DKC-900 and ENSPIRE are Yamaha’s USB-based Disklavier systems. ENSPIRE CL only plays music; ST can also record MIDI and audio; PRO adds higher-resolution performance recording. A DKC-900 upgrade’s recording and high-resolution performance features depend on the eligible E3 or Mark IV piano on which it is installed.
At a Glance
- Generation
- ENSPIRE / DKC-900 generation
- Associated Models
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ENSPIRE CL/ST/PRO systemsDKC-900 upgrade for eligible E3 and Mark IV/Mark IV PRO systems
- Uses
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USB
- Recording
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SMF0 (ST/PRO)WAV (ST/PRO)SMF0 with XP data (PRO)DKC-900: host-dependent
- Plays
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SMF0SMF1WAVMP3
- PianoSoft Types
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SoloPlusAudioSmartKey (ST/PRO; DKC-900 host-dependent)
- Upgrade Options
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MIDI/app playbackBluetooth MIDIAnalog/audio accompanimentPianoStream Analog
- Bluetooth MIDI Apps
- Manuals
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Yamaha DKC-900 Owner's ManualYamaha Disklavier Model SpecificationsYamaha ENSPIRE ST/PRO Owner's ManualYamaha ENSPIRE CL Owner's ManualYamaha ENSPIRE Controller Manual ST/PROYamaha ENSPIRE Controller Manual CLYamaha ENSPIRE On-Demand Operation ManualYamaha Disklavier TV User Guide for ENSPIREYamaha ENSPIRE and MusicCast Setup Guide
Additional Details
The DKC-900 upgrade applies to eligible E3 and Mark IV / Mark IV PRO pianos.
It plays music from USB flash drives, including SMF0, SMF1, WAVE, and MP3 files.
ENSPIRE ST and PRO record 44.1-kHz/16-bit stereo WAV audio and can record MIDI and WAV simultaneously; ENSPIRE PRO additionally embeds XP performance data in its SMF0 recordings.
Things to Know
ENSPIRE CL is playback-only. ST, PRO, and DKC-900 do not have identical recording capabilities; check the model/host-specific labels above.
The DKC-900 upgrade is limited to eligible E3 and Mark IV/Mark IV PRO systems; it is not a Mark III-or-older upgrade path. Its recording and playback behavior follows the original host piano, including whether the piano has PRO/XP capability.
Can be controlled with the ENSPIRE Controller app, available for both Apple and Android devices.
Keep the controller firmware current. If an online update fails or the app cannot complete it, my ENSPIRE/DKC-900 firmware guide covers the offline USB procedure.
All USB sticks must be formatted FAT16 or FAT32. See my guide on properly formatting your USB stick for use with Disklaviers.
Keep the entire USB library below 1,000 songs for reliable operation. This overall practical ceiling has been reproduced in field use and confirmed in Yamaha support guidance, although it is not stated in the published specification; the manual separately documents a limit of 999 songs per album. Libraries at or above the practical ceiling can cause hangs, interface glitches, or playback failures.
Yamaha publishes support for USB flash drives up to and including 128 GB, although it does not guarantee every commercial drive. Smaller, simpler media may still be more reliable; capacities above 128 GB are outside the published specification.
Without a CD player, original Smart PianoSoft floppy/CD sets cannot be played in their original form. My Smart PianoSoft conversion guide explains how to create the matching .mid and .mp3 pairs used by current systems. PianoSoft Solo, Plus, and current PianoSoftAudio downloads can be played from USB, but old PianoSoft PlusAudio CDs cannot simply be copied to USB. Legacy .FIL E-SEQ files can be converted to MIDI with APS MIDI Prep Tool.
ENSPIRE can display USB folders in the order they were written to the device rather than alphabetically, so folder-copy order may affect browsing.
A normal 5-pin Bluetooth-MIDI adapter is not a uniform solution across the merged ENSPIRE range: Yamaha lists 5-pin MIDI on ST grand models, while ST uprights require a different interface path.
Before a DKC-900 installation, back up user recordings. Yamaha warns that recorded performances may be erased during installation, and copy-protected purchased content may not be transferable from the original Mark IV media.
