bignoface - 20 December 2016 03:30 AM

I think I’m going with the XF. Won’t have ti track down ram and the firewire upgrade seems like a more realistic way of tracking things out for the future.

An XF might be the right choice for your needs, but the FireWire interface shouldn’t necessarily be a deciding factor, because it’s available for either the XS or XF.

The XS8 came with the mLAN16E2 standard/built-in.
With the XS6 and XS7 the mLAN16E2 was optional.

With the XF6/7/8, the FW16E is optional.

The mLAN16E2 firmware can be updated, and an mLAN16E2 or FW16E can be used with either an XS or XF.

UPDATE: I purchase an XS6. I installed the sample ram that I bought off eBay and upgraded the operating system. I know the Motif’s Sample Engine has been divisively discussed on this forum. I’d just like to preface my review by saying that it is coming from a person that loves the Motif ES’s sample. I know it like the back of my hand.

The Good: Course Tune is clutch. When chopping a long sample, being able to easily pitch it up +6 on the sample editing screen is refreshing. You can do this on the ES but it’s via the samples key instead. Not a huge issue but it can easily gets confusing with long samples.

Another awesome new feature is the key-bank screen. It shows you all the samples in a bank and their notes. Most importantly it allows you to select individual samples in the bank which is absolutely essential to editing different samples in the bank again. The ES surprisingly enough didn’t have this function. I had to go to a random option in jobs just to select the sample that I wanted to edit.

An honorable mention in regard to the Good aspects of the XS is the EQ options and the FXs. Both were great before and they are even better in the XS. Unfortunately this is where my praise ends.

The Bad: The following issue might seem trivial but it really killed the work flow (the main reason why I still use hardware) and honestly became a complete deal breaker after attempting to use it for a week. You are not able to go into JOBS screen from the sample EDIT screen. You have to exit out of EDIT screen back to the regular sample section and THEN go to JOBS screen. I know this sounds really minuscule but it made chopping a 2 bar drum break take forever. Before people hit me with the auto-slice option for quicker results, I never used the slice function in the ES. I always manually sliced samples and even though it took slightly longer, I love the results.

My next gripe might be heavily to blame for my first. What’s the deal with this slow operating system? Navigating through the Motif XS is a drag literally. It makes editing samples a drag. I’m coming from the ES so maybe I’m expecting too much but I just couldn’t deal with it.  Also what’s with all of the ‘Are you sure?’ Windows? I know the ES asked a lot too but I feel it was more excessive in XS. Probably because of the slow operating system.

One of the main dishonorable mentions is the data wheel. It’s so finicky and when you are trying to precisely chop a sample to constantly scroll pass the sample is annoying. The lack of a step sequencer was annoying too. The ES’s wasn’t perfect but it was nice to have. I also loaded up some old tracks and wasn’t a huge fan of how they sounded coming out of the XS. I was looking to upgrade to see if Yamaha improved the sound quality. That might of been the case but I may just be more accustomed to the ES’s sound.

To conclude this essay of a review I sold the XS6 today. The quick work flow of sampling and chopping in the ES turned out to be my favorite aspect of it. I didn’t realize how quick I was on the ES until I sat down with the XS. I got a crazy deal on a SU700 with the output board expansion and will try that. I’ve been looking for a board to put into the ES for a while so I’m good regardless. Before I buy another ES I might give the MPC Live a try as well first since it’s coming out next month. The search for the perfect sampler continues!

bignoface - 20 January 2017 08:20 AM

UPDATE: I purchase an XS6. I installed the sample ram that I bought off eBay and upgraded the operating system. [...]

OK, but if you updated to the most recent OS…

 

bignoface -

The Bad: The following issue might seem trivial but it really killed the work flow (the main reason why I still use hardware) and honestly became a complete deal breaker after attempting to use it for a week.

...it’s unfortunate that you didn’t post here sooner. Most of what you objected to was resolved in OS updates…

New functions added in XS OS 1.10 and 1.50:
http://download.yamaha.com/file/8926

New functions added in XS OS 1.60:
http://download.yamaha.com/file/48526

 

bignoface -

You are not able to go into JOBS screen from the sample EDIT screen. You have to exit out of EDIT screen back to the regular sample section and THEN go to JOBS screen. I know this sounds really minuscule but it made chopping a 2 bar drum break take forever. Before people hit me with the auto-slice option for quicker results, I never used the slice function in the ES. I always manually sliced samples and even though it took slightly longer, I love the results.

If direct access to the Slice function was your issue, it was resolved in OS 1.60 - Normalize, Slice, and Remix tabs were added to the Sample Edit screen. See above link.

 

bignoface -

My next gripe might be heavily to blame for my first. What’s the deal with this slow operating system? Navigating through the Motif XS is a drag literally. It makes editing samples a drag. I’m coming from the ES so maybe I’m expecting too much but I just couldn’t deal with it.  Also what’s with all of the ‘Are you sure?’ Windows? I know the ES asked a lot too but I feel it was more excessive in XS. Probably because of the slow operating system.

Yes, the screen updating could have been faster, but the XS displays a lot more on a single screen than the ES does, and perhaps you wouldn’t have had a problem with this if you were aware of the updated access to Slice.

 

bignoface -

One of the main dishonorable mentions is the data wheel. It’s so finicky and when you are trying to precisely chop a sample to constantly scroll pass the sample is annoying.

I don’t find the Data Dial to be especially “finicky” on my own XS6. Perhaps the rotary encoder in the XS you had wasn’t performing as it should. One thing to be aware of is that there’s built-in acceleration capability for the Data Dial - the faster it’s spun, the more rapidly the controlled value changes. Slowing Data Dial operation as the desired value is approached can help. Using the [INC/YES] and [DEC/NO] buttons allows fine adjustment to values. Furthermore, OS 1.10 and beyond allowed for a USB ASCII keyboard to be attached to the TO DEVICE port. That can make navigating the XS display, changing values, naming things, etc., much easier. See the above link.

 

bignoface -

The lack of a step sequencer was annoying too. The ES’s wasn’t perfect but it was nice to have.

True, the XS doesn’t have step sequencing.

 

bignoface -

I also loaded up some old tracks and wasn’t a huge fan of how they sounded coming out of the XS. I was looking to upgrade to see if Yamaha improved the sound quality. That might of been the case but I may just be more accustomed to the ES’s sound.

In certain areas the ES and XS definitely sound different. However, some of that can be resolved. See http://www.motifator.com/index.php/support/view/converting_motif_es_and_mo6_mo8_data_to_the_motif_xs_and_motif_xf and the linked ES_MO_2XS.zip file in the article.

 

bignoface -

To conclude this essay of a review I sold the XS6 today. The quick work flow of sampling and chopping in the ES turned out to be my favorite aspect of it. I didn’t realize how quick I was on the ES until I sat down with the XS. I got a crazy deal on a SU700 with the output board expansion and will try that. I’ve been looking for a board to put into the ES for a while so I’m good regardless. Before I buy another ES I might give the MPC Live a try as well first since it’s coming out next month. The search for the perfect sampler continues!

I don’t think you gave the XS6 a fair shot, but to each his own. I’m a firm believer in using the tools that best meet your personal needs.

I don’t think you followed what I wrote properly. I updated to the latest operating system 1.60. My issue wasn’t with the accessibility of the Slice function. If you read what I wrote you would of saw that I actually don’t even use Slice. I manually chop all of my samples. My issue was having to exit out of the edit screen in order to go to the job section. For chopping and editing samples you may need all of those functions available to you in the job function. Most importantly the ability to swiftly Copy the Sample to another key.

You are entitled to your own opinion but I gave the XS more than a fair shot. The slow operating system defeats the purpose of using hardware. Making basic sample requirements far too tedious on this machine. Maybe Yamaha should consider putting less on the screen if it means that it will function better.

It’s been my experience that workflow is typically best with a tool you know well. You evidently have spent a lot of time with the ES, and are very comfortable with it. More time than a week spent with the XS might have found it better meeting your expectations.

As I said, “I’m a firm believer in using the tools that best meet your personal needs”. If for you that’s the ES (or something else), then by all means use one. For me, the sampling capabilities of the XS (and XF), including the Slice function, meet my current needs.

Ok that’s fine. It works for you perfectly. That’s great for YOU. That doesn’t mean that the XS’s Sample Engine is immune from improvement. I love the ES but there are a lot of issues that I’ll admit need to be updated. Hence me investigating the XS’s sample capabilities. Not sure why you’re so defensive/protective of it. It’s just a keyboard man

Please understand that I’m not defending Yamaha. I own both an XS6 and an XF6, and I’m at least somewhat familiar with many of the other Motifs. I fully recognize limitations of the various models, and I’ve found occasional bugs, quirks, and annoyances in their operation.

I’m sorry if you feel I’ve been dismissive of your concerns. My response to your review was meant to offer a slightly different perspective on what you saw as flaws, mainly because other new users might assume that they’d necessarily have similar issues.

The XS is what it is - Yamaha isn’t going to improve anything about it. Even the XF is unlikely to see another OS version. To take maximum advantage of what the Motifs can deliver, users should become as aware as possible of operational capabilities. Hopefully participation in the Motifator forums helps in that regard.