Click here for shots via this auction. Details: "This is the Roland CMU-810 Compusynth, one of the rarest synths ever made by Roland DG Group, an obscure offshoot of the Roland Corporation that remains to this day. In the old dealer price sheets from the 80's it was listed as an expander for the CMU-800 Compu Music, a small mixer/synth/drum machine in a similar housing that you hooked up to a computer. If you look online or read Peter Forrest's A-Z book, a false rumor has perpetuated that this is simply an SH-101 or an MC-202 in a metal box without a sequencer. They reference the schematics but the schematics are nowhere to be found. I've been looking for years for them without any luck. I've compared all three synths side by side, and have triggered the CMU from both an SH-101 and MC-202 sequencer as well as the Roland MC-4. The sound out of this box is entirely different than it's younger cousins, more aggressive, with a faster attack, and much nicer filter. The SH-101 and MC-202 sound very plasticky and thin compared to the CMU. The CMU-810 sounds more like the SH series of synths and soundwise it's probably closer to the SH-09. It excels at bass sounds and percussive effects. It also differs from the MC-202 and SH-101 in that it has a delay slider on the LFO, an input to control the VCA for tremolo effects, and removes the trigger control over the envelope. It also has a built in miniature mixer so you can merge the sound of two additional synths or drum machines (MC_202/TR-606?) with the output of the CMU. It sports sliders from the era of the Jupiter-8 indicating that it probably predated the MC-202 and SH-101 by at least a year or so. One European reviewer on SonicState wrote, "They say it is like the 101/202 but I have not heard any of them (101/202) as aggressive as my new baby (cmu). Very clear, very warm, loads of rumbling and as stated before it can be a very aggressive basspump. If you want to get rid of yours give me a shout cause I would not mind linking a few together." I agree 100%. I would buy one over an MC-202 or SH-101 anyday. But the CMU makes a good partner for either of these synths because it takes up such a small footprint and can act as a second voice when hooked up via CV/GATE. You can watch a video of a CMU-810 on YouTube here: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eof7hVqBsw0"
Previous CMU-810 posts
Be great if he opened it up to look at the actual HW inside the box.
ReplyDeleteMight solve a lot of mysteries...
insane price.
ReplyDelete"I do have 2 negatives from selling Yugioh cards for my kids and received negatives in response to leaving bad bidders negative feedback for not paying for their auctions."
ReplyDeletekids wouldn't pay premium for the best of its kind. they'd be hard pressed to find yugioh cards at a better condition.
Another super~NICE! instrument from this seller.
ReplyDeleteDid he just counter-argument documentation with reference to actual schematics with a review on sonicstate from a guy who hints not having heard 101s and 202s properly to compare?
ReplyDeletelol at salesman ethics.
so much hate and jealousy here!
ReplyDeleteexcuse me. should I see a blatantly deceitful listing with good eyes?
ReplyDeletethat's pretty deep south on the old moral compass, bro.
Hate and jealousy? That's an outright pathetic price for a piece that should sell for no more than $350. Some people just need to learn that just because it's "vintage" doOd! Doesn't mean it's worth a small fortune.
ReplyDeletei agree, its blatantly deceitful. they guys quoting vintage synth explorer prices and saying how wrong they are. not in this case, my friend. he just trying to justify an ass ramming. matrix, why are you posting all this guys auctions?
ReplyDeletecompletly overpriced but cute unit, I'd give it 350$+50§ for the "exotic" factor ;-)
ReplyDeletewhat currency is §?
ReplyDeleteyou mean pounds(£)?
P.T. Barnum did say that a sucker is born every minute. These days they tend to spend a lot of time on eBay. Looks like the seller of that little squawk box found one too.
ReplyDelete