Electronic Keyboards for ~$200? Do you guys, particularly any musicians on the board, have suggestions on a good intro electronic keyboard? I'm currently looking at one of these two: Yamaha YPT-310 Yamaha EZ-200 My budget is ~$200. Any help will be much appreciated!
I would get a Roland AX1B Spoiler <object width="480" height="385"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/PB2Wmto9fQY&hl=en_US&fs=1&"></param><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"></param><param name="allowscriptaccess" value="always"></param><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/PB2Wmto9fQY&hl=en_US&fs=1&" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowscriptaccess="always" allowfullscreen="true" width="480" height="385"></embed></object>
Both of those are great keyboards. I have the Yamaha EZ-200 and have no complaints about it at all. I got it cheaper than the listed price though.
It depends on what you want to do with it. If you're a real piano player you'll probably be disappointed with either model. The Yamaha pianos sounds sound really cheap.
Good timely question. I'm wondering the same? I'm looking at getting a good entry level keyboard (or a current gen gaming system, either/or.) Is that a brand issue, or generally how it is with keyboards in that price range? I'm going to eventually take piano lessons, but then also want to get my "pop star on" messing around with a bunch of sound effects and alterations?
I'm definitely not a 'real' piano player. Just looking for something to pick up in my spare time. I'd like to start with a good keyboard, not something cheap for the sake of having one. What other brands do you suggest looking at -- Casio or Aiwa?
I was thinking of something similar. I was looking for something I could hook up to my computer. [I guess I need a MIDI soundcard as well ] Rocket River
No, yamaha has some amazing keyboards and synths, these are just some of their beginner models. It depends what your looking for. If you just want some general organ/piano/string sounds, I would have to say a used roland would be the best for 200-400 price range. If your looking for a synthesizer, the korg microkorgs and the alesis micron are both really great synths for beginners and experts, and have some great effects. However they both have small minature keyboards that some people dont like, so thats pretty much their biggest drawback.
Both of the models in the OP have the MIDI feature. I'd like to purchase something in the next couple of days, but want to do a little bit more research before pulling the trigger.
It depends on what you want to do once you really learn how to play. If you want to play the piano, I would pay a little more and get a keyboard that has the real weighted keys. I wouldn't worry about the sounds as you won't need an authentic sound on stage like you would if you were playing gigs as a professional. If you learn to play on a non-weighted keyboard it's much harder if you have to play a real piano. The two don't translate very well. If you are more interested in learning synth or organ kind of stuff then I wouldn't worry about weighted keys. If you take my advice and get weighted keys, there are some good options new for about $400 if you buy new. Casio has the Privia which is fully weighted and the sounds aren't so bad if you're just learning to play. Yamaha has some entry level digital pianos for close to $400 as well. You can actually get some really good deals on craigslist for some quality digital pianos. Hopefully this helps.
What he said. Those two keyboards are toys. The sounds they produce will be cheap/low quality, and more importantly, his comments about weighted keys are very correct. If you want to learn how to play keys/piano for real, take your time, save a little extra money and invest in a digital piano like the Yamaha P85 or one of the Casio Privia models. You can get something between $400 and $500, and it will be very well worth it. It takes time and practice getting your chops on proper weighted keys. If on the other hand all you're interested in is doing electronic synth type stuff with generic beats, then you can look in the other direction.
