XS-1
Related Models
SPECTRA KC10
SPECTRA KC10 uses the same synthesis engine with XS-1,
though I don't know if they are perfectly compatible.
KC10 has an arpeggiator and a rhythm pattern player.
It's one of the earliest digital synths that has the arpeggiator after the analog synth era has gone.
The prototype of KC10 was called KL1, and that of XS-1 was called KL1m.
KAWAI SPECTRA KC10 (1990)
K4
KAWAI K4's synthesis engine is called DMS - Digital Multi Spectrum.
It has PCM and DC waves, and can synthesize them with ring modulator and digital filters.
SPECTRA KC10 and XS-1 can be thought of as K4's descendant without a filter.
KC10's name SPECTRA may have come from DMS's multi spectrum.
KAWAI K4 (1989)
K1
K1 is a hybrid synthesizer of
8bit PCM and additive synthesis called VM.
It has no filter but can synthesize PCM and VM waves with ring modulator.
Though additive VM waves sounds better than DC waves (in essence plain PCM playback),
XS-1 and KC10 can be thought of as 16bit version of K1.
XS-1 could have been more powerful if it accurately inherited K1's synthesis abilities,
such as ring modulator, well-thought out selection of various synthetic waveforms, and the 4-oscillator architecture.
KAWAI K1 (1988)
Pop Synth series
Pop Synth Module PHm and Pop Keyboard PH50 are scaled down versions of K1 without patch editability.
KAWAI characterized XS-1 as son of SPECTRA KC10 and PHm.
KAWAI PHm (1988)
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8. 5. 2003