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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.