I want to start taking piano lessons and I want to focus on classical music. I have an old keyboard (with 61 non-weighted keys I believe) at my parents house. Would it be fine to have that shipped out to me and use that for a while or should I just bite the bullet and get a digital piano now? I was thinking about getting the CDP100.

I have a feeling you guys are going to recommend getting a digital piano with weighted keys. If so, can you also recommend a good place to purchase it for cheaper than list?

Thanks!

This question as just asked here recently.

The old keyboard will work OK for the first weeks. But after that get a real piano action keyboard. In the first weeks you will just be learning the notes and which key is "C". The old keyboard might be OK for a month or two.

The CDP100 is the lowest priced digital piano with weighted hammer action. Locally, Guitar Center or Sam Ash will have identical price of about $400. Google might find a better deal. Many times you can get 10% off at Guitar Center by acting like you are short of cash but really want it that day. Also if you look you can find 10% off coupons or on-line coupon codes.

The Casio px130 is a nicer piano for only $100 more and then after that I think you have to double the price to find something a lot better.

Also be sure to get a good stand. It is important to have to keys at about the correct height above the floor and a good bench too with adjustable height. So do pick up a stand and bench. I think Casio makes a custom stand for the PX130.

What makes the px130 better?

It's better in the only twoplaces that count: Sound genateration and key action.

128 v. 32 note polyphony (You will notice it as soon as you start using the damper pedal.) 32 is a very low number

I don't think the CDP uses any velocity layers at all, just one I think. The PX130 has multi-layered samples.

Improved keyboard with 3 sensors.

Other stuff that might not matter to a piano student like
twice as many voises and abilty to control relative volume of layered voices, recording and

PX-130 also has USB port.

It is not uncommon for people to take several yrs. of classical
lessons on an unweighted, 61-key portable keyboard.
All keyboard instruments are played essentially the
same way, and you can learn piano on anything with
piano-style keys: grand piano, upright piano, harpsichord,
clavichord, fortepiano, synth, digital piano, Rhodes piano,
controller keyboard connected to a pc running piano
software, 61-key portable keyboard, etc. In fact, since
the striking bars on a xylophone are laid out the same
as the keys on a piano, a xylophonist can play the piano
without instruction. Then there's that rollout keyboard
on a plastic sheet that people laugh at as a joke, but
I tried one and found it surprisingly effective; you could
learn piano on one of these. I've seen it advertised on
last-nite tv as a piano learning system, which I believe
is entirely viable.

Also, the dropout rate for the piano is high (note that
you apparently played that 61-key portable for a while
and then quit playing), and so it might be better to try
taking lessons on the old 61-key portable to see how
you like it, before springing for a weighted-key digital
piano that may end up gathering dust if you decide
to quit again.

Formal piano lessons are not some kind of magic bullet.
The dropout rate for piano lessons is very high.

I disagree with Gyro. There will be no tactile pleasure whatsoever in playing an unweighted toy, which is what 61 key things feel like. Yes, you could use it to learn some theory but without a realistic piano tone or action I think you are much more likely to quit. Casio PX-130 gets my vote too...great value for money.

Good luck,

Steve

To learn to play the piano, you should practice on a piano, which means 88 weighted keys.

As ChrisA said, at the very beginning you will learn things like notes and which keys they correspond to, not yet the piano technique as such, so a keyboard might be sufficient, e.g. while you wait for delivery of your piano. But I think two months might be a too long period, as until then you would be already practicing real pieces (albeit easy).


Jeff, as a new member you might be not aware of it, but Gyro is on very special rights here


Not only that. An unweighted keyboard gives you insufficient control over your stroke or touch, because the keys yield under a very small (almost zero) force. It may be adequate for certain genres where precision and articulation are not necessarily priorities, but you specifically declare your focus on classical music and in this case a piano is a must (as well as in jazz, for example).

I second that. I bought a Yamaha PSR170 for my daughter a few years ago, but she quickly lost interest. I decided around Labor Day to either get rid of it or play it. I took piano lessons decades ago, played violin, and play guitar, took music theory on a piano in high school, so I know enough basics to get started. I started working on scales, arpeggios, chords, simple tunes I downloaded. When I got the chance to play an acoustic or DP, I had all kinds of problems. Notes didn't sound when I crossed over with the thumb, black keys sounded way too loud in chords because of the height difference, volume uneven all around. Piano is a different beast, if you can play piano, you can play any other keyboard instrument with a little adjustment, but the reverse is not true. The longer you play a keyboard without weighted, touch sensitive keys, the harder it will be to develop any kind of touch on the piano, and worse, you will have to do some unlearning.