Yamaha SPX Shoot Out (part 1)

[@edsohovocals]

Holy crap. This is not your every day comparison by a bedroom musician. You are truly incredible. Good comparison too, I think...

[@cliftonwright7081]

Haha thanks man, in retrospect it ended up being a strange way to compare them because it’s difficult to tell the difference until you get to the Lexicon, or maybe the 990 if you’re intensely dialed in.

[@garyhiggins3189]

Awesome talent. The right hand technique seems so effortless. Thanks for your service my man!

[@cliftonwright7081]

Thanks brother, the right hand is the hardest part for me, I have to practice a lot before I can make something like this lol

[@youngager]

The SPX 90 blew my mind when I got hold of it. An inspiring piece of gear for sure!

[@cliftonwright7081]

Yeah! It just straight up sounds good.

[@liongroove3301]

Great paying!!! mixing rock and jazz fusion concepts, that's my style too! Btw the lexicon sounds great too!

[@cliftonwright7081]

I’d be pissed if the Lexicon sucked lol

[@AnalogFlava]

But in the spx chain vs lexicon id say the spx almost sounds better if not better. More subtle but could be the settings ofc. How did you chain the spx. Just three different stereo sends with delay, symphonic, verb?

[@LeonTodd]

The shirt - Jimmy Buffett The chops - Shrapnel records

[@cliftonwright7081]

Haha, two and a half kids suburban hellscape battle armor

[@liongroove3301]

Are you kidding me!!! Dude,,,,You read my mind, last week I got my fist SPX90 and now I'm planning to buy all of the SPX family from ebay. This video is great, right on time...too much coincidence!!

[@ayeapprove]

The freaking hybrid picking stuff is driving me insane - great playing as always!

[@cliftonwright7081]

Thanks! It’s the only way I can play at this point!

[@granttaskerud5367]

Meet Nashville Malmsteen

[@mootbooxle]

Excellent video - amazing playing while demonstrating!

[@jaxplanner7282]

Speechless…So much going on and it all sounds great! Glad to see the tele!

[@cliftonwright7081]

Thanks for checking it out man, hope you’re doin good!

[@devingademan]

Thank you for sharing this video. Your playing is outstanding. Really great!

[@cliftonwright7081]

Thank you for the nice comment Devin! I’m no Shawn Tubbs but I have fun messing with this stuff!

[@BasVogelpoel]

Hahaha, the only conclusion I could draw from that is that it really don't matter which machine you buy if you play reaaally good 🤣 Would you be so kind to tell us your favorite? I thought you liked the Rev7 particullarly? I would also recommend trying out the EMP700. It's has a modulated delay which can get very glassy. The spx's don't do that exept for the spx2000

[@cliftonwright7081]

I think pitch change C on the SPX-90 has the coolest character, overall. Unsurprisingly, the 990 has the most usable reverbs, the PCM80 is the best overall but I like the three Yamaha units together too.

[@rondadey2357]

Just straight up awesomeness Clifton..... as always

[@cliftonwright7081]

Thanks man! Hope you’re well

[@merttopel595]

Your playing is way above the difference between any gear in your audio chain 👍

[@cliftonwright7081]

@@merttopel595 too kind, thanks man!

[@arnaudhoupert6722]

The sound of the SPX 90 is raw with a nice personality, a kind of small AMS RMX !

[@cliftonwright7081]

Yeha! I really like it too! And with a handful of inexpensive component swaps they can run a lot quieter and smoother sounding. I think I have like 12 or 13 various SPX models. All of them except the 1000, which I don’t really think my collection needs given the expanded ability of the 990 and the gritty color of the 90/90ii. The 900 is more useful “in between” for me.

[@peterjepps1229]

Great track👍Yamaha racks are very good. Pcm80 is glorious. Thanks

[@cliftonwright7081]

Yeah the lexicons are tough to beat

[@frankie_ghiloni]

Dude started shredding out of nowhere🤣🥵🤯

[@simhalen]

Fantastic playing!!!

[@cliftonwright7081]

Thanks!

[@simhalen]

@@cliftonwright7081 How did you set input / output level on the back? +4db or -20 db? i own spx90II

[@cliftonwright7081]

@@simhalen I tend to try and have everything at +4 if possible.

[@jakobole]

Tip : The Yamaha Rev5 can sometimes be had VERY cheap - and it has that Symphonic-preset that just can't be beaten. I got my Rev5 2 years ago for 150€

[@cliftonwright7081]

Nice! I’ve had 2 of them

[@jakobole]

@@cliftonwright7081 The REV5 also has the pre FX-EQ on the front, and hidden in a menu you can swap the phase/polarity of one side, which can sound epic in some cases :)

[@gainmeister4505]

really great vid, thanks for following up. Is it just me or did the symphonic on the spx90 sound the best and most exaggerated?

[@cliftonwright7081]

I think my favorite was the pitch change C on the 90. But yeah…the OG 90/90ii seems to have the most character in the modulation department.

[@schoovaertssimon7904]

It's kinda hard hearing major differences with so much going on, especially with distortion so....The basic question..If you had to keep one?

[@anticomunistadoms]

YOU MUST PUT THE REVERB MORE LOUD (emphasis), SO WE CAN EVALUATE THE VERBS

[@cliftonwright7081]

I have some individual demos of the units where I do that. This was meant to be an example of how I’d actually use the units in a musical context. Thanks for the feedback, and thanks for watching!

[@MarceloAllendeMusic]

The SPX is clearly the best of them all!

[@cliftonwright7081]

Haha, yeah, I think the 90 might have the most character

[@williamtell1477]

Original spx90 is honestly pretty special…

[@natlove219]

That was awesome 👏… thanks for doing that.

[@cliftonwright7081]

Thanks for Watching!

[@cliftonwright7081]

Thanks for Watching!

[@Echoplexi.]

I love the Pitch Change and Symphonic on my SPX 90II, but it’s *so* noisy! Are the later revisions, like the 900, etc quieter?

[@cliftonwright7081]

I upgrade the hf chokes and caps in mine and they’re pretty quiet

[@Daniel-m4u2y]

How much of a difference is there between the spx90 and the spx900 on the symphonic setting? I’m trying to get that zakk wylde tone, but there’s only an spx900 near me

[@cliftonwright7081]

@@Daniel-m4u2y should be pretty dang similar.

[@bobbyhofermusic]

great player, man!

[@cliftonwright7081]

Thank you!

[@rombidaut1917]

the playing... holy .

[@jonborgersen6117]

ohh i could use my yamaha dsp 1 for same job hmmm nice. this gave me ann idea thx. not as much effects but some off the same.

[@cliftonwright7081]

Awesome! Yeah I admit I went a little heavy handed with the schmoo, but mostly so you could really hear what it’s doing. I’d never use this much effect mix on an album lol. Or would I?

[@noahbeefheart]

whats the difference between the 90 and 90ii? do they have the same presets?

[@cliftonwright7081]

The 90ii has more delay time memory.

[@danvolpe6609]

Wow CW! Chops ahoy!

[@DanGower]

Really enjoyed this! Curious to know if you feel the FX900 captures the SPX vibe well? I just bought an FX900 (for a steal!) as I wanted those classic sounding effects but need the routing capabilities that it offers!

[@cliftonwright7081]

Thanks Dan! Leon Todd and I both did a video on the FX900 and I think it definitely captures the vibe of using multiple SPX90s although I’d argue the time/ambience effects are smoother and the modulations are maybe a tiny bit less thick/crunchy….maybe? Probably depends on application. I’m surprised they’re not more sought after, there’s some insane sound effects near the end of the factory preset bank. I think a lot of people get the SPX90 because they only plan on using it for Symphonic or Pitch C and the FX900 is super overkill for that purpose.

[@DanGower]

Thanks for the info man! Yeah, it seems like a really powerful unit, so using it for only one thing would be a waste really! I’m looking forward to being able to combine the symphonic with the pitch, delays and reverbs all in one unit. Should have it sometime next week, so I’m looking forward to putting it through its paces🎸🤘🏼

[@Roelend]

1:18 for Symphonic comparison

[@cliftonwright7081]

Thanks you! You can really hear the swirl from the 50D, maybe the impedance difference? Who knows!

[@Roelend]

@@cliftonwright7081 they definitely all have their own flavor, which is really cool to hear in quick succession!

[@michaelkiese7794]

Great playing and great video! Love the Aloha shirt.

[@cliftonwright7081]

Thanks man! I’m always on vacation in my heart

[@michaelkiese7794]

@@cliftonwright7081 in solidarity with the off-post Germans freezing their cojones off this winter.

[@Yupppi]

Sweet dude! You feel pretty powerful when someone fills your wish! I think only the spx990 sounded noticeably different on reverb. I feel like SPX90II slightly improved the original on reverb yet I'm not sure if it's just psychological. On Symphonic the 50D sounded really different to me. I think in general 90II sounds very slightly fatter than the first revision, is it just me or do you notice any difference? Or is it just through recording and youtube? A bit difficult to be sure when the nuances are so small in the mix, I wonder if you could pinpoint more difference in isolated shootoffs between two units at a time. At least I forget halfway through the preset shootoff what the first ones sounded like. Also tough to say with these short clips that sometimes have different part of the neck and power chords/4ths against individual staccato notes. But this makes much more sense, don't get me wrong. If you need isolated duels, it's close enough if you enjoy the sound in general. And the guitar playing and the parts are too good, you just forget to compare them and enjoy the licks. And in the end the differences are so small mostly that you should be just enjoying the sounds anyway, pick one and go to town. Adding PCM80 was really nice touch. It really is something else if you're looking for that clarity and beauty. Yet you also get to hear how close a couple of SPX get and it's more focused guitar sound (I should say more blended together to one sound). PCM80 gives you that studio vibe of separate ambience around the core guitar tone. SPX is the guitar tone. Very important difference. Which is why I use SPX90 for juicy effects like symphonic and micro pitch shift, and MPX-1 for reverb and sometimes delay. Since this is part 1, do we get to hear your thoughts as someone who played with all of them later? More comparisons? I bet a bunch of guys considering what they can find from this family of products are now very happy to go for other units as the original 90. Thanks a lot for this video! Got so hyped that I typed a wall :)

[@cliftonwright7081]

Dig it mang, thanks for the input and feedback! I sort of added “part 1” to the title as a buffer to leave space for something a bit more clinical and nerdy in terms of legit comparison (like an isolated, single part being fed through the units in post over and over and OVER again). As a 34 year old in the military with 2 kids, I sort of have to maximize my time and make video production part of my practice regimen when I get an evening to do it, which is why I end up just having fun playing more than digging past the surface layer/curb appeal of the stuff I’m checking out. I could pretty easily just remove the bass and drums from this track and make the trails audible and add some commentary about “lo-fi 12 bit warmth” this and “glassy clarity 20kHz response” that. Oh yeah, the 50D has a fixed input designed for higher impedance, lower level source like an instrument. I’m not sure if that’s why it’s symphonic had a crazy jet flange attitude to it or not but it’s probably definitely why there was slightly more audible distortion on the reverb.

[@_mysilentblue2227]

I should rewatch this muted in slow motion just to see that right hand. WTF 1:33 - 1:41 I had to slow it down to see what was going on there. Three fingers and a back rake I think early Paul Gilbert used a back rake. Great job & I really liked the SPX90II

[@cliftonwright7081]

Haha yeah! I call it the Flamingo Golf Club Technique(tm). It was how I first picked up the pick as a kid and I sometimes revert back to it when I need to do something particularly violent sounding. It’s kind of more splatty and invaded by overtones than the Petrucci style ultra clean picking but I like the way you can summon harmonics with the pinky under your palm from that configuration.

[@cliftonwright7081]

And yeah, the SPX-90/90ii have the most vibe with the ii having the added bonus of way more memory for time effects.

[@_mysilentblue2227]

@@cliftonwright7081 Oh Jesus, now I have to go back look again for the pinky!!! I'm telling you that right hand with all of your musical influences is just nuts.

[@_mysilentblue2227]

@@cliftonwright7081 It might just be more memory but the verb from the 90 to the 90ii was wow. Keep up the great work.

[@granttaskerud5367]

Can the spx 900 and or 1000 do e monster voice effect? Prog 66?

[@cliftonwright7081]

Haha I dunno! I just use em for regular old effects. The Yamaha FX900 on the other hand can make some reeeaaally whacky sounds like dying dinosaurs, megaman ray cannon etc

[@RobertBakerGuitar]

Man i was just thinking where has Cliff been.

[@cliftonwright7081]

Haha what up mang! It’s been crazy over here, haven’t had time to do the thang lately. I’m thinking for the next one: Eventide, dual SDE3000As, PCM70 for the fully 80s Van Halen thing.

[@GuitarSmartsPodcast]

@@cliftonwright7081 YES! Do this! I'm deep in a VH hole and would enjoy this a copious amount.

[@Jack_von_Baron]

Hey Clifton, good stuff! You're in the military right? You're probably the ony person I know from the military who has this huge amount of guitar (rack) gear. When I was in the Marines a few years back I was literally broke AF, I only had one guitar and a practice amp that's it haha. But now the Gi BIll funds all my GAS, life is good out there! Million dollor question: I have a SPX 1000, do you think it's worth "upgrading" to a SPX90/90II? Do older units have better mojos? Cheers!

[@cliftonwright7081]

Haha oh man, I’m actually looking for an spx1000 because it’s the only one I don’t have from the entire series. They all sound good to me, honestly. I used an SPX990 in my small live rig for a while because I liked the reverbs and delays, but the OG 90, 90II, 50D and even the 900 have a thick lo-fi thing to them from the primitive A/D conversion rate. Those gritty verbs are still useful in certain modern situations where natural reverbs disappear. It just depends on what you want.

[@cliftonwright7081]

Also, all this stuff is dirt cheap in thrift store in Japan, I made a ton of money flipping stuff so all this junk has paid for itself and then some

[@Jack_von_Baron]

@@cliftonwright7081 Ah you're one of those people haha. I wish I could go to Japan and do some gear hunting, perhaps someday! The problem is most of these old units don't have voltage converters built-in and I don't wanna get a step-down thing for each rack unit I have. But you're right about those low-fi quality, which is probably something I'm looking for. I guess I'm gonna get a SPX90II to compare myself. If you happen to spot a Yamaha D5000 delay out there please let me know!

[@cliftonwright7081]

@@Jack_von_Baron I just use a fairly good size step down transformer and plug a Furman strip into it to power whatever Japanese stuff I’m using on base. Then it’s fine off base at gigs. I’ll definitely scoop one up if I see it!

[@Jack_von_Baron]

@@cliftonwright7081 Oh I didn’t even think about that. That’s really smart I must admit

[@208414]

The PCM 80 had more clarity to my ear.

[@cliftonwright7081]

Haha I should hope it did! I actually paid fair market value for that one after selling three or four SPX 90s!

[@cliftonwright7081]

Also, thanks for stopping by!

[@chateautemp]

Ummmm...what the fuh? Yes to all of that.

[@cliftonwright7081]

@@chateautemp haha thanks man