In producing the MP3 files of the 9000 Pro and 9000 Pro EXP, I tried to keep it simple: the 9000 was run through a Mackie mixer with all EQ at "7" (which is considered flat), no compression, straight into my soundcard and recorded using Sound Forge. Unfortunately the way my studio is setup it wasn't possible on short notice to bypass the mixer, and I am now on the road so I can't redo the files without the Mackie until then. None the less, I feel that the Mackie mixer should not make much of a difference, all other factors being equal.

Since I am away from home I don't have access to any computer/speakers I can trust so I will have to abstain from voting on the best piano until I can hear the Tyros fairly, hopefully early next week.

Thanks again to Simon for participating in this arranger piano-emulation shoot-out and to everyone for their comments - it's really interesting to see how varied the responses have been. I hope we get to hear more arrangers tested this way.

Yes it was fun. Lets try a Tenor Sax next and then a Trumpet and on and on thru many different KB's!!

My humble opinion:
The 9000 pro has more depth and more bass, but it's the best also in the higher registers (hear the final notes).
The expansion board has less bottom than the 9000 pro and sounds synthetic in the midrange and thin in the higher notes.
The Tyros is the less natural of the three; with the other two you can at times fool yourself thinking that you are listening to a real piano; with the Tyros it is evident that it's not an acoustic instrument. Maybe due to this synthetic nature, it can be more "relaxing" than the others (the sound is overall mellower).
However, while the excellent performance of our pianist masks their limits in the Moon River sample, when you listen to the C major walkup all three pianos show their pitfalls, but of course we all know that if a digital piano is already an acceptable compromise -compared with the real thing- an arranger piano is just a compromise.

So my vote is:
1) 9000 pro
2) 9000 pro exp
3) Tyros.
Final consideration: from this test it's difficult to believe that the 9000 pro and the Tyros share the same piano multisample.



[This message has been edited by Dreamer (edited 11-07-2002).]

They all sound good, just different.
I find that whatever I'm used to hearing sounds best.
DonM

My vote:
1. 9000 Pro
2. 9000 Pro expansion
3. Tyros

Paul Ip
from Texas

Hi Paul: GREAT to see you back. Really thought you had disappeared forever ! I assume now you've been lurking all this time, right?

I listen and listen,and play the midi on my
Kn6000.
And the winner is ....KN6000>kn6500 and 7000

Regards
Arno

i,m afraid my vote wont help much cause i found them all good,mike

Great thing that evaluation of piano samples.
And, for my ears, all of three sound well, but I prefer both 9000pro.
I would ask Simon (or someone giving it to Simon) for putting the same mp3 piano samples from PSR2000 (and KN7000 and VA7 if possible). It will be the best way to compare not only between top Yammies.

I'm with Andrea on the first one.
The Pro sounded richer to me, not just because of the extra bass.
It didn't sound muffeld at all to my ears, as Scott said. I guess I like the rich deep sound better.
But they where all good.

1. 9K Pro
2. Tyros
3. Exp. card

This is my final answer....

Eric