The AX80 used digitally controlled oscillators (DCO)[1][3][4] and filter circuitry based on the Curtis Electromusic CEM 3372 integrated circuit.

The instrument has basic MIDI implementation, but lacks the ability to save or restore sounds except by using cassette tape.

There is pulse-width modulation of the square wave of OSC1 (with a dedicated low-frequency oscillator (LFO) for this) and a square-wave sub-oscillator that is fixed at one octave lower.

OSC2's pitch can be modulated by one of the two ADSR envelope generators, which are dedicated to VCA volume and VCF cutoff frequency.

Tracking of filter cutoff frequency with keyboard position is fully variable, allowing for sounds to become either "brighter" or "darker" as higher notes are played.

Three of these each have four available waveforms (sine, square, sawtooth and ramp), and these LFOs are dedicated to filter cutoff, and pitch of each of the two oscillators.

The AX80 has fairly standard MIDI implementation for an instrument of this vintage, with the ability to use any channel (1-16) for transmission or reception (these can be set separately).

The instrument does not recognize the MIDI tuning request, nor does it allow for saving or loading sounds (patches) to a computer via system-exclusive data dumps.

An AX80 appears in the video for Kim Mitchell's song "All We Are", played by Pye Dubois, although the manufacturer's name is blacked out.

The Dutch band Digital Emotion explicitly names the use of the AX80 and S612 on the label of their 1986 single “Jungle Beat”.

[11] There is also a two-page review in Complete Guide to Synthesizers, Sequencers, and Drum Machines, by Dean Friedman.