These keyboards from the 80s and early 90s are much more interesting than any new keyboard that comes out.

@LittleRichard1988

10 ай бұрын

I agree, the last keyboard I bought brand new was my Yamaha PSR-295 way back in 2004 and it's still my newest keyboard. But I prefer keyboards from the 80s and early 90s. The irony is that 20 years ago many people thought the opposite. Even sound modules like the Roland MT-32 and Roland U-220 are still usable even today.

@Old_Man_Jay

6 ай бұрын

Also agree! I've actually recently been on the hunt for a few vintage synths. I have a DX21, DX11, and a Roland SK88. I'm hoping I can get my hands on a few others. These old keyboards have a lot of charm and are way more fun to me then any new keyboard out these days

@Big_Red_Dork

3 ай бұрын

I'd say there's a few new standouts , like the Yamaha Reface CP and the Arturia Microfreak, but yeah there's a ton of value in these old synths. So far I've got a Casiotone MT-220, a Yamaha PSS-680 and a PSS-470. Tons of great sounds in these boards, and with something like Phaseplant or one of the other big synth plugins you can cover pretty much everything else

I just came here to hear how bad the sound presets were such as the trumpet and clarinet but this video showed me more than what I was looking for.

I own myself a PSS-680, that's a gem. I think it has the same processor, the main difference is the drum pads in the 680. Great comparison, mate... These Yamahas are truly pieces of art. I usually play mine through some effects that turns the tones on beautiful and complex sounds.

@WeeInnovate-uk

3 жыл бұрын

Yes, the same, but a few extras Like the pads, and an extra octave of keys - not often mentioned.

@rth314

Жыл бұрын

The PSS-680 also has the Stereo Chorus that the video said they saved for the PSS-780. I loved that keyboard as a kid, and still have it.

I did not expect them to sound THAT different.

@TorutheRedFox

Жыл бұрын

their FM sound chips are from different families (OPL vs OPU)

As mentioned in one of the 380 videos, one feature the 560/570 have over the 580 is using the slider for real time spectrum changes. Clearly the 580 is more advanced, but its digitally controlled and you can't beat an tactile analogue switch on the 570 for control sometimes. So in that respect, they both have pros and cons. ;)

@alfonsemusic

3 жыл бұрын

Absolutely. It's all about the right tool for the job...!

@bangerbangerbro

2 жыл бұрын

Not really an analogue switch. It is closer than buttons though.

@xeostube

Жыл бұрын

if only the 570 really were analogue! All you get are large abrupt steps, often with glitchs on each change. In fact the 580 often has much more fine grain control than the 570, though with nothing like the real-time control the "sliders" offer.

@user-eq4yh7ed1z

8 ай бұрын

The faders of the 570 are analogue as written, but they control digital parameters. So are the buttons of the 580. It is just less tactile to use buttons than faders while playing. Noone ever wrote that the 570 has faders to control analogue parameters (apart from the main volume fader 🙂).

For a fuller musical experience I take the PSS580. For a more classic live experience the PSS570 does the trick!

570 - Warmer sounds!!! .... but minus midi, Less parameters for control, and less gradations for parameters .... but with slider work faster

Conclusion. I want both!

@alfonsemusic

3 жыл бұрын

That's the best way!

570 because I have one. It's a vintage classic.

Great outro playing 👌😩

This is such a fun video. Great work Alfonse! That melody at 1:20 sounds like it could be a stonking great Rage Against The Machine riff. Bon!

@alfonsemusic

3 жыл бұрын

Merci buckets! Maybe I should send it to Tim C...

@NiallEveritt

3 жыл бұрын

@@alfonsemusic The Apple CEO?

@alfonsemusic

3 жыл бұрын

@@NiallEveritt undoubtedly. Or the professor of social history at Bristol uni. Both seem best placed to handle this.

Nice comparison Alfonse! I agree with the most part of the comments that the slider section of the 570 is more visual and “touchable” than the controls of the 580…but maybe the 580 is more versatile to modify the internal presets…In any case and as always, the only stop is our own imagination to use these wonderful keyboards 😀

@alfonsemusic

3 жыл бұрын

Very true, Mike! Thanks for watching. :)

They are both worth having although at the moment I personally have a Yamaha PSS-470 which has the same sounds as the PSS-570 but has FM drums instead of PCM drums but I will also be getting a PSS-570 in the future. Also I personally have the PSS-680 which is basically the same as the PSS-580 only the PSS-680 has more PCM drums in addition to what the PSS-580 has and a few other more advanced features. I like then both because one has something the other doesn't. The PSS-580 does seem to have cleaner sound output than the PSS-680.

One big lesson from non PCM / ROMpler synth era is not to call tones or voices by their physical instrument counterparts as you get judged easily. Instead using creative names or portmanteaus would have made them a lot cooler

@alfonsemusic

9 ай бұрын

Very true. If people spend more time listening to what it's not, rather than what it's good for, then you're missing a trick

I own both and love the simplicity of the sliders on the 570 but the 580 can save patches and record 5 tracks so it's a lot more versatile. If Yamaha could have added a decent chorus and delay effect and allowed you to store more than 5 patches (20 would have been perfect) *they could have saved memory space by ditching a lot of the set rhythms which are pretty awful, then I think this would have been a true competitor to the DX100 or even some vintage analogue synths from that period. Many people look at the bright colour scheme, hear the cheesy auto chords and video game percussion, then assume it's a kids toy, but the 580 is really a useful tool for creating unique sounds and sketching out song ideas without having to fire up a laptop and mess around with DAW settings, VST softsynths , deal with latency issues and programmes crashing. I will never sell mine !

@alfonsemusic

3 жыл бұрын

True, it's definitely easy to underestimate the *80 range. Would have been nice to see a higher-numbered version that bridged the gap to more 'serious' keyboards, like you say.

both of them but I still prefer 48..ehh 580!! :)

hidden FM gems

Sweet, love the comparison. Great idea. Maybe more if those. Think the 570 has the same rhythm chip as the 580, where is the identical (to 570) looking 560 has an older rhythm chip.

Great video and an interesting question. I'm totally with the 570 though (or the 560 which is the same thing with a slightly different paint job) Obviously, you can't touch the 580 for versatility of sound, midi, etc but the 570 doesn't require any menu diving and all the controls are right in front of you. My favourite thing about the 570 though, is being able to mess with the auto accompaniment in the synth settings (which I'm glad you mentioned at 4:58 ) I think it's the only low budget keyboard of that era which lets you do such a thing. (I might be wrong though and would be interested to know what else does) It's just a really great feature which I've had hours of fun making music with. Saying that, I'm gonna dig my 580 out sometime soon. Thanks for video and sorry about the essay. Over and out

@alfonsemusic

3 жыл бұрын

Thanks. :) I wouldn't like to say definitively it's the only one with that accompaniment feature, either, but you could well be right. The Casio MT-400V allows you to apply its analogue filter to the accompaniment instead of the selected voice, but that's a different story. Thanks for watching!

570's sound are more basic fm, but the drum sound from FX/FS electone, the 580 has more well-edited FM sounds, drum sounds from RX5 series , so I love 570's drums!

i would love to see your video comparing PSS 780 vs PSS 790!

@alfonsemusic

Жыл бұрын

Hmmm, that is a good video idea. I'll make a note!

I have both and the pss 780 they are all good. But for a quick jam the 570 is the dogs dudahs but love the 580 and the 780 as well for the great sounds you can get .

Both are worth owning, but you just can’t beat the versatility of the 580 and its ilk. The multitimbrality and sysex-editability just puts it lightyears ahead of any other consumer keyboard synth of that era, IMO. That said, I find my 470 (same as 570 but with FM drums) to be a bit more fun for a quick noodle :)

Thanks !!!

Great is the "symphonic" feature of the PSS 580

Great video. You really nailed the side by side layout in the video and made it informative. I always felt like my 570 had a better sound and was more inspiring than my 680 but honestly I liked the sound of your 580 better pretty much the whole video for some reason. Would have also loved to hear both doing the same track/song side by side in the comparison. Hope you do more of these! Casio MT-60 vs MT-65/68 would be good.

@alfonsemusic

3 жыл бұрын

Thanks - think I got the idea for this from a comment you made on a previous video. I'll look out for the opportunity to do some more.

@kenzieprice6745

3 жыл бұрын

@@alfonsemusic I have lots of ideas for videos one day but maybe I should just neg you to do them instead :-) We need to see you show off your current gear arsenal and what of these boards you have actually decided to keep. Also, there is no reason you aren't flooded with views and getting paid. Your videos are super polished and your music is always killer. I get the impression you're very humble but I hope you are putting yourself out there! I'm going to start linking your videos to a lot of my reverb listings and sharing on social media. Fine work as always.

@alfonsemusic

3 жыл бұрын

:D Always happy to 'borrow' a video concept... The arsenal is about to get a slim-down, due to the need to move to a new place, but there are a couple of keepers that haven't made it into a video yet - all in good time... Thanks for sharing, you're a gent.

I like the sliders more than pushing knobs, and the chorus fx is kinda great. I had my 460, which is the same as the 570 if I'm right. That was my favourite of the pss series so far,.but the lack of midi connection and the Rca is a nah on that.

@Am71919

Жыл бұрын

I have a 570 and it was built for live performances, not really as a studio instrument, they sound good coming out of a keyboard or a bass amplifier but they sound magnificent coming out of a home stereo system, a powered amplifier they also work well with Bluetooth speakers, no distortion in any of them

Cosmic is still my favorite Orchestra preset, followed by Saxophone, and then Electric Piano and Jazz Guitar. I am referring to the PSS-560/570 keyboards.

@alfonsemusic

Жыл бұрын

I agree, Cosmic is a great preset.

Fantasic video! Can you post your keyboard settings for the 580 sounds you used? The sounds you generated on it are unbelievably good!! Would love to recreate those as they should work the same on a 480/680/780.

@alfonsemusic

3 жыл бұрын

Thanks :) I've had a look at the project, but I didn't note the settings for the sounds used at the beginning and end... An oversight. I'm planning on posting some 4/5/6/780 patches on my website at some point, though - for download and transfer via SysEx. Will post here when I do. Meanwhile, the settings for the patch at 3:57 are: Voice 99 (sinewave) 018 163 200 300 400 500 606 777 +sustain

@listenin007

3 жыл бұрын

@@alfonsemusic thank you! Stored in Bank 2! You’re the best!

@alfonsemusic

2 жыл бұрын

Just remembered to post this here: All the patches from my other keyboard demos featuring the 580, 680 and 780 can be downloaded free from my website, www.alfonsemusic.com/patches

I've got a PSS570 and a TX802 (the rack mount, multitimbral version of the DX7-II, probably everyone knows that these days but they used to be a bit under the radar). Obviously there's no comparison in terms of features - one is a toy and the other is the most advanced 6 op FM synth of the 80s. But in terms of character, the 570 wins a lot of the time for me. I've never played a 580 but in this video it sounds too close to a "real" FM synth for me, even with the sounds matched closely the 580 is brighter and cleaner, similar to the difference between a 12 bit DX-7 and a 16 bit DX7-II. The UI and drum sounds of the 570 with the MIDI implementation of the 580 would be the perfect Portasound.

570 is dreamy

Can't decide some sounds are better on the 570 others in the 580... 570 is defenitly more low-fi a bit more noisy but I prefer the layout and the slider knob section is more intuitive to work with I think .

@alfonsemusic

3 жыл бұрын

It's a tricky one! There are good reasons to choose either - the 580 is more versatile, but some of those 570 sounds just have the edge, and I agree that the sliders are a more hands-on approach.

@darrelldourte9455

2 жыл бұрын

@@alfonsemusic would a compressor cut the noise on these units? I await an answer from Alfonse, the studio master. Thank you for video and your great multi-track work

570 for the drums and funkaliciousness.

I prefer the 570...I have one of these little threasures

The 570's Stereo Chorus is a game changer for all voices as it adds more body to every sound, however the whole keyboard is a toy compared to what the 480 can do! The 470 vs the 570 however..., If it was 1987 again and were looking for a 1st keyboard it's the 470 for the win as that custom drummer allowed you to be more creative! The 570 was a bit demented having all those neat sampled drum sounds yet no custom drummer - that ended up being the DD10 drum machine ha!!!

I prefer the 570 by the ability to use the synth sliders within the accomp section. Hitherto I've been unaware about that. The basic sound seems warmer but the drum section is not very good (drums very close to PSR32) but If I hadn't already PSS780 I'd.probably go with PSS580 by the better synth, portamento, drums.

just get both. or even better, build your own with arduinos or something. The OPL chip is truly a heck of a package

My favorite sound on the entire 360/460/470/560/570 line of keyboards is the stock “Cosmic” with Sustain on. Is it possible to duplicate that sound with the *80 keyboards? Unfortunately the sustain sucks on the *80 keyboards and I don’t think there’s a stock sound that resembles Cosmic.

@alfonsemusic

3 жыл бұрын

I agree, Cosmic is almost worth the purchase in itself... You could get pretty close using a SysEx editor, including a better sustain (using the release control in the editor rather than the Sustain button), but I think the timbre probably wouldn't be exactly the same - like with the custom patch that I recreated in this video.

@listenin007

3 жыл бұрын

@@alfonsemusic could you please give it a shot and see how close you can get to replicating it? If there’s 1 person in the world who has the skills to do this, you’d be on the top of my list haha

@listenin007

2 жыл бұрын

i gotta give it one more shot in asking lol

I think I like the 580 better. But that chord at 2:08 is a good start to a song. I double dog dare you to make a song using it !

@alfonsemusic

3 жыл бұрын

You're on!

So "wave" on the pss-470 is actually a waveform change? Everywhere says it is but I assumed it was actually modulator frequency? What do spectrum and modulator change specifically? I assumed modulator changed modulator amplitude/modulation index and spectrum changed carrier frequency based on the way they sound and my understanding of FM synthesis and the sidebands it creates?

@alfonsemusic

2 жыл бұрын

I never figured it out - don't have enough technical knowledge to decide, but comparing it to what I heard on the 580, I wondered if it selects presets combining different things: modulator frequency / waveforms / maybe a change of feedback - just guessing, though.

@bangerbangerbro

2 жыл бұрын

@@alfonsemusic Maybe. Thought that would be 125 presets for every instrument preset. I'd like to believe that they are actually proper adjustments but I don't know. I read about the YM3812 they use again and was reminded of what I forgot: that the chip does support four waveforms (sine, half-sine, quarter-sine and sine with negative part inverted) or the original OPL does at least, the YM3812 (OPL2) may have some more but Wikipedia doesn't detail that, just sort of implies. So I'm not sure how exactly you would hear that in the sound and exactly what each number on wave would correspond to. Of course the presets that are actually presented as presets would affect a lot of behind the scenes settings the sliders can't control. In basic 2 operator FM synthesis the story goes that you get sidebands produced that are multiples of the modulator frequency above and below the carrier frequency, and the degree that the modulator modulates the carrier frequency affects the volume of the sidebands as wel as the carrier in some weird way, but usually volume would be roughly centred around the carrier frequency. This is how I understand it anyway. But I thought as you turn up "wave" it did sound like the frequencies in it become further apart, when you turn up spectrum, it sounds sort of like the same frequencies are in out but volume is being shifted to the higher pitched ones, and when you turn modulator up it sort of has a similar effect of a wider range of the frequencies becoming audible, but not the frequencies involved changing, like turning down the intensity of a low pass filter I assume would. The attack and decay sliders don't sound like they have very uniform steps but I don't know they progress the same as the other sliders.

I think it's the 580. I still have my PSS-680 which is like the 580 in design.

Is the 570 the same as the 470 but with different colours, or are there operative and capability differences?

@alfonsemusic

Жыл бұрын

The 570 and 470 were updates of the 560 and 460 - change of colour scheme. The 560/570 have a separate chip for the drums and also make space for a "custom drummer" with keyboard percussion and a drum pattern variator.

I had PSS 780 so 780 is the best lol

these reviews are cultural heritages. should be unesco protected.

What is the difference between the 570 and the 470, and the 460 or 560 or whichever one exists? I have a 470 which appears the same as this 570?

@alfonsemusic

Жыл бұрын

The 570 and 470 were updates of the 560 and 460 - change of colour scheme. The 560/570 have a separate chip for the drums and also make space for a "custom drummer" with keyboard percussion and a drum pattern variator.

@bangerbangerbro

Жыл бұрын

@@alfonsemusic Right, so the 5s have PCM drums, and the 4s just FM drums?

PSS-570 de lejos

570 sounds better, hands downs

Yamaha PSS-570 have fadders.... more close to a "analogue" style synth, instat fun

PSS 580 wins

580 far better

💢💗💢Suprb 💢💗👌👌

The jazz guitar on the 580 sounded like garbage even though i like the 580 more. And not garbage in an old cheesy way. Like just bad.