Yamaha S90 Vs S90es
Percival Blanco
So I need to replace my Roland rd-600 for a new weighted keyboard. I've already sold it and gigs are approaching. I thought I was sold on the yamaha s90xs but for some reason I havent pulled the trigger. I was in guitar center and there was a s90es right next to the xs and I have to say the piano in the es was IMO much better sounding. For me whats important is piano sounds, vintage pianos and if the motif es/xs sounds are there even better, however what I truly like about the xs is the ability to record songs, ideas on the keyboard itself.
Does anyone have any suggestions if the es does this or if not there is an alternate way to record quickly idea/songs that does not require much tech knowledge and is fairly simple. Another keyboard perhaps...
I agree 100% with Tony's line of thought.....We are often tempted beyond reason to buy the "newest thing" without giving alternative, cost effective, and practical workarounds the attention they deserve.
I agree, however if it's been 10 years since you've had the latest & greatest in your main weighted action keyboard, it might be time for an upgrade, and it was. Sure I could have bought an XS rack and kept my S80, but I didn't want the hassle of setting up another piece of gear.
Interesting: I went to the store to mess with the XS and tried setting up a few masters and found I had to more than double up on the amount of editing because all the info I was editing wouldn't fit in that window. It made things a PITA.
What is the consensus of those who have played or heard both keyboards as too which piano has the superior sound (in their opinions of course)? I feel if the xs had the same or better sounding piano I would probably buy it. I don't use alot of those sounds now that are in the xs, I play in funk, blues, jazz, reggae, type bands where I use primarily the same sounds however I was offered a world band gig and the availability of xs sound engine is tempting also but here the es might be just as good?
I have recently purchased the s70xs before i had a chance to demo it myself. Checked out all the you tube stuff and it seemed like a no brainer. I really liked the idea of a "real" piano action keyboard in a 76 note version. It was something I was waiting for somebody to do for a long time. I held off buying the s90es for over a year because I knew this ax was comming. I needed it For My anchor keyboard. Mostly play R/B jazz, funk and blues. I wanted a kick ass piano and electric pianos. Yamaha has always been my favorite in this dept. I loved the s90es and was really excited about the xs. I figured the pianos would only be better. Wrong. I don't like the S6 sample. I think it is thin and nasaly and altough sounds decent in the cans or stereo monitors. It sounds pretty wimpy through my stage amp. I use a traynor K4. What the hell did they do to the wurlys they sound like crap. The wurlys in my original motif 7 blow it away. It does have some very cool features, but you know what, without a satisfiying piano sound you got nothing in my book. I am going to try and load in the es sample and see how that works.
One really cool feature is the smart bass. In performance mode comp a chord w/ your right hand , but don't play the root, like a G7(9-13) to a C7(9) and the bass player plays the right roots. I can play thru the entire rythem changes and never hit the root in my left hand and that bass is w/ me. Kinda cool. F'n technolgy!!
one other cool feature that i don't believe was mentioned. Not only can you make a quick scratch recording of your playing or a new idea, you can record a vocal or another instrument( guitar or whatever) directly into the board at the same time. a good song writers tool for sure.
I thought the chorus button was on has there was this major phasing thing going on in the lower registers. They had it on a three tier stand with the S90EX above the XS and a CP300 on the lowest tier. I wasn't able to switch instantaneously to A/B has the keyboard stand was scrunched up against the wall. I had to guess feeling with my hands where the headphone input was. But I didn't hear a huge difference in the sound between the ES Natural and the XS S6. Maybe the S6 was a little more refined and cleaner sounding but it wasn't glaring by any means.
I've owned the S90, ES, and now XS. The difference in the pianos are not dramatic, especially going from the S90 to the S90 ES. I think the new S6 piano has a little more character than previous pianos on the S series, more organic, vibey. I have not used it on a gig, only studio/recording use so far. I would think that it will not work well in mono on a gig, but really begs for stereo. I think that in a pop/rock setting the "Full Concert Grand" (same as the motif XS) may work better as it's a more "perfect" piano sound. I think the Natural Grand S6 is better suited for jazz, with the right amplification. But it's nice to have 2 different sounding pianos on board.
The difference in sound (except the piano) is significant (I had both instruments) and not necessary because of completely different patches (some are new, e.g. EP) but because of new chip set for sound and effect processing. Sound is not in manuals.
Yeah, yeah, when the ES came out Yamaha claimed a new sound engine and better filters. The improvement across the entire S90 line and Motif is SUBTLE when playing the same presets/multi-samples. I owned the S90 for years and several Motifs.
What's kinda cool about the S70/S90XS when compared against its predecessors is that it has quadruple the sound ROM of the S90 Classic and double the S90ES. Yes, many of the sounds are familiar to us longtime Motif/S-series users (I've had an S90 since early 2003). But there are a lot of new ones and many sounds have really improved over time. I felt the S90->S90ES was more incremental, but see the S90XS as a worthy and cool upgrade in terms of the sheer quantity and quality of sounds.