Yesterday I received my first PSR2100 keyboards from Yamaha USA. I called Yamaha on Friday and found out there are no more PSR2000s left at Yamaha for dealers to buy. I now wish I would have bought several more to sell when I had the chance. My inventory of PSR2000's is now gone. The retail price of the PSR2100 is the same as the now discontinued PSR2000.
The first thing I noticed was the color change. The speakers grills are now a light color compared to the PSR2000's dark paint and the color around the display screen is now a shade of copper rather than the darker color on the 2000. Major buttons such as Registration, One Touch and Multi Pads are all now this lighter copper color. The keyboard looks good although the layout is exactly the same as on the PSR2000 with the exception of the USB jack on the back and Yamaha has taken away the "to host" port on the back for the USB replacement.
I had just sold my last PSR2000 which I'm shipping out this morning, so I took the opportunity to set up the two keyboards side by side, so that i could compare exactly, rather then from my memory. The live grand piano was noticably more natural sounding in the upper octaves. The 2 new live harpsichords were more natural sounding and the new Sweet Harmonica sounding just like I was watching the movie Cinderella Liberty, which featured the most beautiful sounding harmonica melody I've ever heard throughout the movie. The Cool Electric Organ and Jazz Organ offered much more "tube" B3 sounds. Next I listened to the new Brass sounds and fell in love with the new Sweet Flugelhorn. There is a lot of "air" in this sound compared to the original flugelhorn. The original comes accross as sounding a bit more like a mellow trombone where the new one sounds just like Chuck Mangione. The Live Hyper Brass, Live Pop Brass and Live Octave Brass all sounding much better for big band sectional voices. A major improvment has to be the Sweet Violin which has the sound of the Rosin on the Bow if you play it hard and a beautiful legato sound when playing softer.
My favorite new sound winner has to be the Jazz Guitars. The is a new Cool Jazz Guitar and Cool Jazz Solo Guitar. Both of these sounds make you feel like Joe Pass is in the room with you. I was never very impressed with Yamaha's Jazz Guitars compared to Generalmusic's Genesys and Roland's VA7 guitar. These two new guitars are wonderful and there is a new Sweet Mandolin which unlike the old one, when you play one note it pics the string like a mandolin player would do with much practiced technique. The Live Nylon Guitar features velocity changing where when you pick soft you hear the full body guitar sound and when you strike the key hard you hear the harmonic. The previous Nylon guitar in the 2000 didn't have the harmonic and didn't have as beautiful a classical sound.
The styles that were added are nice additons, especially a few of the new Jazz styles such as Jazz Pop, Dixie Jazz and Med.Jazz. In the past models, Yamaha didn't emphasize the Jazz styles much, instead they chose more swing and big band. Adding some new styles, Gospel Live, Bubblegum Pop and several Schlager styles all makes the 2100 an improved product.
The improvements on the PSR21000 might make some PSR2000 users want to upgrade. The changes on this model are much like Yamaha did with the PSR550 compared to the PSR540. Those of you with critical ears will want the new model if you really need the most realistic acoustic instruments available on a moderate priced keyboard. Owners of models like the PSR740 and before will really see the benefit of the PSR2100. For those wanting USB computer connectivity, this will be a driving force for buying the PSR21000. For those who love their PSR2000, you still have a great keyboard......the PSR2100 is just somewhat greater!
George Kaye
Kaye's Music Scene
Reseda, California
818-881-5566

[This message has been edited by George Kaye (edited 06-10-2003).]

Thank you for that great review. Your description of the voices is provocative. Your description of the sweet violin, "the rosin on the bow", I can hear in my minds ear the rasping of the bow when it hits the string. Beautiful. I've got GAS.
Not sure why you would want more PSR2000 in stock when they are discontinued and selling at the same price.
Starkeeper

How about the drums?
Did they fix the Arabic Drumkit?
Did they improve the other kits, or still the same as before? specially the dance and analog kits?

Thanks George for the review. Unfortunately, if I upgrade one more time I'll either being singing saprano or have to chage my marital status on the income tax return--not good options. Hopefully, someone will post copies of some of the new instrument sounds that can be downloaded and used in the 2000.

Thanks again,

Gary

Hi George. Thanks for the great initial review.

Are these new PSR2100 sounds the same as the ones already included in the Tyros or are these completely 'new' sounds?

I had read that the PSR2100 USB transfer rate is extremely slow (2 kb/sec?). Can you confirm what the actual USB transfer rate is? Also, does PSR2100 USB support OPT 'Voice Editing' via the PC?

Regarding those 'new' PSR2100 styles. I've audtioned them on both my PSR2000 & Tyros and personally feel that these new styles alone (though good), do not substantiate the cost of upgrading (from the PSR2000) to the 2100. On the other hand, the BIG advantage to upgrading to the 2100 (from the 2000) is gaining more USER memory, improved (Tyros?) sounds, and gaining USB connectivity.

Scott

Im with Shakil on this one.. How are those drums???? I'd love to hear that violin. Maybe it's me, but I love the solo violin on my PSR-550. It works so nicely for those smooth solos. I can only imagine what the new one sounds like on the 2100. However given Yamaha does have great sounds on the PSR's it would be a shame if they still included those dated drum kits from the previous models on the PSR-2100. I'm not sure how it is on the PSR-1000/2000, but trying to write dance, techno, hip hop, and rap on the PSR-550 thru PSR-740 was damn near impossible. The drum kits are way outdated.

Squeak

Also, did they change the stupid SEQUENCER from PSR 2000? Or is it still the same?

It's a shame that such high resolution sequencer can't do the basics.

I think it's safe to say that it's the exact same sequencer...

[This message has been edited by squeak_D (edited 06-10-2003).]

I was wishing for more PSR2000s because we were buying and selling them at a reduced price last month and even though the current price of the PSR2100 is the same as what the PSR2000 had been MAP priced at, $1195.00 and I was enjoying being able to offer the PSR2000 keyboards I bought last month at a substantial discount from the MAP price. Oh well, they didn't have many left and that's why the PSR2100 came out in June instead of the estimated ship date of July.
Scott, the new sounds are right out of the Tyros, and that's why I love them so much. To be able to have a keyboard costing less then 1/2 the price of the Tyros and still gaining the beautiful acoustic voices of the Tyros (minus the mega voice guitars and bass) is a good value keyboard.
I haven't listened to any of the drum kits to compare to the 2000 because in looking at the names of the kits, I didn't notice anything different and so I didn't actually compare individual drum voices from one keyboard to the other and now I've shipped the PSR2000 up north and can't compare them.
I would also think the sequencer is exactly the same.
George Kaye
Kaye's Music Scene
Reseda, California
818-881-5566

Hello George

Great review. Is there an owners manual on line yet? I guess we gained about 25 new styles. Did we loose any from the 2000? If so I hope it was not any big band or swing. Did I see someplace the user styles section will take about the same amount of information as a floppy disk? How about the other voices, are they new and improved also? The drawbar organ has another foot drawbar. Is the tone better than the drawbar organ on the 2000? How about the key touch. Any improvement there? So you are saying these new sounds are as good as the Tyros and perhaps better than the 9000?

Inquiring minds want to know.

Thanks George

Scott Langholff

Hi Gary

I don't think we can import any sounds to the PSR2000 can we?

Scott Langholff

George,
I hate to bring this up again, but, if you get time, would you please check out the vocal harmony for Karaoke Girl and Squeaky Mouse to see if they work properly. As you may recall, they did not remove the lead voice from these settings on the PSR2000.
Many thanks!
DonM

Hi Scott,

I believe that most of the tyros voices, other than those specialty voices, can be inported into the 2000's user area. I guess we'll find out in the next few weeks. I have tried some of the new styles and they sound pretty good.

Cheers,

Gary

Terrific review, Geoge. I've added it to the psrtutorial site along with some photos. I will have my 2000 for awhile after getting the 2100 so I may be able to make more of the side-by-side comparisons (although it will be hard to break away from just playing the new beauty!)

As to "moving" the voices, Scott, I suspect that will be impossible. When you modify a voice now, on the 2000, you are basically changing some of the sound parameters that are applied to the internal voice. That "modified" voice file can be saved (it can even be saved directly in a OTS setting) and it isn't very big because the only thing actually saved is the parameter changes to the voice. As I worked on converting the Tyros styles, I noticed that almost all of the MAIN/LAYER voices in the OTS had to be reset to the 2000 equivalents. That's because any changes that may have been in there to optimize the sound on the Tyros were using the internal voices in the Tyros as the starting point. Starting with the internal voice in the 2000 and applying the same modifications did not produce the desired result.

It will be interesting to see how well some of these settings from the Tyros will sound when played on the 2100. The original Tyros OTS voices may be fine on the new 2100. Your description of the Harmonica particularly brought this home. Yamaha seemed to use the Harmonica in a lot of the OTS settings in the Tyros styles but that voice is not all that impressive on the 2000. In converting the styles to the 2000, I usually replaced the harmonica with something else. The harmonica may, however, be one of the favored solo voices on the new 2100. It will be interesting to see how this all works out.

From what I saw yesterday all the PSR2000 styles are still in the PSR2100. There are just the new styles added as more styles.
George Kaye
Kaye's Music Scene
Reseda, California

Hi George

Sorry for the barrage of questions (I just looked at what I posted), but I know you realize we are all kind of anxious to know as much as we can. We're still all kind of like little kids when it comes to our adult toys and gizmo's.

Scott

George, great review!
You're just confirming what I said earlier: The Best.
If I lived in the States I'd be your customer.
After some of the threads lately, we needed this (and the Genesys Pro!)

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Roy-Andrè

Thanks, George, for your great review.

You don't refer to PSR2100 keys, and its feeling. Are exactly same keys and same feeling than PSR2000? Or is it better (I would like it)?
New PSR has "live" grand piano voice. You refer a more natural sounding in the upper octaves... but, only in the upper ones? So, do you think this new voice only improve old "piano voice" in upper octaves and not globaly, all around the keyboard? Do you think this new voice will sound similar to Tyros live grand piano voice (both on similar external amplifier and loudspeakers, of course).
PSR1100 hasn't "live" grand piano voice... Is it ok?
Cheers

Does anyone know whether a survival kit is being offered with this keyboard, one that comes with an extended warranty offer?

Thanks,

Beakybird

Yes,
it comes with a mirror for selfindulgance, some spare keys for locked doors and closed clubs and some matches to do the Hendrix stunt after the show. Yeah, and not to forget the lifevest after the guests have thrown you and your PSR in the pool.

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Roy-Andrè

Right now the PSR2100 does include the survival kit but i've been told that this might be going away. The reason for the survival kits were to give the "edge" to the music store dealers that have to compete with the electronic stores such as Best Buy, Fry's, Costco, etc. Because we can sell the same low end keyboards they also sell, we have some extra value added accessories to offer our music store customers. The 2 year warranty instead of the standard 1year parts/90 day labor, headphones, sustain pedal and in most survival kits an A/C adapter. With the PSR1000/2000 keyboards, like the Tyros, which doesn't include a survival kit, Yamaha is talking about not giving you the survival kit anymore. Since the A/C power adapter/chord is already in the box, they might be feeling like they should be charging for the extra accessories. If dealers like myself buy large enough quantities, we don't pay for the survival kits and so we just include them at no extra charge. Yamaha is giving away an awful lot by extending the warranty for 2 full years at no extra fee received by them. So, I would say to look for the survival kit possibly going away pretty soon. If not, I was wrong, but this is just something I've heard from the rumor mill.
The keys on the PSR2100 feel just like the PSR2000 and yes, the whole piano is enhanced. It's just that I really noticed the major difference on the higher keys, they sounded so much more realistic to me than the grand piano on the PSR2000.
George Kaye
Kaye's Music Scene
Reseda, California

George,

I've also got a question,

Is the 'live grand' on the PSR2100 the same one as the 9000Pro's 'live grand'???

thanks

Because the PSR2100 is said to incorporate many of the Tyros sounds (excluding nega voices), I'm wondering if perhaps the PSR2100's 'live Grand Piano' might be the SAME one as the one on the Tyros, rather than the one used on the 9000pro. Is this possible to confirm? - Scott

What is "AI (artificial inteligence) Fingered" mode, under fingering types?
Starkeeper

Does anyone know if the keyboard comes with a floppy disk with styles like the PSR740 and PSR2000 did?

Beakybird

Fortunately for music store sellers, George, I've never seen any hi or mid end arranger keyboard at any big box or mass sales electronics stores (Sam's Club, Costco, Circuit City, Good Guys, Best Buy, etc.). Yamaha only sends them lower end stuff. They won't be getting any 2100's in my opinion.

Bob