Newbie - getting a digital piano

[estrangable]

Hi everyone,

my first post....i'm a working adult who is starting to learn to play the piano and i have decided to get a digital piano. Budget is between 1.5k to 2.5k.

I have been reading the messages in the forum and apparently casio previa series have not been receving positve reviews from the forumers here. So with my above budget, which brand and model would be a better investment?

Most of the forums recommends highly of kawai ES4....may i know how much it costs and where can i get it?

How abt other types such as yamaha P140? Luther is selling at 1800 plus, which seems rather affordable.

Once again, thanks!

 

[Cheez]

Another option - since you are learning the piano, have you considered getting a real piano? It all depends on the goal you want to achieve in learning and the genre you will be playing.

Anyway, for the digital piano categories, Kawai and Yamaha are the closest you can get to the real thing. Although I've not tried the ES4, the generation of their progressive hammer action should be the best they can develop. Unfortunately, they didn't make it real wooden keys like the MP4 and MP8 stage pianos. If so, I would get it without any hesitation. That's the "gold standard for Kawai.

Any of the Yamaha P series should do, although I find the lower end P series tend to have a lighter touch - too light for me. The "gold standard" for Yamaha digital/stage piano series (ie not including the clavinovas) will be the CP300. That is the closest you can get to the real thing. Compare all the other digital piano to this one.

You may also want to take a look at Roland. Their digital piano series are the FP series. Unfortanately, Swee Lee (the distribultor) don't usually bring them in and you can't try before buying them. They have much better piano sounds than Yamaha but the touch is slightly worse off.

Lastly, there's Korg SP series, which I would steer clear. Comparing them to the rest of the competitors and you'll see why - in terms of touch and sound. But no harm trying them - in City Music.

One more thing - if portability is not an issue, you may want to consider the non-portable digital piano - Clavinova and Roland KR series (the Roland being the best I've ever tried). Of course, they will cost you significantly more. And do consider the real deal - a real acoustic piano.

 

[estrangable]

Thank you Cheez for your reply.

Unfortunately a acoustic piano is too expensive and coming back from home at 10 plus and practising to wee hours will be intolerable to my neighbours....thus digital piano is my option.

Any kind souls here can tell me how much is a Kawai ES4?

Thanks

 

[Cheez]

A quick google search shows that it is around the range of 1000 sterling pounds.

There is another option. You may want to consider stage pianos. Semantics aside, they are designed for live performances, have more functionality than pure digital pianos, but usually have no build-in speakers.

If you are happy to buy a pair of external speakers, you can widen your choices. Immediately, Roland RD700SX comes to mind. Great touch, the best piano sound you can find, and highly ergonomic (very well thought of and designed for the performing keyboardists - buttons and faders are where they should be and calling up patches is easy and fast). You may have to pay a little more for the speakers. The other is the Yamaha CP300. This one has build in excellent speakers that reverberates in the body. These 2 models are a beauty to play - and they will keep you addicted for hours of enjoyment.

 

[pf]

keyboard for newbie

Hi, I just started learning pop piano. Having the same problem as you...always start practicing ard 10pm at nite.

Just bought a CVP301....lower end Yamaha Clavinova. It's great. Only cost slight above your budget below S$3.5. But I think the life of it will beat other digital pianos of lower budget coz the sound is better, the keys are wonderful and its got all the bells and whistles of a keyboard.

I tried the Clavinova and other digital pianos at my music school but found the touch of a Clavinova harder but more like the real piano.

It's fantastic and having loads of fun with it! Especially when I can feel the vibrations beneath my fingers....ahhhh....beautiful!

 

[Cheez]

Most of the Clavinovas uses the exact same generation of graded hammer keys as the higher end digital pianos (CP300 etc). If you feel a difference in touch, it's not real. The main difference you'll feel is the reverberation.

However, Yamaha piano sounds are one of the worst compared to the others. I've tried them all, and they still can't get over the higher-end tingling sound. That's because the use the same AWM and AWM2 which need an entire overhaul. That is slightly overcome by their good speakers system. That's why a Clavinova will sound better than a portable digital/stage piano even though they use the same sound engine. But when you compare with Roland piano, you can immediately tell how far Yamaha is.

Still, Yamaha has the best touch compared to all the other competitors. But, when you move into the upright digital piano categories, Roland starts to get more impressive with their escapement feature. It feels more real than anything I've ever played.

As for the life of the instrument, it all depends on how well you take care. People with Clavinovas had to change their keys due to wear and tear. This is part of the life of an instrument. My Roland midi controller (very portable) is 10 years old and still works like new.

The decision to get a portable digital piano vs a non-portable digital piano depends on how one will use it. If it's not going to move anywhere but just stay in the living room (and if you want to spend slightly more money), then upright is the way to go.

 

[pf]

wow Cheez....thanx for the analysis!

 

[dtanhs]

Gem Rp910

Maybe guys you all can try GEM RP910..hp 97826087 david

 

[Cheez]

David, do you deal with GEM keyboards? Are you a retailer? Do you have a Promega 3 in your showroom to try out?