

These might include string squeaks on an acoustic guitar voice, or the sound of a saxophone player taking a breath between notes.

Super Articulation is Yamaha’s term for a sampled sound that emulates the behaviour of a real instrument by including certain nuances you’d expect to hear. Some keyboards offer 76-key versions for the more advanced player, while other, smaller ’boards sport only 37 mini-keys for a more-portable or kid-friendly solution. Most will be velocity-sensitive, allowing for dynamic expression according to how hard or softly you play the keys. Most of the keyboards on our list have 61 keys, offering a five-octave span that’s wide enough to play with both hands. Modern keyboards can offer hundreds of styles, some of them pretty sophisticated and current-sounding. StylesĪ style is a set of backing instruments and ready-made parts that play along with you as you hold down a note or chord with your left hand – so the more styles a keyboard has, the more choice you’ll have as to how your backing band plays. Just bear in mind that quantity isn’t always a measure of quality – it’s better to have fewer usable voices than hundreds you’ll never bother with. Here are some things to look out for when buying a Yamaha keyboard: VoicesĪrranger keyboards usually come with a wide selection of voices (sounds), enabling you to reproduce practically any instrument you can think of, from acoustic guitars to zithers. These ‘backing tracks’ have traditionally had a whiff of the uncool about them – who could forget those clunky-sounding 1970s home organs played by pensioners? These days, though, the tiny digital musicians sequestered away in the bowels of your keyboard are pretty sophisticated, and although it’s still possible to sound like a Nintendo videogame intro screen if you really want to, that’s no longer the most likely outcome! An arranger keyboard is one that has built-in accompaniments you can play along to. With a couple of exceptions, all of the models on our list fall into the ‘arranger keyboard’ category. It also reintroduced this writer’s 90-year-old mum to the joys of playing piano during the last lockdown!
Yamaha keyboard psr s950 demo portable#
There are too many great features to list here, but we were especially sold on the keyboard’s built-in audio/MIDI interface and 38 digital signal processors.Ī special mention goes to the Piaggero NP-12 (opens in new tab) for delivering that satisfying Yamaha digital piano tone in such a classy portable package. It really is an excellent instrument and should give you years of learning, composing and playing pleasure. Our pick of the best keyboard stands for home and stage useĬhoosing a favourite from such a broad range of beginner keyboards was always going to be a challenge, but in the end we plumped for the Yamaha PSR-E373 (opens in new tab), as it sits firmly in the sweet spot for breadth of features, quality of sound and value for money.Best electronic keyboards for every budget.


Yamaha keyboard psr s950 demo professional#
This rules out professional stage keyboards like the new CP88, digital pianos such as the P-125, Yamaha’s well-established range of synthesizers, including the MODX and the Motif, synth workstations like the Montage range, and also the wallet-busting Genos arranger keyboard. The sheer number of Yamaha keyboards can be overwhelming for those thinking of making a purchase, so we’ve narrowed our focus down to the company’s beginner-friendly arranger keyboards (to find out what’s meant by an arranger keyboard, click on the buying advice tab above).
