Yamaha PSR S910 Review

by Don
(Upstate)

Yamaha PSR S910 Review

I purchased my S910 two months ago and have not been disappointed. Love the sound with a pair of external speakers and a small amp. Continue to find new and seemingly endless capabilities. Just attempting vocal harmony and found need most likely a sterio cable to make my mics work. Have found or purchased an endless array of song styles and am having a blast playing with them. I have had four Lowrey organs which have a more robust sound of course but not the flexibility of the S910. Am impressed with instrument sounds on the S910. Still play a Lowrey but tend to go back to the S910 most of the time. S910 not inexpensive but reasonable by far compared to what Lowrey overprices their equipment. I am satisfied with the S910 and feel need or want nothing else that would better meet my expectations.

Yamaha PSR S910 Review

by Mike Burke
(Ireland)

Yamaha PSR S910 Review

I am an aging musician and I play these days mainly for a charity group that specialises in playing for hospital patients, or anywhere we are asked to play.

I was using a PSR 2100 which I found pretty good.
I thought I'd try 'upgrading' so I took a chance and spent a great deal of money on the S910. The price here is equivelant to $2,567.

You can't tell what a keyboard is like until it has been tried on stage, and all I can say is that I am very disappointed with the S910.

The first point is that there is very little to grip when lifting, it's always a very careful business.

The second is that the built-in speakers should be tilted towards the musician. If that had been done the sound would be great.

Compared to the 2100 the styles are not great and the voices especially strings, are inclined to be tinny.

To get a decent guitar you have to manipulate the sounds in 'user', and if you try to harmonise the voice the sound is just confusing.

There is almost no choral voices and to get a good orchestral strings sound user has to bend the sound out of all normal settings. The volume of voices to styles in not a good balance.

What I can't figure is if a keyboard like the 2100 has good sounds, (although some of them had to be 'helped' too, but not to the same extent) why can't following keyboards be an improvement on what's gone before??

It's as if the designers of the S910 didn't listen to instruments being played or bands actually on stage to see what a rhythmic atmosphere should be, they seem to have designed this keyboard imagining what a sound or voice should be. The styles are full but overdone, almost a cacophony. There is not one decent disco style.

I would happily reverse the deal for the S910 and continue with my PSR 2100, but I am stuck with this poor-man's imitation of a Tyros III. I have tried vdery hard to transfer styles and voices from the 2100 to the S910 but so far with no success. And why is it made so hard to communicate one keyboard to another, especiallty when they are all within the same family- PSR ????
I wouldn't mind so much if it hadn't been so expensive, and if the styles lived up to Yamaha reputation.

In future, if I ever can afford to buy a new keyboard, it will some other make.
Thank you for your time.
Regards, Mike (in Ireland).

Yamaha PSR S910 Review

Yamaha PSR S910 Arranger Review

by Manuel Vega
(Conway, South Carolina, USA)

(Yamaha PSR S910 Review)

First the "bad", It looked intimidating, but so does every KB even at toy levels.
That is the only bad, and this is no toy.
Price was intimidating too, $1749 for me, most my other KBs I bought in the past were well under 1k dollars. I paused and realized I would kick myself if I didn't take the plunge.

Rule of thumb voices on right accompany on left
Port left starboard right.:) simple. Remember Halsey, he didnt know difference either, and he headed an entire navalfleet
If you know a lot or know to little, this (the Yamaha PSR S910) is the KB for you and I look at things like intuitivness of layout and GUI on screen, just as I would evaluate software.
Meaning I won't be stuck to a manual for months, whilst it sits like a desk weight or an ottoman in the corner of a room.

Good ergonomic design
For small apartment to a big room..Ideal.
The sounds and accompaniment are out of this world, music samplings from every genre possible, Broadway to old classical ..pressure sensitive keys thats bring up or soften a string backup or sax or whatever, and individualized controls to tweak or mod them.

One really does sound like a one man band. The ambient effects and acoustics are stellar, you can sound like you are producing Days of our lives, to a solo night clubs, to a concert.
If you see one (Yamaha PSR S910) at a music store, do ask the salesperson to demo. My salesperson, was so good, and was never ever pushy..lol he was rapped up in it carried away.
That was at Andy owings Music Store in the Grand Strand Mall in Myrtle Beach, South Carolina. Experiences may vary depending your salesperson experience. It was obvious this one loved music and understood the limits of each workstation station he had in the store.

When He replayed a customer singing that had just left the store, as I walked in, I could not believe it was not a professional recording good enough to sell on a CD. My jaw dropped.
Like Santana?, In there, Like Elton John, Marvin Gaye, Deep Purple, they and dozens more, in there.
There is no way you will ever outgrow this, with simple usb port and make your own cd from your mac or pc.

This machine will rock your world.
If you thought you couldn't well now you can let your creativity grow, if not, explode.

Thank you Yamaha

PS. What I covered barely scratches the surface.
Good luck in your searches.


(Yamaha PSR S910 Review)