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Yamaha PSR-EW425 Review (& PSR-

E473)

This is my review on the MUCH anticipated new versions of the super popular Yamaha PSR-E463
and PSR-EW410 keyboards; the brand new Yamaha PSR-E473 and PSR-EW425. The Yamaha
PSR-E473 and PSR-EW425 are EXACTLY the same as each other, with only 4 differences, so
while this review was carried out on my new PSR-EW425, it does apply to both keyboards. The
E473 has 61 keys, 12 watts of speaker power and weighs 15.5 pounds; the EW-425 has 76 keys,
24 watts of speaker power, weighs 18 pounds, has 11 enhanced organ sounds and a higher
quality 2nd piano voice. Other than that, these 2 boards are identical; I will outline these
differences again during the course of the review.

If you follow my channel, you probably know that while I occasionally dabble in the arranger
keyboard and non-weighted synth action keys universe, for the most part I’m a piano player that
enjoys playing fully weighted digital pianos, and that I enjoy playing modern music with backing
tracks & I prefer to practice with rhythms as opposed to a metronome. So, why was I super
excited to buy a Yamaha PSR-EW425 as soon as it was available? Well, you’ll [nd out in this
review, but basically this keyboard is absolutely PACKED with some amazing features that are
right up my alley. But given my focus, while I will go over the basic arranger features & things like
the groove creator, arpeggiator etc – I will be focusing this review more on the piano & keyboard
player centric features.

Yamaha PSR-EW425
Yamaha PSR-E473

Yamaha PSR-E473 & EW425 Review – The

Summary
Connectivity
The Keys
The Voices Headphone (1/4″),
full sized organ style
The Effects Audio in (1/8″), USB
non-weighted synth 820 voices (294 main
to host (both MIDI
action keys with 4 “Panel” voices + 12 types of reverb, 5
and AUDIO!), 1/4″
levels of touch SFX/drum & XGlite types of chorus and 4
pedal input for
sensitivity (3 levels Voices); Includes types of EQ presets, 2
sustain / arpeggiator
and off) Live!, Sweet!, Cool! & DSP effects at a time!
/ harmony, USB type
Articulation Lite (41 in DSP1, 12 in
A port for a aash
EW425: 76 Keys Voices; EW425 has DSP2), 26 types of
drive (load styles,
10 premium organ auto harmony
play audio, save
E473: 61 Keys voices
audio), 1/4 ” mic
input with gain

The Rest

Backlit menu screen and very intuitive context sensitive user interface
2 live control knobs – you can assign DSP effects or reverb, chorus etc to these for on the
ay modi[cations to your sounds
290 rhythm styles with 2 variations of each, optional accompaniment, optional
intro/ending, [lls, ability to mute individual instrument & 10 slots for loading custom styles
32 registration memory slots to save your setups
Panel buttons for mic mute/effects on/effects off
Metronome
Quick access octave shift/transpose button
Split & layer with ability to adjust relative volumes
Arpeggiator with 152 types
Song recorder (10 songs, up to 5 tracks each + accompaniment track)
sampling (4 slots; sample from mic or audio in)
groove creator with 35 grooves and 5 groove sections
one touch setting for recommended voices & tempo for chosen style
“Mega Boost” and “motion” effect buttons
Super Articulation Lite button for compatible voices
Battery option (PSR-EW425: 6 x D, PSR-E473: 6 x AA)
12 watts of speaker power (E473); 24 watts of speaker power (EW425)
Compatible with Yamaha Rec’N’Share app for creating quick and easy videos

Yamaha PSR-E473 & EW425 Review – The

Details
Menu & User Interface

On the left side you have your power button and volume, the
super articulation button which is nice and big and close to the
keyboard for quick access; then you have your section for
controlling rhythms and accompaniment or groove creator. Above
that, the “Sound Control” section is where you can setup splits,
layers, harmonies, arpeggiators, the metronome, secondary DSP,
and start and stop recordings. Above that you have your toggle
switch for your mic, your motion effect button, and live control
knob setup, and then below those you have your octave shift and
transpose buttons.

The center area has the menu screen and buttons below that
double as track control during recording and muting style parts,
as well as your registration memory buttons.

The ones on the right side are for navigating through voices and
styles, accessing the function menu, your “Portable Grand” button
to quickly return to voice 1, your “Mega Boost” button for volume
boosting, and your quick sampling buttons.

Left side buttons Menu Right side buttons

The menu is context sensitive and will adjust what is displayed as

you make selections, and enter / exit voice selection vs. style
selection etc. While there are some settings that will require you
to do some “menu deep diving”, there have been some VERY
welcome upgrades to this interface from the prior version on the
PSR-E463.

The [rst upgrade is adding onboard quick access buttons for

octave shifting – on the 463, octave shifting required a menu
deep dive, and to make matters worse, if you switched the octave
and then changed voices, you would lose your octave shift and
have to do it again! Now, not only do you have buttons to quickly
and easily shift the octave, you DON’T lose that setting as you
change voices.

Another big upgrade is the method of navigating through voices

and rhythms: on the E463 and EW410, your choices were to use
the wheel to navigate one by one, or the category buttons to
navigate one category by one, or you could type in a voice or
rhythm number if you had it memorized. On the E473 and EW425,
Yamaha has turned the numeric keypad into category quick
access buttons so you can jump directly to the category that you
want, and then [ne tune your selection either with the wheel or by
continually tapping the category button. I never had voice or
rhythm numbers memorized, so I [nd this method of navigation
to be MUCH quicker and easier; BUT if you do prefer the numeric
keypad, you can switch to that mode instead by turning on the
Num Lock.

And one more large upgrade is that on the prior models, the
display did not include what bank you were in when loading or
saving a registration which could be really confusing – on the
new versions this has been recti[ed, and now the bank is
displayed to the left of the registration numbers.

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Yamaha PSR-E473 & PSR-EW425 User Interface

The Keys

The Yamaha PSR-E473 and PSR-EW425 have full size organ style
synth action keys with 4 layers of touch sensitivity (soft, medium,
hard and [xed); the 473 has 61 keys, the 425 has 76. Note that
when I say “full-sized” it’s an octave width of about 160mm which
is considered “full-size” by most synth action keyboards, but is still
slightly narrower than the standard 165mm octave width found on
most fully weighted digital pianos. They are also thinner than a
“box shaped” piano style key, but they are full width.

Box Style Keys

Organ Style Keys

While the keys are full sized, they are not weighted or semi-
weighted, so they will feel nothing like the keys on a real or
weighted digital piano. I have to say that the keys on my EW425
feel higher quality than the ones on the E463 that I recently rented;
I’m not sure if Yamaha has improved the keybed on the new
models or if this is just because my keyboard is brand new, but
they de[nitely feel sturdier to me.

The action on these keys I [nd to be pretty light; when I [rst

started trying the keyboard out on the default touch sensitivity
(“normal”) I found I was having dinculty controlling my dynamics
(I’m used to a fully weighted hammer action piano); so I switched
the touch sensitivity to “hard” and that suited my playing style
much better.

Once I switched the touch sensitivity and spent some time getting
used to this action, I was actually quite impressed with the level of
dynamic control that I had. While the keys are very light, they have
a very consistent and predictable dynamic to them. Since they are
full sized, someone used to a piano will be able to adapt to the
spacing pretty quickly, but the synth action will be an adjustment
that will take some getting used to.

The Voices

There are a staggering 820 voices on the Yamaha PSR-E473 and

PSR-EW425. There are 294 Panel Voices + 28 Drum/SFX kits + 40
Arpeggio + 458 XGlite Voices. The panel voices are really the
“main” ones (the best quality). Included in the panel voices are
Yamaha’s enhanced Live!, Sweet! and Cool! voices as well as 14
Super Articulation Lite Voices. Each “Panel” category has 20 or
more voices:

Piano & Electric Piano

Organ & Harmonica
Guitar & Bass
Strings
Brass
Woodwind
Choir & Pad
World

While the panel voices are the highest quality ones, the remaining
voices including the XGLite voices are still good and round out a
pretty impressive set of sounds.

The voices on the PSR-E473 and the PSR-EW425 are exactly the
same except:

2nd piano voice on the EW-425 is higher quality:

PSR-EW425: Live! Grand Piano (this is a newer
enhanced version of the main piano sound on the prior
model, the EW410)
PSR-E473: Stereo Grand Piano (this is an enhanced
version of the main piano sound on the prior model, the
E463)
The [rst 10 organ voices on the EW-425 are higher quality:
these enhanced organ voices are sampled from the
Yamaha YC series of stage keyboards, and include key
on/off noise and leakage effects – the voices on the
E473 are the same basic samples, but do not have
these extra effects

The voices on these new models are noticeably improved over the
E463 & EW410; other than the obvious reason of some new higher
quality samples being used, there has been a signi[cant
polyphony increase from 48 to 64, and there is some improved
processing in play, both of which have improved all of the existing
samples.

The main piano sample on both the E473 and the EW425 is the
“Live! Concert Grand” which is nothing short of spectacular,
especially for the price range. This voice was [rst seen on the
PSR-E373, having been borrowed from retired Tyros keyboards
(which used to cost in the thousands) and then updated. This
sound is even better on the PSR-E473 and EW425 because of the
increased polyphony and newer processor. I really think this voice
can compete with samples from higher priced keyboards and
digital pianos – I’m looking forward to comparing this piano
sample to the main piano on my Casio PX-S3000 digital piano.

In addition to these improved piano tones, high quality organ

voices, and generally improved voices just from the increased
polyphony, Yamaha has also included 14 “Super Articulation Lite”
voices which have additional samples that can be triggered by
pressing the Super Articulation button (harmonics or slides on
guitars, staccato on autes etc).

There are clearly far too many voices to demo, so I’ve picked a few
of my favorites to demo in the following video; I’ll include some of
the layered & split voices, Super Articulation Lite voices and the
voices that are upgraded on the EW-425 from the E-473 (2nd piano
voice and 10 organ voices):

Yamaha PSR-EW425 Voices (And Many Fr…

Yamaha PSR-EW425 Voices (& E473)

Effects
The Effects

The Yamaha PSR-E473 and PSR-EW425 share a VERY impressive

set of effects and DSP functionality: In addition to the “basic”
effects like 12 types of reverb (with 127 depth levels!), 5 types of
chorus (also with 127 depth levels) and 4 types of EQ presets,
there are also a whopping 41 DSP effects to choose from in you
main DSP channel (this is up from 10 on the prior models). And to
make that even MORE impressive, Yamaha’s new chip and
increased polyphony now allow a second simultaneous DSP effect
with up to 12 choices – that is unheard of in this price range. And
then to top it off there are 26 types of auto harmony you can also
choose from to further [ne tune your sounds.

As with the prior models, you have 2 handy live control knobs to
which you can use to make on the ay adjustments to
cutoff/resonance, reverb/chorus or your DSP1/DSP2 effects, and
you can choose to have these knobs affect the main voices or the
style.

New to the PSR-E473 and EW425 is a “Motion” effect button – this

allows you to trigger multiple effects at a time ([lters, pan, reverb,
chorus, pitch changes, modulation etc) and apply them to all or
just your chosen sounds (main sounds, styles etc).

So with all of these effects at your disposal, you have a crazy

amount of options and combinations to [ne tune your voices to
your liking. This type of stuff is very much NOT my specialty, but I
will try to demo some of these features in the video below:

Yamaha PSR-EW473 & EW425 Effects Intro

Yamaha PSR-E473 & PSR-EW425 Effects

Rhythms & Accompaniment

The PSR-E473 and PSR-EW425 have 290 rhythms which is up from

235 on the prior models, from a wide variety of genres. There are 2
variations of each, with optional sync start, intros, endings, [lls as
well as optional accompaniment, which includes backing bass and
a rhythm section. Because I’m not a specialist in arranger
keyboards, I can’t really say if Yamaha made any changes to the
actual rhythms and accompaniment on these new models, but
what I can say is that the rhythms and accompaniment should
sound better given the increase in polyphony and updated
processing, not to mention the huge array of effects you can apply
to your sounds. And given the increase in polyphony, the chance of
notes dropping off is reduced.

A couple of awesome features with the rhythms and

accompaniment that are brought forward from the prior models:
[rst, you can adjust the rhythm & accompaniment volume if you
want it adjusted relative to the main voice you are using which is
awesome. But an absolutely HUGE feature is the ability to mute
various parts of the accompaniment. This is great for me, because
sometimes I just want to use the drums or just the drums and
bass; but you can pick and choose what to include. So even if you
are not interested in the arranger features, having a wide selection
of drum styles to play along with is never a bad thing (and it’s WAY
more fun and engaging to play along with a drum track than a
metronome for practicing).

For triggering the auto accompaniment, most entry level arranger

keyboards will have multiple “chord modes” for choosing what
chords the accompaniment should be playing. The Yamaha PSR-
E473 and PSR-EW425 actually have less choices than most
arrangers do, with only TWO choices – one is “multi [nger” where
you simply [nger full chords in your left hand, and new with these
models is the addition of Yamaha’s “Smart Chord” mode – this is a
shortcut mode where you specify the key a song is in, and then
you can trigger diatonic chords using a single [nger (for example
if you choose the key of C, and press the D key you will get a D
minor chord). This is an area Yamaha has always been curiously
lacking in; the one feature I would absolutely LOVE to have seen in
these keyboards is full keyboard chord detection which is perfect
for piano players; with this detection mode, the entire range of the
keyboard is used to detect what chords you are playing, and this
allows you to actually hear what you play in your left hand. If
having multiple chord detection modes is something that is
important to you, you should look towards alternatives from Casio
or Korg which have 5 or even more chord detection modes.

Here is a quick video showing the auto accompaniment, including

using synch start, [lls and style variations:

Yamaha PSR-E473 & EW425 Rhythms Intro

Yamaha PSR-E473 & PSR-EW425 Rhythms & Accompaniment

There are TONS of useful rhythms available; I was able to [nd

usable rhythms for straight & syncopated beats, as well as some
shuqe rhythms and some useful 3/4 or 6/8 time signatures. I’m
pretty much a rock/pop/blues player, so I didn’t investigate many
of the other styles and ethnic beat options, but there are quite a
few choices for those as well.

Modern Piano
Registrations

The Yamaha PSR-E473 and PSR-EW425 have the ability to save up

to 32 registrations so you can save your current settings (voice,
style, tempo, effects, etc) for quick and easy recall. There are 8
banks available, with 4 registrations in each. You select your bank
FIRST (press the Bank button repeatedly to choose your bank) and
then you can save or recall registrations. using registration buttons
1 to 4. While Yamaha didn’t increase the number of registrations
from the prior models, one HUGE upgrade from the prior models is
the addition of the current bank number to the display which was a
HUGE omission from the prior keyboards where you had to
remember what bank you were on.

Here is a quick video on saving and recalling registrations:

Yamaha PSR-E473 & EW425 Registrations…

Yamaha PSR-E473 & PSR-EW425 Registrations

Connectivity

Out of all the digital pianos and keyboards I have owned or rented
and reviewed, the connectivity options on the PSR-E473 and PSR-
EW425 are by far the most full featured and are de[nitely my
favorites. There is a 1/4″ port for a sustain pedal (which can be set
as a sustain pedal, to hold an arpeggio or as sustain AND hold the
arpeggio), a 1/4″ headphone port (it is on the back. I wish it was
on the front but not the end of the world).

There is a handy 1/8″ audio in so you can connect an external

sound source like an iPad to play along with YouTube or apps kuje
Jamzone etc. One thing I would like to mention here that I have
noticed on every Yamaha keyboard I have owned or tested as
opposed to every Casio I have owned or tested; on many Casio
keyboards, including my CT-S1, the audio in volume is not
balanced well with the keyboard volume; if you turn up the external
device to get it loud enough to match the keyboard, it often
distorts. This has NEVER been an issue with any Yamaha
keyboard, and it is not an issue with my PSR-EW425, it never
distorts.

There are 2 x 1/4″ line out ports for connecting to external

ampli[cation, PAs or audio equipment – while the prior version of
the EW425, the EW410 DID have lineouts, the E463 did not, so the
addition of these ports to the PSR-E473 is a huge upgrade.

There is also a USB type A port for connecting a aash drive which
can be used for:

playing back .WAV [les

saving high quality direct audio as .WAV [les
loading style [les into empty user style slots