Which Keyboard?

[james]

Hiya,

I guess you must get a lot of these posts, so I really appreciate any help! I'm torn between two different keyboards - the Korg SP250 and the Yamaha YDP-140 (which seems more of digital piano). Can anyone recommend one over the other?

The piano sound quality and weighted keys are most important to me. I'm not particularly bothered with having a huge range of voices or built in arranging/mixing.

Many thanks for any comments! Also please do let me know if there's another keyboard I've missed - £450 - £500 is my limit.

 

[evergreenthompson]

Welcome to the forums!

From the descriptions available on GC's (Guitar Center) web site, it appears the Korg has the same keybed my keyboard (M50-88) has, so my guess is that the keybed on the Yamaha will feel a little bit better.

As for sound quality of piano voices, I understand historically Yamaha has been among the best, while Korg seems to have recently closed the gap considerably.

I'm not quite sure what the current currency conversion is, but if you haven't already you may want to check out both Yamaha and Korg's web sites for a complete look at their piano keyboards. For example, you might find you like Yamaha's YPG-635 better.

If you can, visit your local music shop for the best comparison.

Good luck, and let us know what you find!

 

[Keys]

At your price level maybe even a DGX would work. Maybe a 620? Forgive me if the price disparity is too vast.

 

[Keys]

Welcome to the forums!

From the descriptions available on GC's (Guitar Center) web site, it appears the Korg has the same keybed my keyboard (M50-88) has, so my guess is that the keybed on the Yamaha will feel a little bit better.

Good luck, and let us know what you find!

Does that mean that the m50-88 has a poor touch? I understand that the 73 has Korg's "Natural Touch" keybed, which is unweighted, but I've heard mixed opinions as to its response. Some people say that it's crisp and responsive, needing a little adjustment for those accustomed to heavy keys, (as I am), but still others say that it feels cheap and plasticky. Have you managed to get your hands on one? What is your opinion?

 

[kanthos]

I wasn't crazy about the touch of the M50-61; it felt like they tried to give it a semi-weighted feel without trying to add any extra weight to the keys, so that the unit would still be cheap. I'm spoiled with my Nord Stage 73 though, so I'm somewhat picky about semi-weighted keys. I'd have learned to live with it if I'd have bought it though.

 

[evergreenthompson]

Does that mean that the m50-88 has a poor touch? I understand that the 73 has Korg's "Natural Touch" keybed, which is unweighted, but I've heard mixed opinions as to its response. Some people say that it's crisp and responsive, needing a little adjustment for those accustomed to heavy keys, (as I am), but still others say that it feels cheap and plasticky. Have you managed to get your hands on one? What is your opinion?

I'm not an expert at keyboard feel by any means, but to me the M50-61 felt like an organ, and a M50-88 like a piano.

I wouldn't say the M50-88 has a poor touch. It's more that when you've got the volume turned down you can hear the hammers inside as you play. It's been awhile since I've played a piano, so I can't really comment on how loud a piano's hammers are compared to the M50-88's.

The Yamaha 88-key keyboards I tried did feel a little bit better than Korg's, and there was a little bit of hammer noise on some. But it's hard to gauge how loud hammers (or whatever else used instead to replicate piano feel) are in a store.

 

[kanthos]

Other than personal annoyance, hammer noise only really matters if you're in the studio and recording with mics for some reason. If you're playing live in a band, no one's going to hear your hammer noise.

Also, the M50-61 is definitely not an organ. Yes, it's semi-weighted (as opposed to weighted or synth action), but it's a *very* different semi-weighted feel from an organ.