Yamaha is taking a big leap into subscription services with its new Creator Pass, which bundles a bunch of different services and apps focused on music and podcast production under a single umbrella. Yamaha doesn’t actually make much software of its own, so it’s partnered with several other companies to help fleshout the bundle. The primary partners are Landr, Output, and Riverside, which offer virtual instruments, sample libraries, and podcast recording tools.
The bundles start at $14.99 a month (or $155.88 when billed annually) for the Beginner package, and go all the way up to $468 per-year for the Podcaster Complete plan. In total, there are seven different tiers, five focused on music production and two for podcasters, which is a bit overwhelming.
Both Podcaster and Podcaster Complete include Riverside Pro, which covers recording, editing, and hosting. The Complete bundle is only available as an annual plan and doesn’t add any services, but comes with a Yamaha AG01 USB condenser mic to get you started.
The Beginner and Producer subscriptions include Landr Studio Essentials or Standard, which comes with over 1,000 sample credits, AI-powered mastering services, music distribution, plus several plugins. Landr makes some of the instruments and effects, but the bulk of them come from other companies, including big names like Arturia, Eventide, Baby Audio, Puremagnetik, and Cableguys.
The Producer Pass also comes with Output Arcade, a playable sampler, while Producer Plus adds a bunch of other Output plugins and services to the bundle, including Co-Producer, which uses AI to identify samples that might work with your track. The only thing missing from the bundle is a DAW.
In addition to the core services, the Creator Pass will include discounts and special offers on apps and services from other partners like DistroKid, Adobe, and SoundCloud. While having all of these tools under one subscription is convenient, the value proposition isn’t always clear.
The Beginner Pass, for example, includes Output Creator and Landr Studio Essentials. If you pay for a full year, it works out to $155.88. Purchasing those two services separately would run you $198 — a solid discount. Producer Plus, on the other hand, costs $299.88 per-year for Output One, Landr Studio Standard, and credits towards promotion and feedback on Groover. Output and Landr would cost you roughly $264, so you need to really use those Groover credits to make the pass worthwhile.
Yamaha says it plans to offer add-on services as well, including Audioshake stem separation and the company’s own Vocaloid software, which powers the virtual pop star Hatsune Miku.