Diki, the only reviews I have any confidence in at all are first-hand experience reviews, from people that have ACTUALLY touched the played the machine - not reviews from people who claim to know everything there is about arranger keyboards because they slept in a Holiday Inn Express that was within 20 miles of the nearest dealer.

I really don't need a BK9 to hear great style sounds, I have a great S-950 that does an outstanding job for me. I've owned a Roland G800 and Korg I3, and while they are considered dinosaurs by today's standards, I don't believe the drum sounds have changed very much since then. And, if the only reason I purchased an arranger keyboard was for the drum sounds, I would just buy another drum machine and go back to playing a 12-string guitar.

And, I played with a REAL drummer three weeks ago. We went to school together and he played many, many proms when we were teenagers. I played the guitar back then, and when we got together I used the S950 with the drums turned off. Just the bass, a piano and a guitar. You know, those drums really didn't sound any different now than they did back then. They were too loud 60 years ago and they're still too loud. Guess I'll stick with the keyboard's inadequate drums - they may be inadequate by YOUR standards, but they have the right volume, sound quality and everything is well balanced.

Ironically, many of the newer styles in all newer TOTL arrangers really don't seem to place a lot of emphasis on the drums. Some of the best Latin styles and ballads have no drums at all. And that's not just Yamaha I'm talking about.

Cheers,

Gary

If they listened , why would they not go black! What about the poliphany? Why? No change from T4. As i said will wait fir official release, but sceptical that T5 is a major change from T4

From the details given here are my personal views.

Authentic Ensemble Performances

I suspect this may be multiple sound samples per voice (4 Trumpets for example) with each set slightly differently to each other (Possible auto variation as well) thus giving the equivalent of multi layers of voice under a single voice button.
This feature has been available in the Pro market (Hardware & Software) for years, however I believe it will be the first hardware arranger to incorporate it, with the only downside being that each sample will require 1 note of polyphony thus a quartet will require 4 notes for each single key pressed, which could cause problems having only 128 notes of polyphony.

Organ World

This will be a very popular feature as most users of arrangers (The Home player) like adding plenty of organ sounds, (Particularly Theatre & Euro sounds) and the fact that they now have on-screen layouts that look like the original will really go down well, however to get the best from these displays you really need a touch screen which hopefully it does have. (Again this has been available on the Pro Market for years but it’s good to see it trickling down to hardware arrangers)

Audio Styles

Without full editing capabilities then you will need 1000s of loops to make the styles your own, so like the Audya audio styles it is way too limited, and thus a bit of a white elephant. (Pro Users create their own styles with loops rather than sticking to pre-set styles that are favoured by arranger players)

Enhanced DSPs

Always good to have, and as they are following the Pro route of how you control them this can only be a good thing. (Once again to get the best out of them really requires a touch screen)

Real Reverb

Better reverb = better sound, however until manufactures start adding convolution reverb (As used in the pro market) then it’s nothing exciting.

Real Distortion

As DSPs

VCM

Common in the pro world and it’s nice to see it finally being added to a hardware arranger. (Interesting to see how sophisticated it is though)

Time stretch and pitch shift

If implemented correctly a great additional feature, however pro units cost a lot of dosh, so it will be interesting to see how good the Yamaha version is.

Panel Lock

If you need to enter a code to release it then it will probably be a fine feature for the Pro players out there.

4 Subs Out

Is excellent if implemented correctly so will be interesting to how Yamaha have configured it?

The rest is nothing that hasn’t been around on other arrangers for years.

Overall then while everything included has been available in the pro market for years (And of much better quality due to the availability of better hardware/software) it looks promising, but not exactly ground breaking.

As always the proof of the pudding is in the eating (Not forgetting the cost) so a full review will have to wait until someone (Other than a demonstrator) gets to play one.

Bill

Gary you are the Man I could of not said it any better.

So far - All the Yamaha arrangers that record MP3 to USB stick have a bug that stops the recording saying the device is busy.
This feature does work on several brands of USB stick, but those specific ones known to work are now becoming hard to find.

Anyone want to bet this feature now implemented on the new T5 will still have the same bug?

This never happens on my Pa900 and I have tried every USB stick I own.

Bill G

when will yamaha shows it off to the public and is there a pic anywhere about what it looks like?


thx

Gary, good points, indeed.

The facts are, Yamaha has increased features on each subsequent Tyros model by basically the same amount since the model name was introduced.

Why is this so new to some people?

Considering also, that each new Tyros model outsold the previous instrument, one could say that this type of marketing works quite well.

Certainly it is nothing new, if we look at the computer/software industry, and even the automobile manufacturers to name only two.

Korg does basically the same method, although, admittedly, they may make larger steps.

Definitely some of the self appointed armchair marketing wizards will disagree with these methods, but, as long as they continue to work well for these companies, we can expect it to continue.

In my opinion, the Tyros5 is meant to appeal to those with Tyros2 and T3...not necessarily Tyros4 users, although there will be some who have to have the latest and greatest...and can afford it as well.

Also, because each new Tyros (or PSR) iteration doesn't make the previous model obsolete, I’m sure there are more owners who are glad things are this way, than those who are not.

Certainly it appears that Yamaha is doing something right when we see they probably have the largest number of excellent, and very friendly, user/enthusiast sites for their arrangers. Korg also has a fine forum for their PA arrangers and, like Yamaha, continue to provide first-class help with those owning older instruments.

To sum up, no one is being forced to buy the latest and greatest just to sound groovy...witness the many happy owners of Tyros2/3 and PSR-3000/900/S910 and, and of course, Korg PA-2X/800/500.

Thankfully Korg and Yamaha both continue to produce and develop TOTL instruments, maintaining a healthy competition, which naturally benefits the arranger buyer/user.

Just my 2 cents.

Ian

You stand next to a jet, it's going to be too loud, too, Gary! But that don't stop it being the best at getting you from one side of the country to the other if you are in a hurry!

I've worked with some drummers that can propel you like a freight train, and I have to turn down to hear them! The only reason you would put up with a too loud drummer is that one at the right volume won't play with you! But they do exist! Primarily, though, the volume that they play at has got NOTHING to do with the sound. You can turn an S950 up to stadium levels, it won't sound as punchy as a Korg or Roland, and it doesn't sound as dynamic. It's in the samples themselves, not the volume.

And Gary, NO-ONE here has played a T5. But apparently, that hasn't stopped you from agreeing with them or trusting their opinion if it is positive. The double standard being displayed is quite obvious, mate.

But that's the crux, Ian. Even YOU can admit that the other manufacturers make larger steps, and also support their arrangers with new features AFTER its release with significant updates. And all of them sell arrangers well enough to keep doing it. So why do you appear so happy that Yamaha make the LEAST progress for each model? At $5000 a pop, surely Yamaha users deserve at LEAST the same degree of innovation and progress that other manufacturers manage (at considerably less cost)..?

Nobody is finding this 'new' in the slightest... Yamaha's 'baby steps' is what you expect from these guys. Be nice if they actually surprised us, one day!

Diki, where did you read that I agreed with anyone's opinion of the T5? You must be reading someone else's posts, or something from another forum that I don't frequent. I have NOT agreed with anything posted about the T5. I, just like YOU, have not heard, seen, touched, smelled, etc... anything resembling a T5. That's why I'll wait till I see something posted from someone that has some first-hand knowledge. And, even then, I'll reserve my judgement based upon that individuals credentials.

Now, what the Hell does a jet plane have to do with anything musical? Just because an instrument is loud does not qualify it as acceptable, or even good quality. It just means it's loud! Nothing more, nothing less. As for a drummer, or any other musician propelling me like a freight train, nope, not in more than 50 years. I've heard and met some pretty damned good musicians, some of the world's absolute best. I was honored to meet them, shake their hands, and I've marveled at their expertise and craftmanship, but the best they did was get my toes tappin'. Propelled like a freight train - Nah! Maybe I'm not as enthusiastic about all this as you.

" You can turn an S950 up to stadium levels, it won't sound as punchy as a Korg or Roland, and it doesn't sound as dynamic. It's in the samples themselves, not the volume." How do you know? Have you done this? If so, please provide us with some examples, and some unbiased opinions from experts in the field that have some first-hand information. Yeah, right!

Cheers,

Gary