Electronic Pianos - recommendations, please

roymond · Post by **roymond** » Fri Jun 02, 2006 1:33 pm

So I have an excuse to buy a piano...or so I think. I don't have space or money for a real one, and the neighbors wouldn't like it. So I'm looking at the Yamaha electrics on a stand such as the YDP-213.

I desire a good weighted keyboard, and a general sense of "piano"ness for myself and my kids to learn on.

Anyone have this kind of instrument?

fluffy · Post by **fluffy** » Fri Jun 02, 2006 3:30 pm

I love my Casio Privia.

Post by **Spud** » Fri Jun 02, 2006 3:39 pm

Crash (Amy) plays a <a href="http://www.masonhamlin.com/pianos/detai ... 500">Mason & Hamlin Model A</a> at home, but wanted something to practice on at night. After trying as many as possible, she settled on the <a href="http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0002D ... 801">Casio PS-20</a>, which is similar to fluffy's Privia, perhaps a generation earlier.

The deciding factor was the feel.

roymond · Post by **roymond** » Fri Jun 02, 2006 4:13 pm

Awesome. Thanks guys

jute gyte · Post by **jute gyte** » Fri Jun 02, 2006 4:30 pm

I have a Yamaha Clavinova CLP-820 and I like it.

fluffy · Post by **fluffy** » Fri Jun 02, 2006 8:04 pm

Yes, the Privia and PS series both have essentially the same action (which is why I went with the Privia). They've varied a bit over time so the PS series, older Privias (like mine), and newer Privias do feel a little bit different, but it's subtle and they all still feel like pianos as they're all a graded hammer action and so on.

The primary difference between the PS and the Privia is that the PS is intended as a digital piano while the Privia is intended as a more general-purpose synthesizer. Also IMO the Privia's patches sound a lot better.

Sober · Post by **Sober** » Sat Jun 03, 2006 2:49 am

If you really really want the stand built in so it sort of looks like furniture, the Yamaha will probably be your best bet.

If you want a keyboard with good action that's a good deal, get the Casio PX 510 or above. Don't get any of the x00 models, as they have horrible action. Casio actually listened to consumer feedback and overhauled the weighting system, so any of the x10 keyboards has a reasonable action.

The 310 is the super basic model, kinda lame. For an extra $100, the 510 kicks ass. Full midi roll of sounds, effects, dinky sequencer, all that.

You're buying for kids. Kids don't think a great piano sound is cool or fun. It's lame. Kids think whooshing sounds are cool. If you get them a keyboard with 8 voices that are all lame stock crap, they'll never play it. Get them a keyboard with 130 cool-ass voices, and they'll play every new song they learn 130 times.

At my dad's house, there is a grand piano, and a Casio PX510 that I got them for Christmas. Guess which one is covered in dust. Get it!

fluffy · Post by **fluffy** » Sat Jun 03, 2006 2:56 am

I'm fine with the action on my PX-300. Though yeah the x10s do feel somewhat better.

The PX-300/310 have all of the GMIDI patches. I recall the 500/510 as having more, and having a nicer UI for finding them. Also doesn't the 510 come with a stand like the 500 did?

Mostess · Post by **Mostess** » Thu Jun 08, 2006 8:39 pm

We got a Yamaha P-60 for Xmas and have been enjoying it. Though our keyboarding skills are very limited. If you like the sound of our "Too Far Away", that's the P-60.

Sober · Post by **Sober** » Fri Jun 09, 2006 2:52 am

Stands are available for most of the P-series keyboards. Built-in stands are silly to me, though. That turns your gear into furniture (same reason I'd probably never buy a real piano).

The action difference between the x00 and the x10 series is absurdly drastic to me. That doesn't automatically make it bad, I'm just saying. They modeled their new action after the Yamaha P60, which by the way is a killer fuckin board, as far as feel goes. But, the casio keys are still hollow plastic, so it can only get so good.

Feel is all opinion, of course. Some people must have a genuine piano feel, some people love the heavy rhodes feel, where I prefer the mechanical hammond feel.

At any rate, for a cheap entry-level keyboard, the Casio px310, px510, or the Yamaha p70 (p60, if you can find one, as it's been discontinued) are your best bets. For kids though, the px510 is absolutely what you should get. They will get bored to death on the 310 or the yamaha.

FYI: do not purchase Kawai. Just sayin.

roymond · Post by **roymond** » Fri Jun 09, 2006 1:35 pm

Sober - You don't say which is which, between the x00 and x10. I assume the x10 is preferred (the new action that they drastically improved). What I don't want is a Rhodes feel. Personally, that feels like crap. I like pianos. I hate synth keys. I understand the Casio keys are hollow plastic, so the actual weight of the keys is light, but the response is what they've designed it for...? I want a stand. It needs a place in our house. I don't want the kids moving it. Maybe I'm insane. Well, OK. Maybe. I also want avcover for it so they don't fuck it up, but it looks like I'll have to make one.

Anyway, it's insanely difficult for me these days to get to a store that has models available to play with. Between NYC instrument shops sucking, not being a part of the car culture, and having very very little free time...I haven't seen or played any of these, yet. That is what's necessary, obviously.

Also, Casio does a brilliantly poor job of describing their instruments online, and drawing comparisons between them.

fluffy · Post by **fluffy** » Fri Jun 09, 2006 2:02 pm

The Union Square Guitar Center usually has an okay assortment of Privias, or at least it did a year and a half ago. It's where I bought my PX-300.

HeuristicsInc · Post by **HeuristicsInc** » Fri Jun 09, 2006 2:46 pm

roymond wrote:It needs a place in our house. I don't want the kids moving it.

Heh, if you don't want the kids moving it, get an ancient Steinway upright like I did. Heck, I can't even move it!

Kidding, I know you said you can't.
-bill

roymond · Post by **roymond** » Fri Jun 09, 2006 3:39 pm

HeuristicsInc wrote:
roymond wrote:It needs a place in our house. I don't want the kids moving it.
Heh, if you don't want the kids moving it, get an ancient Steinway upright like I did. Heck, I can't even move it!
Kidding, I know you said you can't.
-bill

Ha! I used to have a Knabe upright grand. The problem ws I did move it, like 6 times. I don't miss those days. It lives on in the Xmas recordings, though.

Thanks, Fluffy. I was hoping to get to Guitar Center today, but it didn't happen. Maybe next week.