KVR Audio

midierror · Post by **midierror** » Fri Sep 20, 2019 8:37 am

Hello,
After nigh-on 6 years in development, my beloved FB01 has a modern editor for Ableton Live. Control all parameters and finally access the things the front panel doesn't let you touch.

https://gumroad.com/l/fb-01

I hope there are some FB01 owners out there!

midierror

CapnLockheed · Post by **CapnLockheed** » Fri Sep 20, 2019 8:49 pm

beloved FB01

Definitely not the adjective I'd use for that box. I dumped mine many years ago. Like most everybody else. The ONLY 4op Yamaha Black Box that doesn't play nice with the rest of the family. You couldn't give me one!

midierror · Post by **midierror** » Sun Sep 22, 2019 12:46 pm

Shame you don't see what others do. This is a very out-there and off-kilter synth compared to any of the other standard 4 op synths. Perhaps you never had the chance to edit the parameters on it - its got really deep bass, even compared to the DX7

midierror · Post by **midierror** » Sun Sep 22, 2019 12:47 pm

Heres what someone said on the SOS forums "The FB-01 brings back memories for me, because it was essentially the synth that I worked with on Sega Megadrive soundtrack commissions."

CapnLockheed · Post by **CapnLockheed** » Sun Sep 22, 2019 6:17 pm

its got really deep bass, even compared to the DX7

Apples and oranges. I'll stick with my TX81Z thanks. It's had a great editor
for years. If you like the FB01, good for you. I don't see a whole lot of other
users stepping up to agree with you.

McLilith · Post by **McLilith** » Sun Sep 22, 2019 6:55 pm

Here's some trivia for everyone. The Rodgers Organ Company used to distribute Yamaha FB-01 synths to accompany their MIDI equipped pipe organs and hybrid pipe/electronic organs. This was back when they first started equipping their organ consoles with MIDI. If the FB-01 was being paired with organs that cost upwards of $60,000, the Rodgers Organ Company must have considered them decent at the time. Rodgers was known for making high quality instruments.

A short time later, Rodgers was bought by Roland. After that, they started distributing Roland MT-32 MIDI modules with their organs. I didn't like those nearly as much as the Yamaha product. Later Roland models, such as the SC-55, were a little bit better though. Personally, I wish Yamaha had bought Rodgers, instead of Roland. I think Yamaha had better synths at that point in time, and the very first product Yamaha ever produced was a pipe organ. (Not many folks know that.) So, I think it would be fitting for Yamaha to later purchase a company that manufactured pipe organs.

As for the FB-01, its biggest drawback was not having a user-friendly interface, not its sound quality. Keep in mind, this model was produced in the Digital Synth Dark Ages, when most products from most manufacturers suffered from a lack of knobs.

midierror · Post by **midierror** » Tue Oct 01, 2019 11:21 am

McLilith wrote: Sun Sep 22, 2019 6:55 pm Here's some trivia for everyone. The Rodgers Organ Company used to distribute Yamaha FB-01 synths to accompany their MIDI equipped pipe organs and hybrid pipe/electronic organs. This was back when they first started equipping their organ consoles with MIDI. If the FB-01 was being paired with organs that cost upwards of $60,000, the Rodgers Organ Company must have considered them decent at the time. Rodgers was known for making high quality instruments.

A short time later, Rodgers was bought by Roland. After that, they started distributing Roland MT-32 MIDI modules with their organs. I didn't like those nearly as much as the Yamaha product. Later Roland models, such as the SC-55, were a little bit better though. Personally, I wish Yamaha had bought Rodgers, instead of Roland. I think Yamaha had better synths at that point in time, and the very first product Yamaha ever produced was a pipe organ. (Not many folks know that.) So, I think it would be fitting for Yamaha to later purchase a company that manufactured pipe organs.

As for the FB-01, its biggest drawback was not having a user-friendly interface, not its sound quality. Keep in mind, this model was produced in the Digital Synth Dark Ages, when most products from most manufacturers suffered from a lack of knobs.

Thats so interesting, thanks for sharing that! Seems to be quite a devisive little box.

The lack of programmability is what lead me to use my Atari ST to program it, and begin making my own software. I like that its hard to work with, I enjoy the challenge of exploring unchartered waters!

midierror · Post by **midierror** » Tue Oct 01, 2019 11:22 am

CapnLockheed wrote: Sun Sep 22, 2019 6:17 pm
its got really deep bass, even compared to the DX7
Apples and oranges. I'll stick with my TX81Z thanks.

I love the TX81Z too. Something about the wavetables makes it sound super-dark.

CapnLockheed · Post by **CapnLockheed** » Tue Oct 01, 2019 6:04 pm

And the compatibility with the other 4op synths and a good editor are also pluses.
It is my go to synth for talkboxing. Traditionally guys who do talkboxing use DX-100's.
To my ears tho the TX81Z has more of an edge than the DX's. Maybe different DACS?

Truth be told, the FB01 was my very first synth, followed by a Roland D-110. I did
like the FB01 much better, (more character!), than the D-110 and kept it a lot longer.

stash98 · Post by **stash98** » Sun Nov 24, 2024 10:41 pm

midierror wrote: Fri Sep 20, 2019 8:37 am Hello,
After nigh-on 6 years in development, my beloved FB01 has a modern editor for Ableton Live. Control all parameters and finally access the things the front panel doesn't let you touch.

https://gumroad.com/l/fb-01

I hope there are some FB01 owners out there!

midierror

I love reading the nay sayers on this synth. Keeps the costs down. Also almost a guarantee the people hating on this synth have never had access to a deep editor for it. It's a beast.

Like I said, hope the ignorant keep posting hate so the costs stay low.

psycho45039 · Post by **psycho45039** » Mon Nov 25, 2024 8:52 pm

I don't have a FB-01 but I do use this with other hardware synths I have, Yamaha TX81Z, Yamaha TX802, Waldorf MWII, Waldorf Micro Q, Waldorf Blofeld, Waldorf Pulse 2, Waldorf M, Roland JP 8000, ASM Hydrasynth and a Kurzweil K2000RS. It works really well as an editor/librarian for those so it should be fine for the FB-01.

https://squest.com/Products/MidiQuest13 ... index.html

Moldy Melodies · Post by **Moldy Melodies** » Mon Dec 09, 2024 5:57 pm

Thanks have an old version of ableton live so i guess it wount work? =)

Ah_Dziz · Post by **Ah_Dziz** » Tue Dec 10, 2024 4:26 am

I got 2 fb01s for 100 bucks back in the day. I had fun with them for a while. I won't ever be going back to hardware for FM synthesis though. Glad all the fb01 users out there have a handy editor. It's a good cheap box and has always seemed to be readily available.

Parduz · Post by **Parduz** » Thu Jan 02, 2025 3:24 pm

Dunno if i should open a new thread, or just write here .... if i've taken the wrong decision, pls pardon me.

I have a question about the FB01 voice parameters:
do someone know how much "real values" they mean?
What's the frequency of the LFO when Speed is set to, say, 200?
At how much mSec correspond the various Envelope rates?

I'd like to use modern FM-capable VSTs to replicate some of the sounds, but i don't own anymore a physical FB01, so i can't compare the values by ear.

Yamaha FB01 Editor