Be Excellent To Each Other

Hi hi chums,

I have decided that it might be an idea to try and learn the piano again. I consider piano playing to be abit like a special move in Street Fighter 2. Its a hidden skill and one despite many years of lessons I am shit at.

Ergo I decided to look on Fleabay for a cheap keyboard and stand. Something with full size keys, proper touch (so it gets louder the harder you press) etc.

However all the prices seem massive. Whereas you can pick up old electronic gear for next to nothing, an 80's Roland keyboard seems to cost more now than when new.

So what gives chums and how can I furfil my need without breaking the bank? I just want something good enough to see if I want to take it up seriously.

Cheers ears.

Pro Tip. Auction houses are your friend. Second hand pianos sell for very little.

Mrs Chinny already has a piano she can move to the house if she wishes but I hate them. Bloody great big things, noisy and need maintaining. Yuck. I don't want that thing in the house!

What I want is a keyboard, no question. I never had an affinity for the piano when learning but I always loved a synth.

I also prefer to play in privacy via headphones.

If all you're after is touch-response, then there's any number of Yamaha PSR-series home keyboards that'll do you. Go into your local independent music shop and they'll sort you out, dead easy.

If what you're really after is weighted keys, then you're talking about quite a bit more money. It's almost worth thinking about a cheap upright piano rather than an electric piano with weighted keys.

Alternatively, think about a USB MIDI controller and a free piano softsynth or something. M-Audio is a good brand to look for.

MIDI controller keyboard & a softsynth/sampler? I think I've still got a good set of piano samples somewhere, I'll have a look if you end up going down that route.

Buy an Xbo.. Oh... sorry.

Yeah thats what I want. I had a PSS270 in the 80's and that didn't have it and was annoying (+ it had non standard keys).

I'd prefer something second hand and cheap so I can properly splash out if I get into it properly. Like I did with my biking. Started out very cheap, got more serious. Don't want it to be an expensive fad.

Basically I want to be able to play War Of The Worlds like the bloke at the piano shop in town used to every Saturday in the 80's. Can't do that on a normal piano. Synths rule!

What I had in the 80's



Literally tears in my eyes as I hear the demo tune again!

A digital piano, rather than a Keyboard, will be cheaper.


They're still massively fucking expensive though.

No room.

What's wrong with something like this?

http://www.dolphinmusic.co.uk/product/40890-yamaha-psre-323-.html

Instead of saying "weighted keys" the spouted a load of tosh. Makes it sound like not-weighted keys. I can't be bothered to look it up, I mean, I don't even play keys.

You'd really want to actually try one in a shop before buying it though.

I have a Yamaha electric piano, and it's beautiful. Having learned to a decent level on a real piano, they really have done a superb job of getting the feel spot on.

The PSS-270 has the same demo as the 170. I still own a PSS-680 because it has synthesiser functions. There's still some videos on youtube of me demonstrating them I think. Which are quite bad.

I have also had the 280 which had some nice sounds. The dual voice feature was fun, especially when you mixed comet and galaxy for a very nice sound.

Your one was shit Chinny. You want one of these mate

Argh, that hideous tune!

I had the updated model from that, which was black and had slightly more realistic keys.

FUCKING FUCKING FUCKING!

There was a nice Yamaha on Ebay with a stand etc that I was happy to pay up to 90 quid for. Bid with 2 minutes to go, and the cunting seller had made it a condition that my Paypal and Ebay accounts are linked.

Their item went for 66 quid. CUNT CUNT CUNT CUNT!

NOT HAPPY!

I have emailed them pointing out how they have lost out on some money by this stupidity. Cunts.

I've said I'm going to play bass in a 1950s rock n' roll band. I don't have a bass. This could be interesting!

Go and get the bass guitar from your basement.. Hurry Token !!

Tried again on Fleabay. Was bidding on an item that ended up well over the odds at 135.

Which is all the sweeter as I've just tracked down the newer model of that very keyboard I was bidding on for £137.

http://www.dv247.com/b-stock/yamaha-psr-e413-b-stock--70903

Normal retail is about £200. Sweet!

I've got an Evolution MK-249. It's a very simple MIDI keyboard with velocity sensitive keys, and with USB or MIDI connections.

This doesn't have weighted keys. You won't be learning to play a piano. You'll be learning to play a keyboard.

edit: Did you actually buy this then? I can't tell from the post. If you didn't:

http://shop.ebay.co.uk/?_from=R40&_trks ... Categories

I now feel silly for throwing mine away when we moved house in December...

A keyboard is what I wanted. Pianos are shit.

You'll end up playing the piano like a typewriter if you learn on a keyboard.

It does have keys that are touch sensitive. So the harder you press them, the louder they sound.

I learnt on a keyboard for the first year or two (when I was much younger) and It Never Did Me Any Harm (I'm classically trained, after the first couple of years on a crappy Yamaha keyboard). I prefer a weighted keyboard, sure, but an unweighted synth is still perfectly playable.

Those are the exact keyboards we used at school. There was a room with maybe 20 in. Great fun could be had by setting the demo off simultaneously on all of them. More fun by setting them off at irregular intervals.

And such is probably the reason we were only allowed to play the keyboards in Music lessons twice a year or so, with the rest of the time sitting in class either singing, or listening to the non-interesting classical music, but only ever learning anything about the composer, not the music itself. They really, really put no effort into encouraging you to enjoy music in my school unless you already had a strong interest and played an instrument – if you did, you got to sit out on these lessons, and do something worthwhile. Thanks, education!

But what about the piano?

Saw one of those on Fleabay. About 100 quid.

This is the beast:

http://www.musiciansbuy.com/mmMBCOM/images/yamaha_PSRE413.jpg

Should hopefully be here tomorrow. Ludicrously Yamaha don't bundle a PSU with it but that's sorted now.

Christ, I fucking hate companies doing that. I had to buy a separate PSU for my guitar's effects pedal, too, and they're often not cheap.

Only 6 quid thankfully. Although inexplicably the salesman told me I had got the last one. He sounded very surprised at this as presumably most people buying a keyboard would want one and this is a big retailer!

Yes, they are velocity sensitive, but they're not weighted. They are SPRING ACTION or something daft.

Just you wait

Keyboards withut weighted keys feel horribles.

Yeah, but the cost of it. I'm only trying to learn again.

If I get serious I'll upgrade, but looking at the music forums the one I've ordered is recommended by most people as ideal for "students".

Anyone know where I can download some sheet music for free? I want something to start practicing again with.

Nothing complex. I can handle about one and a half octaves each way from middle C* from memory!

Cheers.


* Stop laughing.

http://www.8notes.com/piano_sheet_music.asp

You have to pay for .pdf files, but .gif ones are free.

Thanks. That site has made me realised that even if I could badly read music at one stage, I've now forgotten most of it.

Might pop into the local music shop in the morning to buy a book so I can start an an appropriate level. Piano music for 8 year olds should do it......

Remember: Evening Geoff. Boyle Drinks Fuckjuice!

pianos also occasionally appear on freecycle.

I've now got Book 2 of "The Complete Piano Player". Lots of well known tunes to learn with that are about my level.

The lady in the shop suggested I started from scratch but the music in book 1 was really simple stuff that I could play. So book 2 it is.