Woody Piano Shack Unleashes the Yamaha MODX M: A Sonic Street Weapon Demo

Woody Piano Shack kicks things off by showing us the MODX M’s live set feature—a tidy way to corral up to 16 sounds for your next gig or late-night jam. No faffing about: you can stash your favourites or build a setlist that’ll survive even the rowdiest pub crowd. In this demo, though, Woody’s rolling with the factory’s own pre-programmed picks, a curated selection that’s supposed to show off the best this synth can do.

The vibe is clear: this isn’t just a workstation for studio hermits. The MODX M is built for performers who want fast access to a broad palette, whether you’re hammering out ballads or launching into synthwave territory. Woody’s approach is all about speed and fun—no slow-motion menu tutorials, just straight into the action.

Here’s where things get spicy. Woody demonstrates the infamous Super Knob—Yamaha’s all-in-one macro control that can twist multiple parameters at once, from filter sweeps to wild FX morphs. It’s not just a gimmick; in the right hands, it’s a rave bunker weapon, letting you warp sounds on the fly without breaking your groove.

Add to that the eight scene buttons, and you’ve got instant access to different snapshots or variations of a patch. Woody shows how you can store your own tweaks as scenes, or just mash through the factory ones for sudden shifts in vibe. The real fun? Watching the motion sequencer automate the Super Knob for evolving textures—something you’ll want to see in action, not just read about.

Woody doesn’t just stick to polite piano sounds—he drags the MODX M through a gauntlet of genres and textures. One minute it’s a cinematic Bosendorfer, the next it’s a dystopian brass stack or a one-note jam that could soundtrack a car chase. The AN-X engine gets plenty of love, serving up pads and leads that sound anything but sterile.

What’s impressive is the sheer range: from delicate reverbs to full-on FM noise, with effects that actually sound lush instead of tacked on. Woody’s not shy about showing off the weird stuff either—if you want to hear arps, motion sequences, and scene-driven madness, this is your playground. Still, the only way to feel the low-end punch or the shimmer of those pads is to crank the video and let your speakers sweat.