Hello to all

[MacBean]

Hello All

I am a vocalist/drummer who is wanting to learn to play rock keyboards, no classical, no jazz, at least not for now.

Currently I play drums, and sing, in a classic rock weekend band that does 80's and 90's as well as new tunes.

I have some good ideas for some original music, but I need some melody....LOL.

I play a (very) little guitar, but since keyboards are a percussion instrument, I thought that I would give it a go, and see if it works for me.

My goal is to write some music for a lot of lyrics that I have, and I have just gotten a brand new imac, and there appears to be tutorials on the Garageband program that offer beginner lessons.

I would like to get a decent keyboard rig that would fit here on my desk, and I am thinking that a 61 key keyboard would be a good start.

It seems to be that I need to get a keyboard that has USB capability, but the ones that I have seen are only controllers.

In a perfect world, I would like to get a rig that I could also plug into my monitor system and produce sounds from the keyboard itself.

So, what I am looking for is onboard sounds (Not with the little speakers on them....lol) and the ability to sync up to my imac so as I can learn on my computer and still have the option of taking my rig to a potential jam, or even private lessons.

I was hoping for a budget of less than $200.00 if at all possible, and I can pick up a stand later.

In all actuality if I could find a 88 note keyboard, I could simply put it off to the side of the computer as well.

If anyone would like to help a rookie out in making an informed decision, it would be greatly appreciated.

If my budget is too small please advise......nicely.....ha ha ha.

Thanks

Bean

 

[b3maniac]

Welcome to the Forum Bean.
I write songs myself, and one of my creative partners is trained as a percusionist.
That said, your fastest approach to creating new songs might be to find the right
player to team-up with.
$200 won't get you much in the way of a keyboard, unless maybe you're intersted in finding an old upright piano? That would be good enough to use to take lessons and learn to play.
B3

 

[MacBean]

Thanks B3Maniac.

I guess that I have been looking at the wrong online keyboards.....lol.

What would you recommend?

 

[Sargas]

I actually think you could get a decent beginner-keyboard for $200. My mind instantly crossed the Yamaha PSR series, so I did a little research, and found these:

Yamaha PSRE223 from zZounds.com!
Yamaha PSRE323 from zZounds.com!
Yamaha PSRE413 from zZounds.com!
(the last one being slightly above the budget, though)

And that was just a quite quick search for something that I already knew a little bit about. You could probably find a Casio for that price as well (just search for Casio on that site, I did that too and found quite a few).

And Welcome to the boards! Enjoy your stay, and happy hunting

 

[MacBean]

Thanks to all that replied, I truly appreciate you taking tome out to respond. I have decided to go with the M-Audio keyboard, 61 note version, that I ordered at Guitar Center.

For $169.00 it will get me started, will sync up effortlessly with the imac, and from what I have been told, it is considerably quiet, for when I am practicing at night.

I know it may be a long road, but my only interest is to write some quality Rock and Pop songs for now, to match up with my lyrics.

If anyone has knowledge of a DVD or learning series that will put me on the fast track, I would appreciate that feedback as well.

Thanks again!!!

 

[jonijoni1]

See that you got one, but here is my post for anyone else looking....

I have a Casio WK-200, bought for under $200. Has 500-+ tones, 77 key, touch sensitive, can plug in standard perfomaing microphone (kind you could use to play out), sampling capabilities, adn ability to record and save 2,000 note song(s). I know Casio isn't the fave brand among the better keyboardists here probably, but this thing really sounds great. I can layer, split the keayboard (one instrument on the left half, another on the right half). Can play between 12 and 24 keys at one time. (Doesn't cut you off when you try to play say 5 keys at the same time. Again, I know those on here who have been really into this for a long time probably have better brands in mind, but for my purposes (same thing you are going), this is great for me. Sounds terrific through a full size amp too. Most of the notes are labeled above them, so you know what key or note you are playing in (for beginner pianists). It also has on-board lessons for beginning players, that guide you on-screen with fingering, etc. USB capability, and I just downloaded some free open software (free, kinda like Open Office is free) to record music and edit on the computer. Download successful with no viruses, and now getting ready to try this software out.

I have been playing piano ( and a little guitar as well, and singing) for decades. I wanted to try a less-expensive model to start out that would not cost me an arm and a leg, and try to get through all the features on this, before saving to invest in something "grand".

For a beginner to moderate, this cannot be beat, in my opinion. I would not be ashamed to fully "Play Out" with this.

I got mine at Best Buy, came with a collapsable stand that is pretty sturdy. You can get them online for like $169, through Best Buy or Amazon.

I also bought a good sustain pedal for it online, for about $20. Decent microphone (plugs in also) and mike stand for about $20 each. It's a real nice setup to start out, in my opinion. Oh---- it will also harmonize chords for what you are writing melody-wise. Pretty cool! The next step up is the WK-500, which actually has a plug-in for a memory card, so you can record on memory card and then plug into computer. Not neccesary as far as I am concerned, if I can just plug into my PC via USB on mine.


check out these links (amazon and best buy), these are both $199 for this, but I bet you can find even cheaper locally.
http://www.amazon.com/s/?ie=UTF8&keywords=casio+wk+200&tag=googhydr-20&index=aps&hvadid=1140472601&ref=pd_sl_13t9oi9o7e_e



http://www.bestbuy.com/site/olspage.jsp;jsessionid=B5E9C6ABBEE56E530BA0F819784F76DD.bbolsp-app06-03?_dyncharset=ISO-8859-1&_dynSessConf=1550340454309749057&id=pcat17071&type=page&st=casio+wk-200+keyboard&sc=Global&cp=1&nrp=15&sp=&qp=&list=n&iht=y&usc=All+Categories&ks=960

 

[MacBean]

Thanks JoniJoni1 for the suggestion. The guys at GC are suggesting that I go all controller and use my laptop for all my sounds. They have suggested the M-Audio keystation 88 to compliment the keystation 61 which is also just a controller.

Apparently many people are doing this, and the "pros" appear to be using macbook pro laptops.

I have a fast PC laptop so maybe I could give that a go....????

However, this Casio WK-200 looks pretty cool.

Thanks!

Now come the lessons.... ha ha ha!

Any ideas on some cool DVD's that would keep my interest high?

What is the best magazine for the beginning keyboard player?

 

[jonijoni1]

Hi again MacBean!! What you described sounds SOOO cool!! are you saying you just actualy "play" the computer keyboard, or do you have hardware that mimics a piano keyboard? You know, I have NO idea what is out there now for online or DVD- based lessons, as back when I started playing the piano over 30 years ago as a tot, we did not have anything like that. LOL I had to go with my granny to a lady's house and get the riot act read if I hadn't practiced up!!

I woudl highly suggest getting a 8.5X11 laminated card with all the chords on it. That would make it easier for you to write songs and actually rememebr them, but jotting down the chords. These are the same type they sell for guitar players, and you can find them for a couple bucks in any music store. They also have wall poster size. They sure come in handy, and I bet would really accelerate whatever you do so far as getting a start. I still have to refer to them sometimes.

I am having one hell of a time trying to get my PC to read the format my keyboard communicates the music with into the computer. I am trying all kinds of software and can't quite get what I am needing. Pain in the butt! I may just have to get the 4-track recorder out and go that way for now. Something like you suggested, that directly plays into the computer, sounds great. I am going to have to investigate....

Take care and let me know how it goes!
Joni