Yamaha XS quick review

[GregC]

I spent a noisy, teeth grinding 1 hour with the XS8 at my local Guitar Center. I was surrounded by 3 kids on XS's and a Fantom who either played the same 3 notes into the sequencer or tested every snare and kick drum

Of course they played thru Peavy amps at a loud volume. I brought my Sony MDR headphones so I had half a chance to enjoy the XS

FYI, I am a Korg and Roland guy ( Tritons, Rd700sx, Fantom XR). I am quite impressed with the XS. Yamaha did a fine job improving the Perfomances and the Voices.

I did my best to A/B the XS with the ES, given the conditions. I think the acoustic piano is much improved, a rounder sustain. I think most of the voices are at least a touch better with more nuance and character.

The XS Performances mostly kick ass. A nice quantity and variety, reminiscent of the Korg Extreme but with better Voices

The woodwinds/Orchestra/trumpets are really nice, realistic. Little FX, maybe a touch of eq.

The EPs are excellent, the CP70 was delicious

I liked the weighed keys on the XS8. The Xs7 keys are supposedly semi weighed according to another forum poster. They feel ok, I just did not feel the semi weight- possibly because I am heavy fingered

I think Yamaha has a winner( as a non Motif person) with the XS

GregC

[GregC]

I placed my order for the XS7( will take about 2 weeks). This will be my first Motif

I am a noob on Motifator, I still need practice posting there. How about this:

" Roland/Korg sux, if you remove the FX, the sounds are thin and plasticky. Nobody buys that stuff. Motif RULES, Woof Woof '


GregC

[nsheldon]

Hahaha. Yea, sounds like you'll fit right in at Motifator there Greg.

Thanks for the quick review of the XS. I think I might have to check one out myself.

Regards,

Nathan Sheldon
http://www.nathansheldon.com/

[GregC]

LOL, I try

Some of the folks there are quite wacky, a few complained about
' touch screens ' due to their greasy fingers. I suggested hand washing after eating pizza and french fries and before playing a Triton or Fantom

After a few months, my transformation to the Dark Side should be complete

GregC

[fjs714]

Hi Greg,
Also played the XS yesterday. Organ sound are really authentic and beautiful. If and when they come out with a rack model can it be used with the FantomX?
Thanks Frank

[GregC]

hey Frank, a Fantom keyboard should not have any problem midi'g to a Motif Rack

I have a Rd700sx and I asked several questions about midi'g to the XS7

It seems to check out

GregC

[Silver Dragon Sound]

I've also played the Yamaha Motif XS although it was only for a brief amount of time. I was impressed by the sounds I played and the ease of use with laying down a few tracks. I'd need some more time with it to see what it could really do but I don't think I would replaced my Fantom X. I expected it to sound good and it did, but I wasn't blown away by any of the sounds I heard and played around with.

[GregC]

sure, they are different boards

I sold my XR ( also have the Rd700sx) since I was making much use of it and to help fund newer boards

Another factor was Rolands lack of new SRX's.

Anyway, the XS ( my first Motif) has sounds and strengths I cannot pass up

GregC

[GregC]

I now have the XS7 and it is quite wonderful

An important item- EASY to navigate. Really.

I am Zipping around on Voices ( programs) and Performances(combis)

The Category function and 4 arrow buttons are well done. The color LCD is excellent for a general or higher view via Category , then you can drill down to what you want

Appearance passed a critical test. My girlfriend likes the look and color.

I am very impressed by the ARPS and chordal intelligence- this works very well for strums and bass accompaniment

The quality of Voices and Performances is excellent. Yamaha thought this thru and provided something for everyone

A slight note- the bass on many Performances seems eq'd up. I have a low pass filter on my Mackie Onyx which I engaged. Bingo. Crisp and clear

My setup is now the XS, Rd700sx and Extreme 76. It is easy to dispense with those silly ' comparisons ' by a quick A vs B or A vs C or B vs C
that some folks are passionate about

XS7 Keyboard feel - it is nice. Its subtly better than the Extreme 76 synth action keys. Some folks in the know claim the XS7 is semi weighed. It might be. My old A50 ( roland midi controller) was semi weighed and was definitetly a good hybrid between weighed ( piano weight) and the light synth action

GregC

[GregC]

and this is more great news for us new XS owners:

http://www.motifator.com/monews.php

"For the new Motif XS owner the 2007 Motif Loyalty Program provides for an additional 1 Year Warranty on the Motif XS, 64 New Voices taken from four of the most popular DCP Voice libraries available on Motifator.com, a new bank of 128 XS voices and extra Performances created by the Yamaha voicing team, a 40% discount coupon on Arturia Virtual Instrument software, and perhaps most important of all the S700 piano sample set taken from the Yamaha S90ES."

GregC

[starship]

i tried out the xs, its a great board, but i don't think it will replace my juno-g.

vintage roland synth sounds are to die for. but yamaha sure beats all in the quality of their acoustic sounds and arps!!! the arps are amazing. i think i would add the xs to the rig, not sell the juno-g and buy xs.

[Silver Dragon Sound]

Why are the Motif XS's being returned to stores at such a high rate? Many large retailers such as Guitar Center and Sam Ash are reporting a high number of XS models being purchased and returned. Please understand my question is not to discredit the XS, I am truly curious and somewhat puzzled considering the quality of the XS.

[GregC]

asking on this forum is a clever idea


GregC

[Silver Dragon Sound]

You caught that aye. Just curious about opinions. I already know what the response is on "the other side."

[starship]

some people are simply fools...they have this high unrealistic expectation of motif xs that its some sort of super synth that can sound the perfect in everything. thats why they return it disappointed because its still a motif at heart.

let's face it, its not a super synth. its fortay is acoustic and electric (guitar) sounds....synthesizer sounds are vastly improved but still don't sound as deep as a roland or korg.

yamaha attributes this to pre=processing (without effects). but i know the juno-g synth sounds without effects still sound fresher than the motif xs's.

however, the synth is great if you are into several types of contemporary music.

i definitely think a lot of samples are of higher quality than the roland or korg. i also think the modelling effects VCM kill all others for natural guitar tones.

my friend bought an xs and he killed his lead guitarist....lol