More affordable[peacock prose] sample-based synthesizers available for the masses with the introduction of the Ensoniq Mirage (1984), Roland D-50 (1987) and the Korg M1 (1988), which surfaced in the late eighties.
A sample-based synthesizer's ability to reproduce the nuances of natural instruments is determined primarily by its library of sampled sounds.
This was achieved by looping a part of the sample (often a single wave), and then using a volume envelope curve to make the sound fade away.
It is also possible to sample the same note at several different levels of intensity, reflecting the fact that both volume and timbre change with playing style.
The timbre of the Rhodes changes drastically from left to right on the keyboard, and it varies greatly depending on the force with which the key is struck.
A more flexible sample-based synthesis design allowing the user to record arbitrary waveforms to form a sound's basic timbre is called a sampler.
Early samplers were very expensive, and typically had low sample rates and bit depth, resulting in grainy and aliased sound.