PSR S950 First Impressions

After waiting all day for Fedex yesterday, I finally gave up and had to go to work. Left a note on the door for them to leave it across the street with my neighbor.
When I got home about 11:00 p.m., his garage door was open and I saw the box. He even carried it across the street to me. He said it arrived at 9 p.m.

Anyway, I un-boxed it and plugged in phones, and played it for about two hours, just as it came from the factory.
I am very impressed with many of the lead sounds, especially the guitars. It has some amazing Pedal Steel sounds, and many great Blues and Lead and Jazz guitar setups.
Other sounds I like include the pianos, saxes and organs. Srings, including Violin are really good as well. EPs are nice as usual.
As for the styles, two or three of the Audio styles are about all I could find a use for, but they are really nice, and I'm sure many people would use more of them than those that appeal to me. The audio styles are no reason to buy the 950. Not enough of them to make a difference.
The drums sound better than on previous PSRs, but still somewhat weak compared to Korg, Roland or Ketron.
After playing the PA3X, the 950 felt very toy-like at first, but I quickly got used to it. Key response is lightening fast, which I like. The new buttons seem more stable than previous PSRs. It is larger than I thought, and seems to be about the same weight as PA3X!
The new speaker system sounds really good and I could see doing small house party or dining job with them. They go way louder without distortion that the S900.
There are some really good styles, but nowhere near the quantity, variety and quality of the Korg's. The majority have been around in Yamahas for many years, though they appear to have been updated, and are better than before.
Haven't tried the mic processor, or much of anything else yet. I will spend some time with it over the next few days.
To be totally honest, right now, I don't see it replacing the PA3X, but it would be a wonderful backup or second keyboard, if I can afford to keep both.
No rush, time will tell, and I will update as I get more into it.
DonM

Don Congrats on your new KB,.....and thanx for the VERY honest assessment with your first thoughts of the S950 out of the box, it really helps potential buyers make a decision. Hope to hear more in the coming days as you continue to explore its OS....good luck.

Congratulations on your new Yamaha PSR-S950, Don.

Like any new instrument, there is always a warm up or acclimatization time, but you seem to have it under grips already.

Let me know when you want some of my personally edited custom styles made on my Tyros4...I'll be interested to hear if they transfer to your S950 with all their goodies attached.

I really like the Tyros4's SA Pedal Steel and the SA Single Coil guitars, which I notice are on your S950, as are many other great electrics and acoustics. With your skill at guitar emulation, the listener is in for a real treat.

Ian

PS...Hey, one hardly expects a new Yamaha MOTL to replace a landmark TOTL Korg PA3X, but, at least it's managed to find it's way under your fingers.

I would LOVE to have the styles Ian! Thanks!
DonM

Don ... best wishes with your new board ... have fun ...

Still busy with moving to new digs, but I should have time tonight to put together a little test package of styles to see if they work okay.

Found two ancient clarinets in the 150 year old homestead today...one is real ebony and the other is silver/metal...both were owned/played by local celebrities (one owned the local music store) back in the 40's, and ended up with me somehow during my travels. Both need to be restored, but are in incredibly good condition otherwise.

Now, if I can only find a mint Steinway B, or Hammond B-3...

Ian

Way to go Don...and thanks for the mini review. Look forward to more, and maybe a demo of those guitars?

Yes, I have to ask, because I'm now obsessed...how is the display, particularly the mixing console display?

Thanks and Have Fun.

Aw, c'mon Don .... its SEVEN lbs lighter than the Korg! (lol - I love the size/weight/solid factor of the 3x61key ... if only it had built in speakers at that weight!)

It seems about the same weight, and I think it's bigger. I know it's deeper. I have the 61 note Korg.
DonM

Yup = I have the 61 note model too .... The Korg is 32lbs, the yammy is 25. Too close to quibble about, and yes - it IS deeper.In fact I bought 2 cases to see which one fits best - I have a brand new gator 61 size if you need one! Paid $79 yesterday ... if I return it, I'll take a hit on shipping, so ... I'll offer it up here for $75 and I'll pay the shipping to US!

Thanks, I found a keyboard bag in my pile that happened to fit just right.
I'm going to have to adjust my kb stand a little in order to illuminate the top of the 950. It's hard to see black buttons on black case in the dark! Won't be a major thing, but my setup is tailored for the Korg and it doesn't fit just right.
I took the 950 to work tonight. I knew it would be a slow night. I'm just now listening to the recordings. Not bad. Need to work on the e.q. a little, and the mic processor and vh settings. Love the guitars!
I also have to refresh my memory about how to keep mic settings, reverbs, effects, etc. from changing when I don't want them to. It has to do with the settings in Parameter Freeze and Registration memories. It's not real intuitive, and I remember having to go through this process on previous models.
I wish they had separated the variation, intro and break buttons a little better, or made them different colors.
DonM

Don,
Last night, my daughter put nail polish on 3 key buttons that I needed to see better and it filled the indent, wiped off the top and looks like a million bucks! I did the "break" button, "play" button, and "master" volume. Really helps!

I hope you can see these pix .... one's pretty dark.

UncleDave,
In a dark room would a small Black Light help all that light lettering pop out more?
If you happen to have a black light could you give it a try and let us know? probably a dumb idea but well, just maybe..
Jim

Dave.... I did that white thing on all my Yamaha arrangers KB master Vol and rear gain pots, etc, for easier viewing while playing, surprised they haven't adopted this simple convenience for players,....all they have to do is ask their customers what they need before R&D does their thing!!

BTW, that "close quarters" button design on the deck is another navigational inconvenience IMO..

Great idea, Dave...and the pics bear that out.

I have passed on the situation with the buttons to Yamaha.

Ian

White out works well also.

I've been listening to recording I made last night for more than three hours. Have a lot of work to do on vocal setup and vocal harmony setup. Also overall e.q. I can be done pretty easily, I just got impatient to start playing with it.
Against my better judgement I'm going to post a few of the songs, even though they are far from what I want it to sound like. The levels are fairly low on them.
I set up one bank of registrations, but mostly just called up styles and played.
There are two PA3X songs mixed in there too. Montuno Man wanted to hear some Bossanovas.
Here's a direct link to the songs. I'm going to play golf now.
Please be as critical as you can. I'm trying to decide if I like it.
http://donmasonmusic.com/YamahaPSRS950/
Thanks,
DonM

No comments at all?? I thought you were anxious to hear the 950.
DonM

I listened to all the songs and thought they sounded great , it surprised me that the Yamaha ones sound much better to me than the Korg ones, it may change my mind about buying a PA600 , are the styles factory presets? or did you tweak them a lot ? because they sound very professional , great guitar playing by the way, I hope you upload more songs to enjoy them.

Thanks for sharing!

Daniel

Don, I will give you my thoughts...I am sure you already know what I am going to say...


Listening to the Korg demos..they are more in your face...maybe more live in sound.....

Listening to the Yamaha demos...they sound more realistic, but so thin, and lack that live sound...

The korg drums are better..even in the sound department..


Personally for me..with an even playing field....weight and features being equal..I think I would lean towards the Korg..it being the punchier livelier sound, with a better drum sound (most important)..The Yamaha has better tones, but are too thin samples....and I don't believe eq is going to make a difference....to the extent of a live sound.....If you can eq the Yamaha to a point where it has that fullness and get the drums better with editing....than I would lean towards the Yamaha...


Thank heaven you still have the E50

A better comparison than PA3X/S950 will be PA600/S950 (or even better, PA900/S950 when it ships, as it will likely have a harmonizer and be closer to the S950's price).

You sound great in the PA3x.
No impress with the s950.

I was about ready to give up on it last night, to be honest, but I did some tweaking of e.q. and vocals, and it sounded MUCH better tonight. We'll see . ..
After I listen to the recordings from tonight, I may post a couple more to get other opinions.
DonM

The yamaha s950 sounds fantastic and not thin at all. The drums have been improved too.

Love the Black Color!
But Honestly in conclusion, after listening & aside from Don's great playing & singing, nothing I hear stands out over and above all my ex Psr 2k,21k,3k,T2,900,910, units...same compressed Yammy sound, not a bad thing just different.The VH2 is in no way to my ears in the same league as the TC Helicon unit that's inside of KORG's PA3x units,... Are new Audio styles enough for someone to upgrade from a S910,?,....you be the judge. Congrats to all new S950 owners enjoy & let's hear more S950 demos.

Rolandfan, I think some people have "thin" and "compressed" mixed up.

The Yamaha sound is mildly compressed, of course, because it's clearly obvious that is the way Yamaha prefers to make their arrangers sound, and also the way their customers happen to like it, else everyone would be buying the only other really competitive brand, Korg, which, judging by the excellent sales records of all PSR (and Tyros) instruments, is not the case.

Why do all arrangers have to sound alike? All "workstations", digital pianos, synthesizers, don't have the same sound, do they?

Acoustic pianos, guitars, horns, violins? Each manufacturer strives for a characteristic sound, and each company/brand has it's dedicated followers/supporters/fanboys...whatever you want to call them.

Keyboards have Yamaha enthusiasts and Korg fanciers...guitars have Fender and Gibson fans...even automobiles have their BMW vs.Mercedes protagonists.

Some like the "uncompressed" sound (or "live" as some call it) of Korg, and some like Yamaha's smooth, detailed polished output (or "compressed" as some describe it)..obviously there is room for both types judging by the arranger sales success of the "big two", Korg and Yamaha.

Those not wanting the sound of the "big two" above, can still buy equally great arrangers from Ketron, Wersi, Roland.

Even when one company absorbs another, as when Yamaha took over Bosendorfer, the latter still retained it's characteristic, and highly marketable sound and design.

Nothing wrong with choice...just don't expect one arranger to "do it all"...ain't gonna happen.

Ian

For me it is far more than sound that makes the big difference.

Take away all the "twiddly" bits, you know all those silly dinky little single note fills and such that make up a HUGE part of the Yamaha style base, then remove all the effects (apart from system rev), and break the styles down to a basic three instrument setup (bass drums guitar - or even just bass and drums) which is what I do most of the time...and THEN you hear a big difference in exactly what is better or not. I am not even going to mollify it by saying "different".

And then to cement it play the style over say 32 bars and THEN see if you think Yamaha styles stack up against the Korg styles..

For one finger plonkers, or those happy to have the full Mantovani orchestra or Glenn Miller big band thumping away destroying any musical credibility, but certainly keeping one amused - well fine...but not for me.

Yes the Yamahas sell a lot, but let's face it, I daresay the majority of sales go to home users, who probably also have not changed their vote for 60 years either...or brand of underwear

+1

I too believe that the quality of a style starts with and is defined by the rhythm section.

chas

To each their own Dennis...you obviously like Korg...nothing wrong with that...if it works for you, that's okay.

But, I will hardly take the bait for another "mine is better than yours" no-win campaign...we can only hope there aren't any others gullible enough to waste their time with it.

However, I do appreciate DonM's sharing of his talent and his enthusiasm over his new S950...the same as I treasure those sharing their PA-600 demos (as well as the Telmo, Joost, John Smies offerings)...I've come prefer those a lot better than the old fanboy empty talk, and silly go-nowhere debates.

That way, we can all listen and make our own decisions on what we want to buy or use..and also, enjoy some great music as well.


Ian

PS...and, "home players"? Just check out Telmo, Joost, Rico and a few others...I've heard "home players" on my clinics, that can play rings around a lot of the so-called "pros". Just because you get paid to play doesn't automatically make you an advanced arranger player...it just means you get paid.

True enough...but the term "quality" will also mean something different to each listener/player.

Again, having a choice is, in my opinion, much more preferable than having to deal with another person's (or manufacturer's) idea of what is "best", or "better" for my wants/needs.

Ian

Nope. no argument with that Ian - I did forget to stress in my post it was only my view. Wasn't meant to start anything at all

Dennis

BTW I made NO mention of pro or otherwise All I said was the MAJORITY of sales go to home users - there was not even a hint of the ability levels at all

Have the drums been improved overall, or are there a couple of newer kits in there (that only a few styles use)?

From the spec charts, it doesn't look like much has been done to the PSR's stock drums... Have the factory presets been tweaked to up the drum level a hair?

More accurately, the majority of arranger sales from BOTH Korg and Yamaha are to the home user/player.

Let's face it, the arranger is (and started out as) a "home keyboard", with some models adding advanced (or, if you like, "pro") features like sequencing/audio recording/Wav & MP3 playback, Audio Drums etc., but the primary market is for the home player, whether they be beginner or advanced.

Any instrument with "Single Finger" Easy Play chording is still a "Home Keyboard", in my opinion, but some enterprising professionals do take advantage of the instrument's features and use them for gigging.

It's been that way since the earliest arrangers, so nothing has really changed. I think our Donny (dnj) was using a Korg SAS-20 back when hardly anyone used an arranger on stage, but you can bet he was in the minority (but he was working, nevertheless).

Ian

I think pro player use more of Korg Aarangers.Not that Yamaha is bad,but on Korg you can customize anything.

I still think the amount of pro players (those being paid) using Korg arrangers is still minuscule compared to the amount of home users. It is about the same with Yamaha.

As far as one type brand user being more "advanced" (or "pro" if you like) than another?

Again, just because a person knows how (or is able) to deeply edit styles or "customize everything" (or has the means to do so more extensively) doesn't make them a more proficient or advanced "player".

It still requires "talent". Several SZ music contributors do absolutely no editing, style-wise or voice-wise, and their music is first rate...then, we have some who do a lot of editing, adding samples etc., and it is still first rate.

As one SZ'er has as his signature, "It's not the keyboard; it's the keyboardist."

That applies just as much to arranger keyboards as it does to someone playing piano.

Ian

Not really.

chas

Yes, really.

Ian

I just feel that an arranger lends much more assistance to the player than an acoustic piano and therefore may/could blur the differences in performance abilities. If you're a 'duffer', a piano will expose it. JMO, though. I don't have to ALWAYS be right.

chas

I do see your side of it, Chas...really.

The arranger requires a different set of skills than the piano, and vice versa.

No pitch/mod/aftertouch on a piano, only one basic voice with it's set of many, many rules..it's vastness, it's limitations...no accompaniment to help out (but, also not get in the way).

The arranger, to be played properly and to make the most of it, requires good timing, the ability to play "off" time (no rigidness), the aural and fingering skills (and imagination, I suppose) to emulate different instruments, each one requiring a decent knowledge of how it is phrased, voiced, range of notes, vibrato and pitch bending skills (and where to use them).

You have to be able to switch smoothly between arranger sounds, and change skills/technique to utilize that particular voice so that it sounds relatively authentic (notice I said "relatively").

Consider playing guitar licks in one part, and the Hammond B-3 style phrasing in the next (with proper Leslie control)...not to mention orchestral strings and the ability to play them with the proper voicing (very few 3rds, lots of 5th and 4ths)...proper use of Swell Pedal for organ and then a tad differently for Brass and Strings.

And yes, if you are a duffer, the piano will expose every thing you don't know, and there's something about playing solo piano that is very intimate and personal, and it's a very lovely feeling of satisfaction being able to play without any "doo dads"...same for Hammond B-3 and bass pedals.

I came from the Yamaha Electone School ( I was a graduate, and eventually taught it) so I was sort of "eased" into arranger playing as the Electone had a drum machine (some were programmable) and a very primitive arranger/accompaniment section, although with the latter, you did get some neat arpeggios for certain genres, like Philip Glass, or Jarre.

Yes, piano playing is an art. As Bach said, "There's nothing to it. You just have to press the right keys with the right force at the right time, and the instrument will produce the nicest music all by itself."

Making an arranger really "do it's thing" is also an art, in my opinion.

Playing either without the proper skills can be a bit of a letdown, although I'd say both are unforgiving, but in a different way.

Don't get me wrong...I LOVE PLAYING THE PIANO!!

But, I also love playing my Tyros4, but for different reasons. It's rather like being the conductor (and lead player) in an orchestra entirely of your own design, and limited only by the amount of creativity you possess. You can be in a small jazz band, a symphony orchestra, a twangy Country band, or a jazz organ trio. You can turn parts off to thin out the band.

I still play the piano, only now it's a digital one...I don't ever want to lose those skills, however, I like developing new and different keyboard skills, hence the arranger and prior to that, the Electone and various synthesizers.

What one would I take to a desert island (with electricity, okay?) .

Probably the piano, although it would be a tough choice, now that I enjoy the arranger so much too.

What would you take on a desert island, given a choice between a piano (you'd have to tune it), a Hammond B-3 with bass pedals (and Leslie 122), or Fran's G-70?

Ian

Sorry for the long winded post...I got a bit carried away...I'm not getting out much lately.

Piano, B3, Air Conditioner, G70; in that order.

chas

Not relative to me, as I am definitely NOT a piano player. That's why I hang out here, instead of on a piano forum somewhere, if there are such things.
Is there electricity on the desert island? If so, I would leave the piano at home, or make a boat out of it.
My mother was a great pianist; she could play anything, as long as she had sheet music. She never understood how I could play without music, or without memorizing the notes. She was proud of me though and I was equally proud of her.
I just hijacked my own post. Or re-jacked it.
DonM

Bring back Technics arrangers.....!

YES!!!

WOW, that would really be something!

It'd be a huge step BACKWARDS if you're a singer!

Why is that UD ... I would think/hope that if technics did re-enter the market at this point, they would include a very useable VH ... which I THINK is what you are referring to ...

I am a singer - or let me say, I sing - - and I've only used 2 arrangers - technics kn1000 and kn6000 - and I've used a digitech VH 'offline' of the kb ... it seems to me that a number of people have 'work arounds' for different things according to their needs ... I find the VH the easiest 'work around' for me ...

But alas, it is all moot, as I don't expect technics will re-enter the field in my lifetime ...

Hi Guy's

Sorry to disapoint but i'm sure Korg bought the Trchnic's brand, that is why on the Korg website you can obtain a set of Technics styles converted to Korg format. So I can't see technic.s re-emerging and if they did they would probably be a re-badged Korg, what would be the point.

Regards

Col

That being the case, my feeling is they should have also bought and incorporated the technics operating system ... but I'll reserve judgement on that until I try the PA600 ...

Now't wrong wit Korg operating system only th'operators

You are so right Tony. Some may say it is long in the tooth, but my KN7000 still has the best OS ever made, as well as yours. I just got back from a three hour gig with it, and it was just like having an old friend with me.

Bernie

Good playing and thanks for sharing. I've been on the fence between a 950 and 3x, although deep down, I probably wouldn't leave Korg. After hearing this, I just don't think Yamaha will ever make that leap to take it past a home product sound. To me, every model sounds the same. What is so annoying is that constant background guitar strum.....

Same with the Yamaha and Roland systems...just takes a bit of acclimatization, patience, mmmm...let's just say the more time you spend with any system the easier it gets.

Technics did have a good intuitive system, but it's hard to say how it would have grown to cope with so much technology growth with sounds, styles etc..



Ian

You could be right, Ian, although they were always ahead of the curve in their day ... but, as I said, it is all moot ...



Bernie ... no gig tonight, but i am just sitting home and playing the kn6000 ... Admittedly, I've never done a side by side with another kb, but as Alabama sang "Feels So Right" ...

I just remember the horrible mic control that I had in either the kn5000, or 7000 - I forget the model. I was not a Techics guy, but I gave it a fair trial. It's funny - I found the synthzone while searching for info on Technics - I found a thred called "the kn5000 is the best keyboard in the world" ... naturally, I had to check it out!

The mic control and especially VH was not up to par on the KN7000.

I think most people - even technics lovers - found the VH unusable ... the ONLY area of disappointment, IMHO ...

That's actually why I left Technics after the kN5000. Yamaha PSR8000 had a decent vocal harmonizer and a really good vocal processor. It was a keyboard way ahead of its time actually.
DonM