The Alesis Melody 61 MKII keyboard is a popular musical instrument known for its versatility and affordability. In this review, we will explore the key features and performance of this keyboard to help you make an informed decision. The Melody 61 MKII offers an extensive range of instrument voices, accompaniment styles, and connectivity options, making it suitable for beginners and intermediate players alike. Our aim is to provide an objective analysis of its pros and cons, evaluating its sound quality, user experience, and comparing it with similar keyboards in the market. Whether you’re a music enthusiast or a budding musician, this review aims to assist you in determining if the Alesis Melody 61 MKII is the right keyboard for your needs.

Key Features of the Alesis Melody 61 MKII

The Alesis Melody 61 MKII keyboard boasts a range of key features that make it a versatile and user-friendly instrument. Firstly, it offers a generous number of keys, with a standard 61-key layout, allowing for a wide range of musical expression and versatility in playing different genres. The keyboard’s size strikes a balance between portability and functionality, making it suitable for both home and on-the-go use.

When it comes to audio output, the Melody 61 MKII is equipped with built-in speakers that deliver decent sound quality. Additionally, it includes a headphone jack, enabling private practice sessions or late-night playing without disturbing others.

One of the standout features of the Melody 61 MKII is its vast array of sound options and instrument voices. With over 300 built-in voices, ranging from pianos and strings to drums and synthesizers, musicians can explore a wide sonic palette and experiment with different tones.

To enhance the playing experience, the keyboard offers various accompaniment styles and rhythms. This feature allows players to create full-sounding arrangements and provides a virtual backing band for solo performances.

Furthermore, the Melody 61 MKII provides several connectivity options, including USB-MIDI connectivity, allowing users to connect to external devices such as computers or music production software. This feature expands the keyboard’s functionality and opens up possibilities for music production and recording.

Overall, the Alesis Melody 61 MKII impresses with its extensive range of features, including the number of keys, built-in speakers, diverse sound options, accompaniment styles, and connectivity options, making it a compelling choice for both beginners and intermediate players seeking a versatile and affordable keyboard.

Pros of the Alesis Melody 61 MKII

The Alesis Melody 61 MKII keyboard boasts several notable advantages that make it an appealing choice for musicians of all levels. Firstly, its versatility shines through the wide range of sound options and instrument voices it offers. With over 300 voices to choose from, including realistic piano sounds, vibrant strings, and dynamic percussion, the Melody 61 MKII allows for diverse musical exploration and experimentation.

For beginners, the integrated learning features of the keyboard are a standout benefit. These features include built-in lessons, interactive modes, and a learning mode that assists beginners in developing their skills and musical understanding. This makes the Melody 61 MKII an ideal instrument for those starting their musical journey.

Value for money is another strong point of the Melody 61 MKII. It offers an impressive array of features and sound options at an affordable price point, making it an attractive choice for budget-conscious musicians who don’t want to compromise on quality.

The keyboard’s portability and lightweight design make it easy to transport and set up in different locations. Whether you’re practicing at home, performing at a small gig, or collaborating with other musicians, the Melody 61 MKII’s portability ensures convenience and flexibility.

Lastly, the user-friendly interface and controls of the keyboard contribute to a seamless playing experience. The intuitive layout, clear labeling, and easy navigation make it simple for musicians to access the desired functions and settings without confusion or frustration.

In summary, the Alesis Melody 61 MKII excels in terms of its versatility in sound options, integrated learning features for beginners, value for money, portability, and user-friendly interface. These pros combine to create an appealing package for musicians seeking a reliable and enjoyable keyboard playing experience.

Cons of the Alesis Melody 61 MKII

While the Alesis Melody 61 MKII keyboard offers several strengths, it also has a few notable limitations that potential buyers should consider. Firstly, the quality of the built-in speakers is a common criticism. While they provide sound output, the overall audio quality may not meet the expectations of more discerning musicians, and additional external speakers or headphones may be necessary for a better listening experience.

Another drawback is the limited number of keys compared to professional keyboards. With only 61 keys, the Melody 61 MKII falls short when it comes to replicating the full range and versatility of a grand piano or larger keyboard. This can be a disadvantage for experienced players who require a wider range of notes for complex compositions.

The construction of the Melody 61 MKII, primarily made of plastic, raises concerns about its long-term durability, especially with heavy use or frequent transportation. While the keyboard’s lightweight design facilitates portability, it also makes it more susceptible to potential damage.

Additionally, the Melody 61 MKII may lack advanced features that more experienced musicians seek. This includes advanced sound manipulation options, customizable settings, or extensive control over sound parameters, which may limit its appeal to those with higher skill levels.

Lastly, compatibility issues with certain devices can be a challenge. While the keyboard offers connectivity options, there may be instances where it doesn’t seamlessly integrate with specific devices or software, leading to compatibility frustrations.

Considering these limitations, prospective buyers should weigh the pros and cons of the Alesis Melody 61 MKII to determine if it aligns with their specific needs and expectations.

Performance and Sound Quality

The Alesis Melody 61 MKII offers a satisfactory sound quality, considering its price range and intended use. While it may not match the audio fidelity of high-end professional keyboards or acoustic pianos, it delivers a decent sound performance for beginners and casual musicians.

The instrument voices on the Melody 61 MKII generally sound pleasant and recognizable. The piano voices capture the essence of a grand piano, although they may lack some of the nuances and depth found in higher-end instruments. Other instrument voices like strings, brass, and percussion offer a satisfactory level of realism and expression.

However, it’s important to note that the built-in speakers of the Melody 61 MKII might have limitations in terms of audio quality. They can produce sound that is clear and audible but may not offer the same richness and depth as external speakers or higher-quality audio systems. As a result, connecting the keyboard to external speakers or headphones can significantly enhance the sound experience, especially for those who desire a more immersive and detailed audio output.

Overall, the sound quality of the Alesis Melody 61 MKII is suitable for beginners and recreational musicians seeking an affordable and entry-level keyboard. While it may not offer the highest level of audio fidelity, it provides a satisfactory sound performance for learning, practice, and casual playing.

User Experience and Interface of the Alesis Melody 61 MKII

The user experience and interface of the Alesis Melody 61 MKII keyboard greatly contribute to its overall appeal and usability. Setting up the keyboard and configuring its initial settings is relatively easy and straightforward, allowing users to start playing quickly without hassle.

The controls of the Melody 61 MKII are designed to be user-friendly and intuitive. The layout of buttons, knobs, and sliders is well-organized and labeled, making it easy for users to navigate and access different functions and settings. This ensures a seamless and enjoyable playing experience.

The keyboard also offers a range of learning features and educational modes. Built-in lessons, interactive modes, and educational tools are included to support beginners in their musical journey, helping them develop their skills and understanding of music.

In terms of practicality and portability, the Melody 61 MKII is designed to be versatile. Its lightweight construction and compact size make it easy to transport and set up in various settings. Whether used at home, in music classes, or for on-the-go performances, the keyboard offers convenience without compromising on quality.

With its user-friendly interface, ease of setup, learning features, and practicality, the Alesis Melody 61 MKII keyboard aims to provide an enjoyable and accessible playing experience for musicians of all levels.

Comparison With Similar Keyboards

The Alesis Melody 61 MKII distinguishes itself from similar keyboards in several ways. In terms of features, it offers 61 keys, providing a decent range for beginners and casual players. However, compared to some professional keyboards, it has a limited number of keys, which may restrict more advanced compositions.

The Melody 61 MKII includes a variety of instrument voices, accompaniment styles, and rhythms, allowing users to explore different musical genres. While its sound quality is satisfactory for its price range, it may not match the level of higher-end keyboards. The built-in speakers provide adequate sound output, although connecting external speakers can enhance the audio experience.

In terms of user experience, the Melody 61 MKII offers a user-friendly interface with intuitive controls and menu navigation. Its learning features and educational modes make it a suitable choice for beginners, providing helpful tools for skill development.

However, compared to some competitors, the Melody 61 MKII may have a more plastic construction, raising concerns about long-term durability. Additionally, its compatibility with certain devices can be a potential drawback.

Considering its affordability, versatile features, and user-friendly design, the Alesis Melody 61 MKII stands out as an attractive option for beginners and casual musicians seeking an accessible and budget-friendly keyboard. However, those seeking professional-level performance or advanced features may find it lacking compared to higher-end alternatives.

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Beginners looking for a piano to learn with or without a teacher will find the Korg B1 as one of their options. Korg developed this model from the ground up, rather than removing features from an existing model. This attention to detail is evident in the great sound, realistic piano feel and ease of using the Korg B1 88-Key Weighted Keyboard. It is priced just right for a beginner piano, at around $500. As is expected from a beginner’s piano, it doesn’t have a lot of frills. But it has good speakers and detailed instrument tones that makes it a good model to hone piano skills on. If you’re looking for a good value keyboard on which to start learning, or want to gift a loved one, then you should try the B1.

Here is a look at the features that the keyboard has to offer:

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Benefits of Korg B1

• The Korg B1 is compact and affordable, with great sound and an impressive appearance. It will look great in your living room, on the stylish stand that is optionally included with the keyboard.
• The chorus and reverb effects can be used to add more dimensions to the music being played.
• Excellent distortion-free performance at the lower registers.
• Touch control with light, normal and heavy touch response. This lets you play almost as expressively as is possible with a concert Grand.
• Two oval speakers located on top of the keyboard offer good sound.

Features of Korg B1

Eight Instrument Sounds

Beginners don’t need a lot of sounds and tones to experiment with. No memory was wasted on such frills in the B1. Instead, the manufacturers have given us a few basic instrument sounds that every beginner will want. The default piano sound is close to an acoustic piano with a classic character. There are three acoustic piano sounds in all. These tones are good for piano lessons and practice. Other additional instrument sounds you can play along with include two electric pianos, two organs, a harpsichord. There are enough instrumentations to play various styles of music on the B1, including rock, ballads and jazz. As with many other Korg beginner pianos, the Piano Play button will immediately take you back to the default piano sound from whatever sound is selected. The sounds have been created through the sampling of multiple digital recordings.

Natural Weighted Hammer Keys

The B1 uses Korg’s Natural Weighted Hammer (NH) technology for its weighted keys. The keys respond differently to lighter and heavier touches, like an acoustic piano would. The keys also sound heavier in the lower registers and lighter in the higher registers, just like a concert grand piano. Practising on the B1 will give beginners the opportunity to learn how to play a real acoustic piano. The player can also adjust the dynamic response to match the playing style. This means you can fine tune the key responses depending on your playing style. If you prefer a lighter touch, for example, you can set the keys to reach its full tone slower.

Rich Resonant Sound

The Korg B1 uses its servo-assisted MFB (Motional Feedback) technology to produce natural sounds. This technology controls the movement of the stereo speaker cone, so that there is minimum distortion when low frequency sounds are produced. This technology makes it possible for the keyboard to achieve the natural, rich tones of an acoustic piano even in the lower registers. The full-range speakers that are built into the keyboard are assisted by a passive radiator, to create a full range of exquisite and nuanced piano sounds.

The maximum polyphony of 120 voices means that the keyboard can play 120 notes at one time. This makes it possible for the player to try out complex phrases and multiple layering without any problems.

Partner Mode for Learning

The KORG B1 keyboard lets you split the keyboard into two separate keyboards of 44 keys. Each half has the same pitch as the other. This setup is great for student and teacher lessons. A teacher can play the piece on one half, while the student can follow in the other half. This excellent system makes learning fun and more fluent for younger students.

Metronome & Music Rest

Another feature that makes this piano great for learning is the included metronome. The metronome achieves a range of tempos between 40 BPM and 120 BPM. The keyboard also comes with a music rest. The rest is designed with little pockets at either lower corner. These pockets make it easy to hold the pages open without accidentally turning them.

Damper Pedal Included

The Korg B1 comes with a damper pedal or sustain pedal. It is a comfortable and stable pedal that you can use to add expressiveness to your playing. You can enjoy many different playing styles with the help of this damper pedal. As with a classic Grand piano, there are two additional metal pedals for soft and sostenuto playing. Sostenuto lets you add sustain only to notes that are being pressed down while the pedal is pushed. The notes played after are unaffected by the sustain.

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Other Features

The piano has a headphone jack, which can also be used as a line out to external amps. It consumes very little power of 3W. There are 8 demo songs that come built-in. New players who are only interested in exploring their own creativity with the piano sounds available will not miss the huge libraries of sounds on more expensive keyboards.

Pros

• Good piano action
• Good sound across full range
• Affordable beginner piano
• Good built-in speakers
• Easy to use
• No distracting frills or complex menus
• Includes a metronome
• Additional chorus and reverb effects
• Lightweight and sleek

Cons

• Sound quality may fall short of some comparable Yamaha models

Final Word

The Korg B1 is clearly designed for the learner. It is priced as such too, at around $500. There are a few other good pianos at this price point. There may be better-sounding keyboards out there by Yamaha. But the Korg B1 is a good, solidly and stylishly built beginners’ piano with good sound that is noise-free at lower registers. It is a pleasure to play and responds in a nuanced way, almost like an acoustic piano. As far as pianos for beginners go, the B1 is a good model to consider from Korg’s range of offerings.

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Product Overview

Yamaha’s digital keyboards have always been popular among users, both professionals as well as beginners. The Yamaha CP4 stage piano is one of the best stage pianos to hit the market. It has successfully eliminated the limitations of its predecessor and offers a few exciting features that you need to look in a stage piano.

The CP4 is one of the most popular stage pianos that are currently available in the market. There are many high-end features that are nicely incorporated into this digital keyboard.

Benefits of Yamaha CP4 Stage Piano Digital Keyboard

• The biggest benefit of this instrument is that it offers an instinctive control panel. This feature is very much appreciated by its users.
• The natural wood key gives a natural feel to the this keyboard. You won’t get the annoying clicking sound with wood keys and that is one of its major attractions.
• It has easy to use EQ sliders that help the user to find the right sound.
• The build and quality of this stage piano is better when compared to other models in this price range. It also offers a full range of features that you can see only in high-end models of other companies.

Features of Yamaha CP4 Stage Piano – One Of The Best Stage Pianos from Yamaha

Sound Quality

The sound quality  is very impressive. The sound options available in the Yamaha CP4 is something that is very hard to find in any other stage piano at this price range. You can easily produce many variations of the same sound using this keyboard. It also has different traditional sounds that are normally available only in the full-fledged version of a stage piano, which is very expensive. The memory bank provides the user with 321 sounds.

Classy Look

The exterior of the instrument has a classy look. It is sturdy but it weighs only 38lbs. This piano also offers the best key-beds. The wooden keys are better than those annoying plastic keys found in other keyboards and it does give a classy finish to the Yamaha CP4 stage piano.

Pitch Wheel & Assignable Mod Wheel

Another amazing feature of this stage piano is that it comes with pitch wheel & assignable mod wheel. You can assign this to numerous sound modifying functions like rotary speaker speed, pitch mode for synth, auto panning, and other key effect parameters.

XLR Outputs

The Yamaha CP4 stage piano offers professional XLR outputs that are capable of providing high outputs. You can get noise reducing signals using this keyboard without DI box.

Change Voice

The easy to use voice category button of the Yamaha CP4 allows you to change the sound easily without any delay. It also offers the user with the option to save his favorite sound for each category. A variety of sounds like bass, organ, strings and pad sounds – are all provided to the user

Electric Piano Sound

Another exciting feature of this board is that it offers electric piano sound. You can use this feature to create some beautiful music that will remind you and your audience of music from the late 1970’s.

Special Attractions

• Wooden Keys
• Large LCD Display
• Single Touch Layer
• 433 Voices
• Master Compressor

Pros

• You can get an authentic feel by using the wooden keys
• Easily portable
• Good build quality

Cons

• Cannot load your own samples
• A bit expensive

Rating

The Yamaha CP4 stage piano digital keyboard has a rating of 4.2 out of 5 stars by a total of 26 Amazon buyers. The editor’s rating from Piano Lifestyle is 8.9 out of 10.

Final Word

The Yamaha CP4 stage piano is a value for money product from Yamaha brand. It has many features that you will find only in high-end digital keyboards. Best suitable for practice and performing on stage, This particular piano model can easily meet the needs of a professional user. Many users have felt that it is a very useful piano that has excellent sound quality.

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Overview

Yamaha, who is arguably the leader when it comes to keyboard manufacturing, offers another gem in the form of the Yamaha Motif XF8 keyboard.  This keyboard is capable of producing high sound quality. The full sized version of this piano offers 88 keys. It has an impressive waveform memory of 741 MB and boasts of 1664 Voices and 97 Drum Kits.

Yamaha Motif XF8 has an expansion slot of 2 GB and an impressive category search feature that allows users to find their favorite sound easily. There is no doubt that this is one of the best keyboard workstations to hit the market.

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But let’s face it. Who cares about these technical specs? Let’s go straight to the benefits of owning this piano:

Benefits of Yamaha Motif XF8

• The biggest benefit of the Yamaha Motif XF8 is that it increases the expressiveness of instrument sounds. It has inherited the tone generator from its predecessor Motif XS and made 8-element-per-voice structure really possible with the Yamaha Motif XF8.
• The 8 element voice structure, when combined with the expanded articulation of Yamaha, produces high-quality
• It has a stunning user interface and easy-to-use keys that will make even the most experienced keyboard player happy.

Features of Yamaha Motif XF8

Expandable Memory

There are two USB slots in Yamaha Motif XF8 that can accommodate 2 GB flash memory. You can write as much music as you want using this extra memory. There is no other motif in the market that can provide you 3 GB of sounds (Internal + Memory + RAM). The re-writable Flash memory allows you to replace your samples whenever you want with brand new ones.

Superior Sound Quality

The sound quality of Yamaha Motif XF8 is incredible. It has 741 MB internal wave ROM that includes outstanding sounds of piano and other instruments, hip-hop sound, and vintage synths. You can produce unmatched sounds of smooth horns, key release sound of the pianos and guitar harmonics with the Yamaha Motif XF8. The FC3 foot pedal of Yamaha Motif XF8 supports half-damper pedaling. The onboard vocoder allows you to connect your microphone to the keyboard and use your own voice for an effect.

Excellent User Interface

Another amazing feature of the Yamaha Motif XF8 is that it has an excellent user interface that provides the user with buttons, assignable knobs, and sliders. All this allows you to produce high-quality work without any interruption.

Connectivity

Yamaha Motif XF8 supports connecting to the computer via the USB or Ethernet. This means you can upload or download, edit and record your favorite sound/music without any difficulty using the Yamaha Motif XF8. The Yamaha Motif XF8 comes with the latest version of Cubase, the DAW software. It can integrate with Motif more efficiently when compared to the previous version of the software, Cubase 5. The Yamaha Motif XF editor allows the user to make changes to the voice from your system while you are checking them visually.

Integrated Sampling Sequencer

Another interesting feature of the Yamaha Motif XF8 is the integrated sampling sequencer. This feature allows a user to integrate the audio data with MIDI data easily. It also supports WAV/AIFF loading.  By using the slice feature in Yamaha Motif XF8, you can easily slice the sample sound that is loaded to the keyboard.

Category Search

Category search feature is another latest addition to MOTIF. Using this feature, it is easy for the user to select the right music/sound from the Yamaha Motif XF8 collection of sounds. In the Yamaha Motif XF8, all the sounds are categorized and some even have sub categories making it easy for the user to select the one he or she wants. If you are in the performance mode, then you can sort the music based on genre. The favorite mode allows the user to tag the voice and performance so that it is easier to find them in future.

Special attractions

• 88 Full Sized Keys
• USB connection Supported
• Internal and External Memory Option

Pros

• Outstanding Sound Quality
• Easy to Use
• Value for Money Product
• Fit for various music genres and different kinds of keyboardists
• Sturdy build
• Stylish interface
• Excellent memory and connectivity

Cons

• Comparatively Small LCD Monitor
• Expensive compared to other keyboards
• Bulky and heavy
• No music rest included

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Rating

The Yamaha Motif XF8 has a rating of 3.7 out of 5 stars by a total of 13 Amazon buyers.

Final Word

Yamaha Motif XF8 a value for money product from Yamaha. It is arguably one of the best motifs to hit the market. This is one instrument that you require in your workstation to produce high-quality music. Many experts find the excellent features of the Yamaha Motif XF8 exciting and outstanding.

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First Impressions

Initially, the authentic piano sound of this instrument stands out. With the Yamaha DGX 660 , you would immediately get the sense that you are in front of a premium level keyboard that is suitable for use of professional musicians and advanced keyboardists. What immediately stood out for me on the surface was the look and feel of the keys on the DGX 660 – they closely resemble those from a real piano! Even the red lining on top of the keys, which you would normally find on grand pianos in elegant ballrooms, is present on this keyboard. The control panel of this keyboard is more spacious than many portable grand pianos out there, making way for a a bigger LCD screen and a lot of controls and functions without cluttering the interface.

Now let’s talk about the key features. There are a lot features, actually, but I’ll touch on the ones that I think are the main highlights of this keyboard (then we’ll look at the pros and cons later):

Key Features

• 192-Note Polyphony – This is a far cry from the usual 64-note or 128-note polyphony found in most mid-range to high-end digital pianos out there. The DGX-660 went out of its way to give you a whooping 192-note polyphony! With only ten fingers total from both of your hands, it’s virtually impossible to use up all 192 notes even if you layer your keyboard with 2-3 sounds or voices. So yeah, basically, this is a great thing to have (knowing that your piano has a virtually limitless number of notes to play).

• 88 Graded hammer weighted keys – Personally, I find it more difficult to play with truly weighted keys, because I learned the piano from a synthesizer and have always played with non-weighted keys for 15+ years. However, for those of you who have classical training or are more accustomed to graded hammer keys, the Yamaha DGX-660 is good news for you. For those who play the same way like me though, this might be a big caveat.

• Six-track recorder – This keyboard comes with the ability to record multiple tracks and layer them together to create a full song or instrumental. It’s especially useful for music creators who not only play piano, but also produce their own music tracks for professional or commercial use. Personally, I’m not much into recording tracks but recorders and sequencers are always nice to have for those emergency situations where you need to record your playing (like when someone asked you to accompany a live singing performance for an event but you can’t be there personally).

• Built-in speakers – Probably one of its ‘thank God they have it’ features. The built-in speakers make it easy for anyone to play the piano without having to connect to a PA system or amplifier. This is why the DGX-660 can be used for stage performances, but can also be used for practicing at home or playing for a family audience.

• Adjustable Touch Response – What I find really cool is that you can set the touch response ‘level’ of this instrument. You can choose between soft, medium, hard, and fixed touch sensitivity. It all depends on your preference, your training level, and finger strength.

So for me, those are the key features of this piano. There are dozens of many other features and functions that you can tinker with, and you’ll all get to know them once you play the Yamaha DGX 660 Portable Piano for yourself.

I’m not here though, to simply glorify this product and talk only about its good qualities. So without any sort of bias, let’s delve into the pros and cons of the DGX-660 so you can truly make an informed buying decision about it:

Pros and Cons

Pros:

• High quality, performance level sounds and voices . Of course, as an experienced keyboardist, this is one of my main concerns (and probably yours too)! There’s nothing more annoying than an expensive keyboard with lots of great features but with disappointing, low quality sounds. But I’ve found that the Yamaha DGX-660 does not disappoint with the way it sounds. It really delivers. The ‘Natural Grand’ sound, which is its very basic entry level voice, sounds pretty much like the ones used by popular jazz pianists you may know, like Bruce Hornsby, Chick Corea or Jeff Lorber. It’s got a certain fluidity and fullness around the sound of the keys, without sounding too piercing to the ears or too hammered in its attack. I’ve got nothing negative to say about the Yamaha piano sound, particularly for the DGX 660. Definitely it has some performance level sounds in there. Hands down.

• Graded hammer keys pretty much mimics a real piano feel. If you’re a fan of the acoustic grand piano, the DGX-660 would be a perfect choice for you since it mimics the hardness and feel of the classic grand piano.

• Spacious control panel, no clutter. I particularly like the control panel of the DGX-660. It has lots of controls and knobs to tinker around with, but they are placed in such a way that doesn’t clutter the look of the entire instrument. This is a major plus for me because I have a secret dislike for keyboards with seemingly robotic controls. It’s too distracting for me to have lots of buttons that are cluttered together. With the DGX 660 though, the control panel has lots of vertical space.  In short, the interface is more user friendly than many high end keyboards I’ve seen in the market.

Cons:

• Internal memory is only 1.7MB. This is a major drawback. The very fact that this piano has a six track recorder makes it even more disappointing. I personally think that an internal memory of 1.7MB is a little bit on the low side for an expensive portable keyboard like this one. I totally understand that this can be remedied by using an external hard drive with lots of space, but still 1.7MB internal memory is too small. Of course I want to save my recorded songs on an external drive, but still I want to keep several tracks or songs  inside the keyboard for easy reference and editing later. Having the need to save them externally all the time is quite a hassle.

• A bit pricey. Because this is a moderately high end digital piano, don’t expect that it will come at a cheap price. In 2017, you would have to shell out upwards of $700 for a product of this caliber (check your local music store or dealer for the latest prices, but much better to compare prices on Amazon). If you are a professional musician though, or someone who is active in the music industry and its business side, consider the high cost of this instrument as a reasonable investment. You can’t go wrong with a digital piano that delivers good sound quality and which happens to have a plethora of useful functions and features as well.

• Bulkier than most portable grand pianos in this range. This piano weighs a total of 46 pounds. While this may not be extremely heavy to carry around, this is way higher than other 88-key digital pianos in this category. The DGX-660 weighs roughly double the weight of the Casio PX-360 (26.2 lbs), and the Yamaha P115 (26 lbs). This means you’ve got to be prepared to give extra effort in moving the DGX-660 from one place to another. For easy carrying, you might actually need a companion to bring this piano, especially if you’re travelling far places for a gig. Personally, I don’t recommend moving heavy instruments around a lot. I’ve found that this increases the risks of scratches and damages. So for the DGX-660, just be prepared to give an extra level of care because it is slightly heavier than other similarly priced keyboards in the market.

Performance Ratings

QUALITY OF SOUNDS AND VOICES – 9 out of 10

I give this instrument a score of 9/10 for the quality of sounds and voices because based on my listening, the available sounds really do come across as top notch. It has no traces of sounding like a ‘fake’ or much worse a cheap imitation of the tone of other acoustic instruments. As I’ve said earlier in this article. Below is an actual sampling of the DGX 660, using the natural grand piano, strings, electric piano, rhodes, pads, harpsichord, guitar, and many others. It fairly demonstrates just how versatile this keyboard is in terms to its plethora of sounds. Heck even the saxophone effect sounds so authentic! Same with the Hammond Organ effect, it’s on fire! Watch this demo:

FEATURES AND FUNCTIONS – 9 out of 10

Again, I give this keyboard a score of 9/10 for its features and functions. Aside from the key features I mentioned earlier, the DGX 660 has a lot of other tricks up its sleeve, such as the following:

• Music database – 320 with accompaniment mode
• Yamaha Education Suite
• Metronome
• Built in speakers
• 100 preset songs
• Dual and split mode
• Number of voices – 151 + 15 Drum/SFX Kits + 388 XGlite

I didn’t get a chance to sample all the other features and functions, but based on what I’ve seen so far, these specs are more than enough to satisfy any passionate keyboardist out there. Frankly, if the features and capabilities of this piano don’t excite you, then I don’t know what will (ok, you know I love you right? Group hug).

USER FRIENDLINESS – 8.5 out of 10

I give this keyboard a score of 8.5 out of 10 because the user controls aren’t confusing even for a beginner. There is even a full list of available sounds on the interface. This way, the keyboard player won’t get lost trying to navigate between different sounds. However, I did not give this digital piano a perfect score for user friendliness, because I think more advanced features such as the multi-track sequencer, dual/split mode, etc., all require a learning curve for beginner musicians.

PRICE – 6 out of 10

Price is a major downside for this portable piano. Obviously, it eliminates itself from consideration if you are on a budget of $500 or less (this keyboard is in the $700+ range). Frankly, for a $500 budget or below, there are DOZENS of portable keyboards that may not equal or surpass the quality of the DGX-660, but provides good alternatives when it comes to sounds, features, and functions. So yeah, it’s a little bit of a bummer that this keyboard is a little bit more expensive than we wanted to be.

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