YM2413 SYNTH + ROLAND XP50 - Testing sounds from the homemade OPLL mini FM synthesizer.

video upload by MusicHobby

"YM2413 SYNTH - Testing sounds from the homemade OPLL mini FM synthesizer. Roland XP50 keyboard used as controller, to send MIDI notes, program and control changes to the YM2413 module and the audio goes to the audio interface.

This is my project of a YM2413 FM Synth MIDI Module, already assbembled in a purple printed circuit board.

The YM2413 chip (known as OPLL), which is 2 operator FM musical synthesizer that uses FM synthesis (frequency modulation) to generate timbres. In this YM2413 based musical instrument I am using the Arduino Nano to control the YM's internal registers.

The YM2413 was used in:
-Yamaha PSS-170 and PSS-270 keyboards in 1986;
-Yamaha SHS-10 shoulder keyboard in 1987, and the Yamaha PSS-140 and Yamaha SHS-200 in 1988;
-Yamaha PSR-6 keyboard in 1988;
-Sega Master System, MSX, Atari Games Rampart arcade game;

I purchased the YM2413 chip on Aliexpress. I designed the board then sent the gerber to JLCPCB to be manufacured. Application Manual: https://www.smspower.org/maxim/Docume...

The intitial schematic of this board is here: https://www.dropbox.com/s/3n0dgba6pr6..."

YM2413 MULTITIMBRAL MODULE PLAYING POP HITS SONGS


YM2413 MULTITIMBRAL MODULE PLAYING GAMES' SONGS

YM2413 drums on Sega Master System controlled via MIDI

YouTube via littlescale
"YM2413 drums on Sega Master System controlled via MIDI"

YM2413 Custom Voice Editor for Max/MSP

YouTube via littlescale
"YM2413 Custom Voice Editor for Max/MSP
http://little-scale.blogspo..."

iPod & TouchOSC Controlling a Sega Master System with YM2413

YouTube via littlescale
"iPod & TouchOSC Controlling a Sega Master System with YM2413 (via Max/MSP and a MIDI interface for the Sega Master System).

http://little-scale.blogspo..."

LiveDrummer v000 for SEGA Master System YM2413

YouTube via littlescale — April 16, 2010 — "Last night I started working on a simple program for SEGA Master System that I hope to incorporate into live performances. The idea is to trigger drum sounds for each of the following buttons on the SEGA Master System joypad - up, down, left, right and button1. By holding down button 2 and pressing left / right / up or down, the user can select different drum sounds. The drums are synthesised by the YM2413. In this video, a delay pedal is used to start a loop."

Sega Master System (YM2413) Controlled by MIDI Keyboard

YouTube via littlescale. follow-up to this post
"Sega Master System (YM2413) Controlled by MIDI Keyboard
---
http://www.little-scale.blo..."

Update:

Sega Master System (SN76489) Controlled by MIDI Keyboard

YM2413 Drums Sample Kit for LSDJ (Game Boy)

YouTube via littlescale
"Get it here: http://milkcrate.com.au/_ot...

---- http://little-scale.blogspo..."

Shibasaki MOD - Tokyo set song #2

video upload by Arman Bohn

"My synths and device can be found here:
www.distropolisgoods.com

A version of song #2 from my set at Shibasaki MOD in Tokyo, April, 2025.

The Phantasmal Force is sending MIDI clock to the RK-006, which syncs everything.

It starts with GREAT CONJUNCTION playing the motif from the end of song #1, and then I bring in two more sequences (all of which are playing the internal YM2413 FM synth).

The M8 provides some basic percussion, and a bass drone.

The PF is also sending CC LFO messages to GREAT CONJUNCTION to modulate some of the FM parameters for the first sequence.

The Prismatic Spray MKii protoype held together for the show. I use the second half of the song to explore a bytebeat algorithm in stereo.

This song continues the same meter, root and scale as song #1 ... it is basically song 1A.

My guiding principle was - start at A# in 4/4. For each following song, add a beat and move up a half-step chromatically."

chipsynth PortaFM: Now with OPL2!

video by Plogue Art et Technologie, Inc.

"This updated version of PortaFM now adds the AdLib/Sound Blaster's classic OPL2 (YM3812) emulation core to the existing OPLL core (hot swappable)
Video by [TSSF] https://youtube.com/tssf
Music by Madbrain (Hubert Lamontagne)"

"Vintage 'portable' FM synthesizer

This chipsynth is a unique two operator FM synth with a very quirky feature set.
The late 80's 'PSS' series was cheesy and made of plastic but had a very unique sound which was lost to time. Some of the most well known examples of synthesizers in this series include the PSS-140, PSS-270 mini keyboards and the SHS-10 keytar.
On home computers, the iconic AdLib and Sound Blaster lines of sound cards used the same line of chips to give a musical voice to the PC, becoming the core of the sound of 90's DOS games.

Not willing to just copy the past, we designed a NEW synthesizer that features the same sound generation found in these synthesizers, but this time with much more processing power to control and modulate its features, all in a convenient virtual instrument form.

PortaFM uses a pair of cycle-accurately emulated FM chip cores for its main synth engine, switchable between OPLL (YM2413) and OPL2 (YM3812). Another core is dedicated to the the drum sounds, and all of this can be layered creatively.

The unique 'lofi' quality of the OPLL and OPL2 chips was never recreated this accurately before. Plogue's experience of more than 15 years studying vintage digital sound generators was pushed to its limit. Brand new mathematical models were built using our custom Hardware-assisted systematic testing procedures by our in house reverse engineering team in Montreal.

Oh, and of course, it does not use ANY samples!"

https://plogue.com/products/chipsynth-portafm.html

Spherical Sound Society ARCANE: Generative Chiptune FM Drum Synth

video by ZElTGElST

Spherical Sound Society brought us the Opera Rotas Experimental FM Drum Machine posted here.

"ARCANE is a generative synth that lies somewhere between a synth, a sequencer and a drum machine, depending on how you interact with it.

It is based on an authentic Yamaha YM2413 FM chip; the one used in some arcade coin ops, MSX and in the japanese version of the Sega Master System.

To control it it has 6 potentiometers and 3 buttons. The pots are:

-Tempo. It controls the tempo/speed

-Base Register. It determines if the machine is more musical or glichy

-Intensity. The higher this pot, the more amount of notes and percusions sounding. This is a veru playable way of alter the generative composition by transitioning between the simple and complex sound explorations

-Sequence. It let you browse between sequences.

-Dispersion. the higher this pot, the most registers that we are writing on the chip, so the sequences get more complex and chaotic

-Combination. It multiplex, demultiplex and recombines sequences, keeping the output related but always fresh and different

It has 3 buttons, Left, Right and Reset. Reset is located in the arduino and is self explanatory. Left and Right buttons are to be determined as the firmware is still in development.

It has Clock In and Clock Out so you can synch it with external gear

It comes fully assembled and ready to play.

You can listen to some demos on soundcloud:

Spherical Sound Society · ARCANE DEMO

Spherical Sound Society · ARCANE DEMOS

You can get assembled units, kits and PCBs at:
https://www.tindie.com/products/jc204..."

Generative Beats Using Real Yamaha Chips: ARCANE

video upload by SPHERICAL SOUND SOCIETY

"ARCANE is a generative synth that lies somewhere between a synth, a sequencer and a drum machine, depending on how you interact with it.

It is based on an authentic Yamaha YM2413 FM chip; the one used in some arcade coin ops, MSX and in the japanese version of the Sega Master System.

You can order it here:
https://www.tindie.com/products/jc204...

To control it it has 6 potentiometers and 3 buttons. The pots are:

-TEMPO. It controls the tempo/speed.

-BASE REGISTER. It determines if the machine is more musical or glichy. Better left it around 3 o'clock position for more musical results. Turning it to the center and left side produces more noisy/glitchy and chaotic outputs. You have been prevented!

-INTENSITY. The higher this pot, the more amount of notes and percusions sounding. This is a very playable way of alter the generative composition by transitioning between the simple and complex sound patterns.

-SEQUENCE. It let you browse between sequences. Turn it to select random patterns.

-DISPERSION. the higher this pot, the most registers that we are writing on the chip, so the sequences get more complex and chaotic. This and intensity are a very playable pair and both are related. Once you tuned something that you like, try to do variations playing this pot and INTENSITY one.

-COMBINATION. It multiplex, demultiplex and recombines sequences, keeping the output related but always fresh and different. At minimun it produces a 16 step sequence. At maximun it produces a 8 steps sequence. Between is where the magic happens, and it recombines and produce generative patterns via bitshifting and logic operations of the sequences.

It has 3 buttons, Left, Right and Reset. Reset is located in the arduino and is self explanatory. If you have been playing in the BASE REG pot center/left side and it has turned too chaotic or noisy, just put BASE REG pot around 3 o'clock and press reset. It will come back to more musical landscapes.

Left and Right buttons are to be determined as the firmware is still in development.

It has Clock In and Clock Out so you can synch it with external gear. To accept external clock set TEMPO pot at minimun."

Euclidean sequencing on the Great Conjunction FM synth - quick demo

video upload by Arman Bohn

The Great Conjunction FM synth is based on the YM2413 chip.

GREAT CONJUNCTION tutorial: CUSTOM INSTRUMENT pages

video upload by Arman Bohn

"In this GREAT CONJUNCTION walkthrough, I stumble through the CUSTOM INSTRUMENT pages. Detailed changes to the YM2413 sound engine can be made in here. The MODULATOR & CARRIER have many parameters available to tailer the 2-op engine to your liking.

Feel free to ask for clarification in the comments. A spider dropped on my head and I lost my focus for a bit."

SOS arcane

video upload by studio snippets

Spherical Sound Society ARCANE (first posted here), and Oxi Instruments One seqeuncer.

Some pics and additional info on ARCANE:


via Tindie

"ARCANE is a generative synth that lies somewhere between a synth, a sequencer and a drum machine, depending on how you interact with it.

It is based on an authentic Yamaha YM2413 FM chip; the one used in some arcade coin ops, MSX and in the japanese version of the Sega Master System.

To control it it has 6 potentiometers and 3 buttons. The pots are:

-TEMPO. It controls the tempo/speed

-BASE REGISTER. It determines if the machine is more musical or glichy. Better left it around 3 o'clock position for more musical results. Turning it to the center and left side produces more noisy/glitchy and chaotic outputs. You have been prevented!

-INTENSITY. The higher this pot, the more amount of notes and percusions sounding. This is a very playable way of alter the generative composition by transitioning between the simple and complex sound patterns

-SEQUENCE. It let you browse between sequences. Turn it to select random patterns

-DISPERSION. the higher this pot, the most registers that we are writing on the chip, so the sequences get more complex and chaotic. This and intensity are a very playable pair and both are related. Once you tuned something that you like, try to do variations playing this pot and INTENSITY one

-COMBINATION. It multiplex, demultiplex and recombines sequences, keeping the output related but always fresh and different. At minimun it produces a 16 step sequence. At maximun it produces a 8 steps sequence. Between is where the magic happens, and it recombines and produce generative patterns via bitshifting and logic operations of the sequences.

It has 3 buttons, Left, Right and Reset. Reset is located in the arduino and is self explanatory. If you have been playing in the BASE REG pot center/left side and it has turned too chaotic or noisy, just put BASE REG pot around 3 o'clock and press reset. It will come back to more musical landscapes.

Left and Right buttons are to be determined as the firmware is still in development.

It has Clock In and Clock Out so you can synch it with external gear. To accept external clock set TEMPO pot at minimun.

It comes fully assembled and ready to play or as as full kit or basic kit for you to build it"

ARCANE Jam (Generative Chiptune FM Drum Machine / Synth)

video upload by SPHERICAL SOUND SOCIETY

"There´s some audio interfernces from the phone. Obviously ARCANE output is clean, the interferences were caught at the recording time from the phone mic

ARCANE is a generative synth that lies somewhere between a synth, a sequencer and a drum machine, depending on how you interact with it.

It is based on an authentic Yamaha YM2413 FM chip; the one used in some arcade coin ops, MSX and in the japanese version of the Sega Master System.

To control it it has 6 potentiometers and 3 buttons. The pots are:

-Tempo. It controls the tempo/speed

-Base Register. It determines if the machine is more musical or glichy

-Intensity. The higher this pot, the more amount of notes and percusions sounding. This is a veru playable way of alter the generative composition by transitioning between the simple and complex sound explorations

-Sequence. It let you browse between sequences.

-Dispersion. the higher this pot, the most registers that we are writing on the chip, so the sequences get more complex and chaotic

-Combination. It multiplex, demultiplex and recombines sequences, keeping the output related but always fresh and different

It has 3 buttons, Left, Right and Reset. Reset is located in the arduino and is self explanatory. Left and Right buttons are to be determined as the firmware is still in development.

It has Clock In and Clock Out so you can synch it with external gear

It comes fully assembled and ready to play.

You can get assembled units, kits and PCBs at:

https://www.tindie.com/products/jc204...

https://www.etsy.com/es/listing/94101..."

Loscha presses Play: Yamaha PSS-270 Demo 𝓑𝓲𝓵𝓵𝔂 𝓙𝓸𝓮𝓵 𝓙𝓾𝓼𝓽 𝓣𝓱𝓮 𝓦𝓪𝔂 𝓨𝓸𝓾 𝓐𝓻𝓮 has VERY weird instruments

video upload by Edward Jones

"The Yamaha PSS-270 is from the FM Synthesis line of keyboards.
The audio generation is handled by the YM2413 OPLL chip.
The OPLL is very well documented. Please look here for more information - https://www.smspower.org/Development/...
This chip has direct audio out, no DAC required.
One output is the Main voice out, and the other is the Percussion out.
On this unit, the Percussion and Main are both routed through the chorus unit. The chrous is MN3102 and MN3206, controlled by a fixed LFO. There is no feedback on the chorus. This could be added for a much more flangier effect."

Smooth flowing rivers of beats w/ Great Conjunction FM fragment synth & M8 tracker

video upload by Arman Bohn

"M8 Tracker on the left is playing some soft pads underneath the constantly evolving Great Conjunction.

This is an early prototype of the YM2413 based synth which runs three sequencers concurrently (one pseudo random & 2 Euclidean).

There is no programming of specific notes. What control you have over specific sounds quickly yields to the motifs of interactions and conjunctions between the sequencers."

Circuit Bent Yamaha PSS-140

Note: links to listings are affiliate links for which the site may be compensated.
via this auction

"This modified Yamaha PSS-140 has 8 switches that control the data lines from the main CPU chip to the YM2413 FM synth chip. Each data line has it's own led that reacts to the data flowing between these chips. When switches are ON the keyboard will play as normal. When you change the position of one or more switches to OFF, those particular data lines will be disconnected.

Works with 6 AA batteries.


Listen to the sample that shows what kind of sounds can be created with this data line bend:"

Arcane Firmware Update - 3 Jams Snippets

video upload by SPHERICAL SOUND SOCIETY

"So Im updating the ARCANE firmware. Now the buttons do some byte operations directly to the registers of the Yamaha chip, making the thing way more playable in a logical or musical way. I have also tweak the ranges of the pots and added a totally new feature to the 'sequence' pot that I will document when its ready

Here I have some audio jams recorded in better quality in soundcloud:

Spherical Sound Society · Arcane new firmware audio jams

The firmware update will be free for existing ARCANE users and new units will ship with it.

/*/*/*/*/*

ARCANE is a generative synth that lies somewhere between a synth, a sequencer and a drum machine, depending on how you interact with it.

It is based on an authentic Yamaha YM2413 FM chip; the one used in some arcade coin ops, MSX and in the japanese version of the Sega Master System.

To control it it has 6 potentiometers and 3 buttons. The pots are:

-Tempo. It controls the tempo/speed

-Base Register. It determines if the machine is more musical or glichy

-Intensity. The higher this pot, the more amount of notes and percusions sounding. This is a veru playable way of alter the generative composition by transitioning between the simple and complex sound explorations

-Sequence. It let you browse between sequences.

-Dispersion. the higher this pot, the most registers that we are writing on the chip, so the sequences get more complex and chaotic

-Combination. It multiplex, demultiplex and recombines sequences, keeping the output related but always fresh and different

It has 3 buttons, Left, Right and Reset. Reset is located in the arduino and is self explanatory. Left and Right buttons are to be determined as the firmware is still in development.

It has Clock In and Clock Out so you can synch it with external gear

It comes fully assembled and ready to play.

You can get assembled units, kits and PCBs at:
synth/">https://www.tindie.com/products/jc204...
https://www.etsy.com/es/listing/94101..."

DivSkip in a tiny case: Minimal Setup

video upload by Making Sound Machines

"We thought we'd try and built the smallest viable setup using DivSkip, our collaboration with @DivKid. So we set out to collect a couple of modules that pair great with #DivSkip in a tiny 48HP @4msCompany pod. It turned out really fun!

The Clock input is generated using Music Thing Modular's insanely practical startup module. Here it's used to output sixteenth note triggers.
DivSkip's channel 1 is set to play a modbap pattern on Out A and B, going to kick and snare on @VladimirPantelic's awesome VPME QD quad drum voice.
DivSkip's channel 2 is set to offbeats, triggering @TimoRozendal's super cool FMP drum. It's a fantastic DIY module using the @YamahaSynthsOfficial YM2413 FM chip - you need to check it out.

The Gliss module from @BelaPlatform plays back a looping CV recording, changing both the sound parameters on FMP and the pattern on DivSkip's channel 4, which in turn is generating a grooving syncopated sixteenth note sequence.

Finally, DivSkip's channel 4 sends a pattern from its Euclidean Split mode to the Karplus-Strong generator on the QD Drum.

Enrica mutes and unmutes each channel on the fly with a click of the push potentiometer.

DIY Kits will restock shortly at @thonksynth (UK), @explodingshed (EU) and @nightlife_electronics (CAN - DIY and built)
Built modules are available at @signal_sounds (UK), @perfect_circuit (US), @elevatorsoundbristol (UK), @elevatorsound_eu (EU) and #schneidersladen (EU)"