Yamaha MOX 6 spotted at local GC

Wandered into a local Chicago Sam Ash at lunchtime - found both a Yamaha MOX 6 and 8. I am interested in the MOX 6. (Automatically typed "GC" into the subject header because that's where I usually go.)

First of all, this thing sounds GREAT. It has the XS sound engine, and more programs than I could possibly audition in ten minutes. If you're someone looking for the Motif XS sounds in an $1,199 package, this is it.

Keybed - surprisingly better than expected. Not as nice as a Motif XF (which was nearby), but definitely nicer than a Korg M50 (which was right next to it). Thankfully, it does not feel like an entry level workstation keyboard.

Overall build quality - It's plastic. It weighs 15.4 pounds. It is portable as a rompler/workstation could possibly be, so it is made out of plastic. Does it feel flimsy? No. Cheap? No. Does it have the same build quality as an XF, M3, or Fantom? No. Do you need to worry about the thing breaking? I doubt it.

Knobs are plastic, but feel reasonably good.

I compared the MOX 6 visually with an MO6, which was also nearby. The MO6 looks a bit more sturdy, I think because the silvery color to it gives a metallic vibe. But ultimately the build quality on each seems to be about the same.

The OS seems to be distinctly related to the OS I had on my original Motif. In many ways, it looks identical.

Pics below - sorry about the iPhone 3GS quality.

I got mine a few weeks ago and I love it. I agree about the keybed being better than expected, but honestly the overall construction does not feel very sturdy to me and I don't think it could handle much abuse. Still, for what I paid (less than a new m50) it is just killer. It sounds and feels great and probably won't leave my jam room or be moved around much, so It shouldn't encounter much danger.

I find it awesome that it's actually less than what a Motif XS Rack goes for...

I'll have to swing by Guitar Center this weekend and see if they have the 6 and the 8, not that I'm planning on getting it, but I'm curious about it.

Yup. Though the rack does have some advantages, like 128 note polyphony instead of 64, and separate outs. Possibly more simultaneous effects, too.

I thought the XS rack was discontinued.

What was the action like on the 8?

I played it for a few minutes and it seemed fine. I am not a good judge, though, because I don't like weighted action on synths, and have never owned one.

I read somewhere it has the same action as the p95

If $1199 is MAP, that's AWESOME. Bummer on 64 poly though (I haven't read the specs). However as a "2nd" board for gigging and at 15 lbs, that's REALLY hard to beat. I have the M50 and love the light weight and the touch screen works surprisingly well. If I didn't already own an XS, I'd grab one of those for sure. If I ever wanted to downsize, I wonder how the patch compatibility is with the XS? Still no samples though right? It would almost be worth it. Might be a good way to go in the future though. Pick up a used one and sell my XS. This is all under the assumption I get the Kronos as my new main board.

It's helpful to have an opinion from someone who owns one of these.

I think that these lightweight, inexpensive boards probably can't take much "abuse." If you're going to gig six times a month and schlep an MOX to/from band practice, and not use care and have a nice case, you're probably asking for trouble. But if you're mostly a home musician, who's looking for a lightweight board that will be moved occasionally, and/or you're careful with your stuff, the MOX should be just fine.

Truth is, there aren't a ton of things to break off on the MOX. Knobby synths like my Virus and P08 look to be more "at risk" for damage than the MOX.

You'd be surprised at what "lightweight" gear sometimes lives on, year after year:

I have had a Korg Triton Le61 kybd. - - in a SOFT SHELL CASE!! - - that has served me well on hundreds of gigs since 2002. Granted, all local gigs -nothing "on the road" or in and out of airplanes but still...

Granted, it has started to flake a little:

 

- - but still, it has held up remarkably well for such a flimsy-built little POS 'board - and I've dragged it around from gig to gig every year - probably over 500 gigs... in a Soft Case - and it still works!?

 

The knobs are pretty sturdy and at least don't feel cheap and wobly, but something about the feel of the plastic the whole thing is made of just makes me feel like it would crack or shatter more easily than I'd like. I haven't tested that hypothesis obviously so maybe (hopefully) ut's just a personal bias against the feel of the plastic.

Michael

Many thanks for posting, great to hear you like the keys on this one, sounds like you will be getting one.

The end cheeks look better than I realised, stylish...

I was also impressed with the speed of start up and switching as shown here:

[video=youtube;y2d8krvuEZs]

Love to know what this guy means by plastic hinges, (does he mean like the M50?):

[video=youtube;PEq6Px7cEPU]

Mentioned here, he says the action is light:

[video=youtube;vDDNewUnbtU]

The MOX was so appealing that I ordered one at the beginning of the week. They are in short supply right now, so I ensured the merchant I was ordering from had "In Stock" on their product web page. The following day I received an e-mail telling me they are actually out of stock. A minute later I replied and told them that I refuse wait on a backorder.

Rather than get a MOX through eBay, as I could have done easily, I decided to buy the Motif instead. In less than an hour I had an XF8 on the way with only a $4.00 overnight shipping charge. Bye, bye MOX.

[video=youtube;ofoVHTcHO-A]

[video=youtube;bDJ29OnohlM]

I never heard a digital synth go out of tune. That's unusual for sure.

I bet it was because he carried it around in a soft shell case. It probably got flatted at one of the many gigs.

- ha! could be... but the point I was trying to make is that EVEN though the Korg Triton Le is a lightweight, crappily built piece of gear AND I've hauled it around in a soft case - it STILL took years of a beating - - on many, many gigs before it started to give me any trouble.

People complain about the build quality of the M50. I've been gigging that since it came out and I'm not a light player. As technology improves, more stuff is put on less circuitry. The M50 only has a couple circuit boards inside, not too much to break. I'm sure it's the same with the MOX.

For me, if the MOX can't load Motif ES/XS sounds directly, I have little interest. Does anyone know if it does?

It already has all the same sounds that the Motif XS has. (In Korg-speak, it has all the same programs, but not all the same combis.) As far as loading your own or third party Motif XS sounds, no, it does not... though supposedly a translator is in the works, and the sounds that can be loaded into the Rack XS should be loadable into the MOX. (The Motif Rack XS takes the same 3rd-party sounds that the Motif XS does, except it can't take the ones that load their own custom samples, since there is no user sample RAM in the rack, just like the MOX.) I'm thinking that my basic key rig might be a MOX8 and a Kronos 61, for a pretty lightweight weighted-and-unweighted combo.

Hmmmm.... my interest has peaked some. Thanks for the info. I very rarely ever use samples so it's not an issue for me. I'm curious what the conversion software is for if you can load Rack XS sounds into it. There are some libraries out there that I'd be interested in (and I'm sure they are combis).

But, if it sounds like any other Motif, this will be a very hard to beat synth...

Yes, that's also why I like the idea of pairing the MOX8 with the Kronos 61. Not only does it give me weighted and unweighted actions (and 88 keys, or a total of 149 to use for splits), in one of the lightest possible Kronos configurations, but also Yamaha has some great sounds, and has traditionally been strongest where Korg has had weaknesses. I expect Kronos will narrow (and perhaps close) the gap, but I think I'll still like having some of those Yamaha sounds.