FILTER MODS: Cutoff & Resonance Knobs: This mod can be found around the net under. In fact, this is eminently playable in a way that would require a lot of work with an actual Poly-800. The mods consist of 3 main sections, Filter mods, FM mods and audio mods. You get MIDI learn, plus up to 64 voices polyphony with velocity, which of course the original has. But its simple, friendly sound is perfect for a little 80s synth vibe in a track.Īlso, since I’ve been recommending a lot of wonderful but CPU-heavy stuff – like Arturia’s – here’s a break for your CPU with something far lighter.įull Bucket Music does a bang-up job with the emulation here, with even a “Cairo” version that will work on slightly older Macs, and VST + AU (macOS) and VST (Windows, both 32- and 64-bit). That’s good, because you really wouldn’t pay for an emulation of a Poly-800. This was a budget hybrid synth, somewhere between the Korg PolySix and their. And now it’s free, in a plug-in emulation.
It was cheap when new, it’s cheap used – perhaps the earliest iconic affordable poly. (That chorusing is necessary to the sound.) There’s still a 24 dB filter, three envelope generators, and a simple pseudo-stereo chorusing effect, plus a built-in sequencer. And the eight-voice configuration allows a 4-voice Double mode, with two oscillators per voice for a fatter sound. Each has additive harmonics (16′, 8 ‘, 4′, 2’). There’s one digital oscillator per voice, but 8 of them (to Roland’s 6). Whew! Dodged a bullet there.)Īnd it’s actually a very sensible, balanced polysynth. Don’t drive up its price because – it’s worthless. In fact, tell everyone you know to buy something else. It actually remains one of the best buys on used 80s synths if you want some retro hardware. But it’s excellent, and you want it anyway – especially for free. And KORG would introduce an instrument that … actually … would never really be as legendary as other 80s synthesizers.