Believe it or not I use this to compose classical-ish music. I am disabled and find computers a pain. This is so handy and easy to use. Sounds can be altered via "voice effect". With that and a lot of DSP you can get a very reasonable piano sound. The "warm strings" are quite beautiful. Oboe is a problem...but it always is.French Horn 2 is really good and Slow Violin is..almost there ! Like most of these gizmos it is a question of finding the voices you most like and using them only. Mellow Choir is amazingly good and Orchestra 2 in short bursts is very convincing !

It could do with more Chinese instruments. A Northumberland bagpipe and some more orchestral stuff such as legato orchestra, better flute and better nylon string guitar, woodwind section and a bit of an improvement on the brass instruments would be welcome. It is not possible to record from the microphone into it...but otherwise this is a quite incredible machine !

I found it a lot easier to use than a computer. If you switch it off you don't have to save anything - you can get immediately back to where you were when you switch on again. No waiting for Windows to groan into action !

It is fine - I often drop it - it keeps playing !

Worth every farthing.

Support is ok in the UK by phone.

It is what it can do in such a small box - incredible !

Amateur Composer

Classical and Weird

The sound quality is excellent.Most of the instrument patches are usable, altho the Reeds are a bit weak. I would say tthat the sounds are CD quality. I just run it thru a regular PA system and I'm always getting very favorable comments. Re-do the Reeds.

Market this product WITH a AC power supply. In spite of some reviews, this is Not a Toy!! A working musician with an ounce of creativity can kick Butt with it. Undo/Redo, Copy Event, Quantize, Transpose and Track Edit. I wish UNDO/Redo had a History of maybe 3/4 events back to be able to recover.

Product is fairly durable if you dont remove the plastic film over the display, and that can be replaced. I use it on the road a Lot! Just be sensible and don't throw it around. Ive had mine for over two years, I'm pretty sure I can get five more.

Jazz/Brazilian?Calypso

For a small box, this sucker has a lot of sounds. The styles are awesome - you can pick a style, then change the pitch and tempo and end up with a large variety from a single style. It's the coolest musical device I've EVER owned :)

Product came with a stereo output cable (RCA) and foam circle "feet". 3 very helpful books were included, and are also available from yamaha site in pdf format (must have Adobe Acrobat to download them). It did NOT come with an adaptor - and you HAVE to have one. My new batteries (6AA) lasted about 2.5 hours, then I received a "Low Batt" message. Grrrr.. It did NOT include midi cables either, so be prepared to buy them if you want to hook up a midi keyboard, or to transfer files to your computer.

So far, I'm gonna give this a 10. It's comfortable in my hand, nice looking, and appears to be built sturdy. As for "on the road", I'd be a little leary as the battery situation really bites.

So far.. for me - a 10. I've already created 2 full demos for songs I've written. That's after owning this thing for about 2 weeks, and playing with it intensely, while reading the owner's manual. To be able to express yourself... I can't put it into words. VERY high on my list as far as the value. If I lost it, I'd get it again.

I don't know how the service is. I haven't dealt with them. I'm rating it an 8 only because I was able to find a lot of information on the yamaha/synth website. Manuals for download were cool (but you must have Adobe Acrobat), and there appeared to be a lot of information.

Extremely sexy. Not only does it look nice, but once you figure out what buttons to push, you can get this sucker to "put out" without too much difficulty. To me, it's a technical marvel. I was only able to semi-play the keyboard. Now, by programming the chords, or playing them on my midi-keyboard, I get a full sound. It's amazing! So far.. the only thing it won't do, is dishes.

Pop /Rock

This unit is very deep with sound generation and manipulation. The sound generator is clean and sounds are very useful. You can also tweak the settings for sounds and the amp simulator to create some pretty amazing stuff. As a stand alone sequencer/music production workstation this has remarkably clean and usable sounds.

The unit comes pretty bare. I would have loved a small bag for the unit and adapter. Battery life is low when you are editing live parts, but I have created full song using patterns and step entry for about two hours on six AA batteries. So, if your workload is not involving "live" sequenced parts, I guess the battery life is ok. I would have liked more, but once you jump into this unit, you will quickly forgive the designers for this small issue.

It does take some time to get used to the multiple button pushes, but once you invest about a day creating and editing stuff, it is really simple to use. The design of how you create, store, copy, edit, and paste parts and tracks is amazing and creates some usable stuff very quickly. This unit is a beast for live shows or studio sequencing take a lot of labor intensive activities and making them simple.

You can drop this thing on concrete, and I have, and it will come back and keep working. I have had batteries die in the case and replaced them after cleaning contacts...it still works. The buttons on the front can become sluggish with overuse, but it still works. This is a well built and dependable unit.

The unit is still a little pricey, but can be had on some auction sites for just over a couple hundred bucks. Given how sturdy it is, I would be comfortable buying one from such a place. Although, I do love the smell of NEW! Anyway, it does so much and has so many usable features and sounds, it is worth the LIST PRICE!

I give this a five because I have NOT used the Yamaha support but understand they have discontinued updates to the operating system and other support for the unit. I do not understand why this system has not grown into QY-200s, 300s, and more. As a stand alone sequencer and quick production tool, I know of NOTHING else that does what this unit does and certainly would think most songwriters, jingle producers, musicians, performers, etc, would love more of the same. This was and still is a huge breakthrough is basic music production and performance. Shame on you Yamaha!

When using this thing at the library or sporting events, everyone wants to know what kind of radio I am listening to. Then, when they realize I am producing music, they are amazed. This is a cool unit and looks awesome. Even with batteries in (it takes six AA batteries) it only weighs about a pound or so and looks like an oversized videotape. High coolness factor!

Professional Musician

Country/Americana

If you like retro sounds with from a small machine, this is a good one. The QY70 is there as well.

Doesn't automatically come with an ac adapter. What's up with that Yamaha?

Easy with the phases and presets but the sequencer is a nightmare. I utilize my software sequencers and dump the QY100 grooves I make into them.

Sturdy as hell. Take it with you on a train or plane. Make sure you bring many batteries if there are no outlets.

The sounds are worth the money. If you are creative you can work this little box.

Musician/Hobbyist

Electro/New Wave/Industrial

This machine is about nine tenths sound and about one tenth sequencer. Don't get me wrong, I love this machine, and for the price you can't get anything that will "sound" better. I've had a few technical difficulties with the sequencer though. Mine is currenty not working due to a glitch in the programming! I've had wierd files just appear on my internal memory, I've had those files cause the machine to freeze, and now not even work at all! Aside from the troubles I've had, it is a great machine. In fact, after all the trouble I've had, I'm still going to get it fixed! I can't go for very long without it without totally freaking out! There is a learning curve to it which is moderate. Once past the first curve it's smooth sailing. Give it a shot! You can't beat the price for the tone generator you're getting!

The tone generator is awesome! It's the best part! It could use a few more distinct drum sounds. I've found most of the drum sounds are very similar. I wish the sequencer wouldn't crash so much!

For the money, it rocks! Great for starters!

Probably the greatest starter sequencer money can buy!

I didn't register mine, so now I have to do all of that just to get Yamaha to deal with it. My fault, but it still takes a while to get anything done with it which sucks if you've got shows coming up or you've got ideas that are fading in your memory!

Nice look. I prefer silver over any other color. Everything is conveniently located. In fact, it kind of looks like a giant gameboy when I'm programming with it!

Death Metal, Classical, 60's rock and Techno (strange, I know)

This machine sounds great! In fact, that is the reason to own this. I wish there were a few more snare sounds...

DOESN'T come with the AC adapter which you absolutly need! A touch-sensitive keypad would've been nice too.

Good solid construction. Holds up well to mobile usage.

Honestly, I still can't believe that it's only $400! For the quality of sound it's a steal!

Easy to get a hold of help, difficult to get it. Takes too long to ship to yamaha to have fixed if you've got ideas burning holes in your head!

I really wasn't sure what to expect. I picked it up on an impulse buy and turned out very pleased.

metal, techno, classical, and 60's

All the sounds are acceptable. But, I bought the qy for it's sequencing capabilities. Not for it's internal sounds. I'll be really happy when I figure out how to use the qy to sequence my XV-2020 voices which is why I needed the stand-alone sequencer in the first place.

Should have come with the wall wart.

Would have liked a bigger screen and an arm with a holster you can move back and forth, side to side and closer and away from you like a goose neck or mic stand or something. I'd rather move it closer and away from my body than the other way around.

Good value if I can get it to sequence my other modules.

Everything still works fine on it.

I still think I can use it to sequence my other voice modules.

All the above

Many types

sounds are pretty quality considering the mini output jack alone. similar quality to the RS7000 which i noticed initially as i turned the unit on. people complain about the crap digital guitars in the box, but i find them very appealing. mostly cause they sound so fake... `;) the presence of all the instruments in the kit is very strong.

needs to have quarter outs at least. the mini jack sold for use as a 'main out'is a huge error. this needs a really big lithium rechargeable battery to be really effective when just kicking around town or watching tv with the subtitles at your friends house.. probably could use more fx. needs a backlit screen.

if you've used any type of sequencer before you will instantly grasp all there is to know. the interface is really intuitive. lots of time will not be wasted trying to figure out what does what. even without the manual.

it's built like a first generation kaos pad, hollow and light but that's good for gigs.. it does get you wondering how such awesome sounds can come out of sucha tiny little box though. i imagine this product will stand up to much thrown at it. aside from the LCD screen on it possibly breaking from abuse, there's not much to break off or worry about. it's essentially built to be like a midi calculator.

i would compare this with the akai 500 in price but with out the ability to crunch samples. but the qy-100 has an advantage in that it is more portable and is a faster to use sequencer than the akai 500. also the keyboard interface and full on set of yamaha synths in the machine make up for the lack of sampling capability.

never needed it.

well designed for lots of kicking around and messing with stuff or random ideas in your head. it's desirable in that it's so compact and delivers more than what is expected.

hobbyist, amateur

techno

This is a very powerful machine and I am still getting used to it. As an owner of the QY 20, I wanted to upgrade. Although it is similar in concept, the QY 100 has many additional features and will keep you totally absorbed through many a long flight or train ride. I have been impressed with it so far and would be interested to see whether there is a user's forum where owners can share problems and ideas.

For the most this is a great machine,but on some of the samples you can hear some kind of over if you use a pair of very good ear phones.

No accessories not even a power adapter.I went through hell trying to find the right cable to hook up to my computer.[went to 5 stores]I had to call yamaha to find out that you could not buy the host cable anymore.I had to go on line and look around for a UX 16 midi cable cause thats the only way you can hook up to your computer beside the head phone out.

made well.

Maybe if power adapter and UX 16 was part of the package.

hard to get the right support.thay will call you after a few days.Thay did solve the problem but Ialways felt rushed.

This has nothing to do with item.Why do you people have bring sex into everything?

hella tight

should be a 15