The TX802 is the 2U rack module big brother of the Yamaha DX7 MkII synth. Unlike the DX7 II it has 16-note polyphony and can produce eight timbres simultaneously. The eight tone generators – each of which can produce two notes – can be linked to get 4-note polyphony, 8-note polyphony, etc, all the way to 16-note polyphony. In addition to a mixed stereo output, each of the eight tone generators has a dedicated audio output

In many ways the signature sound of the 1980s, the DX7 is capable of more than the bell-like pads & bass sounds it became famous far. There’s an almost infinite variety of patches available online – the TX802 will load all DX7 patches – and software patch editors are commonplace

The TX802 has pull-out patch & operator cards under the display – just like the famous TX816

The MuZines article (see the Links tab) gets deep into the technical side of the TX802 and the differences between it and other Yamaha FM synths. If you’re an FM synthesis expert you may not need it but, for the rest of us, it’s a great primer

“Essentially, the TX802 is a rack-mounted DX7IID – not DX7IIFD since there is a cartridge slot but no onboard disk drive. Like the DX7IID (but unlike the TX802’s predecessor, the TX816) there are full editing facilities onboard. The TX802 is also capable of generating up to eight timbres (or “instruments”) simultaneously – unlike the DX7IID, which only generates two. And each of the eight tone generators has its own audio output (like the TX816) and, in addition, there is a stereo audio output. Now make a cup of tea and read that again” – MuZines

“The TX802’s sound is professional quality, clear, and strong – really no comparison to NI’s FM7 softsynth. (The FM7 isn’t bad, but compared side by side, the 802 is the real deal.)”

“32 years old and this is still a great synth. Also, kudos to Yamaha for putting all of their user manuals online”

“The TX802 was designed to be a preset machine. You simply layer presets in multitimbral mode to create new, interesting voices”

In excellent condition with only minor marks. Photos show the synth for sale

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The MKS-7 is a multitimbral synth with four dedications sections: Chords, Bass, Melody and Drums. The first three are the same as in the Juno 106 sytnth and the drums come courtesy of the legendary TR-707

Juno patches can be uploaded to the MKS-7 and most JUno editors work with it

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Expansion boards for the JV-1080 are here

Roland claim the JV-1080 has been used on more recordings than any synth in history. According to Vintage Synth Explorer:

“The Roland JV-1080 was one of the hottest and most popular digital synthesizers ever to come from Roland. Incredible sound quality capable of emulating any instrument imaginable plus totally fat analog synth type sounds and loads of percussion! It has 64 voices of polyphony and 16 part multitimbral, it’s no wonder this is part of almost every Film Score Composers set-up as well as many more artists and hobbyists!”

“The JV1080, especially when fully stuffed, has an awesome timbral capability”

“Seems to have a remarkably clear, uncluttered sound, even with many parts playing simultaneously”

The JV-1080 is a 2U rack box in typical Roland style with a black, brushed aluminium front panel, LCD display, headphone socket with volume control and a pretty complete set of buttons & knobs. It has four sockets for SR-JV80 expansion boards plus two front panel card slots for a PCM card and a Data card. The JV-1080 has two stereo outputs (outputs 1 & 2) plus a stereo mix out.  It has onboard effects including chorus, delay and reverb. The effects can be enabled on a per-voice basis and stored as part of a preset

The features of the JV-1080, and its relationship to other JV / XV modules, are shown in this table

The JV-1080 is beautifully built and finished, the product of an era when keyboards were expensive and high quality was the norm. List price in 1994 was £1085

I have a selection of SR-JV expansion boards and other JV modules here

Refurbished with new battery, pots & encoders cleaned & lubricated and reset to factory settings. Tested & working 100%.  Photos show the synth for sale

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No makers name on this case but it seems to be of good quality

These hard cases are much, much lighter than a traditional flight case and are a lot easier to handle

Photos show the case for sale

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The Minitaur is a descendent of the famous – and highly-collectible – Taurus pedals from the 1980s.

“You can control it with CV, MIDI, or USB-MIDI, and it’s even got an external audio input to run signals through the amazing filter and modulation sections”

“The filter does most of what you’d expect from a Moog – without resonance it sweeps in a really creamy, deep fashion”

There’s a lot of user support for the Minitaur, and hundreds of Youtube demos (see the Links tab) plus links to cheat sheets for the hidden features

The V2 software is available as a free download from Moog Music, as is a free software editor for Mac or PC

The Minitaur has front-panel editing of sounds and can save 128 presets. These can be selected by midi program change and saved to and from your DAW using a Sysex librarian such as the imaginatively-named Sysex Librarian from Snoize . com

Supplied with new external power supply, USB cable and a midi cable. Photos show the synth for sale

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