and some other
miscellaneous
sounds including a few
bass and guitar sounds.
The sounds available in the CP
keyboards are only the starting point,
though. Interacting with the instrument is
where things get really interesting. It’s here that
you see just how unique the instrument really
is. Yamaha’s website says that the CP interface
gives you direct, immediate and total control
of sound; no programming, no menu-diving or
web-searching. It’s true.
Do you want to layer a piano and some strings?
Each of the keyboard’s sections have an on/
off toggle switch. Flip the switch for whichever
section or sections you want to hear. Within
each section there are switches and knobs
whose functions are obvious. If you’re like me,
you’ll be amazed how little you need to refer
to the Owner’s Manual or a Google search to
figure anything out. The CP just makes sense!
Each section offers independent control of
sound selection, volume, tone on/off, split and
octave-shift. You’re in control of each section,
so that changes can be made per section
rather than globally.
Yamaha has built their Seamless Sound
Switching feature into the CP keyboards. If
you’ve ever switched sounds on your keyboard
and been shocked by the abrupt cut off of your
current sound, Seamless Sound Switching
eliminates this aggravation. If you’re in the Piano
section, for instance, and decide to change to
an upright piano from a concert grand piano,
just hold down a chord using the sustain pedal.
Then choose whatever you want your next
sound to be within that section. The next notes
you play will use that selected sound. It won’t
take you long to get used to this great feature.
Goodbye distracting sound cutoffs.
You can also say goodbye to a couple of pieces
of equipment that you may currently carry in
your keyboard rig. First of all, you won’t need a
direct box to send
your sound to the
sound system. Yamaha
provides sturdy XLR balanced
outputs on the CPs, so you can
take mic cables right to your system
and the quarter inch outputs are balanced
In addition to all
(perfect for monitoring.) Nice!
of the control you have
You can also leave your audio interface at
home, since the CP can serve as the interface
between your computer and the board. After
running a USB cable from your computer to
the CP, just choose the CP for sound output in
your computer’s audio preferences. Now your
computer and the CP’s output will be sent out
together from the instrument. Your stage setup
just got a lot neater!
There’s even a set of stereo inputs on the back
of the CP that allows you to plug a second
keyboard in. These inputs have their own
gain knob to balance the CP’s sound with this
additional keyboard.
within each of the CP’s 3 sound-
selection sections, you’re also provided an
independent delay and reverb section and an
EQ section. You have a choice of applying
these effects to any one of the three sections
or to all of them. Even the design of this section
is very intuitive. Flip switches, toggle through
options given, and you’ll soon understand what
each does.
Naturally there is ample memory within the
instrument for storing the specific sounds you
develop. You can give your sounds any name
you prefer, making recall of them effortless.
As you can tell, there’s plenty to love about
Many of you are looking for a keyboard that
feels great as well as sounding great. Yamaha
has given you two keyboard actions to choose
the new CP keyboards. Find a way to sit at
one soon and discover for yourself what this
intuitive instrument could do for your playing.
from. The CP88 uses Yamaha’s Graded
Hammer action, while the CP73 features
the Balanced Hammer action. Both of these Yamaha CP88 MAP $2,499.99
Yamaha CP73 MAP $1,999.99
provide an excellent piano “feel”. Surprisingly, www.Yamaha.com
even with these substantial piano actions inside
each keyboard is quite light. The CP73 weighs
under 30 pounds and the CP88 right at 41
pounds.
May 2019
Ed Kerr
Ed Kerr lives in Seattle with his family. He serves as
worship arts director at First Free Methodist Church,
teaches keyboards in Paul Baloche’s leadworship
workshops and is a clinician with Yamaha’s House
of Worship. He also manages the Yamaha Worship
Facebook group and invites you to join the group.
www.KerrTunes.com
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