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Motif At a Glance |
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 Released: 2001
| Specifications
User rating: 4.4/5 |
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| Nick@sonic writes: |
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Manual is awful - I would gladly have paid $10 more if they had thrown in an extra 50 pages so they weren't CONSTANTLY cross-referencing everything! My main reason for buying the Motif was that I wanted something with a solid hardware sequencer and lot of versatility. While the MOSS board for the Triton is nice, having the option of three boards at the same time is fantastic, and the AN and VL boards are amazing. Plus, I like the Motif's OVERALL soundset better than Korg's or Roland's - there are areas where clearly the sounds are not as good, like in the brass department or with some synth sounds, but the important thing is consistency, which I feel the Motif has more of in terms of quality. I also think the acoustic piano is much better than most workstation's. The effects are decent and there's a good variety, and MOST functions are fairly intuitive as far as getting around the interface. I did notice that, while scrolling through patches with the data wheel, things slowed down a bit and it was difficult to move quickly through the sounds. Apparently, the Motif is slow to load mix parameters (effects, etc.) - this can also bog down the sequencer in pattern mode unless you turn mix load off. There are a few quirks like that that annoy me and could have been made clearer in the manual. Overall, though, due to a stronger sequencer, more balanced soundset, and better options for expandability (also built-in SCSI and SPDIF out and smartcard support), I think the Motif is the best 'workstation' on the market, going by the definition that a workstation should let you make complete songs in a variety of genres without other gear. It's a pretty well thought-out box that thus far has been up to task on a variety of tracks. Also, kudos to Yamaha for the integration with software sequencers from the interface - this is a good idea, long overdue. For the same price as a Korg Karma, it's a steal, and I'd take over it a Triton and probably even a Kurzweil, because of the better hardware sequencer. Comments About the Sounds: Not as good as Kurzweil for acoustic sounds, but better than Korg. I personally think the drums are great, and many of the synths impressive as well due to strong resonant filters. Electric pianos are fantastic - if these are important to you, don't hesitate. Some nice basses but I don't care for the brass. |
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