Just got myself some new gear - a Yamaha PSR S950, Roland CM-110 and a Behringer mixer. I have been playing with it for quite some time and am mighty impressed with it !!

PSR S950 : This is a big step up for me from an old PSR S700. The key feel is better than the older PSR`s but not as good as the Tyros or Pa3X or M-Audio cotrollers but still a lot better than those on older models.

The voices are fantastic. The pianos with onboard DSP effects gives a great sound. The concert piano does sound like a concert piano. For those wanting a great piano sound you can hook a 88 key controller to play more expressively. Those who love the guitar sounds then this board has a lot of them and most of it is SA quality.
Orchestral sounds are rich and very natural sounding. There are some excellent Woodwind instuments. It`s pretty much a Tyros3 with Audio styles and without SA2 voices(They should have included the two buttons and the SA2 voices in this one)

The SA Concert and Studio Strings are lush and inspiring similar to the top quality of strings found on Korg and Roland. Some amazing new synth sounds including mopnopohnic sounds in there for contemporary music. Again, with DSP effects, you get studio quality sounds. Saxophone voices are great but not as great as on my Ketron SD-2

The Audio styles are fantastic. They are the real thing !! Unfortunately only 25 of them. There is an obvious and noticeable difference in the quality of drums in the Audio and MIDI. But after some trials on the eq and effects and even change of drum kits, the difference between AUDIO and MIDI can be minimized. I think Ketron have got this right with the Audio parts in many of their rhythms. And unlike other Yamaha boards in the PSR series that I have played, some of the style parts on even the older and familiar styles are a little unbalanced. Generally Yamaha gets the mix just right. May be I am hearing more detail through my CM-110 which I will talk about in some time. There are around 400 of them !! I keep going back to the Audio styles especially the RNB Ballad one. It`s great!!
However I feel that Yamaha need to improve on some of the samples like Cymbals etc. used in their MIDI styles. Also, many of the T4 styles are on this board too(thankfully without the shoo bee doo baa No offense, its great but not my cup of tea

On board speakers are a big improvement over the previous ones doing justice to the great punch but I would seriously recommend good monitors like the CM110.

There is an Audio pitch and tempo changing feature and also worth mentioning is the Audio Multipad link feature.

Overall a great upgrade from my PSR S700. Even those with a S910 should consider this to be a worthwhile upgrade.


CM-110: Great monitors from Roland !! I have never heard such a clean sound coming from speakers irrespective of the volume you are using it at. The response is very good and a clean reproduction of the sound with the right amount of bass, treble and mids. There are multiple inputs possible on this instrument. Separate control for the woofer volumes. Low and High Eq on it. I am very happy with the sound from the S950 and out through these monitors.

Great job from two great companies: Yamaha and Roland !!

I wonder how this compares to the Logitech Z-2300. It's a lot more expensive than a used Logitech Z-2300. Were you going to bring the Roland out on gigs or just for home use?

The larger Roland CM-220 looks just powerful enough to handle almost all nursing/retirement home gigs, but at 41 lbs, the subwoofer is a little hefty, and it doesn't look like there are any handles to carry the subwoofer and satellites. It looks like it's for home use.

Larry,

The sub is heavy. It`s not very portable. It`s mainly for a studio setup or for home use. But its a great package for such a requirement. For portability, as Donny pointed out, the BA330 is great.

By the way, I enjoyed listening to your keyboard performances on you tube. Very accurate control and fast hands !! You must be enjoying the SA guitar selections in the S950.

Donny, why are you selling your BA-330?

Gary

Thanks.

I just listen to the S950 through the onboard speakers. Maybe I should get a subwoofer to do justice to the sounds when I'm playing at home, but half the time my family makes me use headphones anyway.

Congratulations on your new gear. Wake up the dead!