Anyone tried out Yamaha Reface yet?

The Lounge Other Gear
#1

I had a go at these in the store the other day, the CS and CP models specifically, and I’m pretty impressed with what Yamaha is doing here.

They sound absolutely great, the CS has a lot of character and the CP drips with vintage charm. The hands-on tweaking and one knob per function ethos works great despite the size, and the keybed invites for play much more than you’d expect.

Pair the CS with the Octatrack’s MIDI sequencer, sample loops, one shots and sequences from it and you’re covered for a good while.

But that’s just me and the evening tea talking.

Anyone else tried these?

And no, I don’t work for Yamaha. I just like what they’re doing here.

#2

did I try the reface? … NO … but since the last sonic lab review from the oooh so talented and sympathetic Nick Batt … boy I am telling you! : … that fm reface is exactly how I would like the MM to be … digital, minikeys (off course a sequencer too) … darn there were some lovely sounds in there… coming from a analog gear hipster fanboy! :slight_smile:

edit forgot to mention how quickly you get apparently GREAT sounds out of that thing…

#3

While I haven’t tried them yet, the DX is an instant buy for me :wink: The last Sonic State video just sealed the deal.

#4

Yeah I’m very tempted by the DX. I still don’t really understand the hate for minikeys, I find them easier to play and they’re a vital part of my quest for the most compact setup possible.

Anyway, these are going to be an absolutely ridiculous price in Australia so I may have to wait a while before thinking about buying one :stuck_out_tongue: … Plus, I’ve been eyeing off the Nord Drum 2 and a new multi-FX pedal for my guitar, so…

#5

Over here in Sweden, they’re priced as a MicroKorg or a MiniNova. In that range, they’re definitely not overpriced. But more than the others, it depends on your preference. I get the impression they’re directed towards keyboard players. The keybed, while mini, feels a lot more solid than its competitors. The sound engine is just outstanding and the hardware interface feels very classy. The build quality itself is weighty, not like a tank but certainly a micro version of something that can take a beating.

So they’re very different but I think properly priced, given their very clearly defined value.

#6

Was tempted by the dx until I saw the price in australia.

Bought the FM4 rack extension for reason instead…

#7

Hi, i am on the hunt for a small keyboard . Going to get the DX & CS maybe the CP .
If you are familiar with german language check this link to amazona.de ( german gear site)
https://cse.google.de/cse?cx=013961182194389294575:xegqd9hjmby&ie=UTF-8&q=reface&sa=Suche&siteurl=www.amazona.de/&ref=www.google.de/#gsc.tab=0&gsc.q=reface&gsc.page=1

They have tested the CP/CS/DX. And the DX is da King of mini keys. Build quality is top notch.
Going to use the DX\CS with my BigSky straight into the OT.

Have fun!

#8

I don’t think the price is too bad, more than a Microkorg but less than a Bass Station II. Our exchange rate, well that’s another matter.

#9

I don’t think the price is too bad, more than a Microkorg but less than a Bass Station II. Our exchange rate, well that’s another matter.[/quote]
Ah, I see the price of the BS2 has also ramped up. Sold mine for 400 not too long ago.
I don’t think that the DX is overpriced compared to anything else - it’s more that it’s gone too far out of my own pricerange to be able to justify another HW synth when a cheap plugin will do just as well for me.
On the upside, our crappy exchange rate is pretty helpful for gas control :slight_smile:

#10

I think this whole Reface idea is very much an all or nothing thing - it’s either just the fit for you, or not at all.

Given that it really is a micro version of a vintage idea, with no memory, no sequencer, no nothing, you gotta enjoy playing it, otherwise I think it really isn’t worth it. And I think Yamaha knows this.

Just the fact that they’ve really tried to make a mini keyboard with a quality keybed - and I’d say they succeeded, given the circumstances - says something of what they want to achieve here.

But really, I’d like them to resurrect their groove box heritage as well. They did some awesome stuff there, with the AN200, RS7000 and so on.

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#11

I had written all the Reface efforts off to be honest. The DX held my interest for a while but then I thought “nah, it’ll be shite”. But that Sonic Lab review did change my opinion - enough so that if they ever hit some interesting sale prices (these things are ripe for an Amazon Black Friday sale or something like that) then I could see myself picking one up.

The moment I sort of went “yes!” was when Nick played a lovely sounding yet very simple loop on the looper. Sounded great to me.

My problem is that I once owned a Fs1R and cant help but think I’d be disappointed in comparison plus I never got on with a TX81Z (not sure but is this close to the Reface?).

Anyway, I should really delve deeper into my MnM’s FM machines - any good tutorials out there?

#12

I love FM8 for the complex pads you can create with it. The DX doesn’t seem to go very far beyond the corny FM-E-Piano sound though, judging from the review. Maybe the algos are just not complex enough. Too bad. But I loved when the Sonic Lab dude real time modulated the parameters from the external BCR.
There should be more FM hardware for sure. About the keyboard i really don’t care. Ivories are so 17th century anyway.

#13

Anyone else had a chance to test the ReDX? I’m sold on the features but still on the fence about the sound of it… Checked a UT vid where someone played it alongside an og dx7 and sad to say, the og sounded fuller and more nuanced to my ears :sob:

#14

Digital pianos are becoming more and more appealing. Clean tone, the ‘natural’ tonal and textural changes that happen with velocity increase or decreases… Being commonly able to sequence up to 16 individual parts, changing instruments per step with program change parameter locking, which the Digitakt will be capable of I hear.

If they perchance seem boring the ‘rhode-sy’ Yamaha Reface CP that was released about a year ago quite possibly might not.

With the tremolo, chorus, delay and reverb having basic controls dedicated to handful of knobs it seems like theres a lot of possibility for sound design and exploration while staying on the solid sound foundation of the initial, dry, factory settings.

Only thing is they are limited as far as MIDI implementation, the reface DX looks like it has more than a couple things wrong with it, the CP only a couple, and its hitting a good spot in the market, essentially a traditional, organic friend of drum machines that can speak the same language, to a degree…

An Elektron Digital Piano would be siiiiiiick, they could do it right for sure, a modern player piano with a godly sequencer…

#15

i can only talk about the dx and the yc.
both are very nice instruments.
yc is a lot of fun to use
and the dx is very capable - fm made pretty easy.
of course it could be more complex featurewise, but that would take a lot of its playability.
the yc is one of the most wysiwyg instruments i know and sounds really great. it think the cp is very similar.
definitely worth a try

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#16

Nice, yeah the Piano and Organ definitely are interesting.
The piano caught my eye first but the organ seems interesting too…

DX200 takes the win by faaaaaaaaaaar in the FM world though.

Will have to go occupy a Guitar Center for a day or two…

#17

you are right with the dx 200 - still have it - the reface sound is different - cause you will tweak other parameters than on the 200 - i am sure you will like it when you lay your hands on it.

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#18

glad to hear it has something different to offer! Heard it couldn’t take any of the older DX’s patches and counted it out, are the keys velocity sensitive? The CS is not I believe.
Be you an FM expert?
Curious about the engine in the Machinedrum, been listening to Aphex Twin’s Cheetah EP and am curious about these different flavors of FM. A searching I will go…

#19

i like FM synthesis a lot - plays very well along with analog sound.
but i am not an expert at all.
the dx is only 4 op in contrast to the 6 op in the DX7. but having a resonance loop for every op makes ist very flexible.
no dx patches you are right - but i never missed the 1001 digi piano sound variations :wink:
and there are very good sound creators sharing their patches on soundmondo.

fm machines on the MD are very nice. but the fm machines on Monomachine are huge. ;))
still fighting with the fm LFOs on the A4.

last word about the refaces - i know, they got bad press (mostly cause they are expensive compared to the volcas) - but they are built very well and are very nice to touch, great plastic what they are using - a bit like corian - maybe that sounds a little weird now - but its really good :wink:

#20

Had a Reface DX. Sounds great but hated the interface.
Those touch slider things are rubbish. Terrible response and feedback.
Put some standard sliders on for gods sake, and while your add it add other 20 knobs and rule the world :happy:
How long is it going to take a company to release a decent fm synth? There is a huge untapped market just wishing and waiting for it to happen

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