Piano World Home Page Forums Our Most Popular Forums Digital Pianos - Electronic Pianos - Synths & Keyboards Kurzweil SPS4-8, How is the Piano action and other questio?

So I don't really see much else that meets my preferences than the Roland SP-50, light, modest in bulk, good speakers (I hope), a reasonably good acoustic/nylon guitar sound, a variety of accompaniments, audio in, a display, lots of other sounds (for fun and preventing me from tiring of playing the same tune over and over again.

But just to be sure there isn't something else out there I am over looking, especially since I have not even heard or played the SP-50 yet, I am revisiting other possibilities.

So, is the action of the Kurzweil SPS4-8 any good?

I find the manual is pretty bad. It has the SP4-7 size and weight measurements, and the info on setting the pedal functions is pretty unintelligible compared to the SP-50. I am wondering what else it does that I am not able to figure out from the manual.

Is there possibly a record function that allows you to replay and maybe play over the recorded performance to make a more complicated piece of music? Or would you need another piece of equipment to record the MIDI out and feed it back in or thru to make a more complex musical piece?

Thanks, Cynthia

I don't think the SPS4-8 includes any "add-ons" such as recording facilities etc. It weighs substantially more than the SP4-7 as it includes speakers and a graded hammer-weighted action of 88 keys, as opposed to no speakers and a light-weighted action of 76 keys. The weights are approximately 41 lbs vs 24 lbs.

I have no experience of the SPS4-8's LK40GH action, but some reports have suggested it is not comparable with the leading actions that are in competing boards. The SP4-7's action is a compromise between what you might need for piano and what's preferable for organ/synth. Some (including me) have experienced a "sticky" action in the SP4-7. It doesn't affect all boards, but it presents as an initial resistance that has to be overcome before the keys can be depressed. It tends to ease with playing and return after a period of non-use.

Kurzweil excels at orchestral sounds. The pianos in these boards were, at one time, class leading; now, they have been somewhat left behind by the competition. That doesn't mean they're bad (they can sound quite good), but just not cutting-edge, if that matters. The EPs are still able to hold their own, and some of the organs are quite authentic.

It doesn't have a top of the line action, but then, neither does the FP-50. It sells for $1199, so it's not priced with top-action boards. In this lower price range, in boards with speakers, some people may prefer Yamaha's GH action (P255) or the current Casio action (PX150/350), but then those boards will lack some of what the Kurzweil offers in quality/variety of sounds or split/layer versatility, whatever... it's always something!