I've been reading all the comments about the Yamaha Tyros4 both pros and cons over the past several weeks and until yesterday I had not had a chance to play one myself. I still had a few Tyros3s in my inventory at my store and so I waited until they were sold to purchase some Tyros4s.
I posted a few months ago that I was having a meeting with a Yamaha Product Designer regarding what the next generation Pro Arangers should include as far as it's user interface was concerned. At that time I wasn't aware a Tyros4 was just a few weeks away from being released.
Many of you have stated you didn't think the upgrade from the Tyros3 to the Tyros4 was a big enough change to justify upgrading. After a day of playing with the Tyros4 my opinion is that this keyboard has the best sounds I've heard in any arranger product and the Styles have been upgraded extensively. I also can hear a major improvement in the drum kits that we have asked Yamaha to implement over the years.
When just looking, the change in button colors, the xlr microphone input don't seem like much, but the content inside the machine makes a big difference over the older models.
Those of you that have not had a chance to audition one to compare it to other arrangers I hope you can find a dealer near you to try one out.
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George Kaye
Kaye's Music Scene
Reseda, California
818-881-5566
www.kayesmusicscene.com