OpenLLM-France/wikimedia huggingface dataset:
# Roland TR-808

The Roland TR-808 Rhythm Composer, commonly known as the 808, is a drum machine manufactured by Roland Corporation between 1980 and 1983. It was one of the first drum machines to allow users to program rhythms instead of using preset patterns. Unlike its nearest competitor at the time, the more expensive Linn LM-1, the 808 generates sounds using analog synthesis rather than by playing samples.
The 808 was a commercial failure, as electronic music had yet to become mainstream and many producers wanted more realistic drum sounds. After building approximately 12,000 units, Roland discontinued the 808 after its semiconductors became impossible to restock. It was succeeded by the TR-909 in 1983.
Over the course of the 1980s, the 808 attracted a cult following among underground musicians for its affordability on the used market, ease of use and idiosyncratic sounds, particularly its deep, booming bass drum. It became a cornerstone of the emerging electronic, dance and hip-hop genres, popularized by early hits such as "Planet Rock" by Afrika Bambaataa and the Soulsonic Force and "Sexual Healing" by Marvin Gaye.
The 808 was eventually used on more hit records than any other drum machine. Its popularity in hip-hop has made it one of the most influential inventions in popular music, comparable to the Fender Stratocaster's impact on rock. Its sounds are included with music software and modern drum machines and it has inspired unlicensed recreations.

## Quotes about the Roland TR-808

* The famous low-end of the 808's kick-drum stimulated the creation of newer, sparser dance styles such as Miami Bass, where booming and distorted sound comprise the key sonic signature.
** Oli Freke of Mixmag (April 26, 2021)
* The TR-808 was not initially well received - it was expensive and people were far more excited by the newer drum machines such as the Linn LM-1 Drum Machine which used real drum samples for greater realism. The 808 got its break (pun intended) in the electro and hip hop scenes of early 80s' New York. Replicating the beats of funk and post-disco grooves caused vast quantities of records to be made with its distinctive cowbell and its still excellent clap sound. The track 'Planet Rock' by Afrika Bambaataa in 1982 was the track to alert the world to its deep booming kicks, crisp hats and sizzling snares.
** Oli Freke of Mixmag (April 26, 2021)
# Synthesizer

A synthesizer (also synthesiser or synth) is an electronic musical instrument that generates audio signals. Synthesizers typically create sounds by generating waveforms through methods including subtractive synthesis, additive synthesis and frequency modulation synthesis. These sounds may be altered by components such as filters, which cut or boost frequencies; envelopes, which control articulation, or how notes begin and end; and low-frequency oscillators, which modulate parameters such as pitch, volume, or filter characteristics affecting timbre. Synthesizers are typically played with keyboards or controlled by sequencers, software or other instruments, and may be synchronized to other equipment via MIDI.

## Quotes about the synthesizer

* Synthesizers are the bedrock of modern electronic music. The relation of the sounds they make to the music of the day is something that's always fascinated me: could certain genres have happened without the specific sounds of a specific synth to drive them? Would some styles we have today never exist, or would other ways to create the effects, moods and vibes have been discovered? It's an unanswerable question, but what can be said is there are a number of influential synths that have played an absolutely fundamental role in modern music and some genres even depend 100% on one particular model of synth.
** Oli Freke of Mixmag (April 26, 2021)
# EMS VCS 3

The EMS VCS 3 is a portable analogue synthesizer with a flexible modular voice architecture introduced by Electronic Music Studios (EMS) in 1969. EMS released the product under various names.

## Quotes about the EMS VCS 3

* It seems hard to think in terms of 'bargain prices' when describing EMS' diminutive VCS3, and yet when it was released in 1969, it was comparatively affordable. Today, they are among the most valuable vintage synthesizers, bringing in over 7k on the used market. [...] There aren't too many of them around these days, and EMS has, at long last, stopped manufacturing even the small number of specially ordered instruments that kept the company alive for so many decades. If you have one, you don't need us to tell you of its worth. The VCS3 is, quite simply, a marvel.
** Scot Solida of MusicRadar (May 26, 2022)
* The VCS3 (and its later, nearly identical cousin-in-a-suitcase, the Synthi AKS) have a strong presence in music history. From Tangerine Dream to Jean-Michel Jarre to Gong and Hawkwind, just about anyone who made an impact on electronic music in the 1970s used an EMS synth.The VCS3, with its stylish, polished L-shaped enclosure, was so hip that every single member of Pink Floyd claimed to play it on the liner notes of The Dark Side of the Moon, even though the uncredited Synthi AKS was quite clearly used for the most significant electronic bits.
** Scot Solida of MusicRadar (May 26, 2022)
* Looking like it was pulled from the cockpit of a Mongo Rocketship, the VCS3's design is enough to send a synth boffin into paroxysms of pleasure. Big, colour-capped knobs, a push-pin modulation matrix and a military grade joystick give the instrument a certain air of 'laboratory chic'. It virtually begs you to use it to create weird, atonal avant garde music. [...] The VCS3 invites experimentation and its users are happy to oblige. Even veteran synthesists can achieve unexpected results simply by shoving a few pins into the matrix and wiggling the joystick. Just don't expect it to stay in tune. Oscillator stability is not one of the instruments' strong points.
** Scot Solida of MusicRadar (May 26, 2022)
# Prophet-5

The Prophet-5 is an analog synthesizer manufactured by the American company Sequential. It was designed by Dave Smith and John Bowen in 1977. It was the first polyphonic synthesizer with fully programmable memory. Before the Prophet-5, synthesizers required users to adjust controls to change sounds, with no guarantee of exactly recreating a sound. Sequential used microprocessors to allow users to recall sounds instantly rather than having to recreate them manually. The Prophet-5 facilitated a move from synthesizers creating unpredictable sounds to producing "a standard package of familiar sounds".

## Quotes about the Prophet-5

* Apart from being the first synth to offer micro-processor control for patch-memory saving and recall, in 1978 the Prophet-5 was the synth that all musicians wanted. After years of synth-mono-dom, they longed to play chords, and as one session player once told me, it was the only synth you needed! It certainly shook up the late 70s market.
** Computer Music of Music Radar (June 26, 2024)
* With its oiled wood side panels and big, tactile buttons, it looked like it cost a fortune and, well, it did.
** Scot Solida of MusicRadar (May 26, 2022)
* Unlike the largely monophonic synths of the late 70s, such as the Minimoog, it had five note polyphony. This meant that more just than basslines and lead solos could be played, extending the musical output of synthesizers to include full chords and other polyphonic accompaniments. Not only did it have a rich five note polyphonic sound, it was the first synthesizer to use integrated circuits to provide fully recallable presets.
** Oli Freke of Mixmag (April 26, 2021)
* It sounded nothing short of gorgeous, with a rich, full sound that was ideal for thick, nasal brass, deep, droning pads, burly basses and those searing osc-sync leads.
** Scot Solida of MusicRadar (May 26, 2022)
* The Prophet-5 was, in short, exactly what performing musicians were clamouring for and, though it was priced at a whopping four grand, it sold in droves, making Dave Smith's Sequential Circuits an industry leader almost overnight and spawning legions of copycats from every corner of the globe.
** Scot Solida of MusicRadar (May 26, 2022)
# PPG Wave

The PPG Wave is a series of synthesizers built by the German company Palm Products GmbH from 1981 to 1987.

## Quotes about the PPG Wave

* PPG was the vision of one man, Wolfgang Palm. It was his contention that the limitations of analogue oscillators could be circumvented with the use of short, digital waveforms stored in a linear 'wavetable'. His vision came to fruition as the PPG Wave. [...] The PPG's legacy can be felt even today. German synth wizards Waldorf continue to mine Palm's wavetable technology, having produced a long line of wavetable instruments starting with the Microwave in 1990. It even produced a virtual version of the PPG nearly a decade ago and the company's current Blofeld and Largo instruments are jam-packed with wavetables lifted from the PPG. Palm, meanwhile, has put his name to a range of PPG-branded iOS and plugin synths.
** Scot Solida of MusicRadar (May 26, 2022)
* This big blue marvel combined Palm's digitally stored wavetables with a classic resonant low-pass filter, LFO and a handful of envelope generators. Users could modulate through the wavetables using a variety of mod sources, resulting in a lively, exciting sound quite dissimilar from the analogue synths of the day. Though the PPG contained a few waveforms drawn from sampled instruments, Palm offered no apologies for its distinctly synthetic flavour. The PPG could turn out spiky basses (think Frankie's Relax) and evocative digital atmospheres. PPG owners who bought the associated Waveterm computer could work up their own wavetables and, in the 2.3 version, even do a bit of sampling. The Wave was a lofty dream machine, costing nine grand or more. As such, it was rarely seen outside of the studios of the rich and famous.
** Scot Solida of MusicRadar (May 26, 2022)
# ARP 2600

The ARP 2600 is a subtractive synthesizer first produced by ARP Instruments in 1971.

## Quotes about the ARP 2600

* ARP 2600s are trading for silly prices these days. Units that were given away for pennies are selling for many thousands of dollars on the used market. [...] The earliest models are hard to repair, thanks to ARPs habit of encasing the circuits in epoxy.
** Scot Solida of MusicRadar (May 26, 2022)
* We've heard 2600s producing everything from pseudo sequences to full on drum beats, complete with swing.
** Scot Solida of MusicRadar (May 26, 2022)
* If the Minimoog was designed to simplify modular synthesis for mass consumption, then the ARP 2600 was created to haul the whole kit and caboodle into the hands of performing musicians.
** Scot Solida of MusicRadar (May 26, 2022)
* Rather than limit the options with a written-in-stone signal path as Moog did, the 2600 presented a fully patchable instrument in a fairly compact package. Offering three oscillators, noise, filter, ring mod and reverb, the 2600's fixed signal path could be defeated by patching cables into just about any point in the instrument's architecture. This meant that it was as complex as you needed it to be. Respectably complex patches could be created without plugging in a single cable, but once you chose to do so, the sky was the limit. We've heard 2600s producing everything from pseudo sequences to full on drum beats, complete with swing.
** Scot Solida of MusicRadar (May 26, 2022)
* In 1977, we caught the first glimpse of a film franchise which is still very much in progress today. Star Wars Episode IV - A New Hope was the first of the franchise to make it to celluloid, thanks to director George Lucas. The actors were accompanied by two ‘droids’; C3PO was upright and humanistic, while R2D2 was short and had a voice that was a generated series of bleeps and slides from an ARP 2600.
** Computer Music of Music Radar (June 26, 2024)
# Roland JD-800

The Roland JD-800 is a digital synthesizer that was manufactured between 1991 and 1996. It features many knobs and sliders for patch editing and performance control — features that some manufacturers, including Roland, had been omitting in the name of streamlining since the inception of the Yamaha DX7. The JD-800 thus became very popular with musicians who wished to take a hands-on approach to patch programming. The introduction in the manual states that Roland's intention with the JD-800 was to "return to the roots of synthesis".

## Quotes about the

* Like the D-50, the JD combined sample-based oscillators with a fairly typical signal path that included a resonant filter, envelope generators and the like. However, the JD-800 offered something not available on any other sample-based synthesizer: a bucket load of sliders. Yep, the JD harkened back to the analogue era, offering scads of real-time control (that, alas, could only be transmitted via SysEx). It was big, impressive and utterly sexy, even if it was made mostly of plastic. More than that, it sounded out-of-this-world. At a time when manufacturers were doing their best to cram as many grainy 8-bit low-rate samples into an instruments' ROM as possible, Roland used only hi-res stuff, resulting in outstanding sound quality.
** Scot Solida of MusicRadar (May 26, 2022)
* The JD-800 was released a decade too soon. The analogue revival was still years off and sales fizzled (at least by D-50 standards). However, Roland knew what it had, and the technology behind the JD-800 would pop up again and again in its best-selling series of rack-mountable MIDI modules.
** Scot Solida of MusicRadar (May 26, 2022)
# Korg Wavestation

The Korg Wavestation is a vector synthesis synthesizer first produced in the early 1990s and later re-released as a software synthesizer in 2004. Its primary innovation was Wave Sequencing, a method of multi-timbral sound generation in which different PCM waveform data are played successively, resulting in continuously evolving sounds. The Wavestation's "Advanced Vector Synthesis" sound architecture resembled early vector synths such as the Sequential Circuits Prophet VS. Designed as a "pure" synthesizer rather than a music workstation, it lacked an on-board song sequencer, yet the Wavestation, unlike any synthesizer prior to its release, was capable of generating complex, lush timbres and rhythmic sequences that sounded like a complete soundtrack by pressing only one key. Keyboard Magazine readers gave the Wavestation its "Hardware Innovation of the Year" award, and in 1995 Keyboard listed it as one of the "20 Instruments that Shook the World." The Wavestation lineup consisted of four models: the Wavestation and Wavestation EX keyboards, and the Wavestation A/D and Wavestation SR rackmount sound modules.

## Quotes about the Korg Wavestation

* To understand the pull of the Wavestation, you have to take yourself back to 1990. Analogue was dead and FM was on life-support. Sample-playback instruments had taken hold and the biggest sellers of the day were seen as little more than glorified organs, capable of calling up a reasonably convincing sampled ensemble for the Holiday Inn crowd: "Thank you ladies and gents, I'll be here all week. Don't forget to tip your waitresses". It was into this very environment that Korg dared to release the Wavestation. The product of a US-based team of designers rescued from the now-defunct Sequential Circuits, the Wavestation shared the vector synthesis of Sequential's Prophet-VS. The onboard samples were of a decidedly electronic nature, with none of the usual drum kits, pianos or nylon guitars (for the moment, anyhow). They could be stacked, layered, filtered and processed by a still-impressive selection of effects. Better still, you could crossfade and blend your sounds with the joystick mounted above the pitch and mod wheels. That might have been enough to shake synthesists out of their doldrums, but it was the inclusion of wavesequencing that tipped the scales. The Wavestation gave users the ability to string any of the onboard waveforms together in a row with individual control over pitch, volume, and crossfade time. Using this technology, it was a breeze to fashion sounds that shifted and evolved over time. Complex rhythmic passages could likewise be created. It was, and is, brilliant, though it is seen as being difficult to program. Fortunately, there are software editors available for the thing even to this day, not to mention an utterly convincing virtual incarnation from Korg itself.
** Scot Solida of MusicRadar (May 26, 2022)
# Yamaha CS-80

The Yamaha CS-80 is an analog synthesizer introduced by Yamaha Corporation in 1977. It supports true 8-voice polyphony, with two independent synthesizer layers per voice each with its own set of front panel controls, in addition to a number of hardwired preset voice settings and four parameter settings stores based on banks of subminiature potentiometers (rather than the digital programmable presets featured on the Prophet-5 introduced soon after). It has exceptionally complete performer expression features, such as a layered keyboard that was both velocity-sensitive (like a piano's) and pressure-sensitive ("after-touch") but unlike most modern keyboards the aftertouch could be applied to individual voices rather than in common, and a ribbon controller allowing for polyphonic pitch-bends and glissandos. Production of the instrument ceased in 1980.

## Quotes about the Yamaha CS-80

* Everything about the CS-80 was big. Physically, it was a massive beast, weighing in at over 200lbs. It has a huge, garish front-panel, festooned with rocker buttons, sliders and the single best ribbon controller ever devised.
** Scot Solida of MusicRadar (May 26, 2022)
* Eight voices of polyphony, aftertouch and distinct ring modulation were among the features [the CS-80 offered]. [...] Quirky and cantankerous, it was possessed of a sort of pseudo-programmability in the form of a trap door that hid most of a miniature front panel and could be set up before your show. If you dared take the thing to a gig, that is.
** Scot Solida of MusicRadar (May 26, 2022)
* [The CS-80 was] hugely unstable, with analogue oscillators that drifted at every opportunity. Too hot? Too cold? Bang out of tune. Too humid? Forget it. Need to move it? Nope. The mere act of tipping it on end to wheel it about on its casters would throw it out of whack. If you were one of the lucky few who had a stable CS-80 (or could afford to hire in for the intimidating calibration process), you would have been able to avail yourself of a device capable of unparalleled expression. The CS-80 felt like a real instrument. It could be made to bend to your mood and will. It responded beautifully to aftertouch. The CS-80 could scream like a banshee, cry plaintively, or tap out a pattern as delicate as rain on a stained glass window.
** Scot Solida of MusicRadar (May 26, 2022)
* It cleverly provided four memories among the presets, accessed via a small panel which, when lifted, exposed all of the synth’s control faders in miniature. There were even rumours of musicians needing to have their floors reinforced to cope. Just ask Vangelis, who of course made the CS-80 one of the central components for his soundtrack to the Ridley Scott film Blade Runner.
** Computer Music of MusicRadar (June 26, 2024)
# Oberheim OB-Xa

The Oberheim OB-Xa was the second of Oberheim's OB-series polyphonic analog subtractive synthesizers, replacing the OB-X with updated features.

## Quotes about the Oberheim OB-Xa

* Like the OB-X that preceded it, the OB-Xa was available in four-, six- or eight-voice versions and sported a somewhat simplified dual oscillator signal path. The OB-Xa, however, added a 24 dB filter to the OB-X's 12 dB job and, in fact, you could create layered sounds that combined both for a more complex and engaging sound. And what a sound it was.
** Scot Solida of MusicRadar (May 26, 2022)
* What a sound [...] The OB-Xa may be the single phattest sounding instrument we have ever heard. Users who dare to click that Unison button may have to have their teeth re-enamelled. Yeah. It's big. As with all Oberheim instruments of the time, the OB-Xa could be lashed together with a DMX or DX drum machine and a DSX sequencer to form a complete Oberheim 'System'. Such a System in full swing was a sight to behold in those pre-MIDI days, a technological wet dream that was far out of reach of all but the most successful musicians of the day.
** Scot Solida of MusicRadar (May 26, 2022)
# Strymon (company)

Strymon is an American manufacturer of audio equipment, originally called Damage Control Engineering. They are best known for their line of high end guitar effects pedals which use a mixture of analog circuitry and digital signal processing. The company is based in Westlake Village, California, and manufactures products in the United States.
Under the Damage Control name, the company's product line included several guitar preamps, distortions, multi-effects, and delays which utilized tubes within the pedals themselves. The Strymon product line includes distortion, delay, reverb, chorus, flanger, and compressor pedals for guitar.

## Quotes about Strymon

* A truly modern classic, the BigSky reverb brings heavenly-sounding reverb down to earth and places it firmly at the feet of guitarists. Underneath the bonnet the BigSky boasts a whopping 12 studio-quality reverb machines ranging from the traditional Hall, Room, Spring, and Plate to more progressive modes such as Chorale, Shimmer, and Nonlinear.
** Art Thompson and Rod Brakes of Guitar Player (June 29, 2011)
# Marshall JCM800

The JCM800 series (Models 2203, 2204, 2205, and 2210) is a line of guitar amplifiers made by Marshall Amplification. The series was introduced in 1981. Although models 1959 and 1987 had been in production since 1965 and the 2203 and 2204 had been in production since 1975, they were redesigned and introduced as JCM800 amplifiers in 1981. The JCM800 amplifiers became a staple of 1980s hard rock and heavy metal bands.

## Quotes about the Marshall JCM800

* With the newly introduced Master Volume feature, the JCM800 allowed for crunchy, sizzling distortion at low output levels, making it the amplifier of choice for heaps of hard rock and metal players, including Slayer’s Kerry King and Jeff Hanneman and Slash of Guns N’ Roses.
** Damian Fanelli of Guitar World (April 24, 2020)
* Sure, we can discuss which amp was the biggest gamechanger. But just imagine hearing this amp paired with a Tube Screamer back in the early 1980s. The tone was unlike anything ever heard at the time. The original variants featured only one channel. But being a specially designed tube-driven amp, JCM800 entered some super-heavy territories when paired with appropriate overdrive pedals.
** David Slavković of Ultimate-Guitar (Jul 23, 2021)
# Gibson ES-335

The Gibson ES-335 is a semi-hollow body semi-acoustic guitar introduced by the Gibson Guitar Corporation as part of its ES (Electric Spanish) series in 1958. It has a solid maple wood block running through the center of its body with hollow upper bouts and two violin-style f-holes cut into the top over the hollow chambers.[1] Gibson has released numerous variations and models based on the ES-335.

## Quotes about the Gibson ES-335

* The ES-335 has gone on to become the benchmark in which all other semi-hollow body guitars are measured. [...] Now, while it's true that the ES is perfect for blues and jazz, this massive semi-hollow is actually a lot more versatile than it may first seem – in fact, we'd go as far to say that it's one of the most adaptable guitars in Gibson's extensive lineup. The elegant ES-335 can be seen fronting stadium rock bands, laying down the foundations for pop punk, playing away the blues in a smoky club and so much more.
** Daryl Robertson of Guitar World (April 5, 2023)