AX80 really is a sleeper synth. Not sure why it never really caught on, but it is a really beautiful sounding synth(when you add a chorus/reverb/delay). It is also one of the most beautiful looking synths ever created. Once you have it setup in a darkened studio you get to see it in its glorious beauty.
Our stories with the AX80 are remarkably similar! It was my first polyphonic synthesizer (I had an Octive Cat before the AX80). I also had a Juno 106 eventually I added a DW8000 and an Akai S612 sampler to my early performance rig. I can’t recall when I sold my original AX80 but I also immediately regretted it and I purchased a replacement once I was financially stable and found one at a decent price. Mine is in great condition. I have had to fix the connections to the front panel switches a couple of times, but they finally seem to be holding. Just this week I finally updated the firmware and I am enjoying the new features. I doubt I will ever sell mine. It is simply one of the most beautiful synths ever made.
Great video! Bought my AX80 in ’86. Was always envious on my pals Korg P6. As you say a Chorus is a must, delay and reverb don’t hurt either. Got the Tauntek installed, it brings many great festures but sometimes the free running LFO takes away a bit of the ”coldness” of the AX80
I just got one of these on eBay for a screaming deal. The end caps are shiny on mine. I was surprised to find that they're actually made out of really smooth MDF with a shiny black paint on them. They're actually not plastic if you can believe it.
I believe that the buttons on this unit, although covered with the panel overlay, are tactile switches underneath, mounted to a PCB. This should be similar to the DX7, that have a nice snappy click, small travel, and low actuation force. So they're not really membrane buttons, that either don't click, or have a more mushy feel, and typically require more force to actuate, like the Atari 400 or most microwave ovens.
Keyboard appears to be made by Yamaha, same as in DX7 Mk.1. Yamaha supplied quite a few keyboard assemblies to other manufacturers, with Korg being the largest one (You can see "Yamaha" stamped all over keyboard chassis in Korg Triton). Also, individual keys are totally interchangeable.
The bargain I NEVER try to talk people into buying are the Zoom G1on and B1on pedals. Easily turn that AKAI AX80 from a flat monophonic sound to a full chorus stereo AND still have 3-4 more effects available for chaining like delays and reverbs, bit crusher and a ring mod (and a tuner and drum beats). All for $50. I have about TEN of these lil beasties.
Hey great run down, love the big picture journey with it. Since you mention a chorus would probably be the best way to get the most out of it, any particular Chorus plugin or outboard you prefer to pair with it?
Just something with flexibility depending on what sound you want. Back in the eighties playing live, I was using a Boss CE-2 guitar pedal; it was all I could afford. A few years ago, I was using a Lexicon MPX550. Currently I'm using a Roland DEP-5. It's only 32kHz with 80db of snr, and 90db of dynamic range, but that's really par for the course, since they are both mid-80s devices. All three of those options sound good for playing music live. I know someone that loves to mangle analog synths including the AX80 with a Moogerfooger. Hope this helps.
@@JeffreyScottPetro Totally helps. Thx man. The more I hear demos of the AX80, the more I think it can be a mailable chameleon. And depending on your goal you can treat it with specific effects to get there. Now I have one on the way (with a stop for servicing first.)
I am a bit fascinated as your preset bank is VERY different from mine! Not just a little, some sounds are vastly different and I can see that the parameters are not the same. I knew that there were different revisions to the AX80 but I wasn’t aware that the rom based preset sounds changed so much! I mean it makes sense as I know they had disappointing sales and that many people thought that it was due to the factory sounds being weak. Maybe later units had an improved (more synth-centric) set of sounds to help the AX80 compete with the Roland and Korg units that were out around then? My P1 sound is a surprisingly decent attempt at an acoustic piano. In a world where samplers had not yet made a huge splash, maybe that was an understandable choice, but perhaps just a few months down the road, maybe a synth piano was not the best “very first sound” to represent the keyboard’s capabilities. It’s fine really as these 32 sounds are absolutely the same ones I had in my first AX80 that I purchased in the mid 80’s. I wonder if I can find the set you have as a sysex dump? 😀
My P30 is a haunting synth voice that is called “Spaced” in the patch list one sheet (yes I still have it) that came with my original AX80. Far different than the brassy synth patch in your video. P31 is identical, it’s called “Helicopter” in the literature. 🤔 Interesting!
Maybe this is more info that you might want, but recently I did an OCR scan of that patch list I mentioned so I could import the names into Logic. In case you are interested here is the preset bank I am familiar with. PRESETS: 1. Acoustic Piano (I) 2. Electric Piano • (I) 3. Clavichord (I) 4. Harpsichord (I) 5. Toy Piano (I) 6. Rag Piano 7. Trumpet * (I) 8. Trumpet * (II) 9. Flugle Horn *' 10. Horn * 11. Flute • (I) 12. Clarinet * ° 13. Sax ° (I) 14. Strings (I) 15. String Ensemble (I) 16. Solo Violin * 17. Electric Bass (I) 18. Bass (I) 19. Double Wood Bass 20. Percussive Hammond • 21. Hammond 22. Full Church Organ 23. Small Church Organ 24. Sixties Organ ** 25. Orchestron 26. Van Halen Synth. 27. Solo Synth. 1 28. Synth. Clav. 29. Synth. in 5th's (I) 30. Spaced 31. Helicopter 32. Sweep
Very interesting. I had no idea that the presets were different from one AX80 to another. I don't know if the one I purchased new in 1985 and sold circa 1996 had different presents than the one I purchased circa 2012. I had always thought of the presets as being average. Sometimes I think about getting the Tauntec ROM upgrade, but I barely use the AX80 anymore. Thanks for sharing the info.
For the money you have something that sounds like nothing else. Isn't that the point in order to develop your own sound? Seen a few AKAI synths in the wild, never owned one (an MPC ok 😅). Quality stuff. Enjoy 🤠
AX80 really is a sleeper synth. Not sure why it never really caught on, but it is a really beautiful sounding synth(when you add a chorus/reverb/delay). It is also one of the most beautiful looking synths ever created. Once you have it setup in a darkened studio you get to see it in its glorious beauty.
I like mine. Thanks for the comment.
Our stories with the AX80 are remarkably similar! It was my first polyphonic synthesizer (I had an Octive Cat before the AX80). I also had a Juno 106 eventually I added a DW8000 and an Akai S612 sampler to my early performance rig. I can’t recall when I sold my original AX80 but I also immediately regretted it and I purchased a replacement once I was financially stable and found one at a decent price. Mine is in great condition. I have had to fix the connections to the front panel switches a couple of times, but they finally seem to be holding. Just this week I finally updated the firmware and I am enjoying the new features. I doubt I will ever sell mine. It is simply one of the most beautiful synths ever made.
Thanks for sharing.
Great video! Bought my AX80 in ’86. Was always envious on my pals Korg P6. As you say a Chorus is a must, delay and reverb don’t hurt either. Got the Tauntek installed, it brings many great festures but sometimes the free running LFO takes away a bit of the ”coldness” of the AX80
Thanks for sharing!
I just got one of these on eBay for a screaming deal. The end caps are shiny on mine. I was surprised to find that they're actually made out of really smooth MDF with a shiny black paint on them. They're actually not plastic if you can believe it.
I believe it. Thanks for the comment.
A very good in-depth video.
Glad you liked it!
I believe that the buttons on this unit, although covered with the panel overlay, are tactile switches underneath, mounted to a PCB. This should be similar to the DX7, that have a nice snappy click, small travel, and low actuation force. So they're not really membrane buttons, that either don't click, or have a more mushy feel, and typically require more force to actuate, like the Atari 400 or most microwave ovens.
Keyboard appears to be made by Yamaha, same as in DX7 Mk.1. Yamaha supplied quite a few keyboard assemblies to other manufacturers, with Korg being the largest one (You can see "Yamaha" stamped all over keyboard chassis in Korg Triton). Also, individual keys are totally interchangeable.
The bargain I NEVER try to talk people into buying are the Zoom G1on and B1on pedals. Easily turn that AKAI AX80 from a flat monophonic sound to a full chorus stereo AND still have 3-4 more effects available for chaining like delays and reverbs, bit crusher and a ring mod (and a tuner and drum beats). All for $50. I have about TEN of these lil beasties.
Great advice, thanks for sharing.
What about G2?
Hey great run down, love the big picture journey with it. Since you mention a chorus would probably be the best way to get the most out of it, any particular Chorus plugin or outboard you prefer to pair with it?
Just something with flexibility depending on what sound you want. Back in the eighties playing live, I was using a Boss CE-2 guitar pedal; it was all I could afford. A few years ago, I was using a Lexicon MPX550. Currently I'm using a Roland DEP-5. It's only 32kHz with 80db of snr, and 90db of dynamic range, but that's really par for the course, since they are both mid-80s devices. All three of those options sound good for playing music live. I know someone that loves to mangle analog synths including the AX80 with a Moogerfooger. Hope this helps.
@@JeffreyScottPetro Totally helps. Thx man. The more I hear demos of the AX80, the more I think it can be a mailable chameleon. And depending on your goal you can treat it with specific effects to get there. Now I have one on the way (with a stop for servicing first.)
I am a bit fascinated as your preset bank is VERY different from mine! Not just a little, some sounds are vastly different and I can see that the parameters are not the same. I knew that there were different revisions to the AX80 but I wasn’t aware that the rom based preset sounds changed so much! I mean it makes sense as I know they had disappointing sales and that many people thought that it was due to the factory sounds being weak. Maybe later units had an improved (more synth-centric) set of sounds to help the AX80 compete with the Roland and Korg units that were out around then? My P1 sound is a surprisingly decent attempt at an acoustic piano. In a world where samplers had not yet made a huge splash, maybe that was an understandable choice, but perhaps just a few months down the road, maybe a synth piano was not the best “very first sound” to represent the keyboard’s capabilities. It’s fine really as these 32 sounds are absolutely the same ones I had in my first AX80 that I purchased in the mid 80’s. I wonder if I can find the set you have as a sysex dump? 😀
My P30 is a haunting synth voice that is called “Spaced” in the patch list one sheet (yes I still have it) that came with my original AX80. Far different than the brassy synth patch in your video. P31 is identical, it’s called “Helicopter” in the literature. 🤔 Interesting!
Maybe this is more info that you might want, but recently I did an OCR scan of that patch list I mentioned so I could import the names into Logic. In case you are interested here is the preset bank I am familiar with. PRESETS:
1. Acoustic Piano (I)
2. Electric Piano • (I)
3. Clavichord (I)
4. Harpsichord (I)
5. Toy Piano (I)
6. Rag Piano
7. Trumpet * (I)
8. Trumpet * (II)
9. Flugle Horn *'
10. Horn *
11. Flute • (I)
12. Clarinet * °
13. Sax ° (I)
14. Strings (I)
15. String Ensemble (I)
16. Solo Violin *
17. Electric Bass (I)
18. Bass (I)
19. Double Wood Bass
20. Percussive Hammond •
21. Hammond
22. Full Church Organ
23. Small Church Organ
24. Sixties Organ **
25. Orchestron
26. Van Halen Synth.
27. Solo Synth. 1
28. Synth. Clav.
29. Synth. in 5th's (I)
30. Spaced
31. Helicopter
32. Sweep
Very interesting. I had no idea that the presets were different from one AX80 to another. I don't know if the one I purchased new in 1985 and sold circa 1996 had different presents than the one I purchased circa 2012. I had always thought of the presets as being average. Sometimes I think about getting the Tauntec ROM upgrade, but I barely use the AX80 anymore. Thanks for sharing the info.
For the money you have something that sounds like nothing else.
Isn't that the point in order to develop your own sound?
Seen a few AKAI synths in the wild, never owned one (an MPC ok 😅). Quality stuff.
Enjoy 🤠
Have you noticed that the L-R output of your keyboard leans heavily to the right?
Thanks. Did you record fully dry here, or with a chorus?
That's with a simple chorus.
Under a 1000 ? Here in Holland i never found one under 1500 Euro .
Yes. I don't understand why European prices are so much higher.