Everyone has echoed my sentiments. However, if you’re just messing around, and want the convenience (especially with a portable device) I think it’s kind of a cool concept. However, to me it’s like synths with speakers. I would never own one because I don’t want them in there when I have monitors for everything. I wouldn’t want to be bound to a certain level of technology. Allow the synth itself to be timeless, and use an external tool for this. You can actually get a decent, tiny BT encoder for like $25. Just toss it in your case/bag/whatever you keep your portable gear in, and let it do it the job. Personally, I use cords whenever possible. All my computers are ethernet. I use gamepads with cords when possible (except when playing in the living room, then I use PS5 pads with my PC there). I use wired headphones, wired monitors, etc. I don’t use wireless mice, keyboards, etc. It’s just not worth the latency, the interference potential, etc. for anything serious. But for a portable setup that’s just for fun, I think just adding a little external encoder is a cool idea.
I wouldn’t want it in my synths though, and I would hate knowing it was there unused if it was.
That’s just me though. I have some pretty specific psychoses that rule my thoughts on these things
It never occurred to me. I like this solution, especially as I have additonal rubber feet at the back of my DT which tilts it slightly, making enough room.
I don’t think I’ve ever agreed with so many responses in a single thread…
Oh, how I wish more people saw these boxes as the instruments they were intended to be, and aspired to use them thusly. Latency ruins the entire experience of playing an instrument.
Never mind the constant negotiation of dealing with the Bluetooth protocol.
…no matter how much realtime ur workflow needs…when it comes to make music, latency remain one of the essebtial issues u run into…any lack between action and reaction is bummer in one way or the other…bluetooth for groove boxes 'n such sounds like a given nightmare to me…
it’s truu future in progress for consuming, but for creating…?..no, thanx a lot…
I do think it’s handy for mixers though (model 12). I occasionally do live sound engineering for charities and very often people are unprepared.
This means someone coming to the desk at the last minute and asking how we can play this song or the sound that goes with the video on the smartphone with no jacks. I once got by using a car’s Bluetooth-to-jack gadget but switching between phones was an awkward and tremendous pain (there were several required … because).
But synths … one thing I like about hardware synths is their relative simplicity compared to a computer. Adding Bluetooth is just one more step towards computer complexity (I never programmed anything as low level as Bluetooth but I’m sure many engineers that worked on it will tell you it’s a mess to implement and maintain).
Once you give something an RF antenna, you have to commit a non-trivial degree of resources to communications regulation compliance with agencies in every market to which you sell. At the volume of consumer electronics sales, this is offset quickly but in our niche market, it doesn’t make sense unless it’s a feature that really drives sales or as part of future-proofing for something you expect to support for many years. And to the extent you sell a device that has complex interactions with consumer electronics, your volume of customer service goes up considerably. Small stuff for a big company like Yamaha, but significant for our boutique mad scientist gadgeteers.
