Japanese companies seem to have a boner for custom ASICs. I never understood that. For example Roland uses custom chips [1] for their synthesizers and effects, where they could use almost any DSP on the market.

Likewise printer manufacturers go for a huge SoC where they could get an application processor that suits their needs and couple it with a specialized printer chip. [2]

What's the deal?

[1] https://www.flickr.com/photos/psychlist1972/37188679832

[2] https://news.synopsys.com/2020-05-21-Fuji-Xerox-Adopts-Synop...