Really loving the Yamaha MX49 Synth/Controller! Great sounds, perfect size synth! Glad I went with this brand and model.

Yamaha's MX49 is the best as always.

I picked up the Yamaha MX49 recently, and overall I'm really happy with it. To be honest, the outer shell feels a bit plastic and lightweight, which at first came off as a little "cheap," but I understand that's part of keeping the weight down for portability.

Where this keyboard really shines is in the sounds. The library is excellent, and I love how easily I can shape and EQ them to my taste. From a composer and beat maker perspective, it delivers inspiring tones that fit right into my workflow.

If I had one regret, it's going with the 49-key version instead of the 61 — the smaller range feels a bit limiting for me. That said, the quality of the sounds more than makes up for it.

Overall, I'd rate it an 8/10. A great choice if you're looking for powerful sounds and flexibility in a lightweight package.

I've had this synth for a little over 4 years at this point and I love it to death. I tend to use a lot of older synths and this one fits right in with them.
As far as sound goes: it's a MOTIF light, more or less. The keys however are fantastic and I find myself using it as a MIDI controller as much as I use it as a synth.

I just setup the Yamaha MX49 and started testing. I'll have to make a .ins file for Cakewalk to fully test it. The first thing I noticed is its keyboard is shrunk. Comparing the distance from C to C1 to my Roland A-30 the Yamaha is about 1/8" narrower for the octave. Not going to make me play a ninth when aiming for an octave. What it does do is cause finger rub limiting speed. For example when playing a tight run like Ab, Bb, B, C, Db the B to C results in finger to finger speed limiting friction. The keys are too narrow for my finger width. Doing some research (SOS and web) this is common for many of Yamaha's keyboards. I cross checked these findings. The Yamaha is narrower than all the keyboards I use. My mothballed Yamaha PS-6100 is the same as the MX49.

From start to finish the MX49 has delivered! The size for travel, light weight mobility makes for quick setup at concerts & services. It's user friendly. Presets for sound categories is awesome with true sound! Work station too! Handicapped friendly!
Totally awesome!

Yamaha MX49 Synth/Controller

I recently sold my last big keyboard and I'm mainly a guitar and bass player, so keep in mind that that's my perspective. I'm using this little MX49 only in my home studio. If you want to gig with it, get a nice padded case as it's supper light with a plastic body. In the past I've had 61, 76 and 88 key workstation synths. I think this is my 4th Yamaha keyboard. I've owned a Motif XF and a Montage and overall I'm pretty impressed with the familiar sounds and I especially like it's simplicity. The big siblings that I've owned had quite a learning curve. As a guitarist and part time synth guy, I often felt that they were too complex for an occassional user. I can jump on MX49 and quickly get going on what I'm trying to do.

I originally looked at just getting just a small keyboard controller. After seeing this board and realizing that I could also get lots of great onboard sounds too, I decided that this was the one for me. It also function well as a midi controller and worked out of the box seemlessly with Logic Pro X, so it has multiple ways that I can use it. I was also pretty impressed with the keys on it, of course they're fairly light and synth action, but I really like the feel. The bottom line for me is that I'm very happy with this great little board because it serves the multiple purposes that I need. If you're a seasoned veteran keyboard pro, you may want to demo this one and see what you think.

The Yamaha MX49 is simply put, AWESOME!!!! Though I do play keys I am typically a guitarist. I have an old '80s guitar that besides being a great playing and sounding electric guitar, has a standard Midi Jack and Midi Pickup. I play in a couple of Christian Rock Worship bands and I needed really authentic sounding Orchestral instrument sounds.
In my opinion Yamaha has the BEST authentic sounding samples. I already have a lot of gear to carry so I also wanted something small, really light, and as close to plug and play as possible.
I called my long time contact at Sweetwater Paul Allen to discuss the many options available. In the end, for me, the MX49 is PERFECT as it meats all four requirements as well as the fifth requirement which for me is always price. An added bonus is that it also interfaces with my DAW.
If I could give the MX49, Sweetwater, and Paul Allen ten stars I would.

This is the best priced and value for a travel keyboard. I own a Yamaha MX88 and a Yamaha MOX88 and it has the same sounds as both . The only difference is both of my 88 key Yamaha boards are 35 lbs each and probably about 42 once bagged and maybe even 50 lbs if put in a case. The MX49 is only 10 lbs super light and can be transported with ease in a bag it's 12 lbs and in a case 15-20 lbs . It doesn't have weighted keys but the keys are decent for a small board. You can throw this in your back pack and roll , I actually bought the Yamaha book bag to go with it and it fits good

I would recommend this for anyone who wants to add to their full size as an additional top rack keyboard but it can also hold its own wherever you travel to . Folks who don't know about keyboards will look at it and think it isn't a real keyboard but once you plug into a speaker they will be blown out of their mind on the MOTIF sounds it puts out . It's definitely worth the value I play for 2 churches and it's easy to set up and go from my back pack since I don't like to leave any of my boards at the places I perform

I've had this keyboard for a while and just learned how to unleash the beast, and I felt like I needed to take a moment to write this review for you. This thing is an unbelievably capable device. You could build entire production with nothing but this keyboard. ...not only is it a keyboard, not only is it a midi controller, not only does it have a built in sound card, but you have 16 fully customizable 'parts'. Basically what that means to a producer is you have 16 simultaneously available sounds that can all be fed with their own unique notes from your session. It's insane. To top it off, you can balance the volume of the sounds, add reverb, add stereo chorus, shape the envelope, engage an arpeggiator, pitch a part up etc. etc. etc. all from the keyboard itself. It's freaking ridiculous. They give you everything you need to start your production career in one tight little package. Thank you Yamaha.

There is a lot to like about the sounds possible with this instrument. I bought it primarily for recording demos at home, and it worked beautifully for that purpose despite the cheap plastic-feeling keys. However, I then started using this keyboard for live performances and that's where it failed me. First, setting up a "performance" (a bunch of preset patches) to quickly switch between is not intuitive at all. I usually have to recheck the manual. Second, using this with the Yamaha sustain pedal (FC4A) is unpredictable: sometimes the sustain will not stop. I've even had to power off the keyboard to get the sustain to quit. This is especially troublesome if you change patches with the sustain pedal down--there is something wrong with the programming. I upgraded the firmware but that didn't help. Finally, after about a year of moderate use, the left output started to fail. It's something internal as the left channel goes dead whether using the 1/4 outputs or the headphone jack. To sum up, while this was a great starter keyboard and fine for dialing in the perfect sound for recording, I bought a different brand/model for live situations because I needed something reliable.

The MX49 is a nice compact keyboard with plenty of useful sounds. The keys feel really nice and I can play the piano sounds comfortably even though they are not fully weighted keys. The MX is light weight and it"s small size make it easy to grab and go as well as not taking up a lot of room at home. Sweetwater's service was great as always.

I needed a new MIDI controller. I also needed something with useful and on demand, rhodes, pads and pianos. Enter the Yamaha MX49.

So what is this thing and who would benefit from it? This would be great for someone who needs on demand useful and realistic organs, rhodes, pianos, etc. Someone who needed a MIDI controller with some useful on demand sounds. Someone who just maybe wants to play some piano without a DAW or anything. This isnt a synth for nerdy programming types that are moving to modular in the future. This is pretty much useful stock sounds for the stage in a light weight portable and easy to use format.

Ive had a Yamaha CS1x in the past and I remember it being a bit wonky and frustrating to program and tweak. Happy to say this isnt like that at all. Everything is laid out and useful and you dont have to really dive into menus to change anything. Most things can be accessed or changed with the click of a button.

The knobs are already assigned to typical features and ready to go once you change the preset. Most of the presets are slightly different iterations of each other - different timbres and tones of the same instrument. There isnt really anything in here that you would likely skype your best producers buddies about or make a youtube video for, but everything is useful and on demand and ready to rock. No tweaking needed.


It is very lightweight and portable, however it doesnt feel as well as constructed as it couldve been. Knobs and pots could be better but. The keys while they arent weighted do have a "springy" consistency to them that almost mimics weighted keys. That said, it feels good to play on and the keys are solid.

This thing can also act as it's own audio interface when you chose the ASIO driver from yamaha as your audio source.

A bit of a caveat that is sort of misleading about this keyboard. Most reviews and videos Ive seen say that it passes audio and midi through USB. It does, however, you likely arent going to be able to pass AUDIO and MIDI into one track through USB in your DAW and still use your external soundcard. On my PC there isnt a way to chose both the Yamaha ASIO driver and the RME 802 Drive at the same time. I have read that there is someway to aggregate these on a mac though. That said, you have to connect the audio out like any other synth to inputs on your soundcard.

If you need realistic, stock on demand sounds in a lightweight portable format thats easy to use - this is your guy!

I rated this 3.5 because I feel the construction could be a little more solid and the misleading MIDI/Audio combo. In addition, Yamahas site to find the drivers wasnt the most intuitive to navigate. DOnt let that deter you from snatching this thing up cause it works, is fun to play and most of all useful and easy to use!

Bought this back in 2015 because it had some nice organ sounds and I couldn't afford an actual portable organ.
Almost 3 years later I have zero regrets. Hundreds of sounds on board and plenty are fun to use. Throw in easy splitting/layering and you can get really expressive.

If you can afford a synth that can actually create new sounds then I would recommend that but if you'd like a cheaper alternative with loads of quality sounding presets and full size keys then this is a solid choice.

Also, another costumer noted that he was skeptical about its construction but I've taken this thing into live settings and I don't even own a case for it and it still looks/functions in mint condition. It's also very lightweight and easy to transport.

The sounds on this thing are great. If you tweak the stock sounds you can make it really amazing. I wish the construction was a bit better to be honest. Once I start touring with it I don't know how long it will last (I guess it's great that there's a two year warranty ha).

so many sounds, but most are NOT so good...and more than HALF are TERRIBLE
if you want GOOD piano, get a Casio Privia
you want electric piano or organ, get a kurzweil...
you want toy sounds, get a cheep casio..
you want REAL SYNTHS< get A real SYNTH... try Moog, Korg, Novation, etc etc...

this is NOT a piano, NOT an organ NOT a synth...it is just a mixup.
and out of the so many sounds, we found only 20 or so useful....

yes, it has MANY WAYS TO EDIT, but IT IS NOT ENOUGH.
you can layer only 2 sounds or so...

MUST GET John Melas software to make this thing work...
THEN U CAN GET 16 LAYERS ALL AT ONCE.
YOU CAN SAVE THESE.

this mx is half dead.

yes, that impiles, it is already half dead.
QUALITY of sounds aer NOT MOTIF... outright lies.
go hear it yourself...

use common sense.

yamaha is NOT known for synths in past 20 yrs...
OTHER companies are FAR better at synths.

good luck
peace and musica always
pray these lies would stop...

k

My first real synth. And its greeeat

The band bought this keyboard for our keyboard player - we have all been blown away with the stock sounds right out of the box. The versatility and feature set is amazing. I'm sure she would love the 61 better but for portability and versatility I don't see how you could beat it for the price

This little piece of gear is awesome! I love the great big MOTIF sounds for a small price!

The powerful control layout of this synth is amazing, the sounds spectacular. The quick ability to layer, split, perform and sync make this a true live jam wonder tool. If you can't sound good on this thing, you can't sound good on anything.

This synth sounds great and is a good value for anyone on a budget that cannot afford a professional level workstation. The sound is excellent, and it has a large library of voices.

Just received this yesterday and spent 4 hours last night playing around with it! I haven't even attached it to the computer yet! So many great MOTIF sounds, the layering is so simple and fun to come up with your own sounds! MOst of the 128 performances are amazing, and yes you can save Voices in the 128 user see from page 8 in the reference manual

( The MX49/MX61 features multiple Voices in Preset Memory, which cannot be overwritten (page 17). These Voices are
referred to as Preset Voices. On the other hand, Voices which are created by editing the Preset Voices are referred to as
User Voices. User Voices are stored in User Memory, which can be overwritten (page 17). The maximum number of
User Voices which can be memorized to User Memory is 128 Normal Voices and 8 Drum Voices.)

The sound quality is amazing and I love how the keys feel, the only negative I have is that the synth is very light and it moves easily on my Keyboard stand, otherwise this is an amazing machine!