This series of five videos features a lot of audio demos and jamming with the new Yamaha Reface line of keyboards.
In each of the videos, Blake Angelos and Nate Tschetter work with a pair of the Reface keyboards, offering a good overview of the range of sound and playability of each keyboard.
Pricing and Availability
The reface YC, CP, CS and DX mobile mini keyboards will ship in September 2015 and are expected to have a street price of around US $500. See the YamahaSynth site for more info.
via SweetwaterSound
That was a good demo. I got a better idea of the capability, sound and playability of the new Reface keys.
Based on the latest “in-depth” demos….and for those users of FM8…what are your thoughts (fm8 vs dx)?…does the fm emulation is still king for you?
None of them are ‘kings’. They are not even peasants, they are lower than that.
For the money there are more powerful and higher quality options from Every manufacturer, that has an affordable synth on the market. Yamaha needs much more astroturfing and self gratulating to do in order to sell these abominations. Casio gives 4 engines, MUCH MUCH more powerful sequencer and full size keys $399. Yamahas lite synth with limited functionality $500 a piece. This is vomiting. Together they cost $2000!?!
Too little and too late has never been more fitting and literal expression. I hope this kind of business stops right here, and these will end in a land pit.
Plenty of stuff does more. Big deal.
I really like a simple purpose-built synth. What you see is what you get – no patch storage. The controls will never be in a different position than the parameter. The CS is much closer in interface to a classic analog synth.
I also dig a combo organ. Who else makes a drawbar organ in this price range? No one. The Nord Electro is big money.
Less can be be more when what you is exactly what you want. Feature bloat and menu diving are available from every other manufacturer, including Yamaha, so it’s not like you’ve been locked out of the candy store. These simply are not for you.
More for me.
I dont know a single organ player who wants mini keys. Organ players are very specific in how they like a keybed to feel. Nord electros are available with waterfall keys. There is no comparison to these overpriced trinkets.
*raises hand* I want one, I don’t mind the minikeys.. I’d have a lot of trouble working another full-size keyboard into my setup, and I’d really enjoy having a device dedicated to organ sounds, with full drawbars and all that.
Despite my extremely successful music career, I don’t have the money for a big long set of VA or analog keys, nor a vintage synth, organ, or EP. Nor do I have the space. I have a couple of little Ikea desks in a corner of my place, and they’re nearly full.
But I really like combo organs, and mini-keys are not a deal breaker. So this is for me. It’s either this or a Roland SA-09, and the only ones for sale are in Japan and rapidly aging. The YC and the CS are very appealing, the CP seems very nice, the DX not my thing.
But I don’t make the mistake of assuming everyone shares my needs, budget, etc. So I don’t comment on articles about gear I don’t want and say “WHY DO THESE EXIST? THEY ARE STUDIP.” I just click a different article that interests me.
These will sell, Yamaha will prosper, reface owners will have fun, no one is forcing you to stoop to our level and play a tiny baby synth.
Admin: Personal attack deleted. Keep comments on topic and constructive.
It works by number of characters, multiplied by my rate.
If it was by the word, I’d use smaller words. If it was by the post, I’d just post “These are cool” 100 times.
Obviously the people who disagree with you are paid to do so. Why else would they defy you?
why do you care if people voice their opinions?
what gives you the authority to prevent people from speaking their minds? thats rhetorical – nothing gives you that authority other than your own inflated sense of self-importance.. thing is, you arent important – you dont make the rules – nobody gives a shit if you like it or not
so stop crying like a little baby about it
Why chime in if you have nothing to offer the discussion, other than “these suck and you are dumb for liking them?”
These “WTF” reactions feel a bit like piling on at this point. Isn’t for you? Move along. Plenty of synths to talk about, big ones with big manly keys.
We’ve heard the same objections over and over, no one is waiting to hear yours.
I chime in BECAUSE I FEEL LIKE IT. Thats all you need to know
Why are you yelling? Do you think I have the power to shut you down or something? I’m only questioning why you’re joining in on a pointless mob-mentality pile-on.
I don’t care about Eurorack. Maybe I should start picking fights with eurorack people, tell them every module is stupid and overpriced. If anyone pushes back, I’ll high-road ’em and claim victimhood.
If this isn’t for you, it’s not for you. No one is forcing you to buy it, so why all the anger?
Admin: Personal attack deleted. Keep comments on topic and constructive.
not sure where the idea of a personal attack came from
to make it as simple as possible: why do you care if people are angry?
why do you care if people speak their minds?
what makes you think you have the right to demand they stop?
this some funny ish.
Well said. These are rather like EMU’s ‘Longboard’ and ‘Shortboard’ abominations that they brought out after taking the excellent XBoard MIDI controller keyboards off the market. Why would anybody buy a Reface keyboard? Too much money? Tax fiddle? How do any of these keyboards compare to a VST for the same price? Or several lower priced VSTs?
Back when the DX-7 and CZ-101 were in their prime (I used to have a CZ), I loved the sonic capabilites, but hated the arcane menu diving required to take advantage of them.
As far as I’m concerned, FM and analog go together like peanut butter and jelly – both are great, separately, or together. The Reface version of the DX’s interface should make it much easier to get to those great FM sounds.
On a side note, I was pretty impressed with the Reface CP piano and YC organ. Yamaha should consider making pro gigging versions of these with full-sized keyboards because they sounded great in the demos.
The only model that is just OK looked to be the Reface CS – nice, but essentially just another VA in a field already flush with good little VA synths.
All in all, this demo got me beyond the initial “Meh?!” reaction to the mediocre Reface CS demo posted on Sonic State recently (and linked by this site).
Admin: Personal attack deleted. Keep comments on topic and constructive.
The main difference in the DX is that there are 4 of these capacitive touch interfaces…hopefully that means 1 for each operator.
The DX 100 is still quite popular on the used market…and considering I’ve owned 3 in my life-and used them to make records…I don’t know how upset I’m going to be about ‘mini keys.’
For all the whining and hand-wringing going on about mini keys…realize these all have midi-if you happen to have a full-size keyboard controller (many of us do), that may not even be an issue-however, I’ve found it convenient to test operation with a set of mini keys when something seemed not to be working correctly-try THAT on a module!
Depending on where I am when these come up for sale, maybe I’ll get one…but maybe I’ll wait until they’re used…
It won’t give you “those great FM sounds”, because it only has four operators, instead of the DX7’s six… and you can get much better sounds than the DX7 nowadays… using VSTs. The DX7 sounds VERY limited nowadays.
First video @ 1:20 “Reface was developed by our engineers in their free time”
Really?? What kind of silly statement is that, we know THAT’s not true and also why would they do it for free?
BTW I love the idea of the DX. Better interface and sound so powerful! CS sound really weak though
The DX does seem to be shining. But I think that has more to do with it being true and long overdue, just a shame it came in this form.
Probably it was developed without the direction of higher ups.
The suits were demanding more workstations and home pianos, the Yamaha guys were watching Korg and Roland make all the fun stuff. So they threw mini-synth ideas together and did a proof of concept.
Is this what happened? Maybe. But it does represent a sudden change in the product line. Love them or hate them, reface is affordable and real synthesis, they have been out of the game for years.
If this is the case and yamahas developer did this after their daily job, it would mean that the company is quite conservative regarding ressources, new ideas and fresh spirit. In other words: no creativity allowed.
Yamaha…. what about a new CEO? 😉
Maybe if these sell in numbers, they’ll do a much larger, much more in-depth VA that really lives up to the CS name. In the meantime, reface line being a success will only help. If these tank, they’ll focus on workstations.
Korg came out with monotrons, then the mono tribe, and people scoffed. Those early instruments gave us the MS-20m and the Arp Odyssey, and who knows what else.
That could be true. But Korg released their gear in a growing market of analog equipment in line with the electribes. Their customers have been allready matured with the workflow on korg-gear. Yamaha on the other hand missed the opportunity over the last decade to develope consequent a line of gear for the mass of young producers and other youngsters, products like the dx200 and the an200. Now the appear with this minikeys. This is a strange move, specially when you look at the reduced surface of the products. Anyway, regardless of the type of product they released, everbody talks about it either negative or positive. You could not get any better marketing. When they listen carefully to the people and i’m sure they will do, and the analog-eurorack-bubble bursts which will happen, and a well developed synth (fm and/or VA) hit the market, then they are going to lead the market.
this is a blatant lie. monotrons et al were embraced universally. they also started the whole portable trend. these products are a decade late in every way.
Except the Monotrons were introduced about 4 years ago, not 10 years ago.
Just called you on the bull with monotron example.
This is actually late to the microkorg party.
No it isn’t! There is NOTHING powerful in these lite synths. Yamaha has not only simplified the synth, but still managed to make the UI even worse.
They look like they’re playing toys at Best Buy.
Exactly – that still image of two big fellows in front of Fisher Price “My first keyboards” just looks funny. They’ll bump elbows and then have to boop each other on the noses in a display of cuteness only equal to that of what they’re playing….
If you could read their minds you just KNOW that they’re thinking “These really ARE shite….. do you think ANYONE is convinced by ANY of the BS that we’re being paid to say??”
In a way you have to feel sorry for them…
At $500, very low bang-to-buck ratio…only for people who need this exact feature set and are willing to pay a premium for it.
These are both cheapo, AND still amazingly low bang for the buck. Compared to other affordable instruments(I really don’t like to call these instruments though), I expected these to cost $149,99, but the $500 is a SCAM!
Do you really expect something like this for $149 USD? Assuming you’re not talking about some other dollar that has a higher value.
You’d get a really cheap piece of crap for $149 USD, not a piece of hardware that will last 10-20 years.
Admin: Personal attack deleted. Keep comments on topic and constructive.
The plastic isn’t cheap, it’s well designed, thick, solidly constructed, and heavy with a nice matte finish – unlike the JD-Xi. That’s pure cheap plastic.
Wow, a piece of hardware that will last 10-20 years. As long as that? Why not just buy Omnisphere 2 or a load of other VSTs, that will outclass these Fisher Price toys?
Salt – thinking that you should be able to get a decent poly synth keyboard for $150 is fantasy.
Are there ANY decent polyphonic synth keyboards under $400-500? The closest synths to $149 are the Monotribes, which are way less synth than any of these Yamahas (no keyboard, cheaper build quality, monophonic or paraphonic at best etc.)
I love the concept I love the sounds I don’t like mini keys or high price but I salute the attempt to make some fun instruments.
the people who complain. What have you done to make the world a better place? What have you created?
Are you going to manufacture something better?
So many dull boring empty little people commenting on these forums
Admin: Personal attack deleted. Keep comments on topic and constructive.
Sure, we can use the YC organ for our service music. Nice Leslie rotating speaker simulation on there and everything.
And everything? Like that was something extraordinary! Cheapo organ with leslie $500!?!
Casio’s synth has a VA, organ modelling with leslie, full size keys and a sample player and one of the best step sequencers out there for a $399.
This Yawnmaha scam is nothing short of scam.
Besides Hammond tonewheel, does it also have combo organs? Multiple models? How many drawbars? Is it classic combo red, or is it a giant hunk of Casio plastic with a bunch of administrative menu buttons?
The reface YC is a deeper organ, despite its size.
to me the size thing is not that much of sn issue, they seem small enough that they probably fit on top of an larger master keyboard and still having quite good reach for the controls… I really like my micro brute exactly for it’s size, same for the qunexus.. so nice being able to just play with them anywhere at home like on the bed, in the sofa when I just feel to play around a little.. While it’s a somewhat different thing and size the qunexus also sits perfectly om top of larger keyboards as a second set of keys which i guess is possible to do with these as well.
“What have you done to make the world a better place? What have you created?”
So all of us have to buy a Reface keyboard then, according to your logic? So all customers have to remain silent, rather than criticise a product?
i am def a fan of this size keyboard
love the mini keys
Thug….
By your reckoning anyone that hasn’t created or manufactured an overpriced toy keyboard and has the audacity to question it’s relevance or worth is therefore dull, boring, empty and little…
Wow… That’s put me and so many others in their place… I just feel so inadequate…
I’d best like them now… they’re fun… you told me so
Some of these are appealing, but 3 octaves is limiting for me – especially the E.P. one, where you’d want to play it like a piano. I can handle mini-keys, but give me 49 + of ’em at a value price and we’ll talk.
http://www.vintagesynth.com/yamaha/yamaha_cs01_lg.jpg
It’s odd Yamaha do mini keys so well, ever heard of the cs01?
That CS demo is the biggest pile of shite I’ve heard in a long time. The appalling Jazz/Funk shit these guys play doesn’t help, but those sounds are fucking shit. The Arturia plug in blows this away by such a huge degree as to render the Reface CS utterly pointless. Who cares if it’s stand alone? So what? It’s SHIT.
I’m genuinely flabbergasted Yamaha released something as poor as that CS. The DX (a synth I always hated) sounds amazing by comparison.
You heard the man. Brian says move along.
fuk yes move along.
The marketing for these toys is mind boggling (but not surprising). These are cynical instruments, designed to recall past glories while doing nothing to actually bring the characteristics that made those synth lines great. Instead we get cheap Target designs with almost useless features such as web midi or iOS storage (really, is there that much confidence that years from now, we’ll all be using the same phone technology?).
But none of this would bother me, or even register, if it weren’t for the relentless marketing being rolled out for these machines. I have no problem if this appeals to you, and it suits your needs. Of course there’s a market for them. But what does irk me is attempt to be “viral” with leaked photos on a Korean site, and the paid shill commenters (you know who you are) and the paid shill blogs like this site and numerous others. There’s a lot of money in the synth world again, and I can already see integrity going out the window.
unfinder: Would you please remind Yamaha to send me that check? (Just kidding…)
I think these Refaces are cool. Perhaps not $500 a pop kind of cool, but If these got discounted to say $350 -$400 each, I’d be intrigued. They have sounds that I remember fondly and they would fit in my already-jammed studio. Thanks to the Magic of MIDI, I can use my full-size keyboard controller to overcome those little devil keys.
Now if you guys will excuse me for a while from my shilling duties, I need to get back to the Microbrute I just bought for a good price via Craig’s List. But be forewarned! It has the dreaded MINI KEYS! (HELP ME! Ahhhhhhhh!!!)
Amen.
I don’t even believe that there is a market for this barren cheapo lithe synths that are this low quality for $500 in the year 2015 unless Yamaha really makes a homerun in marketing and astroturfing. These wouldn’t have been exciting even in 90’s without heavy marketing.
Admin: Personal attack deleted. Please keep comments on topic on topic and constructive.
This fight reminds me of the digital camera versus the analogue purists. Fuck the purists. Digital rules, size rules, efficiency rules.
nailed it
Sleep tight people.
This whole marketing monster will swallow you whole.
What is the best fm synth if we talk about programming?
And i dont mean plugins. I am thinking about buying one but it has to have “hands-on” control.
They’re all fairly complicated. I’d say the DX100 or DX7. Korg DS8 isn’t terrible./
Yamaha!!! SLEEP WELL…..!!!!
@twsuperhero
What is the best fm synth if we talk about programming?
And i dont mean plugins. I am thinking about buying one but it has to have “hands-on” control.
How about Elektron’s Monomachine?
It has a great sequencer and an easy to use FM synth plus a bunch of other synths. And used it would be around the MSRP of Yamahas offerings.
Nothing to say about the products, build quality, sound and modeling quantity are ok. Built in speakers are completely useless and I believe they are overpriced. Notation mininova is a fair more powerful competitor for the reface cs and its street price in Europe is 350€. Not the same build quality but a more powerful sound engine. They should go for a 400€ tag ore maybe less (350) if they want to sell.
The price of these things is absolutely ridiculous! I’d be interested at around $249.99. The CP and DX would be cool to have. I’m not a keyboardist and I have an awesome full-size controller keyboard so I don’t really mind the mini-keys. Im happy with the current state of synths and music gear in general. So much cool stuff coming out these days. It’s a great time to be alive.
Obviously these aren’t exactly ground-breaking instruments but I’m sure they’ll do well. I work ITB but I also have a hard-ware set up. I’m one of those ppl who love dedicated hardware and knobs, faders, etc. I’d def grab the DX if it were a bit cheaper.
I don’t understand the passionate hatred that people express over music gear. I guess it’s a touchy subject but jeez man, relax. Companies building musical instruments is a GOOD thing. Then again, I guess debate and discussion is good too but it seems like some of you are having coronaries over instruments that you have no interest in. You don’t HAVE TO buy it man.
Watching this is like watching two big guys riding a kids bicycle.
The fate of Yamaha Reface is to finish as M-Audio Venom , two batches of production which one would be defective , disposed stocks in sales clearance !
I wish Yamaha would come out with a set of MIDI bagpipes so we could have something really estoeric to debate!
Unfortunate about the relatively high price. They do sound good. These things will never get a fair shake unless the price drops. Maybe Yamaha will sell just enough to keep them going in the synth game, and the next release will be either more affordable or offer more bang for the buck, maybe even both.
No way am I buying one, but if I was, it’d be the DX. Not too sure about the touch screen adjustments, though, just seems like it’s prone to fail sooner rather than later.
Get a cheap Windows tablet (< $200), Dexed (DX-7 emulator) and a midi-keyboard (full-size $300,-) and you have a DX-7 compatible music instrument that sounds, plays great!
Maybe Yamaha tries reinvent the wheel !!!!
Wow, a whole bunch of comments – some critical – were here yesterday. All vanished today. DISTURBING.
Is this page curated by the subject company? I.e., is Yamaha a sponsor, with comment editing privileges??
Admin – sounds like you may have viewed a cached version of the page – basically an older version of the page that’s stored in your browser, web proxy or by the web server in order to speed up page loading.
This can happen occasionally, depending on a variety of issues, like your web browser settings, whether you access websites from behind a web proxy and load on the web site.
If you ever run into this, on any site, using the refresh button in your browser will generally give you the current version of the page.
Note: We do occasionally have to delete comments, because they’re spam, personal attacks, hate speach or just completely off-topic. Anyone reading a thread like this one, though, should realize that we are not trying to discourage active discussion, we’re just trying to keep it constructive.
Appologies for the previous comment, all the missing comments reappeared for me when I posted. It was only a server glitch.
Love these! Especially the DX and YC. I have to admit, they are pricier than I expected! I’ll probably look for used on eBay. I can’t justify paying more than $300.
To those hating. Did you watch sonic states overview? And/or hear nick batts remarks? Not to call you haters uninformed, but I trust nick’s opinion; as he’s always been very objective and has played with far more gear than most here. If the mini-keys are a prob just use the midi-in.
On second consideration a lot of these negative comments sounds less like haters and more like trolls to me.
Yamaha have certainly got people talking with these. What I don’t really understand is why people seem so offended by them. It’s as if some think the people at Yamaha have only made these to annoy people. There is such snobbery going on from people who feel like they play ‘real’ synths and stupid edm bedroom boys who may use these in their bedroom set ups are killing music as we know it, people who make it their life’s work to get pissed off at mini keys, people who are taking these units as a personal insult from Yamaha to them. I won’t buy one, but I also won’t spend my time getting annoyed that Yamaha have not made exactly the product I need to become a star.
its pretty strange which personal attacks are allowed to remain and which are removed
im not a conspiracy theorist so i doubt its anything other than the standard admin crap
if you run the site, you run the site – its as simple as that really
its not like the owners have to be reasonable, rational, or even intelligent, etc. etc.
just another person, like the rest
On the one hand hand nobody must buy this new Yamaha products. On the other hand it is a shame that Yamaha lose more and more reputation in being an excellent sythesizer manufacturer. So this obvious mistake (reface) willl cause that Yamahas engineers will be prevented from builiding innovativ synthesizers in future. And that is in my opinion the real reason why so many synthesists are so angry about reface.
I disagree that the reface series is a mistake – I think a lot of people will be happy with these. They are not the most powerful synths in the world, but they take a fun, easy and affordable approach. The lack of complexity and the small size is a plus for many people.
Yamaha has done some great stuff in the past, but before reface they didn’t do anything to light up the hearts of synth fans. Sure, they make workstations and home pianos, but nothing to compete with the mini synths and analog cheapies.
So maybe we get a bigger deeper synth if these sell.
Thats the problem: It will not sell. The price is too high for having only “some fun!…
I’ll probably get the CS and the YC soon after they’re widely available. So that’s 2 units right there! I can’t be alone in thinking these seem fun and useful.
Admin: Personal attack deleted. Keep comments on topic and constructive.
Admin: Comment deleted. Your IP address is being used with several user ids (Akeem, Salt) to comment multiple times on the same post, which is spamming the site.
Using a consistent identity will avoid having your comments treated as spam.
Using different devices, and didn’t have the ID details ready in this devices browser. I didn’t think it is big deal.
Admin: Personal attack deleted. Keep comments on topic and constructive.
Is this systematic rule, btw, or do you hand pick which opinions are spam?
All new IDs get queued to be manually screened, to minimize spamming of the site. One of the most common tactics spammers will use will be to use multiple user IDs, so this is necessary to nip spammers in the bud.
Beyond that, the majority of the spam filtering is automated. This is something all busy sites have to do – basically filtering comments out if they link to adult sites, for example. We use Akismet, which is the most commonly used spam filtering system.
If we see personal attacks, hate speech, discrimination and things like that on the site, we will manually moderate the comments., but there’s no way to automate this.
So they couldn’t fit the entire internals of a DX5 onto a $10 chip nowadays? Of course they can. These ‘Reface’ jokes are a ripoff. They are rubbish. Don’t buy one.
Actually, that’s way more complicated than that. The Reface series is not a mistake for Yamaha. It’s a mistake for all current keyboard users and fans. And that’s where the huge difference is.
With Reface, Yamaha did choose to enter into the low quality, large scale market of the keyboard for the mass and young users (with no experience and past with the previous keyboards). Just like Casio did long time ago, and slowly joined by Roland and Korg, now Yamaha is joining the club of the manufacturers that will try to capitalise more and more on their 20/30/40/50+ years of high level R&D in Synthesis and Electronic gear design, to decline them in products for the new “mass” market (including for all new users in emerging countries such China).
Reface series products are not design for all “old” users that knew the CP80, the DX7, the CS80, etc… but for all “new” users that pretty much just looking for a new keyboard for them to play, learn music, etc…
In few words: Reface are not for “us” (most of the people that read this website), but for people that pretty much don’t even know this website does exist. And it might work for Yamaha just like it made a lot of money for Casio.
But in the end, it’s gonna be seen as a treason for all old and loyal users that bought several products from Yamaha in the past… and they might lost a lot of those people in the move to the new market. It seems like some manufacturers like Roland and Korg did try to cover their basics to play on both markets (and not completely shift to the new market)…
So, all the hate probably comes more from old and loyal customers that literally hate to see their brand to move away from them, just because the market next door seems more profitable. No kid likes to be abandoned because of a new one… And unfortunately, Yamaha is the only responsible for all this hate because of all Teasers, countdown, leaks, etc… just to build up more steam from the existing community. Well, the steam turned out in anger.
Personally, I think Reface is really crappy and I won’t buy it, even if it would be free (just because of the little keys all alone). But I’m not the kind of customer Yamaha is targeting anyway…
My 2¢
I am (now former) Yamaha fan and I love cheap mini synths, like UltraNova, Bass Station 2, XW-P1 etc etc etc.
But this is so big step backwards in technological advancement, that it makes me angry. In my eyes the R&D resources were used in vain and I see these happymeal toys as a threat to synth business. If Yawnmaha manages to market these happymeal toys and eat sales of actually good products in the market, the fun is out of the synths. While prices go up. If these go for $500, then UltraNova surely would have to cost $1500.
I want Yawnmaha fail this one SO badly, that it, and no one else will never again want to try this kind of scam again.
It’s not a scam. Yamaha is not tricking you. They’re giving people what they want. Maybe you’re not one of those people. That’s fine – there’s a thousand other synths out there. Go play one!
I think the $500 means it is a scam.
I don’t think they are giving what people want.
I think they made REALLY cheapo kinder surprise lite synth, and then try to convince people, that they are somewhat desirable through marketing and astroturfing.
I despise that kind of business and in this case I find it particularly destructive for the market IF theysucceed. I’m doing my best to balance the professional ‘opinions’ written about these products.
The cost of everything includes lots of profit that flows up to the top. The price is determined by market forces and what people are willing to pay.
Yamaha does not care WHO they sell these to. So for every ranting big manly key jockey who is too smart and turns up his nose, there’s someone else who is like “cool.” If those people are happy, how can you say it’s a scam or mistake or a failure?
These will do well, and even better when the price is eventually dropped to $399.
Ofcourse.
And that obviously applies to every manufacturer. And Yamaha makes the most profit, while has least functionality, quality and playability.
I said it already.
I am just spamming my recommendations in order to encourage development of better, more fun synths with tons more functionality instead of these overpriced toys.
So I actually got to get hands on the whole Reface line at NAMM yesterday…
They’re actually built quite well. The mini keys aren’t as great as everybody’s making on about, but they’re definitely not bad.
That said, the mini keys are what kills this for me. The YC and CP both sound great, but if they had put full keys (hell, even a size in between mini and full) and they would both be worth the price. If I’m putting my money into something with great piano / organ sounds, I personally want to be able to actually play it as such. Everyone around the Yamaha booth kept saying “it’s got MIDI in, so you can just use a controller”. If you’re going that route, Komplete (or any other soft-synth package) is arguably a significantly better use of your money.
To my taste, the CS doesn’t sound good. Nothing about it is very pleasant or exciting. The $500 may be better spent on a JD-Xi…
The DX is hands down the best of the Reface line. Sounds great, very clean output, and it’s amazingly easy to edit. I’ll admit, I’m not a big FM guy, so I don’t really know what I’m doing with editing the sounds, but I know when I touched things, it changed (which is way more than I can say for the DX7ii and TX801z that I briefly owned). The DX is the only one I would say is probably worth the price. If street were at $350-$400, it’d be an absolute home run.
the dx one is cool – I would get one if it was a lot cheaper for fun but that said – I’ll stick with using my dx-200 as a sound module since it gives you actual knobs for the parameters and has a cool scene function…….
Worst. Summer. NAMM. ever.
I’m amazed by all negative and insulting remarks made by all the so called pro players on this site. You’d think they dated your mother or something !
It’s actually quite funny when almost all of them have never seen or touched or heard the Reface keyboards. I played them and was impressed with the build quality and the sound. I do think they would sell better @$399 but we shall see. The rest of the whiners just need to realize that Yamaha doesn’t answer to just them, there is several other markets these will appeal to beside the so called pro players that demand full size keys. Other markets that actually have disposable income to spend. To all the laptop lovers who see software as a better deal, go for it, there are those of us who don’t want to have to carry all that crap around just to get an inferior keyboard sound. To those who keep referring to the Reface keyboards as toys obviously haven’t played them and have only heard them over crappy internet videos.
A promising thing is the touch-surface for the parameters on the DX. I could imagine a whole synth with this kind of surface.
Admin: Personal attack deleted.
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