Fantastic sounds + great effects = inspiring little keyboard

This keyboard is just so great. I’d wanted one for a while and held off, just because it felt so focused and I had been using VST electric pianos for a while. I finally pulled the trigger, and this has become one of my favorite instruments in record time. Let’s talk about why:

Size / Portability The size is fantastic for bringing to shows and using for impromptu sessions. I’ve played some shows where I’ve looped some things through a solid state amp and it sits perfectly on top. Battery powered means you can take it anywhere, and jam on the couch or at the kitchen table. Usually, I have this set on my desk in front of my computer keyboard, and will turn it on to mess around when I have a spare minute during my day. The AA battery situation is slightly annoying, but I have some beefy rechargables that work well.

** Build quality and keyboard** It’s built like a tank. Sliders feel great, knobs are fairly sturdy. The keyboard is small, and that’s going to bug some people, but the folks at Yamaha have unlocked some wizardry with making a keyboard this small feel this good. The action is really good, I used to own a Korg Minilogue and there’s no contest between Korg and Yamaha mini keys. Obviously to get an incredible playing experience, you’d want to use midi and connect to a larger controller, but I am actually quite fond of the keyboard here.

Sounds The sounds are just phenomenal. Straight up. I could write a ton, but there’s been a lot written in reviews online. The Wurlitzer, to me, is perfection. I can’t get enough of it. Drive about a third of the way up, add some tremolo, and use the built in reverb. Incredible.

The Delay The delay is unto itself worthy of a review section, and here’s why: The analog delay emulation is gorgeous, and sounds great. It has really nice decay that adds a warmth to the repeats and works as you’d expect an analog delay to. But the real special sauce for me is the digital delay, which becomes a micro looper. Crank the delay and time, and you can craft some really compelling atmospheric loops. My general process: octave in the middle position, add a few short notes or arpeggiated lines -> Octave down one click, hold a bass note -> click up a few octaves and add some sparse sparkle in the upper register.

I could go on, but will wrap up with this: This keyboard has made me play keys a lot more since getting it, because it’s so easy to fire up and use. The built in speaker sound great for writing and noodling, and it’s easy to turn them off when you’re using an amp or tracking. I am now seriously considering getting the Reface CS to add to the collection. The best instruments in your collection are ones that inspire you to play, and this is absolutely true of the CP.

Great source of vintage sounds

This little keyboard has really impressed me. It's part of the Yamaha Reface line of single-purpose keyboards released in 2015, along with the DX, the YC and the CS. This one - the CP - exclusively models the old electromechanical keyboards so familiar from countless records by Floyd, Miles Davis, Mahavishnu Orchestra, Supertramp, etc etc.

You get a Fender Rhodes Mark 1 and 11 emulation, a Wurlitzer EP-200, a Hohner clavinet, a toy piano, and Yamaha's own CP electromechanical piano. I got it mainly for the Mark 1 Rhodes emulation, and it doesn't disappoint. It obviously doesn't quite have the mojo of a real Rhodes, but it sounds quite authentic. The Rhodes mark II is for you Chicago fans out there - I've never liked it, but it's there if you want it...The Wurli is pretty good if a bit polite, but you can sort that by bringing in a bit of grunge via the dedicated overdrive knob. The Clavi is less good - it sounds a bit plastic and honky, but it might pass in a mix. The toy piano might be useful if you're into sound design, and the CP piano emulation is great for capturing those early 80s Peter Gabriel tones.

Where it really wins though are the included effects, each with a dedicated knob. You get dirt (overdrive), tremolo/pan (depending on which model you've selected), a very authentic-sounding 4-stage phaser, a chorus (which works particular magic on the CP model - with a fast rate and high depth, you're into 'Ashes to Ashes' territory), digital and analog delay (the latter sounding more like a decent tape delay, which can self-oscillate. The digital delay can repeat indefinitely too at the highest feedback levels, creating a little sound-on-sound effect), an auto-wah (needs tweaking to find the sweet spot, as they all do) and a surprisingly cool and clean reverb to bring all the sounds to life and give them a sense of space.

All the controls are laid out in a WYSIWYG sort of way, so it's incredibly immediate, great for sketching out ideas.

There's a couple of downsides. The tiny keys are touch-sensitive (you can make the Rhodes and Wurli 'bark' in a satisfying way), but they're a bugger to hit accurately. They feel ok - quite good actually - but there's no denying that you'd be better off plugging a bigger controller keyboard into this to get the most out of it. Which brings me to the second point, which is that there's only a MIDI breakout cable rather than dedicated MIDI in and outs, which means you have to look after the breakout cable or you're stuffed. You'll also have to buy your own sustain pedal, as it's not included (and you will need it to get a really authentic Rhodes experience).

But these are fairly minor quibbles. This thing is ace, and it's a joy to get access to these old sounds in such a straightforward way. Recommended.

Oh yes; nearly forgot! There's a hidden acoustic piano. It's not the best, but it's useable, You can find it by turning the model knob selector in between any two models before powering on. You lose it again as soon as you go to one of the official models however, and the only way to get it back iis to power down and repeat the trick. I think this must be some sort of OS bug that a Yamaha employee 'accidentally' left in, perhaps because he/she felt that the toy piano was a bit of a useless preset (which it is, to be frank) and wanted to compensate us...

Superb sound quality

I've bought this small keyboard to use it as an expander during gigs. Driven with a good masterkeyboard, it generates the most beautiful Rhodes sound I've heard in many years; as an old owner of a Rhodes 88, I'm quite used with its voice, and the Reface CP restores the full content of the wonderful electromechanic piano. The other timbres are quite useable in live context, except for the ridiculous Toy Piano. There is an hidden acoustic piano too, but it's nothing special. The built-in effects are effective and complete.

Sweet sound

I use this for almost two years and that sound and effects are amazing.

No BUS power?

This board would get fives stars were it to have USB power. However, when using as a MIDI controller, it must be plugged into the wall or full of batteries. The Reface is therefore pretty useless for anything outside of playing back the admittedly high quality onboard sounds. This seems like the sort of deficit that results less from any genuine difficulty, and more from thoughtlessness.