Looking for a Keyboard

[damonwv]

This will be my first key board. I will tell you what I am looking for and my price range.

I want a keyboard that has an LED display that will show what chord I am playing.
It doesnt have to show how to finger the chord, that would be nice, but if it would show what chord I am playing by what keys I have pressed.

Also I want a key board that has many sounds on it, that can record what I play.
Thats about it for the most part. I want to learn how to play piano, and it would be nice if the keys had letters on them so i know what I am pressing but I figure that is what the LED display will help with.

Price range up to about 500 dollars.
I hope there is something out there that can do these things for my price range.

I was at my friends the other night and he had a 2000 + dollar one, that did everything in the world. Thats way out of my league, but I hope I can find something .

Also are these able to be hooked up to my Computer ?

 

[happyrat1]

What you are asking for doesn't exactly exist. There are lower end Casios in the $150 - $250 range that display the notes on the staff which you are playing but no keyboard displays the actual Letter Chord.

Also all modern keyboard displays are LCD not LED.

Anyway, once you hit the $500 price point you are looking at low level professional keyboards and none of these have the feature of displaying a staff or a chord as it is being played.

Offhand I'd say for a beginner you should start off by looking at the lower end Casio CTK models and the lower end Yamaha PSR models.

These both have built in sequencers or recorders and a whole slew of built in accompaniment styles and one finger chords that can make even a total beginner sound pretty good.

If what you want to learn is piano style playing however, then you should be looking at electronic pianos like the Casio Privia series or the Yamaha CP series. That way you will be able to learn proper fingering technique on a weighted keyboard with a proper touch and feel.

The Privia PX-330 is a very nice keyboard but busts your budget by a couple of hundred dollars.

http://www.amazon.com/Casio-PX-330-...ie=UTF8&qid=1351399694&sr=8-1&keywords=px-330

Anyway, my advice to you is, if you are serious about learning to play to get something like the PX-330 and avoid learning a bunch of bad habits playing a cheaper organ style keyboard right from the beginning.

Also as far as having lettering on the keys goes, it's really not necessary. Truth be told there are only 7 different letters in music ranging from A thru G and the way they are laid out on a keyboard they run in sequence from left to right and repeat themselves with each octave. It is trivial to learn which key is which and all you really have to look at and identify any note is the adjacent black key which repeats in a 2-3-2-3 pattern throughout the keyboard.

As far as learning chords goes, pick yourself up a simple chord booklet or a Snarling Dogs Keyboard Chord Computer and you'll be all set.

http://www.musiciansfriend.com/accessories/snarling-dogs-cc-1-keyboard-chord-computer

http://www.amazon.com/Piano-Chord-Dictionary-Handy-Guide/dp/0882841548/ref=pd_sim_sbs_b_3

 

[The Y_man]

CTK-7000 shows the chord you are playing with your left hand (accomp mode on) on LCD - not LED.
It has 800 sounds (can't say I like half of them)
It can record what you play (look for on board sequencers if this is what you want)
Has USB conneciton to computer.

AU$489
http://www.keyboardcorner.com.au/casio-ctk7000/

Sounds like....
https://www.keyboardforums.com/threads/ctk-7000-demo.23543/

The Y-man

 

[damonwv]

I will look at those key boards you posted. As for the chords showing , i dont think I explained too well
My friends keyboard was about a 2000 dollard keyboard. On the screen showed what chord he was playing when he pressed a group of keys. So if hey pushed the keys for a C , in the display it showed Chord : C , if he altered his fingers to new keys, then it would show what new chord he was playing. I will just have to ask him when i get to work today , what the exact model he has so you all know what I am looking for. I just want to display to show me what chord I am playing.

 

[happyrat1]

If your friend's keyboard does in fact have that feature, I doubt that it is really in any way accurate. Generally speaking any combination of three or more notes is a chord. Counting inversions there are literally thousands of named and unnamed chords and in all likelihood your friend's keyboard is "guessing" at a lot of the chord names you throw at it.

The best way to learn your chords is to study and practice them and learn how to derive them yourself. (ie. Maj. = Root + Third + Fifth)

I sincerely doubt that your friend's keyboard is accurately naming every possible chord.

 

[The Y_man]

As I said the CTK-7000 definitely does display this below the "chord" split of the keyboard (I suspect the CTK-6000) does too.

As Happyrat mentioned there is a limit to what it can recognise, namely:

M, m, dim, aug (not all), sus4 (not all), sus2 (not all), 7, m7, M7, m7b5 (not all), 7b5 (not all), 7sus4, add9, madd9, mM7, dim7 (not all), 69 (not all), 6 (not all), m6

The Y-man

 

[damonwv]

thank you for your help. I did talk to him today. He has a Yamaha PSR model. I forget which, but he said it costed him about 2000 dollars a few years ago, but I dont need all the bells and whistles his has on it. I took a look at the PSR models, and the ones you listed. Now I will take some time comparing and decide on which to buy. thanks again.