[twilightrevenant]

my dad needs an electronic keyboard, you know the one that's like a piano..sort of. the budget is $200.

now, if possible, he likes it to be more realistic sounding like a piano. he doesn't really care about other instruments just as long as it sounds good when u play it like a piano.

 

[twilightrevenant]

bump

 

[jim]

What is this going to be use for?

If you are looking for something that is remotely like a piano, I'd bump the budget up to at least $600, preferably more like $800-1000. For $200, you aren't going to get any sort of weighted action (or even 88 keys for that matter), which makes it completely useless if you are trying to use it as a piano replacement.

 

[Orpheus]

i agree... if your dad plays piano, he probably won't like the key action cheaper keyboards have... plus it'll be really hard to find a decent sounding keyboard in that price range--there are none new, but maybe you can find an okay sounding one used off ebay for that price.

if he's gonna use it for learning piano, it's really worth it just to save money and buy a good keyboard with nice weighted keys. and even keyboards that say "88 weighted keys" will feel different from each other. you should try one out before you buy it. personally, i have a Roland A-90EX. retail price was about $3000, but it's discontinued now. i heard some people have spotted it for $800 on ebay. it has the BEST action i have EVER tried. bar none. its functions are way overkill for your dad.... but the key action is worth the $800 alone. comes with like 20 or so different piano sounds too (EX version only.)

 

[Ari]

Hey everybody !

I've used a Kurzweil Stage Piano SP76 for about an year now. I like it very much. It's solid, the piano "timbres" are very good, keys are OK. About US 550. I think, correct me Orpheus if I'm wrong, this is the first decent kbd in it's price range.

Best

Ari

 

[Orpheus]

oh of course... if it works for you, then it's great. that's the thing about keyboards... you really should try it first. they all sound different, and they all feel different. i think that kurzweil's action is a little stiffer than roland's (tried the pc88 and k2500/2600)... but that's not a bad thing.

i'm sure it has nice sounds too. never seen any keyboard by kurzweil that sucked.

but whatever you do, DO NOT BUY A CASIO.

 

[Karlosak]

Quote:

but whatever you do, DO NOT BUY A CASIO.

...agreed!


You could also put Yamaha electronic pianos on your list, esp. the P-xx series. I own the P-80 (new under $1000) and both the piano action and sound is great.

 

[fewtch]

Quote:

Originally posted by Orpheus but whatever you do, DO NOT BUY A CASIO.

Oh come on... on a $200 budget, what else could he get?

If he could find a keyboard with full size (and lots of) pressure and velocity-sensitive keys, possibly with MIDI input/output... that'd sure be better than no keyboard at all. Unfortunately I think even a Casio that fit that description would be more like $350 or so.

 

[jim]

I've always been a proponent of real pianos only when learning, but of course not everyone can afford or find space for a real piano. I agree with orpheus, definitely avoid casio. (I have one!) Learning to play on unweighted keys is just going to make you pick up bad habits that are hard to get rid of. You are also much more likely to quit early.

The P-80 is a very good choice around $1k new, if it's still made. I bought a kawai mp-9000 a couple years ago to practice on at school, and it has served me well. You probably should be able to find a used one for under $1k. The mp-9000 has a peculiar keybounce that I find rather irritating, though it's probably not going to be noticed by a beginner. I'd like to try the mp-9500 one of these days; supposedly they made some improvements to the action.

 

[Orpheus]

Quote:

Oh come on... on a $200 budget, what else could he get?

well, better nothing at all. really. i'm not just saying that. they are really just toys. and your dad doesn't need another toy to throw away. save your money and get a real keyboard or used piano. (sorry jim

) even a broken down crappy looking piano can be useable... just needs a good tuning (well, as long as no keys or pedals are broken.) and it'll have some soul to it!

 

[jim]

no need to be sorry, orpheus! I misphrased that statement above. What I meant to say was that I think people should really avoid digital keyboards if they can even when learning, because to date I have not played anything that can match the real thing. I mean, I like the mp-9k, but it's just not the same as the Kawai RX-6 back at home.

However, I realize not everyone can afford, or have space for a real piano, which may necessitate a digital substitute. And if they are gigging, certainly moving a real piano around isn't usually an option.

If you go used real piano, make sure it's not *too* bad. I started on a 90 year old 62" upright, which my parents got for less than the price of delivery. It sounded really nice, actually, but the action was slow as molasis.

Of course, now we've gone totally off track, because the emphasis of this post was 'electronic' keyboards.

 

[Orpheus]

heh he.... no, i meant, "Sorry you bought a Casio." (i was bagging on casios.)

 

[twilightrevenant]

err, thanks.
well, my dad just wanna learn piano/keyboard and since most of the other ppl in his company bought some cheapo keyboard he told me to find him one too.

well thanks
oh and any comments on those eletric pianos, those full size ones? cuz my dad saw one for about 1000 in costco...