Any musical keyboard owners / experts out there ?

Catanonia

Catanonia

Catanonia

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15 Mar 2012
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Santas Grotto
My wife wants an electronic keyboard to learn to play music on.

I am completely clueless on anything musical and really could do with some help in sorting out the good with the bad. Reviews are great on google if you know what all the terms mean :)

I have a budget of £300 and want the best keyboard, packed with features and preferably a stand that would suit a complete novice as she has never played before. Mains supply (battery optional as long as has mains)

Can anyone guide me to some makes and models and or reviews please so I can surprise her with it on Christmas please (and the keyboard :))?

Thanks

Cat
 
If she wants to play music, then I would go digits piano, so hammer action, 88 keys.

You need to ask her which one she wants, I have a Yamaha p-75, think it's up to p-90 now. There is no gadgets on it, quite barebones but that's the point. It's a digital piano, not a keyboard.
 
Raymond Lin said:
If she wants to play music, then I would go digits piano, so hammer action, 88 keys.

You need to ask her which one she wants, I have a Yamaha p-75, think it's up to p-90 now. There is no gadgets on it, quite barebones but that's the point. It's a digital piano, not a keyboard.
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Thanks for the heads up, I will ask her tonight.
 
Would you actually want those features though, would you use them after the novelty wears off?

What is she wanting to learn? If she wants to learn to play classics or piano music you're probably better getting a piano (some come with features but don't know what the market's like in your budget) but the main difference for a novice will be weighted keys which if you want to learn piano rather than just messing about on it/want to specifically play keyboard they're much better than plastic keyboard ones
 
frying_pan_cat said:
Would you actually want those features though, would you use them after the novelty wears off?

What is she wanting to learn? If she wants to learn to play classics or piano music you're probably better getting a piano (some come with features but don't know what the market's like in your budget) but the main difference for a novice will be weighted keys which if you want to learn piano rather than just messing about on it/want to specifically play keyboard they're much better than plastic keyboard ones
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Thanks for the advice, I will ask tonight.

When she originally brought it up during a conversation, I said I had a couple of spares in the cupboard that I didn't need anymore, take your pick :D

Not a musical bone in my body :)
 
Ok asked her some questions.

She is not after an electronic piano, rather an all bells and whistles keyboard.

She also mentioned that she was told touch tone keys were best for learning ??? No idea ?
 
Raymond Lin said:
If she wants to play music, then I would go digits piano, so hammer action, 88 keys.

You need to ask her which one she wants, I have a Yamaha p-75, think it's up to p-90 now. There is no gadgets on it, quite barebones but that's the point. It's a digital piano, not a keyboard.
Click to expand...
I've been considering getting my self a digital piano (headphones will be a must) - does that Yamaha range have good feedback on the keys? (feels like a real piano) - as I used to play a real piano a fair bit when I was younger (but can't stand keyboards).

Not interesting in having the sounds of a giraffe mating, or a 747 crashing into a mountain on the list - just a nice piano with a clear crisp sound, the pedals & the touch response keys (as many octaves as possible!).

(sorry for thread hijack!) :D
 
I'd go for the Dawsons one becuase she will be very impressed with it.
It will have a decent piano sound on it anyway and if she gets good you can always buy something more suited later.
My 13 year old nephew has just got to his grade 8 on a Yamaha Piagerro and it is a superb bit of kit for the price - http://www.soundsliveshop.com/p/Yam...&cagpspn=pla&gclid=CN_BnO6W9LoCFafMtAodNwMAog
I even used it in a Whitesnake tribute band earlier this year and it made the piano, strings and hammond sounds I needed.
 
Digital pianos - I'd say go for a Roland RD series as the hammer action is pretty close the real thing and being a 'stage piano' it can take a bit of a beating.

Keyboards - Anything from Yamaha is probably your best bet, although Korg do a few that are pretty decent but tend to be costly.

However note that there's a huge difference between playing/learning the keyboard and the piano - keyboard, you rely on accompaniments and it's generally the easier option; piano, harder but you gain a far better understanding of music theory which is transferable to other instruments (plus it's easier to swap from piano to keyboard than going keyboard to piano).

Personally i'd be trying to persuade her to opt for a piano and there's plenty of good learning piano books and tons of great tutorials and 'How to play....'s on Youtube. And if she really enjoys it, get her lessons.
 
koolpc said:
So, good as a first time learner device?

Any advice on where to start learning, books etc? Ta
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With so much on offer these days thats a hard question to answer.
There are keyboards that will teach you to play with keys that light up for instance.
The linked keyboard does have teaching aids in the LCD display.
There is an argument for getting weighted keys or a real piano and having proper lessons which will teach you all the proper way and strength in your hands BUT this could also put you off because it's similar to learning guitar on a battered old acoustic with a bad action.
Also realise that I've been gigging for 43 years and I can't play a real piano for more than 2 minutes because I've always played on synths with touch sensitive keys.

The linked keyboard will feel nice under your fingers and make a nice sound and who knows 1 or 2 of you may want to go further.
I can't really help with lessons and where to start but You Tube is good and real lessons will cost the earth.
 
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