DX-Owners Club
<-- Look what I found in my junk!
The UK DX-Owners Club was started in 1984 by Tony Wride. This document contains whatever I have left from the club’s newsletters. I have kept the JPG scans intact and also appended the text versions as well.
The DX-OC newsletter was basically printed on both sides of A4 paper which was folded in half. This means a 12-page newsletter was basically made of only 3 sheets of A4 paper. At the time, most of the contents were dedicated to DX-7 voice patches and, as such, I think the articles which are contained herein represents most of what was actually written.
The pages I have are arranged into 5 parts containing:
- Yamaha CX5M, dealers, D-1500, interfaces
- DX Accessories, Questions, Books & Magazines
- FM Synthesis pt1, Voice Patches & Area Co-ordinators
- FM Synthesis pt2
- DX-7 Analog sounds, TX-7 added info & Voice Patch library orders
I am pretty sure I have arranged them in the correct order, chronologically.
I was going to write a proper introduction, and then I realised I had already written one long ago (when my memory was better). From my yala.freeservers.com/t2dx-fm.htm website:-
As luck would have it, I have just managed to contact Tony Wride and he has given his blessing for this “reprint” of his writings.
Please enjoy the articles provided
The F.M. legend - a personal history
For me, it all started one day in mid'1984 when I walked into my friendly neighbourhood music-inst shop (actually, it was Soho Soundhouse, London) and there was a buzz in the air. The sales-guy says "You're here to try out the DX-7, right?". I, of course, didn't know what he was talking about and enquired about the price. It was out of my reach (obviously). Not to be deterred, the sales-guy instead plonks me in front of a Yamaha DX-9 and hands me some headphones. I started playing and... aaaahh, heaven! It's hard to describe what I heard (bearing in mind it's my first time hearing F.M. synthesis). You have to understand that, up to this point, synths were all about strings and brass. Occasionally, you'd have a few plinky plonky xylo-sounds (heck, the MKS-10 was considered realistic) but percussives, vibes, pianos etc were elusive (ie non-existent). But right there in front of me, in the form of a DX-9, was the holy grail. And, to make matters worse, there weren't any knobs or sliders or anything in fact which gave any inkling as to how this synth worked. I was hooked! I took the plunge and bought a DX-7 in Nov'84 and later a CX-5 in Jan'85. Unfortunately, programming these FM synths was an absolute nightmare. Nothing was fast and nothing was easy. It really wasn't intuitive at all and the manual wasn't exactly that helpful. But I was determined to master this beast. Learning to program the DX-7 was a slow and tedious process. But one day in late 1984, humanity was saved by a fellow synth-enthusiast called Tony Wride. Fed-up and tired with struggling alone with his DX-7, he mooted the idea of a "DX-club" in a letter to the magazine "Electronics & Music Maker". This caused a huge stirring of support from the public (DX synth owners), the media (music mags) and Yamaha too. Thus was born the DX-Owners Club. It was the DX-Owners Club which took FM programming to new heights. Via its newsletter, we began sharing patches/ sounds (one patch called "Wurlitzer" was really popular) and programming techniques (excellent articles by Ken Campbell). Part of Tony Wride's vision was also to have a network of co-ordinators who anyone could telephone for help and advice (you'll find listed under Area Co-ordinator for London W2 is "Yahaya 01-221-5314" which is me). Beyond the popular newsletter (these typed-up/ hand-drawn photocopy newsletters were inspirational), the club also organised get-together seminars bringing programmers together to meet experts like Dave Bristow to discuss FM in depth (I remember that fixed-frequency operators was a big topic). FM ruled and the DX-7 was king... Life was good! But as life goes on, reality takes its hold... Tony's job in the Royal Navy gave him less time to run the club. Eventually, the club was handed over to (surprise surprise) Yamaha who appointed Martin Tennant (not to be confused with Martin Russ) to run the re-named X-Series Owners Club. With Yamaha's backing (ie money), the newsletter became a regular magazine (with pictures and all) and everything was taken to a more polished level. The X-Series Owners Club was good... but with the change of management of the club, came a change in objectivity. You see, us members may all be dx-synth enthusiasts but we didn't work for Yamaha (the old newsletter would include info on non-Yamaha products as well). I remember an interesting session where Yamaha was launching their DX-5 while Tony was happily proposing to just add a TX-7 to a DX-7 (ie half the cost). Ah, well! Nevermind. As far as I know, the magazine continued until around mid'1987.You can view the whole document here DX-OC 1984 PDF from Google Drive.
CX5M DEMONSTRATIONS AND CLUB GET TOGETHER.I have managed to arrange a couple of special demonstrations of the CX5M to DX Owners' Club members in the London, Glasgow, and Newcastle. These demo evenings willalso provide a chance for you to meet other Club members within those areas.The first of these demonstration evenings will be held at CHROMATIX of Ealing Broadway Centre LONDON between 2000 & 2200 on Thursday 29 November. Those of you who would like to attend should ideally phone Dave Crombie or Howard Brain on 01-567-3623 so that they have some idea of numbers to cater for. I hope to attend this evening and look forward to meeting you.The other two evenings are being arranged by ROCK CITY of Newcastle and McCORMACKS of Glasgow and are likely to take place on the same evening. Please phone either Jim Corbett at Rock City(0632-324175) or Tommy McGinley of McCormacks(041-332-6644) for details.Apart from these two special evenings any of the Hi-Tech dealers listed should be only too willing to demonstrate the CX5M to you. However I suggest that you phone them to arrange a convenient time since walking in on a Saturday and expecting the busy staff to devote sufficient time is unrealistic.
YAMAHA HI-TECH DEALERSABC MUSIC: All Branches / ANDERTONS: Guildford / ARGENTS: London / AXE: Colchester/ Ipswich / BAIRD: Belfast / BROADWAY MUSIC: Worthing / PETER BONNER: Eastbourne / BRISTOL GUITAR WORKSHOP./ CARLSBORO: All Branches / CHAPPELLS: London / CHROMATIX: Ealing / CITY MUSIC: All Branches / DAWSONS: All Branches / DERBY ORGAN CENTRE / DOUGIES: Northwich / ESS: Barnet / FREEMANS: Leytonstone / FUTURE MUSIC: All BranchesGIGSOUNDS: Catford / JAMES GRANT: All Branches / HESSY: Liverpool / HONKY TONK: Hadleigh / JSG: Bingley / JONES & CROSSLAND: Birmingham / KINGFISHER: Fleet / LONDON ROCK SHOP: & BRISTOL / MILTON KEYNES MUSIC: Leighton Buzzard / E.MOORS: Bournemouth / McCOMACKS: Glasgow /.MUSICLAND: Cardiff / MUSIC VILLAGE: Romford / ONE WAY MUSIC Wolverhampton / PICTONS: Swansea / REIDY: Blackburn / ROCKBOTTOM: CroydonROSE MORRIS: London / SHARON MUSIC: Maidstone / SOHO SOUNDHOUSE: London / SOUND CONTROL: All Branches / SOUNDS GREAT: Heald Green / STIX: Peterborough / SYCO SYSTEMS: London / WHAM MUSIC: Cambridge / WHITE ELECTRIC: Sunderland / ROCK CITY: Newcastle
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ELECTRONICS & MUSIC MAKER. - You can now claim a £1.00 discount on the annual subscription to this excellent magazine. Either complete the form in the latest issue of E&MM or write to: Mail Order Dept, ELECTRONICS & MUSIC MAKER, Alexander House, 1 Milton Road, Cambridge CB4 lUY. The rates are,(including the Discount): £14.50(UK & EIRE), £15.20 (Europe & Overseas,SURFACE), £22.50 (Europe,AIRMAIL), £36.50(AIRMAIL outside Europe). Cheque/Postal Order (Bankers Draft from Overseas members) should be made payable to MUSIC MAKER PUBLICATIONS. Please include this section of the newsletter and your membership number to claim this discount price.
COMPARISON OF REAL SOPRANO WITH DX SIMULATION.
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I = d / m
The ratio of the modulator's frequency to the carrier frequency determines the spacing of the sidebands. These sidebands are sine waves of frequency outside the deviation of the centre frequency. Think of it as one sine wave providing the basic frequency with the harmonics (sidebands) superimposed on this.
EXAMPLE.CARRIER / FREQUENCY
The above is an imaginary spectrum for the modulation with a carrier frequency of 1kHz and a modulator of 200 Hz.The series of sidebands is theoretically infinite, but there comes a point at which these are inaudible. The modulation index dictates the relative amplitudes of each order of sidebands and these can be calculated using Bessel functions, provided that the deviation is known.As every action has an equal and opposite reaction, each order of sideband has an upper and a lower constituent, the lower being a reflection of the upper, with the carrier as its axis. There is a second axis for the lower sidebands, which is 0Hz; it being impossible for a frequency to attain a negative value. Where sideband spacings are uneven these reflections will add new harmonics providing an asymmetric waveform. In the example (above) you will see that the fifth and sixth order sidebands are reflected. In this case the spacing is even, so they are reflected back to stengthen existing harmonics.
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FREQUENCIES / AMPLITUDES
This formula takes reflections into account.(To be continued)
DX7 VOICES.The voice data contained with this newsletter are as follows;SLAP BASS - As used at the recent Convention by Ken Campbell and Dave Bristow.VANGELIS - A very analogue, Prophet 5 sound as used extensively by Vangelis. Dave Berkley from Newcastle provided this one. Well done Dave.SIMMON - This is very representative of a Simmons Drum kit with a snare at the top end of the Keyboard and the Drums at the bottom. You need to turn the volume up to achieve the best results! Try a simple change of Algorithm to change the sound.ORCH VLN - A classy string sound from Dave Bristow which uses Fixed Frequency to achieve a very realistic sound.Those of you who do not own a CX5M may find the computer print outs a bit confusing so I have included some information below to help you fathom out what is what. If when programming in voices you start with button 7 (Algorithm) and work up through the buttons you should not have any problems.
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CHRISTIAN NAME - TEL.NO. - AREA.PHILIP - 0272-73870 - BRISTOLTONY - 02205-3662 - CAMBRIDGEYAHAYA - 01-221-5314 - LONDON W2RICHARD - STAINES 53979 - SURREYMIKE - 061-440-0118 - STOCKPORTBERNARD - 0227-60825 - EAST KENTKEITH - 061-881-0570 - MANCHESTERMARK - 0632 576901 - NEWCASTLECAMERON - BIDEFORD 75778 - N. DEVONANDREW - 0782-639180 - STAFFS.BARRIE - 084-94-53692 - N. IRELANDROGER - 01-653-0211 - SOUTH NORWOODWAYNE - 626-0780 - OLDHAMMIKE - 0642 471120 - CLEVLANDBILL - 0742-739569 - SHEFFIELDSTUART - 01-806-2091 - LONDON E5MARTIN - 0473-625290 - IPSWICHCHRIS - 01-422-5587 - HARROW, MIDDX.BILL - 041-637-4737 - GLASGOWTIM - 0242-35114 - CHELTENHAMTERRY - 241792 - LEIXLIP, EIRE.
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[Diagram : Pitch data / Mod data]
The input buffer processes information supplied from two sources and sends this to the oscillator which produces the relevent waveform. The first input supplies pitch data which determines the frequency, and the second, modulation information, output from any operators higher up the chain.This information is then passed on to the amplitude section which is controlled by information from an envelope generator.It must be stressed that terms such as oscillator and amplifier are merely convenient labels and do not actualy describe the internal operation of an operator. At this stage all the information is still in digital form and it is only after all the necessary calculations have been performed that the final 'waveform' is passed through a digital to analogue converter (D/A) to become a voltage which can then be amplified.2. FREQUENCYThe scale used for frequency on the DX7 is very convenient (and thus probably intentional) when relating it to the previous discussion of F.M. theory. This is because the frequency course adjustment is numbered from 0.50, 1.00 etc to 31.00, and relates exactly to the harmonic series. It is therefore possible to relate the frequency displayed to a set of partials without having to resort to Hertz, and leave the interger set.The frequency fine control allows you to multiply the course frequency by between 1 and 1.99.
[Diagram : Algorithms 1, 17, 22]
The above examples show various different combinations of operators.A modulation will always move downwards from the top modifier out through the carrier(s). In cases where a carrier has more than one modulator in series (algorithm 1 and 17) the top modifier will modulate the one below which will in its turn modify the one below that. The final product is still only one waveform, but this will be more complex than a simple carrier modulator relationship which will provide an even spread of harmonics. To illustrate this point:-
[Diagram : M->-M->-C]
Let us take an example whereby we have a frequency ratio of 4:3:1. Taking the first modulation, this is the arrangement of the first four order sidebands.
[Diagram : Separate USB & LSB]
Therefore the overall product is:-
[Diagram : Combined USB & LSB]
Some of the partials are duplicated in different sidebands and are thus stengthened according to the amplitude of that sideband. This is controlled by the amplitude of the modulators.It is also possible for more than one modifier to modulate one carrier in parallel (as in algorithm 17). Take the previous example and re-arrange the configuration of the operators so we now have:-[Diagram : 2M->-C]
Instead of a 4:3:1 relationship, we now have a relationship of 4:1 and 3:1. Taking the first of these, the product for the first four order sidebands is:-
[Diagram : 1st USB / LSB]
[Diagram : 2nd USB / LSB and Combined]
Compare this with the first example.One night at first glance think that it would be possible to do the same with four operators in series, but this would add an extra ratio between the middle two operators, changing the character entirely.Taking the last example and reversing it so that we have one operator modulating two carriers, produces a further variation.
[Diagram : M->-2C]
This will produce the same components as previously stated, but instead of one final product there will be two separate waveforms.The final example (algorithm 32) involves no frequency modulation and is an example of simple additive synthesis.Whenever there are two or more carriers present in a sound, the result is the sum of the waveforms. Depending on the frequencies of the sounds involved, amplitude modulation, beating, and combination tones will also occur.All the algorithms on the DX7 are combinations of the above principles.
[Diagram : Algorithm #32]
TX7 TIPS.Those of you fortunate enough to own a TX7 may have noticed a few obvious omissions from the owners' manual, like details of single voice transfer and storage. It is possible to transfer and store a single voice from a DX7 to a TX7 provided you have 'SYSTEMS INFO AVAIL' on the DX and the 'MEMORY PROTECT OFF' on the TX. When you select a voice on the DX7 it is then transfered to the TX7 Edit Buffer. Using the 'STR TX PERF' procedure you can store this voice in one of the memory slots of the TX. Note however that you may need to adjust the function parameters to suit your needs. A single voice can be sent from the TX7 to either a DX7 or CX5M using the 'EDIT VOICE OUT' procedure. Of interest voices an only be sent individualy from the TX7 to a CX5M when using the DX7 Voice Editor software due to differing formats. However, a complete bank of 32, or an individual voice, can be transfered the other way.The other point to note is that some of the preset voices on the TX7 have one of the EG BIAS sections turned on therefore requiring a Breath Controller, Modulation Pedal, Modulation Wheel, or After Touch to allow the sound to be heard. 'Hi Strings' is an example of this. If you do not possess either a Modulation Pedal or a Breath Controller then you may need to edit the Function data in both the TX7 & DX7 Function memory of the TX7.If you want some more voices for your TX and DX see DX7 Voice Tape.
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