Newsletter : A Sample of Yamaha Motor Sound Design with the TRICERA proto --Crafting Sound to Create an Exciting and Immersive Driving Experience--

■A New Level of Driver-Machine Unity via Steering and Sound


The theme for the Yamaha Motor booth at the Japan Mobility Show 2025 is "Feel. Move." and a total of 16 models-including six world premieres-will be on display. Welcoming visitors at the center of the booth is the TRICERA proto, an open-top three-wheeled electric autocycle. As a working prototype proposing a new kind of driving pleasure with its three-wheeled steering system, the TRICERA has been grabbing headlines before the show even gets underway.


　What is drawing attention is the new cornering sensations enabled by its front and rear wheel steering setup, but that's not all. One element the development team dedicated much time and effort to was the model's sound. To create an interior space that excites the driver and immerses them in the joy of controlling the vehicle, the TRICERA features Yamaha Motor's exclusive αlive AD sound control device. Beyond tuning the sounds when driving it, the model's sound development team-TANAKA, Sumito and HASHIMOTO, Hikaru-explored the value the TRICERA should deliver. They meticulously refined even the functional sounds, from the startup sequence to the turn signals. Tanaka handled the driving sounds, while Hashimoto was in charge of the startup sound and other functional sounds.

■Pioneering a New Frontier for Mobility Melded with Sound


Both Tanaka and Hashimoto are sound specialists, but their personalities and approaches differ greatly; the former specializes in car sounds, while the latter's background is in motorcycle sounds. "Sound" with mobility products was once synonymous with sounds that the vehicle emitted, like the exhaust. But today, both engineers agree that, "With the Yamaha brand being so closely associated with music and sound, we felt there was great promise in taking a dedicated dive into the realm of sound melded with mobility."
　Tanaka, who developed the driving sounds for the TRICERA, has created thousands of different sound effects to date. Looking back on creating the driving sounds for the TRICERA: "After thoroughly breaking down and interpreting the model's concept in my own way, I selected base sound sources I felt worked and went about refining them." When hearing the actual sound, one can imagine how it shifts the driver's mindset during full acceleration or when cruising.
　Hashimoto, on the other hand, designed the UX/UI sounds, like the startup sound and other functional sounds. From turning the power key on or off to warnings and error sounds, "My job is to think about why it should be this or that sound and to then actually create it." Head to Yamaha Motor's official microsite for the Japan Mobility Show 2025 to get a glimpse of the TRICERA proto's stimulating cornering performance that stirs the senses and the sounds that amplify that experience.







The Japan Mobility Show 2025 will be open to the general public starting on October 31. Like the last show, we will be eagerly waiting for show visitors at the Yamaha booth, which also has once again been designed for superior sound with a 3D acoustic system and more thanks to the cooperation of Yamaha Corporation. The TRICERA proto we featured in this issue will be sitting in the center of the booth, so we hope you will take the opportunity to see the real thing up close and let its sound inspire your imagination of what it's like to drive.

MATSUO, Kaoru