To get the an1x working like new, if your under no professional help for repairs:

1. turn off the an1x 2 take off the back 3 take out the lithium battery 4 remove the processor 5 reset the cartridge and fasten it nice and tight so the processor is connected correctly (tight) 6. put a new lithium battery (check the type and write it down you'll need it!) 7.double check everything you just did (all wires should be connected) 8.screw the back on right away don't loose the screws (they're black) 9. hold down the numbers on the voice selection menu (7 8 9) while it's being turned on and hit (9) for all restore

If the popping and clicking stopped it was because of low battery and bad processor placement.

Don't forget to lower the dutune to 1 when in unison mode to get a bigger yet focused sound also use the on board Aphex enhancer FX at around 15-25% mix and the AN1X will blow away any Nord, JP8000 or MS2000.

Ok you only get two part multi, 10 voices and the interface is crap to say the least in fact it was this that put most people off. The naff presets and cheap looks akin to the entry level CS1x didn’t do the machine any justice.

You do get an excellent quality keyboard with a decent appreciator and fantastic analogue style step sequencer. Combine the sequencer with the keyboard and you have quick accesses to over 30 sequencers (depending on where you split point is) with the ability to transpose with the other half. The sequencer does note, velocity gate (good for legato and portamento) and most importantly ant MIDI controller you want. A very powerful tool but the only main gripe is that the sequencer doesn’t respond to MIDI start/stop so a quick finger on the sequencer button is often required. On top of that you get a four track free EG sequencer that can be synced to MIDI lengths or upto 16 seconds, great for evolving pads. Both can work together for amazing evolving rhythmic sequences.

The specs look pretty straightforward but there’s enough in there to give you a wide range of sounds. The ring mod sound excellent as does the FM but the feedback function is an overlooked strength that makes this VA’s sound stand out from the rest of the crowd. Use the feedback with caution but it really thickens up the sound almost like overdriving a real VCF but take the edge of your VCO’s and this effects the feedback effect as well as resonance settings. This really makes the synth behave in a very organic way almost like a real analogue, whack the synth into unison and it will hold its own against a Jupiter Xpander or Prophet 5. The FX are basic by some of todays standards but what you do get it top quality. A nice rich phaser, Yamahas classy symphonic chorus (good for Synthex emulations) and a licensed Aphex enhancer for when you want things to sound harsher like a real vintage beast (just turn down the onboard eq at the high end).

The 16 part mod matrix was something I didn’t really get my head around on my first AN1x but blows away most other VA synths (apart form Waldorf and Access maybe). The 8 knobs can act as modulation controllers as well your usual mod wheel, velocity, ribbon, ect. E.g you can have one knob controlling 16 different parameters at varying degrees for each destination or simply have various different controllers controlling different parameters at the rate you want them. The morphing feature is almost like a combination and works really well with subtle changes or any parameter that doesn’t step.

If Yamaha had given this synth a decent interface and better looks like the JP8000 then it would had been a legend and perhaps spawned more synths in the range to compete with the Supernovas ect but sadly the four voice AN200 was all we got which was another example of Yamaha’s cost cutting inhibiting a great synth design (DX7 anyone?)

However there is a solution!

I’ve made a preset for the Doepfer Drehbank which covers pretty much all the sound parameters in bank 1 and all parameters for the 16 setp sequencer in bank 2 and now the AN1x is one of my favourite ever polysynths. Ok AN1x’s are cheap but combined with a Drehbank you could get a second hand Virus but you won’t get as many ‘hands on’ parameters and combined with the sequencer blows away an MS2000 (except you don’t get a step lights).

All this fun and power in one package makes the AN1x (combined with a Drehbank) one of the most underrated synths ever and if you can live with the two part multi (you will only ever be playing two sounds at once anyway) and the 10note polyphony (not so much an issue with two parts) then your onto an legend.

-1* for the interface and crap looks.

cons: - only 128 program memories - casing looks cheap and in fact is

This is a remarkable synth. At it's price s/h, it could just be a fully functional 61-key midi controller, but it also provides access to a sound engine that keeps on surprising me with an in-built virtual prophet 5, fm and some deep modulation possibilities. Its immediate strengths are for dance and electronic music, but with some effort, pads, strings and ambient sfx emerge to rival a 'warmer' k5000s. questioning why spectrasonics didn't use this synth for 'atmospheres.' I originally sold a korg z1 to buy the an1x and absynth 3. Of all those 3, the an1x is the most fun to play, and provides the most for its associated price. The z1 is much praised for its extended modulation options, but imo it lacked the character or inspiration of the an1x. Furthermore, its immediate rivals of the nords and jp8000 tend to be at least 100-200 pounds more expensive, whilst providing less of an intense synth architecture than the an1x.

And that's the annoying thing about virtual analog. It has nothing to do with analog! Not even the knob-twiddling because the parameters change in steps, so no clean hi-res filter sweeps here.

I've played this synth a lot; I've recorded it and played it back; I even tried to sell it once! But there is one thing that never changes, it's that it will always have this "digital tinge" to it. Maybe a good thing for some people. Not for me.

Anyway, glad I got that out of my system. It's still a very cool synth and I give it a 4. I can still always use it as a controller... =)