Yamaha RM1x

It??s easy to use if you are convenient with Yamaha sequenzers as QY70 or QY700. The manual is fairly easy to read. There are a lot of preset styles and patterns and you can combine them in your own user styles as you like, tweak the voices, mute tracks, build up pattern chains and all this in a very easy way.

The best in this box is the great variety of voices and styles, each with 16 different patterns. I like the preset voices, they have unlike other Yamaha voices in other synth and keyboards a little dust, but therefor the Rm1x sounds like no other instrument and has it??s own character. If you don??t like the voices you can hook up another synth via midi. The small keys aren??t pressure sensitive and for recording longer phrases a controller keyboard is useful.

As I just said, I like the special dusty sound of this box. And you can edit all voices within the patterns as you like them. You can get cheap dance sounds out of it, but also you can get very exclusive and futuristic sounds. But it??s made for electronica and dance music.

It,s build like a tank, very solid and with a good feeling if you are working often with all the knobs.

I like it very much, because it??s so flexible and in addition to my other keyboards, a Nord Lead 3, a SonicCell, a Tenori-On and a PSR-S700 which I use as a masterkeyboard it brings in the rhythmic patterns which I need from time to time for my music, which is mostly electronica.

Preset sounds are pretty useless, but I don't think people actually use preset sounds, you're supposed to use this thing to do music not to use it like a jukebox. I think manual is not so difficult, but you must definitely read it to get an idea of how the RM-1x works. Pretty easy after that. Sequencer really is simple and intuitive.

Good poliphony, worst keyboard action ever! You get used after a while, keys are very tricky, but you should definitely get a controller. It has no expansion capabilities, but I think it's pretty powerful by itself.

Midi capabilities in this machine really are what makes this thing so interesting. It's one of the best hardware sequencers available (don't care about the price), it really can compete with more professional and expensive tools, it has full midi compatibility, including pitch bends, knobs event recording, midi events etc. You can edit sequences in replace, overdub, step and grid mode.

Be aware! If you buy this thing for is sounds, you'll be very desappointed. This machine is not intended to be played by itself, It's much better sequencing other synths. Despite of that, you can get some decent synths you could actually use. Bass, Leads, Pads and almost all synthetic sounds sounds pretty decent (never professional), but any other "realistic" type of sound are not usable. Drums in this thing are the worst drums I've ever heard. Effects are pretty mediocre, but a few of them are actually usable, like midi delay. The arpeggiator is pretty cool but it only has 4 presets, altough you can simulate many more using sequencer in step mode.

I would never breakdown, but I can assure you the knobs are very weak, so you should treat it with care. I would definitely use it in a gig without a backup.

Lucky me, this thing looks pretty robust and it still works like new.

This thing would only get lost over my dead body! It's the central piece of my equipment and I use it for sequencing EVERYTHING that I do. Sounds are not good, but I use them only to create the song and play the song later with other synths. I'm a Computer Engineer and despite of that I can assure you a software sequencer will never be a replacement for a hardware sequencer, they are very different things. If you're like me, and think that sitting in front of a computer really scares the inspiration, get a thing like this. Be careful tough, because it's hard to get one in good working conditions, but remember this is not really a synth but an excellent sequencer.

The presets are a joke not to mention the sounds are beyond weak. Even if you edit the hell out of them they are wayyy too thin. I have heard good tracks on this machine but if you are looking for an all in one machine look else where. The manual is decent but lacking in some major departments. Like explanation of the job menu. It lets you do things to your patterns like (data thin out). How am I supposed to know what that does to my pattern. it says what it does but not why you would want to do them. In the roland 307 manual for example it says data thin out is good for freeing up memory

The sequencer is where this unit really shines. As a master sequencer it is one of the best i have seen. I do not use the sounds at all. Just have it hooked up to my laptop

Instruments are HORRIBLE. especially the real instrument sounds. Very fake sounding. With another synth to go with it you are in business.

it never crapped out on me but the buttons are pretty bad. Used to work but started using it again after a few years of it sitting and the buttons are unresponsive. Shouldn't be a big deal though.

never had too.

If it were lost or something I probably wouldn't get another. The yamaha sounds are terrible. I really am getting tired of these grooveboxes. Please tell me why you would fill up more than half of the machines memory with CHEESY songs that you CANNOT erase? On my korg em1 you can erase all the presets if you want. If someone buys the machine they can initialize the machine to the factory presets if they want but yamaha and roland don't seem to care about that!

I think this machine is pretty easy to use and if you use it a lot you get hold of the extras it has to offer, and there is a lot to be explored imo...

A lot of features, could use more effects, has quite a number of jobs

The sounds are OK, they are not fat or up to date but ok, meaning you should not use them without tweaking offcourse.

no problems here

I would buy it again if it was lost
I've been using it for a long time already, six or seven years
i like it because it's fun to use, got me into electronic music production
I bought many synths, samplers and other gear but the rm1x is the only good 'all in one' box for me ;)

This is easy to use for people who can take a couple days to master it. Once mastered, it's wonderful.

The only thing I don't like about my baby, the RM1X - is her memory. I wish she had more memory and floppy disks are not the most reliable. Can you buy them still? Floppies can demagnetize over time. I wish someone could open my RM1X and add a DVD burner to it because I use it a LOT. The keyboard action is not great.. but I hook it up to my Nord Electro via MIDI and control the sounds there.

Overall, the features are great. Wish you could apply more effects to one sound.. but that's okay. She's an old lady.

Forget all these wankers slamming the RM1X sounds. They obviously either love the overdone virtual synths and want to sound like everyone else, or they haven't yet explored the awesome capabilities of the RM1X when you get down and dirty with it. You can manipulate any sound in there to create a fresh new sound that's.... YOURS! Don't be an imitator... create your own sounds. Why make music if you are living by someone else's sound?

I only wish there were more snares to chose from - but that is it. This thing is great.

She's always dependable. She never has problems. The only problems I've had with her in all the 9 years I've owned her, is that I busted some of the keypads and lost some knobs. This is my fault for being irresponsible and taking her everywhere and not using a case.

Never used em

The Yamaha RM1X rocks. I'm going to buy another one.. and then maybe another one.

RM1X takes a little getting used to but it's worth the effort. Once you understand it it's a breeze. Could use a few tweaks for grid mode, but it's overall a nice feature if you're familiar with drum patterns. Built in arp is silly, but it makes up for it with midi play fx that are useful.

One of the best sequencers out there. Once you get your variations in, you can easily play around with muting channels and switching between patterns to create your songs (and actually in a creative way). If you're sick of looking at a computer screen during the writing phase, pick one of these up and really put the effort into learning how to use it. No more mouse until you're ready to record audio. It's a brilliant piece of gear. Don't forget that it's really a SEQUENCER and not a synth.

Although the sounds suck, I've gotten alot of good use out them. I've brought this along on vacation with me before, and then routed the sequences into real synths when I got home (with good results). The sounds are handy for on the fly writing, but that's about it. Giving it a 5, because the sounds are horrible, but also useful. I've actually used some drum sounds before when recording (because I wanted horribly compressed and mushy drums), but that's about it...

100%

n/a

This is a handy piece of gear that I wouldn't give up. I use it as a sequencer on a sampler for some of my drum tracks. The difference between this and the built in sequencer (in my sampler) is night and day. I've gone to no computer while writing, and the RM1x is indispensable. Just don't expect to use it regularly as anything but a sequencer. I never have, but it's definitely sturdy enough to gig with, and is phenomenal for piecing together patterns on the fly. Just don't forget it's name "sequence remixer". That's exactly what it is. Nothing more, nothing less. Everyone should be happy for its price that Yamaha even put a synth in it. Better to have a crappy one built in than none at all. $200 right now on ebay is a steal. If a few more hundred $'s isn't an issue, the RS-7000 has basically the same sequencer, but with sampling and a cleaner synth and fx.

took a while to learn how to use. the presets are silly (well except for the four-to-the-floor kick drum seq's, those are useful) and i've unfortunately heard people actually using them. the manual can be confusing at times and doesn't always tell you how to do things, rather it just tells you what the RM1x CAN do. patch editing is very simple, but that's as deep as it gets unfortunately.

this thing definately takes some time to get used to. it's not intuitive and it takes a while to your head around the whole RM1x concept. after that though, you're golden.

the keyboard sucks. i've had my RM1x for 7 years and several of the keys are no longer working. seeing as these keys are used for track selection/sections/mute/data it can be a pain to use when they don't respond.

as a midi sequencer it's great. rock solid. if you want to compose in a software editor then use this thing as a sequencer the thing will never flake out. i've used mine live numerous times and never have been nervous about it.

programming the sequencer blows. the whole phrase based construction, chaining etc is archaic. it's ok for sketching out song ideas, but little else. what takes a few mouse clicks in a sequencing application can take many minutes digging through menus and navigating the UI to enter data on the RM1x.

loading chains from disk burned me once, BIG TIME. when you load a pattern chain from disk it wipes the patterns out too. very poor design there guys.

the sounds are lifeless, dull and cheap. there's a few good basses, and some decent "bread and butter" drum sounds, but overall you need to compliment it with a quality synth to do serious work. the filter is ok, would have been nice to have at least a high-pass in addition to the low pass (how hard would that have been to add?), i'd rather have more/better filters than half the sounds.

onboard effects are lackluster. nothing special here. you can only add "delay" to one track in variation insert mode (notice the quotes, it's not real delay). the reverbs are ok, but the rest of the effects are pretty much useless.

aside from the cheapo keyboard the thing is bullettproof. i've gigged with it tons and it's never failed me. the floppy drive likes to give me errors and tell me it can't read disks, do yourself a favor and back up religiously to a computer (you can copy/paste right from RM1x formatted disks).

upgrading proved to be futile. i tried to get the upgrade ROM and couldn't get a straight answer from yamaha or the dealer. they bot pissed me off so bad i gave up.

if i lost it i wouldn't be broken hearted. i plan on phasing it out completely soon as it could easily be replaced by something far more powerful for the same money.

i love the stability and reliability of the sequencer. i've sequenced racks full of gear with it and it's always performed.

i hate the sounds and the tiny sliver of memory they give you. doesn't take much to fill up the memory, and it's not exactly quick to load from floppy either.

i wish it had better sounds that had some life and didn't sound like a crappy 80's beat box. i wish it had individual track eq's and at the very least a HPF in addition to the LPF.

it helps me make music as a quick "general" sound bank, but little else.

The presets are cool. But I would have wanted to get rid of them to free space.
Editing patches is easy. Even easier than fruity loops. There are Two good interfaces plus two realtime recordingmodes that come really handy.
The manual sucked big arse.

The polyphony sucks as the yamaha synth runs out of breath even with more complex drumloops. Takes usually 8-10 tracks to make it start gasping for breath. However, using it to control other synths it makes up for it.
Built in effects are boring and ordinary. But hey the thing is 10 years old now...
No way of expanding it and no internal memories for own sounds...
The sequencer is great, and I haven't managed to break the damned thing yet after 10 years of use.

Sounds SUCK. This thingy is really made for mindless techno or trance. *Another thing that is good at is making comp-riffs through the use of midi-delay and octavesetting.

Onboard FX have bad quality and really don't add anything.

The plastic knobs are a pain to play on. But it was never intended to be used in that way.

It has never broke. Ive got vomit, beer, drinks, and coffee spilt on the bastard and it still works.

If it was lost or stolen I wouldn't buy a new one. Virtual synths rock. It was worth the money though.
I have been playing it for 10 years in hiphop-gigs and freestylesessions, a few times in a trance party and a couple of raves, then it was part of an art exhibition in order to have something look like we weren't just taking everything out of the computer...
I love that it never breaks, I hate the knobs and the synth.
I compared it to a Korg before I bought it. It just worked easier.
Id wish it had better knobs and better synth and a sampler would be nice...

Don't go buying it anymore, there are better, not so outdated things out there nowadays. Sequencers are losing to computersoftware.

This unit is great IF YOUR A DJ WHO WANTS TO PLAY PRESET SOUNDS OVER DANCE MUSIC IN YOUR BEDROOM. Like the old MC-303 creating a pattern is archaic and time consuming. Notes are placed on a giant multi octave imaginary grid and you have to scroll slowly to see what note is what. This takes forever and you get lost easy. Then when you preview the pattern you don't get to hear what it sounds like over music. But when you're creating mindless techno I guess you just don't need to. Even scrolling between "styles" or banks, you can't just fly down to number 1 from 45 oh no it goes really slowly. Try spinning faster and it does no good. Slow is the only way. Then after finally dropping to p1 you can't go down to u or user. It hits rock bottom so you have to go all the way to the top slow and sure. But I guess when your a technician at a music hardware company you just don't consider details like that.

The features are good if you don't die of old age trying to actually use them.

Typical Yamaha sound set.

Would never try to take this thing on a real gig.

All-in-all it's design suggests that it was constructed for children with no musical capabilities. It's another poorly thought out overcomplicated Japanese concept. It's almost as if the technicians never tested the device other than just on a mechanical level. What takes 10 minutes in fruity loops takes endless hours (if it's even possible) on this frustrating device. GOOD LUCK.

The RM1x is a very simple machine to use ... unless you want to make things complicated. I've found that it is easy to lay down a bassline and synth type arpeggios but very difficult to deal w/ pads/chords or long held notes. With anything held longer than a measure you have to 'tie' into the next measure and after a while it gets frustrating. You also have to remember what notes you've entered as there is no way to tell what note is actually being played. Other than those things it doesn't get much easier.

The 'keyboard' sucks and it even takes a while to get used to pressing down the buttons as they are not sensitive at all. You almost have to punch the button unless you hit the very bottom of it (it takes some getting use to but it OK now). I've had no problems w/ MIDI and I use the RM1x to sequence all my external gear, can't ask for much more than that. It is all easy to set up and pretty much common sense if you know about MTC and syncing.

This is the downfall of the RM1x. The sounds for the most part are useless. If you have external effects then you can make them sound okay. Editing of voices is very limited but you can't save them so it doesn't really matter anyway. The thing that frustrates me the most is that the RM1x doesn't have voice memory... so when you turn the thing off and on again it won't save a bass voice that you had on track 1 but instead will play the default sound (I think its a piano) it sounds god awful and you have to change everything. There is a the floppy drive but it is still more of a pain than it should be for a list price of over $700. I never use the sounds on the RM1x, I don't even have the thing hooked up to my mixer.

Rock solid. There are 4 knobs right by the LED that are a bit suspect b/c they have been wobbling more and more as time goes on (they are still on but treat them nicely). Other than that it feels like everything is unbreakable. I've gigged a few times w/o a backup and have had no problems.

Had a response about a week later and they directed me to their 'national' support team so I figured the problem out myself.

My overall rating is a 9 b/c I only use it to sequence my other gear. If I had this box by itself it would get about a 3. If you have external gear then this is GREAT hardware sequencer but if you're just getting a 'groove box' then go w/ one of the Rolands.

newest os. the preset are not bad-i had a qy70 and there are alittle bit like that.it has 8(x2)knobs for real time editing and also you can edit asdr,ect so it is pretty good.editing patches is dead simple-the edit matrix manual is printed on the right side of the unit-could it be any easier!?!?!?!
manual is ok,this thing is a hell of a sequencer,too!!

the plastic chiclet keys suck,sometimes they "double fire",but i use an oxygen controller.
effects are decent enough-you can edit certain parameters of the effect,too.
the best feature is the disk drive!!!!! save sounds on your mac/pc
no bizzarre 3 volt or whatever they smart cards from roland here...
midid specs are the best out there.
seq rocks

drums are cool,
i make ambient,but electro techno,acid,house ect is good to make o this machine.and idm too

good solid metal casing,but why the plastic keys???(cheap)

???

i'd get it again.
it is great as the center of studio-use it to seq all othere equiptment.
beats mc303,mc505 has more sliders ect,but roland grroveboxes are soo dated sounding -and cheap crap generaly.
they make a product and 6 months later it is gone drom their online database. remember the mc09? yeah neither did i....

Be patient, all traditional instruments take years to learn by comparison.

MIDI filtering of in outs could be improved

forget the sounds, just use the sequencer. a few useful sounds are buried within, most are cheesy. however, I hear more and more cheesy sounds used in hip hop and r n b all the time, maybe some of you wil get lucky.

very reliable, solid metal case, cheap plastic keys, slighter better knobs. case is solid as

yamaha should have updated OS chips out of their own pocket, and made this known to all vendors. yamaha only did free upgrades for a few years and only to those that found out. cost me $80 AUD, I was pissed off.

This is a great hardware sequencer, just forget 90% of the sounds and use an external synth or sampler for you actual sound source.

MIDI sequencing on this thing is seriously good, and at current second hand rates it's a steal.

There are one or 2 MIDI bugs that can switch MIDI presets on external gear while you edit, but this is fixed with the last OS version. you can work around it anyway. overall, one of the best hardware MIDI sequencers ever made.

Had it for 3 years, I've used it to score and sequence music for film and for bands. It's been great value.

It's pretty simple to use. Sometimes you could wish for a software-based editor since it gets pretty tricky to edit patches where more notes are played at once. If you do more complicated tracks, with a lot of automation, editing gets even trickier!

But overall the machine is pretty easy to use IF you read the manual!

Polyphony is 64, which should be enough for most people.

The Rm1x could use some sort of simple synth-part since the preset sounds get pretty dull after some time.

It definately lacks memory expansion capabilities!!! I wanted to use song mode for sequencing other synths. But since it was limited to about 500Kb of memory, I had to forget this idea since my tracks are between 160Kb and 400Kb each (I mainly create psytrance and minimal trance). I could switch to using pattern mode, but since I work faster at a computer than on the Rm1x while building the tracks, I don't want to work in pattern mode. So now I mainly use the Rm1x for percussion sounds.

The Rm1x is pretty good for getting your ideas put to music really quick. The basis for some of my best tunes have been made on apparently an hour on the Rm1x.

More OUTs would be nice for those who use the onboard sounds. Since there are only two OUTs (Left and Right), it is not easy to add external effects to a specific instrument.

The feature of switching to and from record mode while playing is also completely left out. This would be very useful if you work in pattern mode and work within the more rythmic loopbased genres as for instance techno, tribal and so forth. This feature have completely been left out by Yamaha.

I have had some problems with connecting it the Rm1x to a software sequencer, and using it to send midi data further through the midi-out. Even though the onboard sounds on a specific channel were disabled, the Rm1x insisted on playing these sounds when the signal came from outside the box. I never got this fixed, and I'm not sure it can be. So my sollution was to get a midi interface for my computer with 2 midi-outs, so that I did not have to send the signal through my Rm1x.

The floppy drive is a nice feature :c)

The sounds are ok. I have found more than a few that I could use. However, after I have got my hands on a real synth (access virus c), I only use the Rm1x for percussion.

I still think it is good for laying down the basis for a track, but the sounds themselves cannot be compared with those of a real synth. At least not for the genres I deal with.

I have had NO problems at all with my Rm1x. I've played half-way through 3 or 4 gigs with it and it have not crashed on me yet. Only halfway because of my memory problems desriped earlier. :c)

I have never been in contact with customer support.

If my Yamaha Rm1x was stolen or lost, I would not get one again. I only use it for percussion these days, so I would much rather get a sampler instead since the percussion banks are getting somewhat trivial to me.

Had this been a year ago no one could convince me to sell it to them for all the money in the world! I have really had some fun with this machine, and I will never regret buying it!!

If some software tools that could help me easily set up pattern were available, I would most definately use it for sequencing again too :c)

I have not explored all of the uses this machine is capable of. I have not used it in Song Mode or Pattern Chain Mode. However, I understand how those functions work and others have reported good things about the RM1x as a Sequencer. I use mine as a live performance tool. I like to play along and improvise (guitar, drum triggers, theremin, voice, etc.) with a loop for a while and as I sense the audience getting restless, I can push a button to seamlessly move to a new train of thought. (Try doing that with a full band!) At first it bugged me that it would switch mid loop but now I like that. It means it requires a level of musical skill to operate and also awards you more control on the fly.

I don't like the fact that the quantize function doesn't work on the fly in real time record mode (like Roland Machines). You have to play your part and apply the function after. However I find the Step function to be very easy to use.

Manual was OK.

See other reviews for specs. Also see my "Ease of Use" section since I covered some of the features there.

I got this machine because my Roland MC-303 crashed and I lost all of my patterns. This surpasses that machine in most catigories. It has ample memory and a disk drive so you can back up your work. (Very important!) Lot's more user banks, voices, tracks, everything.

Some have knocked off points for sounds and the keypad. That might be because they have spent more time pursuing Electronica than I have so they have much higher expectations. Even those folks would give it high marks as a sequencer for controlling sound modules they prefer.

That said, I rather like the sounds in this box. Good analog modeling good effects, versitile sound editing functions. I was pleased that the key pad was much more usable that I expected (since I read other reviews slamming it.)

I have been composing for a month and still have not come close to maxing out the memory. I have no fear of crashes and, as mentioned, it has a disk drive to backup my work. I played four gigs so far and it performed flawlessly. It has a very solid feel to it.

Never needed to contact them.

I paid more than I needed to for this RM1x. You'll be able to get them for about $225-$275 on Ebay pretty easy. This one however had 3 total hours of use on it and the guy was here in town so I didn't have to pay shipping. So it all came out in the wash. It was still WELL worth it. This is the most important tool in my one-man-electronica-punk-jazz-rock band. It allows me to improvise while still having composed elements in the music. It has helped my improve my guitar soloing and has provided a fresh palet for composing.

I've never worked with yamaha synth before, so it wasn't that easy for me to handle the manual. I had many Roland machines before (TB303,TR808-909,MC 303-307-505) I think the were much more comfortable to use. But if you take some time to read the manual, it's no problem.

I think you have many real cool features in this sequencer!!! Midi delay, pitch shifter, and the most interisting thing....the disk floppy!!! I like the Grind- and steprecording...Its very easy to add melodys that you have heard somewhere.

Best Hardwaresounds u can get for that price!!!

1000%

#Never had someting to do with them#:-))

It's one of the best things i've ever bougth...especially for Acid, Techno and Hip Hop

usability sucks.
e.g. you can not switch from record to play while the sequence is runnning.
you always have to stop. very annoying.
another example: to undo something you have to press more than 10 buttons if you are in a wrong mode.

features are ok.

sound are ok but you get bored after a while.

Simply, this machine is very easy to use. I score films, and let me tell you, whenever a director needs some techno fast the RM1x is there for me, and quickly!

I have had the RM1x for a while now. It's a perfect fit in my studio. Mostly, when I'm doing films I just need a keyboard and some software but when I need some techno, and fast, the RM1x becomes the most important piece of equipment I own. It's definitly well worth what I paid. The only bad thing about it is that the track buttons get weak with time, If you can, don't use them much except to change tracks and sections-They'll quit working. But overall, you can't beat it, not with the ease of use and the price!

version 1.02 or summat......not upgraded
Presets so so.....
Editing easy and quick.....
Manual ok....covers most angles well enuff

64 voice polyphony if i recall....sorta enuff....
Keyboard sux....non velocity sensitive...
FX ok....quite a few, editable.....bussing a tad limting....
MIDI OK...needs a dedicated THRU ....
Sequencer fine....timing solid enuff.....giggable anyways i rek

Editability renders most presets quickly fixable....and to taste
Most styles addressable....mo' or less.....some authenticity issues tho....fairly reactive playing wise.....a tad fiddly...use master kybd!...Real time FX and tweaking parameters pretty tasty and flexible.....

Still solid after 4 years....no disasters......floppy drive would be first to go i rek......Recommend SysEx Dumps for backup....
Yeah i'd gig with it.......but wouldn't drink near it!

No need for this....but other dealings with Yamaha have been excellent...

Yeah i'd prob buy another but wouldn't pay more than #200 now....lotsa other good options in the marketplace now that supercede this rig...playing over 25 years....lotsa stuff guitars/keys/recording
I do like it's instant editability and reliability....it helps genrate ideas kwik stylee, partic drum loops tho cvant compare sound wise to MPC/sampler type of quality...but fine overall....it enables a song to be sketched out kwikly.....

The presets on this machine are plenty. I make
mostly rock beats with this unit. And have made
tons of Techno.Drum'n'Bass songs.
The manual is fat.

The effects built in are typical & easy to use.
I like using the drums on the Rm1X for rock & metal.
A monkey could operate this machine and sound like
a master.

The GM sounds are a little cheesy and not very good.
Almost compareable to a PSR unit you can buy at
Circut City for $99 bucks, but the more progressive
snyth and drum sounds are very slick. I know someone
on the Web is selling expandable sounds for this machine
for 30 bucks. I downloaded the Demo, and it was
cool to hear more sounds, but basicly all they did was
edit the sounds themselves. If I had time I could do the
same.

Never had a problem with this machine. Except for
the fact that the more Data you have the slower
the machine moves. But the disk drive is there to back
its all up. The knob are a little cheap, I lost one already
where you change your BPM.

Yamaha always has good product ranging from Motorcycles to
Instruments. A good company.

Here is a link to my webpage. Here I have used
the RM1X to compose my own songs. Go there if you
want to hear the machine hands on. Sorry there are
no Synth sounds. I used it for drums.
http://www.peterice.tk click on MP3. Sorry about the pop-ups.

This instrument is really intuitive to use, it has different ways to let you record/enter your music. After some use the RM1x lets you put down ideas really quick, which makes it a lot of fun to use.

The manual is yamaha style and is allright to lookup some information if you need to, but its not readable like a good book.(some manuals are, like the one that came with my Waldorf micro Q)

There are only a few sound parameters you can change, the most important parameters can be tweaked instantly with the knobs, others can only be changed in the voice edit menu. Although the sound editing is VERY limited, but it is sufficient to addapt the sound a bit to make it fit better with the rest of the instruments in your tune.

For the complete novice the RM1x comes packed with 60 demo songs. This lets you learn the RM1x a little and hear what different tracks of a composition sound like.

It's a REAL SHAME that these demo songs are built in ROM and there for can not be removed from memmory...

I think the polyfony is 64 voices which should be fine for the 16 sequencer tracks.

The sequencer supports everything in the MIDI implementation like CC#'s and aftertouch, SysEx(editing), XG and so on... this makes it a very powerfull sequencer you can also use to controll external synthesizers and samplers with.

The sequencer has 480 parts per quarter note resolution and has overdub/replace realtime and grid(X0X)/step non-realtime record modes.

There are sequencer modes pattern, patternchain and song. Song is 16 tracks of liniear recording. Pattern mode has 16 patterns(with 16 tracks each), you can switch the patterns(called sections) in realtime(you can (un)mute tracks in realtime as well). In pattern mode the RM1x can be a great live performance sequencer.

In pattern chain mode you can program a songs from your patterns(sections).

Each set of 16 patterns(sections) is called a "Style" while you can use more than one style in pattern chain mode there is a noticable delay when the sequencer switches styles. Also you can NOT record which tracks to mute and to unmute. To overcome these problems you will need to convert you pattern chain to a song. In song mode there are no hickups in the playback between styles and you can edit the tracks in superb detail.

The sounds on the RM1x are mainly aimed at dance production. They are not too impressive because Yamaha made compromises by compressing them together in only 4MB of ROM...

They could have included a more complex synthesizer (or sampler like they did in the new rs7000 which is like a RM1x with a phrase sampler built in). But i figure because the sequencer is powerfull enough to controll the coolest synthesizers and samplers you can get, this isn't such a big problem after all. The RM1x sounds all right...

The sounds can be led through 3 effects which like the sounds aren't too impressive but DO feature some parameters, so with some creativity you CAN edit the sounds and effects to create some quite nice sounds/tracks with the RM1x.

The minikeyboard/buttons are not pressure sensitive and they only respond when you press them down quite firm. I needed a bit of getting used to these buttons, they also do feel a bit fraggile. You can always connect a midikeyboard to the RM1x.(like I did)

The RM1x seems pretty well built in it's metal case, most buttons feel great exept maybe the minikeyboard and the rotary knobs(midi controllers) while the knobs under the display are very nice.

The RM1x crashed on me once... I don't know why.

I would use it on gigs even without a backup. The diskdrive makes loading easy/fast and all settings remain in memmory even when the unit is turned off.

I never had anything to do with Yamaha...

The RM1x is a lot of fun for the money. It's the best hardware midi sequencer you can get at it's price.(maybe even the best around)

It's great for starting a hardware/live setup, both as you first instrument or as a replacement for a computer in an existing midi setup.

I would get a new/used one if it got stolen for shure, maybe I would get an Yamaha RS7000(which is almost the same as the RM1x but with integrated phrase sampler)

The RM1x is THE center center of my studio and because it has sounds and effects built in you can also take it with you quite easily.(It's a shame it doesn't run on batteries)

ok first of all I am kinda new too this stuff but the quick start part of the manual is ok and you can sequence and screw with the presets almoast right away, but fo rthe rest of it you must get used too the tree of menu's and what not but that is too be expected for you want somethign worth using and its got knobs and buttons an dits not a stupid pc with a shelf life of that of a french cheese and it wil nto crash like a plane under terrorist instincts. I think its a bit harder too use than my dr 202 or emu sampler but its a 16 track sampler so it better have more in it. lots of stuff in there if you keep with it and read read read the manual. play with one before you buy it.

midi seems good and easy too set up, efffects are fairly easy and sound good a must for internal drum sounds as they are a bit thin. disk drive is nice scsi would be nicer check the emu xl7 but it costs more sequencer is super extensive as far as hardware is concerned I hate pcs and use the mac for pro tools only. there is a lot here btu you gotta dig its ther eand will keep yyou working at it btu thats better than some oh woop to doo I am sick of it and figured it out box.

I have not had too many machines nor can I afford too many, this is my first synth and my second drum machine, the sounds are dated a bit but great for the money pads are rockin, drums are ok, other stuff is there and nice, effects knobs, not realistic but its a groove box not the electric light orchestra btu hey you get what you pay for elo can only be afforded by sell outs like metalica. I will say thoguh that if you want more pay more and you will get it. a grand gets more than 3 to 400 by a long shot. but for the money I am happy for sure. Its dancey though I like that but know that before you buy one.

man its rough lookin compared too the plastic boxes I got for less4 btu the keys are kinda crappy, its in metal, dont throw it donw the stairs put it in a box if you get drunk and fall over all the time, otherwise I think its cut out for giging...

dont know wish I had a manual that talked amd coudl point

I woudl be mad as hell but woudl look at a triton or something like an mpc... maybe since I sample a lot and use it mostly for the synth and its more of a sequencing gem, but thats just me. for a centerpiece or standalone its sweet, I got other gear for drums and sampling though

This is a well thought-out bit of kit. I have had mine for 3 years now and i see it as my main instantaneous composing tool. Closeness to everything editable is the vital requiremnt for this activity. The two levels of pattern and phrase are intuitive. The key to this is that when your working on a channel, you have the phrase installed then any edits made to this phrase DO NOT require a selection of the phrase. If you like your phrase then you leave it. If you did one hell of a bum note then press Shift+job and it goes back to the original. You like your pattern, then you copy it to a pattern with a little button-pot selection and then you say to yourself,i want the same backing but give a bridging lead to a channel then select the channnel (always the same one with me) and select the phrase display, turn the appropriate pot to when the little length indicator by the side of the phrase number goes blank and hey presto a new phrase with the same length (You can ajust the length on the same screen, the other phrases just work with their own lengths repeating). Then hit the record button and you can enter your new lead. This normally takes me about 10-20 seconds. With 16 patterns per Style then you have lots of memory to group. This bit of finger pressing is a delight. It's faster than cubase almost (mouses being a bit fiddly).
As a song producer then it does pattern development OK but falls in the structuring side. This is where the Cubase is the king. You have no idea where patterns have been placed in terms of step numbers (But it hasn't got a VDU). This is where the RM1x is not a song developer but more of a Composer tool. The patterns can be conveniently sent as SMF's to Cubase for the big picture type of edit. If it had a USB interface then this could be quicker. But the RM1x has those old Floppies to work with. I have some from 3 years ago and now they are mangled to the point i would never put them in the disk drive for fear of geting them stuck. The Moto of the story is get yourself a Pc to accompany your RM1x. You don't need Cubase SX, any freeware software would do the job that the RM1x does not.
The Arpeggiator is very limited and does not drive outside Modules like my Korg and does not run from a keyboard controller (something else that is vital). That is an obvious basic error by the Japs.The arpeggiator is limited with options but i don't miss this because arpeggios are now a Cliche in dance/synth orchestral music. The sound editting was ahead of it's time and now all software/keyboards have a bit of this. One of the best features is the Midi echo which can give electronic composition to you without planning ahead. I have had amazing results from this getting complicated sequences/sub-sequences with a turn of a pot. All it requires is a simple note entry and quantization and hey presto Jarre is suddenly a brit. Muting is easy for developing your ideas of layers but just pass all channels to your SMF and do the muting in Cubase.

The layering of voices is very very tight and shows lovely phasy notes emminating even in chords. This feature does not venture to direct play though. The Yamaha does a good job of handling the Polyphony (as all Yamahas do). The range of sounds are good with obvious emphasis on classical synth stuff. I have done Jarre, Vangelis, Mike Oldfield and Robert Miles variations on this machine (I got a fantastic track of Children on the web, This impressed the wife as she liked this track). The controller data (which i love) is all there to be returned to you after a production. The best one is the filter sweep. I would have liked a bit more from the RM1x in this department because one of my favorites is to edit the filter and pulse width at the same time. But i could get a better controller keyboard i suppose. There is still nothing on the market second-hand or new that has the level of combination of sequencer and synth for the price. I believe the Motif has similar editing structures but does not have the Pots. The japs have given us the most important editting features at thumb level ie. Filter Frequency, Resonance, Decay time, Volume, Effects depths and you can program your own Pot configuration also! The only really really thing i miss on this is delayed OSC pitch modulation. This is an important textural sound quality to a lead and figures highly in my music. The controller wheel is not the same (and why is it in SYSEx and not in the Buttons?). The pads have all the editting i require at voice level except for cross fading (this is virtually on all other Yamaha Synths since the days of the SY22/SY77/SY99/SY85). The answer would be to have some mega controller keyboard that edits everything and puts the dog out in the garden.

The GM sounds for some unknown reason seem to be poor compared to the rest. The rest are all but a few silly lush-swirlly, one finger press impressive, mini-song,out of tune, shop enquiry pads that have no place in my material. The basic Saw/Pulse ones are an attempt at analog but unfortunately don't carry detuning of the oscillators. These are good. The filter is not really the Moog stuff and don't have a lot of distortion to them. The key to the synth is it has a good output stage. When the sounds are combined they all sound very no.1 material. I don't know many big artists using it but this is not a mega-expensive state of the art synthesiser/sequencer. This is the result of Yamahas years of experience in knowing what people do when they make songs. The expression is all there after you have worked out the controller map. The effects are good but not edittable like in Cubase but there again this does not have a C++ programmable operating system with every man and his dog making VSTs. The Delay is syncable but my trusty Casio calculator can do that. The phaser has some Jarre instincts to it but my latest VST's can do a better job. The effects are good when you adjust the parallel and serial mixture at the end of the effects edit screens. The reverb is quite generous for those infinitely outer-space sustains that seem to take a raw noisy saw to Pluto but still within hearing distance. The bit resolution is better than a lot of old school digitals but not in the league of the latest Cubase and 24bit sound cards. I have to say though, that when i have recorded it to an audio track in Cubase it holds it's own and does a better job than many VST sysnths. I have done this sometimes with intention of adding VST but never really ended up with it because the results were good. There is competion going on in a lot of people's heads at the moment between RM1x type beasts and the beast from Germany. I hover between the two. I have to say that the VST fraternity are getting better and better and better. Everyday on the web seems to throw up something new. I can understand why good old Vangelis had so many Synths in the 70's!

White entry buttons are getting a bit of dust underneath and need a good contact clean (only one at the moment). But this just requires a bit of a heavier finger.
Yamaha do make long lasting keyboards, like Roland, like Korg, not like Lada Cars. The thing is housed in metal (i hate plastic anything). Anybody looking for 2nd hand would not be disappointed although i would say that you should look for a home used one as any gigged keyboard will have Beer, Roadie and Van Additions added to it's anatomy (like all keyboards!). I suppose anybody selling it would be suspicious in any case because it's not the sort of music electronics that people think is S*hte. If you see one in the classifieds, ask one thing, has it been gigged?

Don't have any requirement. Mine still works beautifully.

I would kill the bugger who stole it.

Every thing is pretty much in your face so you can get started on your tracks the minute you pull it out of the box. and if you whant to get more technical the manual is great

the keyboard itself sux and is not velocity sensytive so youll have to get a midi controler keyboard to go with it. the fx are descent but the knobs arent very solid.

preset sounds are very good and you can tweak the hell out of them to get a nice professional sound. its very versatile too so you can use it with almost any style of music.

I use it regularly in shows I do live psytrance and its never givine me any problems although the keys are made of plastic and I do fell there begining to wear on me the key is keep it fairly empty and ALWAYS!!! back up your stuff .

Never dealt with them so I cant comment

Overal rating I give it a 8 because the machine itself is great but all the knobs and the keys are plastic and not very durable but if you plan on keeping it in a studio setup and not being to hard on it the sounds are amazing and I have made some wonderful trancks with this machine it trully is a monster.

don't know what OS i have but it runs fine
presets are suprisingly good remember this is a groovebox
so most people will wan't the presets so they can get down
to making funky trax right away
manual is good

could do with 64 voice polyphony (only 32)
the FX are fairly good quite a few variations though not outstanding
do a fairly good job.
expansion is a nono but does have a floppy drive for unlimited songs.
midi is well implemented i like importing exporting midi too. for use
with Reason.
Sequencer is the heart of this 16tracks can be panned however you like
with ease no glitching and sounds good as a whole.

GM sounds are not much cop but the synth bass sounds are quite impressive.
well this is a groovebox so its special skills are dance music and electronica.... good to hear some decent garage rythms though
velocity and after are fine.

Well it ain't let me down yet
with the ease of use the floppy drive gives you need never
gig without backup

never needed to contact yammy

if lost or stolen i would probably get another one.
i have been playing music for around 6years and i have other grooveboxes like the MC-505 MC-303 and Korg EA-1 plus rebirth and Reason.
I wish it was a TB-303 groovebox but that never gonna happen though
it can make ok 303sounds it don't have slide or accent control.
the rm1x is a very insprational tool for creating trax in a hurry
and for polished works.
for #200 off ebay this is a excellant groovebox for the money
it sounds a lot better than people think.

well, at first glance its very easy to program, and u start makeing sum cool patterns right away. but when u get into it a little more, its a comlex thing. and im glad for dat, cause once u figure it out, it can really solve ALL yr sequencing problems... u have to spend sum time w the manual..

this thing has it all! realtime, step, grid sequencing. realtime controler knobs (greal for LIVE use). a very cool grid groove mode. and lotsa other stuff...

well, it think its sounds really suck!!! but its a matter of taste i think..

it crashed once.... remember to back up yr patterns!!!

never needed:)

i would get another if it were stolen. i use it to control a yamaha a4k, jp8000, juno 60, jomox09, an some efx, and it does it with great style!!!