Outlook:

Yamaha PSR-E333 is a Digital Keyboard which is lightweight and can be moved easily and has a black colour body finish. This is a classy keyboard which has all the necessary features of that of an artist’s instrument.

Design and Features of the Keyboard:

The Yamaha PSR-E333 Portable Piano Keyboard (model no: PSR-E333) has a dimension of about 43 (W) x 107 (H) x 17 (D) cm and weighs about 4.9 kg which is a suitable instrument for the beginners. This keyboard player has a full-size touch-sensitive keyboard with Ultra Wide Stereo sound features and a built-in tuition system. The ultra wide sound system gives a stereo and a good sound effect even while using headphones. This instrument has a back – lit LCD screen which displays the settings that are chosen, has a keyboard and shows a notation guide.

About the Keys:

The Yamaha PSR-E333 features a 61 key touch sensitive keyboard which means based on the pressure given on the keys, the tones vary bringing the effect of an original piano. Hence on harder striking of the keys, the volume and tones differ. This is indeed a cool feature for those who are experienced playing the piano and who are yet learning. More advanced option is the Y.E.S” and “Keys to Success” Lesson Functions especially for the beginners to learn by themselves is an interactive and systematic learning system.

Voices and Quality of Sound:

This Yamaha PSR-E333 keyboard has 497 dynamic, high quality natural sounding instrument voices. It has a number of styles about 106 accompaniment styles, 5 Chinese sounds and 102 built – in songs. The wide range of voices also combines the preset digital effects. The whole music database can be reached by the touch of a key to play the selected songs. It also includes the easy recording feature in which one can record up to five of the original songs composed. These are saved into the onboard memory which is ideal for practicing and composing for the beginners.

The Portable Grand Button:

This Portable Grand Button is a special function to call up the Yamaha’s famous grand piano sound. Thus there is a dedicated key for the piano voice which is also highly responsive to the touch.

Power – Off Mode:

The Yamaha PSRE333 has a new and is an Eco-friendly mode with adjustable timer is the power – off mode. It comes with a function that automatically turns off the power when the keyboard is not being used for a long period of time in order to prevent using the power unnecessarily. This is an excellent feature to support the long battery life.

Storage and Connectivity:

The Yamaha PSR-E333 connects easily to computers with the built-in USB terminal (to host) and has an internal memory of about 1.7 M Byte.

Power/ Batteries Required:

This PSR-E333 portable keyboard is supplied with an adapter to work or it requires 6 ‘AA’ size, LR6 or equivalent batteries for its operation. The keyboard consumes a power of 10 W.

Warranty Details:

A three year warranty is provided by the manufacturer for this portable keyboard. Any faults or defects in the piano within this time period will be repaired or replaced by the manufacturer.

In Short:

The Yamaha PSR-E333 is a portable keyboard that performs just like a piano except lacks its size and weight. This is a perfect instrument for beginners or to practice by oneself though may not be the best one for the professional players. The instrument is also built well and has a good sound quality. For those who are serious to learn some music in keyboards can go ahead as it is right one and worth the money spent on it.

Yamaha PSR-E333 Portable Keyboard – Technical Specification Table

Overview

The CTK-4000 Electronic Piano Keyboard is of touch sensitive type with a total number of 61 keys. The highlight features are the 570 tones, digital effects and 180 rhythms. In addition to this, Casio’s Step-up-Lesson system a highly appreciated one for its convenience is integrated along with music challenge feature, thus making the keyboard an excellent companion for budding keyboardist. The user can connect MP3 player and is also equipped with MIDI capabilities.

Design

The CTK-4000 keyboard gains a classy and yet a contemporary look by fusing the technology at the right place. The core attraction is the keys layout, which has been arranged neatly. The white and grey body colour composition accentuates the appearance further. The buttons and control knobs are scattered in the area right above the keyboard layout. Since the breadth of the keyboard is quite broader, the set-up does not look cluttered. The built in speakers are elegantly placed at the either corners of the keyboard.

The power switch turns off automatically after six minutes of inactivity when employed using the batteries. The volume adjustment knob is directly placed below the power switch. Four controls are placed directly vertical and adjacent to the power switch. The four acts as a direct access to the specific function such as the metronome, scale editor, rhythm editor and recorder. The music controller switches such as the forward, rewind, start and stop are placed in a row. The tempo button to control the instrument speed is aptly positioned.

The Casio CTK-4000 Piano Style keyboard comprises of a number button layout (from 0 to 9) to change the parameters appearing on the display. Though it appears distinct, it is rather too tricky to operate the same. First and foremost, negative values cannot be fed, instead the decrease and the increase buttons must be used. The number buttons can be used to perform a wide range of operations. However, the ease of use can only gradually increase on continuous usage. At the same time, the idea of adding such intricate details for a lower budget keyboard is appreciable.

The display shines brightly with the blue back ground. The screen size is reasonably visible and denotes the menu that is currently chosen. To put it in a nutshell, the design parameters of Casio CTK 4000 is made somewhat unique. Almost all the features of the keyboard are laid out in the form of direct one stop button.  In most of the cases, such aspects are folded within the main menu and the user must navigate the same. Instead this approach is also user intended. It is because the user can get the maximum mileage of exploring the features. Considering the expertise level of the user, such a design permits them to explore the device in a wider context, thereby improving their playing skills to a greater extent.

Features

Keyboard Controls
The keyboard offers a great number of tones including a large variety of musical instruments such as the violin, flute and many more. Notable highlight is the layering of two tones so they reverberate simultaneously when the keys are hit. Furthermore, the keyboard can be split in to two tones by affirming each tone on the left and the right. It gives an astounding effect of two instruments being played. The pitch of the song can be alerted at ease suiting to that of the singer in three ways, viz transpose, fine –tuning and the octave shift. The fine tuning function tries to match the tune with that of the other musical instruments and the singing artist. The octave shift increments or lowers the overall pitch by + or – two octave units. However, the cut above the rest is that the pitch can be altered even when the keyboard split is active. It means either sides of the keyboard pitch can be altered to the octave shift.

Sound Sampling
The Casio CTK 4000 61-note Full Size Keyboard permits the user to sample up to five sounds that can be stored in the memory. It can be picked and played from the melody part of the keyboard. There are a total number of 570 sounds and hence the piece which the user would sample is stored from 571 to 575. Sadly though the sampling time is ten seconds and if the memory is occupied with other data, it cannot even complete the ten seconds time limit. This is too short duration to hear the glimpse of the soundtrack tried. But admit the fact that Casio has not cut corners in integrating such features, because it is highly useful for amateurs. It is even possible to add effects to the sample sound. Furthermore, the sounds sampled can be protected against the accidental deletion operation.

Built-in Songs
The demo songs can be directly accessed using the song bank button. Besides the regular functions such as the forward, rewind, start and stop, some active elements are also added. The user can select a particular length of the song which is difficult to be trained and can listen to it. But the start and the end measure has to be specified. Alternatively, the left hand or the right hand part of the song can be turned off and the user can play with the existing part. Customisation is the chief tool employed by Casio to utilise the keyboard to its fullest extent.

Step-up Lesson
As the name implies, the step-up lesson enables to break the songs in to shorter phrases and practice the phrases and finally blend it together. All the songs are pre-split in to the right, left and both the hand phrases. Simultaneously during the playing session, the user is notified with various messages such as the wait, next phrase, from top and complete. Once the song is selected, the voice fingering guide and the display shows the correct keys to be hit, even if the wrong keys are entered, the keyboard waits till the right key is entered. The keyboard allows the user to continue the practice at their preferred pace. At any point of time, it is possible to cut the length of the phrase, stop and turn off the voice fingering guide. A score card based performance evaluation can be activated, if the user is keen to develop the skill seriously.

Music Challenge
It is something extra-ordinary feature to be added to the portable and affordable keyboard brand. The music challenge measures the user’s reaction speed in responding to the on-screen indicators and the fingering guide instruction. The efficiency is measured based on the time taken to switch from one note to the other within a particular song. The maximum limit is 0.1 second and higher score means, the time taken must be less than 0.1 second. The music challenge ends on completing 20 notes. At the end of each session, the playing time is displayed followed by the average score.

Registration Memory
The registration memory is something like that of storing the keyboard set-ups that are used frequently. The facility lies in the ability to collect the stored one instantly. It is possible to register up to 32 set-ups. Registration bank button allocated separately on the keyboard can be accessed easily. Prior to saving it to the registration bank, the details such as the rhythm, tone, tempo, transpose and many more have to be configured first. The only draw back noted here is the maintenance of the registration memory. Once the power is exhausted, the data is no longer stored in the memory. Hence, it is advisable to use the batteries and the external power adaptor simultaneously during critical conditions.

Recording Features in Casio CTK-4000
The user can record the song being played directly on the keyboard. The songs can be divided in to parts and each part can be recorded to a track. The recorded tracks can be mixed up to give a song. The flexibility in recording the built-in songs even while playing along is good. Up to six songs can be recorded and saved in the computer. Similar to that of registration memory, the recorded ones can delete automatically if the keyboard is not connected to power source or drained off batteries.

Performance

The sound quality is something good in CTK-4000 for a compact keyboard. The in-built songs are a good collection. The keyboard can actively split in two layers and produce different sound effects. The touch sensitive keys are soft and keep the music going for long hours without any major strain.

Verdict

Casio CTK-4000 surely gives a surprise for the beginners and also for master players. It is because for a compact variety it has features that are added to improve the playing skills to a greater extent. With the step-up lesson and the music challenge feature, the user can extremely capitalise the opportunity to learn the keyboard in a professional manner as tutored by a teacher.

Casio CTK-4000 Digital Keyboard – Technical Specification Table

Design

The Korg SP-170 piano purely belongs to the ‘plain and simple’ design notion. There is neither any major display screen nor any control buttons on the front panel. Even though it might be overlooked by many, it could be considered as a design perfected by Korg to take ahead the wired look of digital pianos to a classical appeal. Whatever be the marketing strategy applied, the piano rocks a marvelous finish with excellent aesthetic appeal. It comes in two colours, viz the traditional black and the delightful white, and a limited numbers of dazzling red is also available. The set as such is compact and robust, but in a way it gives a grandiose appearance. It consists of two in-built speakers housed in bass reflex compartment that magnifies the speaker efficiency and sound output.

The rear part of the digital piano houses the major action. The power switch, two headphone jacks, volume knob are placed at the rear side and the front panel is stripped off everything besides the power LED. The connection is simple and since Korg has provided additional cord hook facility, the user can be sure that the power cord will not come off recurrently. At the same time, the cord limits easy unhooking process since it is strung around the cord hook. There is an also an option available to connect the external components. Apart from the afore-said connection and set-up there is not at all any complications whatsoever with respect to the buttons and controls. Simplicity should be the keyword that is sprinkled throughout the product structure.

The Korg SP-170 consists of a dedicated groove for inserting the music stand. The music stand is accessorised with the product. Once the music stand is inserted, the piano acquires almost a traditional acoustic piano look sans the fact that it is completely portable.

Features

Natural Weighted Hammer Action (NH)

As stated earlier, Korg has admonished the usage of external buttons and controls to create music. On the other hand it completely relies on the integrated Natural weighted hammer action to spin out low register to higher notes. The idea is simple and the keyboard is logically divided into sections. The confirmation sound, key touch, transpose, MIDI capabilities are articulated into three regions. The actual trick lies in getting accustomed to the hit. The heavier touch gradually becomes lighter in the higher register and thus can get in to the tune of any playing style.

Pitch Control Function

The pitch control function enables the user to adjust the pitch while playing along with the other instruments. Again this could be done in half step using the E5 and the F5 keys. The prime keys involved in the action are A#7, B7 and C8 respectively. The reset action can also be meticulously reversed. The pitch control function at normal circumstances could be avoided because Korg Sp-170 consists of multiple velocity layers to resonate the sound dynamics.

Key Control Touch Function

Korg SP-170 88-note Digital Piano is designed to accommodate the playing strength variation to that of the sound output. But the user needs to activate the function by hitting the white keys allocated between D2 to F2. As stated earlier, three different touch can be stimulated using this function, viz, light, heavy and standard. The light touch is activated at the right end corner of the keyboard and a soft stroke is sufficient to produce the sound. When the function is not enabled the keyboard remains in the standard touch mode.

Transpose Function

Transpose key is again trickily embedded within the keys. The user can shift the keys to a range of eleven semitones. It is interesting that Korg has managed so many details in the keyboard. Take for an example, F3 key gives + 5 semitones and the key can sound the F3 pitch. On the other hand, pressing the F32 key gives raise to -6 semitones and gives the F#2 pitch. Likewise, whatever be the name of the key pressed the same becomes the transposed key. Hence, if we transpose upward, the notes present in the upper score produces the pitch in the lower score.

Reverb and Chorus Effects

The reverb effect produces a depth to the sound and the chorus effect adds width to it. The reverb and the chorus effect operations are made simple. The prominent keys involved are#7, B7 and the C8 keys and along with these, by hitting either the A5 or B5 produces reverb or chorus effect respectively. It is appreciable that many a times; the user need not fiddle around the piano to set the effects, because the keyboard itself contains everything, straight from the pitch adjustment to chorus effect. Besides, it delivers harpsichord, grand piano, organ and several others with a total package of ten preset sounds.

MIDI capabilities

Korg SP-170 Digital Piano Keyboard supports MIDI functionalities. At instances, when the SP-170 is employed as controller in the MIDI area, there must be a good compatibility between the external MIDI devices. It is possible only to alter the MIDI channel by pressing either of the keys in the C4 to the D#5 range, which is considered as the default MIDI control. SP-170 also effectively transmits MIDI program change number. Most importantly, for every preset sound, there is program and sound change messages can be sent forth.

Performance

Considering the performance part, Korg SP-170 MIDI Keyboard gets a warm welcome particularly amongst the players who are keen to apply pressure and play. The feel of the keys and the feedback is remarkable. Compared to the Yamaha P-85, the SP-170 tries to imitate an artificial grand piano effect. The sound effects created such as the harpsichord contains an original touch to it. Whatsoever be the output of the piano, it is the sound that is heard all that matters. Well in Korg SP-170, the in-built speaker does not establish a sync partnership to give out the expected output. The sound effect manifested from the speakers could have been a bit more prominent. However, if maintained at a low volume the speaker effect is felt. Particularly practise sessions when played softly gives the required output.

Verdict

Korg deserves an all round applause for designing such a basic digital keyboard that completely depends on the key for all sorts of operations. At the same time, such a complete new concept takes its time to roll the intended effect. The only concern is that the user must grow with the instrument, because as stated earlier it consists of several keys in combination to achieve the desired property. Hence, the user should get in to practice to only rely on the keyboard function and nothing else. On the contrary, the same point can be perceived as Korg’s intention to just keep the players always fingered to the keys rather than muddling around the display and buttons, so it would create an atmosphere of playing an acoustic keyboard. All in all, it is a good one and can be surely used by beginners, provided they are really serious to learn the keys in a proper fashion.

Korg SP-170 Digital Piano Keyboard – Technical Specification Table

Design:

Yamaha PSR-E323 body design is rectangular in shape with a subtle silver coating. Compared to the Yamaha PSR 233 model, the size is intact and the weight is reduced from 4.9 Kg (10lbs., 13 oz) to 4.5 Kg (9lbs., 11oz.), by truly making it portable and compact keyboard. The buttons are white and black and made up of tactile rubber. In previous cases, many of the rounded buttons were poorly designed; the same is kept at a minimum in the PSR-E323 model. This PSR-E323 digital piano keyboard is the first to line up by introducing touch sensitive keyboard, comprising of 61 touch sensitive keys. The instrument is accompanied with a backlit LCD screen with good visibility from a reasonable distance. The rear part consists of pedal jacks and headphone jacks. Yamaha could do some improvement in the type of jack, as it still uses DIN type of jacks, whereas Casio uses the latest USB. The buttons and controls are slightly bigger and bolder accompanied by appropriate labeling, which was missing in the E313 model. Pitch of the note in the octave can be transferred either upward or downward in the main, dual and split modes. Playing in difficult key is facilitated by the transpose function. Every operation is notified on the display screen. The chord display notifies the name of the currently played chord, whereas the keyboard display indicates the note, melody and the chord notes.

Features:

Touch sensitive keyboard:

The highlight feature in PSR-E323 is the improvement in the keyboard type. From the regular keyboard, Yamaha has upgraded to the 61 regular-sized touch sensitive keys and 32-note polyphony. The touch response approximately creates an acoustic piano effect. In Acoustic keyboard, the sound difference is created by the variation in impact while striking the key. The higher the pressure applied, a louder noise is produced and vice versa. The touch sensitive keyboard tries to replicate the same functionality. It detects the pressure applied on each strike of the key. As a result the volume varies with the pressure, thereby creating the nearest acoustic effect. It is possible to change the tone or sound while playing.  The sound produced is highly appreciated by music teachers and beginners. Considering the practice range for beginners, this is an extremely prominent feature that is patched up.

Vocal performer:

Yamaha PSRE 323 comes with 482 dynamic instrument voices such as 108 panel voices, 361 XGlite voices, and 12 Drum Kits and Sound Effect Kit. The PSR-E323 also has 106 accompaniment styles and 102 built-in songs. It also comprises of 212 drum beat style with two variations. The two way stereo sound can be varied with 4 extra levels of chorus, DSP level and 9 types of acoustic values. The music data base covers 100 songs and the special two track recording feature can save up to five of user’s original songs, which is a good supplement for practice session. When compared to old Yamaha PSR 340 which originally contained 5 tracks, is shrinked to two tracks in this model. For eager composers, updating the keyboard with software permits to use more than two recording voice. Using the split mode selection, different voice for each hand is possible. The Sustain pedal jack at the rear is worthy for practicing and playing piano pieces. The most distinct and surprising aspect, is the sound quality integrated in such a beginner keyboard. The user manual can be understood easily without any complication.

Song Lessons:

The Yamaha PSR-E323 keyboard with Portable Grand Function is made highly interactive by infusing an educational suite in it. The user can monitor and improve performance and make the practice a very sensible one. Learning session can be interesting with the preset songs. In the “Listen and learn,” feature, the keyboard guides the user to listen and play. With the “timing” feature, the user can test their skills. “Waiting” feature is judging the chords, songs, melodies and timings. The Yamaha E323 has further items like, “Phrase Repeat,” and “Keys to Success.” It allows the player to opt a phrase in any one of the 102 preset songs already available with the keyboard, and can practice till it is easy for the user. It becomes all the more advantageous, as score is displayed on the LCD screen. The user can play any one of the preset songs “step by step”. It provides good approach, for music teachers to tutor the students effectively. The YES Yamaha Suite is advanced learning tool constructed in the instrument. It teaches to play and even master a song with simple lessons. The lesson can be learnt separately or using both the hands.

Other Features:

Yamaha has brought its unique Portable Grand Button feature in the PSRE 323 model too. The keyboard transforms to produce spectacular and rich sound. The access functionality is simple with just a touch of the grand function button.

MIDI:

The E323 possess MIDI capability. In simple words, it is possible to transfer and download style files and MIDI songs between the computer and keyboard. The files are stored in the internal memory. This MIDI functionality gives a realistic effect, because the sound is recorded in a two dimensional format, so as to avoid the cross over of reverb and sustain. The accessibility is made simple with just a press of button connecting to the PC. The songs can be edited, played and mailed if necessary.

XGlite:

The XGLite, an excellent key derived from Yamaha. It brings out sounds with a natural feel and has an extensive collection of almost 500 voices. Compatibility with third party software is appreciable. Sometimes, the voices in XGlite often felt as repetition of the standard voices. This could be avoided in the future models and can try recording innovative sounds.

Sound Effect:

Yamaha has tried the maximum to trigger out best sounds from almost all of their keyboards. This one is no exception. The sound quality is good and with the effect of the touch sensitive keyboard, the user gets a good feel and control to produce the desirable effect.

Speakers:

It is a good return on investment when the speaker quality is measured. Yet, at some instances, the volume output must be high so as to render a good listening, but the 2.5 watts per speaker is not efficient enough to pull the desired output. Connecting an amplifier through the amp/auxiliary socket solves the issue.

Distinct Effects:

The Yamaha PSR-E323 MIDI Keyboard consist of reverb effect. The Reverb effect mimics the sound in different environments such as a small room, concert hall or stadium. It fills the sound, by providing more “body” to it. Another distinct sound effect is the chorus effect that gives a richness and warmth to the voice. The user has good options of chorus type to be selected. Miscellaneous effects such as sound of barking dog, running water, and a creaking door add fun to the players especially if they are children.

Battery Life:

Yamaha E323 uses AA batteries and the battery life is almost 30 days and varies with usage. The keyboard also supports optional power adapter.

Warranty:

The Yamaha offers a limited warranty period of 1 year for PSR-E323 Portable Keyboard.

Verdict:

To paraphrase, the Yamaha PSRE 323 keyboard is excellent for beginners in the early teens and below that age. Especially, the highlight is the touch sensitive keyboard. Considering the age limit of the users, it is highly appreciated. The initial music learning experience must be a pleasant one and, the transition from using this basic keyboard to acoustic keyboard would be effortless for ambitious keyboardist. Yamaha focus on avoiding frustrations with the users, and hence has kept all the complications of an electronic instrument at bay. The concentration is fully tuned to deliver rich learning, listening and playing experience. All together, the features are evenly balanced and one might be surprised at the quality it performs at such a reasonable and affordable cost.

Check other Yamaha Piano Keyboard Reviews, Latest Digital Pianos in this website.

Yamaha PSR-E323 Digital Piano Keyboard – Technical Specification Table

Design:

Roland has paid very close attention to the design elements of the HP-Series, co-ordinating cabinet details with simulated wood grain or matching colours, and also adds the ability to cover the control panel with the fallboard for a more traditional look. All of its elements have been made as compact as possible. The Classic Position and 3 pedals with traditional design make playing easier and enhance its piano-like appearance. The front legs provide a luxurious look, which are classically shaped. A centralised control panel with dedicated buttons assures easy and intuitive operation, by connecting two headphones, two players can practice independently at the same time. The HP305 Digital Piano is available in three spectacular finishes of polished ebony, satin black, and rosewood.

SuperNATURAL Piano Sound Engine:

The Roland HP 305 features the new SuperNATURAL Piano sound engine, which we had mentioned earlier. This engine combines Roland’s state of the art V Piano technology and its 88 key stereo multi-sampling technology. The new sound engine was developed after intense research on the different characteristics of acoustic pianos. The goal of the sound engine is to reproduce rich tones and expression of a concert grand piano.  The HP 305 provides 128 polyphony, which are more than sufficient for the complex pieces. Roland has tested all 88 notes of a variety of world class pianos and applied its unique digital technology to reproduce the rich tone and expression of the world’s finest pianos.

Ivory Feel keys:

The Ivory Feel keys on this piano replicate the natural appearance, texture, and the moisture absorbing properties of real ivory and ebony keys. The keyboard offers same feel as grand piano, heavier touch in lower range, lighter touch in upper range and light resistance on pianissimo passages and stronger resistance on fortissimo.

Features:

The Roland HP-305 88 key Digital piano Keyboard is equipped with a metronome and three-track recorder function, and can playback a variety of songs so you have all you need to support your progress. Playback your favourite built in songs with accompaniment, commercially available music files, and music CDs to make your practice more enjoyable. The HP 305 has been loaded with a library of play-along songs from jazz to classical.  You can store songs in HP 305 in variety of formats, which include SMF music files, files stored on USB flash memory, and audio CDs. You can select the parts in SMF file to play back. You can play an orchestra part in the playback and play a piano part to create a powerful performance. The tempo of the playback song can also be changed, the Centre Cancel function can be used to minimise the melody part in Audio CD, and the possibilities are endless.

Twin Mode:

To help the piano teachers, the HP 305 digital keyboard includes Twin Piano Mode, which splits the keyboard and pedals into two separate parts covering the same octaves. This allows the teacher to play along with their student, which highly speeds up the process of learning.

Green:

Roland technology also enables this piano to feature environmentally friendly, low-power consumption without sacrificing output level.

Sound:

This breakthrough sound engine delivers seamless variations in tone, from pianissimo to fortissimo, decaying sounds which linger and fade naturally without any kind of looping. It also has an authentic sound transition from note to note across the digital piano keyboard. The natural touch of the Roland HP 305 digital piano keyboard comes from the use of hammer mechanisms that precisely reproduce the unique touch of an acoustic grand piano. It interacts with the SuperNATURAL Piano sound engine to mirror the subtleties while playing and hence, delivers finer rapid key strike expression.

Its special speaker system reproduces the sound generated by the Piano sound engine as a clear and spatial sound to allow players to give beautiful and smooth performances true only to the grand pianos. The piano tone is based on key range and touch with perfect smooth decay.  The tone change smoothly and naturally.

Warranty:

Roland offers its HP 305 Digital Piano Keyboard three years warranty.

Verdict:

The sound and touch of the Roland HP 305 Piano Keyboard is a result of persistent pursuit of characteristic of grand pianos. While the HP 305 is a mid market model, great attention has been paid to its sound quality, touch, and design. All the elements of HP 305 are made compact; the minimalistic and modern design of HP 305 makes it look like a true acoustic piano. Players can enjoy their performances to their hearts’ content on the PHA II Ivory Feel keyboard with escapement, which offers a natural texture and tactile feel. If at all there is anything such as a disadvantage with the Roland HP 305, it is its high end price tag. However, its amazing sound and performance justifies the bulky cost.

Roland HP-305 Upright Digital Piano – Technical Specification Table

In the following review, we will see about the Suzuki DP 1000 Digital Piano Keyboard that belongs to the above mentioned DP series. The piano features weighed key actions that are especially balanced to duplicate the expressive qualities of the traditional acoustic piano. It is fully touch sensitive and is equipped with sustain and damper pedals, and are educator approved for learning and performance use. The other highlight features include MIDI implementation, Integrated iPod Docking Station, Play Along Songs and Slow Close Fallboard.

Design and Construction:

The Suzuki DP 1000 88 key Digital Piano has a refined design that is contemporary and space saving that suites any kind of decor. The design is Smooth, Sleek and Sophisticated. It features a solid, slow close keyboard cover that can be used as a music rest when opened and a flat desktop like surface when closed. This digital piano is available in two beautiful finishes of black and rose wood. Being a home piano, it is essential that you do not trouble or disturb anyone while you practice; hence, Suzuki has offered optional stereo headphones so that you can practice in silence. A full complement of stereo audio in and out jacks make sure your piano is integrated with any or all of your electronic components.

Features:

The USB Advantage:

Just the availability of USB connection, adds a world of exciting features and extra functionality to the DP 1000 Rosewood Digital Piano Keyboard. This allows the instrument to be plugged in directly to your home computer or laptop. You will also be able to plug into your home stereo for your expanded listening pleasure or connect your MP3 player or CD Player and play along with your favourite tracks.

iPod docking station:

The DP-1000′s integrated iPod docking station can turn your piano into an entertainment centre for the whole family. This is just an extended advantage of the USB port. With this feature, you can experience concert hall quality sound.

Preset Tones:

The ease of use of the Suzuki DP 1000 is second to none, which requires no tuning; you can happily enjoy the fabulous sounds. You can teach yourself to play with the built-in music instruction and choose from 50 preset songs for instant playing with the included songbook or with the software bundle.  There are also options for you to create and playback your own compositions. The DP 1000 has an awesome combo of 128 voices, 100 rhythm styles and recording features that enable endless musical possibilities. New rhythm styles offer a wide variety of every type of music you can imagine. The Professional styles on offer make you a member of the world class band of your choice. Rock to Bach, World Beat to Jazz ensembles, Boogie Woogie to New Age, your musical spectrum is limitless.

The simple to advanced songs allow for separate practice with the left hand or right hand or play along with both hands. You also get the opportunity to engage the vocal grading feature for a true to form “piano teacher” response.

Rhythms:

Suzuki DP 1000’s 64 note polyphony makes sure that there are no dropped notes even with the most complex piano passages. Digital signal processing like chorus, reverb and EQ treble and bass allow you to sound sculpt your music to your personal style and taste. The layer and split piano functions with sound balance controls ensure gorgeous, rich full sounding instrumentation. The two track music recorder enables the beginner or performing musician to keep a note on daily progress.

MIDI implementation:

The DP 1000 also features complete MIDI implementation. This technology allows the user to connect the piano to a home computer for musical instruction or composition, or to modular voice expanders, to another keyboard or synthesizer or rhythm machine with a single cord. The DP piano becomes the controlling device of the modern home music lab when the MIDI interface is used. You can use the MIDI ports to transmit and receive data from other musical instruments or system accessories.

Sound and Action:

As we mentioned in the introduction, the Advanced Graded Hammer Action Keybed duplicates both the weight and the mechanical movement of the fine acoustic grand pianos. Its weighted hammer action design offers superb response and smooth feel that will satisfy the most demanding performer. Suzuki’s acclaimed sound imaging technology is used to create a stereo acoustic piano sound of remarkable depth, expression and realism. Instrument voices use 3D sound source sampling for incredible dynamic response.

The DP-1000 features quite a powerful speaker system that has been designed to maximise the expressive Suzuki acclaimed sound imaging technology. The High grade speakers and cabinetry deliver a truly dynamic sound that rich with presence and power.

In the box:

The package contents of the Suzuki DP 1000 includes the Digital Piano Keyboard itself, a matching bench, a play along song book, USB Cable, owner’s manual, quick start guide, EZ Assembly Guide and EZ Assembly Tools.

Warranty:

Suzuki offers its DP 1000 Digital Piano Keyboard one year limited warranty for parts and labour.

Verdict:

Overall, the Suzuki DP 1000 Digital Piano Keyboard is a stylish furniture piece, awesome digital piano and versatile entertainment centre. It is a forward thinking piano for today’s lifestyle. Since its performance is also on the high end, we are happy to give it a “Recommended”.

Suzuki DP 1000 Digital Piano – Technical Specification Table

Pros:

Excellent, playable action
Relatively light keyboard with quality weighted action
Well-chosen and -executed sample set
Good piano and strings sounds
Live performance controls that are easy to access
A few good electric pianos
Learning curve is relatively simpler
Sixty-four rhythm tracks with variable tempo
Sixty-four-voice polyphony
The split and layer features are flexible.

Cons:

Some sounds like bass and guitar are less convincing
USB functionality is not currently supported for the Macintosh
Limiting small LED display
You can’t program your own rhythm tracks or effects
Slightly clinched backing rhythms
Line lump power supply

Review:

If you are more of a performer than a programmer, Kurzweil just might have manufactured the stage piano you have been waiting for.Today we review the Kurzweil SP2X digital piano keyboard that screams of superior technology on the inside and elegant simplicity on the outside; just what the company campaigns it to be. The Kurzweil SP2X is an instance for the phrase ‘Simplicity equals power’. The instrument is sleek with an uncluttered exterior that belies a sophisticated performance. It is a capable and reliable road companion that will aid you in domination and any stage with an incredible array of top notch sounds. The best part is that, the SPX2 has been designed to offer all of these mouth watering features to any keyboardist, regardless of their skill level with keyboard playing or even the synthesizer theory.

Design:

The Body:

The Kurzweil SP2X Stage Piano Keyboard is built to be gigged, and this unit has an overall design of sleek lines and minimal extra baggage. It weighs moderately, unlike most of the 88 key instruments and it weighs about 48.5 pounds. This one looks unobtrusive in its colour scheme is of neutral silvers and greys, and the look is modern but not sci-fi. The main chassis is made out of metal with smooth, rounded edges, and the end caps have been made out of hard plastic. We are not sure how well the end caps will survive a drop to the floor, but they looks quite solid enough to withstand the minor impacts. The design says that it has been devised in such as way that it calls attention to the player, not the instrument.

Kurzweil has made sure that there is just enough space at the lower end of the keyboard for full-size modulation and pitch wheels. The end caps are indented, creating a natural ledge for lifting and moving the instrument.

Old School Display:

The control panel in the fascia of the piano is also uncluttered and uncomplicated. It has been gently racked upward to improve visibility and access. You get the visual feedback through a three digit old school type LED display and the keyboard does not have a dedicated LCD display. Though the LED display is readable, it seems to be a little basic to today’s standards. Of course, it is not the end of the world, but a simple LCD screen would make the various editing functions a bit easier to get to gripes with. It is fair to mention that many stage pianos in the price bracket of SP2X also feature the same screen, we are still convinced that it is very outdated. It also comes with a sustain pedal.

Control panel:

For most part, the design has been kept simple, but it requires memorising the locations of your favourite patches. Fortunately, The Kurzweil has employed a quick access bank that allows you to recall your 16 favourite programs and setups with just a single button press. The keyboard has a performance controller section on the left hand side of the front panel that gives quick and easy access to the kind of things you need to change quickly in a live situation. This includes the relative volumes of the different zones you might have created across the keyboard, the amount of reverb and other effects being applied, plus the tempo of any backing rhythms, , as well as assign layers and split points. Another series of buttons is reserved for editing, transposition, and key- and Velocity-range selection.

The Kurzweil SP2X 88-keys Stage Piano is so easy to use that you barely will have to crack open the user manual for a rock performance with the instrument. The four knobs can be assigned to control the other MIDI parameters at your discretion. These four knobs work in conjunction with a 3-way knob mode switch to give you a matrix of 12 knob functions including controlling the zone’s main, layer, split, and rhythm levels; adjusting the effects settings; and setting the rhythm track’s tempo. Each user setup stores and recalls patch, split, and effects settings and mix levels.

Ports and Connectivity:

In the rear, you will find the ports and connectivity including MIDI In, Out and Thru ports, stereo audio outs with a 24 bit DACs, a ¼-inch headphone out, a pair of ¼-inch TRS line outs, ¼-inch sustain and continuous-controller inputs, along with a USB port for transmitting MIDI to and from a computer. Unfortunately, drivers are available only for Windows XP at this time, so if you are a Mac user, you will have to use the SP2X’s MIDI ports with an external MIDI interface instead.

One gripe is the SP2X’s use of a line lump rather than an internal power supply. In the chaos of a stage performance, it is all too easy for ancillary items to get left behind.

Features:

When it comes to the part of features, the SP2X it not throwing any curveballs; it has all the sounds, effects and some rhythms that are coupled to a set of full size weighted keys. Most of the highlight features relate to the Triple Strike Grand Piano which captures the nuances, character and feel of a grand piano quite accurately. This sample set is used for eight patches, including a bright hard-rock sound and a slightly detuned ragtime sound. The top end is delicate, bottom end suitably thunderous and there is not even the slightest signs of the tinny overtones that can plague some of the grand piano patches. The samples are rich, subtle, and even across the keyboard, although you can hear slight timbral differences at boundaries between samples.

The voicing is quite bright to the ears. The high treble keys, which can be troublesome in some piano sample sets, sound realistic, without any stretching of samples played beyond their believable range. The only issue we would raise here is that, the loop section in the bass strings becomes noticeable when holding a single key down for longer than 4 or 5 seconds and listening carefully. But, this cannot be a deal breaker, as in a real-world playing scenario, this would rarely happen.

Presets:

The Kurzweil SP2X sports 64 preset sounds and the keyboard can be split into four zones that are stored in sixteen user setups. On stage, these presets can be accessed through the ‘Quick Access Button’, and this button allows you to recall any of your setups, quite instantly. The goal is to make it as simple as possible to get maximum flexibility out of the keyboard in live situations. You will also find a transpose button located on the front control panel for the sake of speedy transposition.

Onboard sounds:

Electric Pianos:

The onboard sounds have been divided into eight banks of eight that are grouped by type. As we already mentioned, the piano sounds are excellent, the electric pianos are quite good and there a few more usable dry and realistic Rhodes patches as well as a decent lo-fi Wurlitzer to accompany the rather more predictable, chorus drenched balled Rhodes sounds. The effects can be removed, however as with so many Rhodes presets, the original patches are rather too close to a xylophone for comfort. We agree that it is a matter of choice and taste, but the tinkly Rhodes effect has fewer uses in modern music than the more rounded, fuzzy sound. Big Red Wurly sounds authentic to us, if you adjust the mod wheel to bring in some Wurlitzer tremolo. None of them sound good when pushed beyond the range of the original instruments, but if you play them appropriately, they get the job done well.

The grand piano presets, when played on this keyboard shows the device in its best light and in this particular aspect, it outshines some of the other pianos in the higher end of the price range.

Organs:

Moving on to the organs, there are a couple of passable Hammonds to choose from along with a pipe organ to play with. Though the rotary effect is not the best that we have heard, there is redemption in the form of nice spiky Clavis and a rather good harpsichord. If classical organ is your thing, Pipe Organ is a huge, rich, all-stops-out organ sound drenched in reverb. Jazz organ does not fare as well: Ballad of 3 Bar is the best of the bunch, with a Leslie speed simulation on the mod wheel. The sound can work if organ is an occasional part of your bag of tricks, but if you are relying heavily on organ sounds, you should look for a device particularly suited to that task.

Strings:

‘Strings’ is an area where the SP2X stage piano proves to be particularly adept. Here, you will find some wonderfully lush string patches that are immensely rich and powerful, and is perfect for film music or rein forcing a live performance. As with most of the sounds, they can be layered up and, as you must have guessed, they are very evocative when paired with the grand piano.

Guitars and Basses:

Moving on to the sections of brass, voice and synth, they yield little that is going to impress; so, on to the guitar and bass patches. As in the case of most of the stage pianos and workstations, the guitars do not seem to be very convincing, even though the basses fare much better and the double bass is quite handy while split over the bottom end of the keyboard.

Drums and Percussion:

Last but not the least, there are some drums and percussion kits that do a good job along with some marimbas and knobs that do their job well enough. Studio Drums 1+2 gives you everything you need to sketch out a rock track, and Virtuoso Perc offers a nice variety of ethnic and hand percussion. Dual Marimba and Vibes both provide nice-sounding and useful impersonations of the real instruments.

Effects:

Kurzweil is especially proud of its 24-bit effects, stating that its DSP algorithms are of superb quality for products in this price range. There are two blocks of effects, with 64 presets available for the effect block and 30 for the reverb block. Either of them can be turned off independently and they are suitably effective, by adding depth and interest to the sounds. The reverbs include the usual rooms, chambers, and halls. The additional effects include chorus, flange, delay, compression, distortion, filter, Lazerverb, and “misc.” The misc effect is context sensitive; on the piano patches, it creates a detuned effect, and on the Hammond patches, it simulates the Leslie speaker. The hall and chamber reverb effects are particularly good, with a nice bloom and a clean, smooth tail. Though the real time controller section is quite intuitive, by selecting the presets, you are still limited by the basic LED display.

Rhythms:

The SP2X’s rhythm tracks are a useful aid for practice and composition. These 64 patterns are organized into 8 musical genres: ballads, Latin, country, and so forth. The tempo knob allows you to change the tempo of each groove from 40 to 280 bpm. There is also a metronome that allows you choose between four time signatures. The rhythm patterns have been chosen to create a well rounded collection, but like the effects settings, they are fixed. We would not recommend you using them in performance, but as a speedy practice tool to help get your timing together, they are left unbeaten.

Performance:

Response:

Being able to have a good 88-key action within a solidly constructed case at a weight that is reasonable for gigging is terrific. The keys of the instrument itself is quite responsive and even the seasoned players will feel right home. The SP2X’s action is fully weighted and feels great to play. There is just sufficient resistance to allow your fingers something to push against, yet enough give and springiness to allow for really speedy repeated notes on a single key. The throw is not as deep as the action on the acoustic pianos, but this fairly short key depth makes for a pretty fast action, you can rip lightning-quick runs up and down the SP2X’s keyboard. There are seven global Velocity Sensitivity settings, from very light to very heavy. We just loved the default, linear setting right out of the box.

Sounds:

Kurzweil SP2X Stage Piano MIDI Keyboard is extremely good at what it is fundamentally trying to do, which provides a realistic experience of playing a piano. In a lot of ways, it is reminiscent of Kruzweil’s MicroPiano, a long discontinued sound module that features wonderful grand piano and string patches. The same applies here too, but, obviously there is also an impressive weighted keyboard that is attached as well.

Beyond these sounds, there is nothing significant to discuss about. And, although there are a few gems, it is in the pianos and strings that the strength of this instrument lies in.

Warranty:

Kurzweil SP2X Stage Keyboard comes with one year warranty for parts and labour.

Verdict:

The Kurzweil SP2X is a model of simplicity and quality, an eminently playable instrument that is well suited to the practice room or the casual circuit. As you can see with the set of features, they are geared towards live performance and are certainly effective. So, the Kurzweil SP2X will serve any of the performing musicians quite well, provided they do not need an arsenal of sounds at their disposal. The out dated display is a bit of a shame and detracts slightly from the idea that this is actually quite a serious instrument. The USB MIDI functionality is certainly a welcome addition. To conclude, with a top quality sound, playable keyboard and some impressive pianos and strings, the SP2X is quite a solid performer.

Kurzweil SP2X Stage Piano Keyboard – Technical Specification Table

Design:

Everyone loves to have a very sleek and attractive piano which is a very good player at the same time. Well, that is exactly what the Casio CDP-100 is all about; Sleek and attractive, and it will be an ideal piano for you to have for regular practice at home. The overall design of the Casio CDP-100 Digital Piano is simple and at the same time, it also looks pretty classy. Just like most of the keyboards in the present day market, this one has also got 88 soft touch keys. These keys are also specially designed, and this means that, you do not need to prod the keys for playing good sounds. Just a feather touch is enough. The arrangement of the keys is also pretty neat and in a manner that makes it easy to use even for the novice. With Dimensions as (W x H x D) 52-1/8″ x 10-15/16″ x 5-3/16″ and Weight: 26 lb, the Casio CDP-100 is one of the lightest and also very comfortable pianos ever. This is what the music lovers and especially the professional players would want from their keyboard.

Features:

Of course, the main duty of a piano is to deliver musical sounds. But of late, many features are being introduced into almost all the pianos in the market in order to attract the general public. But, some of them are only purely attractions rather than utilities. Hence, it is a must that you be careful before actually deciding over the pianos basing on the features that they boast about. Hence, here we are, giving you all the relevant details of the features that are seen on the Casio CDP 100 88.

Soft Touch Action:

This is the best feature of all regarding the Casio CDP 100 88 Key Digital Piano. Its soft keys, which are known as graded keys with soft touch action, give you an excellent graded feel while you are interfacing the keyboard. There are three levels of touch sensitivity and the sounds that come out also differ basing on the force with which the keys are pressed. This can turn out to be a very good idea because the musicians today are longing for fast chords and clearly it takes lesser time when the keys need less stress. This allows the musicians to play better and also faster and they can also create new beautiful musical chords. The three levels of sensitivity mean that the touch resistance offered by the keys of the Casio CDP-100 Piano Keboard differs from key to key as we move from the left to the right of the keyboard. The levels are namely Low Medium and High. The right most keys have low sensitivity and as we move to the left, the sensitivity of the keys gradually increases. This is indeed a very good idea basing on the fact that most of the musicians are right handed and they feel better when their piano works in this fashion.

Built in Songs:

There are 74 built-in songs in the Casio CDP 100 88  note piano. This helps you in first playing the songs beforehand and notice the way the piano plays different chords so that you can gain knowledge about how the chords can be played and the songs can be composed thereafter. This is a fine feature and it helps the novice users a lot in teaching them very good lessons. One can learn self lessons using this very feature from Casio.

Miscellaneous Features:

The HL sound source is one of the newly introduced features of Casio, which is seen on the CDP-100 88. This must really help you in giving better sound quality and also nice acoustics so that each and every chord will be distinct from the others and hence you get a very nice musical effect. The 5 tones and the 8 Digital effects are an opportunity for you to make more and more chords. There is also a stand provided along with the piano and the height of this stand can be varied. This can be a very useful feature as people are of different heights. The headphone jack connector is pretty useful so that others are not disturbed when you are playing the keyboard. Everything else is just good enough. But it would have been really better if there was a facility for PC connection, so that you could save the tunes composed in the form of MIDI files on your computer and they can be played again in the future. But nevertheless, it has been a good deal of features that the Casio CDP has included in it.

Performance:

Even though there are quite a good number of features, the CDP 100 light weight Digital Piano keyboard must still pass the tests and prove to the world that it is here to play music but not to just show off. Here are the different performance details of this new piano from Casio that are discussed after sufficient testing of the various parts and functionalities.

Sound:

The sound clarity must be very good for any piano in consideration without any exceptions. The CDP 100 has to be best piano from Casio till date and hence it must have very good sound producing mechanism. The keyboard plays very pleasant sounds which are near to CD quality. Another special ability of this piano is that it can produce a wide range of sounds when the settings are changed a little so that there is ample scope for you to make different notes and chords. Overall, the sounds that came from the piano were good and particularly after looking at the luring price tag of the piano.

Speakers:

Any keyboard must have very good acoustics for it to become a hit in the market today. Well, the Casio CDP-100 MIDI Piano Keyboard has got a solid sound system that complements the wonderful keyboard of it about which we have already discussed. There are two 6 x 12 cm speakers on either sides of the Casio CDP 100 88 piano. This obviously gives you a stereo sound effect. The acoustics of the keyboard are also so very arranged that the sound quality reaches the optimum level when the user is seated in front of the piano. This does not mean that the sounds are unidirectional. But anyways, a great effort is put in by Casio in producing beautiful sounds from the CDP 10088.

Distinct Sounds:

As we have already seen, the piano is capable of producing different sounds that comply with the force that is applied on the keys while playing. It looks amazing when you see the variety of sounds that it can play. The chords sound very nice and sweet when played gently and they get louder when the pressure on the keys is increased gradually. All these distinct sounds add up to give you a very pleasant music if played properly.

Battery Life:

The Casio CDP 100 completely runs on batteries and these batteries can be charged from to time using the adapter provided by Casio along with the keyboard. You can charge the batteries from time to time using the adapter provided by Casio along with the piano. The piano consumes about 18 Watts of power on an average at 12 V, talking about normal use. This power rating is pretty much on the lower side and this means that you can have hours of musical sessions with the Casio CDP 100 88 and it also does not cost you much.

Warranty:

The Casio CDP 100 88 comes with an international warranty of one year from the original date of purchase. This means that the piano can be repaired in any country. The piano also comes with a 90 days return policy.

Verdict:

The Casio CDP 100 88 is a very good choice for almost any person who is in search of good quality piano. Particularly, if you are a beginner and you need to learn a lot of lessons all by yourself then this one would be a great option for you. It is also not that pricey and for the quality of music that it delivers, it can be afforded without any second thought.

Check Latest Digital Pianos, Roland Piano Keyboard Reviews in this website.

Casio CDP-100 Digital Piano – Technical Specification Table

Design:

Simple yet Sleek:
The design of the NP30 Digital Piano is simple and classy. It has a design that replicates a traditional acoustic keyboard. It has 76 graded soft touch keys compared to 88 that a standard keyboard has. The keys are neatly arranged and are easy to use. The keys are 140mm long versus 145mm and an octave span is 163mm versus 165mm making them marginally smaller than the conventional keys.  They get lighter to the touch, and as one gets to the higher key replicating the feel of an acoustic device. The device is made up of plastic and might not feel like a real acoustic device, but it is a great combination of a good design and high quality material. The NP30 is available in piano black, but is also available in silver with the model being named NP30S.

Light and Compact:
The Yamana NP 30 Piano is 49 inches long but amazingly light. Thanks to the physical aspects of Graded soft touch action, the weight of the piano has come down to 6.5kg that is lower than the NP 70 – Yamaha’s lightest digital piano. Thus it is highly portable and that is something professional musicians on the move would want.

Features:

Graded Soft Touch Action:
The biggest feature of the NP 30 is not the light weight of the keyboard but the weightless feeling in the keyboard action. With a lighter touch than Yamaha’s graded hammer standard or graded hammer effect bed, it still manages to have an excellent graded feel. The Graded Soft touch provides medium resistance in the left hand that gets lighter as one moves up the keyboard allowing easier and faster passages with the right hand. It provides the stiff resistance one would expect and one could not help but like it.  For low impact playing, this semi weighted action is ideal for people suffering from arthritis and stress disorders. One can adjust the touch response from fixed for no response to hard for sensitivity with soft and medium in between.

Vocal performer:
The NP-30 Piano Keyboard has a selection of 10 voices that cover most of the sounds one would expect from a keyboard. You get 2 Grand pianos, 2 organs, 2 electric pianos, 2 harpsichords, a vibraphone and a strings setting. The sound engine has a 32 note polyphony, which works well, thanks to the Advanced Wave Memory technology (AWM) that has managed to capture the overall range of sound from an instrument and replicates it, accurately enough to make it sound natural.  Try playing the NP 30 softly and it would produce a soft tone and play it hard, the tone is bright and loud. We also noticed that the keys were very even and responsive.

Dual Voice and Metronome:
A feature we liked on the Yamaha NP 30 is the dual voice feature that allows one to play two voices at the same time. We tried playing the piano and string together and it happened easily. The keyboard also has a built in metronome making it perfect for practice. One could also use a metronome in different time signatures such as ¾ waltz, 4/4 rock and 6/8 jazz. One can set the temp directly using a numeric pad. If the piano says the temp needs to be 72bpm, you can set it, and you would know how fast it has to be played.

Other features:
Yamaha NP 30 also features layering of the sounds and MIDI. The NP 30 has nine more built in sounds apart from the stereo piano sound. The MIDI lets one connect the digital piano to a computer giving a scope for creating different types of music.

Performance:

Sound:
The NP-30 Keyboard has a clean and pleasant sound. It produces a lot of sounds that are distinct from each other. The sounds were good enough considering the price tag and we did not expect such clarity from this budget baby.

Speakers:
When we played the NP 30, we thought the sound was not very strong. We thought that it was perhaps due to us standing over it and we pulled over a keyboard bench and sat down and everything sounded much better. The speakers were designed with an oval type cone to project the sweet spot towards the ears when seated. Marvellous use of acoustics and bravo Yamaha!

Distinct Sounds:
The Grand Piano 1 was amazing. It sounded like the piano on the Yamaha P series of digital pianos. It has a very nice sound when played softly and gets louder when played with more passion. The second piano is a bit brighter. The Electric Pianos are typical Yamaha ones. They sound well and respond to velocity switching. When it comes to organs, one sounds like a reed organ and the other a church organ. The Harpsichords sound pretty nice and so were the strings and vibes.

Battery Life:

The Yamaha NP 30 runs on six AA batteries and has a battery life of 30 days on light usage (~ 1 hour a day). It could be lesser if used more. There is an optional power adapter available that one could use to power the keyboard.

Warranty:

The Yamaha NP 30 is covered by a warranty of 3 years on service and labour. The Yamaha Rock Solid Reliance Warranty ensures years of trouble free music making.

Verdict:

If you are a beginner and just started learning the piano and do not want complicate composers or worthless features, the NP 30 is a solid choice. It offers great sounds and a great feel at an amazingly low price without any needless extras. Features such as built in sounds and 2 layer contrast also help in experimenting.  If performance is your criteria and you will not want to loosen the strings of your purse, the NP 30 provides everything you need and nothing you do not.

Check other Portable Keyboards, Yamaha Keyboard Reviews, Specs in this website.

Yamaha NP30 Piano Keyboard – Technical Specification Table

Design & Ergonomics:

The Yamaha Clavinovas CLP-220 digital piano has a classy and elegant look. This entry level piano is worth adoring by its looks as well as its features. This instrument has a set of 88 graded hammer keys which are sensitive and are available in four different touch formats, namely, hard, medium, soft and fixed. The Yamaha CLP-220 has a dark rosewood finish and has a sliding key cover in the cabinet. This instrument is available is three other colours – mahogany, polished ebony and cherry. Thus users have quite a variety to select from according to their fancy and décor.  It also features three pedals, allocated for three various functions of sound modulations. The three pedals can be used to manipulate or add to the sound effect with a damper, sostenuto or a softer note. With a height of 82.2 cm, a width of 140.8 cm and a depth of 42.4 cm, the Yamaha CLP-220 digital piano is of the regular generalised size and has an average weight of 45kg.

Features:

Not only is the Yamaha CLP-220 digital piano great in its appearance and looks, but is also well loaded with various features, effects and sound modulations. This highly popular instrument is powered by a sound engine by Yamaha, namely the Advanced Wave Memory sound engine or AWM, which is present in more or less all the latest models of Yamaha CLP series. Other than this, the Yamaha CLP-220 digital piano has an internal memory or storage capacity of 352 KB. The instrument also sports two headphone jacks for private practice and has dual speakers for loud practice which are of size 12 cm x 6 cm. Moreover, there is a MIDI input and output port. Overall this instrument is not only a piece of sheer elegance and an eye candy but is also well accustomed for professional usage and has enough features to make it a noteworthy name in the list of digital pianos which are available in the international market.

Sound Quality:

The Yamaha Clavinova series is quite well known for its out of the league sound quality and the CLP-220 model stands out as a unique digital piano in its league with a few additional appealing features. The Yamaha CLP-220 digital piano not only fulfils the criteria of a digital piano, that is, it not only works as the best substitute for an acoustic piano but also tempts the users with its outstanding quality of sound. Moreover this instrument offers the users a number of interesting stereo piano samples. This sports a number of unique effects and samples like that of acoustic pianos, harpsichords, vibraphones, church organs, electric pianos and string ensemble to name a few.

The Song Recorder:

The CPL 220 has a special feature of recording. This feature can be used by users to record various performances of compositions. There is a record button on board which enables or disables the recording function. Pressing this button will make the instrument start recording and then when the user has recorded whatever he had to, he can again press the recording button (REC) which will cease recording. This feature is also known as one-click recording. A play button is also located near the REC button. Pressing this after a recording would play back the recorded segment or song and pressing it again would stop play back.

With a low internal memory of 352 KB, users can record just one song on the CLP-220 Black Colour digital piano, or as a matter of fact can save a composition which has a maximum length of 11,000 notes. But the MIDI input and output helps users to use the on board MIDI interface which can be utilised to transmitting compositions or sequences for saving and editing to a device like computer or laptop. Thus, the song recording feature along with the other essential components are very simple to use and very easy to understand. Thus, this instrument is user friendly to a great extent and not only in terms of usage and handling convenience but also by its add on features.

The GH Keyboard:

The GH keyboard or the Graded Hammer keyboard is another speciality of the CLP-220 88 key Piano. This progressive hammer action keyboard which comprises of 88 grade weighted keys is based on a weighed mechanism. This implies that, like that in a Grand Piano, the keys in this digital piano also grow heavier gradually as it descends from top to bottom. Generally, digital pianos use oil dampers or more often springs to bring up and stimulate the feel of an acoustic piano. But, in this digital piano, it is all about mechanical linkage and weights which gives the graded hammer keyboard an outstandingly impressive feel and realism.

Polyphony:

Polyphonic sound is at its best in the CLP-220 digital piano. This very impressive instrument has 64 note polyphony. This means, that at the same time, a musician or any other user can play up to 64 notes at that very moment. And to help and assist this highly unique feature to work as desired, a sustain pedal is provided, which when depressed, the notes which are held start moving up towards the count of 64. Thus polyphony at its best in the Yamaha CLP-220 allows the user to compose even better and much more harmonious sequences.

Reverb:

The digital reverb is a feature sported by the Yamaha CLP-220 digital piano, helps it produce realistic rich sound like that of an actual grand piano. With the help of AWM or Advanced Wave Memory, which is a sophisticated stereo sampling mode of generating tone, and with the assist of the 88 key Graded Hammer (GH) keyboard, the CLP-220 can match up the sound quality and texture of the Grand piano along with the golden notes and detailed resonance like that of the actual piano. This digital piano produces full nuances like that of an acoustic piano. And this is brought about by the 64 note polyphony, the three attached foot pedals, a 1 button song recorder and MIDI input/output terminals. Thus, with this model of Yamaha digital piano, users and budding musicians can not only play around with different sound effects, play various preset samples, but also record their own compositions and create a whole new world for their inspirations and aspirations.

Wide Range of Instrument Voices:

The Yamaha CLP-220 digital piano sports a wide range of sampled instrument sounds. Users can find this feature very interesting and helpful as these stereo sampled sounds add to the realism and sound tones of the instrument, and users can enjoy fondling with all these various instrument sounds to find the perfect one for their sequence. The wide range of preset stereo samples include

• Two varieties of Grand Piano
• Two varieties of Electric Piano
• Two varieties of Church Organs
• Two varieties of Harpsichord
• Vibraphone
• Strings

The Special Features Overview:

The Yamaha CLP-220 digital piano is a powerhouse of added features. This adds an extra edge to its performance, as well as its popularity amongst the masses. Other than all the special and unique add-ons already mentioned, this digital piano also offers its users a choice from a range of four various reverbs. These are – Room, two modes for hall and a stage reverb. Moreover, a user can alter or manipulate the depth of each along with the wet or dry mix. And this feature is applicable to not only live playing, but it can also be imposed on pre recorded segments or compositions. For example, a user can set any of the reverb modes and can also set a depth or mix for the same according to their own will. This can be done and redone any number of times. Thus, this feature helps users to have their composition sound the exact way that they want it too and also can try out various other reverbs and modes.

To top it all, the Yamaha CLP-220 digital piano sports a very unique dual voice mode. With the help of this mode, users can combine, that is users can set any two voice modes from the wide range of voice selection which is available. Not only that, the individual settings for these voice modes can also be manipulated and controlled according to the users will. The volume and the octave for both the voices can be set externally and a metronome can be used by musicians to keep a sequence on beat. Other than this, a piano touch mode is also present which helps in adjusting the sensitivity of the keys, a mode called transpose mode, which is helpful in tuning the piano to another instrument or digital player for collaboration. On top of it, two headphone jacks are present along with MIDI input and output connection ports for sync between the digital piano and home computer.

Assembling the Package:

The package has a dismantled piano which can be easily assembled with the help of an instruction manual which is provided along with the package. The only part that the user has to assemble is the casing and the cabinet because the keyboard and the other electronics are fixed in from the very beginning. The screws and screw holes are neat and no gluing is required as well. To attach the base to the keyboard and other fixings, a complimentary screw driver is also provided.

In the Box:

Other than the dismantled Yamaha CLP-220 digital piano, the package also includes a matching adjustable headphones and an extra headphone hanger. A colour matched height adjustable piano tool is also included in the package and users also get a complimentary song book – “50 greats for the Piano”, which the users can consult to for learning or for live playing.

Warranty:

A three year base warranty is provided by the manufacturer. Any faults in the piano within this period will be repaired or replaced.

Verdict:

The Yamaha CLP-220 digital piano of the Yamaha Clavinova series is a great substitute of the acoustic piano for home users of beginners. Not only it is the best in its sound quality and resemblance to the actual piano, but also it has a horde of extra benefits and is overloaded with added features. With the various reverbs, the choice from a range of around 10 instrument voices and recording and sync features make this digital piano a desire of many. And the low budget adds to it – the Yamaha CLP-220 is priced very low and costs almost similar to what an actual acoustic piano costs. Moreover, there is no such expense in tuning and maintenance of this instrument, and the security and dependability of the Yamaha Clavinova series is beyond comparison. Thus, this low priced classy looking digital piano which is a powerhouse of a lot of extra features is surely a noteworthy instrument and has a good priority in the international market, especially amidst the beginners and learners.

Yamaha CLP-220 Digital Piano – Technical Specification Table