Yamaha PortaSound Keyboard Electronic Piano PSS-170

Product Information

The PSS-470 was released by Yamaha in 1987, and was clearly aimed at non-professionals. This is the type of keyboard that would not be surprising to find in the musical instrument section of a major toy store. It's a simple synth built in a plastic case, with built-in stereo speakers, stereo outputs and 49 mini-sized keys. It's designed to be lightweight and portable. Yet at its heart it has inherited Yamaha's DX series digital FM synthesis, which is enough to garner this synth some attention.

For nearly 40 years, Yamaha has created a host of portable musical keyboard instruments under the “PSR” branding. This article sheds light on those models, from 1984 when the first “PortaTone” models emerged, right up to the present day with versatile, high-technology instruments good for both beginners and seasoned keyboard musicians. The 1990s was probably Yamaha’s most prolific decade for launching PSR models, with well over 70 released from 1990-99. Two things are worth considering here, though. Firstly, many models had only slight variations between them, sometimes as small as cosmetic coloring, or possibly a few sound or style changes, and so were only nominally considered as different models. That said, secondly, it was clear that the PSR series of keyboards was expanding its range from low to mid or even higher-end models, all under the same PSR branding. New model releases slowed down a bit from the year 2000 onwards, and after a flurry from 2000-2004, Yamaha generally released a maximum of three new models per year, most of which were incremental updates on previous models. Yamaha PortaSound keyboards were designed for both home and educational use, being compact and lightweight for easy carrying, and featuring simple and user-friendly interfaces, making them accessible to musicians of all skill levels.A Shift button gives you access to all of the settings that employ the keys on the keyboard as switches. Labelled above the keys, these include mainly MIDI-based functions such as control change, program change, local on/off (for when using the A50 as a MIDI controller) transpose, tuning and metronome settings, phrase volume and velocity response. Overall, Yamaha PortaSound keyboards were popular for their affordability, versatility, and portability, making them a popular choice for aspiring musicians and music enthusiasts. While these keyboards may not have had the same level of sound quality and features as Yamaha’s higher-end models, they still offer a great introduction to the world of electronic music.

A number of the PSS models used the YM3812 sound chip, capable of FM synthesis, including the PSS-360, PSS-460, PSS-470, PSS-560 and PSS-570. A scaled down chip, the YM2413, was used in the PSS-140, PSS-170 and PSS-270. A YM3301 chip was also added to some models to handle percussion sounds. Then, at a slower rate, the higher end PSR models which increasingly borrowed tech from Yamaha’s other higher-end instruments, were being pushed out to those with more cash, ability and ambition. Yamaha Portasound keyboard advertisement (1982)". The Central New Jersey Home News. 1982-03-07. p.188 . Retrieved 2020-05-16. Lower end models were just starting to eek into double figures for their polyphony, while mid-range models often had 16 notes of polyphony and higher-end keyboards were pushing the high 20s or even 30s. There is also the "Auto-Bass-Chord" accompaniment section which will play a chord and bass line appropriate to the selected rhythm pattern. Chords are selected from the lower octave-and-a-half of the keyboard, so you can play the melody/lead in the upper octave. The rhythm section also offers "Fill-In" and "Variation" buttons to keep your rhythm pattern from getting too boring. Another nice feature Yamaha added was individual volume controls for the "Auto-Bass-Chord" and Drum sections.PSR-74, PSR-140, PSR-140PC, PSR-240, PSR-248, PSR-340, PSR-540, PSR-540PC, PSR-640, PSR-740, PSR-J20, PSR-J20C (12) For the best part of two decades, in the 1980s and 1990s, Yamaha created some iconic mini music keyboards under the PortaSound name. Many of these were simple instruments aimed at children and/or beginners, but as the years rolled on, a number of additional features were added. Even today, some PortaSound (PSS) models are desirable as authentic “lo-fi” sound generators for many composers and music producers. There have been close to 80 models with the PS, PSS or PortaSound branding.