During my lunch break this afternoon I noticed that the local music store was setting-up the new Tyros5. So I went inside for a short test drive of approximately 40 min. These are my findings:

The first thing I noticed was the fact that they (finally) removed a lot of the reverb on both individual sounds and styles. The Tyros5 doesn’t sound so ‘wet’ anymore like the Tyros1/2/3/4. A lot of the styles are remixed and utilize new sounds. The interface looks a little cleaner, but the layout is practically the same as on the Tyros4.

The acoustic piano section is mostly the same. The pop and concert piano sounded the same as on the Tyros4, although the dynamic range seems to be improved (more samples/note). I liked the new upright piano. In the EP section I spotted some new sounds, but even more noticeably was the difference in sound thanks to the new VCM effects. They sound more ‘vintage’ and ‘raw’ compared to the somewhat artificial EP sounds on the Tyros4.

I saw more changes in the (acoustic/electric) guitar section: a lot of new sounds and samples. It all sounded a lot drier, but thus more realistic. The electric guitars combined with new effects are a killer combo.

Finally I want to specifically mention the new classical organs. For me these are a superior unique selling point. I think it’s safe to say that the new classical organs in the Tyros5 are by far the best you can buy in an Arranger Keyboard or Synth. For those that are familiar with ‘Hauptwerk’ (VST Instrument), Tyros5 is coming close in terms of quality. The matching styles in the Movie&Show category are also great.

Furthermore, there are new sounds in all categories; too many to review them all separately. Noteworthy are the new classical- and jazz flute. A big improvement compared to the Tyros4. I have gone trough many sounds in a short amount of time, so I might have missed some other ‘striking’ new sounds.

One of the main innovations on the Tyros5 is the new Ensemble voice function. In short: all the Ensemble combinations sound amazing realistic. It just requires a slightly different way of playing. You constantly have to keep in mind what the limitation would be for a real string or blazer and translate this to your playing in order to sound as realistic as possible. It is a bit like playing with solo SuperArticulation instruments, but with less remedial support from the Tyros when playing ‘unnatural’.

Yamaha has solved the everlasting complaints about poor drums with the introduction of ‘Audiodrums’. It sounds fantastic, but I do not like the idea that styles that use Audiodrums are not backwards compatible. From a consumer perspective this is undesirable. My particular favorites were the new Queen, Coldplay en Adele styles. In those styles the Audiodrums come really alive.

After this story you might think ‘he already ordered one’, but no. The reason is quite simple: I was critical on the added value versus the additional costs that an upgrade to Tyros5 entails, and I still am. The worldwide retail price of the Tyros5 is much higher than the retail price of the Tyros4 when it was released. I have my doubts whether the T5 does offer that much more than the T4 as the T4 did compared to the T3. But I guess that’s something you have to answer for yourself.

So far for my short ‘review’

Best Regards,

Joost

After this story you might think ‘he already ordered one’, but no. The reason is quite simple: I was critical on the added value versus the additional costs that an upgrade to Tyros5 entails, and I still am. The worldwide retail price of the Tyros5 is much higher than the retail price of the Tyros4 when it was released. I have my doubts whether the T5 does offer that much more than the T4 as the T4 did compared to the T3. But I guess that’s something you have to answer for yourself.

So far for my short ‘review’

Best Regards,

Joost