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Microtuning Vintage Hardware Synthesizers

萌宠菠菠乐园
2026-10-16 08:03

What is microtuning?

Microtuning is the name given (by western musicians) to tuning systems outside of 12 equal divisions of the octave (12EDO) using in most western music. Other tuning systems have been used throughout history outside of the west in places like Latin America, Africa, Eastern Europe, the Middle East and Asia using acoustic instruments. Most synth manufacturers don't include this feature due to the pervasiveness of 12EDO supported by western music education, music theory programs in higher education, the piano business, the sheet music business, the need for guitars to be in tune with pianos, etc.

What does microtonal electronic music sound like?

Here are some examples of microtonal electronic music:

Sevish Elaine Walker/Zia Aphex Twin Dolores Catherino

Microtuning with vintage hardware synths and samplers

There are a handful of vintage synths and samplers that have microtuning as a native feature:

Yamaha TX802 Yamaha TX81Z Yamaha DX11 Yamaha DX7IIfd Yamaha DX7S Yamaha SY77/99, TG77 Ensoniq EPS, EPS-M, EPS-16 Plus, EPS-16 Plus Rack Ensoniq ASR-10, ASR-10R, ASR-88

These synths have quasi-microtonal features:

Ensoniq ESQ1, SQ80 by modulating one of the OSC with KEYB2 and setting it to a number other than 0 as explained on Modwiggler and Sound on Sound you can have various EDO tunings saved in the patch. Roland D50/D550 using the Key follow setting: 1 = 12 EDO 7/8 = 13.714 EDO 3/4 = 16 EDO 5/8 = 19.2 EDO 1/2 = 24 EDO 3/8 = 32 EDO 1/4 = 48 EDO 1/8 = 96 EDO S1 = 2 cents sharp per octave up S2 = 5 cents per octave Although not vintage the Korg Opsix can play microtones by creating a patch that assigns note numbers to operators and the adjusting the Intensity as described in this video.
Many Korg synths starting with the M1/M1R can have each of the 12 notes detuned up or down 50 cents independent of each other, and these repeat for each octave. This is not full microtonal but it can provide a series of pitches to work with that do not sound like 12EDO. Multi-Temperament Scales is alternate OS for Ensoniq Mirage that allows you to choose a few other tuning systems. Tubbutec's Juno 66 midi kit for the Roland Juno 6 and 60 features microtuning, see page 18 of the manual. Built in tunings are Pythagorean, Werckmeister III, Werckmeister IV, Werckmeister V, 1/4 meantone and Harmonic, all with 12 notes / octave. There are 4 spaces for user tunings by sending Scala files via midi.

"Retuning" with pitch bend

Any multitimbral synth or sampler can be used microtonally with the pitch bend method where each new note is dynamically allocated to a different multitimbral part with just the right amount of pitch bend send before the note on. Each can import Scala tuning files and/or KBM files. The following tools will allow you to use this method with any multitimbral synth that responds to pitch bend and has an adjustable pitch bend range:

Retune Max for Live plugin for Ableton Live Blokas Midi Hub Hi Pi TBX2B

Set the patch on each part to the same patch, set each part to a different midi channel. The polyphony is limited by the number of parts even if it is less than the polyphony. For example, a Nord Lead 1 expanded is 12 voices but since it is only 4 parts you will only get 4 voices of polyphony when using this dynamically allocated pitch bend method.

Any guitar synth or synths with "guitar mode," which are typically monotimbral can instantly be set up for the dynamically allocated pitch bend method mentioned above by enabling their guitar modes. This was originally for guitar midi pickups developed by Roland. Each string had its own midi channel since pitch bend effects all notes on the entire part. This would allow for string bends. By setting a synth to guitar mode it instantly sets a monophonic voice per parts 1 through 6 on midi channels 1 through 6. Monotimbral or multitimbral polyphonic synths that have guitar mode are:

Oberheim Matrix 6/6r/1000 Roland MKS70 (without Vecoven mod) Roland MKS50 Roland MKS-30(with Kiwi 30 mod) Casio VZ-8m Korg Z3

Video game synths

Check out this story about how Sevish and I were able to help the developer of SuperMIDIPak, the MIDI interface for the Super Nintendo, to create a proper implementation of microtuning which, makes it possible to play songs like the quarter tone songs in one of the Kirby games. GenMDM has an EOD setting that defaults at 12 but can be turned up or down.

Analog synths with self-oscillating resonant filter and key tracking

Play the resonance of any analog synth with self-oscillating filter reonance and then then adjust the key tracking.

Other non-vintage synth related microtonal info

Microtonal VST list MTS-ESP, a management system for compliant microtonal plugins Explore microtuing systems and sequence them algorithmically in a browser with Leimma and Apotome. Check out Facebook groups on microtuing like Microtonal Music and Tuning Theory, MICROTONALITALY and The Xenharmonic Alliance: Microtonal Music Forum. Microtonal guitar "pop" music: Brendan Byrnes and King Gizzard And The Lizard Wizard