When the Yamaha Sx900 first came out some owners offered their system of how to use the Registrations and Playlist.

Coming from Korg, I used 8 or 10 playlists, depending on which model I had at the time. One button to press for one song. I did the same with the Sx900; one regs per song, eight regs per Playlist. Special songs; eight regs per song.

Since I am not playing out, and I do not need speed, I am looking for some new ways to set up the Regs and Playlist.
All ideas will be appreciated, John C.

Speed is good whether playing out or playing at home!

I have always felt that time NOT spent actually playing is time utterly wasted, from a musical standpoint..! If you have one system that works for you, why spend time on another that could be better spent practicing, learning new songs, working on better solos, etc..?

Every time we hear a great demo, it ends up we are primarily impressed by the player’s technique and musicianship. It’s not too often that the thing that impresses anyone is the workflow... 😎

Trust me, two hours spent on learning more ways to voice LH chords, or better bend techniques for sax or guitar solos, or syncopation for funky clavinet comping will pay off in spades against two hours trying out alternatives to using registrations the way you know works. 🤔😉

+1 Diki - well said. Totally agree. Sticking with Korg over the last 15 years allows for more music vs reading.

Diki, thank you for your help, but I should have told you the rest of my story. Tomorrow I will be 89 years old. My needs have changed. Keeping my mind busy has become an important issue. My slowing down is not by choice.

I bought a Sx900 to have something new to work on, time is not an issue. The Korg Pa4x was a great keyboard. I made a wood stand for my keyboard, stained the wood to match my music room. I also added a 22” monitor which mirrors my laptop.
Your ideas were good, thank you again. A while back I would have written the same thing.
John C.

I’m not sure I understand why working on a new keyboard OS is keeping the mind busy, but working on new songs or other ‘musical’ aspects is not...

But no problem, everyone finds their own path. 😎

Me, I’d still stick to one song per whatever. The minute you start sharing setups between different songs, you have more to remember if you want slight differences (tempi, mixes, sounds, effects etc.) between them as they evolve.

Good thinking Diki, John C.

(Diki)
I’m not sure I understand why working on a new keyboard OS is keeping the mind busy, but working on new songs or other ‘musical’ aspects is not.

My thoughts:
1-There are different ways to approach the OS system., that is where I am now. It’s like planning which roads you will use to reach your destination.

2-My next step is to keep making changes and save until I like what the song is like. After playing professionally for fifty with my own band, my mind knows how and what I am trying to create.

3-I have no need to increase anything, I am just trying to hold on what I have. I no longer look for perfection, I look for enjoyment. There was a period in my life that was filled with arps and scales everyday – with editing sounds.

I know you are trying to help, but I would like to get back to my topic --- “What system are you using to save Registrations and Playlist” What have you decided works best for you? I am looking for new ideas.

This was a big topic when the Sx900 came out.
John C.

Hi John,
This is nothing new,but the alternative method of one bank per song and 4 variations. Space is of no concern,so I find my song in a flash and have it ready to go. I arrange my playlists by song name,rather than genre. You have another way,so that's fine.
Bernie

Bernie, thanks, John C.

I have never used the playlist on the SX-900. Playlists are a direct link to registrations, so I'm not sure of the advantage of creating playlists, when I already have the exact same setup in my registration list.

Is playlist faster, more convenient, easier? What am I missing?
Thanks, good topic John.

I think the playlist feature would be of great help to me should I get a SX 900 as I see them as collections of shortcuts to registrations, I can have the same registration in multiple playlists so can have playlists for genre, decade, occasion ....

Currently on my Tyros I organise registrations in folders to do the same job but then I have to keep duplicate registrations harmonized.

Thanks John, that makes sense, and I never thought of that. Having different songs in different playlists linked to one common registration is a huge advantage over navigating registration folders.

For me, there are a few songs that I like, all using the same registration, so it's a matter of renaming all the songs in playlist that I want to be linked to that registration.

Lot of work, but probably worth it.

Hi John,
don’t know if you’ve ever used the registration sequencer, or if you would actually have any need for it. I had to use it with my p121/sx900 setup, because I couldn’t reach the registration buttons, when I needed to change them. So , I simply put in the order the registrations needed to play back for a particular song. Ie reg1 verse, reg2, chorus, back to reg 1 for verse, reg 3 for chorus, whatever. This way all I had to do was tap the pedal when I needed to change registration ie tapwent from reg 1 to 2, tap, went back from 2 to1, tap went from 1 to 3 etc

Sort of freed the hands up, as well as the brain, didn’t have to remember which registration button I had to press. Haha.

I too find it interesting learning new things I can do on my keyboard. Tend to think it keeps my brain active, because I actually have to think aboutit , and work out how to achieve what I want to do.

Rikki, as always, thank you. And no, I have never sequenced the regs. I remember some Kn7000 players using that method.

It’s great when you learn something new, that keeps upstairs working.
Take care, John C.

Larry:
I have never used the playlist on the SX-900. Playlists are a direct link to registrations, so I'm not sure of the advantage of creating playlists, when I already have the exact same setup in my registration list.

Example; I want to keep my FAVORITE LATINS in one place so I can select them easily. Or 50’s music, or polkas, or whatever is important to you.

I hope this helps, John C.
PS, once learned, it is a simple and quick to do.

John'
I can see how your genre oriented organization would be at odds with the playlist type. For me,in performance,I prefer to map out my songs according to whom I am playing to. I may have 30 songs of different tempos and genre in a predetermined list,but clearly in sight so I can change the order very quickly. If I were to take requests,however,I would also have genre specific folder.

The bottom line,for me, is to prepare ahead of time and have no search time in performance. We all work somewhat differently,but I know my clients fairly well,and can operate this way.

Bernie

Bernie, I appreciate you sharing, nice, it helps me think.

My new set-up:

1-I have 80 to 90 songs, one song one reg. 001 to 010 Each bank has eight to nine songs.

2-I am making ten bands, Big Band slow, Med. And Up-tempo. The same for other categories. Bands may use a trumpet, but the type of trumpet varies. In saving, these bands do not have styles included. They are all saved with the same set-up.
1-Piano 2-Trumpet 3-Clarinet 4-Sax Section
5-Trombone 6-Soft brass 7-Medium brass 8-Strong brass
6,7,8, would be strings if I were playing waltzes.

3-Get a new song, select the band to match the song.
4-Reg #1 saves the style, you can select the other instruments without changing the style. (Have not used the Freeze option yet)

This means that all I have to do is select a song and a style and a band, then save it in the #1 reg, and I am done.

PLAYLIST:
1-A playlist list for the 001 to 010 songs.
2-A playlist just for all my songs.
3-A playlist for everything – 001 to 010, and my songs.

You can make playlists to fit your needs. This eliminates going directly to the regs.

Now if you think I wrote this to help people, you are right – but mostly to keep my mind busy. (healthy)
Thanks for listening, John C.

I wish I was as organised as the rest of you. However will shortly be putting my money where my mouth is and getting a SX900 as I have obtained clearance from the missus!

Haha, that’s probably the hardest part, getting clearance. No doubt you should have an sx soon.

John, if I turn the clock back a bit my organization suffered. Today my main object is to enjoy, in any way possible. I used to create a system that traveled quickly – or you lose the dancers. As I stopped one song the next was starting. That is no longer of any value.

I have been working on an old song for three weeks plus, Never-the-less, Each time I play it I find something new I can add.
Now I am having fun.

Take care, John C.

John
Good for you,that's all that counts. I should have added that your system is above me. You have always been real adept at instrumentation,I guess from your band years. It is indeed creative how you meld your instruments in different ways to simulate different groupings. I must admit that I never tried to grapple with your concepts because it is not my forte,but amazing you do it nonetheless.

God bless you my friend. Keep on keeping on.
Bernie

You've got to have fun - and the shortest possible gaps!