Yamaha DGX-670: Do you love me?

Posted on June 16, 2023 by pj

Yes, I played one! The pandemic has let up to the point where I can drag my old bod to music stores, again. Fortunately, I haven’t worn out my welcome with local shop owners and clerks (yet).

I don’t intend to run down the DGX-670 features in detail. The Yamaha DGX-670 has been on the market for two+ years and you can find all the details on the Yamaha Web page. Yamaha position the DGX as a “portable grand piano,” part of the “P” line of digital piano products.

And, as of late, my primary interest is in a digital piano that will help me to sharpen my piano skills. I want those skills to translate to the acoustic piano (Petrof acoustic grand) at church.

In that regard, the DGX-670 does not disappoint. The action is Graded Hammer Standard (GHS) and the main piano multi-sample is Yamaha CFX. The 670 has Yamaha’s Virtual Resonance Modeling (VRM) which “reproduces the complicated interaction between both string and soundboard resonance.” The CFX sounds very good through the in-built amplification and speaker system: 2 x 6 Watt amplifier, 2 x (12cm + 5cm) speakers. If I have one immediate slam on the DGX-670, its front panel legends are difficult to read in poor light (black model).

Yamaha DGX-670 digital piano decked out in white

In short, the DGX-670 has me asking, “Do I really need to move up to the Yamaha P-515 digital piano?” This question is more complicated than it sounds, especially when you roll the Yamaha CK88 into the analysis!

The DGX-670 street price is $850 USD versus $1,600 for the P-515. The store which hosted my adventure was prepared to discount the DGX-670 to $750 — that’s half of a P-515. That’s half of a Yamaha CK88, too ($1,500 MAP).

It comes down to personal musical goals — and desire. 🙂 Let’s take each alternative separately.

The P-515 has the Natural Wood X action with escapement (NWX) and the glorious Bösendorfer Imperial. That’s a lot to argue against. The P-515 sound system is more capable: 2 x (15W + 5W biamplified) amplifier, and 2 x (12cm x 6cm) woofer and 2 x 2.5cm dome. The DGX-670 has a very nice 4.3 inch (480 × 272 dots) LCD display that adds a splash of color to Yamaha’s drab black. The P-515 display has less resolution (128 x 64 dots) and is monochrome. [Yamaha should adopt the color display for the P-515 successor].

Those P-515 characteristics would be easy to live with. My biggest beef with the P-515, however, is the paucity and lower quality of its non-piano (AP or EP) sounds. The DGX-670 outstrips the P-515 for non-piano sounds. I quickly compared the DGX-670 voices against my once-beloved, owned and played PSR-S950. The DGX-670 is (roughly) a PSR-S950 without the Organ Flutes drawbar organ. I know these voices and would be very happy to have them in my piano instrument.

As to auto-accompaniment, the DGX-670 is “arranger lite.” It has styles and chord recognition. The styles are now represented in the Style File Format Guitar Edition (SFF GE) form. SFF GE makes the DGX-670 compatible with styles from the mid- and upper-end Yamaha arranger keyboards. A virtual ocean of styles are available at the PSR Tutorial web site as well as a growing community of DGX-670 players on the PSR Tutorial forum.

Yamaha do not say much about P-515 auto-accompaniment other than it’s bass plus drum, and that it follows chords. What is P-515’s chord recognition technique? Is it similar to full keyboard, A.I. recognition? Wish I knew more about this aspect of the P-515…

Regular visitors know that I test drove the Yamaha CK88, too. The CK88 is positioned in Yamaha’s stage keyboard product line. The sound system is comparable to the DGX-670: 2 x 6 Watt amplifier and 2 x (12cm x 6cm) speakers. The CK88 has the lower resolution (128×64 dots) monochrome display.

Piano-wise, the CK88 has the CFX multi-sample and GHS keybed. No VRM. No Bösendorfer. The CKs are well-equipped for drawbar and pipe organ. (The pipe organ multi-samples originated on Genos™.) The DGX-670 — and P-515, for that matter — are relatively deficient in the drawbar and pipe organ department. The CKs have a good selection of other non-piano voices. No Super Articulation. The CKs do not have auto-accompaniment of any kind.

So, if a player doesn’t care about drawbar organ and wants VRM, why not DGX-670 at half the price of a CK88?

At this point, I would be remiss to not mention slab weight:

    DGX-670 weight:  47.1 pounds (21.4kg) 
    P-515 weight:    48.5 pounds (22.0kg) 
    CK88 weight:     28.8 pounds (13.1kg)

Yamaha’s engineers did a remarkable job of slimming the CK88 down to 28.8 pounds. The respectable GHS-equipped P-125 is 26 pounds and I doubt if Yamaha can design a lighter, robust, 88-key GHS keyboard.

I neglected the whole issue of connectivity and app support. Your mileage will vary. The DGX-670 does not have 5-pin DIN MIDI. That might be a deal-breaker for some folks. Smart Pianist does not presently support CK88. Look to Yamaha Soundmondo, instead.

I didn’t work the Yamaha CP88 into the analysis. After its updates, the CP88 is a virtual library of pianos! It’s also $2,600 USD (MAP), $1,000 higher than the three digital pianos in my analysis.

Finally, why did I enjoy playing the DGX-670 GHS and not so much the CK88. Yamaha swears that the GHS action is the same everywhere. If there is an external factor, perhaps it is the insane way trial pianos are set-up in stores? Often, I feel like a contortionist. (Forget reading sheet music in some settings, too.) Playing piano is, after all, a physical act.

If you enjoyed this analysis, please check out my comments about the Yamaha P-S500. I compare the P-S500 against the DGX-670.

Other reviews and comments about digital pianos:

Yamaha P-515: I played one

Posted on June 5, 2023 by pj

I’ve been toying with the idea of a digital piano at home in order to improve my meager piano skills. Too many years of organ, synths and lead sheets have let my piano skills go to seed. I want an instrument that provides a comfortable transition to the acoustic grand at the church. [After trying the P-515, I played the Petrof grand at church and the P-515 experience translates very well.]

I always like Yamaha’s top of the P-series line (P-150, P-200 and beyond). The flagship piano slabs are just portable enough (45 pound-ish), have built-in speakers, and decent action. The built-in speakers are good for practice and pass along physical vibrations as though you’re seated behind the real thing.

The latest model in this venerable line is the P-515. In terms of features, comparing the P-515 to the P-150 is like comparing an electronics-rich BMW to a 1990s Toyota. The P-515 communicates to the outside world through 5-pn MIDI, USB, Bluetooth, WiFi and good ole analog audio. The P-515 has MIDI and audio recording similar to a contemporary arranger. I’ve gotten a lot of mileage out of Genos quick and multi-track recording; P-515 is not too far behind. And, the Smart Pianist™ app keeps getting better and better.

Yamaha NWX (natural wood with escapement)

Then there is the keybed action. Yamaha equipped the P-515 with the NWX natural wood with escapement keybed formerly available only in the Clavinova line. The NWX is a solid step up from GHS. The only thing GHS has over NWX is lighter weight. After playing NWX, forget GHS.

The great stuff

If all you want is great acoustic piano from a $1,600 (USD) digital instrument, buy this. The P-515 has all of the acoustic sweeteners missing from Genos, Montage (MODX), CK, and even the current CP stage piano. The P-515 sound engine implements Virtual Resonance Modeling (VRM): damper resonance, string resonance, Aliquot resonance and body resonance.

Playing this piano satisfies thanks to the NWX action and excellent hand, key, ear connection. The CFX is very good and the Bösendorfer is even better. I prefer the darker sound of the Bösendorfer over the CFX, but still!

The electric pianos are not bad. The Rhodes might be a little too laid back and the Wurli might be a little too aggressive. However, you can get sweet tones out of this machine.

The not so great stuff

After picking me up with the piano sounds, Yamaha disappointed me with many of the non-piano voices. After playing Genos and MODX (Montage), I know that Yamaha can do better. Yamaha’s new stage piano series (CP and YC) have raised my expectations of secondary, non-piano voices.

Quite frankly, I find the string, pad and organ voices to be dated. The string voices are bad and not up to current standards. The dark pad seems useable in church; I cannot think of using the light pad in liturgical music.

The jazz organ sounds are long in the tooth and the pipe organ voices have been around a long time. The organ principal voice is useable. The “Phantom of the Opera” tutti is not generally useful in church. Further, Bach’s Toccata and Fugue in D Minor is not a simple piece and I wonder how many home players really use this voice? The newer CLPs have added “Grand Jeu and pipe organ flute registrations. That’s a good move and I hope they are added to the next iteration of the P-515.

Yamaha and everybody else in the home piano space needs to drop the crap choir voices. [There, I said it.] These sounds are clichéd and utterly useless. Harpsichord is on the bubble, too. There are better uses for waveform ROM.

The P-series non-piano sounds need a drastic update. Yamaha engineers need to break out of their product silos, walk over to the synth group or whoever, and ask, “Hey, what are your absolutely go-to sounds?” and adopt them. My suggestion: Cop Seattle strings, VP soft, and Genos pipe organs. Ditch a few harpsichords and add more clav or EP.

Is it hopeless?

Not entirely. The P-515 has an XG sound set. Yes, XG is dated, too, but it is comprehensive. The P-515 user interface requires a little menu-diving to find the XG sounds. The P-515 does not have a way to store your set-ups directly on the keyboard — another minus. The Smart Pianist app comes to the rescue, letting you create and store set-ups.

Yamaha, maybe add a few on-board memory storage locations in the next iteration of the flagship model? While we’re talking improvements, 1.4 Megabytes of internal memory is absurdly small, too. In this day and age, potential customers will think this a typo or a joke.

If you absolutely require a wider range of non-piano sounds, then Yamaha’s CP or YC series stage pianos may be the answer. Of course, you will spend more money.

        MAP 
Model  Price  CFX  Bösen  VRM  Keybed 
-----  -----  ---  -----  ---  -------------------------------- 
CK88   $1500   Y     N     N   GHS graded hammer 
P-515  $1600   Y     Y     Y   NWX Natural Wood escapement (X) 
CP88   $2600   Y     Y     N   NW-GH Natural Wood Graded Hammer 
YC88   $3150   Y     N     N   NW-GH3 Natural Wood Graded Hammer

The CK88’s GHS keybed is out of the NW league. The price is attractive, though, and a little bit lower than P-515, so I included the CK88 for comparison. The CP88 and YC88 lose VRM and the YC88 loses the Bösendorfer, too. The P-515 is positioned in Yamaha’s piano family (simple front panel and Smart Pianist) while the other instruments are positioned in the stage keyboard family (interactive, intuitive front panel and in-built patch memory),

You put your money down and make your choice.

Conclusion

I really want to end on an upbeat note. So, again, if all you want or need are great acoustic piano tones, buy this. With its connectivity options, I can rely on MODX or Genos for non-piano voices [at home, anyway].

As much as I want a P-515, I likely will wait for its successor. P-515 was released in 2018 and it’s due for an update. Yamaha, please?

Other reviews and comments about digital pianos:

MODX: Drawbar waveforms (part 2)

Posted on May 25, 2023 by pj

Last time, we looked at the drawbar programming in MODX Performance “The Basics”. The first five voice Elements are each assigned a single drawbar waveform: 16′, 5 1/3′, 8′, 4′ and 2′.

A lot of folks (me!) frequently build on a foundation like pulling the first three or four drawbars and then pull higher bars while playing. Thus, assigning individual drawbars seems a little wasteful in these kinds of registrations, when the foundation doesn’t change. Fortunately, MODX (Montage) provide waveforms for typical drawbar foundations:

    Wave#  Waveform name            Registration? 
    -----  ----------------------   ------------- 
     441   Rock Chorus Vibrato 
     442   Rock Percussion 
     443   Rock2                    65 5444 644 
     446   Jazz w/Percussion 
     448   Jazz                     78 6600 000 
     451   Full Draw                88 8888 888 
     454   Swish 
     456   Bow                      87 4323 468 
     457   Bow Chorus Vibrato 
     458   Gospel                   87 6000 568 
     459   Soul                     80 0050 578 
     460   1st Four Draw            88 8800 000 
     479   Draw 1+3                 80 8000 000 
     482   Draw 2+4                 08 0800 000 
     485   Draw Even 
     488   Draw Odd

The MODX data list PDF has the complete list of waveforms, including the slightly detuned and offset variations. I tried to guess the registrations and please take my guesses with a grain of salt! [See Genos/PSR organ registrations.]

MODX Performance “Vib Chorus AF1” is as simple as you can get:

    Performance: Vib Chorus AF1 
    El# Waveform            Level  Pan  Coarse  XA Control 
    --- ------------------  -----  ---  ------  ---------- 
     1  Bow                   100   C      0    A.SW Off 
     2  Bow Chorus Vibrato    102   C      0    A.SW1 On

It consists of two Elements. “Bow” refers to the overall shape of the drawbars with the lowest and highest drawbars pulled out the farthest. You might hear this registration in a gospel music or soul setting.

The Elements depend on the state of the ASSIGN 1 front panel button. The Extended Articulation (XA) control parameter chooses the first Element when the A.SW switches are OFF and chooses the second Element when the A.SW1 switch is ON. This configuration conserves polyphony and Elements sparingly. You can add or disable chorus/vibrato (C/V) by pressing the ASSIGN 1 switch. The C/V is sampled into the “Bow Chorus Vibrato” waveform and you do not have the option of selecting V1, C1, etc. Unlike real world Hammond, C/V is added (or removed) only on new notes played after switching. It’s not an independent effect unit.

You could use “Vib Chorus AF1” as the basis for new Performances that switch between drawbar registrations. Why not switch between “Jazz” and “Jazz w/Percussion”, for example? Simply change Element 1 to the “Jazz” waveform and change Element 2 to the “Jazz w/Percussion” waveform.

Here are the Element assignments for another simple Performance, “Draw Control”:

    Performance: Draw Control 
    El# Waveform            Level  Pan  Coarse  XA Control 
    --- ------------------  -----  ---  ------  ----------  
     1  Draw 1+3              100   C      0    Normal 
     2  Draw 2+4               67   C      0    Normal 
     3  Draw Even               0   C      0    Normal 
     4  Draw Odd                0   C      0    Normal

You can go from quiet to shoutin’ with this one! For extra credit, learn how to add rotor grit and rotor whistle Elements in order to sweeten the pot. [Hint: Learn how to copy Elements with SHIFT+EDIT.]

New waveforms in Montage/MODX

There are several new drawbar organ waveforms in Montage (MODX) which don’t get mentioned very often. These waveforms have the Leslie speaker effect sampled in:

Wave#  Waveform Name        Performance         Registration? 
-----  -------------------  --------------      ------------- 
  495  Tonewheel1 Fast      Whiter Bars         68 8600 000 
  496  Tonewheel1 Slow 
  497  Tonewheel2 Fast      All Bar None        88 8888 888 
  498  Tonewheel2 Slow 
  499  Tonewheel3 Fast L    The Jazz Organ, Groove Organ 
  500  Tonewheel3 Fast R 
  501  Tonewheel3 Fast St 
  502  Tonewheel3 Slow L 
  503  Tonewheel3 Slow R 
  504  Tonewheel3 Slow St 
  505  Tonewheel4 Fast                          88 8888 888 
  506  Tonewheel5 Fast      Rich Bars           63 8457 530 
  507  Tonewheel6 Fast

Sampled-in Leslie doesn’t get much love because the effect cannot be modified and the switch from slow speed to fast is abrupt — no acceleration ramp between the two speeds.

The first three sets of tonewheel waveforms cover the three most common registrations: 1. Whiter Shade Of Pale, 2. full drawbars, and 3. jazz organ a la Jimmy Smith and Groove Holmes. If you want to try them out, I took note of the MODX Performances built on these tonewheel sample sets.

I believe these tonewheel waveforms are used in the Genos™ “joystick (JS)” voices: “WhiterBars JS”, and “AllBarsOut JS” and “JazzRotary JS”. The ears don’t lie. Tonewheel4, 5 and 6 are probably in the Genos ROM somewhere, too. No time for an Easter egg hunt today. 🙂

Here is what you will see if you look inside of these Performances:

Performance: The Jazz Organ 
El# Waveform            Level  Pan  Coarse 
--- ------------------  -----  ---  ------ 
 1  Tonewheel 3 Slow L    115  L63     0 
 2  Tonewheel 3 Slow R    115  R63     0 
 3  Tonewheel 3 Fast L      0  L63     0 
 4  Tonewheel 3 Fast L      0  R63     0 
 5  Draw 16' Of            32   C    +20 
 6  Rotor Whistle           0   C    +17 
 7  Rotor Grit 1            0   C      0 
 8  Draw 4' Of              0   C      0 

Performance: Whiter Bars 
El# Waveform          Level  Pan  Coarse  XA Control 
--- ----------------  -----  ---  ------  ---------- 
 1  Tonewheel 1 Slow    127   C      0 
 2  Tonewheel 1 Fast      0   C      0 
 3  Draw 16' Of          23   C    +20    Key off - Rel key click 
 4  Rotor Whistle         0   C    +17 
 5  Rotor Grit 1          0   C      0 
 6  Draw 4' Of          127   C      0    Assign SW #1 - Percussion 

Performance: All Bar None 
El# Waveform          Level  Pan  Coarse  XA Control 
--- ----------------  -----  ---  ------  ---------- 
 1  Tonewheel 2 Slow    127   C      0 
 2  Tonewheel 2 Fast      0   C      0 
 3  Draw 16' Of          32   C    +20    Key Off - Rel key click 
 4  Rotor Whistle         5   C    +17

Example performance

I set out to build a new Performance, “8888+”, using a few of the ideas that I outlined above. The new Performance puts the “1st Four Draw” waveform in the first Element and places four individual drawbar waveforms into Elements 2 through 5:

    Performance: 8888+ 
    El# Waveform            Level  Pan  Coarse 
    --- ------------------  -----  ---  ------ 
     1  1st Four Draw         127   C      0 
     2  Draw 2 2/3              0   C      0 
     3  Draw 2'                 0   C      0 
     4  Draw 1 1/3              0   C      0 
     5  Draw 1 3/5              0   C      0 
     6  Rotor Grit 2           70   C    -24 
     7  Rotor                 127   C    -17 
     8  Percussion              0   C     -7

Elements 6 and 7 add rotor noise. Element 8 handles percussion.

I didn’t build “8888+” from scratch. I started out with the Performance “More Shade” and modified it, following the basic editing procedure which I outlined in my last post.

In the MODX All table, tap the name of the waveform that you want to change in order to select it. MODX (Montage) displays two buttons on the left-hand side of the display. Tap the “Category Search” button.

MODX displays waht looks like a category search page. Instead of Performances, this category search displays and searches waveforms. You can scroll through the waveform or type in the name of the waveform that you’d like to find. Select a waveform and press the ENTER button.

I followed his basic procedure for each of the first five Elements. Yeah, the 1 1/3 and 1 3/5 drawbars are not in the usual order, but I want to have 1 1/3 in the first group of sliders. I’m more likely to pull that drawbar than 1 3/5.

If you ride the sliders and noodle around, the individual drawbar sounds will be louder than the “1st Four Draw” sound. We need to rebalance the choir so that no individual drawbar will sound out-of-place with its peers.

MODX Performance 8888+ first Element AEG

In order to balance the bars, I visited the Amplitude EG page for drawbars 1 through five. The picture above is the Amplitude EG page for the first Element, “1st Four Draw”. Please notice the envelope Levels: Initial, Attack. Decay1 and Decay2. Attack, Decay1 and Decay2 levels are the maximum, 127. That’s good. We want the “1st Four Draw” waveform at the maximum output level.

MODX Performance 8888+ second Element (2 2/3) AEG

The next screen capture shows the Amplitude EG for the “Draw 2 2/3” Element. I reduced the four envelope levels. Attack, Decay1 and Decay2 levels are 70, which will make the “Draw 2 2/3” blend into the overall drawbar choir. I programmed Elements 3, 4 and 5 in the same way. If 70 doesn’t sound/feel right to you, dial in a different level!

MODX Performance 8888+ sixth Element (rotor noise) AEG

I also adjusted the envelope levels for Elements 6, 7, and 8. In the case of 6 (above) and 7, lower envelope levels prevent outrageously loud rotor noise if I accidently push the sliders up for 6 and 7. This can happen in the heat of battle when I’m concentrating on the music and not watching my hands on the sliders. 🙂 Similarly, I set the envelope levels for Element 8, percussion, to obtain soft percussion when its slider is all the way up.

I hope this discussion encourages experiments of your own. I also hope that you are becoming more comfortable with MODX (Montage) editing.

MODX: Drawbar control (part 1)

Posted on May 18, 2023 by pj

Test driving Yamaha’s CK88 motivated me to get off my tail and learn how to make the experience of playing MODX more CK-like. In particular, I want to make better use of the MODX front panel sliders for drawbar control.

This requires the most basic knowledge of MODX (Montage) Performance structure. All MODX folk should read through the first section of the MODX Reference Manual, titled “Basic Structure.” In this post, I’m going to concentrate on the Tone Generator Block.

Now, honestly, I don’t expect you to recall and understand every detail! Here are the essential basics:

A Performance is a single set of sounds consisting of multiple Parts.
Each Performance has two types of parameters; parameters unique to each Part and parameters common to all Parts.
An Element is the basic, smallest unit for an AWM2 Normal Part.
A Normal Part consists of up to eight Elements.
Each Part is created by editing parameters unique to each Element and parameters common to all the Elements.

Yep, those are direct quotes from the manual (with a few simplifying tweaks). That’s pretty much all of the “theory” that you need to know. The rest is button pushing. 🙂

I’m going to focus on single part organ Performances in this article. That will streamline the discussion. If you understand single part Performances, you should be able to scale up to multi-part. When navigating the CATEGORY screen, single part Performances are displayed in green text; multi-part Performances are displayed in blue text. I assume you know how to select a Performance…

Deconstruction

Knowing how to deconstruct a Performance is an essential MODX skill, even if you’re a player and not a sound designer. This is the way to wring the most out of the factory presets whether you ever intend to change a single preset or not.

To get started, press the CATEGORY button, then find and select the organ Performance named “The Basics”. This is a single part Performance and, yeah, it’s basic. 🙂 Press the ENTER button to go to the main screen.

When the Performance name is highlighted, pressing the EDIT button takes you to the COMMON parameters for the Performance. I’ll discuss some of those parameters in a future note about effects (i.e., system-level effects like reverb).

For now, use the arrow keys to navigate down to the first part. (You can touch the first part, too, to select it.) Press the EDIT button and MODX displays the COMMON parameters for the first and only part in “The Basics”. There’s tons of fun stuff here including access to the insert effects like rotary speaker. [Another day.]

What we really want is information about the Elements in “The Basics”. You’ll find a row of on-screen buttons along the bottom of the display. These buttons are especially handy when navigating through Parts, COMMON parameters and Elements. We could step through the Elements one by one by pressing the “ElemX” on-screen buttons. Let’s hit “All” instead.

MODX displays a table showing all of essential parameters (information) about the Part (the “Osc” tab). Each row in the table is an Element showing:

Element ON/OFF status
Extended Articulation (XA) control
Waveform
Velocity limit
Note limit

Press the “Balance” tab. MODX displays another table showing:

Element ON/OFF status
Coarse tuning (semitones)
Fine tuning (cents)
Filter cutoff
Pan
Level

Wow, this is a terrific overview! Now you know how I populate and compose all of these kinds of tables on my site.

Drawbars and settings

Let’s stop here and reflect on what we’re seeing.

    MODX/Montage Performance: The Basics 

    El# Waveform       Level  Coarse 
    --- ------------   -----  ------ 
     1  Draw 16'         106     0 
     2  Draw 5 1/3       127     0 
     3  Draw 8'          100     0 
     4  Draw 4'           26     0 
     5  Draw 2'            9     0 
     6  Rotor Grit 2       5   -24 
     7  Rotor             16   -17 
     8  Percussion        47     0

“The Basics” consists of five individual drawbars: 16′, 5 1/3′, 8′, 4′ and 2′. In Hammond language, the registration is (roughly) 68 6210 000. There is also percussion, provided by Element 8. Element 6 adds a little bit of rotor grit. Element 7, rotor whine, is turned off initially. Press the on-screen ON/OFF button for Element 7 if you want to add rotor whine to the mix.

Extra credit. Press the on-screen “Elem7” button. This takes you to the main page of parameters for Element 7. You can turn Element 7 ON/OFF there and do a whole lot more damage to it! Press “All” to return to the table(s).

You can change the drawbar registration by adjusting one or more of the Element levels. For example, touch the Level parameter for Element 1 in order to select it. Then, hold a key, spin the data wheel and listen to the sound change. More dramatically, change the Element 5 level and listen to the 2′ drawbar come in.

Play the drawbars

Of course, this isn’t a practical way to change a registration while playing. That’s where the MODX front panel sliders come in.

MODX sliders controlling Elements 5 through 8

As shown in the picture above, use the top button to select ELEMENT/OPERATOR. Use the middle button to select Elements 5 through 8. Now move the first slider and watch Element 5 level change. Hold a key and hear the change.

Congratulations! You can now play the drawbars and you understand the relationship between the sliders and Element levels.

But, wait, there’s more. Move the fourth slider to change Element 8 level. This adds and removes percussion. Move the second slider (Element 6 level) and listen to the rotor grit. Now you know how to make your Leslie sound busted. 🙂

If you grok all of this, try deconstructing the “More Shade” Performance. Judging from its name, this Performance tries to emulate “Whiter Shade Of Pale.”

    MODX/Montage Performance: More Shade 

    El# Waveform       Level  Coarse 
    --- ------------   -----  ------ 
     1  Draw 16'         127     0 
     2  Draw 5 1/3        41     0 
     3  Draw 8'          127     0 
     4  Draw 4'          107     0 
     5  Draw 1 3/5        18     0 
     6  Rotor Grit 2      18   -24 
     7  Rotor             23   -17 
     8  Percussion         0    -7

Yamaha CK88: Yes, I played one

Posted on May 15, 2023 by pj

I always hesitate calling one of these posts a “review,” especially when the actual trial is serendipitous. Had to stop at Whole Foods and decided to drop into Guitar Center just to see what they had on the floor. Lo and behold, a Yamaha CK88!

It was a nice surprise, but I didn’t have the usual lead sheets that I use when testing. So, it came down to random plunking and noodling.

First, I’m going to lay out most of the good news. For instruments in the $1,000USD (61 key) to $1,500 (88 key) range, the CK sounds damned good. The user interface (UI) is intuitively direct and had only one “What the?” moment.

I played and listened to the CK88 through its built-in speakers. The built-in speakers are a bit unusual for Yamaha stage/synth instruments, but not so for its digital pianos and arranger keyboards. The CK88 has sufficient volume for practice and maybe enough for an acoustic-level rehearsal. Thus, I put the CK’s speakers in the “courtesy speaker” category. Being 2x6W, 12cm by 6cm ovals, they are not unlike the courtesy speakers on the Case CT-S1000V (or S500) — just OK. They are not boxy, something I don’t tolerate under any circumstance.

I started out with acoustic piano because, err, it was the 88 GHS keybed in front of me. I found both the main acoustic piano (CFX) and Rhodes (78Rd) to be satisfying. I would prefer to play the Rhodes on the GHS rather than the CFX. I don’t know if it’s because I’ve been playing the Petrof grand occasionally, but the GHS just did provide the same enjoyment. On again, off again, I’ve been thinking about a digital piano for home and the GHS action ain’t it. The GHS seems to bottom out, for lack of a better description. Forget organ swipes on the 88, too, unless your hands are made of leather.

Practical tips department. The piano sounded muffled when I first started playing. The last customer pulled all of the EQ sliders to -12dB, thank you. Reset, always reset.

Next, I jumped into the acoustic, non-keyboard sounds. The CKs are like a “greatest AWM2 hits” from MODX/Montage. The brass voices are pleasant enough and would be useable in a band setting. The voices range from Jerry Bruckheimer to mellow, more musical horns. The only voice that threw me is “Sweet Trumpet” which is suitable only for mariachi covers.

The saxes are typical AWM2 saxes — emergency use only. I’m spoiled by Super Articulation sax. The oboe is a bit too bright for my taste. The clarinet and bassoon are not bad. The flutes are cool. Strings are varied and useable. I can’t be too harsh because the CK beats the up-scale, expensive YC61 for orchestral voices and, notably, pipe organ.

Venturing into synth brass, pads and leads, we’re back to greatest hits territory. You’ll probably find something close enough for rock’n’roll among the lot. There’s no point in getting too OCD on a machine with limited editing and few real-time parameters to tweeze. CK has what I would call “Yamaha Quick Edit” which apply offsets to the actual voice parameters. Want deep editing? Look to MODX/Montage.

Now to the organs. The CK cops the pipe organs from Genos™ — excellent choice. Maybe it was the EQ or sumptin’, but the VOX (V) didn’t pierce my ears and the Farfisa (F) didn’t have that Sam The Sham rasp. Oddly, I give Reface YC the edge as far as combo organs are concerned.

As to the main event — Hammond B-3 — the CK is much more than Reface YC in a tuxedo. The drawbars are nice and smooth, offering the right amount of resistance. The drawbar throw is a little short (a la Reface) when compared to Yamaha’s clonewheels. The CK drawbars slide and don’t have the Reface drawbar detents.

To my ears, the CK and Reface YC basic drawbar sound is the same — pretty clean and artifact (e.g., leakage) free. The rotary speaker sim and effects chain are what make the difference. Obviously, the CK is richer in that regard. You get so much more for the money with CK (full-size keyboard, better effects chain, acoustic piano, EP, decent acoustic/electronic instruments, A/D input, audio playback, etc.), why would anyone bother with Reface anymore, unless they absolutely must have the portability?

I like the CK vibrato/chorus implementation and UI more than Reface, too. All of the organ controls are more Hammond-like even if they are a bit small.

I developed a preference for the CK Rotary 2 sim over Rotary 1. I wish I knew which rotary speaker algorithms Yamaha chose for CK as I would like to recreate the CK sound on MODX. The CK horn/rotor turn a bit too fast and, unfortunately, the speeds cannot be changed.

The only “What the?” moment had to do with the DRIVE buttons and what they apply to the internal signal. If I were giving the CK a serious spin, I would study the effects chain and controls before sitting down in the driver’s seat.

So, there it is. The CKs offer great value for the money, no doubt about it. I personally would go with the 61-key model (CK61) since I play mainly organ/synth. The GHS isn’t for me and suggests that I should “go large” if I ever follow through and buy a digital piano for home. Having MODX, I don’t feel like I’m missing out although I need to make better use of MODX sliders for real-time drawbar control.

Other reviews and comments about digital pianos:

Yamaha MX vs. CK

Posted on March 17, 2023 by pj

I’ve spent waaaaaay too much time on this already, so here’s a quick observation on Yamaha CK’s position in the Yamaha line-up.

Blake Angelos (Yamaha) mentioned that the CK does not replace MX. I take him at his word because CK and MX are aimed at two different use cases: live (CK) and studio (MX). Some forum folk noted this distinction as stage keyboard vs. synthesizer. Obviously, you can use a CK in your personal studio or play an MX on stage. The (marketing) question is, “What is the primary intended use?”

The MX series are synthesizers derived from the venerable Motif XS (MOX). The MX internal sound architectures is very similar to MOX. The MX series are 16-part multi-timbral. The MX have patterns and arpeggios. MX are designed for DAW integration and arrive with Cubase AI. You can connect an MX to a DAW and play a 16-part General MIDI file and get a reasonable result. You can create and edit new sounds at a very deep level thanks to the John Melas tools.

The CK series are intended for live playing. It has many, dedicated front panel controls to make real-time adjustments while playing. The number of tweakable voice parameters is relatively small versus MX. The effects signal flow is limited and fixed. The CK does not have patterns and arpeggios. The CK does not have drum kits. If you throw a General MIDI file at the CK, you’re gonna miss percussion. 🙂

So, functionally, you have two very different primary use cases and capabilities. The series are offered at different price points, too:

     Model      MSRP      MAP 
     ------    ------   ------ 
     CK61      $1,249   $  999 
     CK88      $1,899   $1,499
 
     MX49      $  799   $  569 
     MX61      $1,099   $  799 
     MX88      $1,599   $1,199
 
     MODX6+    $1,899   $1,499 

     YC61      $2,499   $1,999
     CP73      $2,699   $2,099 

     Montage6  $3,699   $2,999

Yamaha like to offer a range of products that appeal to a range of customers — something for everyone. Customers on the tightest of budgets find the MX49 and MX61 under the magic (psychological) $1,000 USD threshold. The CK61 is exactly at the $1,000 mark, filling the gap between MX and MODX+.

The YC series, CP series and Montage are premium-level products. Many (most) customers and I would think twice about dropping $2,000 or more on a keyboard. This is not a casual decision especially if one is considering a piano- or organ-focused keyboard (CP or YC, respectively). Thus, the CK series is a good value proposition for price-conscious customers.

I’m going to restate a certain point that I made previously because I was misunderstood by some. When the Reface series was first released, many of us wanted to see all of the Reface engines combined into a single, full-sized keyboard. We liked the sounds (engines) and interactive interface, but disliked the mini-keys. The CK series combines the Reface YC and Reface CP into a single full-size model — and throws in a good set of bread-and-butter sounds to round things out.

Functionally, CK organs and sound editing are not at the same level as premium YC and CP series. CK has the old Reface YC sample-based engine; YC stage organs are a superior invention. You get what you pay for.

If one needs FM, then MODX+ is your full-size gateway. CS, AKA “virtual analog”, has yet to be seen in a current Yamaha product. And you already know the rumors…

Thanks for reading!

Yamaha CK random bits

Posted on March 14, 2023 by pj

I’m reading through the CK documentation and posting random observations here.

The Yamaha CK series are a response for a full-sized keyboard melding the Reface YC and Reface CP with a little bit of additional ROMpler thrown in. The Reface series shine with immediacy of control coupled with decent PRO-quality sounds. No sign of Spectral Component Modeling, so the electric pianos (EP) are sampled. Bummer, since SCM has a smoother velocity response. The EP presets are Montage/MODX greatest hits.

Organ preset voices include H, V, F, A, and Y — clearly lifted from Reface YC. The pipe organ presets (!) have a few surprises: Grand Leu, FondsEtArches, Organo Pleno, Diapason, Claribel&Flute, and SoftReeds. These presets are straight out of Genos™ and Yamaha should be commended for their inclusion. These voices are excellent. [Yeah, I know. Rockers are not looking for pipe organ… 🙂 ]

The drawbar sliders are short-throw like Reface YC. I like the buttons for percussion and vibrato/chorus control. Front panel placement is good, too, as most people change settings on-the-fly with the left hand.

I don’t see a way to adjust rotary speaker acceleration (ramp up) and deacceleration (ramp down). These leaves me very concerned because the Reface YC fast speed and ramps are waaaaay too fast and there isn’t any way to change them. Yamaha consistently makes preset rotary speaker speeds too bloody fast.

Yamaha did not hold back on orchestral voices and deserve further credit for that decision. I didn’t bite on YC61 because it is weirdly short on orchestral voices. Where’s the oboe, for example? Add more orchestra voices to YC61 and I will pull out my credit card. Really, I can only take one keyboard to my church gig given set-up time constraints, space and my 7-decade old body.

Gut-level, the preset synth voices feel like greatest hits from arranger Legacy synths and pads. No new ground, here. I use a few of these bread and butter voices — VP Soft and Soft RnB, for example. Synth enthusiasts have already swiped left on the CK series anyway.

Like their CP/YC brethren, the CKs expose a fixed voice-effects signal flow. There are five choices of Drive, nine+ choices for insert effects, and global delay, reverb and EQ. Effect tweaking is limited — just one or two parameters per effect type.

The CKs do have potential for external control via Master Keyboard Mode (four zones). All the basic zone parameters are there including Bank Select MSB and Bank Select LSB and Program Change. Yamaha got this right. It’s 2023 and I can’t believe how many MIDI controllers commit the cardinal sin of leaving off Bank Select!

Assessing the assignment of MIDI continuous control (CC) numbers to physical sliders and knobs is going to take time and effort. Some CCs are assigned based on voice part (A, B, C). Yikes! We’re going to need to forge a secret decoder ring! 🙁

The date on the MIDI implementation chart is 16 July 2021. Yes, “2021.” Yamaha have had these designs in the can for a while. The pandemic and supply chain problems interfered with the CK’s release.

Yamaha CK61™ and CK88™

Posted on March 13, 2023 by pj

Update: Product pages and manuals are now available at Yamaha sites everywhere.

Pre-announcement information is breaking out all over. I recommend the GAK Music CK series video with Luke Juby. It gives a great overview and demonstrates the preset sounds and effects. The CK has sliders, knobs and buttons dedicated to program/effect selection and tweaking (attack, release, cut-off and resonance). The drawbar sliders are short-throw like the Reface YC. The physical controls should reduce menu-diving.

A few interesting tidbits from the video. The CK has the ability to trigger backing tracks from the keyboard. Foot pedal control is assignable. There are four zones for external control and 5-pin MIDI IN and OUT. Split and layer are supported with two split points.

Here are Yamaha CK88™ specifications:

88 keys, weighted GHS keyboard, initial touch
Tone Generator: AWM2 and AWM for Organ Flutes
128 voices of polyphony
Integrated Effects, Master EQ
363 Voices, 160 Live Set Sounds (80 preset)
Pitch Bend and Modulation Wheel
Nine Organ Footage Sliders, three Part Volume Sliders, eleven control Knobs
Built-in amplifiers (2 ✗ 6 W) and speakers (2 ✗ (12cm ✗ 6cm)); Can be switched off
Battery powered operation (eight AA alkaline or Ni-MH batteries) or AC adaptor
Monochrome LCD display (128 x 64 dots)
Stereo Line Output: 6.3 mm mono phone jack x2
Stereo Input: 6.3 mm mono phone jack x2
Stereo Phones Output: 6.3 mm stereo phone jack
Two connectors for Footswitches or Foot controllers
MIDI [IN]/[OUT] 5-pin DIN
USB [TO DEVICE] to connect USB memory sticks
USB [TO HOST] to connect to PCs, USB-Audio-Interface function (two stereo channels from PC to CK, two stereo channels from CK to PC)
Bluetooth connectivity to play back audio from a Bluetooth device
Dimensions (W x D x H): 1,333 mm × 354 mm × 148 mm
Weight: 13.1 kg (28.9 pounds)
Included accessories: Owner’s Manual, AC adaptor (PA-150B)
Optional accessories: Footswitches and Foot controllers (FC3A, FC4A, FC5, FC7), Soft Case SC-DE88, Music Rest YMR-03

The CK61 weighs 5.6kg (12.3 pounds) and has a new synth action keybed (the FSB action borrowed from the PSR SX line).

Sounds like an entry-level keyboard for price-sensitive customers. I anticipated a battery power option, but the in-built amplification (2 ✗ 6W) and speakers are unexpected. Given the entry-level spec, I suspect that SWX09 is the internal host/tone generator engine.

The CK is a “poor man’s” combination of Reface YC and Reface CP. Or, stated another way, CK is someone’s dream combination of Reface YC and Reface CP with full-size controls. A lot of people pined for a combined organ/EP Reface with a full-sized keybed. They got it. 🙂

363 voices aren’t many. I expect to see promotion reading “363 voices from the acclaimed Montage, YC stage organ and CP stage piano.” This smacks of the way a few new voices were lifted from Motif and built into the ill-fated MM series. I expect recycled effects from MODX, etc. and CK will not include the new, improved YC rotary speaker algorithm.

We’ll need to hear more details, of course. I don’t think the CK directly replaces the MX series. A lot hinges on its DAW/VI integration which is an MX strong point. The MX88 weighs 13.9kg, so the CK88 (13.1kg) does not have a weight advantage over MX88. CK61 weighs 5.6 kg, not much less than MODX6. Based on weight alone, I don’t have much reason to spurn my MODX6 for CK61.

If you own an MODX, I don’t think you’re going to be green with G.A.S. The extra sliders are nice, but MODX (MODX+) is so much more. The CK series should appeal to the weekend warrior with a family on a tight budget. CK61 MSRP is $1,249 USD and MAP is $999; CK88 MSRP is $1,899 and MAP is $1,499. Yamaha got the CK61 MAP under the psychological $1,000 barrier.

The pictures are fuzzy. We’ll know more and have better pictures after the official product announcement tomorrow when Yamaha releases high res assets.

CK: It’s almost here

Posted on March 13, 2023 by pj

Thanks to Saul’s recent post at Yamaha Musicians Forum, it looks like tomorrow is the day for CK.

By Tuesday evening, we’ll all be laughing at the ridiculous predictions and wishful thinking that we’ve all posted.

So, here’s some more wishful thinking. 🙂

Knowing the price points, about $1,250 USD for the 61 and $1,920 for the 88, we instantly know that these aren’t the droids some people have been looking for. At these prices, the CKs impinge on the entry-level niche held by the long-in-the-tooth MX series. Yamaha may have decided to spiff up and bulk up the MX to CK in order to establish higher margins at the entry-level without blowing up the magic $1,000 barrier. [I have some reason to believe that the rumored prices are MSRP.]

Yamaha CK61 and CK88 portable synthesizers

At such low price points, forget an FSX keybed, aftertouch, a large touch display, etc. I suspect that Yamaha engineers chose one of its proprietary SWX processors instead of the higher spec SWP70 which is the mainstay of mid- and high-end Yamaha keyboards. The SWX series integrates the host processor, display interface, USB interface and AWM2 tone generator into a single integrated circuit package. Reface YC, Reface CP and first-gen MX are based on an earlier version of SWX (SWX08). The current rev is SWX09.

The word “portable” in the terse CK description might imply an internal battery power option. Choosing SWX would at least give the engineers a fighting chance at low power. I suspect that the SWP70 tone generator is a bit of a power hog. Yamaha do not currently offer a battery-powered synth while some competitors do (e.g., Roland JUNO DS61). I would love battery power for rehearsals — anything to make the schlep and set-up easier.

Part of the MX pitch is “controller integration.” Yamaha currently do not offer a MIDI controller with all the front panel knobs, sliders, widgets and gizmos that warm the heart. Even though Yamaha tout the MX for control, it’s really feature poor in comparison to most full size MIDI controllers. Although the MX is reasonably well-integrated with Cubase, more people are running virtual instruments on IOS/Android tablets/phones instead of laptops. Yamaha must (should) respond to these trends.

I often wonder why Yamaha haven’t put forth a Halion-based version of Arturia’s wonderful V Collection or Analog Lab? I was immediately impressed by the integration of Analog Lab with Arturia Keylab Essential. Yamaha have been missing an opportunity here.

Up to this point, Yamaha seem reluctant to offer an all-in-one stage keyboard combining, piano, organ and synth. As a player, you’re forced into a multi-keyboard “top and bottom” rig decision. Implications are many. If organ or piano are your main need, then perhaps you choose a YCxx or CPxx for the bottom. Neither ‘board provides comprehensive synth sounds, so you need a synth for the top. Maybe a CK61™?

Schlep and cost are major factors. Two keyboards is a lot more trouble and cost than one. The keyboard stand is bigger and heavier. Yada-yada. For me, I play in an incredibly small space and, as an older adult, my body is whacked out from hauling gear! Cost is another big factor as I don’t want to tie up funds in idle keyboards — no matter how pretty they are. 🙂

So, maybe I will view the CK61™ as a Korg Triton Taktile on steroids. The Triton Taktile 49 was a light-weight controller with lots of knobs and sliders, and had a “courtesy” Triton engine. The Triton Taktile had its disdvantages — no way to store user edits, no internal battery power. The CK likely avoids these pitfalls in which case a CK plus an iPad (Camelot, Korg Module, iSymphonic, SWAM) might do the trick as a light-weight stage gig rig.

As to that “all-in-one,” might that be the Montage successor? Yamaha was slow to follow Motif XF (August 2010) with Montage (January 2016), so the wait for the Montage successor is not that surprising. Plus, you don’t really think you’re getting AN-X™ for free, do you? 🙂

Sand, software and sound

Electronics and computing for the fun of it

Tag Archives: Yamaha CK88

Yamaha DGX-670: Do you love me?

Yamaha P-515: I played one

The great stuff

The not so great stuff

Is it hopeless?

Conclusion

MODX: Drawbar waveforms (part 2)

New waveforms in Montage/MODX

Example performance

MODX: Drawbar control (part 1)

Deconstruction

Drawbars and settings

Play the drawbars

Yamaha CK88: Yes, I played one

Yamaha MX vs. CK

Yamaha CK random bits

Yamaha CK61™ and CK88™

CK: It’s almost here