Analysis and Where to Buy Yamaha Montage 8: Review and Opinion

If you’re in music production and you’re looking for a synth keyboard you should definitely take a look at the Yamaha Montage 8.

Its 88 weighted and pressure-sensitive keys, as well as the sound creation functions, make the Yamaha Montage 8 a solid tool for music production.

Where to Buy Yamaha Montage 8?

Amazon

  • Free Shipping and the possibility of shipping in one day with Amazon Premium.
  • Full Guarantee but they are no experts in music equipment
  • A leader in fast shipments.
  • The price change a lot daily.
  • The best option in USA and ASIA

Thomann

  • Free Shipping
  • Full warranty. If you have any problems, they take care of everything.
  • 100% reliable payment.
  • A leader in trouble-free shipping.
  • Usually the best price.
  • Best Reputation: They are the leading online store in Europe and have the best catalog and information.

Features

The Montage 8 stands out for having a complete keyboard and offering a great diversity of functions for musical creation and production. These are its technical specifications in detail:

  • Keyboard with 88 weighted and pressure-sensitive keys with balanced hammer technology
  • 7-inch color display with touch technology
  • Tone generator with Motion Control of 8 FM-X elements: 8 operators and 8 algorithms. Two sound engines: AWM2+FMX
  • 128-note polyphony AWM2 and FM-X
  • Wave: Preset: 5.67gb (in 16-bit linear format) and 1.7gb for the user.
  • 18 types of filters
  • Reverb of 12 types
  • Variation of 76 rates
  • Insertion (A,B) of 76 types
  • Master effect of 15 types, A/D insertion of 71 types.
  • 24 Controllers (Volume, Gain, Dial, Pitch, Modulation Wheel, Ribbon, 8 sliders, 8 Knobs, and 1 Super Knob)
  • 130-note capacity recorder with 480 ppq
  • USB to Device and USB to host ports
  • MIDI Entry and Exit
  • Pedal Input
  • 6.3mm balanced output (L/mono/ R)
  • TRS output for 6.3mm headphones
  • 6.3mm A/D L/mono/R input
  • Electricity consumption 27w
  • Dimensions: 1.45m x 17cm x46cm
  • Weight: 29 Kg.

Sound

I’m sure you’ll be interested in…

The Yamaha Montage 8 is a keyboard with great sound quality, however, it is important to remember the fact that as it is a musical production tool, it does not have integrated speakers, so it will be necessary to acquire a quality amplifier to take advantage of the sound.Below is a video with the quality of sound of the Montage 8:

Connectivity

When it comes to connectivity, the Yamaha Montage 8 has it all; 2 USB ports, balanced online input and output, options for sustain pedal, damper pedal, and various accessories. It simply has everything you need to use the keyboard on stage, or in a music studio.

Some Piano lovers will miss the triple footswitch, since Yamaha has only provided damper and sustain footswitches for this model, however, the Montage 8 covers with all the connectivity necessary to be a professional musical production tool.

Advantages and disadvantages of the Yamaha Montage 8

The advantages of this model are:

  • Full keyboard with weighted keys and pressure sensitivity
  • Touch screen
  • Controllers
  • Connectivity
  • Weight

The disadvantages of this model :

  • No built-in speakers
  • The polyphony is only 128 notes.
  • The quality of construction is not superior to some competitors

The Yamaha Montage 8 is a great option, there are no questions about it, the keyboard of 88 keys, its touch screen, and options of musical production and connectivity make it an interesting choice. In this sense, its weight is attractive for those who want to move continuously a professional musical production keyboard. Among the negative characteristics, we can only highlight the polyphony of 128 notes, as virtually no music production model has integrated speakers, still, the measurements of this keyboard make it lighter and comfortable than some of its competitors.

Montage 8 vs Genos

The Japanese brand has always been characterized by competing with different products in the same niche, Montage 8 and Genos are two very interesting options for music production. The differences between these two models are presented below:

  • The Montage 8 is a complete keyboard with 88 weighted keys, while the Genos is an option with 76 keys also with counterweight and velocity sensitivity.
  • The Montage 8’s screen is 7 inches, while the Genos incorporates a 9-inch screen, both with touch technology.
  • The Genos has a polyphony of 256 notes, whilst the Montage has 8 of 128.
  • An important difference is that the Montage 8 has no internal storage, while Genos has 58GB available to store recordings, rhythms, accompaniments, etc.
  • The Genos connectivity is more complete since it has Wifi connectivity, 3 USB to device ports, and 3 pedal inputs.
  • The weight of the Genos is 13 Kg. while the Montage 8 has a weight of 29 Kg.

The two options of the Japanese brand are good alternatives for music production, however, if you are looking for a keyboard with better sound quality and more modern technology the Genos is the option for you, if you prefer an approach similar to a piano the Montage 8 is a better idea.

Montage 8 vs Roland RD 2000

It is not a novelty that both Yamaha and Roland always have similar models, and the Yamaha Montage the Roland RD 2000, are no exceptions to the rule. In this case, the two models offer versatility and advanced features for music production, which are highlighted below:

  • Both models have 88 pressure-sensitive and weighted keys, however, the Roland is constructed of wood and plastic with ebony/ivory feel technologies, providing an experience very similar to a piano, whilst the Yamaha incorporates a balanced hammer technology.
  • The polyphony of both models is 128 notes, however, the RD 2000 offers a complete polyphony for the V Piano system.
  • Roland offers 20 Controllers for musical production (8 sliders with lighting, 8 knobs with lighting 1 pitch bend, and 2 modulation Wheel), whilst Yamaha offers 15.
  • The Montage’s screen is not only colored and with touch technology, but it is bigger than the one offered by Roland in the RD 2000.
  • The connectivity of both models is practically identical, both models offer everything needed for music production.
  • Yamaha’s tone generator is 8 elements while Roland’s is 62.
  • In energy consumption, the RD 2000 is more efficient, as it consumes 23w against 27w of Montage 8.

For those who are looking for a keyboard with a focus on music production, the Yamaha Montage 8 can meet all needs, however, for others looking for higher sound quality and similarity to a piano, the Roland RD 2000 is a better alternative, as it has a higher quality design and more advanced technology. If you want to know more about Roland RD 2000 you can access the Analysis and Opinion of this model by clicking here.

Montage 8 vs Korg Kronos

A very serious competitor for the Montage 8 is the Korg Kronos, here is a comparison of both models:

  • Two keyboards offer 88 pressure-sensitive and weighted keys
  • The sound polyphony of the Montage 8 is 128 notes, while the Kronos can reach a polyphony of 200 notes in the CX3 (Organ Modeling) mode.
  • Yamaha only offers memory via USB and Korg incorporates a 60GB solid-state hard drive (SSD), bringing the option to have an additional one.
  • The Montage 8 incorporates 8 effects with more than 2000 types, while Korg offers 12 effects with 197 types.
  • Both models feature a 7-inch color touch screen.
  • The energy consumption of Kronos is 60w, while Yamaha consumes 27w.

If you are looking for a keyboard focused on musical production, as well as different voices, the Korg Kronos is an excellent choice, as its polyphony and sound generators put it at an advantage over the Montage 8. If your intention is to use the piano voice, the Yamaha Montage 8 may be your alternative.

Montage 8 vs Nord Stage

Yamaha Montage and Nord Stage can compete for face-to-face as they have a number of similarities. Below is a comparison of both models:

  • Both models have 88 weighted and pressure-sensitive keys, and in both cases, there is the possibility of having 76 or 61 keys with very similar functions, which makes these two lines direct competition.
  • The Nord stage has 5 algorithms to process sound while the Montage has 8.
  • Both models have virtually the same connectivity, the only difference being that the 6.35mm audio outputs of the Yamaha Montage 8 are balanced and the Nord has a rotor pedal output.
  • The Nord stage has 31 controllers for different functions while the Montage 8 has only 24.
  • The user interface of the Yamaha Montage 8 is more user friendly as it has a touch screen.
  • The Yamaha Montage 8 has 4 different effects and more than 200 types, while the Nord Stage has 2 customizable effects
  • The weight of the 88-key Nord Stage is 18.5 Kg. while the Yamaha weighs 29 Kg.

The Yamaha Montage 8 is a more complete keyboard than the Nord Stage, as it has more advanced features, however, if you want a keyboard that continually updates your Nord operating system, a Nord Stage is an excellent choice. For those who are just looking for diversity of features, construction quality, and sound, the Yamaha Montage 8 is the best option.

Conclusion

If you are looking for a digital piano for music production there are definitely two very similar options of great quality: the Yamaha Montage 8 and the Roland RD 2000. The recommendation is simple. If you look for a piano with better quality construction and sound, the RD 2000 will be ideal for you, if what you need is to maintain your Yamaha accessories and acquire an option of very competitive quality, the Montage 8 in that case fulfills everything you need. For those who are looking for a digital piano or keyboard with other features, can check out our guide to the best keyboards and digital pianos price-to-benefit ratio.

Where to buy Yamaha Montage 8

Before buying a product, always make sure to check you will get it for the right price. It is always a better alternative to buy in an online store, just remember to check that the store offers a suitable transport/shipping option. If you want to buy your Yamaha Montage 8 at the best price take a look at Amazon at Asia or America, but for Europe check Thomann:

For a similar price you have the following pianos and keyboards:

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Jaime Echagüe

Hi! I'm Jaime Echagüe, a musician and an authentic fan of musical instruments. With this blog I want to give general information about musical instruments in an easy, direct and honest way. I hope you enjoy my website and that you find it very useful.

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