The Gem S3 Workstation Synthesiser represents Italian company Generalmusic's ambitious entry into the professional synthesizer market, building upon their established keyboard workstation expertise. Released in 1992, the S2 demonstrates the company's commitment to competing with industry giants like Roland and Yamaha by delivering a sophisticated, feature-rich instrument that bridges the gap between home keyboards and professional workstations.
Design & Build Quality
The S3 features a professional aesthetic with sober black casing, a large backlit LCD display, and sleek low-profile controls including buttons, sliders, and infinite rotary dials. The build quality feels reassuringly solid, allowing it to sit comfortably alongside established synthesizer brands. Distinctive design elements include curvaceous pitchbend and modulation wheels and a distinctive bulbous Enter button, while navigation utilizes an unusual dual-column system of small triangular buttons flanking the central LCD.
A standout feature is the keyboard's individual key pressure sensitivity, complemented by a moderately weighted action that provides substantial yet responsive feel. The standard S2 offers 61 keys, while the S3 variant extends this to 76 keys using identical action and specifications.
Sound Engine & Architecture
At the heart of the S3 lies a comprehensive collection of 209 samples and waveforms stored in 6MB of internal ROM, delivering sampling quality comparable to established competitors. The sound library encompasses the expected range of acoustic and electric pianos, harpsichords, tuned percussion, guitars, basses, strings, brass, wind instruments, and vocals, alongside standard and experimental synth waveforms, pads, atmospheric sounds, and approximately 60 drum and percussion samples covering both kit and Latin sounds.
The synthesis architecture follows a familiar yet flexible framework consisting of oscillator, filter, amplifier, and pan stages. Each stage features dedicated envelope generators, while a single LFO can modulate any of the first three stages. The resulting programmed voices are termed "Sounds."
Advanced Filtering System
The S3 employs a sophisticated dual-filter system featuring two two-pole state variable filters configured in series. Each filter can be independently configured as low pass, high pass, band pass, parametric cut, parametric boost, or disabled entirely. Individual filters offer separate cutoff frequency, resonance amount, velocity sensitivity for both cutoff and resonance, aftertouch sensitivity for cutoff, and output gain control. The digital implementation of cutoff and resonance is particularly noteworthy for its musical quality.
Comprehensive Envelope Control
The instrument provides separate key-on and key-off envelopes for all four synthesis stages, each supporting up to ten programmable segments with individual time and level control per segment. Key-on envelopes can loop between their final segment and any earlier segment, effectively creating sustained loops until key release. Additional dynamic control includes programmable attack rate modulation and overall key-off envelope rate control.
Advanced tracking envelopes allow envelope behavior modification across the keyboard range, enabling longer segment times in lower registers compared to upper registers, creating realistic instrumental behavior and complex evolving sounds.
Performance Organization & Multi-Timbral Capabilities
Sounds are organized into Performances containing up to 16 tracks, each assigned a single Sound. Performances support four sources: Local (S3's keyboard), MIDI In, Song, and Option. The Local source offers single, layer, split, or multi-Sound assignments, with layer and split modes utilizing adjacent tracks for seamless sound combinations.
The Multi assignment enables complex layering of multiple Sounds with individual delay times per track, facilitating smooth evolving textures or rhythmic sequences. Transposition capabilities per track allow pitch sequence creation triggered from single notes.
Advanced MIDI Implementation
The MIDI In source provides comprehensive routing control for all 16 tracks, with each track configurable for Local and/or MIDI input triggering and internal and/or MIDI output routing. Tracks can respond to specific MIDI inputs and channels while transmitting on designated outputs and channels, enabling sophisticated MIDI processing and rechanneling. MIDI data filtering is available per incoming channel.
Front-panel sliders and associated buttons can transmit programmable MIDI controller data in User mode, with each control routed to individual tracks and therefore specific MIDI channels and outputs.
Sound Types & Special Features
Beyond standard Sounds, the S3 offers Sound Patches that enable different sample assignment to each oscillator for velocity switching applications. Examples include 'Rhodx' switching between soft and hard Fender Rhodes samples based on playing dynamics, and 'Dyn Flute' introducing overblown flute characteristics with forceful playing.
Sound Patches also support different sound assignment per key, primarily for creating keyboard drum kits. Programming options include volume, pan, transposition, fine-tuning, exclude settings, and effects routing for each velocity split side per key, with individually programmable velocity split points.
Effects Processing
The S3 incorporates dual programmable effects processors assigned per Performance rather than individual Sounds. One processor handles reverb and early reflection effects, while the other provides modulation effects including chorus, flanger, phaser, delay, and echo. Effects programming occurs within dedicated Effects Libraries, with each processor supporting up to 64 user-programmed effects drawing from 16 available effect types.
Reverb effects typically offer 5-6 parameters including level, room size, attenuation, diffusion, filter type, and filter frequency, while modulation effects generally provide four parameters such as level, feedback, depth, and frequency modulation.
Sequencing Capabilities
The integrated 16-track sequencer supports up to 10 Songs with 10 Performances per Song. Recording options include real-time replace and overdub with 192 parts-per-quarter-note resolution, with optional quantization during and after recording. Multi-track recording capability preserves keyboard layer, split, and multi-textures within sequences.
A dedicated Master Track accommodates tempo, master volume, and effect level changes. Standard transport controls include dedicated buttons for record, stop, play, fast forward, and rewind, with return-to-zero functionality via double-tap stop.
The Microscope edit function enables detailed step-by-step editing of recorded data, while additional editing functions support event erasing, moving, copying, track transposition and quantization, bar insertion and deletion across tracks, and velocity value manipulation.
Sample Management & Expansion
The S3 includes 2MB of sample RAM for loading additional samples via the built-in 3.5" floppy disk drive. A planned software update will enable MIDI Sample Dump Standard format sample transfer. The instrument automatically loads any disk-based Sound, sequence, sample, and data upon power-up when a disk is present.
Limitations include the absence of SCSI connectivity, preventing fast sample transfer and hard/optical disk sample storage. Additionally, the sample RAM lacks battery backup, requiring disk-based sample storage.
Sound Character & Performance
The S3 delivers a distinctive sound character combining richness, smoothness, and fullness with clarity, presence, and dynamism. The instrument successfully provides both digital sharpness and analogue-style smoothness, with particularly effective resonant filters and complex envelope capabilities contributing to its sonic personality.
ROM Sounds provide extensive variety covering instrumental samples and synthetic voices, from classic smooth filter-swept sounds with looping envelopes to punchy percussive digital voices. Analogue-style synthesis capabilities include full pad sounds reminiscent of the company's heritage with the Elka Synthex, balanced with contemporary breathy instrumental and atmospheric sounds popularized by instruments like the Korg M1.
Technical Specifications
Keyboard
- S3: 76 keys, velocity and polyphonic aftertouch sensitive
- Action: Weighted synthesizer type with moderately weighted feel
- Pressure Sensitivity: Individual key pressure responsive
Sound Source
- Sample ROM: 6MB internal ROM containing 209 PCM samples and waveforms
- Sample RAM: 2MB internal RAM for additional samples (not battery-backed)
- Sample Loading: 3.5" floppy disk drive (MIDI SDS transfer via planned software update)
- Sample Categories: Acoustic/electric pianos, harpsichords, tuned percussion, guitars, basses, strings, brass, wind, vocals, synth waveforms, pads, atmospheric sounds, ~60 drum/percussion samples
Sound Architecture
- Oscillators: Two digital oscillators per Sound
- Filters: Two two-pole state variable filters in series configuration
- Filter Types: Low pass, high pass, band pass, parametric cut, parametric boost, off
- Filter Parameters: Individual cutoff, resonance, velocity sensitivity (cutoff/resonance), aftertouch sensitivity (cutoff), output gain
- Amplifier: Dedicated amplifier stage with envelope control
- Panner: Dedicated pan stage with envelope control
- Envelopes: Separate key-on and key-off envelopes for pitch, filter, amplitude, pan
- Envelope Segments: Up to 10 segments per envelope, individually programmable time/level
- Envelope Features: Loopable key-on envelopes, dynamic attack rate control, tracking envelopes
- LFO: Single LFO with separate modulation depths for pitch, filter 1, filter 2, amplitude
Sound Organization
- Preset Sounds: 350 Sounds in ROM
- Programmable Sounds: Up to 1,698 Sounds in RAM
- Sound Banking: 128 banks × 16 Sounds per bank (numbered 1-1 to 128-16)
- Sound Types: Standard Sounds and Sound Patches (velocity switching, per-key assignment)
- Patch Sustainability: Sounds can be sustained across patch changes
- GM/GS Compatibility: Lower half of each bank conforms to General MIDI and GS standards
Performance Organization
- Performances: 100 total
- Tracks per Performance: 16 tracks maximum
- Performance Sources: Local, MIDI In, Song, Option
- Local Assignments: Single, layer, split, multi-Sound configurations
- Multi Features: Multiple Sound layering, individual track delays, per-track transposition
Effects System
- Processors: Two independent programmable effects processors
- Processor 1: 16 modulation effect types (chorus, flanger, phaser, echo, delay variants)
- Processor 2: 16 reverb and early reflection effect types
- Effect Programs: 64 user-programmable effects per processor
- Effect Parameters: 4-6 parameters per effect type
- Assignment: Per-Performance effect assignment with per-track routing control
Polyphony & Performance
- Maximum Polyphony: 32 voices
- Note Polyphony: 16 notes maximum
- Multi-timbral: 16-part multi-timbral capability
Sequencer
- Tracks: 16 instrument tracks plus 1 Master Track
- Songs: 10 Songs maximum
- Performances per Song: 10 Performances per Song
- Resolution: 192 parts per quarter note (ppqn)
- Memory: Approximately 250,000 events
- Recording Modes: Real-time replace, real-time overdub
- Quantization: Available during and after recording
- Multi-track Recording: Simultaneous multi-track recording capability
- Transport Controls: Dedicated record, stop, play, fast forward, rewind buttons
- Master Track: Tempo, master volume, effect level change recording
- Editing: Microscope step-by-step editing, event manipulation, track processing
- File Format: Standard MIDI File load and save support
- Background Loading: S2 data loading during Song playback
MIDI Implementation
- MIDI Inputs: 2× MIDI In with merging capability
- MIDI Outputs: 2× MIDI Out (32 total MIDI channels)
- MIDI Thru: 2× MIDI Thru
- Sync: Internal/MIDI synchronization
- Master Keyboard: Full MIDI master keyboard functionality
- Per-Track Routing: Individual input/output channel assignment and routing
- Controller Transmission: Front-panel sliders/buttons programmable for MIDI controller data
- Data Filtering: Selective MIDI data filtering per incoming channel
Audio Outputs
- Main Outputs: Stereo pair (processed through effects)
- Individual Outputs: Four individual outputs
- Output Configuration: Individual outputs accessible as four separate or two stereo pairs
Display & Interface
- LCD: 240 × 64 pixel backlit display
- Navigation: Dual-column triangular button system flanking LCD
- Front Panel Controls: Low-profile buttons, sliders, infinite rotary dials
- Edit Controls: Dedicated front-panel edit sliders for real-time parameter control
- Wheels: Distinctive curvaceous pitchbend and modulation wheels
- Special Controls: Bulbous Enter button
Storage & Connectivity
- Disk Drive: 3.5" double-sided high density floppy drive
- Loadable Data: PCM samples, Sounds, Songs, Performances, Effects, software updates
- Auto-Loading: Automatic disk data loading on power-up
- Expansion: Software-based Options loadable from floppy disk
Physical Specifications
- Width: 50.0 inches (127.0 cm)
- Height: 4.6 inches (11.7 cm)
- Depth: 13.8 inches (35.1 cm)
- Weight: 40.7 lbs (18.5 kg)
