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Yamaha YC61 Announced


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Someone mentioned it's available next month, not next June. The Keyboard review 2 days ago says June and I see Musicians Friend says end of February. Nothing new there when it comes to a new toy, we'll know when one actually lands in somebody's house.

 

As for the 61 key thing I've always had either 88 then 76 keys as I've gotten older. Sure in a perfect and younger world, I prefer that. Now, for the last 2 years I've gigged solely with my SK1 61 and I'm totally used to it. 12 pounds throw it into the Nord case that I got with it with a shoulder strap. For this old man, it's awesome. I even did a big band piano gig with it for a Christmas party. No problem, the bandleader keeps hiring me, the crowd was happy, so who cares? Same thing when I needed to use my FA06 12 days ago. Great players have been using 61 keys forever. Look at all the guys who played DX7's for years. It's always a tradeoff, gee, I can do this but then I have to do that but if I do it this way then I can to that that way and so it goes. If you're younger go for it, I did. I had a heavy old PC2X and would double rack it sometimes with an also heavy Hammond XK1 but that was 20 years ago. It's amazing the older we get, 2000 was 20 years ago? Now, I don't give a crap. I still sound good and nobody cares but me what I use, everybody thinks it sounds great regardless.

 

I'm seriously going to be all over this new board. Until the next new toy comes out...

 

What I really like about this is it's Yamaha. The largest electronic musical instrument company in the world. When they decide to do something they do it right, physically I expect it to be solid and the demos already sound really good. Korg could do something like this but Korg is also owned by Yamaha. Who knows why but they decided to do it under the parent name. With their reputation and marketing skills I expect this to sell very well. As for Roland they're constantly almost good, almost great and keep getting close but no cigar like the keybed on the FA06. Very good sounds, mediocre organ, weak Leslie, terrible feel. AND no C/V Man, what's with them? This Yamaha is almost certainly going to retire my SK1.

 

Bob

Hammond SK1, Mojo 61, Kurzweil PC3, Korg Pa3x, Roland FA06, Band in a Box, Real Band, Studio One, too much stuff...
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Korg could do something like this but Korg is also owned by Yamaha.

There was a period years ago where Yamaha was a partial owner of Korg, but AFAIK that ended quite some time ago.

 

Maybe this is the best place for a shameless plug! Our now not-so-new new video at https://youtu.be/3ZRC3b4p4EI is a 40 minute adaptation of T. S. Eliot's "Prufrock" - check it out! And hopefully I'll have something new here this year. ;-)

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As for the 61 key thing I've always had either 88 then 76 keys as I've gotten older. Sure in a perfect and younger world, I prefer that. Now, for the last 2 years I've gigged solely with my SK1 61 and I'm totally used to it. 12 pounds throw it into the Nord case that I got with it with a shoulder strap. For this old man, it's awesome. I even did a big band piano gig with it for a Christmas party. No problem, the bandleader keeps hiring me, the crowd was happy, so who cares? Same thing when I needed to use my FA06 12 days ago. Great players have been using 61 keys forever. Look at all the guys who played DX7's for years.

 

As a teenager, I remember a DX5 at the local music store back in the day and how that felt so much better with 76 keys. Ultimately I chose a JX10 as my first synth over all the others, primarily for the 76 keys. A used SY77 is an awesome synth, but only 61 keys (and NO flippin' octave buttons!!!) severely cramped my style. Unfortunately I never could find a reasonable price on an SY99. My Rhodes VK1000, 10 years used when acquired, saw many years of use because the convenience of 76 keys outweighed the somewhat limited sound set for me. My heavily gigged Yamaha EX5 saw a couple of years of single board gigs, served very well with 76 keys. Got a hella deal on a Fantom X6, but felt so cramped I wound up selling it cheap and paid a bit too much for a Fantom X7. Well worth the sacrifice for my wants and needs. I so badly needed a decent gig organ, a VR09 got my cash mere days after its announcement, but I HATE playing piano with such limited range, even with the super convenient octave buttons. I did it a lot, but always made sure none were aware of my discomfort while performing.

 

The past year seeking a non-Roland organ transplant, I've passed up many a good deals on 61 key opportunities because that's just not my size.

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What are the odds we'll see the new VCM organ engine in other Yamaha gear? A Montage successor, perhaps?

Acoustic: Shigeru Kawai SK-7 ~ Breedlove C2/R

MIDI: Kurzweil Forte ~ Sequential Prophet X ~ Yamaha CP88 ~ Expressive E Osmose

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Whoa! Just dove into the rotary effects on the MODX...the new Rotary 2 has a preset called Slow and Dirty. A little tweaking of the speed and drive parameters and I'm loving this gritty sound! It looks like YC61 has all of the right buttons and switches to give much easier access to these types of parameters...

 

See how one can talk one"s self into things? Even after my 76-key rant, I can possibly foresee this 61"er joining the flock.

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A couple of these posts got me to thinking about how Yamaha is not a monolithic, all-knowing corporate entity/diety that moves with purposeful weight into the future. No, as far as I can tell, Yamaha is not as coordinated as I'd like to think. As with any large corporation, there is not total transperancy or communication between departments and perhaps even amoung department heads.

 

All this to say that Yamaha has made no apparent effort in the last 30-40-? years to deliver proper organ sounds. And now they have, and given their long-standing commitment to quality of sound, I'm looking forward to the 73/76 note version as yet another stage piano offering. I guess it remains to be seen how playable the action is for synth/organ/eps/pianos.

 

Love it that stage pianos are so full-fledged these days, and so many variations on the theme.

Numa Piano X73 /// Kawai ES920 /// Casio CT-X5000 /// Yamaha EW425

Yamaha Melodica and Alto Recorder

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Looking fwd to playing this and really dive into its organ and Leslie. From the videos and audio streams to me the organ& Leslie sound merely ok. I like the other features prefer a 7x keybed as this is strictly for taking to jams not for soundtrack work.
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Not sure that's true about Yamaha and organ sounds. Didn't the Tyros at some point get a pretty advanced and high quality organ engine? I know most of us on this board, myself included, don't tend to look much at the Arranger Workstation product category, which appeals more to one-person casual gigs whereas most people on this board are in bands.

Eugenio Upright, 60th Anniversary P-Bass, USA Geddy Lee J-Bass, Yamaha BBP35, D'angelico SS Bari, EXL1,

Select Strat, 70th Anniversary Esquire, LP 57, Eastman T486, T64, Ibanez PM2, Hammond XK4, Moog Voyager

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I think it's fine for what it is. I'm a huge Yamaha fan as I use their stuff in my rigs. I love the CP88 and a lot of their products. That said I just wish companies wouldn't feel the need to copy Nord all in one concept. Nord did it and it works for them. Yamaha doesn't need to do that. Their pianos are already better and they have their niche. Yamaha is huge company. I wish companies would just stick to what makes them good. It reminds me of when McDonald's tried to branch out into other products. Shakes and burgers are what put them on the map so why not capitalize on that? Make it the best that you possibly can. Its the same way when Roland was trying to enter the clonewheel market. It didn't turn out to good for them with marginal products....it's just not their thing. I think we have to come to terms with the fact their isn't an all in one keyboard that can do everything.,,,,It doesn't exist. It's impossible just on the actions of keyboards alone.

"Danny, ci manchi a tutti. La E-Street Band non e' la stessa senza di te. Riposa in pace, fratello"

 

 

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Not sure that's true about Yamaha and organ sounds. Didn't the Tyros at some point get a pretty advanced and high quality organ engine? I know most of us on this board, myself included, don't tend to look much at the Arrange Workstation product category, which appeals more to one-person casual gigs whereas most people on this board are in bands.

 

Genos has good organ with Hammond knobs on the drawbars. I suspect that may be the engine here. They worked alot on it. But this one might have a better Leslie sim--I don't know.

 

The Genos and Montage have similar sound engines, but Montage has Audio interface on board (Tyros may have also), Genos does not. The Genos has some articulation features Montage does not.

 

 

 

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I was surprised at how nice my Motif classic organ sounded in live recordings...rock tunes to be sure...UNLESS I turned on the fast leslie and left it on. I would only dare to get it wobbling a bit then hurriedly turn it back to slow, lest the LFO siren "goodness" shine through....
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I wonder if this clonewheel engine/technology will ever find its way into the Montage/MODX line, if that is even possible.

 

I was wondering the same thing myself. This board itself is not for me, but...if the main organ engine is VCM based, maybe there's hope the tech could make it to the montage/MODX family?

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The organs I"ve downloaded and modified in my MODX are good enough to raise eyebrows at the local jams. Viscount and Hammond clone players are often asking what software I"m using and they"re quite surprised to find that a Yamaha makes those noises. All the right stuff is in there...just has to be programmed so the switches, levers, and, pulleys are assigned to the somewhat limited surface controls...and one must remember which ones control what. That said, I wonder if most of this VCM engine is already in the Montage/MODX? I"m really not smart enough to even propose such a question, but there it is anyway.

 

The YC61 is looking more attractive to me everyday because it appears all of the surface controls will mostly eliminate the required deep dives into MODX"s menu-scape.

 

Now, to make room for this...ba-bye Rolands...

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The organs I"ve downloaded and modified in my MODX are good enough to raise eyebrows at the local jams. Viscount and Hammond clone players are often asking what software I"m using and they"re quite surprised to find that a Yamaha makes those noises. All the right stuff is in there...just has to be programmed so the switches, levers, and, pulleys are assigned to the somewhat limited surface controls...and one must remember which ones control what. That said, I wonder if most of this VCM engine is already in the Montage/MODX? I"m really not smart enough to even propose such a question, but there it is anyway.

 

The YC61 is looking more attractive to me everyday because it appears all of the surface controls will mostly eliminate the required deep dives into MODX"s menu-scape.

 

Now, to make room for this...ba-bye Rolands...

 

Hey Brenner, which organs have you downloaded into the MODX?

Hammond SKX

Mainstage 3

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For this particular market of "organ plus", are there many 73-to-76 key boards besides the Electro's elongated edition?

Eugenio Upright, 60th Anniversary P-Bass, USA Geddy Lee J-Bass, Yamaha BBP35, D'angelico SS Bari, EXL1,

Select Strat, 70th Anniversary Esquire, LP 57, Eastman T486, T64, Ibanez PM2, Hammond XK4, Moog Voyager

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For this particular market of "organ plus", are there many 73-to-76 key boards besides the Electro's elongated edition?

Hammond SK1, Vox Continental, Roland VR730, Dexibell Combo J7, arguably Kurzweil Artis 7. If you go to 88, maybe Kronos LS and Numa Compact 2X.

 

Maybe this is the best place for a shameless plug! Our now not-so-new new video at https://youtu.be/3ZRC3b4p4EI is a 40 minute adaptation of T. S. Eliot's "Prufrock" - check it out! And hopefully I'll have something new here this year. ;-)

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Ah, way more than I realized. So maybe Yamaha will do a larger version if this one sells well. My recollection is that even with the ROMplers like the MOTIF series, the 73-76 key versions came to market a bit later, even if announced at the start.

Eugenio Upright, 60th Anniversary P-Bass, USA Geddy Lee J-Bass, Yamaha BBP35, D'angelico SS Bari, EXL1,

Select Strat, 70th Anniversary Esquire, LP 57, Eastman T486, T64, Ibanez PM2, Hammond XK4, Moog Voyager

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The organs I"ve downloaded and modified in my MODX are good enough to raise eyebrows at the local jams. Viscount and Hammond clone players are often asking what software I"m using and they"re quite surprised to find that a Yamaha makes those noises. All the right stuff is in there...just has to be programmed so the switches, levers, and, pulleys are assigned to the somewhat limited surface controls...and one must remember which ones control what. That said, I wonder if most of this VCM engine is already in the Montage/MODX? I"m really not smart enough to even propose such a question, but there it is anyway.

 

The YC61 is looking more attractive to me everyday because it appears all of the surface controls will mostly eliminate the required deep dives into MODX"s menu-scape.

 

Now, to make room for this...ba-bye Rolands...

 

Hey Brenner, which organs have you downloaded into the MODX?

 

I have found the update K-Sounds Organimation to be very good on my MODX. Make s lot of use of the Superknob to change pre-assigned drawbar settings. The Easy Sound organs are also very good. Both about the same price.

 

 

David

Gig Rig:Casio Privia PX-5S | Yamaha MODX+ 6 | MacBook Pro 14" M1| Mainstage

 

 

 

 

 

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Dave"s Nu Organ1 by Bad Mister from the Soundmondo app is a superb starting point...and it"s free! I also got K-Sounds organ pack from Yamaha"s website. Some fun"s one there, too.

 

I"ve heard good things about EasySounds, but very pleased with tweaking stuff on that one from the app. It is daunting at first, and a little frustrating learning Yamaha menu navigation, but I"m LOVING the new Rotary 2 effect.

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Vox Continental £850.

 

The new Vox Continental is one of the best BARGAINS to come along in long time in the Clone Wheel category. A 73 key model can fill a lot of musical needs, without breaking the bank. Major league Hammond organists might not be satisfied with the Vox, but other players want some quality organ sounds and B&B sounds to boot. I don't use a lot of organ patches in my classic rock songs, but that is more of a matter of short comings of MOTIF organ sounds and LAME Leslie SIMM. Yuck.

 

I listened to the Vox demos and it seems to be a very versatile instrument that can wear a lot of hats and not cost a fortune.

 

 

Mike T.

 

Yamaha Motif ES8, Alesis Ion, Prophet 5 Rev 3.2, 1979 Rhodes Mark 1 Suitcase 73 Piano, Arp Odyssey Md III, Roland R-70 Drum Machine, Digitech Vocalist Live Pro. Roland Boss Chorus Ensemble CE-1.

 

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Ah, way more than I realized. So maybe Yamaha will do a larger version if this one sells well. My recollection is that even with the ROMplers like the MOTIF series, the 73-76 key versions came to market a bit later, even if announced at the start.

 

Unfortunately, history suggests they'll bypass a 73/76-key model and go straight to 88, like the MX series. Every year, I ask them at NAMM "why no 76 key version?" Every year, "they don't sell." Sad.

Soul, R&B, Pop from Los Angeles

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Cannonball Gerald Albright Signature Alto, Yamaha YC73, Fender Rhodes, Roland Juno-106, Yamaha MX61, Roland VR-09, MicroKorg XL, Maschine Mikro, Yamaha Reface CP, Roland MKS-50

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Unfortunately, history suggests they'll bypass a 73/76-key model and go straight to 88, like the MX series. Every year, I ask them at NAMM "why no 76 key version?" Every year, "they don't sell." Sad.

And yet, they did come out with the MODX7! So maybe there's some reason for hope...

 

I don't think they will come out with an 88 key version of this. In a sense, the piano-centric version of this board already exists in the CP88. But who knows...

Maybe this is the best place for a shameless plug! Our now not-so-new new video at https://youtu.be/3ZRC3b4p4EI is a 40 minute adaptation of T. S. Eliot's "Prufrock" - check it out! And hopefully I'll have something new here this year. ;-)

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Is the new yc61's rotary sim much better than the vr-09's new version 1.11 type 3 sim?

 

We"ve only got a few SoundCloud audio files to go by. Even at NAMM - it"s so noisy, you might get a minute to hear it in headphones. It will be a little time yet before we get to spend some real time with it.

 

Yamaha CP88, Casio PX-560

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New NAMM Demo with Blake:

 

 

He"s pitching this as ' a piano player"s keyboard to explore organ'...... Hmmmm,.... he TALKS about CV but does not USE it anywhere in this demo, but, IMJ, because he"s not an organ player rather than any conscious motivation to hide lesser quality.

Functionality and build are top notch as usual. The B3 has a number of slots, one with foldback, one without, which he says id FM based if I heard correctly? A good B3 for Benmont Tench/Rami Jaffe style playing, jury"s still out if it can go head to head with the big boys, but it sounds WAY better than the Nord model for sure. (Probably plays better, too).

"I have constantly tried to deliver only products which withstand the closest scrutiny � products which prove themselves superior in every respect.�

Robert Bosch, 1919

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New NAMM Demo with Blake:

 

 

He"s pitching this as ' a piano player"s keyboard to explore organ'...... Hmmmm,.... he TALKS about CV but does not USE it anywhere in this demo, but, IMJ, because he"s not an organ player rather than any conscious motivation to hide lesser quality.

Functionality and build are top notch as usual. The B3 has a number of slots, one with foldback, one without, which he says id FM based if I heard correctly? A good B3 for Benmont Tench/Rami Jaffe style playing, jury"s still out if it can go head to head with the big boys, but it sounds WAY better than the Nord model for sure. (Probably plays better, too).

 

I think he is referring to its single manual, 61keys and likely placement over a stage piano like the CP88. This isn't a Viscount Legend, Mojo, Hammond XK-5, etc. It competes with other jack of all trades boards like the VR-730 and Electro D, SK1.

 

Is it a stretch to imagine that once they've put the R&D in, gotten user feedback, and done some revisions that an "organ players" instrument might be in their future?

Yamaha CP88, Casio PX-560

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