Yamaha Montage In-Depth Review with Phil Clendeninn (PART 1 of 4)

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Phil Clendeninn takes you on a tour of the new Yamaha Montage Series Music Synthesizer. Phil covers the following topics in this video:
Overview
Motion Control
Super Knob
Scenes
Audition Button
Articulations
Velocity
Edit without the Edit Button .
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[@benjaminschneider1997]

This dude is blowing my mind with his knowledge and presentation skillz

[@joonks7373]

Tis true

[@Michaelfromfremont]

Phil is a MASTER for ALL things Yamaha!!!

[@geoffreymerrifield5666]

This is THE Bad Mister!!

[@geoffreymerrifield5666]

He is brilliant.

[@BreakBoy45]

Phil is a very talented and nice/cool fellow.

[@user-vs7yy8jw9r]

Finally, a man who knows how to talk and the thing he talks about!

[@NStuffMusic]

Phil is excellent, we're glad he could come in to shoot videos!

[@bruin4937]

Phil is absolutely awesome at sharing the important features that musicians want/need to know for an informed purchase.

[@sends2aaron]

I love Phil's demos. His demo of the MOXF8 helped convince me to purchase it a few years ago

[@richardwalley2862]

This guys presentation sold me

[@paolomarnini1516]

Awesome reviews. I bought a Montage 6 5 yrs ago thx to Phil’s /Bad Mister reviews. Sold it a couple of yrs later, now in the process of purchasing a 8. Thx Phil and Blake for your help to navigate and learn how these complex machines work

[@Coowallsky]

You might want to wait until NAMM in April to see where Yamaha is going with the Montage Series.

[@leonardovmusic]

Thank you for making this demo with mr. Clendeninn and with a Montage 8!

[@dustysturk4298]

This is by far the most interesting and compelling review of the Montage. I bought one despite the terrible reviewers on KZbin, and am so thankful I chose to get one. It is a much better keyboard than it gets presented as on KZbin review vids, and I ditched my Kronos for it. The sounds are out of this world, and you have to hear them in person to understand. Phil's review is the closest I've seen to nailing the pros of the board! Great job!

[@elvinlewis4233]

Ditched your Korg for it? No way in hell I'd do that. Maybe...in addition to, but that's just silly. As a "work station"...the Kronos is easily superior.

[@ncheriyan]

Dusty Sturk Kronos’ pad sounds are out of this world...their reverb is unmatched. But I do have a motif xs and tried montage and liked its modulated sounds ....

[@WarrenPostma]

You ditched the Kronos? SMH

[@DonaldWaughmusic]

Oh my goodness. The Montage is a beast! Awesome job Phil.

[@BharatSingh-pw7sh]

Brilliant video and demonstration! Most helpful I’ve seen so far about the Montage 8. Thank you Sir. Namaste.

[@Maryandme4550]

This is the best review that I have ever seen.

[@DavidNormoyle]

Thanks Phil, That was a masterly presentation, you are helping make this amazing device clearer for me.

[@akrita81]

Thank you sir. One of the best reviews for that amazing instrument

[@cvdheyden]

Hey, I am so glad I found u! Perfect job and so comprehensive!!

[@garymorressette150]

This guy is amazing, I learn so much the Montage from him

[@thesidar]

Fantastic review, this guy does it justice! Most exciting thing to come from (winter) NAMM 2016.

[@derrickcouts]

Pretty damn amazing! 👏🏾👏🏾 I wasn’t sure which keyboard i wanted but I’m definitely getting this one

[@dkwb71]

This dude is amazing at explaining! Imma buy me a Yamaha Montage soon. This thing is awesome! Thanks N Stuff Music!!!

[@NStuffMusic]

Glad you've enjoyed our videos so much!

[@steelfatboy]

Great overview Phil!

[@aloharay]

Very well presented, thank you! This is helping me with the MODX.

[@playmakersaudio7636]

Wow very good and thorough review!!!

[@Flyingrabbit2222]

Great videio Phil. I've been looking to add this to my s90es and wondering what it adds. Can't wait to see the rest of your series.

[@patrickarend8707]

Bad Mister is a jedi master of music tech. MONTAGE and MODX are the best synths on planet earth.

[@allangabali4980]

always good with Mr Phil Clendeninn

[@dryvur]

I want a Montage 8 so bad. I just can't afford it, but I'm learning on an old Yamaha and I'm practicing a lot. 3 to 6 hrs a day...

[@lenburke9756]

5 Stairsteps family appreciates this video...I had a TG 77 and loved it. might consider the montage now.

[@anteroalberto]

Better than any available user guide. Phil thank you for your very clear explanation. Please explain what's new in OS 3.

[@blackpat]

Very informative!

[@TechGently]

For the MODX crowd tuning in, you can note his discussion about multiple bus, there less on the MODX, 64 Polyphony (FM) versus 128 on Montage (FM) but 128 on the samples engine. But for the most part its the same engine and you can use most tutorials for the Montage on the MODX. People may complain about some of the strip down changes for MODX but you're getting a Montage for a much lower price and to be honest the fact that Yamaha is even doing this for its users is generous and amazing.

[@craighawk]

Great presentation. I can't wait to pick mine up. I really like my Korg Karma, but when I listened to and played the Montage 8 at Guitar Center, I became infatuated with the Montage.

[@tanza14]

this guys awesome

[@IDONTPLAYENT]

awesome!!

[@neol07707]

I love this guy

[@proteus1]

Any updates for the montage as the screens a bit sluggish ans need more sounds.

[@midizengm]

AWM2 will celebrate 20th anniversary soon. Still in the hi-end synth?

[@arockiamoliver8048]

Great Sir 👍 👍 👍 👍 👍 👍

[@Konstantinos143]

He is so much more better than Blake Angelos in presenting, not just the Montage, but with his background knowledge in Yamahas technology and general music understanding. Bravo sir, well done!

[@gman4674]

Awesome presentation. Do you have a video showing how to add a drum backing track?

[@NStuffMusic]

Sorry we do not, but if you contact us we'd be happy to assist!

[@b00i00d]

Great guy - great presentation! However some comments below have raised doubts as to the sound quality of the montage v motif - could it have something to do with the analog unit Yamaha have added post-DAC to "smooth out the sound"?

[@Coowallsky]

The Montage definitely sounds better than the Motif. I have both

[@quincybaker728]

I’m purchasing the Montage. I’m the 7 and 8. My preference is the 8. I’m wondering if you take your 8 out on gigs? And if so, do you find it too heavy to for gigging? Thanks for an insightful video.

[@dennissanders4863]

It's been so long since this video was published, I doubt I'll get a reply from the original poster, but I had a question for you Phil. As someone who's used primarily DAW's for the 20 years that I've been a Producer, would this Montage 8 suit my needs? I produce a wide range of genres but typically stick within the realm of Hip Hop/Trap and hard sounding club records etc. I'm familiar with FL Studio, Reason, Pro Tools etc. and I know this works great with Cubase from the research I've done, but haven't really found anyone saying that this board works well with FL Studio and I'd rather not transition to another DAW, especially since it'll take me time to learn the Montage 8. Thanks for the video and hopefully I get some responses. I almost purchased this today but I walked out of Guitar Center feeling like I needed to research more.

[@gman4674]

What speakers or amp are you going through

[@JFairweather]

Of all the Yamaha reps and presenters I have ever seen in my life, Phil Clendeninn is beyond the best. He makes all the others look like amateurs (e.g.: one of their "best" reps just calls up canned stuff and plays them). Phil knows that we are not just lounge players who want cool sounds but professionals who want to know what this unit can do, He gets down to it and tells us what we WANT to know. As for myself, I got my first synth in the 70s when programming was all about the guts of a sound. I could hear something, visualize the wave, then quickly knock out the sound. As the tech evolved, I like others evolved with it. Those of my generation know what this means. With many young musicians today, they just want to crank through hundreds of patches, find the ones they like and pump their egos in front of a crowd. To do so with a montage would be a waste of money. I like that Phil can speak to musicians like myself who really understand the mechanics of synthesis from the absolute fundamentals on up. He does not stuff his presentation with endless adjectives and "you know what I mean"s. He's a pro and he treats us like pros, and I respect the heck out of that. As for the Montage, my focus is on putting together the coin to buy one. I know that it has specific limitations, some of which do not have workarounds, but to me this is the machine I've been wanting to have for decades - a machine that is intelligent, that excels for making intelligent music, and I can't wait to start using this. It is something I can make some serious money on and I'm glad that, in contrast to the tons of reviews on KZbin, Phil has actually provided one that speaks to serious pros who are focused on excellence and not just coolness.

[@DrGargani]

Phil has the most amazing commanding and CLEAR speaking voice, he is certainly a treasure, however I must offer two important criticisms of the video: first, the view of the keyboard and more importantly, the viewscreen, are too far away to discern what they say: secondly, there are many times he is hitting a button with his finger where we don't see on the view of the keyboard, what he is pressing. Instead of trying to show a panoramic view of the keyboard, this problem could have been solved by doing close up shots of just the part he was activating at the time, or just the parts that are relevant to what he is saying. Too bad, because if you had combined that type of strategy with this man's incredible knowledge and speaking voice, you would have had the greatest keyboard tutorial of all time.

[@joeschneider67]

its any way to transpose semi tones with out to go to shift button and press octave up down? any way on the screen to do that?

[@markjaylandes]

No and that's something I miss from the moxf

[@joelakontacho745]

Hey, I have a quick question. So I plugged M-Audio sustain pedals to the Sustain port on Montage 8. But it works in the opposite direction. I even turn the keyboard off, while holding down the pedal then turn on the Keyboard still not fixed. Please any ideas how to make this work the right way. Please help

[@Coowallsky]

Polarity issue?

[@joelakontacho745]

@@Coowallsky not sure what the polarity is.

[@blankpallete9167]

amazing explanation i dont play keyboards but im learningto, i play guitar i love the sounds my guitar gets jealous lol

[@dcmaestro1]

Hello Phil, I met you in Dallas so good to see you still doing your thing. I have a client that has a Monage, and we need help on setting the bars to repeat a pattern. We need a little help on the sequencing and creating patterns to create songs. Thank you

[@mysticsailor9]

My understanding is that it simply wont do that.. The Montage is not a Workstation.. it has a linear sequencer that you can edit, but no ability to create patterns and structure a song after the fact.

[@Alanoffer]

What a keyboard I want one

[@dr.alpnasunil5059]

Is it having INDIAN SOUNDS (TONES & RHYTHM) ???

[@buenocordero2791]

I need this! God I wish it

[@markchristopher2signal2]

Wow man

[@elpmettsol]

Not as much as the brain can handle but rather, as much polyphony as the synth can deliver. However the concept of motion control is immensely deep, and even more immensely powerful! Yamaha's implementation appears to be well thought out. Stepping away from the workstation concept was (IMHO,) a fair gamble. As the amount of DAW's out there is almost like Pizzeria's, there's one around every corner. What remains in question is the quality of the sounds themselves. There seems to be some kind of consensus out there that sound quality of the Motif is actually better. Not something (again IMHO,) you can fairly determine in just a few days. I'll be doing the A/B testing over the few weeks.

[@CJMusic2]

I wish I had a super knob

[@NStuffMusic]

Don't we all?

[@gregsaddie]

are the plastic nobs and rotary dials, heavy er build and durable then those on the Montage?

[@gregsaddie]

also for solo piano, will the do as good a job as CP4?

[@petrucioci07]

What kind of pedal switch you using for controlling the super knob?

[@Maxxarcade]

The Yamaha FC7 pedal works great for that.

[@PeterWalkerHP16c]

64 oscillators with effects, envelopes and filtering. 32 bus outputs. Of course you're going to need a big fucking knob. The thing already looks like a space shuttle cockpit. By the time you know how to really drive the thing it's time for the next model ... or the pension. Very impressive bit of kit.

[@cardiacwiz]

Yes, amazing, compared to my ARP 2600!!!! From 1975! ANd even that had to be upgraded to a duophonic keyboard!!!

[@jeffspc88mx]

"...as much as your brain can handle." - Important caveat that.

[@StephaneDesire2]

👍🏾👍🏾👍🏾

[@rogercleaves1327]

I can’t wait to get my korg kronos 2 88. But The yamaha montage still sounds great. Both as a sampled pcm synth. and as an 8 operator fm synth. Soon i will feel like the luckiest man alive, Because i will have both a yamaha tyros 5 61. And a korg kronos 2 88☺️ can’t wait to gig with these 2 beasts🤗

[@wayneblake3186]

THE MALLET SOUND?

[@petrucioci07]

Montage 8 black barely used mint condition with box. Cad $4990 Toronto, Canada

[@turtlefeet7722]

Super nice guy, but isn’t 8 channels with 8 parameters, 64? He says 72, i’m not sure if I follow him correctly on that.

[@104fingers]

The CS6x had a lot of this capability. It had a "scene" knob.

[@mysticsailor9]

There is little new in this synth.. macro knobs have been around for a while, AWM2 is answer to Roland "supernatural" and combining multiple "engines" has been done several times. So, while nothing groundbreaking in synth terms at all, it is a great sounding synth it appears.

[@sumithramachandranwatchyou5045]

5:22 minute by minute ❤️

[@eiderglast]

all great swords have names... i call mine "super knob." come and see.

[@joeschneider67]

it's a work station keyboard?

[@Coowallsky]

No

[@rarvind7934]

Please launch Yamaha genos with 61 keys because first time I saw this keyboard I got inspiration and it brings lots of ideas please launch this keyboard please with 61 keys and with same feature and it's easy to understand for every keyboard player

[@alphasxsignal]

72 knobs wow at once from the power knob

[@sewage1510]

I wonder how many musicians out there possess the technical skill to really master such a behemoth. It's very impressive, but also very overwhelming. I also wonder if anybody else finds the incessant blinking on the Super Knob distracting. Can that light be deactivated? I'd hate to have that thing flashing like that while I'm playing.

[@benrillo494]

Yes the light can be turned off

[@joeschneider67]

how you import DX7 SOUNDS?

[@Coowallsky]

You will find that in the Yamahasynth(dot)com site. (It's an online conversion.)

[@joeschneider67]

+Filthy McNasty thank you Sr for answer. bless

[@boboladouche5268]

I’d like to have a control that does two things at once: makes my wife quit bitching about how many keyboards and guitars I have, and makes her mix a decent drink.

[@wayneblake3186]

WHO IS YOUR SUPER KNOB?

[@Digiphex]

Put the 72 knobs on the front, not just in one knob.

[@youngmo77]

Than you are dealing with weight, increased price, moans and tears from some customers. One know to rule them all.

[@Rickdevos1]

I really think the solo strings and brass are bad. Nothing compared to commercial sample libraries out there.

[@elvinlewis4233]

Rick de Vos Hear, hear! Pitiful compared to vst's.

[@michaelbauers8800]

But it's not a VST. There's a more limited capacity for samples in a hardware synth. Some people like myself dislike VSTs and prefer hardware synths. Some people doing paid TV, movies and video games and such can afford top of the line VST libs.

[@beeware5303]

it is not complicated but it is

[@TurkiyeCumhurbaskani]

if an iphone coast $1000 this amazing equipment at $4000 is nothing, though I paid mine (88keys) $3600 from amazon

[@NStuffMusic]

Just contact us at N Stuff Music for great pricing, we do price matching as well as a "name your price" feature on our website, we are always willing to work with our clients.

[@savanaviolenta]

That's the ultimate synth EVER,one day IF I win the lottery Definetely this comes in my renewed studio heheh

[@rios_5314]

T.I.N Mateus I bought my yamaha montage 6 few months ago and its the best decicion ive ever made.

[@tomaszwaszka3394]

16:11 "on my right hand side"... I'm absolutely sure it's your left side :)

[@instrumentalistjade8367]

i cant afford it. Thats y i bought a used DX7 😢😢

[@NStuffMusic]

Few things beat the sound of a good DX7

[@wayneblake3186]

EARN AND BALL?

[@empirose]

8x8=64

[@crimsun7186]

Can I turn the stupid rgb led on the super knob off? Also, you can see the LEDs pulsating, indicating that someone didn't do a good job at the PWM period for them.

[@radurobert1]

I think Yamaha are afraid to put more user memory because in such case they won't sell future products . That's why they expand only the factory library space of new products and the user memory remains limited to 1gb since Motif ES that was released in 2003 . What a tricky conspiracy to rip our money . So they avoid putting 2 ram slots (user option if he want to buy 32gb of ram or flash or not over the 1gb of factory flash) and instead they promote their new products saying that the factory sample memory was expanded from 700mb to 5 GB...etc etc . So they always maintain user memory as low as possible because they promote their new products using the factory sample memory size as marketing tactic . This way some users will buy the new flagships because they are tired of the factory sounds and only 1gb of flash user memory is a joke ...marketing tactics folks . Is not practical to load erase and reload sound banks by staying limited in 1gb....

[@WarrenPostma]

Welp we can just get a macbook and a komplete kontrol then and have 1 tb of high end samples.

[@youngmo77]

Or, the art milking a cow, to the bone...

[@ruggieromrd]

3:40 OK.... wait a sec... 8 parts * 8 knobs = 64 parameters at once.... not 72 as Phil says

[@drdanielandrade]

Hello! I don't see much difference in sound quality from other keyboards, such as the MOTIF or the KORG M3. Here in Brazil there is no reason to buy a product like this, since unfortunately it is worth the price of a car. However, I recognize that this is a wonderful workstation.

[@MrRickyWow]

How are you not related to Samuel L Jackson?!!!

[@Morne555]

review? he works for yamaha does hes not? Hes not really going to say anything bad about it is he? Wouldn't Product demonstration be a better word to use instead of review?

[@NStuffMusic]

Feel free to call it whatever you would like....

[@Morne555]

well i will have to call it a biased review from someone who works for yamaha to promote their products....

[@NStuffMusic]

I like it!! You should roll with that!!

[@Coowallsky]

Not all reviews are critical reviews. There are reviews of features...use...,etc. Quit wetting your panties.

[@SamChaneyProductions]

The "super knob" isn't very super. The Nord G2 (and many other Nord synths) lets you control an infinite number of parameters at the same time, but you can do it using whatever control source you want. You can have aftertouch controlling cutoff and volume and vibrato and LFO speed etc, and there's no menu diving to set it. You just hold down the aftertouch control button and twist as many knobs as you want in whatever direction or ammount you want. You can easily map any number of parameters to any control surface in a couple seconds.

[@Coowallsky]

Same with the SuperKnob

[@instrumentalistjade8367]

Convince me more sir.. i almost bought this

[@wayneblake3186]

NEVER BOTHER TRY PICKING LOCKS?OR THINKING OF STEALING CARS?

[@sawssman965]

I see u were going way out of you're way to expose how trashy u are. Hopefully you've recovered from your meth addiction. God bless

[@ConstantineTrofimovFCPXRUSSIA]

I am you fan Phil. You're amazing. Keyboard its not . Yamaha are trying to make spaceship from instrument. Why? Musicians don't Need d this. Star track. Give me a reason for buy this. Why Does moxf6 worse than montage? Strings are terrible . Not for move scores)))))) moxf6 is a winner

[@wayneblake3186]

YOU DIDN'T VOTE FOR A PUPPET DID YOU?

[@santiagomoyaveizaga7935]

asd

[@johnnybgood5388]

Phil is awesome, but the keyboard is not. At 10:38, the string samples and articulation sounds so fake, like a Casio keyboard. When I took the time to record my Motif XS and FX workstations using just the built in string samples, I was able to make the recording (all on the keyboard) sound like a real orchestra. Anyone who listened to it thought it was played with real instruments. It seems like Yamaha is trying to get this keyboard to be a jack of all trades (and not a very good one at that) so it can be a DJ machine playing live, and be able to record straight into computer only. I suspect Yamaha feels it's going to win new customers when they see the Montage being played live like you normally see Korgs, at the expense of betraying their old loyal customers (those who just want a good workstation keyboard).

[@PeterWalkerHP16c]

+Johnny B Good Huh?? This is a stage synthesiser, NOT a workstation. Totally different application. Yamaha still produces Arranger / Workstations. Also you are judging sounds by an mp4 on youtube through your computer ... how long have you been in music?? Why don't you get off your arse and put your hands on one at a dealer then comment.

[@Appleboy78165]

If I remember correctly, the Montage does not replace the Motif XF; rather, it supplements it in Yamaha's product lineup. The XF is still in production.

[@Jeffallenstudios]

The Motif line is gone actually. There has been no actual replacement for the Motif workstation line and now the Montage is their flagship.

[@wayneblake3186]

BARNEY MILLER DAYS AGAIN?

[@wayneblake3186]

TOO MUCH LOWRYS ON THE SALMON!

[@tH4ttUs]

screen touch? Bäh...

[@BankrolleXXXpelled]

Dominik Thattendorfer yeah

[@aycaramba9540]

I like that guy, too BUT YAMAHA we can't see shit on that tiny tiny screen of yours!!!

[@wayneblake3186]

BEV TYPE IS NOT YOUR TYPE!