Casio CZ/ VZ/ FZ - Pro Series

> > It's really pretty limited for straight FM- the voice structure is
> > versitile enough in theory, but when operator pairs are strictly
> > limited to a modulator:carrier ratio of 2:1, it really constricts
> > things.  It works well enough for a 2-operator pair ring-modulated
> > with another wave, but it doesn't have near the flexibility of FM
> > algorithms.
>
>That's not completely true if you use 4 Operators you can have at least two
>operators with free definable fequencies, check my tutorial...

I know how that works, it's just not as nice as the algorithm structure of a 
DX7, which I think included most useful combinations.  So yeah, I can get FM 
with two modulators and one carrier, or longer multi-operator chains, but it 
doesn't cover all of the DX7 territory.

At least on the VZ though the pitch menu is much nicer...


> > Also the saw waves are less useful than you'd think with FM- it
> > enables some interesting flavors that a DX definately can't do (at
> > least the sine-wave-only synths), bright square and saw timbres (even
> > a decent approximation of pulsewidth modulation), but mostly when used
> > with FM it just sounds harsh and distorted, regardless of frequency
> > ratio- and with no filters, the brighter sounds end up being pretty
> > static.
>
>I don't see that, since with feedback (what also creates saw type timbres) 
>and 3
>Operators I can recreate nearly every non resonant CZ waveform and be able 
>to
>simulate filter sweeps (with static waveforms it lacks quality). Feedback 
>or
>those static saw waveforms are needed for rich non sinusoid timbres

I know the feedback is cool (particularly multiple-operator feedback loops 
which do wonderful strange things)- but I remember messing with this for 
quite a while, FM really isn't much good for broad-spectrum sounds, it does 
an okay impersonation of a resonant filter sweep, but it acts more like a 
bandpass filter.  You can get a "sort of" saw wave using feedback but it's 
either got not enough bass or not enough trebel.  Fiddling with it a bunch 
and layering waveforms does some good but it's much easier to get 
full-spectrum waves on the VZ (...though as I said, no filter, which limits 
usefulness).  Anyway the DX7 is never going to do PWM, I think the SY77 and 
99 can do it but in a different way.


>Shouldn't be ones first synth and one should be a passionate FM geek to get 
>along
>with it. But I could imagine making a song with this synth only...

making a song, sure, but I wouldn't want to do much more than one, I'd end 
up beating my head against the wall trying to get a certain sound on the VZ 
when the ESQ-M can do it much easier and much better.