Bad Gear - Korg Poly-800 - 80s Throwback Synth

[@Individual_two]

I had one of these back in its glory days of the '80's and absolutely loved it. Armed with my Tascam Porta Studio, the Poly 800 provided the atmosphere and my beloved, MiniMoog did the leads and bass. I had a blast! I bet many '80's bedroom producers started with this synth.

[@AudioPilz]

Yeah, it made (somewhat) polyphonic synthesis affordable for the masses

[@doktorhulk]

even more ended with that synth ;-)

[@woiowoiow190]

Match made in heaven. I bought the Porta studio as to learn about multitracking and I've made so much with so little. I love it.

[@rachelar]

Wish I d got this to eat better at Uni

[@krytenfivetwothreep2485]

What I need in my life is a playlist of all the Bad Gear songs by themselves. This series has produced some seriously good tunes!

[@AudioPilz]

I usually upload longer versions on Patreon (no plug;)

[@JayKaufman]

@@AudioPilz it's hard to make electronic music when you're not plugged in. /dadjoke

[@TheHatMusic]

@@AudioPilz Well, that's decided then... as soon as payday comes around, I'll be signing up! Your no plug has backfired horribly :)

[@helisoma]

i still think he should start a separate youtube channel just with his jams/videos 😎😁

[@davidhayes8883]

Without this piece of 'bad gear' we would not have the sound of Techno! Listen to Juan Atkins and the Belleville Three. Keep up the good work you are edutaining a whole generation who have only grown up 'in the box'.

[@AudioPilz]

Thank you!!!

[@ringtangting]

Any albums or tracks where the Poly800 can be heard that you would recommend?

[@davidhayes8883]

@@ringtangting Cybotron - Clear

[@ChromosomeSyndicate]

another who Atkins used is the Korg 707 .

[@andyknowles772]

@@ringtangting Here you go: kzbin.info/www/bejne/aXPKeX-Aard2os0 (Unmistakable poly 800 filter sweep on that pad that plays all the way through)

[@RobFlaxMusic]

Holy crap “$19.95 plus shipping” hit me so hard in the feels

[@AudioPilz]

Yeah, we're born to feel!

[@charislinos]

@@AudioPilz find me one with 29,95 plus shipping and I will take it

[@PakaTheDog]

Korg Poly 800, a Yamaha DX9 and later an Ensoniq Mirage. Those were my keys back in 1986. They complimented each other nicely. Memories...😎

[@AudioPilz]

Great 80s setup!!! You must have been the coolest person around!!!

[@facelessproduction]

History: Poly-800s have been used by Orbital, Depeche Mode, Sneaker Pimps, Vangelis, Geoff Downes, Nick Rhodes (Duran Duran), Yesterdays and Jimi Tenor. The Poly-800 is an eight-voice instrument (two more than the Juno series) with 64 memory patches (half of what the Juno-106 offered) and up to 50 editable parameters! Like the Juno, the Poly-800 had one DCO per voice, although it did feature a Double mode in which the oscillators could be stacked up for a fuller sound and only four voices of polyphony. The analog filter is a 24dB/oct low-pass which is shared by all voices (the Juno has separate filter chips for each voice). There's also a stereo chorus effect.

[@AudioPilz]

...aaaaaand JMJ!!!

[@Michael_Smith-Red_No.5]

And don't forget current greats who give a nod to the past, like Drab Majesty. They still tour with one. Bless them.

[@adamrobinson8620]

I'm not sure what other tech differences there were, but the Juno had much richer sounds back in the day.

[@rachelar]

I doubt Nick Rhodes used it

[@rjakiel73]

Do the MoogSlayer mod and filter mod and you get instantly accessible resonance and cutoff as well as adding a 12db that can be toggled between 12db and 24db liven with just a switch. You can get REALLY cool sh*t with the upcoming Atomahawk832 mod.

[@micahmachines]

That polyrhthmic sequence section was tight. You've just inspired me to get my soldering iron out again

[@AudioPilz]

Thanks! Do it!

[@LuckyFlesh]

Excellent video. This was my very first synth, so I absolutely loved it. Even with it's limitations, warts and all.. it was still a "real" synthesizer. I also think some folks today judge the sound more harshly because they just hear the machine alone, not the way many of us actually used it (ran through any and every cheap guitar effects pedal we could scrounge up).

[@AudioPilz]

Thanks! Yeah, people were processing the hell out of these things back then

[@suga4all]

3:18 "...of course needs to be loaded with a Maj7" Actually plays an Amin7 😁

[@AudioPilz]

Music theory has never been a strength of mine

[@Old_Man_Jay]

Dood, that minimalist beat you made half way into the video was fire! Kinda had an FM synth/Mega drive sound to it. Felt like it could be an awesome track to an amazing game. I seriously replayed that part of the video about 10 times! You got mad slilllz!

[@AudioPilz]

Thank you so much!

[@matthewgaines10]

Another high quality Bad Gear. You made it sound good. Thanks for doing the work.

[@AudioPilz]

Thank you!!!

[@djlocodoc]

It's not Friday until Bad gear videos hit my feed. Love those genres... perfection

[@AudioPilz]

Thank you!!!

[@danieklerr]

I've owned a dozen or so Poly 800's (and Mk2's and EX800's) over the decades, most of which were picked up for around $200 USD. Every single time I've sold one, I've regretted it within a week. It's an easy go-to for cheesy brass and thin strings, can be thickened up for a decent synth bass and has a brilliant chorus. It's hard for me to fathom the prices these are going for now, but I understand why. Great video, as always!

[@AudioPilz]

Thanks! The chorus is indeed great!

[@michaelkeefer4293]

I had a Poly-800 for a while back in the late 80s, I picked it up used for really cheap. I thought it was a pretty decent sounding synth at the time, and yes that chorus was great! Pretty straight forward and fairly easy to program, unlike the Yamaha DX7 and DX21 synths that I was used to. Great review! I look forward to your videos every Friday! Keep it up!

[@AudioPilz]

Thank you so much!

[@GL88888]

I want one now! Loved that 80’s synthwave vibe! Brilliant review…. And the video editing is so good!

[@AudioPilz]

Thank you!

[@boingpoumtchak]

My first synth 🥲 An uncle lent it to me for 2 months. 20 years ago exactly. Will never forget it 😍

[@AudioPilz]

Why did you give it back? ;)

[@boingpoumtchak]

@@AudioPilz i had no choice 😄. But few years ago i bought the « desktop version » of it, which has some extras (but don’t remember which ones). Unfortunately the mojo was gone, not so impressed any more and sold it pretty fast 🙂. If i remember well, you can add a mod (hawk?) to be able to tweak the parameters from a midi box or computer (with a maxforlive or ctrlr interface for example). But i had no energy to do it due to its limited sound…

[@Pheonix0114]

Your ending jam names just keep getting better!

[@AudioPilz]

Thanks!

[@aloislangrousseau]

This video made me buy a Poly-800, I really like the sound, and needed to have a keyboard at home when my DSI's in the rehersal room. Thank you ! :)

[@filipzo]

At 6:40 I turned up the volume a bit and I was overwhelmed by a wonderful world of basses... love it

[@AudioPilz]

Thanks!

[@randomaztec2208]

Content just getting better and better

[@AudioPilz]

Thank you!!!

[@artisan002]

Heh. I still remember a high school talent show from around 1987, when a student band pulled off Rush's Tom Sawyer with one of these. Surprisingly close sounding to the original filter sweep, given the conditions.

[@AudioPilz]

Interesting, haven't listened to the song for ages

[@artisan002]

@@AudioPilz I don't tend to seek it out, but I will listen to it from time to time. But, I always end up thinking about that school performance, just because they got so much closer than I could have possibly expected.

[@ThomasLoyd]

I remember looking at this particular synth back in the early 80s at one of my favorite music stores in Pirmasens when I lived in Germany! It was cool when I first saw it but I wasn't big into synths back in the day. BASS is my jam, but I am a closet-synth-nerd, which is why I enjoy this channel so much!

[@AudioPilz]

Thanks! I'm a bassist and former closet-synth-nerd too;)

[@dustincassidy]

Yes dude! I’ve got one of these. There is no other synth as perfectly “janky” or “bad” as this one. Awesome filter too!

[@AudioPilz]

"Janky" hits the nail on the head!

[@dustincassidy]

@@AudioPilz yeah that’s the first word that comes to mind for this thing. Great for low production cold wave type music too.

[@SendyTheEndless]

I always liked the sound of those steppy sawtooths made from phase-aligned square harmonics. Gives a slight fuzzy quality to them!

[@AudioPilz]

Agreed! Very unique sound!

[@strelokknoize]

This fella was the main reason why I became a huge fan of digital synthesizers. :D

[@AudioPilz]

Thanks! Digital synths can be really cool!

[@rietheguyschannel]

Isn't it analog?

[@r5tony67]

You have mastered your video format! It amazes me every time!

[@AudioPilz]

Thank you so much!

[@ManCalledMif]

Extra juicy episode this week. Got some very distinctive sounds there. Video editing off the charts as usual. 🙌🏼

[@AudioPilz]

Thank you!!!

[@brianbergmusic5288]

I can hear how this keyboard can scratch a certain itch, especially if you are creative with your sound and able to craft music without looking over your shoulder at what you might "be missing/lacking". I can easily see how this plus a decent FM synth plus creativity can get someone's foot into many doors (okay... plus an Amiga for sequencing). As a bedroom guitarist, I have most of my cards spent in the guitar world. That being said, I love music and even the "other" tools used to make music. I started off many years ago being interested in synths and keys before I fell in love with the guitar. This world that you have shared with us is valuable and entertaining. Thank you for sharing this world with us. Subbed.

[@AudioPilz]

Thank you so much!!!

[@Linixion]

A friend let me borrow (indefinitely) his Korg Poly 800x and I loved messing around with it. On my next project I plan on using it liberally.

[@AudioPilz]

That's very kind of him! Very usable tones!

[@mrlargo7067]

When you say "the most hated audio tools" I’m usually a bit conflicted, because some of the gear I use and love. In this case though, you rly hit the nail. Back in 1983 this was actually the first poly synth I ever owned...for 2 weeks till i begged the seller to take it back. I saved up a little bit more and bought a Juno 106. I still have that Juno.

[@JessicaFEREM]

I like that they leaned into the fact that they're using a 7 segment display, and made their legends in the same "font"

[@AudioPilz]

I think that stuff was pretty hip back then

[@-VCO-]

7-segment displays looked pretty "futuristic" back then. Nobody seemed to realize that the the future would be in HD.

[@DarkSideofSynth]

The insane amount of VHS glitching more than compensated the disturbing lack of Ableton's crashes ;) Weiter so!!! :)))

[@AudioPilz]

Danke!

[@chriswareham]

I had the rarer version in classy "turd brown" case and reversed key colours. It's long gone, but I came across the same Korg branded patch tape that you showed when I was in my attic a few weeks ago. I recall having great fun with my Poly 800 combined with an Roland Alpha Juno, Roland MC-202 and Korg KPR-77 drum machine, sequenced or synced from a Roland MC-300. Bizarre to think that with the exception of the MC-300 they're all highly desirable bits of kit now!

[@AudioPilz]

Yeah, the MC-300 is indeed fear-inducing

[@chriswareham]

@@AudioPilz The beige MC series (that a drummer once confused with a fax machine - true story 😯) were actually quite easy to use. Linear rather than pattern based though. Now the Yamaha QX1, as recently seen on Espen Kraft's channel, that's the one to fear!

[@EannaButler]

I'm so pleased you drew the love from this synth 👍👍 Really opens up with mods installed. And a nice effects processor after it.

[@EannaButler]

Middle track was class btw

[@AudioPilz]

Thanks!

[@DmitryPuffin]

Wow, last jam was very similar to modern stuff called Wave, but with 80s flavour. Awesome video, as usual! 🔥

[@AudioPilz]

Thank you!!!

[@Justindl26]

I look forward to these every Friday! Big up man! Keep up the good work 🙂

[@AudioPilz]

Thank you!!!

[@Justindl26]

@@AudioPilz thank you mate! I was just using software but got so bored. Watched a video of a chap called Pete cannon who is using old Amiga s and Ataris and vintage hardware. Both him and yourself have inspired me. A maxed out credit card and a heap of vintage synths later and a moaning Mrs. Have you ever seen any of his stuff on here? He did a great sound on sound interview

[@Justindl26]

kzbin.info/www/bejne/f3XRaI16mN1srZI

[@gemfire.mp3]

I bought my Poly 800 mk II a few months ago and can't get enough of that 80's cheese ❤

[@AudioPilz]

Cheese for days!!!

[@JayKaufman]

Which flavour of cheese though? Limburger or havarti? If it's the former, that's pretty damn cheesy. If it's the latter it's only mildly so.

[@Flat8G]

Yet another synth I've owned. Man did we hate this one in the 90's! Awesome demo as always!

[@AudioPilz]

Thanks! Yeah, the hate was strong back then

[@Alleroc]

I've always loved the way that organ styled oscillators sound. One day when I get around to building out a hardware synth, that's the style I will be going for. I made one a few years back in puredata, and I still use it to this day.

[@AudioPilz]

Yeah, totally refreshing!

[@superikone]

What a great vid. Again. Had a lot of fun and lost a few tears for having sold my Poly 800 six years ago.

[@AudioPilz]

Thank you!

[@brucebartlett9989]

When I started reading about people wanting the Poly-800's "warm, fat sound", that's when I realized the vintage synth craze had reached total insanity. This was my first synth and it was a huge disappointment. No top end, no bottom end, sluggish stepped envelopes, thin plasticy oscillators, and of course paraphonic. Just horrible. On the plus side, every synth I got after this seemed amazing in comparison.

[@AudioPilz]

Yeah, I feel the same about many people's analog mixing consoles;)

[@DavideCerriGA]

It makes an ok elicopter sound.

[@GK-op4oc]

Nah, it wasn't that bad. The Poly800 was one of my first synths, and no, it wasn't as bad as you write. For the low price, it was a collection accessible, entry-level features at a low price in the early days of programmable synths with all of the parameters listed in the panel. I would never buy it as a vintage synth any more than people would buy an iPhone1. But they had their place in time.

[@nazliuz]

🤣

[@awkwardtom]

ha ha good point some times you need to have experienced the crap to appreciate something decent >learning curve

[@freddegeus5484]

Your videos bring me great joy!

[@AudioPilz]

Thank you! Happy to hear that!

[@profpep]

The ace mod for this is the Hawk-800. Rewritten firmware, fixes the MIDI, more patch storage without a battery, and upgrades the sequencer . Put one in the desktop version for a friend last year. Made a big difference.

[@AudioPilz]

Yeah, only heard good things about that one

[@nictrax]

How easy is it to install? I have the EX-800

[@t3hjnz]

"Phrasing" - I nearly fuckin died. Just like Archer. This is easily your best work ever.

[@AudioPilz]

Thank you!!!

[@Yuzuki1337]

Another Friday, another Bad Gear episode! Your bookshelf seems off, did you sort it or something? :o Edit: Holy moly this thing sounds great in your jams! Love the funky bassline of the first one!

[@AudioPilz]

Thanks! Bookshelf should be in top shape;)

[@ErikHawk]

Wow, you really made the Poly-800 shine! You rocked the music in this video, killer job!

[@AudioPilz]

Thank you!!!

[@JoshIsMakingMusic]

It's pretty amazing seeing the features that nowadays are standard but used to be considered unusual in a cheaper synth. Fun jams with it, too!

[@AudioPilz]

Thanks! Yeah, that thing was a game changer back then

[@MichaelCoombes776]

And then there's aftertouch which has gone in the other direction.

[@JoeWisniewski]

Love the editing in these!

[@AudioPilz]

Thank you!!!

[@soepil]

Great video! I would consider the Poly-800 as an absolute classic synth. Many people had one in the 80s. Never owned one myself, though.

[@AudioPilz]

Thanks!

[@cyphercracker]

I always go back to this upload. Honestly, all gear I got, the poly800 is closest to my heart.. and... It fits your style of music and should be in your battleship. It's damn raw ;)

[@AudioPilz]

Thank you so much!!!

[@raistaparta]

Quick tip for playing monophonic bass sounds with the Poly-800: use the chord mode, set it to a single note instead of a chord, set envelope to retrigger.

[@AudioPilz]

Interesting technique!

[@raistaparta]

@@AudioPilz used it for years playing a Poly-800 as bass keys in a band. I found that it gave the basses a lot more punch, somehow resetting the waves starting point. Otherwise I'd often lose some of the low end due to phase issues between oscillators.

[@robertbmxpa]

I feel like this synth would have looked nice next to that DDM-110. Your videos are so cool, always a welcome pick-me-up. Thanks!

[@AudioPilz]

Thanks!

[@marcoabyss]

this synth is as old as me. i'm starting to feel vintage :D PS $19.99 Plus Shipping Retro Kitsch Vienna Cloud Rap Instrumental 80s Trap Ballad is exactly the vaporwave spin-off the world needs

[@AudioPilz]

Super vintage! I'm even older;)

[@marcoabyss]

@@AudioPilz i like to think of as as becoming classics in our own rights :)

[@Magnus_Loov]

Not that old. I actually bought one used in 1990. For about $100 (800 Swedish Crowns, SEK)i got the Korg Mono/Poly AND the Poly-800 from a friend who thought they were more or less doorstops that nobody would buy... Of course I sold them a year or so later(Looking at the prices for the Mono/Poly now with great regret).

[@McN4styFilth]

I wouldn't know it's Friday without these videos.

[@AudioPilz]

Weekdays are so overrated

[@daionsavage]

Ah, the memories. I still have mine in the wardrobe. Won’t sell it to anyone out of fear that my karma rating will drop to hell!

[@AudioPilz]

Maybe make some music with it? ;)

[@scottcupp8129]

Nice man! I still have a mint Poly 61 sitting on its own stand in my studio room at home. I use it quite a bit actually. I have a Poly 6 too. I'd like to get a Poly 800 though. Also want to get another DW8000

[@Aetila]

@@AudioPilz It's more rewarding to COLLECT synths and watch them. :-)

[@sebp400]

I saw ''karma'' and I thought you were talking about the Korg Karma..

[@MCBrainpower]

Best episode ever. Fire genre name too hahaha. I love the Poly-800 though. I have the one with the grey/black keys. Just dropped a new single done with this ‘80s gem. And another epic thumbnail bro! 🎹 💓

[@AudioPilz]

Thanks! Listened to that a few times!

[@MCBrainpower]

@@AudioPilz Thanks, I appreciate that!

[@Kizunaut]

Has to be one of the better sounding "bad gear" you've featured on your channel. Big Com Truise vibes.

[@AudioPilz]

Thank you!!!

[@schance1666]

Worked all summer in a sandwich shop to buy one of these for $325 when i was a teen. Still have it!! Going to do the filter mod for sure, it has a wicked VCF. I actually dig the sounds you get with the single filter re-triggering with every note, its unique in its own way on certain sounds. My jam buddy and I used to call it 'the ultimate toy', but all we had was a balaphone, a bass, one effect pedal, and a reel-to-reel back then. Taught us to be more creative, instead of having a super studio on a smartphone.

[@AudioPilz]

Well earned synth!!!

[@TheRepublicOfJohn]

The "leftover pizza" of synths. Cold, cheesy, greasy, and though there may be some meat on it, it's mostly cheap pork. But it sure hits the spot! I bought one based solely on the Ableton Suite instrument rack preset Polee800 Bells when I realized I was dropping that device onto a MIDI channel for every new project file. Those queasy bells were the soundtrack of my gap-year! Most of those tracks ended up sounding like the demo track towards the end of the video. Also I recommend looking into the mod for hands-on adjustments of the LPF.

[@AudioPilz]

Great analogy!

[@kyleschwake5021]

These videos you make are educational, hilarious, and full of good music. 🤙😎🤙

[@AudioPilz]

Thank you!!!

[@kyleschwake5021]

@@AudioPilz you're welcome. 🤙♥️🤙

[@rickimarvel4080]

Yesss, I like this one. Wow! The price surge. I once worked in a bad gear haven music store and we had 5 of these leftover from the 80s 😆. I like how they sound.

[@AudioPilz]

Yeah, the prices are kinda crazy

[@Yuzuki1337]

That sounds like an awesome job, how did you resist not constantly throwing weird jams with all the abandoned gear? (Or did you not? ;P)

[@rickimarvel4080]

@@Yuzuki1337 yes, I 100% did! Unfortunately couldn't just set up a jam because of the elderly strict boss. It would've been something like, if I were to use all Korg, Super Percussion, Poly-800, Super Section, MR-16. Gosh the MR-16 was silly.

[@Yuzuki1337]

@@rickimarvel4080 I just looked them up since they were all before I was born but that MR-16 looks like Korg already made a janky precursor to the Volcas in the 80s! I'm kinda sad that I only witnessed the tail end of these times, I bet hitting up thrift, record and music stores for weird gear and new music must've been a blast! Thanks for sharing your story! :)

[@mycosys]

@@Yuzuki1337 hitting the record store every couple of days to check if a new shipment was in, going thru it on the 1200s is something i definietly wouldnt want to have missed.

[@yamilpicon6998]

What i love about your vids it's that there are a little but awesome piece of art! :3

[@AudioPilz]

Thank you!!!

[@jbmcb]

Holy crap you're covering *every* piece of gear I own. I challenge you to do a Casio CZ next (I have a 5000) though I think a lot of people actually like them.

[@jibjamjangles]

Absolutely love mine

[@AudioPilz]

Nothing personal ;) Casio CZ will happen!

[@lairdkilbarchan]

You're gradually picking your way through my entire synth collection. Please cease and desist. 😱

[@AudioPilz]

You have no evidence😅 😅 😅

Been waiting for this episode for way too long. I still don't get why this synth gets so much hate. I have wanted to get one since 2012 and two years ago I finally managed to grab one for around 70 eur. It's beat up, held together by two screws, missing few keys but sounds awesome!

[@AudioPilz]

It certainly isn't the most convenient synth to use but I really like the quirky sound

[@JayKaufman]

Make sure you replace the battery since they're prone to leaking and totally screwing the circuit board from the battery acid leaking. This is a very common problem with them easily rectified with a lithium battery.

[@Markpianist1]

@Zdenek Absolutely it is great! I bought one in 1985 new when I was 19! I sold it to get a korg T2. Incredibly awesome synth I should of kept it. I still have the T2 but its disk drive went at a point and there was no parts for it. Now the battery that holds the sounds in the bank is gone all the sounds are erased. Anyways, I played many iconic songs of that time with the Poly 800 in a band and loved it!!!! Enjoy. Maybe I will look for another one. Surprised they are still around.

[@NullStaticVoid]

that is the most anyone should pay for one of these!

[@ChromosomeSyndicate]

There is a group musicians who know only one Japanese brand ;)

[@PaulinOsakanow]

Nice it was my first synth in New Zealand when I was about 14, my father bought it - must have cost a small fortune. I loved it. Sent me on to Sydney and being a studio assistant at Paradise in Wooloomooloo.

[@AudioPilz]

Nice! Now you had me googling Wooloomooloo;)

[@WhatsUpYoutubeItsYoBoi]

You should make a Spotify for these songs. They are sick. Sometimes I’ll comeback to a video just to hear your compositions. I especially love 6:14 on this video. Your melodies and chords are so good.

[@AudioPilz]

Thanks! There are extended jams and longer edits on Patreon (no plug;)

[@WhatsUpYoutubeItsYoBoi]

@@AudioPilz Awesome. Thank you!

[@captn_hanky]

This channel is great for rediscover forgotten gear in the basement

[@AudioPilz]

May I see your basement, please (sounds kinda creepy coming from an Austrian guy;)

[@Arehexes]

It's Friday, I got my wrap, time to listen to some sweet bad gear.

[@AudioPilz]

Thanks for watching!

[@Arehexes]

@@AudioPilz Thanks for the fun and informative content.

[@petervolz493]

A Bad Gear episode about my very first synth! Wasn‘t expecting that. Nice!

[@AudioPilz]

Not a bad starting point!

[@OmegaPoint042]

This synth is on Human League - Don't You Want Me and The Eurythmics - Here Comes The Rain Again. That lead melody on the Weeknd - Blinding Lights is what a Poly 800 sounds like. I still have mine since 1983 and it still fully works like new.

[@AudioPilz]

Thanks for the heads up!!!

[@ymotechnopopfan]

Are you really sure? Because Korg Poly 800 was released in 1984 , four years after Human League's "Don't You Want me".

[@dyecaster9341]

Thanks for yet another great video, mate. 👌

[@AudioPilz]

Thanks for watching!

[@tannerin]

would love to see casio’s cz-101 featured on here, it’s the kind of chintzy budget synth people will probably never come around on but it really sounds like nothing else

[@AudioPilz]

Thanks for the suggestion! Prices for these have already reached the DANGER ZONE!!!

[@liudas5377]

@@AudioPilz Holy smokes! Just checked eBay. Wow!! I have one.

[@Gainn]

Just picked up a (95% working but cosmetically trashed) CZ-101 and an abused Ensoniq SQ 80 (someone *painted* the damn thing neon green) so I can do some refurbs.. Even in a state that looks like Hulk used them as toothpicks people still want a pile of cash.

[@oldschoolchartist]

The CZ-101 had a big brother with the same engine. I had BOTH of them at one time. What a strange little bird the CZ was. Sadly, I blew mine up with a reversed polarity power supply and that was the end of it. Those strange FM tones were like nothing any other synth was producing at the time... as I recall. I used to layer those high 'buzzy' sounds in an octave or two above a richer and fatter Roland patch. Made for some very cool layered sounds.

[@respectfulremastersbymetal8336]

Been watching a bunch of your vids lately and I'm consistently impressed by the tracks you make to demo the synths. But, for whatever reason, the ones in this video really jammed hard for me. So good!

[@AudioPilz]

Thank you so much!!!

[@koraykumru1295]

I miss my poly 800. It had some cool sounds. The filters didn't go very fast or anything but it was super light and portable.

[@AudioPilz]

Yeah, I like that one too!

[@marcomaureira]

all i know of this synth is that it's on a chilean band's music video, pretty epic, awesome video as always, making any friday better!

[@AudioPilz]

Thank you!!!

[@m4rs435]

Hearing "Welcome to bad gear" every single Friday has to have some adverse effects on my psyche

[@AudioPilz]

Scientific research proved that it heals the nation

[@carax606]

love that you used it with the er-1 for the first jam since that used to be my main live setup for one project. I'd have the poly-800 going the the er-1's line in to do syncopated gates, adjust the envelope, etc.. it was a fun and lightweight combo, and you can power them both from the same 9v guitar-pedal daisy chain!

[@AudioPilz]

Thank you!!!

[@OverDriveOnline7921]

This reminded me of my old Korg DW-6000, which was probably the next one up from the Poly 800 with the DW-8000 being the top of the line. One thing I learned via a book borrowed from the college library, I discovered the DW’s oscillators and envelopes could be directly manipulated over system exclusive commands. Creating a MIDI mixer map in Cubase (remember those?) I made a map that could sweep the waveforms and other synth madness from the safely of my Atari ST. Sadly I don’t have the Korg anymore but that may well be a good piece of kit for people to look for if they want a little more sound flexibility. Another thing is the Yamaha PSS680, now with a piece of editing software (again on the Atari ST), this has some hidden editing features. The software for this can be found on the Atari Music Network pages, which many years ago I used to own and run.

[@AudioPilz]

👍👍👍

[@vasoskyriakides]

I love your Karate Kid comparison at the end. Spot on!

[@AudioPilz]

Thank you!!!

[@AttilaSVK]

I had one in 2007-2008, with a Roland D-10, Yamaha A5000 and an Oberheim Matrix-1000. I remember playing a live cover of Jarre's Oxygene part 8 with the D-10's drum sequencer, the Poly-800's sequencer was triggering the A5000 for bass. The D-10's keyboard was triggering the D-10, with the Warm Strings preset, and the Poly-800's keyboard was triggering the Matrix-1000 for the lead sound. My only problem with the 800 were the slow envelopes, especially the attack: the fastest was still way too slow. Otherwise I quite liked it.

[@AudioPilz]

Yeah, the envelopes are definitely on the slow side

[@terrancenoble1714]

I’m not usually one to comment but I have to say I thoroughly enjoyed this video. Shoutout to mike from gumtree who listed this synth and brought me here.

[@AudioPilz]

Thank you so much, happy to hear that!

[@OscillatorCollective]

One of my personal favorites…80s freestyle was my life…

[@AudioPilz]

❤️

[@irishmusico]

I used to sell them new. I never liked them at the time. In fairness it had minimal effects. Just listening to the sounds you are getting out of it makes it sound much better than I remember it.

[@AudioPilz]

Thank you!!!

[@greatheightsu]

Hey AudioPilz, it must be getting pretty nice out in Austria, eh? Maybe we can get another Bad Gear jam on your rooftop again this summer? I imagine it's a pain in the ass, but I loved the last one and you've got a lot new gear since then. Also great episode, only a little bit disappointed you didn't slap a guitar strap on there and keytar out though. :P

[@AudioPilz]

Thanks! Yeah, Vienna in spring is great! Currently working on the 50k special, stay tuned!

[@adamrobinson8620]

I have still got my mid 80s Poly and it still works. I was a bass player adding some keys to my rig. Can't believe I sold an early 70s Rickenbacker 4000 to fund the purchase of the Poly. Would kill to get that bass back. But nice video.

[@janne-seta]

My Ableton still keeps crashing. They say consistency is a good thing, but I'm not so sure in this case

[@AudioPilz]

I have no idea what happened...

[@scottcupp8129]

I stick with Cubase. I am at Cubase 11 Pro now

[@scottcupp8129]

However, I recorded some amazing stuff with ableton.

[@trebleboost7]

My 80s gig rig was an ESQ-1 and the Poly-800 and a MIDIVerb II, then added a MIDIDisk for loading sequences/songs. Yeah. Budget. But I spent a lot of time on those machines and programmed them like crazy. I still have tapes! Love the review and content!

[@AudioPilz]

Thanks! Great 80s setup!

[@kenzieprice6745]

Upload em' or it never happened!

[@framzoid]

I used it for some early 90's NIN / Ministry kind of things as that bass can erupt so much dirt but still shake the foundation. I still have it (and all the programming cassettes) although it sits in the closet.I had NO idea they were in vogue again.

[@AudioPilz]

Yeah, total comeback

[@geraniumtransistor6998]

I am kind of astounded that it's taken so long to get to this thing. Definitely the best thing about it is the commercials.

[@AudioPilz]

Not so hard to get but prices are mad. Yeah, the ads are really nice!

[@sheepkillindog]

Overpriced IMO

[@uly1981]

Having never heard a Poly-800 before i went from the expected "cult synth that behringer is making a clone of" to "this sounds & looks like a casio toy keyboard" pretty quickly during this video, despite your great demo tracks

[@AudioPilz]

The UI would certainly be quite offputting on a contemporary synth

[@JayKaufman]

I wouldn't say that's accurate despite its appearance. There's a decent amount to the guts of this synth that can churn out great sounds. The problem is the interface as is without mods is uninspiring. The mods really do bring it to life and rectify a lot of the shortcuts Korg took due to budget constraints or due to the lack of competent technology at the time. For instance, the shitty main chip they used to power it.

[@__teles__]

I love it! House chords for days. Paraphonic with a single analog filter totally rules!

[@AudioPilz]

Yeah, loved the chord function

[@theartistcurrentlyknownaszero]

I used to have the Korg DW-6000. As much as I hate the stupid digital menu diving, I miss that thing so much. About 2 years ago it fried itself out and I couldn't fix it.

[@AudioPilz]

Classic!!!

[@j3m3r3]

First synth I ever played. Changed my life.

[@torarinvik4920]

This is the type of synth that sounds great when the user knows what he/she is doing. If they don't it sounds, well...

[@AudioPilz]

...different;)

[@TheToughBaby]

That's literally every musical instrument though.

[@georgewilson2865]

Love your videos!!! Your synth of humor is fantastic.

[@AudioPilz]

Thanks! Lol;)

[@robbpeppertree]

I think anybody who has ever owned a Korg Poly-800 knew that this episode was coming. It was just a matter of time. I owned one from I think 2000 to 2002. I even did the mods to have cutoff and resonance knobs just above the joystick.

[@AudioPilz]

Yeah, these mods are essential!

[@LCGdude]

Bought it, sold it, bought it again! Love it

[@AudioPilz]

The way of the P800;)

[@Chasing_Thoughts]

Please do a ‘bad gear’ episode on the electribe 2 sampler. The er-1 and poly 800 sound like an e2s

[@AudioPilz]

ET 2 will happen!

[@DoctorNemmo]

@@AudioPilz I recently found mine next to my night stand covered in dust. Took pictures.

[@LucyOLastic]

I borrowed one and liked the chord feature. Yes I programmed in a maj 7th chord, and some other shapes. What intrigued me was that some keys played minor 7ths, and then some different inversions. It did not just copy the chord shape on each key. I composed some great chord progressions using it. I tried transcribing the chords later and it was a real job to do. As I said, it did not merely transpose the chords! I liked the sounds I got out of it, that very fizzy sound and some very dark tones too. Good for flutes, strings and brass. The joystick was great to use.

[@AudioPilz]

That chord functionality is indeed mysterious!

[@LucyOLastic]

@@AudioPilz certainly is mysterious and a little clever. The black notes seemed to be the odd ones. I played around with it and came up with some very jazzy progressions with very satisfying harmonic movement! I got a couple of decent songs out of it.