Anyone here own a Yamaha Sk30

[Floss]

This synth sounds great. I love it!!

The weird thing though is that the polysynth, organ and strings output alot lower than the solo synth in volume... is this the case for anyone else??? The solosynth outputs at the same lavel as most of my other vintage gear, but not the case with the other sounds. Thanks

[Kenneth]

I've never used one, but I think they sound awesome. The band Sigur Ros has used one on all of their records, it's quite a big part of their sound. As for the volume levels, I think there may be an issue with something. One thing I would remind you to check is whether there is a separate output jack for the solo synth than for everything else. That may be what is happening.

[zoomtheline]

I have a sk50d and never noticed any level issues. But surely careful use of the mixing knobs should level them out. They don't all have to be on full wack.

[Allthesound]

I had to set the other sections a little higher than the mono section on mine for the levels to be equal. I just assumed it was normal but didnt have anything else to compare it with. Great synth i miss mine at times. I also had a CS5 at the time and used it with the mono section on the SK30 that was a blast. My only gripe with it was the poly synth section was kinda weak had it been a little more flexible i would never have parted with it.

I was just digging around some of my pictures and found some shots i took of the inside i will post them here in the Vintage synth guts galllery for the heck of it.

[Broadwave]

Still got mine, I'll never let it go as it has a great original sound that nothing else can emulate. No level problems here though.

Being a bit of a fan, I believe Sigur Ros use 3 x SK20's

[StepLogik]

SK series are very underrated 'boards. I've never owned one and have passed up chances to pick them up cheap - the lack of interfacing has always put me off. But, they sound absolutely lovely.

Check this demo I found:

[sammy123]

I have a SK50D. It is massive. It has a really great sound. Mine needs a bit of work. I really like the monosynth.

[Floss]

The ORGAN, POLY, and STRINGS (all equal in level) out put at HALF the level of the solo synth. hmm that is the ONLY problem with this synth....MUST FIX... what could be the problem? thanks


p.s. selling my CS-5, i dont need it because the mono section has what i need, and I dont know about the main page of this site, they sound VERY identical! My SK has more bass. The only annoying thing is the solo only plays in designated areas on the board and not through out the entire keyboard

[Floss]

Thanks Kronik for sending me your wav files!!!! mine sounds pretty close to yours. I don't think im too concerned about the out put thing anymore.... Its loud enough lolll.

Is there a hack of some sort to make the SOLO play on the entire keyboard spectrum? thanks

What are some essential pedals that would make this thing sore? i can decide if i should go reverb or deleay with rotary..

[nvbrkr]

My SK-20 sounds nice with just about any pedal. I've used analog chorus and analog delay usually on it though. Since it's "divide down" technology it tends to benefit greatly from reverb in all cases. For recordings I've used rotary cab emulation for the organ, although I'm perfectly happy using it with just the onboard one when I'm just sketching out ideas or learning how to play new songs.

Instead of rushing to buy more choruses or phasers I can recommend combining the effected and dry signals from the back of the unit with a mixer (i.e. the "polysynth" and the "mixed" outputs). That way you can alter the level of the onboard chorus effects and switching them on won't result in as cheesy a sound. Combining the outputs also results in a very thick sound and it can make the SK-20 sound almost like a 2-OSC synth. That's the way I've used it for basses, especially.

I've used the SK-20 for over 4 years now and I think the synth section sounds the best when you keep the "slow attack" and "sustain" buttons switched off. You'll get the most pleasing results if you let the filter ADSR to handle the tone shaping as those two (VCA) controls mentioned usually let some of that "divide down" character to seep through. Just the way I prefer the sound of the instrument myself.

[Bitexion]

SK series are very underrated 'boards. I've never owned one and have passed up chances to pick them up cheap - the lack of interfacing has always put me off. But, they sound absolutely lovely.

Check this demo I found:

That demo was fricking beautiful. I want one now.

[Floss]

My SK-20 sounds nice with just about any pedal. I've used analog chorus and analog delay usually on it though. Since it's "divide down" technology it tends to benefit greatly from reverb in all cases. For recordings I've used rotary cab emulation for the organ, although I'm perfectly happy using it with just the onboard one when I'm just sketching out ideas or learning how to play new songs.

Instead of rushing to buy more choruses or phasers I can recommend combining the effected and dry signals from the back of the unit with a mixer (i.e. the "polysynth" and the "mixed" outputs). That way you can alter the level of the onboard chorus effects and switching them on won't result in as cheesy a sound. Combining the outputs also results in a very thick sound and it can make the SK-20 sound almost like a 2-OSC synth. That's the way I've used it for basses, especially.

I've used the SK-20 for over 4 years now and I think the synth section sounds the best when you keep the "slow attack" and "sustain" buttons switched off. You'll get the most pleasing results if you let the filter ADSR to handle the tone shaping as those two (VCA) controls mentioned usually let some of that "divide down" character to seep through. Just the way I prefer the sound of the instrument myself.

Awesome tip!

Anyone know a good solution to cleaning those sliders... they are noisy when moving up... the solo synth wave, and Pwm in particular.

Also, if you don't mind how much did you guys pay for one of these things.... the sk30 is going over 1k. I got mine for 400 a while ago

[zoomtheline]

I paid £200 for my Sk50d. get them while they are still not cool.

[pinksoir]

I have an SK20 too. I got it two years ago for €350 inc postage, I think. I love it. Yeah, the synth section is very limited, but the oscillator/filter just sound so good, especially the square wave. They're so rich. I've got a CS15 and a CS50 too, and when I got the 50 I thought about selling the SK20, but it's such a unique and interesting sound that I couldn't part with it. I use it all the time, nothing else sounds like it. The organ is a bonus. Early FM synthesis implementation I believe.

[Bitexion]

I paid £200 for my Sk50d. get them while they are still not cool.

Spotted an SK-20 in Norwegian ads today for £500..guess they're still cool.