Yamaha Motif 8 Owners Manual

41MOTIF  Basic StructureSystem Overview
Basic Structure
●In the Song/Pattern mode: 
Reference (page 210)
The diagram below indicates the connection when the Vocal Harmony Plug-in Board (PLG100-VH) is installed to 
slot 1 and the Multi part Plug-in Board (PLG-100XG) is installed to slot 3.
* Please note that the Insertion Effect, Insertion Effect (Plug-in), and the System Effect cannot cannot be applied to 
parts 17~32 (using the Multi-part Plug-in board). The signal from parts 17~32 is directly sent to...

42MOTIF  Basic Structure
Main functions
Basic Structure
Main functions
Voices and Performances
 Quick Start Guide (pages 80, 88) · Reference (pages 121, 160)
A Voice is the main sound of the MOTIF, made up of a variety of parameter settings.  Each Voice can consist of up to 
four separate Elements, each of which is a high-quality wave, or basic sound.
A Performance, on the other hand, is a program in which multiple Voices (parts) are combined — in a layer, or in 
other configurations. Each Performance can...

43MOTIF  Basic StructureMain functions
Basic Structure
In the Voice Play mode, you can select and play any of these Voices. In the Performance Play mode, you can select and 
play any of these Performances. 
On the previous page, the illustration shows the structure of one Voice/Performance. The illustration below shows 
the overall memory structure of all Voices and Performances.  Taken together, these illustrations can help you better 
understand the structure of the MOTIF’s Voices and Performances....

44MOTIF  Basic Structure
Main functions
Basic Structure
Waves and Elements
Waves are the waveforms that make up the Elements, which in turn make up a Voice.  A total of 1309 high-quality 
preset Waves are available. As shown in the following illustration, when creating a Voice, you can select the Wave to 
be used as an Element and then set its level, pitch, tone and other parameters.
User Waves — Samples
One very powerful feature of the MOTIF is its ability to import external audio samples (such as...

45MOTIF  Basic Structure
Main functions
Basic Structure
Normal Voice and Drum Voice
Internally, there are two Voice Types: Normal Voices 
and Drum Voices. Normal Voices are mainly pitched 
musical instrument-type sounds that can be played 
over the range of the keyboard. Drum Voices are 
mainly percussion/drum sounds that are assigned to 
individual notes on the keyboard. A collection of 
assigned percussion/drum wave or Normal Voice is 
known as a Drum Kit.
GM voice
GM is a worldwide standard for Voice...

46MOTIF  Basic Structure
Main functions
Basic Structure
■Pitch
Reference (page 138)
This unit controls the pitch of each Element output 
from OSC. You can detune Elements, apply Pitch 
Scaling and so on. Also, by setting the PEG (Pitch 
Envelope Generator), you can control how the pitch 
changes over time.
●PEG (Pitch Envelope Generator)
Using the PEG, you can control the transition in 
pitch from the moment a note is pressed on the 
keyboard to the point at which it is released. As 
illustrated at...

47MOTIF  Basic Structure
Main functions
Basic Structure
•Band Pass Filter
This only passes a band of signals around the Cutoff 
frequency. The width of this band can be varied. 
• Band Elimination Filter
This attenuates a band of signals around the Cutoff 
frequency, but passes everything else.
●FEG (Filter Envelope Generator)
Using the FEG, you can control the transition in 
tone from the moment a note is pressed on the 
keyboard to the point at which it is released. As 
illustrated at right, the Filter...

48MOTIF  Basic Structure
Main functions
Basic Structure
Controllers
The MOTIF gives you an amazing amount of control 
options.  Not only is it equipped with the conventional 
Pitch Bend and Modulation Wheels, it also features 
special knobs and sliders — and has an additional set 
of rear-panel jacks for connecting foot controllers and 
footswitches. You can connect controllers to the rear 
panel jacks to control various parameters by foot as 
well as by hand. 
This section explains the basic functions...

49MOTIF  Basic Structure
Main functions
Basic Structure
Foot Controller
An optional Foot Controller (such as the FC7), 
connected to the FOOT CONTROLLER jacks 
(page 18) on the rear panel, can be assigned to a 
number of controller parameters. By using a foot 
controller for parameter control, both your hands are 
left free to play the keyboard (or to operate other 
controllers), — exceptionally convenient when you’re 
playing live. 
nFoot Controller parameters can be set for each Voice. 
Footswitch...

50MOTIF  Basic Structure
Main functions
Basic Structure
■Using several sources to control one 
destination
Continuing from the example above, now create 
another Control Set where Src is set to FC (Foot 
Controller) and Dest is set to ELFO-PM (Element LFO 
Pitch Modulation Depth). Again, specify the Element 
to be controlled and also the depth of control.
Now, Pitch Modulation is assigned to both the 
Modulation Wheel and Foot Controller. In other 
words, you can also assign several Src controllers to...