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Hi all,

I'll be away from home for 2-3 weeks and have been on the lookout for a portable digital piano that I could potentially take along. Ideal would be 88 and weighted keys but the whole purpose is something more portable than my RD-700GX which I'm not going to lug along.

Could anyone recommend some good keyboards to look at probably 61key minimum, and as this is almost only going to be for travel - probably looking for something fairly cheap - around $200AUD ($150USD), although if there's something well worth it for a bit more I'd consider that too.

Separately to this, I'd been looking for a more 'stage' level 88key min digital piano to take for proper gigging (but lighter than the RD-700GX), however not sure I can afford that just at the moment. But with this in mind, if anyone has any suggestions, I'd welcome it.

I guess I'll probably need to get something fairly cheap and nasty (but playable) for now, and wait to get something better.

I'd consider midi controllers only (could connect it to my mainstage)

Cheers

There is a Yamaha NP12B available atm for around $240AUD ($152 USD). is this worth it?

I have an old Novation X-Station 49 I could take as a last resort, but it really doesn't cut it...

I'm not recommending or have used one ... but check out the 'folding dp' ones.

Yeah I did have a look at those actually. Probably as 'cheap and nasty' as it gets (i imagine), but it would defo tick the box for super portable! I did watch a few reviews on these, but like you - haven't used one either.

This is the one I have for "emergency" situations where I have to travel and need to keep a piece of music under my fingers, on a practice piano that fits in my checked luggage:

The sound is bad enough to make you sick of you play it for too long. You have been warned.

Casio CDP-S models are quite cheap and compact but come with 88 keys and hammer action. And compromises of course.

Try CTS1/Go:keys/NP12. I've got a folding Bora BX20 which was reasonably cheap but also feels cheap and I can't recommend it without trying firstly which you probably can't

Casio CT-S1 , but be sure to set the touch to Heavy and save it that way.

If OP is to bring the piano as a carry-on and travel by air, I would strongly suggest to either make sure it can safely be stored in the overhead compartment, or just opt for a foldable piano that can be stored in the checked luggage inside its case and with lots of padding. I am a frequent flyer and have done the latter for the past two years that I've owned my foldable piano. Zero damage.

'semi-weighted' keys - probably synth 'action' (spring type) - and sounds good.

I also was searching for a short portable digital piano mainly for practise during travel. After testing several options I chose the Roland Go:Piano 61 keys. I would rather call it a keyboard than a digital piano because it does not have hammer action keys. At the moment, there does not seem to be a 61 key hammer action keyboard on the market, since the total weight would at least double or even triple compared to a keyboard with non-weighted keys (spring action). The shortest ones I saw were 73 key hammer action stage pianos (e.g. Studiologic Numa X Piano 73 with 11,7 kg whereas the Roland Go:Piano weighs only 3,9 kg). There are 61 key semi-weighted keyboards/synthesisers with travel-friendly weight (5-6 kg) that might feel better than the Go:Piano. Some might have good quality piano sounds but I haven't tried them. I tested 61 key MIDI controllers (M-Audio Keystation 61 MK3, Nektar Impact GX 61/GXP61, Korg microKEY Air 61) and 61 key keyboards (Casio CT-S500, which is identical in piano sounds and key action to CASIO CT-S1 and Roland Go:Piano). I didn't have the possibility to test the Yamaha NP-12/NP-15.
At home I have a Yamaha Clavinova CSP and I play on accoustic piano as well. I am not an advanced player but when I buy an instrument I expect that it allows for, at least, some musical expression.

Among the tested, I liked the key action of the M-Audio Keystation 61 MK3 the most (but it's not weighted and not hammer action). I prefered it over the key action of the Go:Piano. My idea was to use it with an Android tablet. I tested several MIDI digital piano and keyboard apps as well as DAW apps with paid piano samples (that are supposed to sound better than the pre-loaded samples). But they sounded either too synthetic or they required too many steps to get started and these steps had to be repeated each time before playing. In addition, either headphones or external speakers are necessary because the loudspeakers of my Samsung tablet (though top-notch) sound too thin for getting somehow close to a piano sound. It is so much quicker to turn on a keyboard and start playing right away without the additional equipment necessary for a MIDI controller. That's why I didn't further explore that option. There might be better apps with virtual instruments on iOS and there are definately better ones for laptops. There are also Piano Sound Modules but you have to send roughly 300 € upwards for more realistic piano sounds (same as for virtual instruments software) and still need to lug around the additional equipment (headphones/external speakers, cables). With good in-ear monitors you can save space and weight over headphones, but for my taste it's overall too inconvenient with MIDI controllers. In addition, the Roland Go:Piano is lighter and more rigid than the M-Audio Keystation and the Nektar Impact GXP61. The Korg microKEY Air 61 put me off because of its spongy and wobbly key action that does not allow for musical expression according to me. Narrower keys (i.e. less hand span for an octave) can be beneficial in certain cases (e.g. for children or small hands in general) but the key action is not implemented well enough in the Korg microKEY.

The piano sounds of the Casio are sickening synthetic/steril to my ears - not something that wants me to keep practising ("reviews" I saw on Youtube were rather advertisments and were unduely hyping the Casiotone models). The key action is sideways wobbly. Keyboard expression is lacking, adjusting the velocity curve does not improve this. Sample quality of piano sounds is as from 10-20 years ago. They are also lacking in terms of dynamics. Maybe that's because the Casio CT-S500/CT-S1 is only 64-note polyphonic (whereas the Go:Piano is double at 128).
Compared to the Casiotone, the keys of the Roland Go:Piano are better but still a compromise because they are not weighted and not hammer action. But the piano sounds are way better than those on the Casio CT-S500/CT-S1. Leaving the key action aside, the piano sounds and dynamics elicite a comparable joy as when I play the Yamaha CSP-170. Obviously, the loudspeakers on the CSP create a more voluminous sound. But the sample quality and keyboard expression/dynamics of the Go:Piano are surpisingly good. The Go:Piano is as compact as it can get with 61 standard-sized keys. The Yamaha NP-12/NP-15 is almost 20 cm bigger/wider since it has the louldspeakers on both sides of the keyboard, whereas the Go:Piano has them on the fallboard/control panel. There's an optional bag from Roland with shoulder straps that is well padded. I was able to take the instrument in this bag into the plane cabin and store it in the overhead compartments.

I am curious to hear the opinion of someone with a 61 key semi-weighted keyboard/synthesiser with travel-friendly weight (5-6 kg) on the key action and quality of piano sounds.
Maybe someone could also propose a user-friedly Android app with good piano samples.

Roland has released a new generation of Go:keys (3 and 5) recently. They look more modern, 5 colours, edgier, unfortunately are a bit larger, and cost more. 1000 sounds, the sound engine is now called Zen Core, but the actual sound expansion as known from certain previous DP models requires a subscription and to see the price one must install the Roland cloud manager. The paid-for sounds can now be downloaded also via wifi, but the wifi module is also a paid extra

There are portable keyboards by brand names like Casiotone, Yamaha Piaggero & Roland Go with 61 or 76 keys. They’re in 1 piece.

I got 3 travel pianos. The first is the Folding Piano 88. You find them under the brand Carry-On or MIDI Plus. Very portable but the keys are narrower. I used it for arranging music on computer but not ideal for playing.

Next is the Clavier piano that folds into 2. You find it under other brand names like Magicon. The keys feel stiff & springy. Also portable at 7 lbs.

The most solid is the Piano de Voyage from France in 4 pieces. Connect the pieces and tighten the screws. The keys are semi-weighted and closer to a piano action than the other 2. For around $1600 (price quoted in Euro) you may need to wait 2 months or longer to get the box in the mail.

I’m out of town and brought 3 modules with me instead of 4: 64 total. Did my own review of the travel piano recently:

It should be mentioned that cheapo Chinese foldables (BX20 and probably its look-alikes) have only 7 sensitivity levels (3 bits), not 127 like most MIDI keyboards. This is quite bothersome in practice, also with VSTs. They add some numerical noise for camouflage, but it doesn't help.

Probably I assume these have the same key action as the Go:Piano. An action that is closer to a real piano action would make the Go:Piano perfect for my purpose. I don't have any complaints about the samples and the speakers of the Go:Piano. As a travel piano they are perfectly fine for me.

Polyphony has no bearing on dynamics.

I haven't played the GO but personally, I like the CT-S500 a lot. I think it has one of the better low-cost non-hammer actions for playing piano (e.g. better than Roland Juno DS61 or VR09, Korg Kross, Numa Compact 2/2X) and I like the piano sound, as well as a lot of other things about the board. Though in terms of dynamics from the action, pianissimo is not a strength, I would admit!

My favorite low-cost lightweight board, strictly as a piano, is the Korg Liano, but the 88-key width will obviously rule it out for some needs.

Thanks for the thorough review, really helpful.

You are right. I should have reordered the sentences to avoid this misunderstanding. I meant to say: Sample quality of piano sounds is as from 10-20 years ago. Maybe that's because the Casio CT-S500/CT-S1 is only 64-note polyphonic (whereas the Go:Piano is double at 128). Is this assumption correct?

Thanks for this insight! I have a Roland A 49 MIDI controller and don't use it anymore because I don't like the springy and noisy key action. Perhaps the DS61 and VR09 have the same or similar action. Compared to the A 49 I prefered the action on the CT-S500. The CT-S500 is very intuitive to use, as is the Go:Piano. Both have auto-accompanyment (styles), the Go:Piano in the Roland app. On the CT-S500 they sound to me like a 10-20 year old arranger keyboard (not my cup of tea). The Android auto-accompanyment apps that I tested were at the same level. The styles on the Roland app, although limited to 20, are superior to those on the CT-S500, according to me. I have fun jamming along with them. But I am spoiled by the auto-accompanyment on the Yamaha CSP.
I assume it's quite a challange to convince an airline to take an 88-key digital piano/keyboard, such as the Korg Liano, into the cabin.

Better, but still not quite. ;-) There's no inherent correlation between polyphony (which affects how many notes you can play at once) and sound quality (IOW, there's nothing to prevent the creation of good or bad sounds, with little or a lot of polyphony). However, there is a "correlation of circumstance." Over the past few decades since sampled pianos became a thing, two things have happened: processing power has gone up (which has generally led to greater polyphony capabilities) and memory has gotten cheaper (which has led to the availability of larger sample sets, with attributes like more velocity layers and less looping, which has meant availability of generally improved piano sound quality). So while there is no inherent reason that more polyphony corresponds to more quality, the fact that these advances happened in tandem means that, as a whole, over time, keyboards have improved in polyphony and also in sound quality, regardless of one not being the cause of the other.

So there's no reason to expect a GO of 128 polyphony to necessarily have a better piano sound than a Casio of 64 merely by virtue of additional polyphony... the Casio might just run out of playable notes more quickly (e.g. if you're using the sustain pedal heavily on a layered sound while also running accompaniment). And I emphasize "might" because (a) it's still not easy to do, and (b) different designs use polyphony differently so comparing these figures actually doesn't necessarily tell you which of two keyboards will hit the polyphony wall more quickly in a given circumstance. I've seen different piano patches on different keyboards use 1, 2, or 4 instances of polyphony per note played. Playing the same note repeatedly with the sustain pedal down may or may not also consume additional polyphony. So the word "polyphony" by itself, doesn't actually tell you how many notes you can play before something drops out. There are also different note-stealing algorithms which can make a dropped note much less likely to be detected by ear, which can lead to a situation where you may be able to hear a drop-out playing a given passage on a given board, yet not hear a drop-out when playing the same passage on some other board that actually has less polyphony.

One more slant on this... To the extent that there can be a correlation between "the number of notes you can play" and the quality of the piano sound, that correlation could actually happen in reverse. For example, if a VST employs extra samples for certain attributes (i.e. string resonances), those samples--which generally improve the overall sound--are also using up polyphony. So you might find that turning off the string resonances (reducing the sound quality in some respect), will effectively increase the number of notes you can play! But this is also another example of showing that there is not necessarily a direct correlation between the word "polyphony" and the number of notes you can actually play. Which is why I started this by saying that polyphony affects how many notes you can play, rather than saying that polyphony is how many notes you can play.

Back on another topic... I mentioned an issue with pianissimo playing on the CT-S500... it's still better than on numerous other boards (especially low cost ones). The issue is not that you can't play quietly, or get a nice range of dynamics, but rather that sometimes an attempt at a quiet note can result in no note at all (especially as you move toward the rear of the keys). Still, as I mentioned, I find it more piano-playable than most other low-cost boards.