Best Keyboard Synth for £1000 budget - beginner.

Yan

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Hi

I am learning to play the keyboard and and want to make a purchase before total lockdown - so this weekend perhaps!

I am learning both keyboard and piano music so I have been advised to get an 88 key keyboard. However, I also want to stick with what got me interested in this in the first place and that is a love for electronic music, synthesizer and the ability to totally play about with knobs and create new sounds etc.

I have been looking at the Yamaha Modx 8 and the Juno DS 88 but I appreciate I am sacrificing some of the real synth functions here but perhaps that is a compromise I have to make. Maybe I need to understand that really a true synth and an 88 key keyboard are two totally different animals?

Am I right in saying this, or is there something you would recommend which would give me a great bit of each within this budget?

Thanks
 

happyrat1

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Juno DS88 is a great keyboard. I'm very happy with mine and it has some great features for creating electronic music as well as traditional sounds.

Also worth looking at in your price range, if you can find one is Kurzweil PC4.

I'm not a big Yamaha fan so the less said about that the better.

Gary ;)
 
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If your open to a 2nd hand instrument, Look for a used Roland FA08.

Both DS88 and ModX8 are good boards though. The DS has (I think) the better keybed - but the ModX has the better piano sounds (just) and more functionality in the synth sounds.
 

happyrat1

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I play my DS88 thru a Zoom MS-70cdr effects pedal and it brings the pianos back from the dead. Really it just needs a little tweaking to get the pianos sounding the way you'd like. Just like most keyboards out there.

Some brands use more FX than others on their basic pianos. Korg tends to over process their sounds.

Gary ;)
 
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True. I use an MS-70cdr as well - with my peak, though I have to put the MS in a loop on the mixer, as the Peaks outputs are so hot they distort the MSs DA converters anything past about 2.
 

Yan

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Hmmm. I could chuck in an extra £250 and look at that FA08 as another option. Let me see what that has in addition Thanks
 

Rayblewit

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That is a pretty healthy budget for a beginner. Best bet is to physically try out the models as sggested to you. Which ones have the best sounds and features . .for YOU!
Although, if you are a beginner, you will be overwhelmed. All of the aforementiond brands are reputable. . . Now go quickly to the shops before the lockdown.
Good luck.
 
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Hmmm. I could chuck in an extra £250 and look at that FA08 as another option. Let me see what that has in addition Thanks

Full virtual analogue synth engine, full sample based sound engine with some supernatural and some romper sounds, sequencer, arpegiator, sampler, drum pattern designer and some other bits.

It has things like the modx8 and korg stuff (at that price point) beat imo for the synth stuff you want because of the va engine. Others are more capable on dlme areas such as orchestral sounds but not by that much.
 

Yan

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Thank you all - I appreciate your prompt and helpful replies. Sounds like I'm not too far off in the ones I have picked out. FA-08 is interesting but because of the lack of speakers I'm put off to be honest.
 
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Thank you all - I appreciate your prompt and helpful replies. Sounds like I'm not too far off in the ones I have picked out. FA-08 is interesting but because of the lack of speakers I'm put off to be honest.

Most wont have speakers. The ModX and DS88 dont have them either. Generally only arrangers or home digital pianos have built in speakers.
 

happyrat1

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For speakers you'd be better off buying a small set of studio monitors like the Presonus Eris E5 powered speakers.



As mentioned only arrangers have built in speakers which I'm not usually a fan of to begin with.

A decent pair of monitors will work great for home use.

It's a terrible waste to spend thou$and$ on a keyboard and play it back thru a pair of $25 internal speakers :p

Gary ;)
 
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An FA 08 is less than £1200 and an 07 about £1000. The 07 keybed feel is pretty good but the onboard functions and especially the recording and Studio Sets for me would make it a better choice than a DS.

I did spend a few minutes in store with the Yamaha MIDX but I totally disliked the menu system so gave up and walked over to play with the FA.

The Yamaha pianos are slightly better than the Rolands but for everything else that I tried the Roland was better, Yahaha organs suck.
 

Rayblewit

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If your budget is now £1250, you could consider two boards. One a Synth and one an Arranger or EP.
You said you were learning keyboard and piano. Arrangers are a good option. They also have Synth sounds inbuilt.
To be honest, I would be bored with just synth sounds. Some variety of sounds would be more enhancing!

, Yahaha organs suck.

So Yamaha's double up as a vacuum cleaners!
Out goes the Hoover! Now you can play music as you clean eh! What a thought!
 

happyrat1

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You're not going to find any 88 key hammer action arrangers for anything even close to 1000 UK Pounds.

If he wants to learn piano he needs 88 weighted hammer action keys.

Best bets for the styles of music that he wants to play are workstations like the DS88 or the FA08 or the Kurzweil PC4

Besides, you can buy apps for iPad or PC that turn any keyboard into an arranger.

Gary ;)
 

Rayblewit

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You're not going to find any 88 key hammer action arrangers for anything even close to 1000 UK Pounds.

If he wants to learn piano he needs 88 weighted hammer action keys.

True!

But, I added my 2 cents worth because the OP said he wanted to play synth AND piano.
I do not think 88 Hammer action is applicable to synth.

We are getting mixed messages here. Is why I suggested two units.
The DS88 may well do the trick! I do not disagree with that. But I suggested an option.
The OP said he also wants to play with knobs!

:)
 

Yan

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I'm tending towards the DS-88 to be honest now. As a beginner I'm sure this is more than enough for me at around £300 less - as someone said I don't want to get overwhelmed. That also leaves me a bit for speakers which I didn't realise I needed!

If I want delve more in to true synthesizers I can look in to a separate unit later, or maybe even try out soft synths for the time being.
 
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Actually there are hammer action arrangers for way less than £1000.

Korg XE 20 has 88 keys, plenty of onboard sounds, including synths, auto accompaniment, inbuilt amp and speakers, lightweight and it integrates with the Korg Gadget and Module apps to give an even great range of sounds including very many synths and effects.

There is also the Casio S3000 at c£650 which also has a mass of onboard sounds and the auto accompaniment arranger function not to mention inbuilt amp and speakers.

For a £1000 you could also pretty well buy a Roland FP10 digital piano and a Roland DS 61 so have the best of all worlds.
 
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I think the ds only at this point is a good choice. The fa07 pushes the budget and he needs speakers he didnt realise he needed.

If he wants to dabble in synths he can go siftsynth to start and add a hardware one later in the firm of deepmind, monologue, argon8 etc down the line.
 
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I think the ds only at this point is a good choice. The fa07 pushes the budget and he needs speakers he didnt realise he needed.

If he wants to dabble in synths he can go siftsynth to start and add a hardware one later in the firm of deepmind, monologue, argon8 etc down the line.

One thing we do not know is what Yan has by way of keyboard at present so it may help if he advised.

BTW the Pre-sonus 4.5 are c£140 a pair but the E5 are £300 which is a huge dent in the budget.

Hence if they have a keyboard with inbuilt amp and speakers they could use that, if it has audio input, with a DS or Kross
 

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