Hi Bill, As I have stated in the past, you are the best single resource that Yamaha disklavier owners have. My frustrations in the previous e-mail are not directed at you and I apologize if that appeared to be the case. I am delighted to hear that you are watching and appreciate the value that you bring in that capacity. I look forward with interest to whatever may be getting ready to happen with the Mark IV. Tom On Sep 5, 2009, at 1:51 PM, Bill Brandom wrote: > Tom, > > I also have forwarded your email to our engineers. I apologize for > the fact I have not been responding to the forums much during the > last year. I am going to work much harder to resonding. I have been > watching, just not responding. > > Our engineers told me that within a year they would have a solution > for a larger hard drive. I am now reminding them of that. > > I just returned from a several days in Japan working with the > engineers. To say the least, a lot is getting ready to happen with > the Mark IV. I will keep you and the group informed, when I am able > to release the information. > > Bill > > Bill Brandom > Senior Technical Manager > Keyboard Division > Yamaha Corporation of America > bbrandom@... > 714-522-9417 > ________________________________________ > From: disklavier@yahoogroups.com [disklavier@yahoogroups.com] On > Behalf Of Tom Wheeler [tnwheeler@...] > Sent: Saturday, September 05, 2009 9:35 AM > To: disklavier@yahoogroups.com > Subject: Re: [disklavier] Mark4 Software > > Philip, > > Yours is one of the best posts that I have seen in a very long time on > this Forum. I agree with every single one of your requests and can > add a few comments and suggestions as well, although frankly over the > five years since purchasing my Mark IV I have only rarely felt that > Yamaha was listening, and although I have written to Bill Brandom with > some of these suggestions, I have received no response and only very > rarely see his presence on this Forum in the last year or so. > > I have pleaded for a larger HD for the Mark IV for a long time to no > avail. The 80 GB HD that is on the piano is totally inadequate > especially when you realize that the Mark IV stores CD audio in > the .wav format which takes up tons of space. Please, please provide > the option of a larger HD for this piano. I stopped all purchases of > Yamaha software more than 3 years ago because my HD is nearly full and > I don't want to take the chance of crashing it by adding any more > software to it. > > The backup option provided by the Mark IV is simply inadequate. There > is no way to do an incremental backup. Each time you backup, you have > to backup everything. Even with only an 80 GB HD that takes more > than 12 hours with the software that I have on my Mark IV. Please, > please, Yamaha provide a means of doing incremental backups that will > not work the HD (both internal and external) to death. > > A second contributor to the inadequate backup capabilities of the Mark > IV is the fact that it supports only USB 1.0. Even when the piano was > introduced in 2004 the USB 2.0 standard had completely replaced USB > 1.0 and my Mark IV is the only device in my home that still uses the > far slower US 1.0. While Yamaha has been quick to raise the prices on > the MarK IV, it has been just as slow to implement current (much less > advanced technologies) as Philip has so well pointed out in his post. > It will be interesting to see how outdated the technology on the Mark > V will be when and if it ever appears. > > The processor in the Mark IV is a 333 MHz -- incredibly slow even for > 2004 when it was introduced. Why was this done? I was told that it > was to keep down heat produced and obviate the need for a fan. My Mac > Pro 8-core computer with four 2.8 GHz processors has a fan so quiet > that I can barely hear it even in a quiet room. Surely Yamaha can > mount a processor in the Mark V that will be reflective of the 21st > century instead of the 20th century and find a quiet fan if heat > production is a problem. Until they do, we can forget parallel > processes and running things in the background because the Mark IV's > 333 MHz processor is apparently simply not able to support it. > > I suspect that Yamaha is hard at work on a Mark V and that it will > incorporate a few of the suggestions Phil and I have made. However, > if past disklaviers are any indication, the Mark V will be totally > outdated even before it arrives, but the price will be far far greater > than the Mark IV. > > Tom > > On Sep 5, 2009, at 5:15 AM, Phil Blah wrote: > >> Hey Guys, >> >> No much happening with the Disklavier forums lately, perhaps >> everyone is content with their piano! >> >> Does anyone know if Yamaha are going to release new software for >> their pianos? (psst Bill Brandon you still here?) >> >> I must say that the DKVBrowser software that Kevin has made is so >> great! It makes moving files around so easy.. the clunky old PDA is >> pretty crappy for this! >> >> On a side note, has anyone tried running the java app on an iphone? >> it would be much better than the clunky old PDA's... the battery >> does not last long (even a new one only lasts 2 hours max). Also the >> wireless is pretty weak signal. Perhaps the DKVBrowser can be made >> for iphones? lol. >> >> Dear Yamaha, here is my wish-list/advice for version 4 of the >> software :) >> >> 1) Disk image needs to support 'fresh' install. This has various >> advantages..as the old 80gb drives clag out people can just put in a >> new HD easily or they want a bigger HD so they can install from >> scratch. A fresh install will be clean and have performance >> advantages too. Plus it will solve 99% of peoples problems if their >> software gets screwy. >> >> 2) Finish off the half done Graphics support.. ie allow songs to >> have .jpgs attached to them as a slide show or just as a cover to >> the song (this is the TV out part, not all Disklaviers have the >> tablet thing like in Australia for example!). >> >> 3) Allow access to the XG voices in performance mode. >> >> 4) Make a new 'live sounding' special drum and base kit.. the >> current base and drums are alright but they all sound too synthetic. >> Surely Yamaha can try harder with these most critical synths... >> There are free drum/base sound fonts on the net that people have >> just recorded a real drum and base that sound better! Lets face it >> guys, no one listens to crappy midi with their beautiful piano... >> the only exception is Jazz that has a base/drums only. Most Sue >> Downs songs are excellent like this.... anyway having a 'live' drum >> sound font would be perfect! >> >> 5) Better strings and wood instruments overall... some songs are >> just embarrassing with these cheezy synths, sounds like a big mobile >> phone with most midi's. >> >> 6) More control with the network setup ie wep keys/ip everything >> overall etc. Also as they use Samba it would take 2 seconds to put a >> basic password for windows networking (not everyone has their piano >> in their home!). >> >> 7) MP3 Support. Wave files are so inefficient. MP3's have been >> around since 1995 or eairler and as it runs linux I am sure it can >> handle it (yes ofcorse pun was intended). For quality freaks, the >> MP3 can be 256bit rate so its losless. Then each song will be about >> 8 - 12 meg rather than 40+ >> >> 8) Faster seek for playing/stopping songs! >> >> 9) Faster and better methods of recording... I am not sure if it's >> just me, but when you 'know' that it's recording you usually make a >> mistake while playing a song and then want to quicky start the >> recording again. But the current way is all bumbly and clumsy and >> slow... worst case is I have to just keep it recording and I copy >> the midi to my computer and use cakewalk to edit... but that's a big >> pain. >> >> 10) Backup! - Like most people, we just trust everything will just >> keep working and we get complacent... but imagine if your HD failed >> tomorrow, all the songs you bought all the CD's that took you hours >> to save on the HD... all the midis and files arranged... all gorn! >> So a backup option would simply copy everything to a network share >> as a big archive file (to preserve the secret database etc etc). And >> you can simply restore it all back if needed. >> >> 11) Better playlist managment and random play >> >> 12) Guys this is not a mark3 nor is it 1990. It's a linux box that >> is already multitasking, surley we can play a song while searching >> or copying things! So yes, a song needs to contiune to play while we >> do other things. >> >> 13) Back to recording, It's a bit hard to figure out how to simply >> record while a .wav/CD (god bless) is playing... So we need to >> simply be able to play a CD/.wav and you can record your piano >> playing. Also recording other voices and in performance mode is not >> easy to do. My 1992 Yamaha Clavinova makes it easy. >> >> 14) Just on my 1992 Yamaha Clavinova, it has several built in drum >> beats and groovy synth riffs even with a 'varation' button! but >> there are no built in drum kits with the mark4.... bit sad >> really..... nothing more fun then just having a good beat and >> playing the piano with it! >> >> 15) Better use of the internet, while it might sound all cool 'wow >> the pianos on the internet' but it's really a closed system, >> Yamaha's mini web thing only.... the whole internet piano thing is >> NOT available to normal people only 'special' Yamaha people... can >> we get over this and allow our pianos to connect to friends. >> >> 15b) As a Yamaha Radio subscriber and regular song buyer... I think >> Yamaha needs to allow people to 'trial' a song... the little 20 >> second preview is not really enough somtimes.. even if it costs 20c >> or something to play only but not save would be good, I think $4.50 >> USD for a song is so over priced... some songs are just awful and >> lifeless.. Also the fact that they even tell people that 'the midi >> file might be unacceptable'... those songs should be heaps cheaper. >> >> 15c) Just with the whole internet thing, just like you can stream >> internet radio like 'smoothjazz.com' surley they can stream songs >> with audio and midi data. They could quite easily setup a large >> buffer to handle 192k streams... and lets face it we all have >> broadband these days, not like people are on modem or somethin!. So >> Even if it costs a bit more or they charge per hour or something... >> there is a time when I just crave a voice with piano and get so sick >> of my usual collection! >> >> 15d) Yamaha need to allow for Piano Soft with Audio downloadable... >> I don't always want to buy an entire CD just for 1 song, plus the >> whole slow clumsy CD thing is not very modern for a company trying >> to make out how modern they were (the piano on the internet thing). >> I am quite happy to pay $6 per song if it had audio! >> >> Well that's all I can think of for now. >> >> Let's hope these features will be in Version 4 :) >> >> Cheers, >> >> Philip >> >> >> >> __________________________________________________________________________________ >> Get more done like never before with Yahoo!7 Mail. >> Learn more: http://au.overview.mail.yahoo.com/ >> >> >> ------------------------------------ >> >> To Post a message to the group, send it to: disklavier@... >> >> To Post a private message to Todd Muncy, the group's founder and >> moderator, send it to: >> disklavier-owner@... >> >> To reach our group's web site go to: >> http://Yahoogroups.com/group/disklavier >> >> THINKING OF LEAVING THE GROUP? >> If you are thinking of unsubcribing because you are getting too much >> mail, go the the web site and change your email delivery option >> instead. That will fix the problem, while maintaining your access >> to the group. If you insist on leaving us completely send a blank >> email to: >> disklavier-unsubscribe@... >> >> Know someone who wants to join? Have them send a blank email to: >> disklavier-subscribe@... or give them this link: >> http://Yahoogroups.com/group/disklavier/join >> Yahoo! Groups Links >> >> >> > > > > ------------------------------------ > > To Post a message to the group, send it to: disklavier@... > > To Post a private message to Todd Muncy, the group's founder and > moderator, send it to: > disklavier-owner@... > > To reach our group's web site go to: > http://Yahoogroups.com/group/disklavier > > THINKING OF LEAVING THE GROUP? > If you are thinking of unsubcribing because you are getting too much > mail, go the the web site and change your email delivery option > instead. That will fix the problem, while maintaining your access > to the group. If you insist on leaving us completely send a blank > email to: > disklavier-unsubscribe@... > > Know someone who wants to join? Have them send a blank email to: > disklavier-subscribe@... or give them this link: > http://Yahoogroups.com/group/disklavier/join > Yahoo! Groups Links > > > > > > > > ------------------------------------ > > To Post a message to the group, send it to: disklavier@... > > To Post a private message to Todd Muncy, the group's founder and > moderator, send it to: > disklavier-owner@... > > To reach our group's web site go to: > http://Yahoogroups.com/group/disklavier > > THINKING OF LEAVING THE GROUP? > If you are thinking of unsubcribing because you are getting too much > mail, go the the web site and change your email delivery option > instead. That will fix the problem, while maintaining your access > to the group. If you insist on leaving us completely send a blank > email to: > disklavier-unsubscribe@... > > Know someone who wants to join? Have them send a blank email to: > disklavier-subscribe@... or give them this link: > http://Yahoogroups.com/group/disklavier/join > Yahoo! Groups Links > > >
Message
Re: [disklavier] Mark4 Software
2009-09-05 by Tom Wheeler