Yamaha have to go a long way to improve upon the success of the Tyros 2 and i think that a T3 is actually a lot further away than some on here are reckoning. If they produce any new TOTL arranger in the next 18 months it will be a marginal improvement on the existing technology. The Motif XS which is supposed to be the cutting edge pro synth for yamaha has done what exactly ? copied the T2 technology almost exactly and borrowed superarticulation but called it something else and slipped in some of the arranger functions that the market had been pleading for for years. Yamaha are trickling down the new technology and will try to maximise it before introducing something else. The T3 when it comes will have marginal improvements just like the psr range has been marginaly improved until yamaha come up with some newer ground breaking technology. The only scope for improvement that would make a T3 in anyway appealing wouldbe to actually make a sampler that oould be used in the real world both studio and home. But that would start to make the T3 look like an XS and that would canabalise yamaha pro range sales.

Yamaha would be amazed at the number of Motif7's in the hands of 'home' users, not to mention the huge sales of 88 key, heavy 'home' digital pianos. Somehow, the thought of 76 or more keys, with the weight penalty that implies, doesn't seem to bother THOSE divisions...

Plus, obviously, their 'market research' doesn't involve visiting SZ where they can find countless posts by players wanting a 76 note Tyros. This stinks of laziness, rather than responsiveness to customers' actual NEEDS....

Why am I bored?

Because I've had this for a year and a half already. I'm always looking for new sounds and new features to improve my performances and three years is a long time to wait. Also, Korg is proving to be a very able and talented competition. I think that Yamaha needs to copy some of their features -- and the sooner the better!

As to the people who want the 76 key board, I see no reason for it. There's hardly a single instrument on the Yamaha that sounds good in the fifth octave -- so unless they completely redesign all their sounds, it will sound horrible if they add a sixth. Even the piano isn't great...

Chony

How about so you could have a dual split and have a third Upper sound at the top for counter melodies

My Wersi Abacus only has 61 notes, and yet has 3 split points simultaneously available anywhere on the keyboard, so you don’t need 76 notes just to get more split points.
As far as I can see, it is just down to personal preference.

Bill

I notice most people that state we don't need 76 keys are 61 key players..I don't know anyone that plays 76 keys and says "61 keys is enough"...

A couple other points why 76 keys are better[that were not mentioned already]..When we are playing in arranger mode..the right of the split will allow us more room to play , organ, piano any other full range sounds.

Also, 76 key beds go down to "E"..a natural for left hand bass....

Any 76 key player knows the advantage of the extra keys...

[This message has been edited by Fran Carango (edited 05-31-2007).]

I agree with Fran, 76 keys are the way to go eg. G70, SD1, PA1x pro.

I can't see Yamaha ever putting 76 onto their top of the range arrangers as they still seem to market these for the older generation and the home players who never gig or have the need for more notes.

Yep, once you've got used to the extra range that 76 gives you, you rarely want to play anything smaller unless it is a single sound keyboard like a Hammond (and even then, REAL B3 players need two manuals, so that's a 122 note keyboard!).

You can split a 61 as many times as you want, abacus, but you get VERY little range out of each split....

I play a lot of LH bass, and the low E is great (low C is a little TOO low for me, but I hate 5-string basses, too!), plus I need two octaves to play the bass in.... A 76 still leaves 4+ octaves for the piano part, a usable one hand range...

And, less we forget, some of us like to turn ALL the machines off and use our arrangers as regular keyboards. Maybe some of you 61-ers can play piano well on a small keyboard, but for me, and many pianists, even 76 is just the bare minimum.

I'm with you on that. It's a struggle to play a piano solo on 61 keys. Try playing a Scott Joplin rag with 61 keys, yea, it can be done but you have to modify the original piece a little too much.