, the six-operator FM workhorse of its era, and the most well-known of the entire line.

Bread and Yamaha DX100

Bread checks the volume on his Yamaha DX100 synthesizer. Submitted by thedigitalpurrgatory via Instagram.

The DX100 was the smallest of Yamaha’s famous DX series. A 4-op FM engine with mini keys, it’s sounds were compatible with the other 4-operator instruments, including the TX81Z, though it did not include some features of the latter.

CatSynth Pic: Loki, Novation Bass Station, Korg Poly 800

Loki finds the purrfect spot on a Korg Poly 800 in front of a Novation Bass Station. From the thedigitalpurrgatory on Instagram.

Loki the Cat distracting me, once again, just after setting the synths for a jam.

You can see Loki’s previous appearances on CatSynth here.

The Novation Bass Station is quite a popular instrument at the moment, an analog mono bass synth in the spirit of Moog past and present, and in someways similar to the Arturia MiniBrute 2 that we use here at CatSynth studios. The Poly 800 is a small vintage synthesizer, a transition from Korg’s earlier “Mono/Poly” classic into their instruments of the 1980s. I was actually interested in the later Poly 800ii though never acquired one.

CatSynth Pic: Loki, Yamaha DX100, Novation Bass Station

Loki returns, this time with a vintage Yamaha DX100 alongside the more contemporary Novation Bass Station. From thedigitalpurrgatory on Instagram.

The DX100 was the smallest of Yamaha’s DX series. It featured the same sound architecture as most of the other 4-operator FM models (before the TX81Z), but was smaller in size, with mini keys and hooks for a guitar strap. I actually had one which I used primary in “keytar mode” in the 1990s, but rarely used it after that.