Has anyone tried the Korg B2N?

[CarrieB]

Hello, forum! I've been learning keyboard on an old Yamaha PSR 61-key synthesizer and would like to upgrade to a full 88 keys. Primarily I play classical piano music, but am not ready for an acoustic piano or a large/expensive digital piano with console. My preference is for a keyboard in the $500 range. It doesn't need to be portable on a daily basis, though it might be nice to carry around a couple of times a year when visiting family or friends.

My main concern is ease of playing due to excessive use of my hands at my job, so I am looking for a light touch that still has some of the feel of an acoustic piano (unlike what I am currently playing).

I was able to try the Yamaha YPG-535 at a local store yesterday. It is listed as "graded soft-touch," but I found anything above C3 to feel exactly like synth-action, while the lower notes did provide some resistance that felt comfortable. Now I've read about the Korg B2N light-touch but cannot find a local store with any floor models (or any Korgs, for that matter). Does anyone know if the Korg light-touch feels like an acoustic piano but just very light (e.g. maybe its low notes feel like an acoustic piano's high notes), or is it more like synth-action?

At the store I did also try several Yamahas (P-125) and Casios, but found the keys to have too much resistance and they were also pretty loud/clunky. The Yamaha keys especially seemed to travel down a great distance, requiring even more movement and strain of the fingers. I thought I liked the Yamaha sound, but after hearing some online demos of the Korg I thought the Korg sounded like the most realistic replication of an acoustic piano.

Extra bells and whistles like 500 sound effects aren't necessary, but I would like a realistic piano sound with very light touch keys. Thank you for any insights and recommendations!

 

[Biggles]

Welcome.

I have tried a B2 but not sure if it was the N version that I tried but I suspect that it was and if I am correct then the N action was very light with very little feel, it felt like a graded synth action, not good. Either way I am not a fan of Korg hammer action keyboards at this price point but others are specifically of the Korg D1

There is a new Korg L1 coming soon which has the same action as the Kronos, not sure of its price point so do checkout the reviews.

I did a trawl of my nearby Music Stores in late 2019 looking for a DP at a reasonable price level.

The Yamaha P series imo did have the best acoustic piano sound when I did the Music Store trawl followed by Roland, Casio and finally Korg.

As for keybed action Roland, Yamaha, Casio and Korg were my preferential order. I went for the Yamaha P series but have recently sold it as I wanted a keyboard with more onboard sounds and one with better organ tones than the Yamaha had.

The criteria of classical music really needs a DP with a keybed like you will find on an acoustic piano and that probably rules out the light touch keybeds hence a compromise is more than likely required.

Now lightweight keybed is a main criteria of yours and if you consider a semi weighted keyboard then for $499 you could checkout a Numa Compact, as it happens I have its slightly bigger brother in the 2X which has drawbar sliders, more controls and more onboard sounds. IMO the piano sounds of these models are every bit as good as the piano sounds on the Yamaha P series that I used to own which btw did not have a noisy action.

 

[anotherscott]

To feel remotely like an acoustic piano, an action needs to have some kind of hammer mechanism, like the Yamaha P-125 you tried, and Casios that start with the PX or CDP designation, or Korg B2. All non-hammer actions (including YPG-535 and B2N) are basically synth-like, but some offer more resistance or weight than others, or as you discovered, may alter that resistance or weight across the key span. There is not really a way to determine whether an action is right for you based on its category or description, there's no shortcut for actually getting your fingers on them and trying them, unfortunately.

 

[anotherscott]

There is a new Korg L1 coming soon which has the same action as the Kronos

More specifically, it is supposed to be the action of the Kronos LS (no other Kronos model uses that action).

 

[CarrieB]

Thanks, everyone. It seems that many people are not big fans of Korg, but the Korg fans really love it. Unfortunately I can't find any stores that have any Korgs to try. The P-125 seemed to sound the same as my 15-year-old PSR-270, but maybe that was just due to being in a loud store and not adjusting the reverb settings, etc. Thank you for the recommendations-- I will look into the Numa.

 

[Biggles]

It is not what we like that matters, it is what suits you.

I for one am a big fan of Korg, just not their choice of keybeds or standard acoustic piano sounds. I much prefer the strings, wind and brass sounds on the Korg models that interest me compared to other brands.

There is one Korg digital piano that possibly could offer more than you currently want and that is their XE20, natural action keybed, it has all their piano sounds and more plus arranger features, the only thing is its cost which is $799?

Good luck