Walkstation

The Yamaha MU15 walkstation music synthesizer with built-in keyboard has 6mm key spacing (between adjacent white keys), so it is ideal for people with smaller hands.

A walkstation is a portable music synthesizer that can often be programmed with various musical sequences.

Typically walkstations are small battery powered units with small size keys that are ideal for the smaller hands of young children. For example, the MU15 has a keyboard with keys that are approximately 6 mm apart (from one white key to the next adjacent white key). That is approximately four times more closely packed than the keys on a standard piano (standard piano key spacing is approximately 24mm from one white key to the next).

Although not identified as a walkstation, the Yamaha HandySound HS-200 is a similarly sized portable unit that also has a built in speaker.

Etymology

The term was coined by Yamaha to build upon the Walkman phenomenon started by Sony. "Walkstation" is a portmanteau of workstation and walk.

Examples of walkstations

• Yamaha MU5
• Yamaha MU10 (early walkstation, no display)
• Yamaha MU15 (early walkstation, with display)
• Yamaha MU20, half-rack unit, 1995
• Yamaha QY8 (early walkstation, only has 8 MIDI channels, 1994); Owner's manual

Only responds to MIDI channels 1-7 and channel 10. Only responds to velocity on (not velocity off); does not respond to aftertouch.

• Yamaha QY10 (early walkstation, only had 8 MIDI channels)
• Yamaha QY22 (early walkstation, it had only 8 MIDI channels)
• Yamaha QY70, received on all 16 MIDI channels
• Yamaha QY100 (modern walkstation, 2001)
• Roland PMA-5 (Personal Music Assistant with touch screen)