Yamaha CS2x - Manual (Page 15)

CS2x Tone
Generation
The CS2x Control Synthesizer — and the way it creates its myriad
sounds — is a natural evolution of the various types of popular
synthesizers that have come before it over the past several
decades.
It all started with the popular analog “voltage controlled”
synthesizers used on the hit recordings of the 1960s and ‘70s.
Although they were far from perfect — suffering from lack of
storage, unstable tuning and limited polyphony — they had
knobs that were pretty easy to use and even to this day are known
as the “vintage” synths now sought after by the world’s top dance
music artists.
Then came the digital breakthroughs of the early 1980s —
personified by Yamaha’s DX7 which dispensed with knobs
altogether and introduced the world to practical polyphonic
synthesis. With its voice storage, MIDI and other capabilities it
literally redefined what a synthesizer was all about, although to
many it was a bit difficult to program.
Next came digital sampling — a field in which Yamaha has also
been at the forefront with its
Advanced Wave Memory (AWM)
technology — which nothing less than revolutionized popular
music itself and is still immensely popular to this day.
Now comes the CS2x with its convenient digital features plus
knobs and other analog-style functions. Combining the best of
both analog and digital worlds, the CS2x is truly a unique — and
completely modern — electronic instrument that’s as easy to
understand and operate as it is fun and intuitive to play.
What this means in practical terms is that the CS2x provides you
with hundreds of great sampled sounds, or “voices” built right in,
the detailed characteristics of which you can manipulate in real-
time as you play using the eight SOUND CONTROL knobs and
other handy controllers. These and many other parameter editing
functions let you quickly and easily customize as many sound
setups that you may need for a tune, and then store them in
“Performance” and “Scene” memories for instant recall at the
touch of a button!
Generating Sounds Electronically
For the sake of the uninitiated, let’s take a look at some basic facts
regarding the nature of sounds and how they are generated
electronically. There are three basic elements which make up any
type of sound, whether acoustically oriented or electronically
generated, as follows:
PITCH, or how low or high a sound is;
TONE, or what a sound’s overall timbre, or quality is like;
AMPLITUDE, or how loud a sound’s volume level is.
In the simplest terms, acoustic musical instruments are
specifically designed and painstakingly built to produce precise
sound characteristics over a determined range when played. This
is why a violin always sounds like a violin, a piano always
sounds like a piano, and a flute always sounds like a flute. A
musician’s playing techniques are also extremely important.
For example, a violinist will “scrape” the bow across the string at
a certain intensity to generate violin sound waves at a certain
volume level (amplitude) and produce low or high notes based
on fingering positions (pitch). The vibrating strings and resonating
wood, as well as the playing style and techniques of the
musician, will determine the overall quality of the violin’s timbre
(tone).
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Getting To Know The CS2x CONTROL
SYNTHESIZER
cCS2x_Basic 12/10/98 5:25 PM Page 15