Released by Yamaha in 1990, the SY77 was their first professional music workstation. The Yamaha V50 actually did come a couple of years earlier, but it did not contain nearly the amount of cool features included in the SY77. The SY included no less then four different types of synthesis - capable of AFM (advanced frequency modulation) synthesis, AWM (advanced wave memory) ROM based sample synthesis, and Realtime Convolution and Modulation Synthesis (RC&M).

The AFM synthesis part of the SY77 is pretty much the same as having the 6 operator FM synthesis that was available on the Yamaha DX7 and DX7II series of synthesizers, only with lot's more controls and built in effects including reverb, delay, chorus and lot's more. Sampled sounds (AWM) which are in memory can then be mixed with the FM sounds to create entirely new unique sounds.

Yamaha SY77 is a 16 voice multitimbral synth with a 61 key keyboard with velocity and aftertouch, It also included a 16,000 note sequencer which featured 16 tracks, 99 patterns and 1 song. - channel 16 belongs to the SY-77's built-in drum synthesizer which holds up to 61 sounds. A double density 3.5 floppy disk drive was also included for storing sounds and sequences.

Yamaha TG77 Sound Module

Along with the SY77, Yamaha also released the rackmount module TG-77. It had all the same features as the SY-77, except the keyboard, sequencer and 3.5" floppy disk drive. The TG77 also included eight individual outputs as well as a stereo output which are assignable to individual instruments.

The SY77 was soon followed by the SY99 and then discontinued between 1995 and 1997. The SY77 and SY99 were replaced as Yamaha synthesizer workstations by the EX7 and EX5. However the SY77 and SY99 were the last Yamaha workstations to be capable of full-fledged FM synthesis that had been introduced with the DX7. Even today these are considered very powerful synths due to the wide range of programming options and can be purchased at a fraction of the original $3000. price tag.

Our SY77 and TG77 patches are available in system exclusive (.syx) or standard midi files (.mid) and can be downloaded from our web site when you order our free e-mail delivery. We provide the software with your order that lets you load in the sounds. If your computer has a midi interface connected to the USB port, you can use your midi interface to load in the sounds. Midi interfaces are an inexpensive alternative to purchasing RAM or PCM cards and we sell them starting at under $100. We can also provide the sounds for the SY77 on floppy disk which can be loaded directly from the SY's floppy drive.

Our sounds will also get you back in business if your SY77 or TG77 battery has died and you lost all the sounds in the memory. Sorry, but the sounds are not available on the old ROM cards. The cards have not been made in many years and we no longer support that format.