Yamaha Psrd1-DJx Midi Portable Keyboard

Pros: Fun Fun Fun
Cons: Not a Serious workstation

(This review deals with the 2002 V2 version of this keyboard...)

Every now and again, a toy is brought onto the market that makes us sit up and take note. In the music industry, and in particular, I focus in on the world of keyboards and...

Pros: Packed with Features, Usability, Sound Output, User Friendly, Not your normal kiddie Keyboard
Cons: Can't think of any.,

This is about the YAMAHA DJX KEYBOARD.

The Yamaha DJX was what I settled on because I had a $400 credit at a music store and wanted something fun, and I'm all about music. Let me tell you, this is about the most fun I've had in a long...

Pros: Great price, real time control knobs, ribbon controller, sampler, sequencer
Cons: Small sample time, unable to upload new patterns, no modulation wheel

The DJX-1 is an amazing keyboard and has many features found on higher end synthesizers.

The Goodies:

The Voices/Sounds:

The General MIDI voices are simply "O.K." and serve their purpose, but the DJX-1 voices are a nice...

Pros: Good sounds, cost, built in speakers, ribbon controller, knobs transmit midi.
Cons: Not programmable, memories clear when you disconnect, 'bass boost'.

I used to do electronica on the DJX using cubase (Atari ST, then PC), the sounds are very nice, nowadays it still gets used as a controller keyboard (ribbon controller is great, I use it to switch the Leslie speed on NI's B3). Also used it for drum sounds, synths and pianos when my band came over for a 'quiet' rehearsal (I'm normally the drummer). Top marks Yamaha, the DJX was and is a classic, a great musical tool and not a toy. And all the keys still work, which is more than I can say for my 2 year old Edirol controller.

Pros: Cool features for live performance, standalone speakers
Cons: Lame lo-fi sampling, average MIDI sounds.

I bought a DJX about 3 years ago, and it has done nothing but serve me well. It's live performance features can be magic in the hands of a skilled player, and it functions well as a MIDI keyboard interfaced with a computer. I bought this keyboard because of the abundance of electronic sound patches that it had onboard. It has it's own stereo speaker system, which is great for working on the go. It has a line in, which unfortunately is a lo-fi input. Overall it is a great, inexpensive keyboard for someone who wants to goof around OR someone who wants to do serious work on a budget.