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FM8's interface is cleaner than FM7's and features a navigator on the left-hand side.

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The eighth wonder

FM7 was always going to be a hard act to follow, but its successor is even better.

FM synthesis will never be the easiest concept to grasp, but FM8's clear interface and Easy page should enable even the greenest would-be synthesis to craft unique patches, and a surprisingly informative manual is on hand if you get lost.

To be honest, though, you may never need to roll your own patches. Not only does an excellent selection of presets come included, but you can also import SysEx data from practically every FM synth Yamaha ever made.

If we have one complaint, it's that NI has passed up the opportunity to add an SY99-style waveform import feature. The facility to use sampled waves as carriers or modulators seems an obvious one to include - in fact, it's already available in rival products. Maybe next time.

Nevertheless, FM8 is a hell of a synth, and like the hardware instrument that it's based on, it perfectly complements the countless analogue instruments you probably already own. A must-have.