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The Yamaha also has recording functionality, you can definitely record your playing and play it back. I have one and it's very nice, I can't compare with other choices though. FWIW, I'm very happy with mine for a beginner level, and within what I was willing to pay. Note, however, that except for the metronome I am not using any of the features, so maybe others can chime in on those.
The Yamaha also has recording functionality, you can definitely record your playing and play it back. I have one and it's very nice, I can't compare with other choices though. FWIW, I'm very happy with mine for a beginner level, and within what I was willing to pay. Note, however, that except for the metronome I am not using any of the features, so maybe others can chime in on those.
You wrote in another thread that with every day of improvement you find your self looking at a Clavinova.
What are you missing from your YDP-164? What do you think the Clavinovas have, that make them suited better for advanced players than the YDP-164?
The Yamaha also has recording functionality, you can definitely record your playing and play it back. I have one and it's very nice, I can't compare with other choices though. FWIW, I'm very happy with mine for a beginner level, and within what I was willing to pay. Note, however, that except for the metronome I am not using any of the features, so maybe others can chime in on those.
You wrote in another thread that with every day of improvement you find your self looking at a Clavinova.
What are you missing from your YDP-164? What do you think the Clavinovas have, that make them suited better for advanced players than the YDP-164?
Hi, we are in the same situation. We have ydp - older model but really they are all similar. I got the ydp for my then very young child to see what a full length keyboard piano looks like basically Once you become even very slightly more advanced you see the limitations - for once you cannot do any kind of finer dynamics on this instrument. There are no nuances to the sound... You cannot use the pedal in any meaningful way. I am not a piano snob by any means, but this is not suitable if you want to play with expression and practice regularly say for more than a year or two. I hope it helps!
The Yamaha also has recording functionality, you can definitely record your playing and play it back. I have one and it's very nice, I can't compare with other choices though. FWIW, I'm very happy with mine for a beginner level, and within what I was willing to pay. Note, however, that except for the metronome I am not using any of the features, so maybe others can chime in on those.
You wrote in another thread that with every day of improvement you find your self looking at a Clavinova.
What are you missing from your YDP-164? What do you think the Clavinovas have, that make them suited better for advanced players than the YDP-164?
For the price and what I need it at the moment, I don't really NEED anything beyond what the YDP offers. I was pretty close to a "never ever" beginner when I started, and it didn't seem justifiable to spend too much, as long as I ensured that the piano had enough mimicry of the real thing to avoid learning any bad habits. But that said: playing my cousin's Clavinova, even at my noob level, the action feels subtly different, paradoxically it's easier for my playing to sound good and nuanced, if that makes sense. Also, the sound is richer through the speakers. But it's more an issue of likely discovering these subtle differences as I progress. I still wouldn't pay more than twice what I did, but maybe in a few years, especially if my little one does turn out to want to play, I may upgrade. There is another funny factor. There is a funny old adage with a lot of truth to it: "what's cheap is expensive and what's expensive is cheap". The dealer my cousin bought his Clavinova from has a program where you turn it in for quite close to the price you paid, no matter how many years later, to upgrade. It's because they really keep value very well, apparently. Not so with the YDPs from what I heard. So long term, you may end up better off financially with the upper grade units. Probably longer answer than you were looking for, but them there's my thoughts...
Careful with a Casio AP 470. Got one to replace my Kawai ES110 and it was a huge mistake. Could barely return it, it was hard to unpack, hard to pack up send back.
What was wrong with it? The sound, it was awful. Really didn't expect it considering the price bracket. Classical music sounds like pop on it. To much bass, too much string resonance, mids are weird. ES110 sound is stellar in comparison. Shame, since the action was really good. Always listen to it before buying, playing reference pieces not that random jazz from Youtube videos.
I can definitely recommend the Yamaha YDP-164. I own one myself. As Rocdoc already mentioned, it does have a recording functionality. The recording function works fine. The building quality, looks and feel are great for this price. I'm a beginner and it's my first piano though. I cannot compare it with much else then the acoustic piano of my teacher (which I must admit is a big difference). There aren't any functionalities I'm missing. If I would go for an upgrade, it would probably be an acoustic.
Careful with a Casio AP 470. Got one to replace my Kawai ES110 and it was a huge mistake. Could barely return it, it was hard to unpack, hard to pack up send back.
What was wrong with it? The sound, it was awful. Really didn't expect it considering the price bracket. Classical music sounds like pop on it. To much bass, too much string resonance, mids are weird. ES110 sound is stellar in comparison. Shame, since the action was really good. Always listen to it before buying, playing reference pieces not that random jazz from Youtube videos.
Is the sound really that bad? I have read many posts that praise the AP 470 sound. I also have ES110 and planning to upgrade to AP 470 soon. The price is so affordable here in my country as compared to equivalent yamaha 164
I don't think it is a disaster and for its price it is competitive I think. The amplifier and speaker system is well matched, the piano sound engine is definitely weaker than the Kawai equivalents. If you are nearly always going to use headphones then the Kawai models in a similar price bracket are definitely superior, but they really do lack when it comes to sound that can fill a room. So if you have a budget, I think what works better for you is what your needs are.
I have a quite old now playlist from when I had the AP-470, I upgraded from it after about 8 months to the MP11SE and then to the MP11SE with VSTs because I kept not being satisfied with the sound.
Casio's Celviano models have two (AP-710 has three!) different piano sounds (and minor variations of those). There's the "Hamburg Grand" which is the only one in the Privia range and then an "American Grand", so supposedly a New York Steinway.
The Hamburg Grand is demoed more often and that's also the one used in Kevin's performances.
You can compare those two e.g. here:
Maybe you like at least either one(?) Maybe not(?) And like said, there are "mellow" and "bright" variants of each.
And of course that's an AP-270 on the video, so it might lack some of the sound features of the AP-470.
Careful with a Casio AP 470. Got one to replace my Kawai ES110 and it was a huge mistake. Could barely return it, it was hard to unpack, hard to pack up send back.
What was wrong with it? The sound, it was awful. Really didn't expect it considering the price bracket. Classical music sounds like pop on it. To much bass, too much string resonance, mids are weird. ES110 sound is stellar in comparison. Shame, since the action was really good. Always listen to it before buying, playing reference pieces not that random jazz from Youtube videos.
I play only through a VST (Garritan) and external HPs. Would it be a wise to uptrade from ES110 to AP 470 for the action alone?
One other point to consider is build quality. It may or may not matter to you but Casio uses quite a bit of particle board. I am seriously considering an Ap-470, but if you read the reviews on several major online music stores, several reviewers were disappointed with the build. Also, the keys loosen over time and get louder.
On the plus side, I believe the action on the Ap-470 (feel-wise) is the best in that price range and that is the only reason I’m still considering it. I tried a Yamaha YDP-165 about three weeks ago, and it has a better build. It was just shorter. (At least it felt shorter). I can’t comment on the action of the YDP-164 (I am not sure if they upgraded the action or not) but from what I have read it is not as good and not as close to an acoustic piano. The YDP-165 action felt, fine but not as good as the AP-470.
It seems that you just have to decide what matters to you. All digital pianos at this price range have shortcomings, in my opinion.
Once you become even very slightly more advanced you see the limitations - for once you cannot do any kind of finer dynamics on this instrument. There are no nuances to the sound... You cannot use the pedal in any meaningful way. I am not a piano snob by any means, but this is not suitable if you want to play with expression and practice regularly say for more than a year or two.