Okay everybody, lemme hear it:

Ready to buy one or the other but am really mixed and keep switching between the two.

Um...
Obviously you need to buy both of them. Then, when you are sick of one of them you can throw it away. Or even better, send it to me!

Seriously, I haven't got a clue. BOth are cool.
Throw a coin may be?

-ED-

Hello Boogsy. I am by far not an expert with either keyboard but I do have the good fortune of owning both at the moment. (the Motif ES8 is actually on EBAY at the moment).

The first question I would consider is whether or not you're planning on gigging with either of them. Her's my opinion.

The Fantom is infinitly better (IMO) for gigging. The large COLOR (c'mon Yamaha - get with the program) makes it so much easier to navigate. It only took me several hours to create 8 banks of 8 (that's 64) "favorite" patches. Try doing THAT with the MO. In fact , it only took me an hour to create 10 "perfomance" patches - mostly split key setups. The operating system of the Fantom is a bit more intuitive than the MO. I have the Fantom X8. Both the MO (s) and the Fantom 8 are big machines - at or around 65 pounds per unit. The Fantom X8 has a nice feature that makes use of a dedicated "piano" button, so that no matter what patch you have loaded, simply press the piano button and "voila" you are playing the piano of your choice.

I have not worked with either sampler as of yet. The Fantom will allow for 1 gig of storage (about 60 minutes) with the use of an add on PC card. Both units will require an upgrade of sampling memory (512mb). The MO uses two 256 chips and the Fantom uses 1 512 chip.

ADDIN CARDS: Both units allow for upgrades with the MO using up to 3 PLG cards and the Fantom using 4 SRX. All of these cards are expensive - too expensive in my opinion. They are however, easy to install.

My feeling is the Motif ES is better for "producing" and using as a recording instrument. Yamaha's samples on the MO are more realistic to some degree than the Fantom. The Grand Pianos are about the same - it's personal choice. I prefer the touch of the MO's keys (weighted) then the Fantom. The Fantom is a bit mushy. Neither of them are fast enough that will allow accurate playing of say, Billy Joel's "Angry Young Man". Too bad.

While I personally favor the MO's overall sounds, the Fantom's are very good as well. Yamaha has overplayed the "greatness" of it's megavoice technology. It is very realistic but not easy to do live. (most Tyros owners will agree). The Roland way of megavoicing seems to be better fitted for live playing.

Another plus for the Motiff ES. There appears to me much more support for the MO than the Fantom. Check out www.motifator.com. The programmed Vintage Keys and BKnees sounds (extra) are absolutely amazing. They are so real in their execution - 10 times better than the Ultimate Keys SRX expansion card. (again check out the motifator website).

Both keyboards appear to be well laid out as far as their controls. I just like the large color screen. It is so much more easier to navigate than the MO and I don't have alot of time between songs to fiddle with settings especially with a band that tends NOT to stick with the set list.

Many of the Fantom patches are a bit on the "trebly" side and I hope to edit several of the patches to adjust the EQ or resonance. I am very impressed with the MO's sounds.

Hope this helps somewhat.

Regards,

Reed

Boogsy

I think you should ask this question at..
www.fantomized.info
and www.motifator.com

you will get response from the actual users.

Thanks to all for the input. I have done quite a bit of research and beleive I will be going witht the Fantom X. ease of use and quickness of composing is more important to me that those yamaha sounds. If i get the funds, I'll get the motif rack as a second piece. I've weighed all the shortcomings of the FAntom and feel that it's worth it. The last synth I bought was a Roland XP60 and I found that it was so easy to use, I wrote over 20 eight and sixteen bar song ideas within the first week of owning it.

Boogsy,
Just be aware that the Motif rack is the "older" Motif and not the ES. I think you'll enjoy the Fantom.