Yamaha CS2x

I love this since! It's very easy to use. The manual is written in such a way that it explains not only the synth, but the concept behind making a sound. An example would be how they compare modeling a sound from the old Analog synths from the 80s to the DX7 to the CSx and how things have evolved.

The features are great! I give it a 10 because for the price I paid ($599 U.S.) you cannot get any better. The keyboard isn't weighted like a Waldorf, but it feels much better than the Nord Lead 2 I played with. I also give a 10 on features because this synth has Midi Thru and 61 keys, both of which the Nord does not have. As a control synth the CS2x simply kicks ass. The Arpeggiator has 40 patterns, there are 3 Programmable DSP Effects (12 Reverbs!!), and 8 real time controls!

I have to mention that this deserves a 10 because for the money where are you going to find such a kick ass synth with a free Windows editor to edit sounds, and better yet for Windows/Mac you can use Sound Diver from Emagic! Also, there is a great CS1x/CS2x user community on the web..tons of sites!

I wouldn't use every single sound in this synth, but for anyone who writes music from Trance to Hard House, this synth is in! It has an awesome Piano too.

On a side note, I was on the hunt for the Pizzacoto sound from the JV-1080. It's used by Faithless in the song Insomnia, but it's the ever so popular "Plucking" stringy techno sound. A guy on the Yamaha A3000 list samples it and uploaded it to samplelibrary.net. When I was flipping through Performance sounds on my CS2x I saw a sound called "Pizzsyn" and the next sound was "Insomnia" - and both are duplicated of the JV-1080 and Faithless/Insomnia sounds

I trust this synth! It's built well and doesn't weigh a ton like the Waldorf Q. I would trust this synth to be thrown out the window if the building cought on fire.

Yamaha not only has a product page, but they make the customer feel more welcomed into the dance community. I like that. I have never had any issues when I've called Yamaha in the past.

I will never trash this synth. For the money it is simply amazing! Right out of the box you can start making great music. If I had only two synths in the whole world I could buy, I would make it the CS2x and the EMU Xtreme Lead-1 with the Techno Synth Contruction Yard add on.. With these two, you can write soungs forever and make them sound top quality.

easy to use!
presets average
easy to edit
manual- great- not needed though

fine- 64 polyphony is plenty
effects-great
no expansion!!!!
MIDI- average
SEQUENCER-NO-SEQUENCER CAPABILITY-LIMITED!!!!!!!!!!!!
PLEASE NOTE- yah, this is a great performance synth- the performances are incredible- everything else suxs!!!!!!!!!!!!
USE THIS FOR THE STAGE ONLY!!!!!
OTHERWISE_ FORGET IT
ONLY GOOD SOUNDS ARE THE DAMN SYNTH LEADS WHICH ARE AMAZING

SOUNDS SUCK< EXCEPT< AS I ALREADY SAID_ THE LEADS

YEP- no problems

TERRIBLE!

I sent it back- It is great for one synth lead part but for nothing else- don't try to get around this- or you'll accomplish what you want but it won't be satisfying

This axe caught me by surprise. A little (almost ugly ) keyboard mounted on the back wall of a music store. Started to play it...got caught up. FUN!!!!! Easy to edit in real time (although I wish more parameters were available), fairly easy to tweak thru the menus. Manual was discriptive.....

The polyphony is adequet. The keyboard action is a bit toy-like and spongy for my taste , however; for what this synth was designed for..the action is very serviceable. The effects work well with the preset sounds ( albiet sometimes they're a bit overdone and could use some tweaking). They are Yamaha effects...bright. The unit worked well with my MIDI rig. No sequencer...no big deal.

The electronic and analogish synth sounds are outstanding! Punch city.....Thats what this axe is all about! Arpeggiated mountains of filtered motion and heart beating rhythms are abundant. Adrenaline rush!!! yes... this is the shining moment for this synth. And the pianos and GM instruments are not bad.
However, the sounds are great in performance mode. You loose alot if you use it multitimbral.

So far..so good... haven't had it long enough to really determine.

Its a one of kind type synth. I own many synths/samplers and modules from Korg, Roland, Kurzweil, ect...I find this a very powerful sonic mate for my rig. I'd buy one again if it were lost or stolen.
I love the sounds, although I would never use it multitimbral..the performance sounds are what makes this thing so useful.
If you want to produce burning techno or dance medium and are looking for some inspiration to add to your existing set-up...check this baby out!

It is very straight forward... you can do pretty much everything without even touching the manual... Course I have been messing with Synths since the 80's. There is a free patch editor for Windows. Doesn't help us Mac users though.... Manual is easy to understand. More so than some of the Roland ones that I have used. Editing patches is a little limited in my opinion but very easy except for selecting voices in the performance layers. You have to scroll through over 20 banks and not every patch in the bank has a voice assigned to it.. so it can be a little tedious to find your way around.

I find the effects fairly usable. The filters sound great.. I love having a low and high pass filter available for performances. Way cool. The midi capabilities are good. No sequencer and I prefer it that way.. On board sequencers are limiting and if you use a computer you are just paying for features that you don't need, so I am glad it doesn't have one. My only real complaint is the limited layer/voice editing ability, unless there is something that I am missing. Perhapse due to the goal of making it easy to use, things like filter envelopes are part of the voices that you select... you can only edit them to a limite degree and you can't reroute modulation sources/destinations... I guess you can compensate with the RT controller knobs, but I find it very limiting compared to other synths such as my Proteus 2000 or Roland 1080. The preset voices are very usable, so it isn't a disaster. But due to the limited editing features I have to give this a lower score, otherwise the features are grade A, like the very usable arpegigator and RT knobs... almost worth the price of the board!

For me, this is where it shines. Compared to my Proteus 2000, the presets seem much more inspiring. Most of them seem very usable. I am especial impressed with the string and lead sounds... smooth or gritty, any way you like 'em... The basses are pretty usable, but it seems a shame to waste your one performance patch on a bass, the individual voiced sounds are ok, but the performance channel is what this machine is all about... I think that if you need an all around synth, this one is a little lacking, but if you need to add some inspiring sounds to an existing midi setup, you can't get much better for the price.

Just use it in my studio and haven't had any trouble... Does feel a little plasticky, but I think I would risk gigging it.. I have never had OS problems or had it lock up on me...

I sent an email question to the Yamaha people and they sent me back this registation form.. kind of a pain, but I guess I will get around to filling it out.. if I want to have my questions answered.. I don't think the Yamaha site is very helpful for owners of this board though...

Overall, I am very pleased. If it were lost, I would be very mad. Probably most over the fact that I would still have a 700dollar debt on my credit card and no toy! If I could, I would buy it again, or maybe hold out and buy something a little more pricy and customisable, like a Nord lead 2, then again, for the price of a Nord, I could get a CS2x and a Juno106, now that is an idea... In my great-synth-aquiring-strategy, this was the second board I bought.... First bought my Proteus 2000 which is very versitile and can handle 32 channels of midi, but to me is a little gray on the personality side,the CS2x is much more spicy right out of the box... added a whole bunch of software and virtual samplers/synths, but I prefer real boxes/boards.. latest gear I got was the cheezy but suprisingly useful Sequential Max, now for some vintage stuff!

this synth is very easy to use, edit and store patches. tweaking your own sounds is as easy as turning a few knobs and saving them. i have never found a synth that was easier to use and edit.

specs can be found at: www.yamaha.com.
the keyboard action is decent, it is not weighted and it does feel a little "cheap." this keyboard is stacked with features if you are interested in producing electronica, but you might find that it is not very good for any other musical style. the keys are velocity sensitive, but there is no aftertouch. a great feature is that the arpeggiator is translated via midi.

-this synth is the perfect tool for trance, techno, ambient, breakbeat, house and other various subgenres of electronica. in fact, i can't think of a better synth for trance music regardless of price! the only drawback this keyboard has, is that it is a little thin sounding compared to analog synths. the cs2x contains amazing 909 and 808 kits, great analog synth sounds and even decent 303 lines. i love the expressiveness of the pads, the warmth of the lead sounds and the "concert piano" sounds especially good.

i would buy the cs2x over and over again, it is the best instrument that i have ever bought! it helps inspire me with ideas, and motivate me to write music. if you wanna listen to a demo of the cs2x, listen to my trance songs: "the morning after," "whispering," "12.31.99" at: http://www.mp3.com/hypnotik

This synth was the best investment i've made in a long time... The sounds are increadable with the easy ajustable knobs and real time playback/knob feature that allows you to expand the sounds to there limits. This synth also looks and feels like a techno artests dream... If you are searching for great bands that use this equipment look no more goto www.mp3.com/concept and www.mp3.com/mastersofbalance
they both use CS2X Synth. Along with my own music page www.mp3.com/djzyx <---- CHECK THIS OUT! but if your looking for catchy tunes, good melodies, nice trance, progressive house/trance or maybe just some jungle beats, search no more, this ones got it all !

This synth was the best investment i've made in a long time... The sounds are increadable with the easy ajustable knobs and real time playback/knob feature that allows you to expand the sounds to there limits. This synth also looks and feels like a techno artests dream... If you are searching for great bands that use this equipment look no more goto www.mp3.com/concept and www.mp3.com/mastersofbalance
they both use CS2X Synth. Along with my own music page www.mp3.com/djzyx <---- CHECK THIS OUT! but if your looking for catchy tunes, good melodies, nice trance, progressive house/trance or maybe just some jungle beats, search no more, this ones got it all !

This synth was the best investment i've made in a long time... The sounds are increadable with the easy ajustable knobs and real time playback/knob feature that allows you to expand the sounds to there limits. This synth also looks and feels like a techno artests dream... If you are searching for great bands that use this equipment look no more goto www.mp3.com/concept and www.mp3.com/mastersofbalance
they both use CS2X Synth. Along with my own music page www.mp3.com/djzyx <---- CHECK THIS OUT! but if your looking for catchy tunes, good melodies, nice trance, progressive house/trance or maybe just some jungle beats, search no more, this ones got it all !

This synth was the best investment i've made in a long time... The sounds are increadable with the easy ajustable knobs and real time playback/knob feature that allows you to expand the sounds to there limits. This synth also looks and feels like a techno artests dream... If you are searching for great bands that use this equipment look no more goto www.mp3.com/concept and www.mp3.com/mastersofbalance
they both use CS2X Synth. Along with my own music page www.mp3.com/djzyx <---- CHECK THIS OUT! but if your looking for catchy tunes, good melodies, nice trance, progressive house/trance or maybe just some jungle beats, search no more, this ones got it all !

This is the only thing this piece of equipment falls back on... since the CS1X came out the support was overwhelming, but the CS1X has also been out for a period of time... who knows maybe the support will grow in this field.

This synth was the best investment i've made in a long time... The sounds are increadable with the easy ajustable knobs and real time playback/knob feature that allows you to expand the sounds to there limits. This synth also looks and feels like a techno artests dream... If you are searching for great bands that use this equipment look no more goto www.mp3.com/concept and www.mp3.com/mastersofbalance
they both use CS2X Synth. Along with my own music page www.mp3.com/djzyx <---- CHECK THIS OUT! but if your looking for catchy tunes, good melodies, nice trance, progressive house/trance or maybe just some jungle beats, search no more, this ones got it all !

The presets sound good, but they are not based on regular sounds. The presets all use their own banks, which makes editing of preset sounds difficult. Using the GenMIDI, XG section is very easy to do, but the presets are not as easy to deal with. Editing patches is easy in terms of changing effects, volumes, settings, but dealing with sound banks is annoying. The manual is only for very basic stuff. There is a downloadable file which deals with very advanced features, but nothing in between.

Great feel, great effects, easy to access, but very limited expandability. No sequencer, but absolutely every sort of MIDI function.

Many instruments are very realistic. It works best for techno, but it has classical, rock, and jazz sounds also. Very good for performance.

I've never had any problems at all

Haven't dealt with this

It is a good deal, and I would probably buy it again. I have been playing keyboard for 10 years, but not seriously until more recently. I think the sounds and capabilities are a lot better than some synths but there are some things that are really aggravating. One of the presets has a delayed pan flute sound that is REALLY COOL. But the sample is actually a recording of silence followed by the sound, so I can't use this awesome sound alone as a regular pan flute.

I am using my CS2x in my home studio. I have a number of other instruments and recording gear but it is my only keyboard/synth.

The presets on this machine are very good. I like good club and trancy sounds and these can be found on this machine. The editing of the patches is not very difficult, i think. It isn't very difficult too to get the effect that you want. Just turn the knop en press the button..
The manual is also available in Dutch! So i was very happy. It is very clear, but not about multiplay in performance mode. And that's just where i'm interestet in.

polophony = 64. More than enough for waht i do. My melodies are very easy and i think i don't use more than three notes at one time.
The fx are not bad. loads of reverb and chorus types and also variotion fx. These are especially cool!
It is a synth wich is just made for midi. IN/OUT/THRU AND 16 parts. All of the knobs and fx are send by midi.
Unfortunately it has no sequencer. The An1x has one, but the reason i didn't buy that is because it's only 2 part an has 128 presets.

This is a machine for dance music. The sounds are great for club and trance music. Very realistic? well, i don't treally care. The sounds are fat and warm and that's what i find important.

I trust it.

The salesman was very nice. The rest I don't know.

I regret you can use only one performance in the multimode. The rest of the things are great about the cs2x. Exspecially the lay out! Many people don't like the color, but i do! Better than the standard black.
I have it for one week now and hopefully it helps me writing a number one hit. I'll let you know.

There is two modes for that synth: multi and performance.
multi is easy to setup, you have access to over 600 sounds and 16 parts.
BUT if you want to use Performance you are limited to one sound which is layered from up to four sounds which come from a huge bank of "material" voices. However, you can use channel 5-16 for xg sounds or material voices. the problem is the material voices and xg voices in performance mode are only available from an external sequencer ex. cakewalk with cs2x .ins file.
The effects are easy to setup and sounds can be modified with ease using the 8 knobs and push buttons.
performances are easy to create especially if you use the cs2x editor.
you can use xgedit95 for xg modifications

64 notes, 16 parts in xg(multi) mode or 1+12parts in performance mode.
no sequencer. no aftertouch. good keyboard (for the price). very useful knobs (8) 2 assignable. 256 preset peformances, 680 some xg sounds (some hard to reach without patch find). lots of effects good very powerful filters. the best i've heard in that class.
no expansion possible. but it's a control synth!! the knobs work with other synths buy a roland jv1010 to get awesome acoustic patches.

Note I had and still have a lot of fun downloading XG midi's all over the net. I then create my own mix for fun. They sound amazing. some better than the original. xg sounds great when layered and modified with xgedit and when sysex is recorded in the mid file.

Very decent acoustic instruments, good pianos (suprising), great imitation in performances of classic organs and electric pianos.
xg guitars decent, great when layered and added with distortion effect. But where this synth shines are the lead sounds incredibly expressive and filters bite hard into them. great bass in performance mode, very decent pads. I'm not very impressed with the drums which are xg sounding. not very original but again very clean. When edited using xg drum tool, they can be useful. Also note that the pads are thick due to great filters and effects processors and 4 layered sounds which can be thick already.

no problem yet, knobs can be pulled off easy.
keyboard action is good but I don't think it will last a very long time (more than 3 years) if used intensively.
But by then, you'll have forgotten about this synth due to advancements in processor technologies.

Also I don't think the casing is very resistant. But what can you expect from a price like 929$ canadian

don't know yet

I give it ten for the price. I have shopped for many synth in the under 2000$ canadian range this one was the best deal for techno, acid trance music. As for other sytles it is good but not specialised.
(note you can make your own hip-hop classic sounding performances (256 user perf)
basically, you can make anything you want with this synth and its worth the effort since the base sounds are clear and noise free, it sounds professionnal. The limited is your imagination/patience/time

Great value, I would not hesistate to buy it again or recommend it.

If want to spend more than 1500$ can but not go over 3000$ and have a computer, go for the XP-30 which is another great value but is really all-round

...I love it...It was my first synth and its fantastic. I bought it the week it was released and have had a large grin on my face ever since. It has 256(!) full performances ranging from simple bass and other acoustic emulations to full blown 4 layer trance sequences. There is room for 256 user-edited performances as well, making a huge dent in the sonic possiblity test. On top of that, there are 779 voices making layering a great tool. I've had mine for months and im JUST NOW getting into patch editing on account of the presets..they are just great.
Editing has a few levels...regular sound modification, advanced sound modification, and layer/voice manipulation(NOTE: these are my own terms for the way you can edit so dont expect to find these terms in the manual.) Regular Sound Modification is the easiest to use..you can conrtol the ADSR,filters,etc from the analog-ish 8 knobs...and its fun too...i love the layout and the the way the LFO responds to knob movement...a feature you rarely find nowadays. Advanced Sound Modification involves not only the afore mentioned knobs, but also the push buttons to control more parameters, such as Effect, Velocity sensitivity, and many more. Now the hard part...Voice Manipulation...to step back on the performances, each performance is made up of up to 4 layers, or voices. Using a data knob to choose which set of parameters you'd like to change, you can use the pushbuttons to change individual voices in an existing performance or to create your own...making the possibilities endless.
This machine comes with 2 manuals..one for teaching you how to access many of the features, the other is a Voice List, which names all of the voices and performances in the synth. Now, the actual manual is very clear and concise, save for the fact it only tells you how to change the name of a performance, not how to save the name after changing (now im just nit-picking :P.) The voice list is great, it includes all relevent MIDI control data and whatnot as well. My only gripe is that it doesnt tell you which voices make up the preset performances, so you have to sit and pick-and-choose, which can be a real pain when there are 779 voices to choose from.

It's a Control Synth, so no sequencer, but it is loaded.
A whopping 64 notes of polyphony at 16 part multi-timbre, which is fantastic when you have other machines with much less polyphony(e.g. I use an Alesis SR16 drum machine, which has a low amount of polyphony, but if i MIDI it up i can get all the sounds i need over top of each other.)
It has 40 built in effects like Chorus, Flanger, Delay, Reverb, Echo & Pan, etc, though i find most of them boring. But hey, to each is own.
No expansion capabilities, unless you want to spend extra cash and buy its big brother, the Cs6x, which just came out.
As a controller, it has MIDI in,out,and thru, and a TO HOST connecter,for hooking right up to a PC or a MAC. Speaking of MIDI, just about EVERYTHING can be sent as MIDI Data...even the Arpeggiator....Ahh the arpeggiator...one of the best out there. 40(!!) diffrent patterns. You can also change the tempo(obviously),the gate, the subdivide, etc. Unfortunatley, you cannot create your own arp patterns,which would be extra cool. But as is, its great.

I have to say, most of the instruments are very good. Some could use a little work (the bass voices, the guitars, etc.) The performances are pretty straight-forward, but the voices can be a little tricky to get at,since there are banks of GM,XG,and TG300B.
I would say this machine works best for what i do, which is Industrial/Ambient/Noise, but i'm sure it would work well in just about any studio. I've already mentioned the effects, so i shall move on.
It is very responsive and, like a good soldier, will jump when you tell it to. It has great velocity sensitivity and aftertouch, both of which can be modified to your liking.

This is my most dependable instrument...i cant say enough good things about it. I'd definatley gig with it and make it my main piece, though the knobs are a little loose...

I've had this for just under a year, and i've had no problems whatsoever.

I would never allow it to get lost, and if it were stolen, i'd buy a new one that day, and then maim the theif with various asundrious toys..but then credit him on his taste.
I've been creating music for about 5 years now, but i've only been using synths for about 2 years(i'm 17, give me a break *snicker*) and in that time, i've aqquired a Yamaha DX100, Yamaha SU10, Yamaha QY10(i see a pattern here...), 2 Casio CZ-101s, and an Alesis SR16, and i must say the Cs2x is my favorite and most integral part of my faux studio. I love it...it's a wonderful machine, and though it gets bad reviews from owners of the Cs1x, dont be fooled, it's a hell of an upgrade. The main competition to this synth is the Korg N5ex, which is also a wonderful synth, but i'd NEVER trade my 2x for one. I suppose it would be nice if i could program my own arpeggiator progressions, or alternativly, have a crappy little sequencer built in, but i digress, this synth doesnt need any of that to be my favorite. I love how, if i sit there long enough, i can find the sounds running through my brain and layer them to create scary soundscapes. I recomend this machine to ANYONE who enjoys synthesizers with many capabilities and likes to have an intrument for everything, as opposed to buying a rather expensive workstation. If anyone has any questions about it, or my music, or if im selling any of my gear (dont even ask about the 2x, i'll laugh *grin*) feel free to email me at CelticSnake@juno.com

Very easy to use, nice layout, fast and efficient. For anyone who thinks Yamaha's are hard to figure out, you must have a Macintosh sittin on your desk, cause we PC users figure things out right quickly. The manual explained everything I needed to know fairly well, although all manuals suck by default. The patch editor from Yamaha (Tune em' Up) is excellent, and a snap to use.

64 note polyphony, somewhat cheapo keyboard feel (but hey, it was only $550 new!), good effects, easy to use. Not entirely expandable, but lots of online support and end user support. The MIDI control is excellent, it IS A TRUE CONTROL SYNTH! No Sequencer, but that's what a computer is for.

Sounds are phenominal for pre-sets. Very sharp and bright, lots of great pads, nothing too stupid to use. It's obviously meant for dance music out of the box but I'm finding it really a great vintage sounder for 80's rock too. The feel is somewhat flimsy, but I can live with it. As for aftertouch, none to speak of, but no one said it was the whole ball of wax.

Most Yamaha's stay running, but if it does break, I'm sure I'll be on the phone for 4 hours talking to an idiot. But, that goes for every other manufacturer out there, so make of that what you will. As for gigging, it will be my main and only keyboard.

Yamaha's Audio division is top notch, and their motorcycles rule....but I fear musicians breed stupidity like mold on bread, so you'll get lots of dumb answers, ridiculous excuses and wait ten years for a 1 week fix. Do I sound cynical?

I've had 20 synths in my days, this is the best for the money ever made....bar none. It whips my $2500 DX7II in spades, makes the Roland JV-305 seem way to expensive, and it's price guarantees there will be lots of support from users down the road (note here to Kurzweil...hello!). I'd buy this synth over again 10 times, and laugh at a snobby synther and his Trinity while I spend my extra cash on a 600 Mhz Pentium to run this thing silly. Very nice job in keeping it cheap, useful and easy to use. Thumbs way up.

The front panel is good and have excellents posibilities to editing the sounds

The synth remember me the classics analogs synths and the digital part with presets and xg is good

the performances is very good for dance, trance and techno, the xg section is good for all kinds of music, but they not have aftertouch and limited the expresiveness.

Is a good synth for live applications and the experimental musicians that want a different sound in a keyboard

I use this keyboard with cubas and the tuneup editor from yamaha. Apart from some wierd thing with the bank changes etc this keyboard is a breeze to use and sounds great. Editing the pathces can be done easily on the keyboard itzelf but als with the software editor from yamaha which makes editing and catalogging your favorites even easier!

Polyphony 64 Keyboard = full sized and okay Sounds = 16 MB (cs1x=4,5 for example) FX = 3 times dsp effects (more or less the same as most recent xg machines Reverb, Chorus/Flanger, Variation Expandability = i don't think so MIDI = Great Midi implementation, the fully programmable knobs (8) and arpegiator both send everything thru midi, so IS a control synth. Sequencer = none, but why bother when you use a computer anyway

The sound are mostly oriented to modern (dance) music espacialy the performances. You can use 1 performance (=4-layered souns) + 12 other seperate souns at once. These twelve sound you can pick from a vast library of hundreds of 'material'sounds inside the machine.

don't know cause I only have had it for a week now.

Never had to contact them.

This is a must have, for anybody who want to get started in making modern (dance) music. I guess that for people with more equipment you'd be baetter of with one of the yamaha modules or something. If you want to have lots of fun and good quality sounds for nto too much money GET THIS ONE NOW!

I borrowed this from a friend who is on vacationfor a couple of weeks. The sounds are average but much better than the CSx1. More crisp and fuller. Editing patches is pretty straight forward much similar to the CSx1. The manual is well a manual average at best. Its useful in the beginning but like everything else just keep plugging away and using it and you figure most things out on your own.

Polyphony is now 64 and this is the most noticeable improvement. Not many new features from the CSx1. No sequencer so if you need a computer to do sequencing. I was disspointed with the expnasion ability you would think a major improvement would have happened due to all the request Yamaha received from CSx1 owners.

The sounds are definately better, but I still prefer the Korg N5's sound to these with the exception of the acoustic Korg sounds. The effects are basically the same as the CSx1 with some minor changes. I think if your creative you can generate sounds for most types of music with this board. I really wanted to see more sounds this is where the Korg N5 really has a huge advantage.

I haven't had any issues yet.

Judging by earlier customer service with Yamaha I would say this might be a very bumpy ride. Ihad to pull teeth out to get anything from these people in the past.

Bottom line is this: You have to hear and play with it to make up your own mind. It has pluses and minuses. Personally I would get a Korg N5 ( this seems to be the closest comparison out there) because of the quality and quantity of the sounds. They are very comparible in many areas but I feel the N5 is also easier to use right away and more user friendly. Not tomention the price is cheaper on the N5. I personally own a Korg O1w, Roland Jv 1080, and a Quasmidi raven. I am strongly considering getting a Korg Triton, guys go check the Triton out and really get a feel for ALL it can do! I really expected more from the CSx2 and felt like this is a simple upgrade of the CSx1 instead of the revolutionary technology Yahama says it is.

Very very easy to use at first because of the knobs, and OK for more advanced editing/sound creation once you get your head round it. You need (maybe) the manual and (definitely) the data list book on hand for this though! Performance presets are good, especially synth leads and Hammond-type organs. Rest of the presets are XG so sound best when combined or layered. Manual is not very good, sometimes the bit you really want to know is hard to find. Important stuff is often separated from the main text and printed smaller! Download Yamaha's Silver Book, it beats the manual in every way, any day.

64 note poly means you can layer sounds for a fatter... errrr... sound (almost a must-do with XG) without worrying too much about running out. No space for expansion boards. Buy an Orbit module if you want to expand it! No onboard sequencer (didn't need one with Logic and a QY70 in my setup!) but the Arpeggiator is very useful as it sends note data via MIDI. The Cutoff, Reso, Attack, Decay, and Release pots also send out MIDI cc data so you can control external modules or record this data to a sequencer no problem. Plus the 2 assignable knobs can be assigned to send cc data of any kind. Tons of built-in fx, as is normal for Yamaha they sound very good and you get 3 fx buses, Reverb, Chorus & Variation.

'Performance' sounds use dedicated waves and sound great. Leads are the best point (even if some do sound a bit familiar!), pads are nearly as good, organs are excellent, basses are OK (I normally layer bass sounds anyway). Everything else is XG, which can sound pretty amazing when layered. The CS2x plus my QY70 gives me 96 notes of poly available, so I layer all over the place :-) Initial touch sensitive only, map a knob to aftertouch if you need it (I prefer this method anyway). Good for trance, techno, ambient, and might also find its way into a prog rocker's setup as a lead synth. Classical sounds not bad either, especially strings.

Seems reliable, only had it a couple of months. Been using Ymaha stuff for years and it's always been reliable.

Never had to deal with them, their London dealer is excellent though.

I like this synth, my first since I 'gave up' music a few years ago. Been using synths since I was quite young (many years ago) and this is above average of the ones I have owned. If it got stolen, I would probably buy it again because I'm used to working with it now, and it's a hell of a lot cheaper than the only other synth I thought was as good, the Roland JX-305.