New keyboard wanted - help!
Discussion
I never got round to replacing my old M1 in 2015, as per a thread of mine at the time, as I just kept happily using it with Garage Band and was happy doing so.
But time moves on and I fancy having piano lessons again after a 30 year break to take my skills up to another level. Therefore I'm looking for an 88 key hammer weighted keyboard.
The issue is that there is so much available on the market and I really don't know where to start. I began by thinking a Korg Kronos would be the obvious choice as it has all that I need plus is an incredibly powerful workstation. Although I'm originally a piano player, I love my synths and probably want to start gigging again at some point. But I'm hearing chatter online that maybe the Kronos will become unsupported in the not too distant future as most manufacturers are putting their focus on electric pianos and synths and leaving all the other functions to third party DAW's running on other hardware.
I love the Kronos; the sounds, the karma engine, the build quality etc. so am sorely tempted still. But there are other great things out there ranging from Roland RD2000, Yamaha MX88 to much more simple and less expensive electric pianos such as the new Casio CDP-S100 which has great reviews but I have not played yet.
So, if you were in my shoes which way would you go?
But time moves on and I fancy having piano lessons again after a 30 year break to take my skills up to another level. Therefore I'm looking for an 88 key hammer weighted keyboard.
The issue is that there is so much available on the market and I really don't know where to start. I began by thinking a Korg Kronos would be the obvious choice as it has all that I need plus is an incredibly powerful workstation. Although I'm originally a piano player, I love my synths and probably want to start gigging again at some point. But I'm hearing chatter online that maybe the Kronos will become unsupported in the not too distant future as most manufacturers are putting their focus on electric pianos and synths and leaving all the other functions to third party DAW's running on other hardware.
I love the Kronos; the sounds, the karma engine, the build quality etc. so am sorely tempted still. But there are other great things out there ranging from Roland RD2000, Yamaha MX88 to much more simple and less expensive electric pianos such as the new Casio CDP-S100 which has great reviews but I have not played yet.
So, if you were in my shoes which way would you go?
My daughter learned to play piano on an earlier version of the Casio and it served her well up to grade 3. We bought it as the cheapest keyboard that had a weighted key action and it did the job admirably. Beyond that she needed something with more than just the sustain pedal that came with the Casio so we upgraded significantly.
I don't play piano but in scoping out alternatives it became clear even to me how much variation there is in the feel of each keyboard. It is remarkable how Casio, Korg, Yamaha, Kawai and Roland all make weighted keyboards but each has its own unique feel so my recommendation is do not buy one without trying it out.
There are some remarkable devices out there and with midi into a computer you can run soft synths that will give you every sound imaginable.
I don't play piano but in scoping out alternatives it became clear even to me how much variation there is in the feel of each keyboard. It is remarkable how Casio, Korg, Yamaha, Kawai and Roland all make weighted keyboards but each has its own unique feel so my recommendation is do not buy one without trying it out.
There are some remarkable devices out there and with midi into a computer you can run soft synths that will give you every sound imaginable.
Billsnemesis said:
My daughter learned to play piano on an earlier version of the Casio and it served her well up to grade 3. We bought it as the cheapest keyboard that had a weighted key action and it did the job admirably. Beyond that she needed something with more than just the sustain pedal that came with the Casio so we upgraded significantly.
I don't play piano but in scoping out alternatives it became clear even to me how much variation there is in the feel of each keyboard. It is remarkable how Casio, Korg, Yamaha, Kawai and Roland all make weighted keyboards but each has its own unique feel so my recommendation is do not buy one without trying it out.
There are some remarkable devices out there and with midi into a computer you can run soft synths that will give you every sound imaginable.
Thanks - I think that's the conclusion I'm coming to even though I'd love a Kronos. Spend the money on a great feeling keyboard with USB or MIDI and let the software make the non piano sounds. Cheaper too! I don't play piano but in scoping out alternatives it became clear even to me how much variation there is in the feel of each keyboard. It is remarkable how Casio, Korg, Yamaha, Kawai and Roland all make weighted keyboards but each has its own unique feel so my recommendation is do not buy one without trying it out.
There are some remarkable devices out there and with midi into a computer you can run soft synths that will give you every sound imaginable.
The Casio Cdp100 Key bed gets some great reviews for its feel. If you're at home, you could hook it up to a laptop or Mac and take advantage of it with some better samples. I'm considering one as a gigging rig. It's light, can run on batteries and seems to be a good bit of kit for very little money. On the other side of it, I like the look of the Yamaha CP88 which has a good key bed married to a fairly simple to use operation. I'm advocating Casio and Yamaha yet have a Kawai piano!
The wildcard could be a Kawai MP7se which sounds great and plays lovely.
The wildcard could be a Kawai MP7se which sounds great and plays lovely.
Get a workstation like the Kronos - cut the cord, do not rely on a computer as it will just get in the way of you having fun and making music
Korg have always been good at supporting their kit
I have a decent studio of vintage analogue and digital stuff, with 20 audio inputs to the computer feeding Ableton - I’m at my happiest using the sequencers on the synths snd drum machines .... a computer complicates things if you don’t really need one, which you don’t
Korg have always been good at supporting their kit
I have a decent studio of vintage analogue and digital stuff, with 20 audio inputs to the computer feeding Ableton - I’m at my happiest using the sequencers on the synths snd drum machines .... a computer complicates things if you don’t really need one, which you don’t
nebpor said:
Get a workstation like the Kronos - cut the cord, do not rely on a computer as it will just get in the way of you having fun and making music
Korg have always been good at supporting their kit
I have a decent studio of vintage analogue and digital stuff, with 20 audio inputs to the computer feeding Ableton - I’m at my happiest using the sequencers on the synths snd drum machines .... a computer complicates things if you don’t really need one, which you don’t
Thanks John - I think you’ve possibly hit the nail on the head. Every time I play something like a Kronos I get super excited and my creative juices just flow. It’s the immediacy of access to the sounds and things like sequencing I’m sure that do that. But it’s almost £3,000 vs less than £800 and possible £400!Korg have always been good at supporting their kit
I have a decent studio of vintage analogue and digital stuff, with 20 audio inputs to the computer feeding Ableton - I’m at my happiest using the sequencers on the synths snd drum machines .... a computer complicates things if you don’t really need one, which you don’t
Looks like I’ll be spending more time in the music store over the coming weeks
Edited by anonymous-user on Friday 26th April 06:59
Chicken Chaser said:
The Casio Cdp100 Key bed gets some great reviews for its feel. If you're at home, you could hook it up to a laptop or Mac and take advantage of it with some better samples. I'm considering one as a gigging rig. It's light, can run on batteries and seems to be a good bit of kit for very little money. On the other side of it, I like the look of the Yamaha CP88 which has a good key bed married to a fairly simple to use operation. I'm advocating Casio and Yamaha yet have a Kawai piano!
The wildcard could be a Kawai MP7se which sounds great and plays lovely.
I’m trying the Casio next week, the YouTube review by Andertons was very positive indeed.The wildcard could be a Kawai MP7se which sounds great and plays lovely.
nebpor said:
Get a workstation like the Kronos - cut the cord, do not rely on a computer as it will just get in the way of you having fun and making music
Korg have always been good at supporting their kit
I have a decent studio of vintage analogue and digital stuff, with 20 audio inputs to the computer feeding Ableton - I’m at my happiest using the sequencers on the synths snd drum machines .... a computer complicates things if you don’t really need one, which you don’t
Exactly this. I've moved away from a Mac and Logic pro and gone back to a hardware only set up (drum machine, synths with built in sequencers) and I've found myself actually starting and finishing tracks, instead of spending days flicking through endless presets, getting bored and giving up.Korg have always been good at supporting their kit
I have a decent studio of vintage analogue and digital stuff, with 20 audio inputs to the computer feeding Ableton - I’m at my happiest using the sequencers on the synths snd drum machines .... a computer complicates things if you don’t really need one, which you don’t
garyhun said:
Decision made and unless anything changes in the next few days I shall be picking up a new Kronos 88 next week.
Super excited!
I'm late to the party, but have you tried turning the Kronos on? It has a 2 minute boot time! YMMV, but with a standalone instrument that's too long, IMHO. I got fed up; my SSDed PC takes just 18s. (And somewhat ironically, the Kronos is an out-dated PC motherboard running Linux inside.) I sold my Kronos after the honeymoon period and didn't look back. Super excited!
But ... the Kronos is a sound monster. And it's hugely powerful if/when you dive into it, and 'get' the way that Korg connected all of the mod sources. The Karma thing is a great shortcut to getting interesting and useful riffs/beats on instruments that you don't have a feel for yourself. You can produce whole songs on it with the audio inputs. Beyond patch management and multitimbral set-up, the touch-screen interface and sound engine were not as intuitive, as I'd hoped.
I've chopped and changed. I've now got an old Oberheim 88-key controller (£120 bargain - people can't get rid of them) with an Integra 7. However, for piano tones as #1 priority, the correct answer these days seems to be Nord, the Piano or the Stage.
Didn't want to rain on anyone's parade! I suppose you are already familiar with the forum: http://www.korgforums.com/forum/phpBB2/viewforum.p...
And I suppose what matters more for your desire to properly learn piano is that the action of the keyboard is good (more than a quick boot time)? I'm no pianist and I never tried the 88-key Kronos (mine was a 61), but if that weighted action is good, and the piano tone is definitely excellent, then I suppose that's at least 90% of the battle.
As the kids say these days, it's all about 'workflow'. So turn the Kronos on, go make a cup of coffee, come back and start playing. If, when you go to take your first swig of coffee, you find that it's stone cold - that's the sign that the Kronos is right.
And I suppose what matters more for your desire to properly learn piano is that the action of the keyboard is good (more than a quick boot time)? I'm no pianist and I never tried the 88-key Kronos (mine was a 61), but if that weighted action is good, and the piano tone is definitely excellent, then I suppose that's at least 90% of the battle.
As the kids say these days, it's all about 'workflow'. So turn the Kronos on, go make a cup of coffee, come back and start playing. If, when you go to take your first swig of coffee, you find that it's stone cold - that's the sign that the Kronos is right.
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