The Yamaha QY70: An Affordable, Awesome, Vintage Groovebox 

I had one of these for years, after buying it new around 1999-2000. I regret selling it. I wrote the entire soundtrack to a friend's 15 minute short film on one of these (except for some overdubbed guitars.) It's an amazingly capable device for its size. I remember sitting in Miami traffic, one hand on the wheel, the other on the QY70, writing music. (Yeah, yeah... I was in college, and it wasn't the only stupid thing I did at the time.)

That Japanese city pop beat was FIRE!

Its a fooking DAW with VSTs and fits in (a big ass) pocket!

The QY70 is the best kept secret in music tech history. In the right hands. Masterpieces can be made anywhere on this beauty.

In 1998 I watched an interview with Bjork in which she said that she composed a lot of the songs from Debut, Post, and Homogenic on a QY20 and later QY70. She carried it with her everywhere. I don't think it got much use on the final album cuts, but I bought a QY70 the next day and love it. I saw Tricky later that year and saw that it was his instrument on stage. It has the same powerful AWM2 tone generator that Yamaha put into their high end keyboards in that era. By messing with the onboard effects you make this thing sound great. Back in the day, there was Yamaha XG software that would let you externally control parameters like filters, the five knobs for each of the effects, hidden LFOs and such, to create really powerful performances. The support for this is pretty much dead now. You need a proprietary cable, computer with a serial port, and software that doesn't run on modern computers. Is there anyone around who is able to do this still?

The QY70 is a great unit. I use it in almost all my songs.

This is wild. Very entertaining, thanks for sharing!

Great video really shows how great this workstation was/ is. Had one 95-2007 dropped it onto a tiled floor, that was the end of that. But now I have a complete studio so it was gateway gear. 🎧🎹🎹🎹🎧

Nice to get an honest review like his from someone who's used a device and knows its pros and cons. Good work, liked and subscribed :-)

Thanks Josh for introducing me to this unit.

Love the composition, it's got an 80s sitcom theme to it 👍🏾 Its that little motif and the retro sounds 👏🏾 I got a more basic version, think it's the qy10. This is really useful thanks for sharing 🙏🏾

in five minutes they will be $775 on reverb.

That track was really nice my dude. I may get one of these boxes

Wow. This is exactly the kind of device I've been looking for. Just found one on Ebay for a little over $100. Thanks for the review! Subbed

Amazing demo of this!! Been looking up videos on the QY70 lately, really glad to have found yours!! 😃🐀

My buddy had one of these back in the day, and I was always jealous of him! :) thank you for this really information video. Appreciate your time.

Well....I just found another piece of gear I "need." Great demo. Like your tracks too.

I got mine for about 30 dollars from a second hand store - didn't really know what it was back then but really liked the design. Lovin it ever since. Great music you're making on it !

Freezepop Forever and Fancy Ultra Fresh are perfect examples of QY70 heavy albums by Freezepop

I really like this thing! I plan to pick one up some time soon. I also really appreciated that you demonstrated how to use the qy70 and even went as far as making a song with vocals! Not many RU-vidrs would do such a thing. Subscribed

Very well written song. Nice to see that instead of some open-ended jam like I do all the time in my videos. 😀. Years ago I used the Qy20 to do a couple of albums. It was amazing and the Qy70 adds effects so it sounds even better. BTW-you can connect a midi controller and control filter cutoff and effects sends etc in real time.

Awesome. Great voice

Very enjoyable presentation Josh. I wish there was more information available about the QY series of sequencers available on the internet. I feel I learned something and was very impressed with the song (I assume) you wrote. Best regards!

Maybe I missed it but would love more videos of you making tracks with this! (and other cool gear like the deluge!) those tracks were super dope!

Outstanding video! Thank you.

Very nice song. Nice voice. I love your name. I talk, in the third person, quite a bit. So I appreciate that. Thank you, Josh is making music. Heath isn't right now, he can't find his Dreadbox PSU, meh🎵🎶🎵

Your song last song is a banger dude!!!

Btw in song mode you can just freeform record on the 16 channels and ignore the patterns completely, so you're not actually stuck in stone in terms of songwriting

Just got one from Japan to UK. Wanted it since I had a go of a friends in about 1999. Bit fiddly, spent ages and still baffled how to adjust individual drums volume and make custom kits but Ill get there. Thanks for sharing 🙂😎👍❤️

Good Job Man, ...nice composing!!! I got the QY-100 its the same, but it has a Guitar Input and Amp Sim, you can't Rec. the Guitar But you can compose Songs too... What i think what is the best on this Maschines, the 600+ Phrases of Intos, Verse, fill's and outos... ...its nice for jaming around... And the "E-Guitar" Phrases in my opinion one of the best i ever heard!!! When you use them to trigger external "VSTi" in a computer DAW, you get good results! For the iPad is a APP out Simulate the QY-70 and QY-100 / Yamaha Mobile Sequencer

I'm looking for something like this ..I was thinking it doesn't sound like a Yamaha then I heard the gun shots brought me right to the DJ x

I love ur song so much ❤

This is exactly what i need for my Sound setup 😮

Great video!

I'm still using teh softsynth on widows 10......Still sounds awesome after so many years.

Great review and song!!

I have had mine for years and years and it is the one synth I will never get rid of. The sequencer alone is so far beyond most current step sequencers etc that it is ridiculous. Complete multipart melodic lines can be either stepped in or real time played in with resolution that maintains timing nuances. I have used it as a composing tool, synthesizer and sound module for midi guitar controller and as a controller for my other synths. The pitched percussion sounds and piano are particularly good and useful for me. I may have to pick up a QY100 at some point!

I made plenty of Beats with this in the 90s. plan i pulling it out soon.

City Pop goes hard!

I totally just came her to see how representative of my baby the video was and how much love it was gettin'. Gotta say I'm pretty pleased. And YAH, the little gameboy lookalike can really rock! Especially if you got a midi controller handy, so you can abuse its Mac Demarco-ey vibrato and change its speed by sending it mystical NRPNS. And "just one?" insert effect can really run the mile for ya, as it got NASTY modulation effects (phasers, choruses and whatnot), nice harmonic enrichers (dist.) and crazy-ass reverbs. The way I see it, Yamaha isn't really a bad tempered guy, they just don't talk much. Just like the DX7 had a tiny screen, the QY70 gives you none of the titty-twisting you can do with a Roland MC, but it can really help you out if you wanna modify velocity post-hoc or change the rhythm of your stuff. And it actually records CC! Talk about products (that reflect the technological zeitgeist of their years) with personality. The only gripe I have it's that the cute little buttons eventually lose their conductive paint, so my first QY has a few "deaf" spots. But, hey, this is a product that has greatly outlived its obsolescense projections. Luckily, I got a new one and I'm hoping to nab a roll of copper tape to see if I can brig the old one back to life. Oh, BTW, this german guy really saw the potential of the thing back in the day, and his site can be helpful to neophytes like meself: www.studio4all.de/htmle/main92.html#xgprgxgpart02

Great demo of the QY70! Another stupid party trick of the QY70 is that you can set the fingered zone of the keyboard input and use it as a sort of derpy arranger workstation where you can easily write your own styles. However I just mainly use it because it's a strong sequencer in a tiny package. Using it with CV.OCD also yields great results with eurorack and legacy synths.

THANK YOU SO MUCH !

very listenable and nostalgic

This tune reminds me of "Prom Night" by Anamanaguchi. The chord progress and melody share some and I really dig that.

I used it as a scratchpad whilst I was on train journeys. People must've thought I was weird jamming on this silver box and headphones. But why not? Plug it into the power socket under the seat and start playing away to pass the journey time. Lately, I've simply hooked it up to a controller keyboard and it just does the job. The sounds can be adapted to suit your taste. Don't just stick with the default values. There's some decent reverb in there, and the cutoff and reso works well. Steep learning curve though.

There's something inspiring about the 90's Yamaha sequencer workflow that nobody has really come close to. The QY700 is still front and centre of my setup.

I had the QY20 - I bought it new when it was first launched. It was quite innovative for the time and it formed the basis of lots of compositions. Yea, it was a bit tedious doing programming but I got good at it and could sequence quite rapidly.

Just picked one up and it works fine (gotta replace the backup battery and the battery cover foam since the batteries are a little rattly. Still has the screen peely cover thing from the 90s tho!) but is the dark grey paint on the back of yours kinda.... chalky feeling? Like there's a layer of fine grit on it? I've tried to wipe it off but can't seem to and I'm a little afraid of hitting it with anything stronger.

I've had a qy70 for almosr a year and I'm hard pressed to think of any of my music gear that I use more

Ylva Trax has some great jams that include the QY70. There’s a backlight mod but no videos on it

What about setting frequency to specific like 432hz? Anyway great review and device. Must get one now.

Great demo. Also, what is that piece of gear on the right?

I never use the pattern mode to make songs on it , I make long tracks and use the track mute function to bring in parts

Hello!! So, I just purchased a qy70, and after few experimentations, the memory is now full. I wanted to know how can I find the data filer program compatible with my mac 10.13? or how do you export your songs data please?

How many songs you can save? Really nice video, i love the city pop beat!

Can you edit individual notes after recording? I was waiting for you to do that to correct a mistake rather than just undoing & recording the whole thing again.

Does it have the MULTI MODE (recording 16 midi channels in the same time) like the QY100. Thanks

Thank you!

Some thoughts: 1. Referring to the Qy70 as ‘vintage’ makes me feel old. 2. I have a Qy100 and it’s pretty handy, but no must-have features over the 70. 3. Freezepop 4. SmartMedia cards are expensive these days. 5. Freezepop!

Sounds like another video game track :)

can you make a sample pack of this?

Freezepop is also a great band that relied heavily on the QYs for their soind

I have always wanted one of these might bite the bullet. My favorite process is working with general midi on a PC and then using it like a coloring book and making it gnarly on my synths. Having a mobile unit to do this would be great. I love the polite tone of this things instruments. This was the info I needed, thanks for this vid!!

I’ve never even heard of this thing. Definitely has early Nintendo music vibes.

I'm a Film composer Independent Films I make more than 60 commercials and like 24 Films with the QY70 I mean it !!! I have the QY100 but is not the same definitely Guys !!!

I still have one of these the key buttons are totally worn out on it.

I'm not 100% sure (I've too many Yamaha MU devices!) so 'Google' it, but once this is plugged into a PC with the correct Yamaha software, I think you get access to a Yamaha QS300 and you can 'mess' with the built in voices (ADSR, for pitch and envelope etc). The MU10 definitely has a QS330 inside but My MU1000 doesn't.

Inspired!!!!

i can't believe we have (nearly) the same setup (qy 70, deluge) the qy is the ONLY groovebox I kept when I got my deluge

Amazing tutorial! Really thinking about grabbing one of these now. Dumb question: can u sync an arpeggiated analog synth to it?

I could hear David Bowie doing a song like this... nice job man.

Ok I just got one and I'm excited! Q: Is it possible to change presets (voices) while playing along, ie in real time, to a song or pattern? eg you want to see 'which organ sound fits', so you play different ones, while listening to the music?

Nice review. Doesn't it automatically switch to section b when you choose the ab fill around 2:55. One limitation of the Qy100 is they removed the Groove quanitize and you only have swing.

Hey what is that piece of gear to the right of the QY? the one with the stylus. Been looking for that piece forever and i need to know the name

which one to recommend QY 10 , 17 or 100?!

T remember, back in the days, after this Björk beach scene, everybody looked for this magic box !

The song reminds me of "The Lotus Eaters" but I can't even tell you why. 😀

Awesome

It was and still is the Gameyboy for mushcians

I’d like to request more QY70 content, please

Oh wow getting this ASAP lmao

More feature packed than many Volcas?!

Ive had one since '99 and I have STILL not made a YT tutorial series for it! :D But you beat me to it...well you BEAT me (CAPS= pun now intended!) to the love letter part! :P

Mine is awesome 👍

I love it I have it and I have the qy 100

Funny how old Yamahas have insane amounts of polyphony when modern ones by most brands have like 8

Anyone else recognize that drum beat he demos around 0:50? lmao

I paid 60.00 uk for mine 5 years ago , I will never sell it

Makaveli the Don was made with a qy70.

It is not a groove box its a true sequencer sound mod

Sounds like a vintage game 🤭🤣😅🗣️🤔🤔

Make breakcore

After hearing the nice base line at 0:45 I was thinking wow, what funky track is this guy going to play next....city pop..yawn..nice piano sound though.

You have a lot of potentional. Try Nofap and your voice will be more steady. Try Keto and you'll lose the weight.

This guys review sucks that device is more powerful then some of todays software

Can it be used as external midi controller? Like, send pattern info?