Product Description

The MM8 Music Synthesizer delivers all the musical power and creative control you need - and a whole lot more. Taking their sounds from the highly popular pro-level MOTIF series instruments, the MM8 has an enormous variety of dynamic, authentic Voices to help you create and perform in virtually any style of music.

This powerful keyboard also gives you total control over your sound, letting you dynamically change sonic textures as you play with real-time tweakable knobs. Also built-in are special Patterns that provide full instrumental backing - drums, bass and chords - to accompany your live performance and song creation.

The full length 88-key keyboard of the MM8 delivers natural touch and expressive control over the complete piano range.

PLAYABILITY
The MM8 keyboard has 418 Voices and 22 Drum Kits on board, all based on the dynamic, realistic sounds of the advanced MOTIF series synthesizers. These exceptionally high-quality sounds range from authentic acoustic instruments to wild, unique and in-your-face synth Voices. An extra set of GM Voices is built into the instrument as well, giving you all you need to play back songs recorded in that popular format. With so many Voices to choose from, you might think it's difficult to select the ones you need. Not so. The convenient Category Search function lets you choose the type of instrument you want to play - organ, guitar, synth, lead, strings, whatever - then select the specific Voice. All your favorite sounds are right at your fingertips, ready to play when you are.

Arpeggiator Madness
Generate some excitement, and tap into even more inspiration while you play with the Arpeggio feature. This lets you automatically trigger repeating rhythmic phrases, riffs, broken chords and melodic patterns - and even change them harmonically by the notes or chords you play with your left hand. The MM8 comes with 213 different Arpeggio types built in, providing a variety of musically useful and exciting patterns to get the house jumping or to jump start your song writing. Bass arpeggios and Drum Voice rhythm loops are included as well for setting up dynamic riffs and beats to jam over.

Patterns for Jamming
Want some instant inspiration? The MM8 has a full set of Patterns that give you powerful rhythmic backing in a wide variety of music styles - including Hip Hop, Rap, R&B, Dance, Ambient, Pop, Rock, Jazz and even World styles. These Patterns are just what you need to get your music moving in the right direction. What's more, these Patterns are as close to the real thing as you can get. Patterns that stay solidly in the groove, but never sound mechanical. Drum loops with a truly human feel that dance and float around the beat, yet remain firmly in the pocket. Riffs and licks that get you inspired, make you move, and help you create some serious music.

Comprehensive Control
The MM series is all about control. Take a look at some of the ways you can use it to power your performance and make your songs really stand out.

Tweak Your Sound
Once you've called up a synth Voice, you can simply play it as a static sound by pressing the keys - or you can take it another level up, and tweak the sound while you play with the four control knobs. Make it sing and weep or make it scream and holler. Change the filter cutoff and resonance settings for real-time texture shifts, and tweak the EG attack and release to completely alter the dynamic feel of the Voice as you play.

Piano-like Expressiveness - Graded Hammer Keyboard
Drawing on its long experience (over 100 years!) in crafting fine acoustic pianos, has equipped the MM8 with a remarkably expressive GHS (Graded Hammer Standard) keyboard. If you're a piano player, you'll notice and appreciate the difference as soon as you touch the keys - the instrument feels and responds like a grand piano! The GHS keys are weighted heavier on the lower notes and gradually become lighter as you play up the keyboard, giving you detailed expressive control over the sound.

PERFORM AND CREATE
Performance Memory
When you play live, you want to be able to make sound changes quickly - not just between songs, but right in the middle as well. The Performance Memory feature is the perfect tool for doing this, letting you seamlessly switch gears in the middle of a performance (or recording) and take things up a notch, or bring the dynamics down instantly. Each Performance can store combined settings for the Voices you want to use (including keyboard splits and layers), the Patterns you'll use for backing, and any other crucial settings you may need - then select them simply by pressing a single button. Up to 64 Performances (eight banks of eight each) can be saved to the instrument, and you can save even more to USB memory stick.

Song Creation and More
The MM8 is also an ideal tools for song writing and demo making. The powerful, authentic sounds of the MM series as well as its dynamic Patterns and Arpeggios ensure that your tracks sound completely professional. Up to five User Songs can be recorded to the instrument, and with the built-in rear panel USB terminal, you can store up to 400 Songs to a USB memory stick or thumb drive. In fact, the USB connection lets you store Pattern files, Performance settings and all other important data you've created, and then bring it to a computer for archiving and organizing. Songs can also be saved in the universal SMF (Standard MIDI File) format for use on any SMF-compatible device, including DAW software.

PRODUCE
In the Studio
At home or in the studio, the MM8 can serve as the center of your music production system. Most of today's music is being made on computers and the MM series fits right into any computer music system. Just connect the USB To Host terminal on the instrument to your computer with a standard USB cable, and you've got a compact, yet full-featured recording setup. And just to make sure you get a head start, we've included a free copy of Cubase AI 4 - a sophisticated music production software that has all you need to record your performance data from the MM8 via MIDI (and even use plug-in synthesizers in the software), edit the data, process the sounds with effects, arrange it in multiple tracks and perform final mixdown.

CUBASE AI 4 Software Included
The Cubase AI 4 software bundled with the MM series Music Synthesizer harnesses the power of the Steinberg Cubase 4 digital audio workstation to provide a set of advanced software tools that are easy to use while delivering extensive recording and production capabilities. In addition to advanced audio recording and editing, Cubase AI 4 offers a range of MIDI sequencing capabilities, an entire suite of VST effect plug-ins, and a HALionOne sample player featuring selected waves from the famed MOTIF synthesizers.

MM8 features: Super-high-quality sounds Tons of real-time control Dynamic music creation tools, including automatic Pattern and Arpeggiator generators Performance Memory for instant, full-panel setting changes Versatile song recording features with eight normal tracks and one pattern track Convenient, easy-to-use data storage solutions CUBASE AI 4 Features: Cubase 4 audio engine. 48 audio tracks and up to 64 MIDI tracks. 25 VST effect plug-ins, including 15 new VST3 plug-in effects. HALionOne software sample player with selected MOTIF waves. Plug and Play VST/MIDI setup. Studio Connections Integration. 20 MIDI music styles and 480 audio drum loops included.

's Motif sound engine powers this creative workhorse! Order yours today.

SPECIFICATIONS

MM8 Music Synthesizer

KEYBOARD:
MM8: 88 keys GHS Keyboard (Initial touch)

TONE GENERATOR BLOCK:
Tone Generator: AWM2
Polyphony: 32 notes
Multi Timbral Capacity: 16 parts
Wave: 70MB (when converted to 16-bit linear format)
Voice: Preset: 418 normal voices + 22 drum kits
GM: 128 normal voices + 1 drum kit
Performance: 8 banks x 8
Effect System: Reverb x 25 types, Chorus x 30 types, Variation x 189 types
Master Equalize: 5 types

SEQUENCER BLOCK:
Note Resolution: 96 ppq (parts per quarter note)
Tempo: 11-280 BPM(Beats Per Minutes)
Recording type: Real time replace
Tracks: 8 + 8 (Pattern track)
Patterns: 168 patterns (x 4 sections)
Songs: Preset: 3 songs
User: 5 songs
USB: 400 songs maximum
Arpeggio: Preset x 213 types

OTHERS:
Controllers: Pitch Bend wheel x 1, Modulation wheel x1, Knob x 4, Data Dial x 1
Display: 320 x 240 dot Graphic LCD (Backlit)
Connectors: OUTPUT L/MONO, R (standard phone jack), PHONES (standard stereo phone jack), FOOT CONTROLLER, SUSTAIN, MIDI IN/OUT, USB (TO HOST, TO DEVICE), DC INLET
Power Consumption: 12W
Dimensions, Weight: 1340(W) x 445(D) x 157(H) mm, 15.6kg
Accessories: AC Adapter, Owner's Manual, Supplied Disk (supplied DAW software)

Custom Guitar's Friend Gold Coverage

Gold Coverage goes above and beyond the manufacturer's warranty to protect your gear from unexpected breakdowns, accidental damage from handling and failures. This plan covers your product for one, two, three or up to five years from your date of purchase, costs just pennies per day and gives you a complete "no-worry" solution for protecting your investment.

Gold Coverage Includes:

Unexpected and unintentional spills, drops and cracks Normal wear and tear Power surges Dust, internal heat and humidity

Other plan features include:

For products over $200, No Lemon Policy applies. If it fails for the same defect 3 times, it is replaced on the 4th breakdown. (Does not apply to failures due to drops, spills, and cracks) For products under $200 experiencing the above failures, a Custom Guitar's Friend gift card will be issued for the full price of the product + tax. Shipping fees covered if required for repair or replacement Plans are transferable in the event merchandise is sold Plans are renewable on new gear

*Limitations and exclusions apply. See terms and conditions for program details

Term for New Gear begins on date of purchase but does not replace the store return policy or manufacturer coverage.

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The MM8 has minuses, and it has plusses. It just depends on what you are looking for and what you are going to be doing with it. Minuses- boring tones, limited tweaking ability, limited midi controller capability, creating performances can be a little confusing. Plusses- great weighted keybed, great arpeggiator, sturdy casing, informative blue screen, sleek looks, ability to play back midi tracks from USB memory and save performances to USB memory.
The MM8 has some fairly good features, albeit not those of a professional workstation keyboard. It has the ability to layer and split tones, and the ability to create performances which can be saved to a USB memory stick. You can also play back unlimited midi files from USB memory. It has a great arpeggiator with some great patterns. Midi control features could be better. It only has midi in/ out (not thru) so you can only sync up a single unit with the MM8 at a time. The ability to control settings on another unit controlled by the MM8 is pretty limited. You can use the knobs to control things like cutoff, resonance, attack, etc and use the MM8's pitch bend and mod wheels for their purposes, but switching between tones or performances has to be done on the other unit. The effects on the MM8 are limited and programming the synth and creating performances can be a little confusing and sometimes overwhelming. The blue backlit screen is easy on the eyes, involving, and does allow to user to more clearly see what they are doing. The weighted, hammer-action piano style keys feel great and are as close to a real grand piano as I've felt on any synth or digital piano I've owned. However, if you're into fast synth solos and such, this isn't the keyboard for you. The preset tones are not the best in the world. They are rather boring and lacking in character, as opposed to those on the MO and Motif boards, and definitely as opposed to say, a Korg M50 or Roland Juno Gi, which are in the same price range. Tweaking possibilities are limited. Most of the preset tones are more along the line of the PSR keyboards than the Motif.
The build quality seems pretty good. The casing seems rugged and sturdy, especially for it being made entirely of plastic. Plastic buttons and knobs, though seem like they could break easily. Keybed feels great.
The value you get for your money is pretty good. A fairly lightweight, but weighted keyboard that has some pretty good features, a weighted keybed, and can be used as both a synth and midi controller. I mostly use it for the second, with my Korg M50 61, Korg X50 and Roland Juno Gi. I mostly use it for playing piano parts and it works great for that purpose. As I said, tones could be better and I think sound quality could be slightly better too, but not a bad keyboard overall.
Yamaha MM8 Music Synthesizer Restock
. The MM8 is not the mini Motif. The quality and workmanship is not in the product. There are other keyboard/synth out there that which should be compared. While the showroom or a performance is a great place to review the sound, easy of use, and performance. You also need a factory that is focused on quality and workmanship. It is not enough to be told, take your non working keyboard to a factory rep to finish what we could not. You need a company to step up and replace what is mistakenly shipped to the customer as a working product when it is not. I have purchased from before but now it is time to look at the rest of the field, lesson learned the quality is not always found by name alone.
Purchased MM8 March 30, 2012, unpacked from the factory box, upon power up the LED screen was only a light blue, no sound, no life, and the factory reset was no change. What a disappointment! The unit was released from the factory less than 5 months ago. This was my third and my expectations were totally let down. customer service will not exchange, now I am faced with finding a factory authorized shop to finish what the factory never did. Apparently they don't even turn the box on before it is packed for shipment.
Never worked after unpacking from shipping box. Now I am dragging it around Seattle trying to find a qualified repair shop to finish what the factory never did. If you are lonely it is a great way to meet people in the service industry.
I have played the MM8 in the showroom and at a gig in Spokane. Loved it, wanted it, bought it, now I am waiting two weeks for the shop to complete the factory work. Never realized the quality needed to be put in after the sale.
Yamaha MM8 Music Synthesizer Restock
.I bought this keyboard to replace my heavy stage piano - the piano sounds (and all the sounds) on this are top flight. It also is light weight which means a lot at 3AM (the piano it replaced in my rig was over 100 lbs. with case - like haulin' a dead body in the middle of the night)This doesn't have the features of the MOTIF for recording and the polyphony is only 32 notes so If you are looking for something more you'll need to go to the next step up - but, if you are looking for a great feeling weighted keyboard that has killer sounds to play live, she's your bitch. One thing it doesn't have that I really wish it did was a way to control the leslie sound with the modulation wheel - the modulation wheel doesn't give a great approximation of a Leslie and I use that a lot but with a little tweaking of the original sound you can make it cook pretty good. The arpegiator can do some very cool stuff when you take a little time to learn how to use it - great for coming up with groove ideas for originals.
Yamaha MM8 Music Synthesizer Restock
. I would definately recommend this board for the features and the price. Great for Church setting or on the road playing if you are needing the 88 keys. If not wanting such a large board, I would definately also recommend the little brother MM6.
Alot of great sounds on the MM8. Weighted keys, nice blue display. I originally purchased the MM6 and then upgraded to the MM8. Not too heavy and looks great on stage. Fairly simple to operate and has a sleek design.
Sounds are great from the Motif engine. I mainly use the Piano and Strings on them for CCM. The tweek knobs are great as well.
Price is good for all of the sounds you are getting. The weighted keys feel great. The action is a little slower than I was expecting. Obviously alot different keys than the MM6 I upgraded from.
Yamaha MM8 Music Synthesizer Restock
.I love the simplicity of the keyboard. The piano sounds are great. The organ sounds all sound like a organ at a baseball game. The pad sounds are weak as well. I play for church and I need a good soft background/light air/swarm sound, and there is not one that is usable for that. :(I would return it if I had still had the box.
Yamaha MM8 Music Synthesizer Restock
.All I can say is wow! This is a great product. When I bought this, and brought it into the studio, I was blown away! I was impressed witht the quality of the sounds that I was able to get out of the piano. I was also very impressed with the clarity of the recordings I was able to get from the piano. The progressively weighted key really made me feel like I was playing a Grand. And with the sound that came out, I was fooled pretty good! This piano is a steal for what you get. I highly recommend it to anyone who is looking for a good studio piano or a just a good and solid instrument. I give it a two thumbs up!
Yamaha MM8 Music Synthesizer Restock
.I?ve had this product for several months now and have used it in several settings with great satisfaction. It?s an excellent keyboard all around?from gigs to just playing by yourself. Used to playing on grands and acoustics, I?ve found many keyboards to be far from satisfying as far as feel goes, but the MM8 definitely measured up. Weighted keys, hammer graded; it feels almost just like a grand. The sound quality is excellent as well; much better than I expected it to be, honestly. I love the arpeggiated chord effect; it?s helpful for inspiration and improvisation. It?s lightweight; I won't break my back carrying it about. If you are in need of a professional-style/quality synth but are on a budget, I?d definitely recommend the MM8. I might upgrade at some point, but not any time soon.
Yamaha MM8 Music Synthesizer Restock
.Okay, first off, this 'board is decent (especially for performance). For those that worship the MOTIF, look elsewhere, because this isn't the MOTIF. However, it is a decent board for 88 weighted keys and over 400 sounds. Pros:88 weighted keysGood sounds (many straight from the MOTIF)Much lighter than other synthsDecent appearanceCons:32 note polyphony!price is a little too steep for what it's truly worth. Bottom line: It is a good keyboard to use in a live setting (except for the lack of perfomance names). My biggest gripe, which I can live with, is that the polyphony is only 32 notes. I expected at least 64, but hey, it's better than forking out a grand more for the MOTIF.
Yamaha MM8 Music Synthesizer Restock
.I first bought a MM-8 when I started routinely going to jam sessions that involved climbing stairs. It is a great lightweight keyboard, with good action.. it has enough weighting on the keys to provide for realistic timing. As a side advantage, the lightweight weighted action will give your runs and triplets a real boost if you're used to playing on a heaver action device like a accoustic piano.

For gigging, I pair it with a Novation, because it has no synth abilities at all. I really wish they had at least included some sample mixing to provide realistic drawbar action for the B3. This is strictly a sample playback keyboard, and not extendable at all, but it does have a good library of samples to play with and a very stage-friendly user interface.

As far as quality of build, I haven't had anything stop working yet and I use a gig bag and have gigged it many times over the last two years. I have had knobs fall off (replaced them with guitar knobs with setscrews). One annoyance is it does not have balanced outputs - but does have TRS jacks, so if you plug it into a DI box with a TRS cable, expect bad things to happen. Use a TS cable to link to a DI box.

The 'expression' jack is strictly a volume pedal, and it can take some time to find the DSP/effects settings in the menus. But you can get some good sounds out of it without a whole lot of work.
Yamaha MM8 Music Synthesizer Restock
.Overall I thinks its a great board.
Its not the BEST board out but I like it. It is most definatly an upgrade from what I had before. I have had it for a year now. I baught it for my church. It has served well thusfar.However for my personal keyboard I will probably get a motif or mx8
Its very plasticy. However for the value that is to be expected
Great price for original motif sounds.
Yamaha MM8 Music Synthesizer Restock
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