anyone have any suggestions on purchasing a digital keyboard or basically anything that is portable, near full length keyboard, weighted keys, synthesizing/effects unnecassary, that i can use to practice on? im completely lost in the wide world of electronic keyboards. again, i dont need anything with doodads or gadgets, just something that is close in length to a piano that i can practice on. thanks much.

Like you, tho, I am in the market for a digital keyboard. After some consideration, I'm targeting the Yamaha P-80. I like the fact that: the keys are weighted, it's portable for a full-size keyboard, it lacks features that are unimportant to me but has a very good piano sound. I already have an acoustic piano, but my decision to obtain a digital is so I can practise at night without interrupting the household and I think the P-80 is a very cost effective solution for me. I spent quite some time reading users' keyboard reviews and comments over at Harmony Central . I found much of the info there to be informative, so I suggest you check it out too. Good luck in your search!

have you considered the Yamaha P200, the p80's big brother -- includes onboard speaker? I like the touch of both, infinitely better than the digitals of a few years back.

Ken

ES-1 or EX-1 Kawai both are good.
Nice action and good sound.

I have a Kawai ESX. I think it blows P-80 out of the water. -Peter

kluurs, the Yamaha P200 is good but I don't need the built-in speakers. I'm planning on using some high-quality open-air headphones during the evening (not sure which model yet, possibly Sennheiser), and plugging the P80 into my home system during the day. I'm thinking almost any stand-alone amplified speaker system will sound better than the P200's built-in system.

I've not tried any of the Kawai models. With the exception of the MP9500, aren't the Kawai digitals 32-note polyphony only? OlderGuy, you sound convinced the ESX is better - can you qualify how exactly it's better than the P-80? I really like the silver finish of the ESX, however:

The ESX has a little bit lighter touch vs P80.
It is personal, but I like the piano sound better too. Altogether, the differences are not that dramatical, I admit. Peter