Hi all,
I've been excited to learn the piano my whole life. I'm musically inclined, but somehow I ended up in woodwinds then brass and then stringed and digital instruments, and I never made it to piano.
That is going to change. I can almost feel myself playing... I hear a chord progression with my left and a melody with my right, but I don't have the technical skill to execute it yet. So first things first, I need a piano.
I'd rather get a digital piano for now, but I'm looking for something that feels and sounds the same, but in the sub$300 price range. MIDI or usb would be nice since I do a lot with Live and Reason, but aside from touch, sound, and midi, I really don't care about all the extra features like recording and playback and LCD screens. I just want a 30lb piano.
I've been reading up on reviews, but it seems that most products in this range simply replace realistic feel and sound with dingy features. I could spend $300 on a keyboard that could do my laundry but I'd rather have that price be put towards hammer action.
Do you have any suggestions for a sub$300 digital piano where the price is clearly put towards sound and feel?

Thanks!!! I look forward to being a part of this community as I become better!

Your budget is not realistic. These was only one piano on the market (casio cdp100) that was discounted to $300 and I'm not sure if that deal is still on. Double your budget and several options open up. But with $300 there are between zero and one models available

Now, if you can play on a non-hammer action keyboard there are many, many options for you. I think the best one for you might be the Yamaha NP-30. Good sound and "graded" touch but no hammers at that price point.

http://www.yamaha.com/yamahavgn/CDA/ContentDetail/ModelSeriesDetail.html?CNTID=555809

Well that's at least good to hear. I was under the impression that manufacturers were putting money into silly consumer-friendly features instead of hammer action and that somewhere, SOMEWHERE, a company decided to spend their R&D money smartly. But I guess not.

Thanks a bunch for your suggestion.
If you come across where the casio is discounted, let me know. I see $350 on amazon, etc. Unfortunately, that $50 makes a difference since it's for a christmas present (you know, one of those choose your own gift things).
I'll look into the yamaha, despite my personal aversion to them for other instruments. :p

How far off is the
from the feel of a real piano -slash- hammer action digital piano?


I guess I should also ask for a suggestion for the cheapest (regardless of price) good sound/feel d.p. where the money is -clearly- put towards sound/feel. If there is one that's clearly better than the yamaha/casio, I might just buy it myself ($300 christmas discount)

True "digital Pianos" with weighted hammer action keys Start at about $500 and so up to about 10 times that prices But you really can get top of the line performance for about $2,500 and very, good performance for about $1K

In the Yamaha line the lowest priced hammer action unit is the P85.

The P155 costs more but has better key action and better samples. But as you see here each increment of performance about doubles the price. The P85 is close to $500 the P155 close to $1,000. the really nice Roland FP7 and RD700 with their very nice key actions sell for about $2,000+

As a rules Casio cost the least, Roland the most, Yamaha somewhat between.

Also there are "stage" type pianos and "home" kind. The can sound and feel identical but look different. The Home pianos are in cases that look like acoustic console pianos and have simulated wood color. The stage ones will be black platic or metal and portable. With equal "insides" you pay quite a bit more for the home type than the stage type but you do tend to get larger speakers on the non-portables

*cough*

What is Yamaha's equivalent to the Roland RD700-GX?

I mean in terms of price.

Yamaha's equivalent to the RD-700GX appears to be the CP-300, which is actually a bit less expensive, and has terrific built in speakers.

I tried both and bought the Yamaha. Better all around, in my opinion.

Snazzy

snazzy, it looks so. I haven't paid attention to the CP-300 before. In Europe these DPs have about the same price.

ahh! fine. I'll learn on a cheap one.

Thanks all, for your help!