In the past, when memory was neither plentiful nor cheap, the common architecture was to create individual sounds in a Patch or Program mode, and then combine these into more complex Multis/Combis/Performances that comprised numerous sounds split or layered across the keyboard, or arranged multitimbrally, as required. I have often wondered whether the world needs another synth with an on-board sequencer that will be ignored in favour of the likes of Digital Performer, Logic or Sonar (it doesn’t), so I am delighted that Yamaha’s programmers have invested their time and expertise on its sound.Īlthough it is 16-part multitimbral, there’s no ‘patch’ level for programming sounds: everything is done at the Performance level, which combines sound selection, editing, mixing, multitimbral assignments, and much more. It offers two sound engines (AWM2 and FM-X) that you can use separately or combine freely in composite sounds and multitimbral setups, plus highly evolved arpeggiation, multitimbral effects and a basic MIDI recorder, but no sampling capabilities and no audio/MIDI sequencing. Perhaps the most important thing you need to understand about the Montage is that it’s a synthesizer rather than a workstation. With new firmware that includes sounds, additional effects, more flexible modulation routing, and additional programming screens and facilities, Montage v1.5 now seems ripe for review. Almost inevitably there were a few niggles with early units and, with some patches, some players reported a small latency between pressing a key and the onset of the sound, But any initial problems appear now to have been eliminated. There had to be a time when Yamaha would attempt to reassert their authority and, when launching the Montage, the company were clear that this had been designed to be ‘the’ flagship synthesizer of the current era. More recently, the Motif and its many spin-offs have been hugely successful, but even the most powerful of these were eclipsed by the Korg OASYS and Kronos. Further releases suffered at the hands of the Roland D-50 and the Korg M1, followed by the Kurzweil K2000 and the Korg Trinity. But in the late ’80s and ’90s the company seemed to lose their edge. In the 1970s, the GX-1 and then the CS-80 defined the forefront of analogue synth development before, in 1983, the company almost single-handedly destroyed the market for large analogue polysynths when the DX7 swept aside the likes of Prophet 5, the OB8, and the Memorymoog. Yamaha were once the unassailable titans of polyphonic synthesis. But does it have what it takes to be the market leader Yamaha want it to be? Other notable features include a large color touchscreen, Super Knob control that can control multiple parameters simultaneously, dual insert FX for all 16 parts, powerful pattern sequencer, and an arpeggiator that allows up to 8 arpeggio parts at once.As its name implies, the Montage combines multiple technologies within a single, powerful instrument. Also, Montage is directly compatible with Motif ES/XS/XF voices, allowing you to transfer your favorite presets and get all of your sounds together in one place. The Montage features 16-part multitimbral operation, but it comes with a full range of all-new sounds, like the Yamaha CFX Premium Grand Piano, detailed new strings and woodwinds, and select content from the DX and TX families, all modernized to take advantage of the Motion Control Synthesis Engine. It features 8 operator FM architecture and 128-note polyphony, allowing for a massive array of sound-design options. The FM-X engine is capable of producing everything from classic '80s FM-based basses and bells, to harsh, cutting-edge modern EDM-type sounds. This means that the Montage allows for far more samples per instrument than the XF and thus a far more nuanced sound. Powered by proprietary Yamaha data compression and playback technology, the AWM2 engine provides realistic sound reproduction and features nearly 10 times the waveform capacity of the Motif XF. Employing Motion-Control Synthesis, the Montage combines two sound engines: AWM2 (synthesis- and sample-based sounds) and FM-X (frequency modulation synthesis.) The Yamaha Montage 8 is a 88-key workstation synthesizer that combines elements of the DX- and Motif-series keyboards.
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