TX802

Hi everyone,

I'll be selling off my pair of Yamaha TX802s, if anyone on this list is interested. (SF Bay area only.) http://sfbay.craigslist.org/sby/ele/4720814778.html

Cheers,
Rick

Hi group + Rick,
Many of us started with the TX802. Can you share how you used your pair ?

Dominique Larré

Hi Dominique,

> Many of us started with the TX802. Can you share how you used your pair ?

Sure... I bought my first TX802 brand new in Tokyo, in 1988. I had heard it was micro-tunable, and I was getting into that, so the TX802 was perfect. I subscribed to the Computer Music Journal then, and read the famous article by Wendy Carlos ("Tuning: At the Crossroads"). I did some work with tuning design, etc.

So I started using the TX802 for microtnal work, like having a chamber orchestra, in the studio. In 1990 I bought another TX802 and started working with larger ensembles up to 16 parts. I liked working in 15-equal, but did some work in harmonic tunings, Carlos "alpha", 17-equal, Balinese tunings, and others. At one time I had 3 TX802s that I sometimes used together.

Before 1992, I used a rustic program called Concertware on a 512k Mac, then Finale on Windows starting in 1998.

I stopped using the TX802s much after 2003, once my computer was fast enough for VST soft synths like Big Tick's "Rhino". But I haven't really written any new music since 2009...

So the TX802s need a good home! :-) Someone interested in vintage instruments, I guess.

Cheers,
Rick

So is it 100 Volt Japanese model?

If you would consider returning it to Japan, I could be interested in one of them :-) I have one which needs a friend.

Two TX802 can be used also for doubling polyphony - one can play all odd notes, another one all even notes...

This instrument is good for microtonal music as each of 8 parts can have different tuning. Besides preset tunings there are two custom tunings and another 63 could be saved on the RAM4 cartridge.

Just the sounds it produces are limited from contemporary point of view, it's 6OP Yamaha algorithm synthesis combining Phase Modulation and additive principle. Good for electronic sounds, not so usable for imitative sounds when we have all those sample based and physical modeling machines nowadays.

Is that Wendy's article available somewhere on the internet?

Daniel Forro

On 20 Oct, 2014, at 4:13 AM, Rick McGowan rick@... [MakeMicroMusic] wrote:

> Hi Dominique,
>
>> Many of us started with the TX802. Can you share how you used your >> pair ?
>
> Sure... I bought my first TX802 brand new in Tokyo, in 1988. I had > heard
> it was micro-tunable, and I was getting into that, so the TX802 was
> perfect. I subscribed to the Computer Music Journal then, and read the
> famous article by Wendy Carlos ("Tuning: At the Crossroads"). I did > some
> work with tuning design, etc.
>
> So I started using the TX802 for microtnal work, like having a chamber
> orchestra, in the studio. In 1990 I bought another TX802 and started
> working with larger ensembles up to 16 parts. I liked working in
> 15-equal, but did some work in harmonic tunings, Carlos "alpha",
> 17-equal, Balinese tunings, and others. At one time I had 3 TX802s > that
> I sometimes used together.
>
> Before 1992, I used a rustic program called Concertware on a 512k Mac,
> then Finale on Windows starting in 1998.
>
> I stopped using the TX802s much after 2003, once my computer was fast
> enough for VST soft synths like Big Tick's "Rhino". But I haven't > really
> written any new music since 2009...
>
> So the TX802s need a good home! :-) Someone interested in vintage
> instruments, I guess.
>
> Cheers,
> Rick

Hi Daniel,

> So is it 100 Volt Japanese model?

The power supply seems to be 100-120 universal. :-) So it works fine here in the US and I've used it for years without any converter.

I really liked using them, even for microtonal improvisation, etc. They're responsive, pretty easy to program from the front panel. Each of mine has a RAM4 cartridge, and I formatted them to store tunings, so I could move from one to another easily.

> Is that Wendy's article available somewhere on the internet?

CMJ Vol 11 No 1, Spring 1987. You can find it on JSTOR:
http://www.jstor.org/discover/10.2307/3680176
Free to read on-line (if you register), but they want $19 (outrageous!) for a print copy of it. Somewhere I still have my physical copy of CMJ, specifically for that article.

Rick

Hi, Rick,

thanks for quick answer.

On 20 Oct, 2014, at 10:21 AM, Rick McGowan rick@... [MakeMicroMusic] wrote:

> Hi Daniel,
>
>> So is it 100 Volt Japanese model?
>
> The power supply seems to be 100-120 universal. :-) So it works fine
> here in the US and I've used it for years without any converter.

That's good. As far as I know Yamaha instruments differs in internal power supply - primary side of it has some variations according to standards in different parts of the world.
>
> I really liked using them, even for microtonal improvisation, etc.
> They're responsive, pretty easy to program from the front panel.

I agree, it's nice instrument, I like it, too.
There's even some modification of OS Eproms, with different preset sounds, it can be found in File section of DX7 yahoo group if I'm not wrong.

> Each of
> mine has a RAM4 cartridge, and I formatted them to store tunings, so I
> could move from one to another easily.

Excellent.

So if you can't sell it locally would you consider sending abroad?

>
>> Is that Wendy's article available somewhere on the internet?
>
> CMJ Vol 11 No 1, Spring 1987. You can find it on JSTOR:
> http://www.jstor.org/discover/10.2307/3680176
> Free to read on-line (if you register), but they want $19 > (outrageous!)
> for a print copy of it. Somewhere I still have my physical copy of > CMJ,
> specifically for that article.
>
>
> Rick

Thanks for the link. I know about JSTOR policy... I understand they want to protect author's copyright, maybe even pay some royalties to authors (?) but... 27 years old article could be free.

Daniel

Well, I think it would be far too expensive to mail them. Even one of them. And risk of damage would be high also...

> So if you can't sell it locally would you consider sending abroad?

I don't know delivery price but probably you are right, it can be more than price of the instrument.

I think when instrument is really well packed in cartoon, foam and bubble foil (especially front panel) it will survive transport...

OK, no problem. But if you don't sell locally, I may be interested in.

Daniel

On 20 Oct, 2014, at 10:38 AM, Rick McGowan rick@... [MakeMicroMusic] wrote:

> Well, I think it would be far too expensive to mail them. Even one of
> them. And risk of damage would be high also...
>
>> So if you can't sell it locally would you consider sending abroad?