1/24/14: Mark Anderson of Yamaha USA talks with Martin Harris about the Yamaha Tyros 5 at Namm 2014:

https://hub.yamaha.com/namm2014/41358-na...custom&ref=

"Same as Tyros4 ( 93%). Too much money for T5. Tyros 5 = Tyros 4 with 7% differences that we will never use. Hello to everybody"


I found this reply to the interview ijnteresting..

That guy has no clue at all there are many advances on the T5 he s intititled to his opinion but I do not agree at all

Great video Scott - enjoyed it very much.

Gary

What would you list as the primary BIG differences between the T4 and T5, musicforyourday (think I'm going to use MFYD!)?

Apart from the audio drums and multipads (we've discussed these to death and back!), what would you say were the largest differences?

The ensemble feature seems great, but only for people that know great voicing already, the effects are nice, but simply a slight improvement (IMHO).

But I'm sure you have a better handle on what differentiates the two, perhaps you could tell us what makes the T5 such a great leap forward?

Diki, did you watch the entire video?

I'm not kidding...I fell a sleep watching this

Time for dinner..

Diki,

i think you pretty much described it, but forgot the exciting end result. I was a bit sceptical, but when you are in a live venue and hear this instrument it speaks for itself

The percentage changes are probably about right; however they don’t take into account the significant improvements in the sound that the small amounts of new features have made. (T5 is way ahead of the T4 in almost all departments because of this, but until they open it up for editing and import of 3rd party sounds, it’s pretty much a nonstarter for anything other than a home player (Which has always been the arranger intended market anyway)

I think they need to do more on the ease of use on the ensemble voices tough, as the sounds in the hands of anybody other than the demonstrators have sounded awful.

Whether you like it or not, Yamaha has another winner on its hands.

Enjoy whatever you play

Bill

Well, I think it is super..and for the kind of music I like there are some features & sounds that make it a easy decision for me.
Especially since T4's are still pretty darn high (new & used)

I can see if you have a T4 where you may not want to upgrade due to the high cost of upgrade.

Lee

well DIKI since I have a T4 and perform with it 300 time a year I think I kn ow what I am talking about

the organ suite it a gigantic improvement
the Ensamble section will prove to be the best new thing by far
76 keys
a larger improvement in DSP much better a very Live sound
you can Voice style in right hand and play left hand bass seamless .
B3 sound a lot better, Piano sound much better new upright sound
did I say 76 keys that is worth all to me as a piano player it means a lot

by the way DIKI the guitar section a giant leap much better sounds and you can assign what ever amp style you want just like in the Kronos this is a very Nice Improvement Very Nice All the Guitar sound guys you will love this section endless opps

the emsamble section will prove to be the best part ion time for the novice players there is a harmony button that will give you a four parts with 1 finger this will be very popular for big band and acoustic type of stuff for those who can not play the clasics if you can this will open up a whole new world of opps being able to do a true string quartet in a wedding or a brass ensamble just a new way to make a buck and truly sound great . it will be great for me to do weddings ect and in the studio it will be fantastic .

mp3 and Midi file toggle just like PA3x this will be great for those who use songs and midi stuff like I do a lot a big Improvement over the T 4

So dont get me wrong here the T4 is still in my book a great Keyboard and I still have mine and use it all the time but we are talking a very large Improvement

I hope this answers your question . Ron

I appreciate the comments, Ron. (MFYD!)

Of course, I'm a huge 76 fan, so I understand about that! I guess I have to dig into the Ensemble feature more, but I heard a couple of amateur demos of it, and in comparison to some of the pro's using it, I guess I just got to say... YMMV!

We had quite a discussion about this idea some months ago (there was a Roland keyboard that had a similar kind of function) and I must say, I'm glad some arrangers (well, just this one, so far!) are starting to use it. It is fairly common in VSTi libraries, and very welcome as an arranger feature (I hope Roland port their version to an arranger soon). For those of us into pop brass sounds, small string ensembles and wind ensembles, this tutti/split system is a boon.

But it still (from what I've heard) takes a player with good voicing skills to make it work nicely. The One Finger Harmony thing might be the best way for most amateurs to use it...

I can't honestly remember the last time I had the urge to play a theater or pipe organ sound on anything, but it's nice if you want it, I suppose. But I do think Yamaha are painting themselves into the NH demographic on the whole, featuring this so heavily! I just can't help thinking about the lost generation of younger players who wouldn't touch those with a barge pole (despite my age, I'm afraid I have to count myself in with them!).

The improved effects are nice, but part of me wonders if some of it boils down to simply more attention paid to hew well they are used. My Roland has a wide variety of amp sims in it, from JC120's to Marshall's and Matchless's, but I'm not a huge fan of how well the factory guys have used them. I imagine, if they were given a spanking new GUI, and simply voiced by experts in guitar emulation (making sure the input is not too loud allows you to use more of the amp's range, for starters), many would be convinced that Roland had made a breakthrough... But all it would be is more attention paid to voicing it well.

But I agree, I can HEAR some improvement in the effects. How much of it is eye candy, how much is better programming, and how much of it is actual hardware I can only guess (pretty GUI's have sold a million average sounding VST plug-ins!), but it's nice Yamaha care...

And that's the icing on the cake, for me... I really get the impression Yamaha CARE. It's hard to think that Roland even KNOW they make arrangers, for all the lack of care and attention they pay to making them sound great out of the box! Thing is, all the tools are in there, but the factory guys aren't in Yamaha's league when it comes to doing all the work for you. Roland, you have to 'roll your own', LOL

Now, get a hold of Yamaha, tell them to add a Chord Sequencer and proper audio looping and syncing, and if I win the lottery, I'll get one in a flash!

I had some quality time on a friend's Tyros5-76 last week, and I have to say it's the best feeling 76'er I've ever played...even tops the action on my old Yamaha DX-5, which used to be my standard for anything over 61 and under 88.

On some 76'ers, the aftertouch is almost an afterthought, in that it takes a lot of force (pressure) to activate it, or the opposite happens and it's triggered far too easily, but the Tyros5 (and Tyros4/3/2) manage to hit that nice "sweet spot". Kudos to their great FSX action!

The Ensemble feature is a real nice addition, even when used with a style...pretty cool!

The new SA2 Mute Trumpet is super, and so is the new flute. The SA pianos are much the same, however, and I found I was using the Live!GrandPiano instead, much like I do with my Tyros4.

My impressions of the Tyros5 so far? It is less mellow than the Tyros4...perhaps, having both, you will understand what I mean?

I'll get some more time on the Tyros5-76 at the end of February when my friend gets back from a trip down to Vegas, and I'll share a bit more of my thoughts on how it compares to the Tyros4.

He still has his Yamaha 9000Pro (which has 76 keys), so we will also be able to compare it's key feel against the T5-76.

Congratulations on your Tyros5-76, Ron...you sound very pleased.

By all means, post some of your music with your new 'board, or at the very least, share it with me in private.

Ian

I will be happy to post some stuff a couple of things I am waiting on a replacement T5 from Yamaha my org one developed problems and no parts to fix in Buena park so they are bringing in a new one for me from Chicago so for now it is T4 I would love to get a little bit of help on how to post music here not sure how to do it if anybody can give me a quick lesson on how to do I would be thankful and then I will post I loved the Live web cast joost did I am doing a benifit concert for the wonder warrior project in March I would love to do a live post so all can see but I do not know how to do it I have a I pad that I could connect at the venue so some help would be great thanks Guys Ron

Can anyone check whether the extra brightness in the T5 is primarily due to some changes in the default Mastering Presets (EQ and compressor), or programming something inside the style?

I guess the best way to check would be to have the T5 play a T4 style (copy it over), and see if you can hear any difference.

Several people have mentioned the extra top end as a minus, perhaps it might be something as simple as backing off on any extra high end boost in the EQ or gain on the high band of the multi-band comp?

Personally, a little more crispness to the Tyros sound is OK in my book... makes things sound a bit more live, a bit less CD-like.

I played a Tyros 5 last week for maybe half an hour. I think there is real improvement in the sound and it does not seem to be related to e.q. adjustments. I opened the mixer page and set it everything to flat and it sounded really good.
The styles seemed to have been reworked pretty extensively.
Bear in mind most of my experience was from playing S950, so the T4 SHOULD sound a lot better.
I noticed on the e.q. page they had a slider for "Volume". When you raise it all the e.q. bands were boosted to the new level.
This should help people remember that boosting all the e.q. band levels is merely turning up the overall volume. E.Q. should be subtle and, if necessary, use a curve centered around the Zero line, if that makes sense. If you have five bands and boost them all, you are just turning up the volume and taking a chance on introducing noise and/or overdrive.
Sermon over. It's a great keyboard and maybe a better incremental upgrade than the usual Yamaha new totl models offer.
Oh, I was not tempted to buy one.

If I had a Tyros5, I'd be trying to make it sound like my Tyros4.

Crispy is nice, especially bacon, but, for my style of playing and the music I do, the mellower sound (but with nice detail) works best for me...that's why I play the Tyros4...the smooth Cd sound is what I like to hear.

Of course, everyone has the preferences, and my friend's Tyros5-76 will be set up to suit what he wants to hear, although he leans towards the mellower sound as well.

Also, we played the Tyros5 through the Yamaha speaker TRS-MS05, with the default EQ for those speakers, but next time we'll try both sets of gigging speakers...a Yamaha Stagepas 600i and two Yamaha MS-60s, in stereo of course.

I also have my Tyros4 master compressor set a bit higher gain (+7 gain) than the default for my type of speaker (MS-60s).

Should be a lot of fun.

Ian

so funny how you call the tyros 4 "mellow" and the tyros 5 "crispy".. To me, its the exact opposite. And i've own(ed) both.
As I believe I've said before, the 5 has a lot more mellow and "warm" sound compared to any previous yamaha i've played to date.

And I actually prefer "crispy" to "mellow".

"Crispy" to me is a dryer, brighter sound...the Tyros4 has a smooth sound, and, having played both it and the T5 through the earphones I carry in my brief case, I felt the Tyros5 was a tad less mellow...still smooth, and certainly not harsh in any way.

Neither are lacking in detail.

Ian

all can be achieved with proper EQ

It's a bit more complicated than basic EQ...

There are many different places where high end can be added or cut, and not just to the overall arranger, but on a per Part basis, per Tone, or even per drum INSIDE a kit.

For instance, adding a bit of 8k to hi-hats and rides can make the overall sound SEEM brighter, but it's JUST that one element. Add to that, perhaps the send and insert effects have a more transparent top end, and it can come from there...

There are just so MANY ways to skin a cat!

I said "Proper EQ" not basic..

Well, not everyone is such an expert as you, Donny. Helps to spell it out for them at times, LOL

Ian either your ears are going or Shims, mine have gone no use asking me.

I don't think Donny is an expert, nice guy yes..