(MuseWire) – Arturia announced this week the launch of version 2.0 of their amazing recreation of the classic Yamaha CS-80 keyboard, used by such electronic music pioneers as Vangeles, Stevie Wonder, and oh so many more. The new version is protected by the Syncrosoft key, like their other current product line.

Version 2.0 features (free upgrade to current registered users):
Switch to Syncrosoft copy protection ( V 2.0 )
VCF audio quality improvements ( V 2.0 )
Ring modulator audio quality improvements ( V 2.0 )
A revolutionary preset navigation system called the SoundMap ( V 2.0 )
Lower CPU utilization on Mac OSX( V 2.0 )
Better Audio Unit compatibility (Digital Performer most notably) ( V 2.0 )
Ability to use NRPN midi messages for automation ( V 2.0 )
Better handling of control surfaces while changing preset ( V 2.0 )
New presets added ( V 2.0 )
Midi RPN “pitch bend range” message is now recognized( V 2.0 )
Bug fixes

MAIN FEATURES:

All the original parameters of the Yamaha CS-80: 2 oscillators, 4 filters (high pass, low pass), 2 LFOs, 4 envelopes, 2 VCAs, 1 sub-oscillator (LFO), 1 ring modulator, chorus and tremolo
New effect: Delay
New Multi Mode: assign a different sound to each of the 8 voices of polyphony!
New Modulation Matrix with 12 sources to modulate a choice of 38 destination parameters
More than 400 presets made by a selection of the most famous sound designers
Polyphonic aftertouch
1 Arpeggiator
Expression and sustain pedals
Ribbon controller
No aliasing from 0.1 Hz to 16 kHz
64-bit floating point precision
Sampling rate: up to 96 kHz.

An upgrade guide for existing users and more information can be found at:
http://www.arturia.com/evolution/en/products/cs-80v/specs.html .

Editor’s Note: we use the CS-80 around here, and we can attest that the original CS-80 is one of the best emulations of ANY synthesizer.