Hey All and especially Yamaha,

I’m experienced with S80, S90, ES6, ES7 and now Mo8. I also have experience with Rolans XP-60 and XP-80.

One thing I love about the XP60/80 is in Performance mode I can go into “transmit mode” and use the dedicated 16 buttons to turn on a part or turn off a part.

This is very similar to the S90, ES and Mo “song mode”. Except in song (and I suppose pattern mode although I never tried), one can select any part to play using the 16 dedicated part buttons BUT it automatically turns off the previous part button. For example if I part one is on and I hit part two to play that part, Part One turns off.

Can you make an O/S enhancement that will not turn off part one? Then if I want to turn on part 2 and turn off part 1, I could simply hit both buttons. Or I could just layer part 2 by hitting it only (leaving part 1 on).

That would be the greatest thing. Especially for live work/worship. I use my XP-80 for worship and use a performance with about 7-10 of my most useful sounds. I basically just use that one performance and go from using a few different pads (generally one at a time) to layering in strings, to three different organs and few different electric pianos. Worship music is very dynamic, we go from all out old time gospel/blue grass to very quiet worship to contemporary rock. I can easily bring in the approriate sound without a sound cut off or can switch to a more cutting sound if I get blown away by the band.

I use performance mode with the ES (and no Mo8) but I’m limited to 4 sounds and I loose polyphony if I’m not careful to mute what I’m not using via the 4 volume faders.

Having this O/S enhancement would be awesome. Even if you were to charge 50 bucks for the upgrade I’ll buy it!

What say you Yamaha? Can do?

Thanks. Peace. Bob <><

I think they already did it, you just need to know how to use the feature :)

On the ES and the XS (and probably earlier models) you can layer up to 16 sounds in Song/Pattern mode by assigning MIDI Receive Channel numbers to each track.

By default, each track works on its own channel, Track 1 = Channel 1, Track 2 = Channel 2 and so on, but you can change the receive channel for each track.

If you assign, say, 8 tracks to have receive channel 1 then they will ALL sound together when you play track 1 on the main Song screen, or any of the tracks in the group on the Mixing screen.

On the XS, when you play in the Mixing screen you can control the mix using the track mute buttons.

Which basically does exactly what you want. It probably works on the ES the same way (I know the layering does, I’d have to double check the mutes).

Df.

Mutes on the ES and MO do work as Dreamflight described.

Hi Guys,

You’re right. I’ve done what Dreamflight described to very good success for “planned” songs. You have to know in advance what sounds you want and at what time in the song. Then you can pre-program your mixes (or templates in the S90).

Maybe my need is more restricted to the modern worship area or to keyboard players that want to decide on the fly what to layer and when or what sounds to switch to and from. Its almost live experimentation in a way.

I can only speak to my experience. Let me give you an example. Keep in mind, my church’s worship band that I play in is very free in that we almost never keep to a set list and at times play songs that aren’t even on the set list and many times play songs that were made up right there on the spot. This is sort of singing prayers and praises that are on our hearts not written anywhere. The band leader may simply play some progression repeatedly and the rest of the band slowly blends in. This typically starts from the root chord from a song that just ended. And the mood of the songs can change from a celabratory fast uptempo tune to a very soft emotional/heart felt one and everything in between. But once in a while we hold fast to a set list :)

With the S90, ES and XS (which I have no experience with but Dreamflight explains it above), Yes you can predetermine what sounds (parts) to be played with each track button and go from there....

But think of it… when you hit a track button, any other track button lit, turns off with the new one so you MUST predetermine the layer or sound. But if Yamaha could allow the first part to stay lit (thus transmitting on multiple channels at a time) when another track button is lit, one could choose the layer live making a nice transition from sound to sound.

On my XP-80’s primary performance, I have two pads, two strings, 3 organs, 3 eps, and two bells.. 12 sounds total. all of these are available on separate dedicated track buttons. Whatever track button I turn on, that sound is in. I have to hit the button again to turn it off. So I pick and choose the layers and sounds on the fly, live.

I almost never layer two organs, or two eps, unless its a mistake or transitional, but I often layer one of the pads with one of the strings and often go to an ep before I cut off any existing pad or sting sound. I have three organs one soft (something like 008513005), no perc, one more middle of the road (888000000) no perc) and one more aggressive (488805003) with perc, and so depending one how the song or set is going I may choose a different one and maybe also layer a pad or sting… maybe. and of course this is the same idea with the EP’s and bells with the pads and strings.

So I never have to predetermine my layers or sounds and I can on the fly during the song adjust from mellower to more agressive and back.

I can no doubt, load up 16 different sounds in mix mode each in separate tracks and change individual sounds on the fly but the layers must be predetermined.

And I think the only thing Yamaha has to do is upgrade the O/S to not turn off a track when another is selected… I don’t know.

I think, there’s not much a demand for this functionality, but I can’t help but think the OS change wouldn’t be that hard, so why not do it?

Thanks guys. Peace. Bob <><

I did asked for this feature half a year ago. I stoped with asking after a post of bad mister. At that very moment he wrote that engineering is working on that. So I hope in next OS it will be there. This will make the XS much more flexible. Many keyboardist don’t buy XS because of this.

I hope something comes of this. In the meantime “performance mode” is my only true option for picking and choosing but only of 4 sounds.

Yesterday I set up a mix with several sounds. I had organ on part 10. I hit a chord, held the sustain pedal and while that chord was sounding, I switched tracks to part 9 piano and began playing piano over the organ chord, but when I picked up off the sustain pedal… the organ chord kept right on a ringing.... This is no good at all… :(

Thanks. Bob <><

Set up a song or pattern with the sounds you want and set the receive channels for all to 1. Use the mute button to silence those you don’t want to hear. Be careful about polyphony, so be reasonable in the number of voices in each song or pattern slot.

If this does not do it for you I suggest an additional tone generator such as a Rack module.

Bob