New Yammy weighted action board

[jeffl]

Best Buy has a Yammy DGX505, weighted action, midi capable, 88 key piano. Anybody played it much...? At $569.00, it seems like an economical, portable board, for jammin'. the piano voices were great, but it lacks decent organ voices. At least, with midi, the voicing isn't as critical, since you can mod it.

[doc williamson]

Bubba, the DGX line of Yamhas is very good for what it is and that is in the entry level keyboard class. I had a DGX 202 and recently sold it. I thought it had great sounds until I got it home and really played with it. I played a 505 two months ago and the one I played didn't have weighted action. The fluff they put on the keyboards like rhythm arrangements, chord fills and the damn transpose button just irk me. If you found a Yamaha you like at that price please buy it and use it to jam with and leave your 250 in the living room.

[jeffl]

Doc: the one I played at Best Buy had a few letters after the 505, but I didn't write those down, so they may still make a 505 without weighted action. For $600, I might be better off lookin' for a used board of better quality. I can't put the 505 in my livin' room, next to the big Yammy, cuz its brushed aluminum and light colored stain won't pass the "Decor Police". Dark Mahogany and black plastic are on the "approved list". It looks to me like Yamaha spent all their money on the weighted action, and are relying on the midi- feature to hook buyers.

[doc williamson]

>For $600, I might be better off lookin' for a used board of better quality.

I KNOW you would be better off with a great used keyboard rather than a new 505. The Yamaha P80s are going on eBay for a little more than $600. I sold mine with case and stand for $725. If I had known I would have sold it to you for $600 (it's a brotherhood thing). The advantage of the P80 is its portability, piano and EP sounds and the same Yamaha feel you get with your 250. You are a PIANO PLAYER, correct? Yes, I want a great B3 sound too but you already know you can't beat Yamaha's piano, feel and soul. It's a trade off.


>I can't put the 505 in my livin' room, next to the big Yammy, cuz its brushed aluminum and >light colored stain won't pass the "Decor Police". Dark Mahogany and black plastic are on the >"approved list".

GREAT NEWS!!! The P80 is ALMOST all black. There are several white keys on the keyboard but perhaps a trip to Home Depot for black spray paint could remedy that problem

[doc williamson]

Bubba, a good blues piano player I know had been raving to me about the Korg Previa with weighted action and 88 notes and weighs about 20 pounds. There are three models starting at $500 at Guitar Center. I spent two hours there playing them all about a month ago. They aren't as good as Yamahas or Rolands but they are very good and portable. About three weeks ago I was talking with a good friend who plays jazz and blues and plays circles around me. He told me he was going to get one at Sam Ash for $600. It is the second model up. I called my friends at Guitar Center and was able to get him the same model for something like $525 out the door. He loves it and it would fit in with your decor and I know you know how to dicker.

http://www.DocWilliamson.com

[jeffl]

I trust your ear, Doc, but I have bought Yamahas that were worse values than other boards in the past, cuz I wuz too picky about the piano samples. Having said that, portability is one of the trade-offs I might be willing to sacrifice quality of sound for. Unless my wife's new business starts makin' money quicker though, I will be living with my current rigs for a while. I'm even waitin' to buy a Holmes Commander harp pre-amp, cuz I'm feelin' so broke (I got two sons in college). Pity me, Doc. Send me one of your old boards, freight COD-- C'mon,C'mon.

[doc williamson]

>I trust your ear, Doc, but I have bought Yamahas that were
>worse values than other boards in the past, cuz I wuz too
>picky about the piano samples. Having said that, portability
>is one of the trade-offs I might be willing to sacrifice
>quality of sound for.

That IS the trade off.

>Unless my wife's new business starts
>makin' money quicker though, I will be living with my
>current rigs for a while. I'm even waitin' to buy a Holmes
>Commander harp pre-amp, cuz I'm feelin' so broke (I got two
>sons in college). Pity me, Doc. Send me one of your old
>boards, freight COD-- C'mon,C'mon.

Bubba, I am here to help you. The only keyboard I have now is the P-120 and it gives me everything I need. I do have a vintage 1970 or so Hohner Melodica I will give you. You might want to get a new mouth piece though. OR, since money is a little tight for you (it is with me too but I don't have two sons in college, I have a dog instead). My feeling is you can always get more money but you can't always find the same stuff you love for sale. I will send you $100 for your old Wurly for packing and shipping. Bubba, just take it to a "We Pack and Ship" place. I'll send you $100 now by PayPal or if you like a check. I am one of the few relics that feels confident enough to get it up and running again. I'll send you more money after I see it and if I feel I can do something with it. Does it have the black plastic top or is it the older model with the metal top?

http://www.DocWilliamson.com

[jeffl]

[updated:LAST EDITED ON Apr-05-05 AT 07:03 AM (EST)]Doc: I gotta do some yard work Thursday, so I'll get it out of the shed and pop the cover offa it, to see if it's OK to fire it up. I haven't even looked at it in prob'ly 7 years. I've had about 3 of 'em, and I'm pretty sure the one I've got now is a B, with the plastic top. If it's too much of a POS, I'll tell ya' right away- like I said, I know a tech up here, and I played with him Saturday nite... I wouldn't be surprised, if it's not too bad, if he'd get the thing up & runnin' for nothin; then, if you want it, you can have it. I can ship it right outa our freight dept. at work. I'll let you know soon.

[doc williamson]

Thanks Bubba. I look forward to hearing from you about it.

http://www.DocWilliamson.com

[ricochet]

Thank goodness the "Decor Police" in my house actually LIKE the looks of the old Hammond I bought. Looks in the picture like an H-182 "Italian Provincial" in walnut, with a fair bit of playing wear. Reckon I'll find out Saturday.

"A cheerful heart is good medicine."

[jeffl]

>Thank goodness the "Decor Police" in my house actually LIKE
>the looks of the old Hammond I bought. Looks in the picture
>like an H-182 "Italian Provincial" in walnut, with a fair
>bit of playing wear. Reckon I'll find out Saturday.
>
>"A cheerful heart is good medicine."
I had a "police" escort anytime I went out to shop seriously for a console digital for my house; my wife's great eye wound up costin' her about 5 grand, in a grand sort of way, so it worked out. I didn't mind spending the money at the time, and I've been very thankful for it during the last 7-8 years.

[snakehips]

[updated:LAST EDITED ON Apr-15-05 AT 04:36 PM (EST)]Hi there !

My trusted 88's is a huge and heavy Yamaha P200 stage piano
I got it around about 1999. It is a fantastic e.piano
The Hammond sound is rubbish though.

It has twin 30watt stereo amps and speakers - so is handy at monitoring myself at quieter type gigs. Unfortunately, the amps+speakers don't half increase the weight of the whole thing.

I have been looking for a decent replacemnt since then. I have still not found a replacemnt as good or better, that is in the more compact form (without speakers - or at least tiny ones).
Non of the Rolands and Yamahas I have tried have as good a piano sound. I didn't even like the successors to the P200 - is that the P250 ?)

The lowest and highest notes, for me, is where most e. pianos let themselves down. Often, e.pianos sound very middly/honky in the middle and bass regions. My P200 beats them all at this.

Anyone know of any brand new good ones come out ?

I would love to have one permanently at home (eg. my current P200) and use a good more compact 88 for gigging.
After a gig, all the gear gets shoved in my spare room in a pile (Iplay guitars too, plus PA equipment etc etc)

It can be weeks before I get round to getting the piano out of its huge case and set it up, to be ready to play it at whenever the mood takes me - as a result, I tend to get very rusty between gigs and just do not play ofen enough. I need a keyboard for home and one for in its case, for gigging with !

Any suggestions on brand new models ??

[jeffl]

[updated:LAST EDITED ON Apr-15-05 AT 04:56 PM (EST)]I haven't shopped home pianos for 5 or 6 years, but when I did, I shopped Yamaha,Kurzweil, and Baldwin. I haven't kept up on the techno advances in the meantime, but one of my buddies bought a big Yammy for his livin' room, and the sampling technology on his one yr. old rig is the same as my older one, which I'm happy with. I was really impressed with the various cabinet choices that Baldwin offered at the time, even going so far as to offer real or simulated wood, and different epoxy finishes for the glossy look. I played 'em, but the prices were outrageous (for my budget), pushing up and over ten grand. Purchasing a nice digital piano in a furniture style cabinet was one of the best purchases I've ever made,though, and has inspired me to sit down at it any time of day or night, leading to much better chops. Don't put it off any longer than you have to; it's one of the best things you can do for yourself.(Oh,BTW, the Yammy 880 that I settled on only weighs about 125 lbs., so, it's technically portable, with two guys, for that occasional gig where you might want a console in front of you (for tip jars,drinks,harps,etc.)

[doc williamson]

Snakehips ~ I owned the Yamaha P-80 and the Roland RD-170. Both are professional, road worthy instruments. The P-80, 200 and 250 have Yamaha's old technology. The newer P-90 and P-120 have about the same piano sounds but a much better B3 sound, still not dead on but very passable. I get a good B3 sound with Reverb set to HALL and effects to DELAY. I do like the fact the "Leslie" speeds up and slows down when you hit the VARIATION button. I own the P-120 with the built in speakers and love it. The 90 and 120 are supposed to be identical but with the 120 having built in speakers. I could tell a difference in sound and bought the 120. I run it through a 600 watt Crown amp and Alesis mixer.

The Roland RD-170 has a softer action and brighter pianos. Very good B3s and stretch tuning which is a great feature I wish Yamaha had. It keeps all the notes in tune from the lowest to the highest note. It works for solo playing but will not work well in a band situation. I hope this is helpful to you.

http://www.DocWilliamson.com

[snakehips]

Hi again !

I've always preferred my P200 to any later ones.
The P250 was the best in comparison - but I didn't like what they did to the piano sound.

I find a good test for an e.piano is the very high and very low notes. Then play some stuff in the middle.

I find a lot of the keyboards are very "honky" in the middle and very(cow)bell like in the bass notes !
Many keyboards wimp out on the high notes (volume-wise) and/or have way too much reverb. For higher octave fast triplets during a boogie - many keyboards just wimp out or are swamped in reverb.
I used to have a Technics P30 keyboard - that really wimped out on the high notes !


My P200 avoids all that the best. I really want a more transportable keyboard though - on-board speakers not entirely crucial. The P120 and 80's are just no where near as good.

I await a keyboard at least as good as mine - but hope for even better than mine - only then will I part with money.

Can you not get a P120 shell with P200 sounds on it ? Custom order ?

I just tried out some keyboards again at the weekend - oohhh - what a terrible event that was. The one shop in my home town that can have a fair selection of e.pianos was cringeworthy !
The old guy that pounced on me to see what the hell I was doing, to dare enter his store, was a nightmare ! I told him I'd like to find out about the Yamaha keyboards he had. I explained that I had the P200 and was out to find an upgrade replacement - if I could find one as good as or better. He took me to a P60 (I think it was ?)
I asked - could I not try out that P120 over there ! He said to hang on a minute - he wanted to show me this one !!! We eventually got over to the P120 !

I nearly had to push him out of the way to stop him playing it, so I could try it out !
I asked him if I could get it plugged through a keyboard amp to see what it sounded like through that - as I expected the sound through the small internal speakers would be different than how it would be playing it (plugged in) for gigs. He moaned and argued with me for 5 minutes that I didn't need to test that out. I should have left there and then - but I didn't want to put the old guy down.

Sheeeeeeezzzzeee !!!!!!!!!!!!

Same thing the last time I went to that shop, years ago - I just stay away from that shop usually ! I just thought I'd see if it had changed for the better !