Hello .Please recommend a combo for Yamaha Motif Es - so that the combo can convey all the frequencies and beauty of the sound . Is there any difference for home and performance ?

For yamaha Tyros there are special speakers - which probably transmit the whole spectrum of sound frequencies.

Hi there,

Motif ES6 - 17 December 2023 03:20 PM

Is there any difference for home and performance?

Yes, very much so, with the big difference being sound pressure level (volume) capacity. Other considerations may also apply, such as whether you require a mono or true stereo setup, options for connecting and mixing other sound sources together with your instrument, the ability to quickly and easily adjust your sound, etc.

For home use, you’ll typically be seated within a few feet from the speakers, so not a whole lot of capacity is required. An existing hifi system with a spare line input might therefore do okay at low to moderate levels, but may be impractical to move around or place sensibly with respect to the instrument. A pair of active (powered) studio monitors can provide a bit more headroom if you prefer to play louder, and also more freedom in terms of placement.

Speaker placement and room size/layout/construction do matter for the tonal balance. Without getting into subjectives, what sounds good in one spot of the room can sound thin or overwhelmingly bass-heavy when placed in (or listening from) another spot within the same room. You should thus be prepared to do some trials before committing to buy. Both SPL and bottom-end extension are ultimately limited by the speakers’ physical size, though: The Tyros main speakers are way too small to reproduce real bass notes, and are therefore augmented by a small separate subwoofer, which itself is still going to be too small for most performing musicians (save perhaps for the tiniest pubs and quietest audiences).

For performance or stage use, with an audience of - hopefully - more than one, you’ll be covering a much larger space than at home. Since sound pressure drops by roughly 6 dB for every doubling of the distance, you will quickly be driving your speakers a lot louder. Because venues are widely different, acoustically speaking, you’ll also prefer to have some headroom left, to be able to e.g. apply EQ boost as needed without pushing the system into distortion (if you’re performing together with other loud instruments, you also have to factor that in). I would strongly consider a portable PA system, if the venue doesn’t have their own PA or sound installation you can plug into.

- H -

Thank you, Henry. I’ll clarify my question again:
Yamaha Motif Es sounds great on headphones !
I have noticed many times that when performing on stage and connecting the synthesizer to a large speaker, the sound quality changes, it becomes worse or not the way I am used to hearing it in headphones. On stage, for some reason, the sound is lost and becomes more subtle and poor quality.
Thanks for the answer on Tyros - I hoped that his native speakers accurately convey the quality, at least in the room. Of course, I have played on Tyros and I know what you are talking about. On stage he practically doesn’t change the sound quality - he sounds tightly with other musicians. I’m talking about live work as a keyboard player without synthesizer styles.
For home are interested in monitors (maybe) than to hear good quality as in headphones and be happy. But without headphones )

And maybe recommend a monitor for the stage.I am tired of performances where often very poorly heard synthesizer. And on the video then it is not at all - one drum and bass guitar.

Motif ES6 - 18 December 2023 07:57 AM

(...) when performing on stage and connecting the synthesizer to a large speaker, the sound quality changes, it becomes worse or not the way I am used to hearing it in headphones.

This is not surprising. Headphones and speakers will never sound the same, because they operate under fundamentally different conditions: One excites the air in the room, while the other makes sound appear “inside” your head. When mixing a song on headphones, no matter how perfect it sounds, as soon as I turn on the speakers, the result is always a disappointment: Suddenly, the panning is all wrong, a couple of instruments stick out, another one is drowning, the bass is almost gone in places, the reverbs no longer sound right, etc. The tracks may sound OK in isolation, but the combination is all wrong. This is why I rarely mix with headphones, and generally only use them when recording in the control room.

Something similar goes for rehearsal and live performance. It doesn’t really matter how good the synthesizer sounds in the rehearsal space, the studio or the headphones: The stage is a different environment.

Motif ES6 - 18 December 2023 08:22 AM

And maybe recommend a monitor for the stage.I am tired of performances where often very poorly heard synthesizer. And on the video then it is not at all - one drum and bass guitar.

Video recordings have their own problems when it comes to sound, and there are limits to how much “reality” a randomly placed phone or camera mic can capture. I certainly wouldn’t trust that alone. It’s better to rely on your ears there and then. I’m still not clear on whether you perform alone or with other musicians, or how your synthesizer is amplified, but if you’re in a band and can’t hear your own instrument, it could be that you’re located in the wrong spot with regards to the speakers, or that your synth is actually mixed too quiet or with improper EQ or effect settings for the purpose.

With regards to the monitoring situation, it depends on the rest of your sound reinforcements system, but remember to keep the two separate, so that changing the combo/monitor amp volume doesn’t impact the main mix. The top-of-the-line Roland KC-990 and KC-220 (completely overkill, I know) are stereo all the way through from input to speakers, and also have Line Out jacks (independent of the Master volume setting). This makes it possible to plug your keyboard’s main outputs directly into the amp, control your own monitor level with the Master volume knob, and run a pair of cables on to the PA system. Others amps may have mono speakers, but still provide stereo ins and outs. If these are out of reach, you could either feed a simpler amp, like the Behringer K900FX (which is mono all the way) via Y-cables or from your keyboard’s Assignable/Headphone outputs, or if possible feed a monitor signal from the PA mixer back to the amp.

- H -

Thank you Henry for your answers and patience, it’s hard to talk to an interpreter, but I’m trying.)
Yamaha Es at home with headphones is the best sound that I am satisfied with - I want to have such a sound quality when using external speakers at home, so that I don’t have to sit in headphones all the time, but to be able to play the instrument in peace. My cheap, household speakers for some reason do not transmit well the sound of the synthesizer, although the rest of the music (mp3) play well.
On stage I play with other musicians - bass, guitar and acoustic drums + vocalists .Here are a little different questions - how can I keep the best sound of Yamaha Es .All combi - which provide for work, still sounds not very comfortable and a little not as good as at home .I understand that the sound is dampened by other instruments and a lot of parameters .But I do not lose hope for improving the sound for myself and comfortable work . Do I need a dibox? Maybe I need some additional plug-in for the synthesizer, although Yamaha Es has a strong enough sound output +6dzb.

Hi,

Motif ES6 - 25 December 2023 04:33 PM

Yamaha Es at home with headphones is the best sound that I am satisfied with - I want to have such a sound quality when using external speakers at home

You have been clear about what you want, but again, no speaker will sound like a pair of headphones. The artificial “fullness” you may hear on headphones does not translate very well to a set of speakers. You have noticed this yourself, and the difference is something you’ll probably have to get used to.

For home use, again, you could try out some cheap studio monitors (optionally with a subwoofer), and see how close you can get to the sound you’re after. They are unlikely to provide enough SPL for on-stage gig monitoring, though.

Motif ES6 - 25 December 2023 04:33 PM

My cheap, household speakers for some reason do not transmit well the sound of the synthesizer, although the rest of the music (mp3) play well.

I don’t know what type of speakers these are, but the issue could be down to limited bandwidth or limited dynamic headroom. It could also be that your comparison isn’t fair; Music that has been arranged, mixed and processed is different to the raw sound of an instrument, and they therefore should sound different on any kind of speaker. If you are comparing ensemble or multi-tracked music to playing a single keyboard part, the difference is going to be very obvious (in this case, a better comparison might be playing back a carefully multi-tracked and mixed arrangement from your Motif’s sequencer).

I have not heard your sound, but it’s not uncommon for musicians to want their instrument to sound “full” or “rich” when practising alone; Listening to a solo instrument for extended periods becomes boring to the ear, so we tend to dial in a more exciting sound for ourselves than we would elsewhere. It sounds more pleasing when played alone, but our bandmates may disagree when playing together (strong bass notes are cool when playing an organ or piano part on your own, but when the bassist shows up, you’re suddenly competing with him/her for sonic space and attention).

If you listen to individual tracks from recordings, you will notice that melodic instruments rarely sound very powerful on their own. The “fullness” or “richness” is more often the sum of all of the instruments and the processing done to them. This of course also applies to bands in live situations.

Motif ES6 - 25 December 2023 04:33 PM

On stage I play with other musicians - bass, guitar and acoustic drums + vocalists .

This is useful information, but you still haven’t told us what type of amplification you use for the band members and for your synthesizer. Please be as specific as you can!

Motif ES6 - 25 December 2023 04:33 PM

how can I keep the best sound of Yamaha Es .All combi - which provide for work, still sounds not very comfortable and a little not as good as at home .

If you are comparing the combo sound to your headphones (again), that’s like comparing apples and oranges. It would be more helpful to know what type of combo you are referring to.

Motif ES6 - 25 December 2023 04:33 PM

Do I need a dibox? Maybe I need some additional plug-in for the synthesizer, although Yamaha Es has a strong enough sound output +6dzb.

This depends on what type of equipment you are amplifying your Motif with on stage, and again, you haven’t yet told us what that is. DI boxes are used to match input and output impedances (e.g. for driving a mic-level input with guitar- or line-level instruments), and in some cases to convert an unbalanced signal to a balanced one when long cable runs are needed. If your Motif is already connected to a line input, a DI box doesn’t change the sound much.

- H -

Thank you, Henry! I read your answers many times - they contain a lot of valuable information!
I will try this weekend to find out the types of amplification on stage.
And maybe I’ll clarify the question: Is the sound pressure of the synthesizer called PA or not?
Apart from the forum here, I’m also talking to people who have Motifs - who are experienced, point out Yamaha Motif - first series. It’s the most dense in sound and penetration in the mix with the rest of the live musicians.  Next Yamaha Motif ES + PLG boards. And Yamaha Motif XS is already thinner in sound, though it is much more functional! And the further you go, the thinner the sound becomes in the models.
I really want to listen to Yamaha Montage M - in principle, Yamaha technology is returning to its roots: Yamaha EX 5 =Yamaha Motif Es+ An-Plg+Fm Plg+Vl Plg =Yamaha Montage M +An-X +Fm-X.
The Montage has crazy functionality and lots of memory for timbres .But Yamaha Motif first series is for some reason considered the most punchy and readable in a mix with other musicians . Or is it my misconception? Henry, you are an authority, I would like to hear your answer very much.
Not an advertisement, there is Tiago Mallen in youtube, he repairs and then records videos of playing on different synthesizers, that’s elementary ! -He has enough quality sound for YouTube, he works through a sound card, I do not know what stream, but it sounds very clear ! -Just what I would like to hear from an instrument.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=scZGpjxOJcA

Here is a demonstration of Yamaha Motif Es - on my household speakers Gemix TF 611 - sounds very good, as I have in my headphones synthesizer. But for some reason the synthesizer - connected to these speakers Gemix - does not give a spectrum in the demonstration, as Tiago in YouTube. )

.

Hi there,

Motif ES6 - 12 February 2024 03:18 PM

And maybe I’ll clarify the question: Is the sound pressure of the synthesizer called PA or not?

Sound pressure? Are you referring to the signal level of the line outputs?

Motif ES6 - 12 February 2024 03:18 PM

But Yamaha Motif first series is for some reason considered the most punchy and readable in a mix with other musicians . Or is it my misconception?

I only have the ES, so I wouldn’t be able to comment on that.

Motif ES6 - 12 February 2024 03:18 PM

He has enough quality sound for YouTube, he works through a sound card, I do not know what stream, but it sounds very clear ! -Just what I would like to hear from an instrument.

It sounds the way a Motif ES should to me. Those are the factory Demo songs, so you’ll be able to load and play the same songs on your own instrument for direct comparison.

- H -