Hey gang,
I am in the market for a Motif.  I’ve been focused on the XS because of the sliders and arps.  But I am seeing a lot of people still using the ES which tells me there is something more.
If you would, why did you keep yours, aside from cost. Right now I saw a used ES 6 for $699 at guitar center.

I appreciate your help in advance.

M

To be honest, we’re all dreaming of an XF, but that only means
more Voices, more storage, quicker start-up with lots of samples.
In fact we only want more of the same thing because we like the
way Yamaha put the motif line together.
In your position I might choose between
- a used ES (for a reasonable time)
- or a new XF for ever.

;JOOP!

Looks like the xf has most of the same sounds as xs. Minus the extra bank.
Does the es allow you to program and save user arps?
Are the sounds that different between es and xs?
Things to look at. I may hold off. For a bit.

Best to test the machines side by side.
I’m almost convinced that the sounds of the XS are better than the
ES, and if not, you can load a lot more libraries.

And then the XF comes in with flash memory.

;JOOP!

I sold my ES and bought an XF but the only reason I did was to get non-volatile sample storage.

The XS and XF do have extra features over the ES and slightly improved sound, but the ES has some things that were dropped in the newer models. 

If you don’t plan on using lots of samples, the ES is a very capable machine well worth owning.

Can you expand the ES Sample storage?  Not that I plan on using a lot, but I suppose, just in case.
What are some of the things that were dropped from ES-XS,XF?  I know one thing was the expansion boards and it looks like the sequencer/song area has changed.
Any advantage to the extra sliders? Aside from the Organ drawbars ( which Iwould think would be covered in different presets anyway)
I appreciate the info gang. Money is tight and I want to spend it wisely.
I can’t find a place in my area that has both that I can try side by side.  Most of the GC guys I talked to think the XS is better if I don’t get the XF.  That’s why I joined the board. Makes more sense to learn from the people who use them, right?
:)

Dropped from the ES?
- Step recording
- USB-1 (slow)
- SMC cards (128Mb was little)

Gained with the XS/XF?
+ 8 elements in a voice (lots of applications)
+ USB-2
+ Ethernet to your PC
+ bigger display and colours

Just to name a few.
;JOOP!

Sample storage in the ES is up to 1 GB maximum, the RAM itself is optional. You may find a used ES with RAM already installed. If not, you can buy RAM here at the Motifator shop.

Reloading samples at power on is something sampler users have been dealing with since they first came on the market in the 1980s. Samples are lost when you power down, so you must reload them. As memory sizes grew, loading times got longer.

The ES loading time is slow.  There is an autoload feature which will automatically reload samples when you turn the ES on, but you have to wait for them all to load before you can do anything...well over an hour for a full 1GB (ouch) Even though I had 512MB of RAM installed, I never loaded more than about 128 MB of samples which took about 10 minutes. I’d turn the ES on and go make a cup of tea ;)

The XS loads about 4x as fast as the ES but can take up to 2GB of RAM which would still take over half an hour to load.

This is not that bad if used only in a studio situation where you can leave the instrument powered on all day (even use a UPS backup if you like). It’s more of a PITA using lots of samples live.

The XF uses optional flash memory cards (up to 2GB) which only need be loaded once, after that the samples are ready as soon as you turn it on. That’s what the whole Inspiration in a flash ad campaign is about.

Hope this helps.

Yes of course the XS/XF are bigger/faster/stronger and whatever. And if you really need the extra features and the better sound, and you can afford it, then buy the more recent models.

However, I have had an ES6 for a few years now and have to say that I think it was a classic board in its time. I would not sell mine - even if I bought an XF as well!  If I was to be picky I would say that the pianos and brass are not so good, but then you can buy additional samples to improve those sounds.

So it depends if you really need the enhancements of the later models, but, for the money a used ES would cost you, I think it is exceptional value and a great instrument.

Peter

Good acoustic pianos are important, not necessarily the brass.
Not sure i need 7000 arpps, and the color display is nice, but not necessary.  I play various types of music, but primary focus is contemporary christian and some high energy stuff( I own a karate school and want to use it to make music for our demos ;) ).
Seems like the ES is somewhat under-rated for its capacity.  Glad I asked.  I may just get one of them for now and add an XS later.
Are the expansions for the es pretty decent?

If you want better pianos, I would recommend K Sounds.  I use them in my ES and I think they are excellent. I see that the Piano 1 (Steinway) is on offer at the Motifator store at the moment.

Two other advantages of the ES are that it accepts PLG cards & the keybed on the ES 6 & 7 is better IMO. The XS & XF feels a little lighter & cheaper. The ES used lead weights in the keys whereas the XS & XF eliminated it because of environmental concerns. I’ve heard some say they like the newer keybed better but more seem to like the ES keybed more including me. I have a VH & AN PLG card & love them. The AN gives you a whole new synth engine added to the ES. There is also a DX & other cards as well. This is why I will always keep the ES. When Yamaha gets further ahead with advancements I would consider adding a new model. In the meantime, the ES is well capable to fill my needs.