A smorgasbord of electric pianos

Posted on July 8, 2024 by pj

I’m well into the process of sampling Genos/CSP electric pianos using 1010Music tangerine. I’ll have more to say about the process of sampling the EPs in a later post. Today’s blog is laden with enough detail about EP velocity levels to make your eyes roll. Suffice to say, one needs to know where the levels are in the source material before choosing exact velocities for sampling.

There are so many Genos EP voices that I produced a short list of my favorites:

  Genos/PSR/CSP electric pianos

  Voice            MSB/LSB/PC1 Velocity ranges
  ---------------- ----------- --------------------------------------
  Magnetics          104/0/5   1-75  76-104  105-115 116-127
  Electric Piano 1   0/119/5   1-75  76-106  106-127
  Electric Piano 2   0/122/5   1-60  61- 81   82-112 113-127
  SmoothTine         0/119/6   1-70  71-100  101-127
  SuitcaseSoft       104/7/5   1-46  47- 75   76- 99 100-118  119-127
  SuitcaseWarmth     104/14/5  1-46  47- 75   76- 99 100-118  119-127

I like the warm bell-like character of Magnetics. This voice have been around for ages — Tyros 4! Still, oldies can be goodies. Electric Piano 2 is unique to the CSP/CLP instruments and has a nice, unaggressive character.

I decided to sample: Magnetics, Electric Piano 2, and SuitcaseSoft. Those three voices give me a big enough spectrum of tone colors. I determined source voice velocity ranges by sending fixed velocity values to Genos/CSP and listening for velocity steps. I verified the velocity ranges against UVF meta-data when possible.

For comparison’s sake, I took a brief look at a few MODX voices to identify the waveforms in use (and typical velocity ranges). Here’s a mini-dump:

    MODX/Motif electric pianos

    Performance      Wave
    ---------------- ----
    Vintage 74        EP1  3 levels: Soft, Med, Hard
    R&B Soft          EP3  4 levels: Soft1, Soft2, Hard1, Hard2
    Early 70s         EP1  
    Soft Case         EP3  
    Crunchy Comp      EP3
    Vintage Case      EP3
    Hard Vintage      EP1
    Sweetness         EP1
    Case 75 Amp       EP4  5 levels: p, mp, mf, f, ff
    Dyno Chorus Rd    EP2  4 levels: Soft1, Soft2, Hard1, Hard2
    Dyno Straight MW  EP2
    E.Piano 1         EP3

After A/B testing, MODX EP4 is the same multi-sample as the Genos Suitcase, that is, comparing “Case 75 Amp” versus “SuitcaseSoft” with all effects and EQ turned off. Yamaha added the EP4 waveforms with Montage along with the new, detailed “Rd” and “Wr” multi-samples. Yamaha probably captured EP4 during the long gap between Motif XF and Montage, then tossed it into Montage along with the other new electric piano waveforms.

I also like the MODX Performance “Case 73 Soft”. It uses the newer Rhodes 73 waveforms:

    Part 1                  Part 2
    ----------------------  -------------------------
    Rd73 p         1 -  49  Rd KeyNoise p     1 -  84
    Rd73 mp       50 -  85  Rd KeyNoise mf   85 - 116
    Rd73 mf       86 - 108  Rd KeyNoise f   117 - 127
    Rd73 f       109 - 119  Rd KeyOff mf    Keyoff
    Rd73 ff      120 - 127  Rd KeyOff f     Keyoff
    Rd73 KeyOff  Keyoff     EP2 Soft1+      Keyoff
    Rd73 KeyOff  Keyoff     EP2 Hard1+      Keyoff
    EP2 Hard1+   Keyoff     Rd Soft Keyoff  Keyoff

Yamaha paid far more attention to mechanical noises in Montage/MODX. I’m in the process of punching up this Performance. [Yet another small distractions er, project.]

After a number of “lessons learned”, sampling EPs has progressed well. More to come about the actual process later.

For more about 1010Music tangerine, please see:

Check out my article about Yamaha piano voice programming.

Yamaha Montage M internals: First look

Posted on May 1, 2024 by pj

Thanks to Dmitry Ko on the Keyboard Corner forum, we have the first solid information about Montage M7 internals! Congratulations, Dmitry!

We owe Dmitry a round of applause and gratitude for providing the first — and extensive — information about Montage M internals. He had to take extra steps to find and identify some components (more than I would have been willing to do with a brand new board, that’s for sure).

Dmitry was kind enough to give me a preview and his analysis is spot on.

Here are my own notes:

IC601 SWP70 #1 (Upper left DM PCB)     YMW832-C    FM-X?

  IC602 Winbond W9812G6KH-5  SDRAM 128 Mbit Parallel 200MHz (8M x 16)

IC401 SWP70 #2 (Middle)                YMW832-C

  IC501 Winbond W9812G6KH-5 SDRAM 128 Mbit Parallel 200MHz (8M x 16)
  IC402 Winbond W9825G6KH-6 SDRAM 256 Mbit Parallel 166MHz (16M x 16)
  IC403 Winbond W29N08GVSIAA NAND flash 8 Gbit (1G x 8)
  IC404 Winbond W29N08GVSIAA NAND flash 8 Gbit (1G x 8)
  IC405 Winbond W29N08GVSIAA NAND flash 8 Gbit (1G x 8)  DM PCB rear
  IC406 Winbond W29N08GVSIAA NAND flash 8 Gbit (1G x 8)  DM PCB rear

IC201 SWP70 #3 (Right)                 YMW832-C

  IC301 Winbond W9812G6KH-5 SDRAM 128 Mbit Parallel 200MHz (8M x 16)
  IC202 Winbond W9825G6KH-6 SDRAM 256 Mbit Parallel 166MHz (16M x 16)
 *IC205 Winbond W29N08GVSIAA NAND flash 8 Gbit (1G x 8)
 *IC206 Winbond W29N08GVSIAA NAND flash 8 Gbit (1G x 8)
 *IC207 Winbond W29N08GVSIAA NAND flash 8 Gbit (1G x 8)  DM PCB rear
 *IC208 Winbond W29N08GVSIAA NAND flash 8 Gbit (1G x 8)  DM PCB rear
  XL201 02238 SWP70 clock

IC701 SSP3                       YJ496A0

  XL701  SSP3 clock
  IC706  TI LV08A 2BK ATPZ
  XL801  SSP3 clock

  XLB02 USB hub clock
  ICB04 GL852G  Genesys Logic 4-port hub USB 2.0 (SSP3 hub)
  Q1102 TPC812S ??? USB2_VBUS

  IC702 SDRAM    No mount?

ICA01 Texas Instruments Sitara AM5728BABCXA

  IC001 NANYA 2245 NT5CC128M16JR-EK DDR3 256MByte
  IC002 NANYA 2245 NT5CC128M16JR-EK DDR3 256MByte
  XLE01 CPU clock

ICB03 GL852G USB 2.0 hub controller (DM PCB rear, CPU hub)

  XLB01 USB hub clock

ICC02 eMMC (Yamaha YN240B0)

ICC01 Fast Ethernet PHY

ICA03 THine THC63LVD1O3D LCD controller (LVDS)

IC904 Texas Instruments TPS659037 Power controller

IC101 Texas Instruments PCM1795 32-bit stereo DAC   DM PCB rear
IC111 Texas Instruments PCM1795 32-bit stereo DAC   DM PCB rear

IC121 Texas Instruments PCM1804 24-bit stereo ADC   DM PCB rear

In a few cases (marked with “*”), copyright labels obscure the chip ID information on the IC package.

Here are a few additional observations.

Yamaha gave the Montage M a major league host CPU: Texas Instruments Sitara AM5728BABCXA. The Sitara is multi-core:

Dual-core ARM Cortex-A15 MPU (1.5 GHz)
Dual TMS320C66x floating-point VLIW DSP (750 MHz)
2 x dual-core ARM Cortex-M4 co-processors (213 MHz)
Dual-core PowerVR SGX544 GPU (532 MHz)

This is a major step up from the single core 800MHz ARM in the original Montage. The Sitara is given twice as much primary memory than the original: 512MBytes of DDR3 RAM.

Thus, folks, you’re going to need a fan. Montage M’s digital logic board (DM) has a substantial metal cover, probably to control RFI. The Sitara has a vanilla heat sink. An opening in the metal cover lets heat escape from the heat sink. The fan draws air from beneath the metal cover/heat sink. This design is different than what I expected, i.e., a very small heat sink plus mini-fan cooler a la Raspberry Pi. This Sitara ain’t no RPi!

The two integrated TMS320C66X DSP cores likely synthesize AN-X. 16 voice AN-X polyphony feels just about right for two TMS320 cores. (Reface CS employs an SSP2 DSP and has 8 voice polyphony.) With compute-intensive AN-X going on, you’re gonna need a fan. I don’t buy the cooling pipe solutions proposed by some and it would be very difficult to position the Sitara in contact with the metal chassis. End of story.

The factory waveform NAND flash is Winbond W29N08GVSIAA. That is the highest capacity ONFI compatible NAND flash made by Winbond. The factory waveforms are compressed (10GB when converted to 16-bit linear format) and reside in 4GBytes of physical NAND flash. User waveforms are uncompressed (3.7GB available capacity) and reside in 4GBytes of (separate) physical NAND flash.

In the original Montage, factory and user waveforms are co-resident in 4GBytes of waveform NAND flash. Yamaha added a third SWP70 tone generator/effects IC and, as we know, dedicated one SWP70 to factory waveforms and another SWP70 to user waveforms. The third SWP70 doesn’t have waveform memory and synthesizes FM-X.

A label covers the top of the eMMC device which provides bulk storage (OS, software, presets, etc.) for the Montage M. The original Montage has a 4GByte eMMC device.

As expected, the SSP2 is out of production and is replaced by SSP3. The SSP3 inherits the digital audio routing and rate conversion chores performed by the original’s SSP2. The SSP3 has its own integrated USB interface and associated USB2.0 4-port hub. All are co-located with the external USB connector.

The THine LVDS handles LCD display duties. The Sitara has serious graphics chops with its dual PowerVR SGX544 GPUs. I haven’t worked out the interface to Montage M’s OLED subdisplay as yet. Genos1 communicates with its subdisplay via SPI.

Thanks, again, Dmitry! This more than enough for the next round of Internet speculations. 🙂

NAMM 2024: Briefs

Posted on January 25, 2024 by pj

Just “Meh”

So far, I’m feeling just “Meh” about NAMM 2024. Last year’s NAMM opened the floodgates of new, post-pandemic product. Among the daikaiju (大怪獣), KORG dominates with the most new releases.

We shouldn’t forget these new toys:

Nord Grand 2 ($4,500 USD MAP) stage instrument, action by KAWAI
New Casio Celviano pianos PX-S7000HM, AP-750 ($3,400 USD MAP), AP-550 ($3,000 USD MAP), AP-S450 ($2,000 USD MAP)
Studiologic Numa Compact SE and Numa Compact X SE (SE $600 USD MAP and X SE $900 USD MAP)
KORG Grand Stage X and KORG Poetry digital pianos, $3,000 and $2,000 USD MAP, respectively

Both Nord and Casio are collaborating with partners to up the action game — Nord with KAWAI and Casio with C. Bechstein (video).

Studiologic have revamped the Numa Compact product line (new acoustic pianos, tonewheel modeled engine, new rotary effect, chorus and vibrato, new “virtual oscillators” synth engine). These all-rounders look to play against the Yamaha CK series stage instruments. Looks for incentive, clear-out pricing on the older Numa Compact 2 series instruments.

If you’ve been waiting for a new beginner’s keyboard, Yamaha have announced the PSR-E283. Will this appear on the Yamaha NAMM 2024 page later today? 410 instrument voices, 150 auto-accompaniment styles, duo mode for duets and the usual built-in speakers. Yamaha PSR-E283 video tutorial

Akai MPC Key 37?

The day is still young.

Yamaha Montage E.S.P.

I expected to see the Yamaha Montage M Expanded Softsynth Plugin (E.S.P.) today and wasn’t disappointed. There is a new Blake’s take about E.S.P. on the YamahaSynth.com site. Lots of screengrabs.

As this point, E.S.P. is for Montage M owners. You’ll need your coupon code and the Steinberg Download Assistant. E.S.P. requires 10GBytes of free space. Yikes, but it probably needs room for all of the waveforms.

We should start getting field reports about real-world polyphony and so forth. No information on pricing for non-Montage M customers. Here’s the E.S.P. Manual on the Yamaha USA site.

NAMM 2024 Montage M E.S.P. demo video (Blake Angelos) by Sonicstate. E.S.P. is only available to Montage M hardware owners — no software-only retail version. Sorry if you expected a full Montage M on the cheap.

Little things

Although pitched at drummers and percussionists, the No Better Option (NBO) Oneboard provides a way to stash your phone, mini-mixer, tablet and other gizmos while performing. NBO is a boutique vendor who have sold out their original round of Onboards. Register for the next round of pre-orders.

You’ve probably never heard of ROBKOO. They are a Shanghai-based company specializing in electronic wind instruments: the R1 Synthesizer and the Clarii mini digital wind instrument and controller.

The Clarii mini (#300/$400 USD) is about the same size as a clarinet. It fingers like a sax, but fingering can be customized. Synthesis is built-in along with a speaker, screen and Bluetooth MIDI. The Clarii mini has an accelerometer, too, so you can shake it.

The ROBKOO R1 synthesizer is sleeker and has similar specs. The R1 adds RGB lights for pizzazz. Instead of an accelerometer, R1 has an XYZ gyroscope to control expression. The R1 connects with the JamKoo performance app which gives access to internal functions. The R1 is $600 USD — not an impulse purchase, that’s for sure.

Stylophone are going upscale with the CPM DS-2 analog drone synthesizer ($260 USD). The CPM DS-2 will have 2 3340 oscillators, 2 3320 filters, 2 sub-oscillators, 2 LFOs, vintage delay and reverb, and 12 modular patch points. It will be Eurorack compatible. Pre-order at Stylophone.com.

If you ever wanted to strut your stuff like David Bourne and company, check out Walkabout Carriers. “Battery powered, wireless carriers for electronic musical instruments.” Their Web site is under construction, but check back…

NAMM 2024: In sight

Posted on January 5, 2024 by pj

It’s that time of year again! NAMM 2024 starts January 25th.

Unlike 2023, the run-up to NAMM 2024 is much shorter. Fewer manufacturers have pre-announced new products.

The daikaiju (Yamaha, Korg, Roland) rolled out a number of major products during the pre-holiday period:

And that’s just a partial list! It’s like the post-pandemic floodgates opened.

Given the out-pouring of goodies over the last year, I don’t expect NAMM 2024 to be super exciting as far as keyboard announcements are concerned.

Yamaha — in particular — has upgraded nearly every major product line. It will be a year, two or three before we see follow-on products to the new flagships. However, I think Yamaha will have a few major announcements at NAMM 2024. Given Yamaha’s secrecy, I’m guessing. [All pundits should be so honest. 🙂 ]

Last year was Clavinova’s 40th anniversary and Yamaha rolled out the CSP 200 series and the CVP 900 series. The CVP 900s are an incremental spiff of the CVP 800 series. The CVP spiff reminds me of Yamaha’s final kiss to the PSR-S series when Yamaha said “good-bye” with the PSR-S975 spiff (“the ultimate S-series arranger”). Having hands-on experience with the CSP Smart Piano line, I’m going to make a bold prediction — CVP is end-of-life. Too expensive and too ugly for a living room. I see Yamaha expanding the P-S500 touch panel concept into a very clean and elegant parlor room auto-accompaniment instrument.

With CSP and CVP accounted for, whither CLP? NAMM 2024. I’d like to see CLP 800 series add the pianos included in Montage M and Genos2: cinematic piano, character piano, felt piano, U3 upright and so on. The upper end 700s have period piano instruments; it’s time to get modern. Will we see Yamaha’s new magnetic induction contactless sensing? It’s time for that tech to trickle down from the AvantGrands.

Moving on from keys, I expect to see the Yamaha SEQTRAK™ groove box or “Music Production Studio” — finally. “SEQTRAK” is the only remaining product name from last Fall’s accidental spill. No doubt, Yamaha have watched others cash-in on the beat production craze, notably Teenage Engineering printing money with the wide-margin OP-1.

The SEQTRAK is about the size of a QWERTY keyboard and cops some teenage attitude in form and color. I expect an on-board sequencer, two synth channels, a sampler, Cubase integration, and a ton of content. Yamaha have been working on this product for quite some time and it needs to begin earning back its development money.

KORG and Raspberry Pi

The Raspberry Pi Foundation have included KORG synthesizers in its collection of Raspberry Pi success stories.

KORG is a company that consistently punches above its weight in sales and size. They achieve this efficiency by exploiting off-the-shelf technology like the Raspberry Pi Compute Module. Raspberry Pi is committed to the kind of long-term roadmap that gives potential adopters confidence and stability.

The customer case study (PDF) focuses on KORG’s adoption and use of the Raspberry Pi Compute Module 3. Enjoy the read!

Genos2: ¿Si o No?

Posted on November 28, 2023 by pj

A bit tardy with my first take on Genos2. I’ve spent waaay too much time on forums and need to get back to work. 🙂

Genos2 information and videos abound on the Web, so I’ll be skipping a lot of details here. I recommend getting your information from reputable sources, not the self-appointed experts on Internet forums. Given the misinformation that I’ve seen, I don’t think some of these people have ever touched an arranger keyboard, let alone Genos1 or Genos2.

It will be some time until I can actually get hands-on with Genos2. That’s a disadvantage of living in North America where guitar is king. When I do play Genos2, I will post comments. So, please take my initial opinions with a grain of salt.

Genos2 leaves me feeling a bit like Dr. Jekyll and a little bit Mr. Hyde, depending upon Genos2 being your first top-of-the-line (TOTL) arranger or an upgrade from Genos1.

Let’s hear from the kindly doctor first.

Your first TOTL

If Genos2 is your first TOTL arranger, you’re on good ground. Genos2 builds on the solid Genos1 foundation. Genos1 has been a reliable, great sounding instrument and I’m sure you won’t be disappointed in G2.

Genos2 adds many new voices and styles to Genos1. (Some of the Genos1 voices and styles are available with the Genos2 Complete Pack, free after registration.) I made a list of the new Genos2 voices.

Genos2 significantly improves on the G1 CFX piano. It has more strike (velocity) levels, now 7 levels up from 5. The sustain is longer (doubled). Check out this video which focuses on Genos2 pianos. The G2 piano sounds are lovely.

Like the Montage upgrade, G2 received “character pianos“:

Character piano: A rough and wooly sound (think “ragtime”)
Cinematic piano: An air of mystery about it (think “Halloween”)
Felt piano: A sound softened by felt woven in the strings (think “Titanic”)

Unlike Montage M, all of these pianos are enriched by the stunning, new REVelation reverb from Steinberg. Genos2 also adds a new multi-band compressor.

Genos2 adds Ambient Drums to the original Genos1 Revo drums. (Ignore the Internet misinformation about Revo being dropped.) Ambient Drums mix close-mic’ed samples with room ambience samples consistent with sampling techniques employed in modern percussion VST libraries. You (or the style) dial in the amount of ambience, thereby adjusting the sense of space in the sound.

One shouldn’t forget the new true FM voices. Yamaha enabled the FM-X hardware in the Genos2 tone generators. [BTW, the FM hardware is locked away in Genos1.] Now you get real dynamic FM sound. Genos2 does not support FM voice editing, but, really, how people are going to create FM voices from scratch? Not to mention how notoriously hard it is to get one’s mind around FM programming. A free DX7 expansion pack awaits those who register. With a little deep diving, I can safely say there is real FM-X in there.

No doubt, Yamaha have produced new styles and revamped old styles to use the new effects and voices. There are now 800 styles, which in itself, is a staggering big MIDI phrase library.

Ambient Drums illustrate the Genos ethos — producing a refined, “like the recording” sound. I’m sure this gives hobby players a lot of pride and pleasure. I like it because I can produce great sounding demos without a lot of effort!

Genos2 includes other enhancements worth mentioning. The style Dynamics Control improves on G1 dynamic control. The new Dynamics Control provides knob control over the volume and velocity of style parts, letting the backing band more realistically sit out or dig in. The front panel adds two more assignable buttons (3 total above the articulation buttons) and two buttons to control the ever-useful Chord Looper.

If you don’t own a Genos and want one, buy it. Given Yamaha’s long development cycles, it may be five or six years before the next major Genos release.

Upgrade to Genos2?

The decision to upgrade from the previous model is always a difficult one, whether its Montage M, MODX+, Genos2, Korg, Roland, whatever. There might be a few of us who are made of money, but most of us punters need to lay off old gear in order to afford the new. If it’s a trade-in or a re-sell, we’re going to lose value and we’re going to pony up cash for the shiny new object. In the case of a premium product like Genos2 or Montage M, the delta might be $1,800 or more. And then there’s the hassle of dealing with the villains on Craigslist or Ray’s Music Exchange.

This is when and where Mr. Hyde makes an entrance.

The decision to upgrade is a personal decision and choice. Objectively, does the delta enable us to meet our personal musical goals, that is, fulfill a genuine need? Otherwise, I cannot objectively account for enthusiasm, fan-dom, FOMO, or just plain desire (G.A.S.).

Which leads me to…

Generation skipping

When it comes to electronics, I’m a “generation skipper.” I rarely buy the next generation of anything. I don’t find the value proposition — increased utility per upgrade dollars — to be enough to justify a purchase.

So it is with Genos2. My Genos1 is still a rockin’ keyboard. It isn’t used up in the economic sense.

By the way, now is a terrific time to buy a new old stock (NOS) or re-sale Genos1. North American retailers have not sold through and are selling NOS Genos1 at a reduced price. [I took my own advice and have made a deal for an NOS Clavinova CSP-170.] European customers are switching to Genos2 in droves and they need to unload their Genos1 keyboards in order to fund a new G2. Buy a reduced price Genos1 now and upgrade to a Genos3 later. Many different ways to make a play.

Need over want

What would it have taken to make me decide otherwise and buy Genos2? Or, letting Mr. Hyde loose, what is Genos2 missing?

Right now, my most pressing need is an 88-key piano action keyboard for practice. I need to raise my piano skills and I need to transition to an acoustic grand when necessary. The FSX action is not up to snuff — I’ve tried with Genos1.

Compared to Clavinova (for example), Genos2 is missing:

Even Montage M8X left me up short.

What really disappointed me is the other biggee — no Virtual Circuit Modeling (VCM) rotary organ simulator. This is a big omission as far as upgrade is concerned. With two really fine synth-action instruments (Genos1 and MODX) in hand, I just can’t justify an upgrade to G2 based on what G2 is and isn’t today.

Yamaha product silos

Looking at Montage M and Genos2, Yamaha’s product silos get in the way of making all-rounder keyboards. Yamaha product groups protect their turf and abhor cannibalized sales. This attitude and market strategy drives a lot of customers crazy, including me.

Reading the forums, there is demand for an 88-key Genos. The P-S500 is not enough to scratch the arranger itch, DGX-670 is feature-light and CVP prices are way out of sight.

Yamaha need to pick up the pace and roll out new features faster. Will Genos2 people need to wait five years to get the VCM rotary sim, Bösendorfer piano, or VRM? At age 72, I’ve got about 11 years left (male, life expectancy, U.S.A.) Let’s get going, Yamaha! 🙂 My time is running out…

Yamaha Genos2: New voices

Posted on November 17, 2023 by pj

So, what are they? I did a quick scan through the Genos1 and Genos2 Data List files and compared. Because this is a manual scan, I don’t guarantee completeness. [Too lazy to write a script…] I ignore certain voice categories like synth pads and leads. When a new synth voice is named “Blippity Bloop”, what does that mean without auditioning the voice itself?

I’m also passing on the new FM voices in Yamaha Genos2. You can easily identify the new FM voices in the Data List and you don’t really need me to do that. Check. I will say, almost every voice category has FM voices.

New Genos2 MegaVoices

MegaVoices are a good place to begin analysis. In addition to being the sonic stuff in Styles, MegaVoice waveforms are also the building blocks in Super Articulation (SArt) and Super Articulation 2 (SArt2) voices.

On your own, take a look at the MegaVoice maps in the Data List. The maps give a good idea of the low-level waveforms behind the voices. Yamaha give MegaVoice, SArt and SArt2 voices a lot of love and attention. The new MegaVoices show me where Yamaha have gone to great lengths to sample new instruments and to design new patches from those samples.

Here are the new Genos2 MegaVoices:

    Basis                   Variants           Category
    ----------------------  -----------------  ----------
    SectionHorns            1, 2, Live, Dyn    Brass
    PopHorns                1, 2
    OberkrainerTrompete
    OberkrainerBaritonHorn
    OberkrainerKontraTuba
    OberkrainerBassTuba
    Whistle                                    Woodwind
    OberkrainerKlarinette
    ClassicNylon            Open, Neck         Guitar
    ClNylonTirando
    OberkrainerGuitar
    ElJazzFinger            OpenHmr, ...       Bass
    ElJazzPick              Open, ...
    VlBassPick              OpenHmr, ...
    AcJazzOpen              Extended1, ...
    RBillyBass              FingerOpen, ...
    MonoUprightBass

In order to keep the list short, I abstracted away variants like “1”, “2”, etc.

Bass instruments got a BIG lift. Decoding the names, Genos2 gets Electric Jazz bass, Violin bass, Acoustic Jazz, Rockabilly and Mono Upright. It’s all about the bass, baby. By “Jazz Bass,” I assume they really mean “Fender Jazz Bass.” By “Violin Bass,” I think they mean “Höfner Violin Bass.” Is that where Paul’s bass went?

“Oberkrainer” is another, possibly unfamiliar, term. Oberkrainer music started out with the Avsenik Ensemble lead by Slavko Avsenik. It is a form of popular music in Slovenia, Austria, Switzerland, northern Italy and Benelux. Pretty much Alpine music. Let’s see Diddy swing that. 🙂

When you see a whole group of MegaVoices and styles devoted to Oberkrainer, you know where Yamaha sell a lot of arranger keyboards.

New Genos voices of the playable kind

With that background in mind, let’s look at a summary of the playable voices (as opposed to style-oriented MegaVoices). Again, I have abstracted away variants in order to be concise.

    Basic voice          Category
    -------------------  ----------
    CFX                  Piano
    CharacterGrand
    RockGrand
    CinemaGrand
    FeltPiano
    U1 (upright)
    U3 (upright)
    Filmharmonic         Strings
    Cinematic
    SectionHorns         Brass
    ConcertTutti
    ConcertTrumpets
    ConcertTrombones
    ConcertFrenchHorns
    PopsConcertSection
    CrescendoHorns
    DynamicTrumpets
    LeadTrumpets
    ConcertMutes
    TrumpetTutti
    CrescendoTpts
    SoftHorns&Bones
    PopsConcertPad
    Piccolo            Woodwind
    PopPiccolo
    CelticFlute
    Whistle
    Shakuhachi
    Dudak
    ClassicalNylon     Guitar
    E.Bass             Bass
    ElecJazzFinger
    ElecJazzPick
    ViolinBass
    AcousticJazz
    Rockabilly
    Vibes              Percussion
    OrchTimpani
    TubularBells
    Handbells (FM)
    HolidayBells (FM)
    SoftBells (FM)
    etc.

Genos2 got a significant upgrade in the piano department. Martin Harris (Yamaha) mentioned that the Genos2 CFX has more velocity levels than Genos1. Unfortunately, the pianos are still rooted in the XG synthesis and effects architecture — no Grand Expression, no Virtual Resonance Modeling, no half-pedaling. Yamaha product silos reign supreme. Again.

Sampled electric pianos (EP) pretty much stayed the same. Genos2 got real FM EPs, of course. There are also a few new combi voices like “FeltRoads.” I use the Montage/MODX character pianos and dig them.

Sadly, the Genos2 organ category remains the same. Genos2 did not get the Stage YC rotary speaker sim. This omission would kill my desire to upgrade. [Dumb move, Yamaha.] Out of step with the Oberkrainer additions, no new accordions. Nothing new in the choir, either.

String-wise, Genos2 gets new “film” (cinematic) strings. The Kino strings had a lot of character and the new cinematic strings offer a different color with which to paint.

Jerry Bruckheimer would like the Genos2 — more brass, pop and orchestral. Genos2 is fat with brass.

Woodwinds got a few upgrades. Piccolo is finally promoted to SArt2. Pipes are the big news: Celtic flute, whistle, shakuhachi and dudak. Sadly, no SArt2 bagpipes. [It’s a long way to the top.]

I already mentioned the new nylon guitar and basses in the MegaVoice section above. You got the picture. Club punters will find new EDM basses galore.

I don’t usually spend too much time on percussion, leaving that for chimpanzees and bongos. However, there a few upgrades worth noting: vibes, timpani, tubular bells, handbells. There are so many bells, they ring louder than my tinitus. 🙂 Seriously, this stuff can be used in liturgical music without shame.

Pads are pads. Synths are synths.

Drum kits

Yamaha are featuring the Genos2 Ambient Drums and have the kits to prove it:

    RockKit               DirtyKit
    PopKit                IndustrialKit
    VintageOpenKit        TrapKit
    VintageMuteKit        ClubKit
    JazzStickKit          ChillKit
    JazzBrushExtended     PunchyEDMKit
    CinematicPercussion   TightEDMKit
    ProductionKit
    JazzBrushKit
    SymphonicPercussion

The ambient drums borrow mic’ing technique from sample library provides using two or more microphones to capture room ambience. The Genos2 user (or more likely, the style) decides the dry/ambient mix.

Summary

That’s my quick — possibly incomplete — comparison. I hope my analysis will help you with your decision to upgrade or buy. Genos2 builds on a very strong Genos1 foundation. New buyers should take the plunge if they have the dosh.

The new Montage M got the pianos, Kino strings and a few other new waveforms and voices. Genos2, however, got a lot of stuff that Montage didn’t get. Will Yamaha provide those waveforms and patches in a Montage M update? Who the heck knows. Always buy on the basis of what you see and get TODAY. Never bet on updates.

Genos2 pre-game

Posted on November 13, 2023 by pj

Gotta say upfront, I don’t have a horse in the race when it comes to Yamaha Genos2 (to be announced Wednesday). Montage M8x, on the other hand, really seized my attention because it potentially could fit a real need — an 88-key piano for home. All of the Montage M extras (AN-X, big sub display, and so forth) would be gravy on the biscuits. In the end, I placed an order for a Clavinova CSP-170. [Still waiting for delivery.]

I’m quite happy with Genos (generation 1) and will be keeping it. The FSX action is pleasant and, oh, the sounds! It’s set up to my taste and needs — no good reason to change horses.

Still, I’m a technologist and I’m anxious to see how Genos2 features point to the future.

Pianos and more pianos

The Genos (gen 1) acoustic piano voices have always left players wanting, especially when compared to Montage (gen 1) and MODX. Genos has been trapped by its XG synthesis and effects architecture. Voices are limited to 8 elements making 18 element CFX an unlikely creation.

Yamaha engineers found a way to break down the 8 element limit in Montage M. A single part now may have up to 128 elements. If Yamaha incorporates the same breakthrough in Genos2 (G2), deep, detailed acoustic piano voices are possible.

The first G2 teaser video features piano slathered in reverb. I don’t think that’s an accident. Given that the lowly Yamaha DGX-670 has a great sounding CFX, it’s time for G2 to get game.

Piano Room and Smart Pianist

What are new piano voices without Yamaha Piano Room? Piano Room is the place to tweeze and tweak piano sounds to your liking. Open the piano lid, adjust brightness, etc.

Along with Piano Room, we might see Smart Pianist support for Genos2. The tablet-based Smart Pianist app provides the capabilities of Piano Room — and more. You can select voices, change settings and save everything in registrations. On the CSP series, the player can select and control auto-accompaniment styles, too. Smart Pianist brings sophisticated audio-to-chord and audio-to-score capabilities, too. Audio-to-score goes beyond the free Chord Tracker app, converting chords into honest to goodness musical notation. The musician can play from a standard chart without needing to know chord theory.

If Yamaha adds Genos2 to Smart Pianist, Genos2 will be the first (true) arranger keyboard with Smart Pianist support. This is a big deal. First released in January 2018, Smart Pianist is now a central, strategic piece in Yamaha’s digital piano ecosystem. Adding Genos2 will cement Smart Pianists role for years to come.

Whither VRM? Virtual Resonance Modeling enhances relatively static digital piano tones with body and string resonance. VRM has been slowly trickling down from high-end Clavinovas to the portable digital piano line. Will Genos2 get VRM Lite or enhanced VRM? Stay tuned.

What’s this?

Enlarged and enhanced G2 pictures show a new connector (?) centered on the rear panel. Along with new acoustic piano voices, will we see the new FC35 triple foot pedal? The FC35 connects through a large multi-pin DIN connector. Perhaps G2’s new connector is for the triple strike pedal. We shall soon see…

Vegas at night

Rotary encoders are another big ask. The second teaser video reveals what are quite likely rotary encoders in place of standard potentiometers. The encoders are surrounded by LEDs denoting the current knob value.

Later video and pictures show LEDs alongside the G2 sliders. It would be neat if the LEDs would show the initial slider value to be manually “caught.” That capability would certainly make it easier to play the drawbars in so-called Organ Flutes mode.

Speaking of drawbars, did G2 get the VCM rotary speaker DSP algorithm?

Tilt, but not tilt-able

The main and sub displays appear to be the same size as Genos (gen 1). The G2 front panel has a few new controls. Since Yamaha needed to remold the top chassis panel, they decided to increase the tilt of the main and sub displays. This change should improve readability, especially when seated at the instrument.

Space is the place

I give Ton on the PSR Tutorial Forum credit for making a great catch.

The first video is titled “REVelation” and the third video is titled “Real ambience.” Coincidentally, there are Cubase plug-in effects with similar names. The Cubase REVerence plug-in lets you import an impulse response from disk.

These spatial reverbs and enhancements are popular creative tools. They are also memory-hungry. Did Yamaha provide bigger DSP RAM on the G2 SWP70s? Could these effect algorithms be ported to Montage M? Remember, the “Real Distortion” guitar effects appeared in Tyros 5 before that were added to Motif XF in update 1.5. Could history repeat?

A new keybed?

Comparing the G2 chassis form against my Genos (gen 1), it looks like Yamaha have remolded the chassis bottom, too. It looks deeper, possibly to accommodate the downward tilt of the displays. Or maybe a new keybed, replacing FSX.

This close-up picture of the G2 keybed has been nagging me. The front face of the white keys appears taller than the FSX in front of me in the studio. The height-to-width ratio of the pictured key is about 0.52; the height-to-width ratio of an actual FSX key is 0.24. Did Yamaha develop a new keybed for Genos2?

Oh, so much is still unknown!

We can see the keys, the box, and the displays. It’s the stuff inside that we can’t see which is unknown and tantalizing. Until Wednesday! Unless some horrible, awful leak happens. 🙂

Patents: GEX, InfiniQ, DX7

Posted on November 1, 2023 by pj

I apologize for not posting recently. I expended way too much energy on Yamaha Montage M. Don’t get me wrong, Montage M is a worthy subject and I gave it careful consideration as an 88-key piano solution for home. In the end, I decided to venture into Clavinova-land and have ordered a CSP-170. [That’s another story for another day.]

Gotta build energy for the GENOS2 launch in two weeks (November 15). 🙂

GEX keybed technology

I posted this short fresh take on the GEX keyboard technology at the Keyboard Corner forum. After learning more about the EM induction sensor approach, I felt the need to clarify.

The optical shutter sensing system is used in the older AvantGrand and SilentPiano instruments. The “Non-contact continuous detection electromagnetic induction sensor” is the latest Yamaha tech and will be delivered in the newer AvantGrand and SilentPiano models. GEX is derived from the EM induction sensor approach.

I’m still searching for information, but a recent Yamaha patent describes such a key articulation system. The key side has one or two coils of wire. The substrate (PCB) side has similar opposing coils. The circuitry senses flux direction, etc. on a key-by-key basis.

U.S. Patent 11,657,790 B2, Operation detection device for key operation of keyboard device, Kenichi NISHIDA, Harumichi HOTTA, Jun ISHII, May 23, 2023.

Yamaha’s latest patent is interesting because they want to measure “yaw” and “roll”, not just vertical “strike” distance. Couple this with their recent key/note articulation patents and you’ve got an “MPE” keyboard!

Quite possibly, they were not able to finish the keybed design and set up the manufacturing for these advanced designs. Thus, the m6 and m7 got FSX (for now). The Montage M team were probably ordered to “deliver or die in October 2023” by the suits. Concessions were made to meet schedule.

Sonuus InfiniQ position sensor

While investigating the GEX technology, I found the U.S. patent for the Sonuus InfiniQ position sensor. Sonuus deploy the InfiniQ sensor in their Voluum analogue effects pedal. The InfiniQ is based on electromagnetic induction, avoiding the usual potentiometer approach and its disadvantages.

U.S. Patent 8,933,314 B2, Musical effects devices, James Hastings Clark, Morag E. Clark, John M. McAuliffe, January 13, 2015.

I recommend reading the Sonuus patent because it is well-written — real English instead of the patent-ese written by American attorneys. The Sonuus patent provides useful background information about the applied science of electromagnetic induction.

Yamaha DX7 reverse engineered

I stumbled across a brilliant bit of DX7 reverse engineering by Ken Shirriff.

He created a composite die photograph of a decapsulated DX7 YM21280 OPS (operator) chip. Ken annotates and relates the die photo to U.S. Patent 4,554,857, explaining the operation of the DX7 OPS chip in detail. The YM21280 is driven by its brother, the YM21290 EGS (envelope) chip.

Quite frankly, this is fantastic work!

If you’re interested in how Yamaha implements FM (or FM-X) in hardware, you need to visit Ken’s pages and read the U.S. Patent on the DX7 internal design:

U.S. Patent 4,554,857, Electronic musical instrument capable of varying a tone synthesis operation algorithm, Tetsuo NISHIMOTO, November 26, 1985.

I also recommend the Yamaha DX7 Technical Analysis by ajxs.

Yamaha DX7 block diagram (U.S. Patent 4,554,857)

I will revisit Ken’s analysis when I have more energy. I fully expect, however, to see a modern day, scaled-up FM-X equivalent in the Yamaha SWP70. This — this! — is how Yamaha achieves 128 voice FM-X polyphony. Please keep this approach in mind when discussing what the SWP70 can do or what it can be extended to do. Montage/MODX FM-X ain’t code running on a RISC…

Montage M8x review: Yes, I played one!

Posted on October 20, 2023 by pj

Grabbed this week’s music binder and tried out a Yamaha Montage M8x for an hour. Overall, a good experience. The demo M8x was set up at Guitar Center with two Yamaha HS-8 monitors.

Here are my observations…

Pianos galore

I dove into the pianos first, because acoustic piano (AP) sounds and practice are my primary need at this time.

The CFX and Bösendorfer Imperial sounded good and clear. In fact, everything sounded good and clear. Might be due to the HS-8s being brighter than my studio monitors; might be due to Pure Audio Circuit 2 (PAC 2).

The Hamburg Grand — a Steinway, presumably — is brighter than I expected. It should cut through a band mix, no prob. Definitely a high-quality addition to the Montage range.

I briefly checked out the Nashville C3, the C7, and the Felt pianos just to verify that they are there. The audio definitely had more clarity than MODX or even Genos (gen 1).

I dove into the CFX grand programming. Yep, one part with 18 elements.

Yet, with all the acoustic pianos, something was missing. Don’t get me wrong, Montage M acoustic pianos will be great for the stage, especially if the pianist is competing with guitar, drum and/or other general cacophony. The APs don’t have the depth or dynamism that I hear in Clavinova, for example. Maybe it’s the missing VRM, Grand Expression Modeling, whatever. People still may choose to record exposed piano solos using virtual instruments or the real deal itself.

The user interface

If you’ve been using either Montage or MODX, be ready for change. It took a little while to come to grips with the new user interface (UI). I managed to navigate through AWM2 element programming and effects without too much trouble. However, old habits must change!

The main screen is clear and responsive enough. Much has been said about the touch screen response — didn’t bother me. I like the button matrix for voice selection. Very easy to use and I quickly depended upon it. Performance search is different and it required some trial, error and time before I became accustomed to it.

The sub display is beautifully clear and readible. Some people have been grumbling about pixel jaggies. Again, didn’t bother me. I’ll take that large display any day over the slim sub display on Genos. The large subdisplay allows BIG numbers and parameter names — good for stage work.

UI-wise, I’m on board with Montage M although one hour is not really enough to get the full sense of workflow.

Electric pianos

Montage M has new electric piano (EP) waveforms and performances. They beat everything I’ve played on MODX, Clavinova and Genos. I’m jealous and can’t wait to get my hands on these waveforms and voices on a ligher weight, more affordable gig instrument. My homework shows anywhere from 8 to 12 strike levels. Definitely top-notch.

Rotary speaker sim

I tried diving into the drawbar organs through the voice category buttons. Not the best idea as I kept running into old familier organ Performances. I dialed in a few Performance, heard swirlies and mentally shrieked, “No, no, this can’t be happening again!”

I suggest starting out in the “Best of Montage M” Live Set. Or, do a little menu diving to verify that you are hearing the new VCM rotary speaker sim. Familiar, old organ Performances continue to use the old ROTARY SPEAKER 1 and ROTARY SPEAKER 2 effect types.

Keep your eyes open and look for a big VCM rotary icon. The VCM icon pops up on the sub display as well as effect edit screens. For some reason, Montage M treats the VCM rotary sim as a separate effect block. You won’t necessarily find it in the Insert A or Insert B slots.

Once found though, you’ll be happy. Well, at least happier than Montage/MODX. I’d like it better if rotary speed could be switched by a pedal, right out of the box. It’s a long reach to the MOD wheel or ribbon controller on the 88.

GEX keyboard

AP and EP with GEX is satisfying. I would not call GEX “light.” The key weight felt similar to the GH3/GH3X — and left my hands somewhat tired, too. Crazy me, NWX or GrandTouch (wood, linear grading) remain at the top of my list.

Playing drawbar organ on GEX is a chore, but you probably guessed that already. Palm swipes are not fun. I could say the same for strings, woodwinds and the other non-piano voices which I auditioned. The lack of PAT on M6/M7 is a genuinely awkward subject for synthesists, organists, or people like me who spend a lot of gig time playing non-piano voices.

AN-X Performances

I didn’t invest a huge amount of time trying AN-X. I browsed the AN-X Performances in the “Best of Montage M” Live Set. The AN-X sound reminds me of the my old AN-200 groove box and why I love it. Maybe it’s just the patches that I tried, but the sound connected me to AN/VA back in the day — reminiscent of the Sequential Circuit Prophet upon which AN was modelled.

I would be very pleased to own a Montage M with AN-X. I’m more excited about AN-X, now, than FM-X. The AN-X Performances have a certain dynamism.

The F-word

At this point, I don’t give a fig. GC had classic rock on the PA and how are you going to listen for anything quiet and subtle during “Smoke on the Water”? So, all I can say is, “Make your choices.”

Where does this leave me?

This time around, I’m interested in getting the best digital piano experience that I can — for the money. I want good value and I’m not willing to spring for any old expensive 88.

The Yamaha Montage M series sound terrific. In person, they look terrific. Whatever 88 I buy will sit in our dining room. Therefore, visual aesthetics are important. As much as I like the look of Montage M8x and P-515 (P-525), a furniture digital piano is more appropriate for the dining room. All the dancing lights would entertain guests, but… Might as well rule out CP88, too, on aesthetic grounds.

The other issue is the GEX keyboard. It’s a good keybed, but I find the NWX to be more comfortable for extended play. I may be in a bit of trouble here as Yamaha seems to be phasing out NWX. The P-515 successor, P-525, for example, has a GrandTouch-S (wood) keybed.

As to sound, the Montage M series acoustic and electric pianos are damned good. I love the variety. (Same could be said of Stage CP since it’s roughly the same line-up.) The VCM rotary speaker sim is very welcome and long overdue. The acoustic piano sounds, however, are missing VRM and I don’t want to compromise. VRM definitely enriches the digital sound especially when you’re playing solo or practicing.

Not that it’s a GEX thing specifically, but I have real concerns about playing non-piano voices on a so-called piano action keybed. I play organ, strings, woodwinds, etc. daily on MODX (el-cheapo semi-weighted action) and Genos (FSX). FSX is still a decent compromise across a wide spectrum of voices. I think synth players will be happier with M6/M7. Even Yamaha pitch M8x as “M8x for the pianist.”

At this point, I will probably find a landing place in Clavinova-land. That doesn’t mean I dislike the Montage M series. On the contrary, I can’t wait for “MOM” or “MOMO”! My MODX6 is going to wear out eventually…

GENOS2 incoming, November

It’s official.

Still awaiting SEQTRAK™

Montage M8x: Key notes

Posted on October 13, 2023 by pj

Yamaha rarely invent a new technology and not reuse the same tech in a different product line. So it goes with the key sensor tech in Yamaha Montage M8x.

We all got an important clue from the most recent Music Production Guide:

The model MONTAGE M8x features a newly developed, special keyboard called “GEX”, which supports Polyphonic Aftertouch. Unlike other keyboards, the GEX keyboard does not use conventional key contacts, but electromagnetic induction. With this technology, each individual key position can be continuously scanned. In addition, the keyboard supports software updates, which enables the future development of further techniques and articulations beyond Polyphonic Aftertouch.

GEX has its origins in the latest Yamaha hybrid and Silent Piano product lines. This might explain why Yamaha brought out Polyphonic Aftertouch (PAT) in the 88-key version of the Montage M series and not M6/M7 Quite simply, Yamaha could use components and a keybed that were already sitting on its shelf.

This blog post is a bit of a clip-show. I’m collecting information about the sensor technology and want to share a few starting points for further reading and exploration.

Three types of key sensors

Yamaha have three major key sensor technologies in use today:

2- and 3-contact rubber key strips — the most-widely used type,
Non-contact 2-point optical fiber hammer/key sensors — employed in hybrid, Silent Piano™ and Transacoustic™ pianos, and
Non-contact continuous detection electromagnetic induction sensor — the latest tech.

I won’t be saying much about the rubber key strips because this technology is so well-known.

Electromagnetic induction key sensors

Yamaha announced its new line-up of TransAcoustic and Silent Piano models in August 2022. As part of the announcement, Yamaha briefly described a newly developed “Articulation Sensor System.”

We have newly developed an electronic “Articulation Sensor System”. Wireless communication from sensors installed under all 88 keys allows for natural playing without sacrificing the piano’s original touch. In addition, it is now possible to always accurately grasp the movement of keys being pressed and released, and to detect minute movements of the keyboard, such as when playing staccato, more accurately than before.

Specifications for the SH3 and SC3 Silent Pianos identify the key sensing system as “Non-contact continuous detection electromagnetic induction sensor.”

The new Yamaha Montage M8x employs the latest electromagnetic induction key sensing technology in its GEX keyboard.

Previously, Transacoustic and Silent Pianos employed contactless, optical hammer and key detection. As you can see from its description below, the optical key sensors require much labor and costly components. The gradient optical key shutters must be carefully aligned.

The new electromagnetic induction key sensors appear to be easier to build and install. Each key has small inductive loop on the bottom. Sensors on the printed circuit board below the keys detect loop (key) movements.

Because the electromagnetic induction sensors are so new, it will be some time before we learn the details about the new sensor technology.

NU1XA AvantGrand

When I heard “electromagnetic induction” and “hybrid” fall out of Blake’s mouth, I instantly remembered the Yamaha NU1XA hybrid piano. The NU1XA combines an upright’s key action with digital synthesis. The Yamaha Articulation Sensor System is described in the following way:

The NU1XA features our newly developed Articulation Sensor System, which accurately and continuously captures the pianist’s subtlest performance nuances, through non-contact electromagnetic sensors and Yamaha’s proprietary algorithm. This system utilizes two separate sensors on each key: one for the hammer — the most crucial part of the acoustic piano sound mechanism — and the other for the key itself, to precisely measure the movement of finger release and articulate exactly the special nuances when the sound stops. Together, they fully capture the most delicate expressions of the player. [Yamaha]

Obviously, the Montage M8x does not have hammers and Montage M8x has only under-key sensors. [Needs to be verified.]

Yamaha NU1XA key action and sensors [Yamaha]

Yamaha have been working to simulate the interplay between a pianists fingers (and pedals) in order to “craft changes in timbre according to the speed and depth with which the keys are pressed.” Yamaha calls these proprietary algorithms and software “Grand Expression Modeling.” Like Montage M PAT, the Yamaha secret sauce is in the software.

This technology goes well-beyond simple 2- and 3-switch discrete sensing into the realm of continuous sensing. You’ll find 2-switch sensing in most other Yamaha synths and arrangers. 3-switch switch sensing is found in so-called “triple sensor” keybeds like GH3, GH3X and NWX.

Optical shutter key sensors

Key sensor and greyscale shutter [Yamaha]

Under each of the 88 keys is a Yamaha-unique continuous-detection grey-scale shutter key sensor. These sensors detect the movement of the keys continually, allowing natural musical expression even when the piano is in SILENT Piano™ function. Since they do not come into contact with the keys, these sensors do not affect the feel of the keyboard in any way. [Yamaha]

I’m sure all of this Yamaha tech is patented. Happy hunting at the USPTO!

[Update: Thanks to Jason at the Yamaha Synth Forum who found these two Yamaha patents: U.S. Patent 5612502A and 6121535.]

Silent Piano optical sensors

The old Yamaha Silent Piano™ line use continuous key and damper pedal detection. Key sensing uses optical shutters.

Yamaha Optical Key Sensors [Yamaha]

Yamaha Silent Pianos go one step further than the hybrids — Silent Pianos are complete pianos with action, strings and soundboard. When a Silent Piano is switched to Quiet Mode, the hammers are stopped before hitting the strings. The articulation sensor system tracks key movement, sending data to Grand Expression Modeling and tone synthesis. [The Quiet and Acoustic Modes are selected with a silencing lever or pedal.]

If you use information from this article, please post a link to my site. Thanks!