No comments about Yamaha YPT310 61 Touch Sensitive Keys Full-Size Keyboard.

2 comments about M-Audio KeyRig 49-key USB MIDI keyboard.

1. This is exactly the keyboard you need if have a computer that does it all. This keyboad is compact, well made, and has all the features you need for simple MIDI entry. I don't recommend it for performance, though - not at all rugged. Great for Apple-based studio (or Wintel).



2. This keyboard is perfect for basic MIDI entry, which is all I need - it's compact, light, portable, and USB powered. The only problem is, there is no gig bag that I can find that fits a keyboard like this. All gig bags are 14 to 15 inches deep and 5 inches high, while the keyboard is only 8 inches deep and 3 inches high. The box that it came in has a plastic handle, but who wants to use a cardboard box as the carrying case? I ended up getting the Musicians Gear 49-Key Keyboard Gig Bag, but the keyboard swims in it. I would love to know if there were a compact gig bag that fit this keyboard.

5 comments about M-Audio AXIOM 49 Advanced 49-Key Semi-Weighted USB MIDI Controller.

1. The M-Audio Axiom 49-key MIDI keyboard is a great device for someone looking to learn piano or keyboard. 49-keys is probably the minimum amount I'd recommend for learning keyboard/piano because any less would cause some problems going up and down octaves. If you've never heard of a MIDI keyboard before, it is powered and hooked up to your computer via USB. A program is then ran on your computer that lets you record and edit the audio. The Axiom has 8 drum pads, which are great for saved beats and a TON of customizable knobs and sliders. It is very simple to use, although many of the programs can be confusing. Overall I would recommend the Axiom if you are looking for a cheap MIDI input for your computer or you are looking to learn the piano or keyboard.



2. i am an equipment junkie and i end up owning a lot of keyboards. i have a fatar weighted controller. roland d-50, a roland a-20 that i bought on e-bay. this keyboard is nice to play. i use it for recording on sonar with reason as a soft synth. i am not very skilled using all the controls but it just plays well. i tried a smaller keyboard who can play piano on just 24 keys? i can't. you need some room to move. this keyboard lets you play.



3. I've had this for about three weeks now and I am very happy with it. I am using it with GarageBand and it works seemlessly with that program. The weighted keys are nice to the touch although they obviously don't feel like a real piano. The drum pads are a nice addition as well. The touch sensitivity works well also and is adjustable according to your style of play.
   
   My only compliant is that it looks like it would take a long time to program the controllers (knobs and presets) on this keyboard to work with the software program you are using. I haven't tried it yet becuase when i read through the manual i immediately thought (well i don't have time to go through all of this right now" It may be me, but I wish this process were easier.
   
   I would say this is a quality product for the price and seems like it has the potential to be used for more advanced settings if you get to that level.



4. GREAT PRODUCT!!!!!!! I can not say any more. The only downside is it is kind of heavy, but other than that, GREAT! The user manual could be a little easier to use as well.



5. The keyboard died after 1 year of very very VERY light use. It is my second M-Audio keyboard that let me down. I do not buy keyboards from m-audio anymore. If one needs disposable keyboard, there are cheaper alternatives.

5 comments about M-Audio PROKEYS 88SX 88-Key Lightweight Stage Piano with Semi-Weighted Action.

1. I bought this thing for two reasons: to teach myself to play piano (despite 20 years grounding in music theory and various instruments, I've never sat down and learned the instrument), and to help with my computer compositions using things like Garritan Personal Orchestra. As a piano for a beginner, it seems great. I have it hooked up to a computer speaker since I'm not terribly worried about stage quality sound while I'm plinking away at Canon in D, but even so the samples all sound great to me. As far as its functions as a MIDI controller, I can't speak to the advanced functions yet since I haven't learned how to use them. The basic function--that of inputting notes into Finale or whatever program you use--works great, and will greatly speed up your note entry. The included pedal is a nice touch, although put something hard underneath it (like a book) if you're using it on carpet.
   The only thing that irked me was the 1/4" jacks for audio, necessitating a trip to Radio Shack to purchase a suitable connector.
   All in all, well worth the price. I'd buy it again any day.



2. I researched and was impressed with the great reviews of this piano. Reviewers noted that it didn't come with speakers and that you'd have to get those. I didn't think it would be an issue as I have a few sets of speakers we use with laptops, etc. The problem is that the piano input jack for speakers is 1/4" and most of the remote electronic speakers use a smaller jack. I wound up giving my 7-year old a piano she couldn't hear for her birthday (NOT a good Dad move). I wound up going to a local music store and buying a keyboard amplifier for about $150. With that, everything is fantastic. My daughter is taking lessons and the teacher has commented on how nice the keyboard is. It has the important features like full keyboard and weighted keys. I recommend the keyboard, but know what you're getting into with the need for speakers!



3. I'm using this piano for two purposes -- regular old playing and also as a midi controller for use with Propellerhead Reason 4.0.
   
   As a piano, it's a good full-sized keyboard for the price. It's a light unit (17 lbs) which is good for convenience sake, but sometimes it's nice to have something a little more substantial. The action on the keys is fine -- it's not like a real piano but for 300 something dollars, it's not bad. The action on this piano is lighter (keys push down more easily) than on some of the other M-audio keyboards I've tried, btw.
   
   As some reviewers have noted, in order to hear the piano, you'll need to buy either a pair of headphones with a 1/4" jack or external speakers.
   
   I'm using this keyboard as a midi controller with Reason, and it's worked perfectly well. The software and drivers are easy to install, and it's really just plug & play. Very simple.
   
   One last thing, this unit comes with a sustain pedal, so don't make the mistake I did and order a sustain pedal, b/c you'll just end up returning it. You should, however, probably buy a keyboard stand (I bought the World Tour Single X Keyboard Stand which is working great) and music stand.



4. Anyone who purchases a $400 piano expecting it to perform with the touch and sound of a Steinway is terribly naive or bluffing. No electric is fit for playing Liszt, Chopin, or Rachmaninoff--even the fully weighted and graded (heavier touch on bottom, lighter on top) models at ten times the price of this M-Audio. A keyboard like this one is OK for use with computer programs, midi work, and learning something about the lay of the keyboard and how to "flesh out" a lead sheet. You don't require more than 76 keys for jazz and pop music, or 61 for computer programming (88 keys is to impress the consumer). By all means pass up the keyboards with built-in rhythm sections, several hundred instrument sounds, recording capability, pre-installed songs and styles, auto-accompaniment. They're counterproductive. (You may as well play your stereo.)
   
   As for touch, if you're a jobbing musician, you'll soon be all too happy to sacrifice weighted action in favor of the lightest, most decent -sounding keyboard available. Unlike an actual piano, you learn how to let the electrical contacts of the keyboard do the work and to use "finger" technique (instead of deriving power from the weight of the arm and shoulders). Moreover, if you occasionally want to use an organ voice, weighted action will simply drag you down.
   
   For those expressing disappointment: never buy a keyboard without trying it, and don't expect it to sound the same at home as in the store--or on the job as at home. (So much the better if the seller has a return policy.) A previous reviewer is partially right in insisting touch is all that matters--but only because 50% of an electric's tone quality is dependent upon the amp. I've been looking for many years for electric keyboards that come close to delivering what they promise (above all, a musician wants to have a sense of "control" of his instrument at all times), and I can't say we're closer to the goal (Kurzweil was almost there in 1988 with the K1000, but then the company was bought out by Korean giant Young Chang). Just be patient, stay with it, and don't let the "gear" become more important than the music. And bear in mind that electric keyboards are merely a "necessary evil" for us lowly, week-end jobbers. The real pros--from Oscar, Ahmad, and Bill Evans to Jarrett and Mehldau would quit music before playing a concert or even a 30-minute jazz set on an electric.
   
   Warning: Amazon advertises this instrument as being capable of splits and layering. I frankly don't recall it having that capability (check with the manufacturer). Even so, a mere seven instrument sounds would make either feature pointless unless you were midi-ing the keyboard with a another keyboard or an external tone generator. Still, at Amazon's current price, this 20-pound instrument is a useful and affordable controller, computer accessory, and even occasional jobbing ax (e.g. big band dance jobs, where the pianist, at most, gets a couple of Basie fills or Peter Duchin arpeggios).



5. playing this is close to real piano, and price is very reasonable. Sounds it has isn't that great but I should say it's fine unless you get some from other instrument.

5 comments about M-Audio AXIOM 25 Advanced 25-Key Semi-Weighted USB MIDI Controller 9900-51411-10.

1. I just bought this keyboard yesterday. I played around with for about 3 hours last night. So far it's everything I wanted it to be and more. It's one of the few midi keyboards that has trigger pads on it I've seen. The Enigma software from M-Audio is very easy to use. I mainly use Fruity Loops 5 so I have to spend some time to get the settings right. All the keys are very accurate to pressure you hit the keys with. It's very lightweight, maybe about 5 or 6 pounds. A very good buy for the price.



2. Very easy to use, I am doing lots new of things. If you do music or remix with abbleton is great !!!



3. I bought this about a two months back. I've been using it with Reason, Logic and other software programs. They keys are a bit heavy, so they're amazing to touch. The functions on the midi-controller allow you to do anything. It takes some time to get used to all the functions and controls, specially assigning new functions, but once you get used to it, it's a beautiful midi-controller.
   
   It's not as portable as my Edirol PCR-1 but it does the job. I love everything about it and would recommend it to anyone interested in a good, small sized midi-controller.
   
   BTW, REASON 4 will not recognize this keyboard automatically, you'd have to choose yourself from the M-AUDIO choices...



4. Control buttons are difficult to assign and no printed manual. At this point I regret buying this product and will never recommend it.



5. This keyboard works fine for me. I'm not a sound engineer, just a home studio hobbyist. I use Pro Tools LE to do most of my recordings. I also program MIDI parts on that software using the pencil (note by note!). So I decided to get a controller keyboard to facilitate the job. The semi weighted keys let you program different velocities when playing creating a more interesting and human effect (especially on cymbals)
   
   Difficult to program? I don't think so. I downloaded the Enigma software from the M-Audio website and the job was automatically done. Programming keys on a Mac is piece of cake, just drag and drop! BFD can also program the keys in auto mode. Don't be fooled for those who are saying is complicated to assign sound to the keys.
   
   Low price, great specs... it's up to you.

5 comments about Casio PX110 Privia Digital Piano.

1. I took piano (on an upright piano) for about seven years before I went to college. I got this keyboard as a birthday present in February 2007 (I had done the research and found it). It has lived in my college's on-campus apartment since then, and in a storage unit over the summer, and has experienced no problems. In the past year of use, it's been a great tool.
   
   Pros:
   Very nice, sleek look.
   Enough choices to have fun - different tones, recorded songs + songbook, etc - while still "professional".
   Pretty easy to adjust to weighted keys.
   Good sound.
   Comes with a free pedal!
   
   Cons:
   The sound of keys is very apparent while playing. You can solve this by using headphones or turning the sound up a bit.
   A bit weighty - I don't know what keyboardists lug around, but this one's hard to move around casually.
   
   Overall, I'd highly recommend it! A great value for the price.



2. Awesome, pretty close to a piano. We just love it. Great sound and very good looking :D. The price is a +.



3. The keboard plays very much as a piano with much less weight, space, and maintenance. My favorite aspect of the keyboard is touch response, which allows me to create different sounds based on how hard I hit the keys. This feature expands the selection of songs I can play, and improves the quality of my compositions. The multiple tones of the keyboard also allow me to have fun in experimenting with other instrumental sounds aside from the piano.



4. I just started taking piano a few months ago. As an adult learner I didn't want to commit to an upright until I see how successful I am at this new "hobby". This piano is the perfect compromise and I recommend it to anyone.
   Pros:
   It has pressure sensitive keys allow you to play as loudly or softly as you desire.
   It has a volume dial for keeping your practice quiet.
   There is a headphone jack for keeping your lesson completely private.
   88 full size keys as opposed to cheaper toy versions of keyboards make it easy to switch to an upright when you play on your teacher's piano for your lesson.
   It has some measure of portability, so it would be easy to sell on ebay if the time comes as opposed to an upright piano which would be harder to sell.
   
   Cons:
   Even the loudest setting is fairly quiet, so you would need an amplifier to play in public.
   It's a little heavy and cumbersome to take out and about.
   
   Since these are my thoughts as a new piano student, I thought they may be helpful. I often tell my husband that "I love my piano." So I guess that statement speaks for itself.



5. I got this piano for my daughters since they started piano lessons. It sounds and feels like a regular piano. For the price, it is a good buy.

No comments about ROll Up Piano - Yamano Hand ROll Piano - Digital & Portable 61 Keys Roll-Up Piano Electronic MIDI Keyboard with 16 MIDI Output Channels Design by the INVENTOR YAMANO JAPAN - (YAMANO is the ONLY brand Voted as one of "THE MOST AMAZING INVENTIONS" by the editors of Time Magazine).

5 comments about Casio SA75 Keyboard with Headset Microphone.

1. This is a surprisingly nice sounding keyboard, especially for the price. It is compact and light weight. I would like to add that there is a headphone jack on it. The description of it, states it does not have one. Casio must have recently added the headphone jack. Keep in mind, as other reviewers have mentioned, the lowest volume "volume 1" is not all that low. It is of medium volume through the headphones, as well as through the speakers. This is a lovely little keyboard with many features that are usually only found on more expensive models.



2. My wife and I are professional musicians and teachers, so we are quite discerning and expect a lot when it comes to musical instruments, even if they are inexpensive electronic keyboards. Although this keyboard does what it says and basically is as described, there are a few design quirks that could have easily been remedied which would have made this an exceptional keyboard, rather than just a mediocre one.
   
   First--and I think this was mentioned in other reviews--the volume issue is extremely annoying. Even at the lowest setting, it is pretty loud. If you are planning on giving this to a child, watch out! Every time you turn it on, it resets to the loudest volume setting. Our son is two years old, and he's figured out the surest way to annoy us: keep turning the keyboard off and on, which resets the volume to full blast mode. He really enjoys this, of course, but it annoys us to no end. We are mystified as to why Casio didn't design this keyboard to reset a medium volume setting or even the lowest volume. The loud setting is too loud even for us, and we live and breathe music.
   
   Furthermore, every time the keyboard is turned off and on, not only is it super loud, but it resets to a awful-sounding hip-hop version-sounding Beethoven's Ode to Joy. They could have easily designed this to stay on the last song selection. There should be an option to allow people to let it store the last song.
   
   Our last main complaint is that it's not as easy as it should be play the keyboard along with the stored songs. Casio really expects you to only play a melody with the songs, hence the very limited four-voice polyphony (this means that you can only play four notes at once). If you want to play a full chord with a root, third, fifth and seventh (a V7 or MM7 chord, for example) or a 9th chord along with a melody, you are out of luck. It will only let you play four notes at once, so your chords (such as a left hand accompaniment) will be limited to triads. For a little more money, you can purchase a keyboard that has 16-note polyphony, which will allow you to play true accompaniment with melodic lines.
   
   There is no pedal jack, which might not be that big a deal for a beginner, but somewhat limits your learning how to play a keyboard.
   
   Other than the previously mentioned quirks, the keyboard is somewhat well made. There are 100 "tones" (poor-sounding keyboard sounds, such as piano, electric piano, organ, etc.--the Amazon summary says "top notch", but they're not), 30 patterns (rock, swing, samba, waltz, etc.), and 10 songs. This keyboard supposedly allows you to turn off the melody, but apparently, will not allow you to do that with the all of the songs in the sound bank--just a few, such as the Skater's Waltz. When you turn off the melody, you can play along, but otherwise, you can't. This seems silly to us. The quality of the songs themselves is OK at best, as you would expect from a low-end Casio keyboard. (You can play will all of the patterns, however.) If you're expecting a real orchestral or rock band sound, you're in for a surprise. It sounds like a merry go round toy. Our son doesn't know the difference (and many consumers won't care), but we can tell.
   
   The LCD screen is OK, but very tiny, and our guess is that most people will ignore it. The staff that the notes appear on is less than an inch wide, which is NOT at all how musicians read music. They could have easily made the LCD screen 3 times longer so you could see three notes at once, or even a whole phrase. After all, when you start to read real music, you will read off a whole page, not a tiny LCD screen, one note at a time.
   
   It's not all bad: the keyboard includes a headphone jack and the batteries last a long time, which is great.
   
   All in all, if you don't have a child, this keyboard might prove adequate for learning how to play a melody with a pattern or song, but there are certainly other options out there that are a LOT better than this one. If we could do it all over again--and we probably will--we will definitely purchase a different keyboard. As an educational tool, we have to give this "two thumbs down."



3. Bought this for my daughter's 9 th birthday. She absolutely LOVES it! She says she "can rock on like Hannah Montana." The headphone did not last a week, but the keyboard is a wonderful product.



4. Though not a full keyboard, it satified my needs without taking up much space. Tone and quality were quite good.



5. This is a fabulous keyboard--excellent sound, when playing in "piano" mode, it sounds just like an actual piano is playing! It has lots of great extras and a tempo adjuster, we love it. My four star rating is only because it doesn't come with an A/C adapter so you have to buy one separately or use 5 AA batteries, which kind of stinks. Overall though, great product.

5 comments about Yamaha YPT210AD Portable Keyboard with Adapter.

1. We received this as a gift, so I cant comment on price, but my kids love it. They use it everyday. If youre considering buying a real piano, buying this first to see if your kids will use it might be a good idea.



2. It plays good. But, there's no full lenght of songs, only some parts. I've expected more....



3. This Yamaha has great sound and many options. I did not realize it was not a full keyboard so the middle C is not under the first letter of the brand name. I am enjoying playing it.



4. After purchasing, I found this keyboard relatively uncomplicated to use, especially since it lacks the thousands of options that you can get in an advanced workstation or synthesizer. In other words, a great beginner's keyboard which was exactly what I was looking for. Plays with a clear, pure sound and contained enough programmed effects to keep me happy. Perfect for those who are playing for fun, not for an audience. My only complaint is that I thought the Y.E.S. teaching system was pretty worthless, but anyone with some type of musical background should be able to figure out what they are doing after a couple of seconds. Otherwise, you can always invest in some lessons =)



5. I bought this as a gift for a friend. I was very impressed with the quality especially for the price. My friend was really thrilled with it and is enjoying it every day. A very nice keyboard and a fabulous price at Amazon.

5 comments about Yamaha YPT400MS Portable Electronic Keyboard with 61 Full Size Touch Sensitive Keys and Keyboard Stand.

1. The keyboard is just what I wanted. The stand is a dud. It came minus a necessary screw and has a wrong-sized foot bar so is unusable. This is a big inconvenience. I would recommend the keyboard but forget the use of the stand!



2. Not long ago, my venerable Yamaha synthesizer was finally wearing out after many years of faithful service. I needed to find a portable keyboard of the same octave range that had a lot of features for not too much money -- and that had a piano touch rather than an organ touch (like my old keyboard did).
   
   Leave it to Yamaha to live up to its reputation. This keyboard is simply incredible for the retail price (let alone as reduced at the time of sale). It has more bells and whistles (rhythms, instruments, and much more) than I will ever likely use. It can be used profitably by a whole range of musicians, from the beginner to the professional -- and Yamaha's online support (including MIDI tracks, tutorials and much more) is simply top-notch. Do be sure to get a piano pedal with this, though -- you'll need it for sustain effects (whereas my old keyboard simply had a button for those).
   
   I was surprised to get a large folding stand along with the keyboard, as the stand is not described as being part of the package. It's probably a good thing, as this keyboard is sustantially heavier and wider than my old keyboard.



3. I was looking at the Clavinova 409 but it was $10,000+ and the Tyros II and other arrangers seemed too cluttered; Thus, I was happy to find the YPT 400 because it had the Clavinova's easy to use interface and included the styles, voices & song features for about $200. The YPT 400 is also light enough to be carried around in a shoulder bag.
   
   Thus far, I'm playing ryhthm patterns on it and I create them with Overture 4 ([...]) and then download them into my YPT 400; The good news is: I can now count ryhthms subconciously!
   
   Hence, I must say that the onboard metronome is great and it takes little effort to change its tempo and time signature and I use it a lot since I like setting the time signature to 8/4 (for example) when I practice the 8 note patterns in Hanon's exercise book.
   
   The main reason why I got my YPT 400 was to update my S90ES at a very reasonable price and I'll be learning what having a fully featured Clavinova 409 might mean to me.
   
   The only things I would change are: (1) there is no MIDI out port so I'd add a MIDI port; the MIDI driver (for PC) only supports one channel so I'd add support for multiple channels.
   
   But those two things are unimportant in the overall picture since, most importantly, the YPT 400 is an easy to use instrument that has relatively full featured capabilities.



4. I think the piano keyboard will be fine - it will be fun to try to learn to play. However, the description says a stand is included but there was no stand, never mind whether it fit or not. And then navigating the Amazon.com site is fine until you want to contact somebody about a missing part. The packing slip with the order states "This shipment completes your order" so I guess there's no point in watching tomorrows mail. How do I contact Amazon.com?



5. I was very pleased with my purchase, I did receive a stand and the adapter with my keyboard. I found the instructional CD helpful. I am just a beginner, wanting to learn how to play the piano. I learned how to play two songs my first day. I would highly recomend this product!!