Where to start with general keyboards (not synths)

[jorri]

...on a budget

I play piano. I am downsizing my residence/possibly would annoy neighbors in a flat: and i think i want to do cool things like run it through my pedalboard and play with a band.

I don't just want piano sounds but i can be picky about those. Some control over tone is good. I have to mind a lot of recordings of impressionist pieces which are warm and reverberated. I would also like to experiment with microtones sometimes (Michael Harrison if anyone knows...)

Weighted is a very good idea. Still want to play as i do acoustic piano

I don't need 88 keys. I think being too traditional could be a mistake so maybe 61 or about 2 8ves less with pedal to transpose is fine...fitting this on a stage! transport! Is it an issue having less octaves as all the decent piano sims are 88?

But not just piano
I would be after decent rhodes, maybe drawbar style organ, vibes/celeste and probably some extra sounds. A bit of synth is cool but really not after the analogue classics or anything nor find the sampled synth on workstations much good? Or samples of real instruments a la mellotron style? Would be up for weirdness like glass harmonica or sampled ondes but seems doubtful.

First thoughts were Nord Electro, ive played their organ version and loved it. Its far too expensive for me. It would be to be well under a grand.

[UlricvonCatalyst]

I have to say Yamaha missed a trick not doing a Mellotron as part of their Reface line, but a Yamaha Reface CP + a controller keyboard with weighted keys will cover quite a few of your basic needs (assuming you can't be doing with the CP's mini keys). Add something like an E-MU Proteus and most of the other ground you seek is covered for not too much outlay (compared to a Nord).

I guess MIDI is a bit of a dinosaur by now, but it should still work okay if you're not looking to integrate a laptop or whatever into your set-up.

[Zork]

I would look to buy an older and used Nord Electro. An Electro 3 can be had for about 800 and I think they are pretty much the best you can get. Maybe sell a few pedals?

[jorri]

I would look to buy an older and used Nord Electro. An Electro 3 can be had for about 800 and I think they are pretty much the best you can get. Maybe sell a few pedals?

I think that's Electro 2 price just looking now. Is an idea...but that's already my budget. I do have a hologram microcosm i basically only use as a looper or the one 'microloop' mode ultimately though (if there were an alternative, then same question as asked re: keyboards really, as i think loopers with that pitch-speed shifting and reverse is all though, whilst the other effect i dont know of it for less (only chase bliss, zoia etc.) Plus i might suddenly find its amazing for keys as most examples of it are!

Thanks for the split module suggestion also. Would prefer the hands-on controls and tbh all compact.

[Dok]

Sounds to me like you want a Korg SV-1?

[jorri]

Sounds to me like you want a Korg SV-1?

Looks good. Seems more expensive than the old Nords and would prefer five octave. But, yes, maybe its as simple as any kind of stage piano where electro-acoustic sounds that aren't the main 'grand piano' are more than an afterthought...with weight/size.

[Dok]

Also check out the Roland RD-64.

https://www.roland.com/us/products/rd-64/

[jorri]

Also check out the Roland RD-64.

https://www.roland.com/us/products/rd-64/

Feature-wise it looks best! Will check out the sound quality. I've used Rolands before albeit pretty old ones, they were pretty packed with options like mic choice, lid position, string resonance and just intonation.

I hear Nord has good samples but found out Electros are not "piano weighted" they are EP or organ feel, i.e. semi weighted so probably wouldn't go with that

[Jonesie]

It's not light, and it's 88 keys, but I had a Yamaha S08 for a bit which I loved. Great piano sounds, really nice electric piano sounds (I'd say easily 90% of the way to an actual Rhodes, but with better action.) Weighted keys too. Lots of other cool sounds and there was a relatively deep editing system in there. It was designed as the entry level version of the S80 / S90 and has a bunch of the same sounds, just not quite as deep. Looks like you can snag them for $400 - $600 these days.

Reiterating on the heavy part though. Heavier than a Nord, lighter than a real Rhodes.

[jorri]

Think i will go for the Reface CP AND P121 both by yamaha. Its tempting against the rd64 but its a lot cheaper plus more impressed by sounds.
Really think the CP is more of an inspiration tool, although would want another short weighted acoustic hence P121: seems good for price point at 73 keys, for home use more likely or in a tiered setup/MIDI control of the reface. Shame no reface AC 'acoustic' with various acoustic keys and a weighted, extra octave but that's not really 'reface'.

I wonder if i can link them in a two way midi setup. Seems worth exploring, having a tiered setup or option of sending the p121 as control of the reface or its own acoustics/vibes/organ

[bluemonday]

Did you go for the Reface CP?? I just ordered one and returned it shortly thereafter. I was personally underwhelmed with the sound, although the Rhodes and Wurly had some beautiful bell-like timbres, some notes sounded louder than others to my ears. The Clavinet didn't sound like I expected, and sorry, the toy piano is a wasted setting IMO. Would have much rather had the "hidden" acoustic piano which is currently accessible by balancing the rotary switch precariously in an in-between position between two settings and turning the unit off and on. But mostly I couldn't get along with the mini keys and didn't want to purchase a midi controller right now.

[echoplex]

The Nord keys are great all around! Nord Stage especially. Not cheap but packs a lot of features

[jorri]

Did you go for the Reface CP?? I just ordered one and returned it shortly thereafter. I was personally underwhelmed with the sound, although the Rhodes and Wurly had some beautiful bell-like timbres, some notes sounded louder than others to my ears. The Clavinet didn't sound like I expected, and sorry, the toy piano is a wasted setting IMO. Would have much rather had the "hidden" acoustic piano which is currently accessible by balancing the rotary switch precariously in an in-between position between two settings and turning the unit off and on. But mostly I couldn't get along with the mini keys and didn't want to purchase a midi controller right now.

I love the electric piano sounds on it. Viewing demos it seemed very competitive with the Nord and i liked the tones better. I don't think the acoustic piano is that strong but its useful- mainly its just not my type, probably its just too 'Yamaha' and i like warmer 'Bosendorfer' stuff...i.e. a classical piano please. I like the toy setting if only for weird ambient bell loops. The way it interfaces with decent effects is great.
For sure the keyboard isn't great but it's been used as something portable for simple parts LIVE, as 80% guitar and vocal player. Don't need a pedalboard. ETC. all good with me for now, but its not a replacement for an acoustic piano which is the next stage however i do that, but i still managed to have a real one for the moment so haven't had to.

[seenoevil II]

I've been pondering this for a decade now. I have no solution yet.

I wound up getting a Roland SH-1 Gaia. It's a 4 osc analog modeler (so digital) with 1 for 1 physical controls. It's great and powerful... but I'm over it. I basically just designed patches that sounded like interesting analog piano synths like old CP's. The 35 key form factor was actually pretty much all I needed though (with chord inversions).

Being turned onto the idea by Quasi, I realized that realistic sounds weren't as important to me as running the sounds into a cranked amp just like a guitar. In fact, for shows I just mixed multiple inputs down into the front end of my guitar amp. But now I think I want realistic sounds again.

After fighting the idea for ages, I'm realizing that the best answer might just be a midi controller with a Macbook running mainstage. That idea has always just seemed gross to me. Too many wires. Worrying about the the battery health of a laptop. Being able to browse OSG on a musical instrument.

But every other choice is just so deeply compromised in some way or another. I love the idea of the yamaha reface, especially as a couch buddy noodle station, but the mini keys and limited sound choices combined with its price kinda kills it for me.

Nords cost too much. Most stage pianos/ work stations weight 8 tons, cost 2k, and have features Id never understand let alone use. Plus they're basically just computers installed inside midi controllers, so they go obsolete and need updating.

I'd love to know if there was some rebellious community of tech people who are building shareware sample libraries and programs to run them on raspberry pies or something like that.

It's just always a little more complicated than i feel like dealing with. So i wind up running my late 90s yamaha porta sound direct into my champ and just bashing around. And honestly? I don't see how anything else could be that much better.

Edit:

I'd love to know if there was some rebellious community of tech people who are building shareware sample libraries and programs to run them on raspberry pies or something like that.

There are! I Googled. Still seems fiddly and requires a laptop versus a dedicated module device, but it's less behilden to the vagueries of apple software licencing.

[cbrown]

I've been looking at several of the instruments mentioned above recently, a couple I've been interested in that haven't yet been mentioned are the Crumar Seven and Crumar Mojo 61, do any of you have any thoughts on them?