Is the S950 the Last MOTL Arranger for Yamaha?....

It's been a while? ...no buzz?, no rumors?, is it the end of an era? Hello Yamaha, we know your reading these posts?
If not future S-series units then what's on the horizon if at all in the MOTL Arranger KB category?
What's the delay or Whats next?

I'd say an S950/S750 replacement is already in the works.

Ian

Indeed, if these current models are selling in the numbers purported, you can bet your bippy that Yamaha have new models in the pipeline. And probably have done for a good while.

All heresay and rumore at! this point......Personally I think big changes are coming for Yamaha....hopefully for the better.....we'll see.
Players want change. Tired of same old.

I talked with a friend in Yamaha's PR department and he tells me they cannot make the 750 and 950 fast enough to keep up with the demand - so maybe there's no incentive for Yamaha to come out with a newer model at this time. Hey, if it ain't broke, don't try to fix it!

Gary

Gary if they dont hurry technology is passing them by every day..they should be asking what players really want from an arranger kb instead and implement many of the needs & improvements they ask for,....and there are ALOt of them....and that includes tyros units also..Korg's recent offerings already put a big dent in their sales world wide also..

It doesn't matter what we want. People will buy whatever they offer it seems.

I suspect Yamaha and Korg took up the slack left by Roland's lessening product line, so both companies are selling arrangers at a good pace.

Thing is, most people who own an arranger, use barely half of what it can do...and that includes some pros.

So adding new features, irregardless of brand, is always going to be carefully thought out by the designers...remember, PROFIT is the ultimate goal for all these companies.

Ian

I agree, Ian - in fact, I seriously doubt that the vast majority of users use 10 percent of the incredible features available on their keyboards. And, some folks I know have never taken their owner's manual out of the plastic bag.

Donny, I don't think technology is passing Yamaha by. Yamaha is the ONLY company that actually listens to their consumers, and has responded in kind. I know I've posted this several times, and the list of Yamaha's positive responses is huge.

Now, I know some players would love to have a sequencer onboard, but I seriously doubt that anything greater than one percent of the consumers would actually use it. Some holds true for a lot of techie toys that COULD be added, but have not been for various reasons.

I kinda look at it this way, if you want to be a DJ/KJ that has a keyboard sitting in front of them, why not just get a high-power laptop, some quality sound system, and eliminate the keyboard altogether? Hell, you're not using the keyboard as an instrument. Most of the time you're just a DJ/KJ guy that sings, so in reality that keyboard is just something for show that you have to haul around. I've run across guys like this in some of the Baltimore clubs that don't even plug the keyboard in - it's just a show prop. Yeah, they can play, but they've either got tired or lazy, and just do the DJ/KJ thing. Donny, you've been saying all along that we're gonna be replaced by these folks and you have to be ready for that day when it comes. Well, I'm ready. When they move into the NH circuit, I'll let the ADs and audiences decide who stays and who goes. Ya know, for some strange reason, I think guys like me will be around a lot longer than you might think. I could be wrong, though.

Cheers,

Gary

I also think Yamaha is in a good position with arranger keyboards and isn't forced to release new models in a fast pace. Roland as a competitor has (sadly) become quite insignificant in this segment, Korg is the only important competitor. It's different with synthesizers however: there's not only more competiton from Roland and Korg, but also by computers as the younger clientele risks to completely change over to software libraries and iPads etc. even for live use...