Fairlight Qasar M8 (1988–1992)
The Fairlight Qasar M8 was the successor to the celebrated Series III, and it aimed to bring the Fairlight concept into the era of 16-bit digital audio. Mix (2005, p.142) noted that Fairlight had always forged its own path as a technology leader. Launched in 1988 at approximately $32,000, it was pitched squarely at professional music production and video post-production facilities — not at the home studio. The M8 ran a version of the Series III operating system, so studios already familiar with Fairlight's way of working could step up without starting from scratch.
Under the hood, the M8 was a serious piece of computing. A Motorola 68000 CPU running at 8 MHz drove the system, with 2 MB of RAM standard (expandable to 16 MB) and a 40 MB hard drive (expandable to 300 MB). Initially supporting eight channels of audio, the system could later be expanded to 16. A monochrome monitor with a remarkably high 1024 × 1024 resolution served as the display; colour was not supported. The M8 could generate text overlays for video production, though it had no on-board video capture or editing. A QWERTY keyboard, alphanumeric keypad, knobs, and support for a light pen or mouse made up the control surface, and a SCSI interface allowed external storage. MIDI in and out were provided, with communication routed through the CPU.
Despite the high cost, the M8 found real use in film and television scoring. The BBC Radiophonic Workshop was among the noted users. Its price made it inaccessible to most independent musicians, and it was never a mass-market item. Today, the M8 is considered rare and collectible — units occasionally surface on the second-hand market, but working examples are scarce, and those that do appear often require extensive maintenance.
Similar items on eBay
No exact Fairlight Qasar M8 listings are live right now — these searches show current Fairlight and similar vintage synth gear on eBay:
As an eBay Partner, we earn from qualifying purchases. This helps support our independent vintage technology research.
Related Models
- Fairlight CMI-30A (1987)
- Fairlight CMI (1979-1985)
- Fairlight CMI Series III (1985-1992)
- Akai MPC2000 (1997-2000)
- Akai S1100
- Akai S612 (1985-1986)
- Akai S700 (1987)
- E-mu Emulator III (1987-1991)
- Akai CD3000
- Akai CD3000XL