Yamaha presented the YC61 in Lisbon, heir to the glorious YC series (Yamaha Combo), synonymous with the electronic organs signed by the Japanese brand since '66 with the A-3, which became the YC series a few years later.
It should be emphasized, for pure parochialism, that the “Iberian” presentation was conducted by our Manuel Montesanti who also developed most of the Live Sets of theYC61 (Manuele, by the way, was Sound design also of the series Installation/MODX, and the series CP. Ed).
The YC61's audio engine draws inspiration for the part AWM, from the CP series to which it adds a completely new, proprietary motor, dedicated to the modulation of the electromechanical organ: the VCM Engine. It has to complete the whole, in addition, an engine FM for generating specific sounds.
The keyboard employs a type mechanics Waterfall (Hammond and surroundings, so to speak), adapted to be used efficiently also for piano timbres, while the control panel, the latter very similar to the CP series, has a section dedicated specifically to organ sounds, complete with Drawbars led and sliders with a transparent part that allows a quick and precise reading of the level of the single harmonic.
YC61 Specifications
- Keyboard: 61-key Waterfall type, semi-weighted and dynamic;
- Display: 128 × 64 dot LCD.
- Sound generation: VCM Organ (Virtual Circuitry Modeling), AWM2, FM;
- Polyphony: Max 128 notes;
- Internal Voices / Presets: 160 Live Set Sounds, of which 80 Presets; 145 Voices (single sounds divided between 6 dedicated to specific Organs and 139 concerning keyboard instruments);
- FX: 32 types
- In Insert: Organ 1 systems (Pre Drive) / Key A 2 systems (1: 32 types, 2: 32 types) / Key B 2 systems (1: 32 types, 2: 32 types);
- Speaker / Amp: 6 types (Rotary Speaker: 2 types, Amp: 4 types)
- Reverb: 1 type
- Master EQ: 3-band.
- Connections:
- Line Out L / R unbalanced on Jack 1/4 (6,3 mm);
- Input L / R on 1/4 Jack (6,3 mm);
- Headphone Output Jack 1/4 (6,3 mm);
- Pedals: Foot Controller 1 and 2; Foot Switch (Sustain / Assignable);
- Standard MIDI I / O;
- USB-B: “To Host” port and “To Device” port;
Price: there are no indications for the Italian market, but on American soil, some indicate roughly $ 1.999,99
References and links: Yamaha YC61
