emazamboni’s Toy Keyboard Revolution

Emazamboni opens the video with a confession that resonates with gear hunters everywhere: an unending love for thrifted toy keyboards. This guy hits up secondhand shops like they’re the promised land of hidden gems. His aim? Snagging a small, cool-looking keyboard to throw in a backpack and jam wherever his heart desires. But, more often than not, those alluring finds from the ’80s and ’90s end up being sonic duds. For instance, he shares a hilariously painful story about a Bon Tempi that looked the part but sounded like a bee trapped in a jar. Yet, he’s committed, often spending more on batteries than the keyboards themselves, just to see if maybe, just maybe, it’ll hit the right note.

While chilling seaside, he stumbles across a vintage keyboard at a sprawling thrift store, tucked away in the northern beaches of Italy. The keyboard in question? A Yamaha PSS-11. Despite dealing with battery acid corrosion—a typical hazard for used gear hunters—emazamboni is stoked once he powers it up. Turns out, this thing is loaded with AWM (Advanced Wave Memory) technology. Now hold up, what’s AWM? It’s the secret sauce, folks. Instead of relying on synthesized sounds, the PSS-11 uses real instrument samples compressed to fit into this diminutive keyboard. It’s like stuffing a whole orchestra into a sardine can. This little beast was the first in Yamaha’s PortaSound series to use this tech, jumping leagues ahead of its FM synth predecessors in delivering more authentic tones. The kicker? It’s all squished into under 500 kilobytes. For those keeping score at home, that’s less data than a modern MP3 file!

So what did emazamboni uncover about this retro delight? The Yamaha PSS-11 is adorned with all the trappings of an early ’90s model, complete with mini keys and a slew of buttons that look ripped from a sci-fi calculator. This keyboard is stacked with 39 instrument samples, from lush strings to crispy basslines to the infamous ‘orchestra hit’. Emazamboni showcases its sound palette, noting how compressed and crunchy they are, almost like sonic street food. He digs into the variety of rhythms it packs too – 23 in total, ranging from Eurobeat to hip hop grooves. Despite being a toy, it’s got character, and emazamboni makes a strong case for its place in today’s music-making toolkit. Even with its quirks and slightly useless knobs, he finds joy in every note it belches out.

Now, where the PSS-11 truly shines is when emazamboni hooks it up to modern DAWs like Ableton. With a sprinkle of effects magic, this seemingly ‘toy’ keyboard can transform into a powerhouse of unique soundscapes. Emazamboni explains how the crunchy, character-rich samples lend themselves perfectly to lo-fi or chiptune tracks. He gives us a taste of a track he crafted using only the PSS-11’s sounds, proving that its old-school charm is anything but dated. It’s a reminder that sometimes, limitations can be liberating, pushing you to make the most of what’s in your hands. This section of the video showcases his knack for seeing potential where others might pass by. It’s like finding that perfect dive bar that serves the meanest cheap beer.