r/cheapkeys • u/Beneficial-Nail5712 • 2h ago
Casio CTK-1000 plugin (VST3, Windows)
Before i say anything about this plugin i want to say up front so noone gets angry I CODED THIS WITH AI. more specifically google gemini's new argon model. concept/idea was by me and that's about it
So if you like super obscure weird synthesis methods AND Casio keyboards well i have a cool plugin that fills both criteria. The CTK-1000 if you dont know was a bordering-on-workstation keyboard released by Casio in 1993, right before a lawsuit with Yamaha over FM patent disputes. It had a 4-track pattern sequencer as well as (if i recall correctly) 6 track linear song memory. The most interesting part about this keyboard is its IXA synthesis method, which from what i could find is a very weird and obscure synthesis method with a few patents available online that combines "Triangular Wave Modulation" (essentially like a more aggressive sounding version of Phase distortion, famous from the CZ-series) with PCM samples, a DSP soundchip reminiscent of the equally cool Casio VA-10 (and the visual design of the CTK-1000 is quite similar to the VA-10 as well), and a simple lowpass filter for the synthesized part. I had Gemini do a "deep research" on the CTK-1000 and it dug up lots of info about how it exactly works, but essentially i plugged that into the Argon model and had it code up this VST3 plugin in a couple prompts that's supposed to be as close to the CTK-1000 thats probably possible without having the thing in my studio itself (which i dont). The CTK-1000 is also super rare and seems to barely ever pop up on popular second-hand shop sites, i did find one near me on Facebook Marketplace but sadly I ran out of time to buy it. But yeah this is basically a very close emulation of the CTK-1000 (Gemini couldnt find as much info about the FX chip or the LPF so those parts are probably a bit less authentic) in the form of a VST3 plugin.
https://github.com/tinmadetongs/ctk1000-vst3/releases/tag/v1.0.0
