Arbaz and Dreamer,
I know this is an arranger forum but I'd like to give my impression of the Triton vs Motif sounds..............
Korg sounds have always sounded "korg" and Yamaha sounds have always sounded "Yamaha". What I mean by this is that although models change from year to year, the basic architecture of the engines don't seem to change too much, so you can change functions and buttons and tha ability to sample, etc. but the way in which the company's make their sounds don't change too much. I also find that many samples, names of sounds, etc. don't change too much either because the same sound designers often work on each new generation machine.
Now, here's what I like about the motife. With 85 MB ( in 16 bit mode), actually 48 MB in reality, which is still double the S80 and S30, Yamaha has done a great job with the sounds. The Piano's are not changed much, but the Solo instruments like violin, Viola, Cello, Nylon and Steel Guitars have been greatly imroved. There are now "sweet" sounds right out of the 9000 Pro including the sweet flute which is great.
In comparing the Trition with the Motif sound wise I think the Yamaha Grand Piano is much better. Also the Electric Pianos and the new Organs on the Yamaha are in my opinion superior.
What I have always thought was that because Korg Programers really show off the combi mode which allows for 8 voices to be used at once, this is where the Korg sometimes wins to listeners ears. Yamaha uses up to 4 voices per performance(combi) and although these performances are great, some players will still like the lushness of the Triton sounds better. I ask you to really find a store that has both and listen closely to the individual voices on both. I still think the Yamaha wins in realism of each voice.
Here's where the Yamaha is amazing. "Integrated Sampling". You can first record your drum track, bass track, piano track, strings, etc. and than hit intergrated sampling, pick any unused track you want, plug in a mic or guitar, hit record and while listening to your song recorded as a song file, you are recording your audio (analog) sound source right along with the song in perfect timing and pitch. Now, after recording, on playback, you can change the tempo anytime or anywhere and your singing or playing is perfectly synced. You can't do this with the Triton sampler. The Motif's come stock with 4 MB but can be expanded to 64MB by standard 72 pin simms. You can record 6 min. 20. sec. in stereo at 44.1K when using 64 MB. The other thing that is great is that using the smart media boards up to 128 MB, you can store all of your song data in about 5 seconds including all the samples. Compared to other Yamaha Samplers this is a welcome change. The older products took forever to save and load wav files.
Yamaha has also given you as standard equipment a SCSI port for conecting drives, a USB port for connecting midi and digital in and out. You can buy a card for adding up to 8 more analog outputs and SPDIF.
Also keep in mind that the price of the three Motifs ( 61 key, 76 key and 88 graded hammer action keyboard) are all $800.00 less than the three comparable Tritons.
I think all of you know that I sell many brands we all talk about and I find strengths and weaknessess in all the products I sell. Sometimes it is hard for me to not show my "passion" for certain products and i try hard to balance all the selling points of similar products. I think that players who love Korg products will still love their Korg keyboards, and Yamaha players will think that the Motif is a great addition to the Yamaha line up and I think many players who have been on the fence about Yamaha not having a really good workstation type keyboard will be thrilled to see, try and buy this new beauty from Yamaha.
Regards,
George Kaye
Kaye's Music Scene
Reseda, California