Yamaha has released a new PSR-SX720+ Arranger Workstation


https://europe.yamaha.com/en/musical-ins...plus/index.html


This mid-tier arranger sets a new benchmark in affordability, portability, performance and feature set.

So, basically a velocity offset...

Might be useful if you can dedicate a foot controller to it, but I'm not sure that a slider doesn't make you move away from actually PLAYING. And you're already doing enough of that going to change variations and fills and registrations etc.

Might be a good idea to allow you to associate a dynamics setting for each of your four variations.

But honestly, Roland had a FAR better idea (and had it for nearly 20 years)... offset the velocities based on how hard you PLAY! You also got per Part offset, so you can control which Parts respond more that others. And you can (if you want!) INVERT the velocity response, so certain elements could get louder as others get quieter (nice for bringing up percussion a bit as the drums back off).

Roland used a system where there is a window where the system sort of averages your playing, so you don't get wild swings if you play one not a lot louder or quieter than the others. But if you've got decent dynamics control of your playing, it's frighteningly realistic how well the backing follows you! It works superbly well if you're playing straight up piano, every now and again it truly makes you think the rhythm section is following YOU.

Hopefully Yamaha can take a look at how Roland achieved this and add it to the next model or OS now the basic system has been added.

Of course, the system only really works when you're using multi-velocity sample sounds that CHANGE as you get louder. Merely getting louder isn't the same, so sounds that only use the one sample for all velocities don't benefit as much. So this would be something that you want to go edit your legacy styles and change the drum kits and other older sounds to ones that change as they're hit harder. Acoustic guitars are really good, pianos, Rhodes etc, strings that attack harder, stuff like that.

Great to see Yamaha bringing this to lower level arrangers. It's time that you stop playing WITH the arranger, and have the arranger play with YOU! 🎹👍🏼

I guess the PSR-SX920+ won't be far behind. All well and good, but there is nothing about these enhancements that is arranger-specific. So typical of Yamaha; with any other brand, instead of a new model designation (prompting trade-in and repurchase) they would have been bundled in an OS update :-/

I wonder if it would be a good idea for Yamaha to package all the functions of a mid-level arranger into an affordable $800 arranger module. The main complaint from users about mid-level arrangers is the unsatisfactory keyboard action. An $800 arranger module will be the perfect add-on to a user who already has a digital piano with decent keyboard action.

Any person owning a Yamaha CP88, Roland RD-2000, Casio PX-S7000 or a Kawai MP11SE would instantly be able to transform their digital piano into an Arranger while enjoying their premium piano action.

A small form factor $800 Arranger module measuring 8” x 6” x 2” with Bluetooth connectivity to an iPad would sell well against the $3,000 Ketron EVM module.

I think there is a market for this segment. Yamaha has the technical knowhow to pull this off. No additional R&D is necessary.

The Roland BK7m is still an EXCELLENT arranger module that can be found close to your target price, Tapas. Yes, used, but they have very little to go wrong.

But when it comes to current models, what sense does it make for Yamaha to package everything from a $2000 arranger in an $800 module? All that would do is kill the sales of the $2000 keyboard..!

The BK7m was about $999 new, and the keyboard equivalent (the BK5, mostly!) was about $1200 new. So you only dropped about 15-20% of the price.

As you noticed, budget price arrangers have pretty poor actions, so it's not like that was a huge chunk of the total cost..!

I think the biggest problem with arranger modules is that, unless the keyboard version has an OS where absolutely EVERYTHING has a MIDI control code (few if any do), the spinoff module version will need an expensive OS overhaul to add in codes for all the panel functions on the keyboard version. Things like On/bass, accel/rit, fill on/offs, stuff like that...

Quite honestly, making a GOOD arranger module is arguably harder than making the keyboard version... so they don't tend to be much less than the keyboard.

I'd say that style dynamics feature is pretty exclusively arranger focused, Ted. Plus an upgrade in the number of insert FX is definitely a hardware change. Yamaha have usually been pretty much a 'baby steps' upgrade path in general, but the move to the SX architecture was quite the huge leap forward.

I thought I read about an increase in the number of S.Art sounds, too? Can't get that with a simple OS update...

There's always room for improvement. I detailed a few about the style engine dynamics feature. But I think the same system could be used to offset velocities in real time for playing sequences as well. That might be cool, able to actively change a sequence by a slider or playing dynamics as well...

Maybe I misunderstood... the videos I watched focused on improvements to Super Articulation and Portamento. But they were demonstrated on lead voices, and activated via a user-assignable switch and touch screen selection respectively, not by higher playing velocity or aftertouch like Roland's brilliant "Dynamic Arranger."

For many years Yamaha had a menu setting called "Style Touch" for whether the style volume IN TOTAL increases with played velocity in the chord recognition zone. See Tyros 5 reference manual p29. However, the user cannot specify positive or negative offsets per track like the Roland system.

Ok, I found the video that discusses Style Dynamics. First, to my ears there was hardly any difference when the slider was moved in the demo. Second, this isn't new functionality. See p124 of the PSR-SX920 reference manual. I guess the only thing that's new is that there is a dedicated controller and screen graphics for what has probably been a little-known and little used feature...?