Yamaha Workstations

The Yamaha MX-61 is a 61 Note Digital Performance Keyboard; it comes with over a thousand presets and works great with a DAW. The build of this keyboard is solid, the keys seem to be well made and do not seem like they would stick over time and they do not feel cheap and plastic made. This board comes with Cubase AI and a few other plugs ins as well. There are pianos, drums, strings, and some other sounds that are on this keyboard. They do claim that the acoustic sounds are very good and are similar to other Motif board sounds. I do not think there are many Motif XS sounds on this board at all. The Motif XS is so powerful and the sounds are so amazing, I just don’t hear them with the MX-61. UTILIZATION The set up process with this keyboard is very simple; especially if you use Cubase you will have no issues because the manual will explain everything. If you want to use a different DAW then you may have to figure out how to set it up yourself (not that it is that difficult). SOUNDS This keyboard is also a 1 in 1 out MIDI interface as well if you connect it to a computer. There are effects built into it like echo, phaser and some others but none of them really stood out to me. There are also a total of 88 chorus presets and master EQ. There is no sampling on this keyboard though, which is a feature that I think they could have added for this price range. OVERALL OPINION The pitchbend and mod wheel feel pretty good and do not seem cheap. But I would not be concerned with the fact that this keyboard has over 1000 sounds and that they claim some of them are from the Motif XS. This is not the case, maybe a few sounds are from the Motif XS but the majority of them are not.

The technical description is available at Yamaha/mdownload, etc.... So, in short: - 61 truly synth-like keys, almost like an organ, but what can you expect for the price... - Almost 1200 presets - Maximum three dual insert effects per channel, one EQ per channel, 2 x sends (reverb/chorus for example), one Master Fx, and one general EQ. - 2 x 4 pot matrix, 2 x assignable function buttons, 1 pitch bend wheel + 1 modulation wheel and 2 x footswitch inputs (I think) + 1 x sustain/hold... - 64 notes maximum polyphony for simple mono sounds (careful!!!). It's not such a great stage keyboard, it's more functional, I think Yamaha conceived it with Home Studio owners in mind ─ do correct me if I'm wrong!!! UTILIZATION The overall design is very simple. It's not easy to edit sounds with the small screen, but the PC editor makes it easier. I've been using workstations since the '90s, some of which were like Rube Goldberg machines, and it's not my thing!! I kept a Korg EMX-1, which I also use as an "expander" for electronic/analog sounds. The interface is perfect for that. Th menus system provides an intuitive browsing of the parameters and effects at different levels. Likewise, the music production workflow is pretty well implemented: Ever since the Motif 6, Yamaha has really evolved its sequencer and right now it's simple AWESOME. It's fast, creative, it makes you want to play more, make songs, play covers...In short, you have a blast with it! Ah!! If I had had it ten years ago instead of the Motif 6.... SOUNDS I have liked Yamaha sounds for a long time because I think the Yamaha sound is always a bit better than before, there's always something to arrange/compose/play in different music styles. It doesn't limit me, it sounds good. With a 800/1600W PA System it really rocks, with great dynamic response, sound might seem a bit cold but a bit of EQ will allow you to color it to your taste. There's plenty to do... There are not many Yamaha sounds that I don't like, maybe the synth sounds, but I have a supernova and/or EMX Korg for that, so..... The controllers allow you to do great things in Song and Pattern mode, it's good to create Fx/wooshes. OVERALL OPINION I didn't buy it: The MoxF came out when I wanted to buy it but I went to the store at least three times to test it properly. I kept my Rack ES equipped with two PLG-150-AP and PF cards. I had a Motif ES6 and an XS, which I sold. It might fall short in terms of polyphony for someone who does arrangements or composes with it, and it only stores three insert FX in multitimbral mode. Its main advantage is the built-in audio/midi interface and its PC integration: It's awesome! But even better is that it has the exact same engine as the XS but with half the polyphony....): Direct recording in performance mode of four Arps with chord recognition at this price...Simply put, it's a unit to make music with ease!!! Given its price, I recommend it to beginners, arrangers, composers, etc. It's a formidable practice tool and a superb stage instrument, too!!! Don't think it twice: At this price, specially secondhand, GO FOR IT!!!!

I am really happy with the MOX8. Let's keep in mind that this is a mid class board but pro all the way. Finally a lighter weight, full sound pallet, with a good piano sound, 88 note weighted keys, synth and it's black in color! UTILIZATION The MOX8 is also not as bulky as so many of Yamaha 88 note keyboards tend to be so they are listening to us. I will take the mod and pitch wheels above the keys in order to make is smaller and more portable. The only drawback, in my opinion is the polyphony at 64 notes. You will hear drop out if you are a classical piano player playing long arpeggios with the sustain peddle depressed but for me I can live with it as the drop out is at least smooth not like I used to find with the S90 I had a few years back. SOUNDS The sound pallet is stellar with those Motif ES and XS sounds and that includes a very decent piano sound and it all comes in around $1700.00. The accompaniments are also surprisingly useful if not a blast to play. The weighted keys are on the lighter side which I like but it's still meaty and expressive. OVERALL OPINION Though you can probably find an MO8 used at a good price these days, I'd go for the MO8X as it's 15 pounds lighter and has a deeper and more up to date sound pallet. You will see Yamaha synths more often at big shows than any other company and it's because that sound pallet is solid in all categories and you get almost all the sounds of the Motif XS on MOX8. All in all this board is a winner and very suitable for anyone looking for a very portable, all in one weighted keyboard for live or home.

Yamaha workstation, 61 keys, purchased 2 additional sound cards. See product descriptions with lots of details elsewhere. UTILIZATION For getting around the keyboard and doing the basic stuff for recording and performing, editing on this level is simple ONCE you've gotten accustomed to it. The manual gets a "C" grade from me. I've found more helpful info at YouTube - thanks for all who have posted on the ES there. SOUNDS Great sounds, expressiveness and touch sensitivity are excellent for a non-weighted keyed. Effects are all very good as well, and easy to edit from the top-left side of the unit. Acoustic piano and electric piano programs are among the very best IMHO -- I sold my Rhodes. Electric guitars (esp. Mega-Voice ones) and strings are also killer, as well as its organ programs. BTW, if you really want killer organs, use Performance Mode and program the 4 channels to different organs of your choice, and be able to use your 4 sliders to customize and edit your overall organ output/sound with these 4 sliders, and/or fade between different types of organ programs/sounds in any given song. Motif, hands down, produces the phattest and warmest/richest sounds around -- they kill my Korg Krome, which sounds very thin in comparison. Dynamic range is also excellent. While playing the grand piano, you can really hear the difference when playing FFF vs. ppp. OVERALL OPINION The 2 complaints I have about the ES are these: 1) when in Performance Mode and using all 4 voices and their effects, you can easily get some latency during a performance. I've got to experiment a bit to see how to minimize this; it'll likely require me to reduce the no. of effects associated with each of the 4 programs that I load into each Performance. 2) When switching between Performances, you may have to "clear" the volume settings for one or more of your 4 voices in this mode; which, requires you to slide the faders all the way to the top, then bottom (or visa versa). Otherwise, some voices won't be active. This was and remains a little frustrating; having to make sure that I do this little procedure every time I switch between Performances. I've not ever used the sampler, so I have nothing to say about that. There's a YouTube video posted that is a sped-up time lapse video of a guy really digging deep into modifying some sounds in the ES. It is worth checking this out, if only to realize how deep you can dig, and how much of an exercise this is/can be. I've play-tested the XS and XF, but truthfully, neither seems that much better than the ES in terms of overall sound quality. Yes, loading programs into the unit is much faster with these newer versions, but other than that, I've not had enough reason to sell my ES and opt for an XS or XF. Go to YouTube, and a bunch of guys tell you why you should switch/update to an XF, but they're much more expensive than the ES was, and I'm quite happy with my ES.

The Motif XF6 is a 61 key workstation synth that has some of the best sounds that you will ever hear. I have heard some of the basic presets that it offers in mainstream top 40 music on a regular basis. I am an owner of the original Motif that came out over ten years ago and I loved it, I have been using it almost every day for the last 10 years and when I found out they were coming out with a XF board I jumped on it pretty quick. UTILIZATION The XF6 is easy to set up and start using (for me because I had the original Motif). There are a ton of presets and kits to work with and this board is even expandable though I have not purchased any expansions yet. I have been using it with Cubase since the day that I purchased it and could not be happier. SOUNDS The XF6 allows 64 patterns and up to 256 voices for all patterns. It does allow sampling and it has a 128 polyphony. It comes with installed RAM of 128M which was more than enough for me to sample other audio. The keys are semi weighted and have a great touch to them; I love just playing the pianos on this keyboard because it feels so real and almost gives me a baby grand experience. OVERALL OPINION Sequencing on this keyboard is something that I didn’t like mainly because I didn’t like the interface of the sequencer. That is why I prefer to keep it in Cubase because I am already familiar with Cubase and have been using it forever. The arpeggiators are pretty cool as well on the XF6 and they are customizable to get the exact style of arp you are looking for. This keyboard was pretty expensive but after using the original Motif I knew this was a must have.

I have many years of experience in the music field. I started to learn music when I was a kid using YAMAHA PSS680. Then I changed my keyboard several times(PSR 500-PSR 740). In 2005 I went for total software solution( DAW- VSI). During the last 5 years I lost a lot of my creativity and productivity since the work flow was not convenient( PC crashes- software incompatibility -low quality samples-.......) and I did not realized that until I bought MOTIF es 8 in 2010 and the pains gone for ever!!!!! UTILIZATION It is an incredible device. Before my purchase I did an extensive research to find out which brand has the best sounds. I checked the Roland Fantom G / Kurzweil PC3X / KORG m3 and Yamaha MOTIF es. The motif was a head and a shoulder above all of them regarding the sound quality. Recently I tested the Motif XF against the Korg kronos (patch comparison) and the quality of the Motif sounds were better. Of course I know that this quality thing is totally subjective. SOUNDS But I want to say that Don't believe the hypes. The specification is something on the paper but you have to listen to the sounds. Motif is a deep machine and you can tweak the sounds and you have limitless options. OVERALL OPINION Buy the motif and five years later when you feel the sounds are dated(which won't) you can buy 2GB flash ROM and suddenly you have a new synth !!! 88 keys is huge difference from 61 keys I had before. Now I can finally have convenient full range control over my software VST Instruments. I would guess the only disadvantages for some would be its weight, but since I use it in studio it's not a disadvantage for me. I ask myself, Do you really need that expensive synth? I guess only you yourself will be able to answer this question, as for me, I feel it worth every penny.

The Yamaha MM6 is Yamaha's 'baby' version of the company's flagship keyboard, the Motif. The MM6 offers a wide variety of sounds, most of which are strictly taken from the Motif. It also has a wide variety of ways of creating new sounds and editing them. There are many DSP effects to choose from in the Edit and Utility menus. It comes with four classic knobs with controls such as Cutoff, Reso, Attack, Release. There are also Dual and Split buttons, made for quick sound layering and splitting. The MM6 also features an eight-track MIDI sequencer. Finally, the MM6 features "Performance Memory," which allows users to save their favorite sound settings into eight buttons on the machine. There are eight banks of eight patch locations, allowing a total of 64 presets. UTILIZATION Sound editing is very simple. As mentioned earlier, there are many different ways to make and edit sounds. There are so many types of DSP, Reverb, Chorus, etc. effects that can be found in the Edit, Utility menus. You can route different effects, and tell the instrument which sounds get what effect in what patch. On top of effects, there are four realtime control knobs on the panel, which allow for quick, on the go, sound editing. The manual is clear and explains all of the above in perfect detail. Sound editing can be time consuming on this instrument, but generally speaking, the overall ease of use is fantastic. SOUNDS The sounds are of high quality, as most are taken from the company's famous, flagship keyboard, the Motif. Now, note I didn't say "extremely high quality." The onboard sounds are good, but you can definitely tell that this instrument is not very expensive just by playing a few of them. I highly recommend editing almost everything, and tweak everything to your liking. This instrument was not designed for basic sounds such as piano, organ, strings, etc. It does, of course, provide those basic sounds, but I recommend using the instrument to its fullest extent, editing all patches to your liking. OVERALL OPINION I really love this instrument. It's simple, easy to use, and great for anybody. Whether you are a live performer, studio engineer, or someone who wants to treat themselves to a nice synth experience, this keyboard could provide you some benefit. Routing and editing is simple, but a lot of that is time consuming. Luckily, Yamaha provides preset memory, so you can store your favorite settings into up to 64 different locations, so you don't have to scramble to get all your settings the way you want. The MM6 is a nice, street smart synth, and is a great buy out there on the market. It is well worth what Yamaha is selling it for. It currently sells for approx. $500. Maybe a bit more or a bit less...depends where you buy it from. But I'd say this instrument should be roughly $1000 based on its features. Great buy!

The XF7 is a 76 key music production synth. It is very expensive, but after you get the chance to use it for a few minutes you will be hooked and have to have it. All of the sounds in the XF7 are amazing, they are well designed. The presets have just the right FX on them to make them stand out and pop. The arpeggiator has over 7000 sounds that you can use, you can also layer those arpeggiators and create some really interesting sounds quickly. The XF7 is the perfect keyboard for the studio and for the live musician. Performance mode you can layer your voices and split the XF7 up into two different half's so you can play a different instrument for the bass (play bass on the left side and synths on the right side at the same time in performance mode). UTILIZATION The XF7 has 128MB of internal memory right out of the box. You do not have to install any more memory because it comes maxed out. You can record or sample any audio source effortlessly. There is no installation involved when working with the XFF7. All you have to do is plug it in and turn it on. SOUNDS The XF7 is heavy and bigger than I expected it to be though, at first glance it does not seem to be very big but once you are in front of it, it is a lot bigger. This could cause issues when moving it from one gig to the next. The screen that is on the XF7 is a full color display and it is bright and very easy to read. All of your navigation functions are right beside the screen so that even if you are in a dark room you can still find what you need to find. OVERALL OPINION Working with the XF7 has never been easier, I love when I get the chance to work with it and I have never met someone that does not like it. If you can afford it, you must buy it. But it does come with a large price tag.

The Motif ES 7 was a high end board a few years back and I still feel that It is today. There are so many keyboards and workstations on the market today its hard to pick one that you can really stick with. I love having he Motif ES in my arsenal it provides really good sounds and I love the brass and synths. I always get good tracks out of my music when I use some of the ES 7 sounds. UTILIZATION It was easy to use and I had to use the manual to figure out how to sequence on it. The sequencing on it just wasn’t good enough for me it was hard without being able to see what im doin. I am use to sequencing on software now so going from cubase and reason to trying to sequence on the ES 7 was really difficult for me. So now I just use the Motif as a so und module. Unless I am just messing around with some melodies on it then I might do some minor sequencing just to mess around and get some song ideas. SOUNDS The sounds are great, you can really get a good sound with this board. It has some really good bass too, I probably use the bass more than any other type of instrument that it has just because I feel like this has one of the best bass presets on the market today. OVERALL OPINION Overall, this is a good board with good sounds on it. Enough presets to definitely get you up and running. The presets are song ready right away, so if you are a preset user you wont have to do too much eqing or anything because all of the sounds are really high quality and ready to go. I really love my ES 7 I wont every sell it either.

This keyboard has some great sounds that it offers. Easy to connect to any software program thru midi connections. The price makes this board a must try, because its hard to get quality sounds for this price. UTILIZATION Editing was a hassle with this board, very difficult on this little screen that is very childish. Its easy to turn on and start playing with sounds, but as far a composing a hit on this board isn't going to happen. SOUNDS Sounds are good and realistic, but this board is a watered down version of the other more expensive Motif's. I suggest saving the money to get xs models. OVERALL OPINION The board has ok sounds, just not as many as I would like to have. Board feels like plastic and very cheap. But you get what you pay for, if you can save the money for the XS boards , do so. This will be fun for you to play with for a few weeks. But it will leave you wanting the XS Motif model. This board felt more like a toy keyboard to me.

(Originally written by Saga./translated from Audiofanzine FR) Very comprehensive keyboard 88 balanced, weighted hammer action keys (piano feel) Midi compatible, stereo 1/4" jack output and headphone output... UTILIZATION Very easy! Its simple design and small number of controls won't make you nervous... The user's manual is clear and comprehensive. SOUNDS Pros: lots of good quality instruments (violin, guitar, etc. )! Good expressiveness. I like most of all the violin and guitar presets. Con: I would like to get more choir and electric guitar presets. OVERALL OPINION I've been using it for four months. I like it because it's versatile and easy to use. I tried out a Motif ES, several Roland and Korg products... I wanted a piano feel, 88 keys plus lots of good quality instruments and effects at an affordable price. It's exactly what I wanted!

The Yamaha XF8 is a workstation that can do it all, it can do anything that your computer can do. Though I do not personally own this board but one of my band members does own it so I get the chance to use it a lot like it really is mine and one of the best things I can say about it over some of the other Yamaha boards is that they have made improvements to the size of the screen. This screen is bigger than the MoX 8 screen. Also the overall feel of the keys are great, they are semi weighted and on the higher octaves its still easy to play your melody lines because the keys aren't too heavy. UTILIZATION It was not easy to understand how to use this board, I pretty much have to use the manual almost any time im using it or ask my buddy to show me how to do something. But everything on it is very well built and constructed. They really put time into this board and that’s probably why it cost almost 1500 dollars more than the MoX8 style. This board does come in like a teal greenish color to but the black version pictured above looks so much better and it does in person too because that’s the one I use. SOUNDS Sounds are amazing, I have hear so many presets on this keyboard used in songs that are on the radio its crazy. Bad thing is that if you get it now it might be a bit outdated as far as the sounds go so you would need to start manipulating those presets up so you don’t sound outdated. OVERALL OPINION Great keyboard workstation with too many good sounds to name. Its just way to expensive for most of use to actually have the money on hand to invest in. you will need to pull out the credit card if you want this one.