HI everyone,
I know this topic has been discussed a lot but I don't seem to see brands like General Music and Viscount being mentioned in the discussion. FOr some reason I have a mind block against Eastern Brands like Yamaha & Suzuki. Maybe it has to do with the fact that I have played a Yamaha and a Samick Acoustic and was totally unimpressed with the sound quality. THey just sounded so dull. I own a Baldwin Acoustic and think that it sounds really good and haven't had any trouble with it. BUt don't have any tuners in the area so am wanting to buy a digital. I want something which sounds as close to a real piano as possible with heavy key actions. Have done a little research and had thought of the GEM RP220. BUt since I don't see this company being mentioned anywhere in these forums I am having doubts... Any suggestions????

I don't know that much about the consumer digital market. But if I were buying a digital for the home, I'd look for a company that has a strong history in both consumer and professional markets. General Music does make some pro gear, but it seems to much more popular in Europe. I have very little first hand experience with them. Viscount and Suzuki are virtual no-shows in the professional realm. I'd recommend looking at keyboards from companies like Roland (my favorite at the moment), Yamaha, Korg and Kurzweil. One more thing, since a digital piano's sound is derived from a "sample" (recording) of an actual acoustic instrument, I wouldn't get too hung up on the brand name. Most digitals have enough variety to give you whatever kind of sound you want (warm vs. bright, etc.). I suspect that companies like Yamaha would sample their own pianos. Even the digital Yamahas have a reputation for brightness. I'm not sure about Kurzweil as it was making professional keyboards long before the Young Chang days. I'd say pick whatever feels and sounds good to you and go with it.

Thank you SteveY for the advice. I will certainly think about this.
Another question please... Which Roland would you recommend. I want something with 128 keys polyphony, good sound, touch sensitivity, built in speakers, cabinet and ofcourse a few sounds and controls like transpose, metronome, etc. For that matter which brand would you recommend ? I was going thru the Roland Website and got extremely confused as to which model is better? I was looking at KR577 & HP557R, but again don't know which will be better....
Also another thing that I didn't understand was the metronome in the roland KR 577 has 11 patterns and 8 sounds. What is that supposed to mean? again...
Can anybody please tell me what escapement means?

Thanks.
Payal

I'm not familiar with those specific models as they are in what Roland calls their "Contemporary Keyboard" division (keyboards for the home). They have many of the same sounds as the professional keyboards that I'm familiar with, but have all sorts of different features such as built-in speakers, etc. I'd encourage you to visit a Roland dealer that has both in stock. Pick the one you like best -- not necessarily the one with the most features.

well if you go by price then the kr577 is the better than the hp557. i had a chance to play them both they feel the same. as far as the metronome sounds things go, rather than having just the normal ticking we are used to it lets you select other sounds like clapping hands, or the sound of a dog barking(which in my opinion is annoying) i think these are features more for childrens entertainment.

I know what you mean.. I would hate to play to the beats of a dog barking... that sounds very annoying.. Infact I have pet who is always there in the room ( one of my ardent fans ) and even his breathing (which is rather loud as he is an English bulldog) irritates me..

I'm certainly no expert in this field but I did just buy a digital last week and settled on the Kawai Concert Performer 150. The Roland KR-577 was my second choice and I just liked the sound on the Kawai a little better. This may or may not be something you're interested in but on both of these models you program your own presets for sounds and if you want to change voices in the middle of a piece you can do so quite easily. Kawai's are also made here in the states.

Congratulations!

What about the action, does it feel like a real piano?

Thanks German. Yes I like the feel of it very much. It has the weighted, wooden keys so it does have a "real" piano feel. But as you know the touch on real pianos varies a great deal so if you play on a particular piano all the time you might or might not like the feel. If you're used to several different "real" touches you probably won't notice any difference quite as much.