Five Formidable FM Synths for Your Synth Rig – Daniel Fisher

Here are Daniel Fisher's three Synth Clips videos on FM Programming:
FM Synthesis: A New Explanation

FM Synthesis: LFOs

FM Synthesis: Editing Existing Presets

Daniel Fisher, Sweetwater's FM fanatic, presents an FM synth lightning round. These five formidable frequency modulation synths cover a lot of sonic ground that’s familiar in some cases and groundbreaking in others. At their core, FM synths layer modulation at high audio speeds for a sound that distinctly departs from the most common synthesizers, subtractive synths. The result is additional saturated harmonic content that gives these synths their beloved rich timbre. Synths on display include traditional keyboard-style FM synths like the Yamaha MODX series and some sequencer-style synths such as the Korg Volca FM 2 and the Elektron Digitone. Check it out!

0:00 – Intro
0:40 – FM Synthesis: A New Explanation
0:51 – Korg Volca FM 2
2:21 – Basic FM Description
3:28 – Elektron Model:Cycles Synthesizer
7:08 – Elektron Digitone Synthesizer
9:10 – Yamaha Reface DX
12:44 – Yamaha MODX
17:34 – Thanks for Watching!

#Sweetwater #DanielFisherSweetwater #DanielFisher #Korg #Yamaha #Digitone #Elektron #Reface #FMsynths

[screamingstrings]

Digitone made me love FM, it can do just about anything I need, and it sounds SO good!

[kevincowart]

14:50 That Dogs bridge was excellent, such an underated album and song

[cjlewis]

Loving my digitone. Volca was my first FM experience and moved up.

[alexskibicki]

Awesome demo, Daniel. 😎 these synths sound phenomenal. I own a Korg volca fm(version 1) and it sounds killer. Especially since I can get sega genesis/mega drive type synths. My brother own a Yamaha reface dx and it is totally awesome.

[martinjh]

14:40 - That sound or similar was definitely used by Supertramp in The Logical Song or one of their other tracks I may have heard... Def reminded me of them...

[budgetguitarist]

I really like the Volca. Great for the money. Gotta admit, though, I rely on the Dexed plugin. 6 ops, can open DX 7 patches, sounds great, free... but I understand that some people prefer hardware, and that's what this gear is for.

[ianmorton]

So this is how I found out the opsix was discontinued...it was on my list to buy, just hadn't gotten to that spot on the list yet 😢

[ryanperrault]

Cool video thanks for making it. I don't have a dedicated FM synth yet either hardware or digital but I'll get one eventually...just not sure which one yet.

[garyprater]

I like the small DX keyboard. If it had the original DX 27/100 presets would be even better!

[norjia]

far as i know fm synthesis never really went away. a lot of it just moved to the computer for a long time. stuff like serum and vital all support FM even if not in it's full capacity.

[normdurkin]

.. missing the best one the opsix.. good thing I have 2. 👊👍😁

[kentaccordionist]

I have a sonicware liven xfm, and have just bought a secondhand dx100. Both are only 4 operator, but both sound great.

[m.richards]

I have the model cycles and really wish I'd purchased something with more than 2 fm operators. It sounds pretty tame even with the built in overdrive effect and there are a lot of traditional fm sounds you just can't get out of it at all. It does have a great sequencer though.

[robertsyrett]

5:30 an oddly compelling demo of the model: cycles.

[tomlavelle]

Would the new Yamaha MODX+ be under this category?

[KorhanErel]

I find it interesting that noone mentions Kodamo EssenceFM, which is a very advanced FM synth with looping envelopes, 300-note polyphony, 16-part multitimbral, MPE support, onboard USB Host for controllers, 8 separate audio outs and high quality sound. I guess they're really bad at marketing their products. I have one and have used it at many concerts - people were amazed at the sound quality.

[elissitdesign]

Love my ModX. I suck at FM so I always end up with the typical sounds when programming them.

[dyscotopia]

I really like my Elektron Model Cycles. It's a fairly limited FM synth but the comprehensible control options and the beefy sound Elektron gets from its hardware make it just as fun to play with as my analog gear. (plus I think it might be my favourite sequencer, just above the circuit and arturia)
I think FM got a bad rap is because it was hard to understand and the interfaces were not well suited to sound design or adding much in the way of interesting dynamics

[ZetaCarinae]

Opsix is where its at, although I admit I like partially because it goes so far beyond just FM synthesis.

[falconhoof]

I bought a TX81Z to learn FM on. I am a fool.

I then bought a DX100.