Kawai Q-80EX | One of the best 80s sequencers that nobody talks about

video upload by Espen Kraft

"The Kawai Q-80EX midi sequencer from 1989.
An absolute beast of a sequencer yet nobody seems to know it exist or what it can do.
How does it compare to two cherished competitors of the time?

Check out the TG100 plugin here: https://www.martinic.com/tg100-reverb

Big thanks to Anders E. Jensen for letting me have his Q-80EX for almost a decade.

00:00 Intro
00:08 The competitors
00:22 Kawai Q-80EX (with battery backup)
01:15 Repeat individual tracks
01:58 Recording
03:36 Sponsored plugin
04:48 Quantizing
05:36 Motifs
06:53 Which sequencer is the best?"

Roland JX-8P vs MKS-70 | They Should Sound Identical. They Don't. Why?

video upload by Espen Kraft

"Roland JX-8P vs MKS-70 | These Two Synths Should Sound Identical. They Don't. Why?
Many of the patches I use can be found here: https://espenkraft.com/b/hBPIn

Age of electronics, different electronics/chips etc. Both synth are loaded up with the same sysex patch each time.
I'm only using one of the two voice cards of the MKS-70 (upper) to match the 8P's polyphony.
The 8P smears the sound out more, due to its chorus, or age. The MKS-70 is cleaner, darker and of course more powerful since it's TWO 8Ps in box.

This is another ridiculously comparisons video that serves no other purpose than to fetishise old gear."

Roland JX-08 | The unedited video that made Roland send a hit man after him (and his grandmother)

video upload by Espen Kraft

"A truthful and honest review, but sadly TOO honest.
This is a re-upload.
Many of these sounds can be found in my web shop here: https://espenkraft.com/b/hBPIn"

Korg DW-8000 in the Sky | FIFA World Cup 2026 Pre-Match Walk Out Song

video upload by Espen Kraft

"All the sounds are coming from my 3-1 on Korg DW-8000/FB-7999 patch banks.
You can get the patches from my web shop here:
https://espenkraft.com/b/LzvdD"

New DX7 Patch Bank with 80s Magic | Download now!

video upload by Espen Kraft

00:00 Demo song
00:50 What is this bank?
02:30 Demo of patches in more detail

"Get my new DX7 Patch Bank now — a premium collection of 32 of my best Electric Piano voices for the Yamaha DX7, DX7II and TX802, and for software or hardware that can import or load original Yamaha DX7 / DX7II voice data.

Price is only $12USD for the bank. You can get the bank from me directly through email here: espenkraft69@gmail.com You can also get the bank here:

https://thepatchbay.io/product/yamaha...

This is not a random bank put together overnight. These sounds have been with me for decades — some of them all the way back to the 1980s. They have been carefully selected, edited and refined over many years, and used by me on my own albums as well as in commercial music productions. Every sound in this collection earned its place. There is not a single filler patch here.

All 32 voices are Electric Piano based, but they sound much more varied than that. The have a wide musical range inside their category: some are glassy, some bell-like, some harder and more cutting, some soft and smooth, and some have that extra glossy, polished sheen that makes a part instantly sit right in a track. Some are more like pads, while others can be used as leads or bass depending on where you play it on the keys.
They are polished for maximum musicality and usability, and they work especially well either on their own, layered with other voices from this bank, or combined with other sounds in a full arrangement.

CLICK FOR MORE »

Korg DW-8000 | 3 brand new patch banks for the price of 1

video upload by Espen Kraft

"3 brand new patch banks for the Korg DW-8000/EX-8000 and FB-7999 plugin.
Contact me on email and I'll even give you a little discount if you buy directly from me.
Or get them here: https://thepatchbay.io/product/korg-d...

Price is $15USD for all three banks which is a pretty sweet deal.

3 full banks of 64 patches each are included in the download. P11-88
Bank 1 Luxury Vanilla Bank - 64 different pads, strings, bells and other glossy and slick sounds
Bank 2 Bass Bang Bank - 64 different bass patches, many of them really cuts through a track
Bank 3 Adventurous Bank - 64 different many patches suited for more experimental electronica

The download comes with 3 sysex banks you can import straight into your DW-8000/EX-8000 and also the Full Bucket FB-7999 free plugin emulation of the DW-8000.
If you're using the FB-7999 exclusively I've also included the banks as *.FXB so you can have the benefit of the STEREO tweak parameter not present in the hardware. I have adjusted many of the patches for the FB-7999 to take advantage of just that. In the demo you hear only the patches coming out of the FB-7999 plugin, played from the DSS-1. All banks have been tested and verified on the hardware.
In the demo I also use some external effects, mostly so in the demo song in the beginning.
The drums (and NASA talking) in the demo song are of course not part of the download. All other patches/sounds are.
I have a video on my channel about how to get your sysex banks into a hardware DW-8000 and EX-8000.

Finally, as an arranger and producer, I make patches that are mostly meant to be used together with other sounds. How a sound or patch sound in isolation is rarely relevant. It's how they build up texture when combined with other sounds that is important to me.
Like in the Bass bank, many of the bass patches are meant to be part of the low end, together with a kick. That's why many of them might seem bland or plain in isolation, but put them into a production and layer them correctly and they'll give you a solid low end with definition, like the demo track. I use 3 different bass patches from this download to have that solid, slick yet defined bottom end."

Akai S612 - The Terminator

video upload by Espen Kraft

"The classic theme from the Terminator played live ad-lib on the Akai S612 with one sample, a C2 from a Roland JX-8P, full filter."

This 1990s Rack Synth Was a Monster: Yamaha TG77

video upload by Espen Kraft

"The Yamaha TG77, the module version of the SY77. A powerful combination of FM synthesis and Wave memory. Extremely deep and advanced. The SY77 came out in 1989 with the module the year after. Both surpassed by the SY99 the year after that.

The demo song uses none of the internal TG77 drum sounds. The 'real' electric guitars are not from the TG77 either of course. All the synth sounds and bass are from the TG77. Heavily layered, processed and mixed in the DAW. Some of the effects used on the individual patches later in the video are from external effects.

00:00 Intro Song (by Espen Kraft)
00:34 TG77 Synthesizer
00:55 How the TG77 works - full breakdown/tutorial
09:22 The evolution of the Yamaha flagship synths
10:23 Some nice TG77 sounds/patches
17:03 Do you want one?"

Why the Korg DSS-1 matters

video upload by Espen Kraft

"Korg DSS-1 sampling synthesizer from 1986. Not a very good sampler, because of it's incredibly cumbersome sampling process, but it excel if you use it as a synth. With its capability to manually draw your waveforms, or additive synthesis, you don't have to use the sampling engine at all.

These are a variety of my favourite sounds made up from drawn waveforms and samples.

If you're interested in a in-depth tutorial about sampling on the DSS-1 I have that for sale. Check out the demo video here: • Korg DSS-1 | in-depth 35minutes sampling t... [below]

I overloaded my external effects on some of the sounds in this video hence a bit of distortion here and there. Lexicon PCM70 reverb and Zoom MS70CDR chorus and delay."

Korg DSS-1 | in-depth 35minutes sampling tutorial | Download now

video upload by Espen Kraft

"In this video I go through step-by-step how to sample your own sounds into the Korg DSS-1. From scratch, all the way up to a Mult-sound which is one of two "oscillators" of the DSS-1.
I also show how to draw your own waveforms and use these as building blocks for a multi-sound."

Roland MKS-100 | The first Roland sampler module (and very few knows about it)

video upload by Espen Kraft

"The Roland MKS-100 from 1986. The Module version of the S-10 with a few minor differences, among them the Midi Mono mode. Sampling time and memory is the same on the S-10, MKS-100 and S-220 (the third and last sampling module in this early series)
Four memory slots (ABCD) with a total sampling time of 4,4 seconds at 30Khz. (8,8 sec @ 15Khz). The S-10, MKS-100 and S-220 all used the Quick Disk (QD) system to load and save sounds.

Check out my Roland S-10, MKS-100,S-220 sample library here: • Roland S-10 Sample Pack | Download now! [video below]

Big thanks to Anders Enger Jensen for lending me the MKS-100 for this video.

Some references say the MKS-100 is from 1987, but Roland made these in 1986 through to the end of the 80s."

Roland S-10 Sample Pack | Download now!
video upload by Espen Kraft

"A brand new sample pack for the Roland S-10, MKS-100 and S-220.
51 different samples taken from my vintage collection of synths and drum machines.
These are QD image files so you have to have a QD floppy emulator installed in your S-10 to use these.
Price is $15USD or €15Euros if you prefer that currency. Send me an email if you're interested. I only sell these through email. You'll find my email in the "about" here on my channel.
All the sounds heard in the demo video are coming from this pack. External reverb is on some of the samples in the video.

I think the Roland 12-bit S-samplers from the 80s has a special sound to them. If you have a S-10/MKS-100/S-220 and you just want some new cool sounds for it then this pack might be for you. These sounds can not be found anywhere else. They're all made by me one way or the other."

Vintage Synths Doing Classic Horror Movie Themes | Top 8

video upload by Espen Kraft

"8 horror movie theme covers performed with a variety of classic 80s and 90s synths, samplers and drum machines.

The thumbnail image is not AI generated."

Roland JX-3P, Yamaha KX88, Roland Juno-106, Roland JX-8P, Elka OMB 5, Bit01, Roland Jupiter-8, John Bowen Solaris, Oberheim Matrix-12, Sequential Six-Trak, & Prophet-VS.

A Blockbuster Theme Made with Vintage Synth Gear | Christmas Edition

video upload by Espen Kraft

"The Forrest Gump theme (Feather Song) made with vintage gear:

Roland R-8 drums (SN-R8-04 ELECTRONIC Card)
Roland S-10 sampler
Korg DW-8000
Emax
Emax II"

The Casio FZ-1 Is the Hardest-Hitting Vintage Sampler Nobody Talks About

video upload by Espen Kraft

"The Casio FZ-1 sampler from 1987. Here represented with its module version FZ-10M.
This demo song is made with only custom samples from it.
Some of the screenshots are from my in-depth video tutorial no longer available on my channel.
If you're interested in any of my older long video tutorials they can be purchased from me directly on email or Patreon."

Stranger Things inspired synth epicness

video upload by Espen Kraft

"A little chord sequence and sounds inspired by the (combined) Stranger Things soundtrack.
There are many layers of synths packed into this one minute:

Sequential Prophet VS Strings
Arturia Prophet VS Filtered Strings
Arturia CS-80 arpeggio
Roland Juno-106 Bells
Roland JX-8P Pad
Kawai K3m Bass"

DuckTales "Moon Theme" with Yamaha TX802 and TX816 | Which is which?

video upload by Espen Kraft

"Moon Theme from DuckTales made with the Yamaha TX816 and TX802, but which version is which? Part of a longer comparisons video between these two Yamaha flagship DX modules from the 80s."

Insert Coin: Emax Samplers, Casio SK-1 & Roland Kung-Fu Synth

video upload by Espen Kraft

"Emax, Emax II, Casio SK-1, Roland Junos and everything mashed together with arcade sounds and kung-fu.
This is a blend of the studio production and a live performance of the track.

The track itself is called "The Kung-Fu Arcade" and is available (digital download) from me directly upon request."

E.T. | With vintage synths and a Commodore 64

video upload by Espen Kraft

"Gear used:
Commodore 64 (Yes, this is played live, hands on, just as you see it in the video)
Roland S-10, JX-8P, Alpha Juno 2
Yamaha DX7s
Kontakt Orch.samples
Custom drum samples"

The über-quirky, but fun Memorymoog sequencer explained | Synth geeks are strange people

video upload by Espen Kraft

"Memorymoog plus. Polyphonic and monophonic sequencing with CV & Gate old school and tons of fun. Syncing the Memorymoog can also be a challenge."

Roland Jupiter-8 Ambient Experiments

video upload by Espen Kraft

"Some simple chord progressions (at best) with the LFO pulsing away while I adjust different parameters in search for some ambient moods to use in a project (work) for someone. 10 minutes of this type of "noodling" will often open up something to dig deeper into."

Kawai K3m synthesizer | 80s string sound design

video upload by Espen Kraft

"The Kawai K3 is a hybrid synth from the 80s with digitally stored waveforms and a beefy analog filter (SSM2044) with resonance.
I use the module version K3m controlled by a Yamaha KX88 and Behringer BCR2000 in this video."