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For young music lovers, the piano is an ideal instrument to study first. It is one of the easiest instruments to learn how to read music on and to develop a keen understanding of basic music theory. The piano is also an instrument that teaches hand eye coordination and forces the brain to split comprehension as multiple things happen at once. The Yamaha P45 digital piano is one option for beginner piano students to practice on at home between formal lessons.
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Beginners Matched Up with the Right Digital Piano
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On a digital piano like the Yamaha P45, you can not only learn to read the sheet music, but you can learn to play various notes and chords with two different hands at the same time. For example, the left hand generally plays the bass clef while the right hand plays the treble clef. There are several additional benefits to learning the piano, but first you must find one that is suitable, durable and dependable at a price you can afford. The Yamaha P45 is one of the top recommended beginner digital pianos.
What Is the Yamaha P45 Digital Piano?
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The Yamaha P45 digital piano is a good choice for beginner piano players and students. It is a full sized digital piano with 88 fully weighted keys that create a close to real feel of an actual acoustic piano. Therefore, it is perfect for rehearsal or alone practice time for students who play full sized acoustic pianos for class or concerts. This is a simple to use straightforward electric keyboard that has a USB port to HOST port which allows you to connect to your computer or mobile device.
One bonus to the Yamaha P45 digital piano is its simplicity. It doesn't have too many extra buttons and features you do not need or will never use. This allows it to be lightweight, quite slim and very portable. It only weighs twenty-five pounds and you could move it easily from home to class or performance. The Yamaha P45 is compact and sleek looking and will compliment any room or performance area.
What Does the Yamaha P45 Come With?
Besides the Yamaha P45 digital piano, the box also includes a sustain pedal, power adapter and music rest. There are also two bundle options that cost about $50 to $60 more. The home bundle includes the Yamaha P45 keyboard, the L85 furniture stand, the adjustable PKBB1 bench, and the sustain pedal. The furniture stand is thin and creates a nice upright full sized piano feel. The portable bundle option comes with the same items as the home bundle with the exception of the PKBZ1 Z-Style Stand instead of the furniture stand.
Product Specs
The Yamaha P45 digital piano allows you to play with a normal piano sound, or from ten different voices including sounds sampled from real Yamaha acoustic grand pianos. You can also choose to play the dual mode that allows you to combine two different sounds together. This can let you practice and compose creatively with mixed sounds such as the piano and string instruments together. The same button that allows you to choose piano sounds also allows you to play demo sources or configure the metronome for efficient practice time.
Authentic Bonus Features of the Yamaha P45 Digital Piano
One bonus feature of the Yamaha P45 is the Graded Hammer Standard (GHS) by Yamaha. This creates a weighted action of the keys where the lower end keys are heavier to the touch while the higher end keys are lighter just like the hammers of a real acoustic grand piano. This type of piano key action allows the piano student to practice the proper finger techniques while understanding dynamics and build techniques of piano playing.
Another bonus feature of the Yamaha P45 is the Advanced Wave Memory (AWM) sampling system. This is a dynamic stereo sampling system that promotes creativity and expression with varying samples of instrumental sounds that have been recorded using high-quality digital filter technology. The two built-in speakers on the Yamaha P45 are adequate for a beginner player or student, but would not fill a room or theater with dynamic sound.
The other downside to this Yamaha digital piano is the polyphony 64 level. This is the measuring sound system that determines the strength and dynamic of how many sounds can be put out together. Polyphony 64 is the lowest level for a digital piano.
One bonus feature of the Yamaha P45 is the Graded Hammer Standard (GHS) by Yamaha. This creates a weighted action of the keys where the lower end keys are heavier to the touch while the higher end keys are lighter just like the hammers of a real acoustic grand piano. This type of piano key action allows the piano student to practice the proper finger techniques while understanding dynamics and build techniques of piano playing.
Another bonus feature of the Yamaha P45 is the Advanced Wave Memory (AWM) sampling system. This is a dynamic stereo sampling system that promotes creativity and expression with varying samples of instrumental sounds that have been recorded using high-quality digital filter technology. The two built-in speakers on the Yamaha P45 are adequate for a beginner player or student, but would not fill a room or theater with dynamic sound.
The other downside to this Yamaha digital piano is the polyphony 64 level. This is the measuring sound system that determines the strength and dynamic of how many sounds can be put out together. Polyphony 64 is the lowest level for a digital piano.
Pricing
The cost of the Yamaha P45 digital piano is on the lower side for full sized 88 keys style portable pianos. However, because of the lower price, the Yamaha P45 lacks some of the more advanced features of its competitors. The Polyphony level is on the lowest setting. The various sounds you can play in are all controlled by one button and the speaker system is slight. You can find the piano alone for between $425 and $460 and the bundle packages for somewhere around $500 and $550.
How It Compares
We picked a few similar products to the Yamaha P45 available on the market to see how they compare.
Yamaha P45 Digital Piano
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Price
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The price is on the lower end for full sized 88 keys keyboards. You can find from $425 to $550 depending on the package.
Ease of Use
The simplicity of the Yamaha P45 is a bonus for students who simply want to learn music and play.
Sound & Connectivity
The USB port to HOST port is a bonus to connect to a computer and mobile devices. The power adapter is sturdy. The speaker system is lower in quality.
Design Quality
The Yamaha P45 has a slim, compact and sleek design. The keys are slip resistant and the body is dust resistant.
Warranty
The Yamaha digital keyboards come with a one year limited warranty. You can also purchase a three or four year accidental protection plan.
Pros
Cons
Casio Privia PX-160
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The Casio Privia PX-160 is the closest digital piano to the Yamaha P45 keyboard in both specs, playability and price. This digital piano is available in two different bundle packages, which is recommended for the best value. Casio is known for its sound source "AiR" (Acoustic and intelligent Resonator), which promises and authentic grand piano sound with powerful dynamics and beautifully expressive sound performance.
The Casio Privia PX-160 has 88 weighted keys that feature Casio's Tri-Sensor Scaled Hammer Action II. The digital piano boasts a fun playing and learning experience with its duet mode, built-in recorder, headphone output jacks and split and layer capabilities. If you purchase the Austin Bazaar bundle, it includes the piano, a furniture stand with SP33 3 pedal system, a music rest, padded piano bench, online lessons, Hal Leonard instructional book, instructional DVD and a polishing cloth to keep your keys clean.
Price
$
Depending on the package you purchase this digital piano price ranges between $450 and $680. The bundles offer the best deals.
Ease of Use
The keyboard offers a close to acoustic piano feel and is easy to play and to navigate the extra features.
Sound & Connectivity
A top of the line speaker system promotes clear and dynamic sound. This keyboard does not have a USB port.
Design Quality
The slim and compact design allows you to easily move the keyboard from table to stand. The furniture stand is heavy, however.
Warranty
The information about how much is covered is vague, but it has a one year limited warranty.
Pros
Cons
Alesis Recital
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If you are unsure if you will like playing the piano, but you really want to give it a try and need to invest in your own practice digital piano, the Alesis Recital keyboard is a great option. This is a full sized 88 key beginner piano with semi weighted keys. It has built in speakers the bundle package comes with a classic style sustain pedal that acts and feels like an acoustic piano sustain pedal. This beginner digital piano is unique in that it has an adjustable touch sensitive response key system that allows the musician to choose the weightiness of how the keys feel.
You can also select the split keyboard feature, which is ideal for students using their keyboards for piano lessons. This split keyboard mode creates two identical halves that allow instructors to demonstrate while the student follows and repeats the same music. There is an instrument layering mode and you can connect to a computer with the USB MIDI port. If you purchase the bundle, the keyboard comes with the pedal, padded seat and adjustable piano stand.
Price
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You can purchase the keyboard alone for $190 to $210 and the bundle packages for $250 to $350.
Ease of Use
The Alesis Recital piano is easy to use and is a great beginner student model.
Sound & Connectivity
The USB/Midi feature allows you to record your music on a computer or mobile device. The Speakers are not very loud.
Design Quality
The piano is light and compact and easily transportable.
Warranty
There is a one year manufacturers limited warranty for the digital piano.
Pros
Cons
RockJam 61-Key
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The RockJam keyboard is different in that it is a 61 key electric piano versus the full sized 88 keyboards discussed previously. Still, 61 keys is a great place to start for most piano students. This digital piano kit is at a low price point and comes with everything a young student or curious adult would need to learn the piano. The keys are not weighted and you cannot practice dynamics, but other than those things, you can learn the basics. The keyboard comes with record and playback functionality and 100 sounds, 100 rhythms and 50 demo songs.
The bundle package for the RockJam also comes with headphones, a padded stool, an adjustable keyboard stand, an LCD teaching screen, a one month's free membership to Simply Piano teaching app, two months of Face to Face lessons with Take Lesson and a power supply cord. You can also plug in a microphone if you would like to play piano and sing along.
Price
$
This keyboard package is available for between $130 and $200 depending on where you purchase it.
Ease of Use
This is a basic, easy to use package designed for the beginner piano player and student.
Sound & Connectivity
This is a basic design with limited capability. It is not designed for performance in a large setting.
Design Quality
For the price, this is a great beginner model, but it does not have weighted keys, sustain pedal or the feel of a real piano.
Warranty
The piano has a one year limited manufacturers warranty.
Pros
Cons
Conclusion
The Yamaha P45 overall gets Three and Three Quarter Stars. It is an excellent, inexpensive option for a digital piano that has 88 keys and feels like you are playing on a real acoustic piano. The weighted keys are a bonus feature and the USB port is also a plus. The sustain pedal is not the best out there, however, there are other features that do standout above its competitors. If you are looking for an affordable beginner digital piano bundle, the Yamaha P45 is an option you should definitely check out.
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