Meet the little-known "Soundblaster" Keyboards

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Synths that use the YM3812
Yamaha PSR-11 49-keys 16-sounds (1986)
Yamaha PSR-12 49-keys 32-sounds (1987)
Yamaha PSR-31* 61-keys 16-sounds (1991)
Yamaha PSR-32* 61-keys 32-sounds (1987)
Yamaha PSS-460 49-keys 21-sounds (1986)
Yamaha PSS-470 49-keys 21-sounds (1987)
Yamaha PSS-560* 49-keys 21-sounds (1986)
Yamaha PSS-570* 49-keys 21-sounds (1987)
*While it does use the YM3812, it also uses an additional chip for drums.
Synths that use the YM2413 (cost reduced YM3812)
Yamaha PSR-6 49-keys 100-sounds (1994)
Yamaha PSS-140 37-keys 100-sounds (1988)
Yamaha PSS-170 44-keys 100-sounds (1986)
Yamaha PSS-270 49-keys 100-sounds (1986)

[@collinmcdonald83]

I found a PSS-470 for sale at a yard sale today for 20 bucks. I saw it and couldnt remember whether or not it was one of the keyboards you had talked about, but I bought it and its awesome. All of this old technology is so interesting.

[@The8BitGuy]

+collin m Great deal! I had to pay 3 times that much for mine and the PSS-470 is my favorite of all of my keyboards.

[@stopfidgetting]

I just found one at my local thrift store for $9.99 and I couldn't convince my mom to buy it for me... so sad :(

[@olivertaylor7247]

+Caudex I know what you mean.

[@TanjoGalbi]

I still have my old PSS-580. I used to use it with my Atari STFM to try to produce music (I was not, am still not very good at it!) but my fondest memories was having games like Leisure Suit Larry use MIDI out to produce much better sounding game music through my Yamaha keyboard :)

[@nokkusuu]

I have Fruity DX10... is that good enough? xD

[@elviswjr]

Those keyboards sound deliciously retro. If I could play I would definitely buy one just so I could recreate old-school video game music.

[@TinchoX]

+APPLBL00M You can do that via software nowadays.... but I guess it doesn't "Sound" the same.

[@ozzie_goat]

+TinchoX That pun was bad.

[@TinchoX]

Blowtorch the Robot Lol!! Haha no it was not a pun but I just realized it made it sound that way xD.

[@TorutheRedFox]

+Elvis S Same. Sega Genesis-like music here I come! Also I think the YM2612 is a cost reduced version of the YM3812. Both even end in 12!

[@thealternativej7994]

That depends on how accurate the YM FM emulation is.

[@bambel4997]

3:13 "I also wanna show you that it definitely has nine voices. It's actually kind of hard to do, but ill hold down nine keys." *plays nine keys with 5 fingers when he has 10 fingers*

[@stevebez2767]

nigh en nine -mozart

[@shrimpfry880]

What a chad

[@xyvillanueva4936]

With a mini-sized keyboard, assigning 1 white key (played side-by-side) for each finger is quite a challenge.

[@afreezaphorogiancossack2194]

Waaaaa

[@smuglife64gaming21]

LMAO

[@CowboyGarage]

Wowsers, I have a PSS-570 and PSS-270 sitting beside me as I watch this. They were my first two keyboards from back in the 80's when I was learning to play.

[@davidsantos1381]

What an outstanding piece of research you have done here... This is what youtube should stand for! And you are quite capable musician too... It would be cool to see the capabilities of this platforms with a little composition These have been 10 minutes well spent... Greetings form Colombia!!

[@jonathan_herr]

Who's here in 2019 and remarking at how EMPTY HIS WALLS ARE?!?

[@subzakk4226]

You beat me to it

[@montruo000000007]

Holy shit, didnt even notice till I read this!

[@kurtownsj00]

the "iBook Guy" thing was odd, then boom, empty walls.

[@awilliams1701]

all his old videos are going to look empty now that he has that gigantic 1 million subscriber plaque. lol

[@thescreemregular5168]

Me

[@shmehfleh3115]

I think it's more fair to say modern PCs still support the general MIDI standard rather than Yamaha FM synth chips specifically. Sound Blaster cards only included Yamaha's FM synth chips through the Sound Blaster 16 days. Starting with the AWE32, Creative Labs dumped Yamaha's chips in favor of the e-Mu line of MIDI synthesizers/DSPs. They kept support for Yamaha FM synth in their cards only until DOS gaming was dead & gone, and that level of hardware backwards-compatibility was no longer needed. These days, Windows provides MIDI playback via a rather crappy software-based wavetable synthesizer.

[@OlaftheGreat]

I can't believe it, but I found a PSR-11 at a Goodwill thrift store...with the green half-off sticker

[@3lH4ck3rC0mf0r7]

Fun facts for you: 64-bit Windows computers can't emulate DOS games, so sound chip emulators for those aren't bundled with those 64-bit editions. You'll need something else, like DOSBox. On a side note, many versions of Windows, both 64 and 32-bit, emulate a GS Wavetable Synthesizer, with samples from Roland's Sound Canvas GM/GS Sound Set from 1996, for when you ask your music player app to play a MIDI file. These samples were licensed to Microsoft and are bundled with Windows to this day.

[@3lH4ck3rC0mf0r7]

Also, since Windows Vista, new models for graphics controllers were made, WDDM controllers. These can't jump into text mode or send DOS graphics data. So proper DOS emulation was broken in the newest editions of Windows.

[@3lH4ck3rC0mf0r7]

Doddo MultiGamer​​​​​​​​ One word: *EMULATION.* Windows x64 itself may not be able to run DOS games due to a processor layer being unavailable, but if the processor itself is told to run 32-bit Windows or 16-bit DOS, that layer will be emulated and run just fine! DOSBox emulates this layer too, all the time. That's why it can run on a 64-bit Windows PC too. As for exactly what that layer... instruction thing is... I don't remember. Windows WDDM controllers may be unable to jump to text mode, but your computer's BIOS or EFI CSM module are still capable of it. But in EFI machines, their CSM module is also an emulator. EFI PCs have another set of protocols for console text and graphics display. In other words: GODDAMIT MS EMULATE THAT SUBSYSTEM ALREADY AND GIMME MY DOS APPS BACK!! If WDDM controllers can't run in text mode, then don't. Just pop a window in fullscreen exclusive mode (the kind videogames use) and emulate textmode instead of trying to pipe it to the system directly. That's what DOSBox does, and it works.

[@SianaGearz]

WDDM is merely a Windows interface to the graphics driver, it says nothing about capabilities of the hardware. It was intoduced in Windows Vista, where some things like GDI acceleration and text mode were no longer needed and thus are no longer accessible from within Windows. But other operating systems, Linux, older versions of Windows, etc., can still support text mode, it's not gone from the hardware. Other peculiarity is that once a x86-64 processor has been reinitialized in long mode (64-bit support), vm86 mode is no longer available by spec. Vm86 is the mode that allows a protected-mode program to span a real-mode compatible environment inside of itself. DOS support in Windows 2000, XP was completely based around vm86 mode. So it made sense for Microsoft to start removing things that were needed for vm86 support. I don't know why Microsoft should concern themselves with emulation of older subsystems necessary for DOS games? They were never particularly thorough at that, in theory third parties can do a better job. But it's not a very commercially viable field, so that limits the effort put into that.

[@skirmich]

Why the Global Defense Initiative will have an Acceleration and Text Mode? Man that is why NOD kicks it ass all the time.

[@AshBashVids]

You could just build a retro PC and use it for DOS. Parts are fairly cheap.

[@Masamune0191]

Music from the Sound Blaster board will always hold a special place in my heart. I remember playing those old DOS games with my brothers when I was a kid...

[@vwestlife]

Keyboards that use square wave tone generators can also sound very similar to 1980s computer sound chips, such as the C64, Tandy 1000/IBM PCjr, ColecoVision, Atari ST, etc.: kzbin.info/www/bejne/lYXOioeqa6aMqJY

[@DerpProductionz]

Hi vwestlife

[@MaximNightFury]

hey vwest!

[@gabemarthepro6391]

hi VWestlife!

[@SettimaLegione]

but C64 doest use square wave, it has a sort of hybrid analogic output

[@qix6424]

The C=64 had a sound of its own.

[@tohopes]

2:18 "It's a Sound Blaster with keys!" Funny because the AdLib and Sound Blaster were basically Yamaha DX-series synths _without_ keys. (Well, stripped-down DX series synths.)

[@allaboutthatphatbass2968]

tohopes true

[@Sekeletu]

Than you could say, that those keyboards were basically DX-series synths rebranded to PS-series? :)

[@ian_b]

I've never understood how Yamaha's FM synthesis took over the synth universe in the 80s. It was terribly difficult to program, and when you did, it sounded rubbish. All that tinkly bonk 80s stereotype comes from the DX series (to oversimplify a bit). Thank God analogue (at least soundwise, if digitally emulated) made a comeback when everybody sobered up from the DX-7 party. I really don't understand how anyone could like the sounds the DXes produced.

[@ian_b]

Well yes, but "outlandish" doesn't get used much in music. All the DX stuff sounded terribly thin, which is why nobody but the retro community use it any more. It just felt at the time, for me, like synthesizer music "died" when the DX7 came out, and didn't rise from the grave again until the rave community got hold of the TB303, heh. People had stopped using synths as a unique instrument. Why bother when you can just pull out the same 5 presets over and over again? I love the sound of a real Fender Rhodes. But that DX7 monstrosity of a patch brings me out in hives.

[@MrHal90000]

That's like, your opinion man.

[@nicechordwiwi]

Wow the iBook Guy plays the piano!

[@Knight465]

NiceChord (好和弦) ！看舊片也能發現好和弦！

[@luigikoopa8771]

I guess he had not made 8-Bit Keys yet...

[@luigikoopa8771]

nvm I just read the discription

[@kurotoro_official]

This aged well

[@bfapple]

@@kurotoro_official How?

[@dabistudio_japan]

Very nice video! I also loved the one you made explaining the synth sound on each one of the consoles and old computers. It is really illustrative to learn how to compose that kind of music from the bases.

[@jordanzish]

These keyboards sound great. So much better than the sample-based Casios I grew up with in the 90s. I would love something like this with a Commodore 64 SID chip in it. I converted an old Casio keyboard into a MIDI keyboard with a breadboard and a Teensy, and I have a SID chip lying around. I might just have to try and make that happen.

[@The8BitGuy]

+jordanzish That would be cool. It should be possible to do using Arduino or something like that to substitute as a brain for the keyboard. You could turn any keyboard into a SID station.

[@justanotheryoutubechannel]

Oh man, I’m so glad I didn’t grow up in the eras where soundcards were necessary. That would be awful! I’d be stuck with PC Speaker as I’m an idiot and wouldn’t know how to install a better card.

[@allwrathnograpes]

BRING BACK THE FM SYNTH CHIPS

[@BlindLibrary]

Great for all the Sega Genesis/similar Yamaha-based FM processing.

[@BlindLibrary]

Yes! The instrument of champion music lovers and authors!

[@HappyBeezerStudios]

Knobs and sliders and switches, for us physical guys.

[@danalog76]

Has anyone been able to convert the sliders to rotary pots?

[@BlindLibrary]

That I wouldn't know.

[@magicgiraffesoundworks4533]

I just bought one of these (PSS-470) for $60 after watching your video. Super cool addition to my gear!

[@SilverShrimpTX]

As a fellow Pianist,..you sir,...are a very good piano player :)

[@SilverShrimpTX]

Also, I live in HOUSTON....the best city in TEXAS!!!!

[@Khyree_Holmes]

+SilverShrimp TX I don't consider myself a concert pianist, I'm more a synthesizer guy... been playing [practicing] for years and make beats, too. Concert pianists are too structured in my opinion, people expect perfection in that area of music, don't get me wrong when I say I love classical music, I'd listen to ANYTHING.... I don't like to read sheet music.

[@Khyree_Holmes]

Yep!

[@nonproquoloremipsumdolor7626]

I live in 2010 texas avenue

[@aretard7995]

@@Khyree_Holmes "I'd listen to ANYTHING" would you REALLY listen to Canon in D?!

[@AdamTheAd-vanc3d]

Love this channel. The nostalgia trip is heart warming. Amazing how technology has come a long way , still these devices are very useful.

[@RYN1980]

Cool. I love FM synthesis. Yamaha developed many FM sound chips throughout the 80s and 90s. Pretty much anything you heard was yamaha until the later half of the 90s when sample based sound was becoming common. Yamaha changed the world with its professional keyboard DX-7 in 1983.

[@djdigital3806]

Ryan Hurshman I used to own a DX7. Classic sounds.

[@SPAZZOID100]

Ryan Hurshman impossible to program. TERRIBLE interface.

[@MrPoonmoon]

Not quite, the market was pretty full of choice but yep FM was the 80's sound of choice, although I stuck with my Yammy Analogue synth for depth FM didn't have. There was a distinct difference between the big hitters in the 80's - I could hear whether a band used Yamaha, Roland, Korg & Casio etc. But really the kings of FM in the 80s imo was Roland; you can't beat a Juno ;)

[@gideonwaxfarb]

I had the Yamaha PSS-470 back in the day. Had no idea it was an FM synth. Guess it was a poor kid's DX7 :)

[@djdigital3806]

Gideon Waxfarb Love that DX7

[@EmmanouelKatsoulakis]

I still have my Yamaha PSS 470 around and keep it for my nephew to learn playing. I admit I had a fun go at it recently. But I didn’t know that it was basically a sound blaster with keys. Thank you for the info Mr 8bit guy

[@inversephase]

Great video! Space Quest 3 and Ultima 6 were some of my favorite games to play as a kid, so I highly approve of the example songs. =] I have a few comments: At 8:10, you mention all voices on the YM2413 / OPLL have to use the same instrument, but that's not actually true. It's just that you can only define one instrument. Each channel can play that instrument or one of 15 other instruments that are not definable. The other instruments are generic stuff like "Trumpet" or "Vibraphone", and on keyboards that contain a YM2413 (I believe the PSR-6 has one?), the instrument chooser doesn't have to do any real "logic" to choose an instrument. A button can just send "switch to instrument 7" or whatever. For reference, here's a track that uses a YM2413: inversephase.bandcamp.com/track/token-ringfinger Anyone mentioning they have a different keyboard with potentially a different chip that "sounds the same" might be interested in knowing that they're probably still Yamaha keyboards with Yamaha OP-series chips, which means they're still built around FM. The underlying process with building music with FM is mostly the same regardless of the chip, which is why. Lastly, as for "having a keyboard with a Soundblaster in it"....you know that the gameport (that 15-pin thing) can double as a MIDI port, right? So you can connect any dumb MIDI controller with no output of its own to that and "play the soundblaster" if you like. Extra bonus, if you have some outboard gear like a Roland MT-32, you can use that soundcard selection to send music data from the same port.

[@Sauraen]

:wave:

[@KillerF0x]

These sounds sound so familiar! I have a Yamaha PSR-2 from when i was a kid.

[@greenaum]

Bit disappointed there's no actual Sound Blaster involved. And technically I think the chip would be more accurately called an Adlib chip, since the SB contained it for Adlib compatibility. As well as a way of having synth sounds. The Adlib was an earlier "standard" as much as there was one back then, still most PCs didn't have sound cards at all til the early 90s. I remember playing Doom with my SB16. Doom is 50% of the reason I bought a PC, and that's true for a lot of people. It had the same chip, I think, or a compatible one. Nowadays sound is all synthesised on your CPU, the PC's built-in sound chip is just a DAC, it can only play back samples, generated on the fly in software. Some more expensive cards have DSPs to generate those, cheap or built-in ones use the CPU. Still nice to see some of the cool old keyboards though. I managed to find the old demo tune from my old Casio keyboard and used it for a ringtone. Wake Me Up Before You Go-Go! Used nearly every instrument the little keyboard could do, and there were like a hundred!

[@stevebez2767]

in yer phase out char null gen timex root no swing quiz 0 THE way stars bluey stage com pass map 8bit mug off yankee slap kuddy toy chap iff tree hang hitlaa key C black white racey car boo tup shop clised wits food eh?

[@half-assmusic6553]

It's literally the core of the sound blaster lmao

[@marcello4258]

Thanks! finally I understand why there is so often sound blaster / ad-lib .. we maybe could build a device with midi in and the chip I guess..

[@Dave_thenerd]

Dude, you are great at playing the synthesizer !

[@MrTrollinglol]

I want him to review a fully fledged synthesizer at some point

[@beybladeguru101]

+MrTrollinglol Go to his other channel! 8 - Bit Keys.

[@MrTrollinglol]

+Raptor I'm aware of that channel, I meant review a vintage synthesizer marketed as a professional instrument instead of a kids toy. like a Juno 106 or something

[@beybladeguru101]

+MrTrollinglol Oh, I see. Sorry, I just misunderstood your comment.

[@bambel4997]

If you can play the piano you can play anything with keys, lol

[@dvwelch1]

FYI VanHalen used the Oberheim OB-8 61 key keyboard

[@sbanner428]

This inspired 9yo me to get a PSS-470 for ~$50, and years later I still love it :D

[@herrirrtum3422]

Late at the party but one thing worth mentioning is this: The PSR-470 does not sound *exactly* like an Adlib/SB Card but better as it has this (a bit noisy) fat stereo chorus mode (the orange button on the right) which makes also your Ultima6 soundtrack interpretation sound "more rich" compared to the adlib original (which seems to use 2 voices at once to simulate a chorus but stays mono which is an Adlib restriction). None of the other keyboards introduced seem to have it. That makes the PSR-470 stand out of the bunch (besides the possibility to program your own drum patterns). Whatever - very nice video :)

[@asdfasdf4345artsdfg]

I saw this video of a live performance from 1987, where the (extremely skilled) keyboardist was able to rock his fingers side to side in order to produce a fluttering sound - similar to one you'd hear if you were to do the same on strings. It must have been an extremely advanced keyboard for its time, and it definitely was a nice performance. It seemed to have plenty of synths as well. It would be cool to identify.

[@jooseysmoolay7767]

My first keyboard, that thing was awesome.

[@thegardenofeatin5965]

That "piano" music is so very SNES. That is the sound of a town in a 16-bit JRPG.

[@dizzym9554]

Oddly enough, the SNES was actually using more "modern" PCM music, the Genesis would be a closer comparison as it used FM synthesis and a very similar chip to the YM3812 (specifically, the YM2612)

[@Mr1p0d]

Also it would be the PC-98 that actually used the YM2608 most commonly known as OPNA, and that chip is basically the so-called "complete version of the 2612 that the Genesis/MD uses :3

[@alandunaway3000]

The SNES was soundfont-based fart sound.

[@n0lanv0id]

Such a great video so glad I stumbled on this! I'm even more excited to know now about your music channel!

[@pesokpesok]

the extreme closeup of your face makes me a bit uncomfortable since it is literally life sized on my 34" UltraWide screen:) Move back a bit guy! P.S. Still glad i found your channel since i also appreciate and interested in old computer tech. Wish you had more videos though - keep up a good work!

[@jelpy]

Pesok lol

[@GamesFromSpace]

He would look like Zordon on my 144" projection screen.

[@GhostyOcean]

he has another channel, 8-bit keys. it's all about old keyboards

[@GhostyOcean]

he has another channel, 8-bit keys. it's all about old keyboards

[@Domarius64]

Louis Move back a bit? Maybe he should move back 8 bits? :D

[@xargos]

Technically there's a good reason to compare the sound quality of these different keyboards. The synthesizer chip alone doesn't determine things like SNR and frequency response. The surrounding circuitry plays into the sound, too.

[@Cheyne_TetraMFG]

07:17 just a fun fact, the synth used by Van Halen on "Jump" was the Oberheim OB-X, which was analog. Still, sounds fine if a little tinny on this Soundblaster chip.

[@my_beer_stories]

Fun fact 2: Modern Yamaha keyboards have a voice called "Jump Brass" which imitates the sound exactly.

[@melodicequilibrium1610]

I have a Yamaha synth, very pleased with it!

[@psuadonym4740]

damn i remember back in the day i had to buy a sound card for warcraft 2 to have sound.

[@Trancelistic]

Psuado Nym Ye. I bough a like 2000$ dollar pentium 75 mhz pc. It didnt had a soundcard NOR a cd-rom. So I had to buy that later and it was my first time installing it in my pc. I was so scared to break something haha. It took me maybe 4 hours to install a card in its isa/pci slot lol. ( now its takes me like 5 sec ofcourse) AH good old days.

[@psuadonym4740]

trancelistic yeah bro, I remember the first time i had to install ram, i was shook i was gonna break the desktop lol

[@ashleyhedges]

Psuado Nym I remember doing the same to play Doom. First PC upgrade was for a 486 SX 25, 4meg to 12meg RAM as well as the Sound Blaster. Having to manually set jumpers for the port and irq, wow, times have changed.

[@Trancelistic]

That reminds me of a story. A friends dad had 4 Mb ram and I had 1 mb ram total. So we couldn't play doom. My friend advised to switched my ram with his dad so we could play sneaky. What a hell that was. Those fast page ram/edo ram was anoyingly stuck. Took us hours and pain in our finger nails ( on the first try haha)

[@NakedSnake85]

+Psuado Nym "Your soundcard works PERFECTLY! It doesn't get any better than this!"

[@dbingamon]

I have a PSR-12, it also has the YM-3812 chip but lacks the slide controls.

[@DiodeMilliampere]

YO if you like controlling OPL2 you should check out adlib tracker and control OPL3!

[@holdengreen8793]

Diode Milliampere yo

[@IronTiger]

I still have my PSS-270 from childhood!

[@ArtoPekkanen]

Oh my god, that Ultima 6 intro sounded so MAJESTIC on this keyboard .... so nostalgic. I am shedding a tear :)

[@xeostube]

Indeed! I was always impressed by that intro tune.

[@kevito666]

Shout out for using Ultima VI intro music :D

[@human.earthling]

It's always worth watching your videos. Thanks!

[@Nomo_Popo]

I had a PSS-460 for around 10 years and got a lot of use out of it right up to the last years when I had used it on 4-track recordings with mostly more 'professional' instruments. I'm surprised to see it going ~75 bucks these days. I'd think it'd be a lot cheaper....

[@MrBenMcLean]

Thanks to this video, I got my own! Now I love my PSS-570 soundblaster keyboard :) It is difficult to exactly match the sounds I remember from my favorite DOS game Soundblaster soundtracks though.

[@elmosexwhistle]

Hi @The 8-Bit Guy, the top of the range Yamaha home keyboard at the time was the PSR 36. It is a PSR 32 with the 470 sliders added back in, AND ALSO MIDI!

[@jackispax1633]

The PSR-41 is actually one small step above the 36, adding a melody sequencer and a transpose function. Otherwise identical.

[@mutedsounds2k]

How funny that Yamaha used Yamaha chips for its own keyboards...

[@stevebez2767]

as spy to sink1 bi pass hiz store 'e'[realutues]av encrypted cipher steams ling scrambled rotors keyed screamer zombie giv opz2non notty az 123 mugs fings az aloha bet geass hiss sez but byte bool2war spec abstract mal level alex unknown slang new killer vites fir homo quil meglo buikd a bill grope bark no moss buy key rye ed4 quanta chaotic outward bounds red biro ghost writes 'reasons'if yer 'read'buy 'whoke book'of suzuki art of zen motorcycles where 'all media'enigma 'reproduced mass medias'singkung synchro shit iff if any kooky look primal nonexistances az cant attempt too know mass tech directky relating exactly thy entire whole oublushed wirks an build udols too scream nit a that kill its these actir impersonate soy rig osyco cabinets act2calm you4vat farm mill you2ace1&CLAIM cooywrite,authority isnt a tune,sound,or note,hard china hym awe lazers!YAM

[@macboogieland2897]

damn wasnt expecting that close up at 0:55

[@basicforge]

Cool video, but wouldn't it be more accurate to call them Adlib keyboards? The SoundBlaster was more than a music card.

[@BertGrink]

A bit off-topic, but are you the Liberty Basic/FreeBasic guy? If you are, I've been using FreeBasic for some years, just for various small hobby projects, and i think it's great.

[@basicforge]

Hi, yeah I'm the Liberty BASIC guy (also Just BASIC and Run BASIC), but not FreeBasic. :-)

[@BertGrink]

oh yes, sorry, i got my wires crossed, i DID actually mean JustBasic. I hope i didn't offend you, i certainly didn't mean to. One of my projects was an emulator for the Texas Instruments TI Programmable 57, which progressed quite nicely until i started on the calculating engine, at which point i realised that i didn't have enough information about the inner workings of the calculator chip. Oh well, it was fun while it lasted, and hopefully one day i'll be able to continue :) Thanks for your reply, and greetings from Denmark.

[@basicforge]

Hi, no offense taken at all. :-) Have you had a look at Run BASIC? It's a super easy web programming system.

[@BertGrink]

Yes i did take a look at it a year ago or so, but to be honest, i'm kind of an old school guy who perfers programming in the old-fashioned way ;)

[@phildavis1723]

I feel that something is being missed here. The Soundblaster provided sampled digital sound as it's main trick, the MIDI functions provided by the Yamaha chip were just added to maintain compatibility with all the MIDI based software, and were only a fragment of the cards capability. Soundblaster opened a whole world with sampled audio, and to call a keyboard a 'Soundblaster' keyboard because it had the Yamaha chip from the adlib card really isn't accurate. It's an Adlib, or MIDI keyboard if anything.

[@mitchmatthiesen5845]

@ The iBookGuy The Yamaha PSS-360, PSS-370, VSS-30, VSS-100, and VSS-200 seem to be based on the Yamaha YM-3812, because they are based on similar FM synthesis.

[@The8BitGuy]

+Cheryl Matthiesen It's possible. I can't find any information on them that definitely answers that question. I think somebody would have to attain one and disassemble it to be sure. Lots of Yamaha keyboards used FM synthesis, but not all of them used the YM-3812.

[@therealdeal6659]

+The 8-Bit Guy Why did you rename your channel?

[@The8BitGuy]

+SutorippuDotCom The PSS-100 is already documented as having a YM3427 synth chip.

[@Barnaby71]

+The 8-Bit Guy Hey, You know what's cool? You have the same glasses as me XD.

[@YannisAggelakos]

+Mitch Matthiesen read here: www.dtech.lv/techarticles_yamaha_chips.html

[@MrKeys57]

To take "on stage"? Yeah, maybe on some kids event or so, but forget every other thing

[@davejanssens7490]

Hey man, i love your videos. You should do a review of Windows 1.0 Hope you reply

[@williamwinslowhansen]

Awesome video . That keyboard tho wasn't a cheap toy back in the day.

[@TheBcoolGuy]

I wonder if my Samsung Galaxy S4 emulates that Yamaha chip.

[@nikkilygos9799]

I actually had a Sound Blaster for several years before I knew the Yamaha was on-board.

[@dragonfly_bry]

Damn man...all this AND the Slurm tee? Instant sub!!!!

[@BiteThatApple]

what's the song at 6:07?

[@Robbnlinzi]

Maybe Dave might tell you if you email him

[@LegoWormNoah101]

The captions are very screwed up. It says English, but it's either Spanish or French!

[@Connie_TinuityError]

Interesting... a video from 8-Bit Keys uploaded on The 8-Bit Guy.

[@naoidfpaiourej3299]

I got a PSS 570 for my birthday in 1986. I loved it and made hours of cassette tapes of recording music with it. I thought I recognised the similarity between the FM sounds of the soundblaster cards in the early 90s and my old keyboard!!

[@darrelldourte6375]

Sooo...cut to the chase. How do you go about programming the YM3812 to alter ADSR function? Also, will the PSS-460/470 synth sliders respond to more than the 5 step factory setting.? Are you adverse to the 8 line data mod between CPU and ROM(3812? Would love to mod one, just want to hear better sound not static gunck. Please do another video!!!

[@chocolateshake4917]

Okay, in the last four hours you've not only convinced me to get back into game dev as a hobby, but also get a PSS-470 because that Ultima 4 intro was sick. I guess thanks; I've subbed and so have my friends. Great videos man! Annnnnd all your Futurama shirts kick ass.

[@holdengreen8793]

Craig Grey same

[@GlacialLake]

jump was done on an oberheim ob-x

[@ImplosiveCatt]

When Creative Labs were creative.

[@BasedFrequency]

boiii kids keyboard, its a 2 operator fm beauty

[@patrickmullen5167]

As a child born in the 70’s, that grew up in the 80’s and 90’s, I absolutely love your channel 👍

[@I967]

Supercool! Thanks for this video!

[@edherdman9973]

What video cards (even in 2015) are still emulating CGA / EGA modes for compatibility? I don't think the pixel clock goes low enough to drive those signals...

[@stevebez2767]

sbc,besides,mac,raspi...billions of mainframe terminal busses of supercomp data centers,stalleites round mars, trains,busses,kiosks,etc etc,puggy cell,eh...yes pixel yuh say

[@Beansman-gp3ws]

The 2413 was used in the Japanese Sega Master System

[@MrROTD]

Add some guitar effects pedals and the possibilities are nearly endless

[@KuraIthys]

Still an interesting video and keyboard. Nowadays if your interest is this oldschool kind of sound (but admittedly not an OPL chip), then the Yamaha Reface DX seems to be the easiest to come by unless you get lucky with second-hand stuff... Seems like the Reface DX has also done a fair bit to make FM synth programming less cumbersome...

[@kshinokevin]

I totally remember the "Sound Blaster" sound card ! I still am using my late cousin's "Creative (Labs)" small speakers (for a laptop).

[@thomashouston4329]

Great video. Very informative!

[@tubeularfag]

So excited to hear the new music channel. This is just the material I would wish to produce. Looking forward to some create sounds from the past.

[@NovatheActual]

When he said Toys R Us the memories hit me like a train

[@whatsf2]

1:21 COMIC SANSSS

[@theLuigiFan0007Productions]

I can't see that font without thinking of Sans from Undertale. XD

[@lancer6643]

ddd a a# g f dfg ccd a a# g f dfg bbd a a# g f dfg a#a#d a a# g f dfg

[@aleksavasic2612]

What is wrong with comic sans (if it's readable, that makes up for the ugliness).

[@astrix_mvp]

Greta video! I wish I had taken care of my keyboards and old gadgets. I have moved a lot and really didn't see the future value, be it money or sentimental fun or whatever. I actually had, inherited from a uncle when I was a young "musician" a ROLAND TR-808 IIRC. Not the famous TB-303 but the drum machine from same era. Grey plastic like some cheap toy, using batteries, still... Now squeeze me some Slurm 😎

[@TheVideoEmporium]

Sounds more like you had a 606 rather than an 808.. Still would have been good to have held on to it though...

[@PeteKowalsky]

LOL @ 7:20, yeah I'm pretty sure it was an OB-8 or OB-Xa or something... :D

[@SiliconBassist]

Yes, the OB-Xa!

[@zibbybone]

OB-X on recording, OB-Xa in video

[@FinalBaton]

In retrospect this video was so important in the lore of David's KZbin content. It announced the launch of the much-loved "8-Bit Keys" channel #anewera #yuge

[@TinchoX]

Ahh... that 8-bit keyboard sounds is hitting me right at my nostalgia hahaha. The only keyboard I ever played was an actual virtual keyboard that came with my old "Soundblaster Live! Value" soundcard software, it was a good piece of software, it allowed you to do a lot all sort of things. The good old days when MIDI music was the rage!!

[@nythpill]

You Should do a video on the Fairlight CMI. It would be awesome.

[@dadgumit2505]

glad you can still get the YM3812 chips on ebay! for cheap too. I will definitely do some projects with them

[@someguystudios23]

Arent those the same ( or similar) to the ones found in the sega genesis?

[@AmyraCarter]

Yeah, those were the shit. I remember seeing an old Yamaha keyboard, it was beat up as fuck looking, but still played and sounded like it was brand new. Because of that, I do not know the model, but it had this odd 'Bass Pulse' sound, and whenever I listen to anything by An Endless Sporadic, I can almost hear the same sound from the bass...coincidence?

[@benbenpotato]

oh my god the soundboard looks like the soundcard I tore up last week for an art project

[@TtEL]

I was lied to! These are musical keyboards and not typing keyboards!

[@rootvalue]

The “English” captions for this video are in Spanish or Portuguese?

[@emojisafadodozap5960]

Spanish

[@rootvalue]

I don’t think this guy gives a fuck about his audience

[@stevebez2767]

HEY en-gb includes alphabet & all symbols used by thise if that then,if yer continually singuluzing like info using you inkine lie line singsong nags yooz iff too no note why dint yer kniw watt dont travel2av c key ream direct as discussed that after encryption with that synchronic whole mass media why no theres not loonys zombie wandering trance but if yooz insys'niw-wot-r-we qui manuals play place fuck art ling gone 'key if c'computers knows?

[@zackhartmann]

scored a pss460 for $20 today. stoked

[@the8-bitnerd712]

that's synth is a kids toy? I paid 200 for a tiny korg

[@Aquatarkus96]

You probably bought a microkorg, a virtual subtractive analog synth that is a slimmed down MS2000. That synth is a different beast to the FM based Yamaha in the video.

[@William_sJazzLoft]

So it sounds like the juvenile PSRs used the YM2413 and YM3812. Would they have used similar architecture on the intermediate/advanced PSRs and the DGX series of portables? ( I.e. PSR EW410 E463/DGX_230 YPG_235

[@crimsun7186]

Van Halen most likely used an Oberheim synth for Jump.

[@ischmidt]

OB-X on the record, OB-Xa on tour, IIRC.

[@5roundsrapid263]

Ian Schmidt Rush used it, also. "Subdivisions" has that synth all over it. Queen used it, too. "I Want to Break Free" has a solo with it.

[@ischmidt]

I'm very aware of Rush's usage - it's all over Moving Pictures and Signals. And most of Styx's hits were Oberheim-powered as well.

[@RealPixelDude]

i got my pss470 for 2 dollars lol. its one of my most used keyboards despite the fact i have way better keyboards lol

[@gepleros9724]

3 views..... When will it have 20,000 views?

[@holdengreen8793]

MineBow'snuke now

[@The22on]

I just discovered your channel. It's great. KUTGW keep up the good work lol My first computer was a UNIVAC that I bought at a university sale. After i replaced a few vacuum tubes, it worked great. i could only use it in the winter because it was hard to cool.

[@megabyte01]

This and your other videos helped me to understand how the music from the games of my childhood worked. Thanks for all your hard work!

[@pnky81]

My first keyboard ever was the Yamaha PSR-16 that uses the YM3420AD and YM3420BF chipset. It also has the "digital synthesizer" FM operator controls, which I loved as a kid.

[@Magnymbus]

Sees the empty walls. "Holy $#!+, this is an old video!" Checks description. "Yep... 2015"

[@jamgard3]

I found a PSS 470 at a thrift store a few years ago. 20 bucks in the box, adapter included. I had no idea about the history of it's sounds! Such a cool little synthesizer.

[@80ssynthfan48]

That's a good find. The 470 gets quite a lot of love on YT.