I do understand that you guys and gals at Yamaha maybe aren't too keen on helping someone out trying to decide on buying a used instrument as you'd rather I buy new. I'm just curious about this difference I found in these two instruments.

We are keen on helping customers no matter when or what they buy... (as long as it’s a Yamaha) but if you notice any difference in support it might be, like anything, the farther back you have to dig in the memory banks the hazier the memory is on the details.

The CP5 was the cost down version of the CP1 which introduced the Spectral Component Modeling engine for reproducing acoustic and electric piano sounds. Both serious products with architectures as deep as synthesizers. If you know about the history of the electric piano and ever used a crimping tool to cut and repair your own Tines or if you ever burned your fingers soldering on your Reed electric piano... and you're familiar with the workings of the various pre-amplifiers throughout their histories... then you’re the customer/candidate for these cutting edge tech products.

Most piano players want to call up a sound and sound great immediately. Sure they’ll tweak the EQ and the Effects but they don’t want to necessarily drop in and edit the instrument... if you know about “hammer hardness“ and “striking position“, and if you even knew there were different pre-amps through the history of the Tine EPs... the CP1 and CP5 were the ticket. (I especially loved the Pre-amplifier section on the acoustic pianos...) these were comparable to selecting specific microphones matched for each of the acoustic pianos

“When an acoustic piano is played live as part of a band, the sound thereof is normally picked up using a number of microphones and then mixed in order to prevent it from being drowned out by the other instruments. As part of this process, the signal from the microphones is boosted using pre-amplifiers and its frequency characteristic is adjusted using tone control in order to realize the best possible sound for the overall ensemble. For this reason, the acoustic piano voices of the CP feature microphone pre-amp simulators that can be used to optimize the sound in the very same way.“

The Power Amp and Compressor blocks were used to really dial in the Electric Pianos...

An acoustic and electric piano emulation for the synth-head!

The new generation benefit from the lineage... the amount of deep menu driven editing was streamlined for the ‘great immediately‘ player.
The previous generation speaks to a different customer — if you know about “hammer hardness“ and “strike position“ — we know it speaks to those who walked a mile in those shoes!! If you play a new CP88 you’ll hear the pedigree in a instantly accessible front panel interface. The Tone control represents a EQ curve that works like a “best of” — multiple Frequencies are changed via a one knob interface... all settings along the curve are known to be *useful* and enhancing to the sounds offered.

Understand that nothing was abandoned, it simply morphs to match what’s happening now. You can make the most killer product but if it’s too heavy, that’s going to impact sales. I don’t mind talking about the CP5, ...It reminds me... the EQs, for example, in the CP1 and CP5 were among the most musical EQs I can remember in a product.

Musicians and sophisticated Equalizers an observation
Out of 10 musicians that you know, how many *know* (really know) what they are doing with an EQ? When I taught recording engineering, it was amazing to discover that while I could always pick the musicians out in the class by what they observed when asked to talk about a piece of music I would play... but I was equally amazed that most had never related the notes that they play everyday with frequency values, and they never associated that with the frequencies on an Equalizer.

I would playback something with an obvious problem, and ask what frequency the problem was... blank faces throughout the room! I then call on a musician and say tell them what frequency is the problem? Initially, I’d get “I don’t know”... then I would show them they already knew... we’d narrow it down... I’d ask someone to sing A440... in any group of musicians someone is always carrying A440 ‘on demand’ - you tune to it often enough... You know where that is on your instrument.

I would ask “..is the problem higher or lower?” Lower. How much lower? more than an octave? Immediately musicians started to use what they already know... it was more than an octave, but less than two. Pretty soon we would zero in on the problem frequency. They *knew*, they just didn’t know they knew!

Funny, most musician have heard of a third of an octave EQ, but until you *pinch* them (really hard) they don’t know that means you can select a frequency basically every interval of major 3rd across the range. Divide an octave into 3 equal parts... well, this also explains why really ‘smart’ products, while technologically brilliant, have a harder time in the marketplace... ‘ease of use’ is probably the second most important thing an electronic instrument can feature.

But “ease of use” is always second to SOUND. DX7 — was considered “user hostile” — but I really don’t think it adversely affected sales.

The CP1 has been used on several albums where compositions were played on both an acoustic piano and on the CP1. The CP1 wound up being used on the album... the artist was so overwhelmed by its ability to translate in the studio...

VCM effects are used through previous and current model offerings.
And while the Spectral part of the engine is not in the current CP73/88, you’ll find that they benefit from the VCM processing, and the CP88 benefits from the action. The focus is on the tactile interface.

CP4 STAGE features the all the Pre-amps for both the Acoustic and Electric Pianos and is the updated CP5.
It has the VCM Compressor and VCM Equalizer. A different presentation of features/functions.

Thanks for the reply phil!

I think one of the major strengths in CP88/CP73 is the fun factor. Nowadays, the fun factor seem to be very important to the usual customer. The CP88 and CP73 with the one-to-one interface, great feeling toggle switches and rocker buttons have FUN written all over them.

I've come to the conclusion that the CP5 is right in my ballpark at this moment in time. I'll be picking one up in a few days!

When I've saved enough after that, I have my eyes set on a modx7.