In 1987, Fender® discontinued the Rhodes® product line and sold the brand name to Roland Corp® - which then released a digital “re-imagining” of the instrument called the MK-80 Rhodes. Because of the reverence for which die-hard Rhodes® fans have always had for the original electro-mechanical instruments, the digital MK-80 was always highly controversial and not well regarded in the history of the Rhodes. This is especially interesting, because internally the MK80 was Roland's follow-up to the greatly revered MKS-20 module and uses a more advanced version of the Structured Adaptive® synthesis technology. While it sounds nothing like a classic Rhodes®, it is a wonderful, brighter variation of the much-loved MKS-20 sound - excellent for layering with other sounds! We're so happy to revive this great 80s-style “Vintage Digital” sound in Keyscape!
Resources: Keyscape Reference Guide
All musical instrument manufacturer and product names used in Keyscape are trademarks of their respective owners, which are in no way associated or affiliated with Spectrasonics. The trademarks of other manufacturers are used solely to identify the products of those manufacturers whose tones and sounds were studied during Spectrasonics sound development. All names of musical artists and instrument inventors have been included for illustrative and educational purposes only and do not suggest any affiliation or endorsement of Keyscape by any artist or instrument inventor.
