If you’re a piano student, you already know that it requires dedication, discipline and persistence. Daily practices are what make your playing perfect, and to do that, you’ll need to have the musical instrument in your home. Not everyone can afford to get a full-size piano, but you can always choose to buy music keyboards. If you’re searching for online music keyboards here are a few things to consider before getting your first piano keyboard.
Types of Keyboards
Workstation Keyboard
This type of keyboard is one of the most expensive because it comes with its own computer for composition and advanced program options. Beginner musicians might not need it right ahead, but if you’re a professional hip-hop and pop artist you’ll benefit from its program beats and other parts of the composition to play automatically. Workstation keyboards come with weighted keys, making them an excellent musical instrument for advanced beginner keyboard students.
Arranger Keyboard
The arranger keyboards allow you to select a few options and the keyboard will lay down a backing track that matches the style, rhythm and tempo of the played piece. These keyboards are excellent for composition and their auto-accompaniment encourages students to play. The not-so-great side is that these keyboards are expensive and if you’re a beginner musician you might find the range of programmable options a bit overwhelming.
Synthesizer
If you’re a beginner musician or a student and are browsing online music keyboards, you’ll come across many synthesizer options. A synthesizer is an electronic keyboard competent for generating various sounds, from musical instruments to sound effects. These keyboards are smaller and easily portable (even more so than keyboards), which makes them suitable for beginning piano students. The downside of these keyboards is that there’s a wide range of quality between brands and students easily outgrow keyboard capabilities. As they have unweighted keys, it may be a challenge to make a transition to a full piano.
Digital Piano
A digital piano is a keyboard that mimics the sounds and feel of a real piano. This is the best keyboard for students who need to focus on practising and musicianship; if you’re an adult student, then this is your best choice. It has 88 full-size keys and only the best keyboards have weighted and graded keys to resemble the feel of a real piano. These keyboards often include speakers built right into the keyboard. These are designed for serious practice rather than musical experimentation.
What to Consider When Buying a Keyboard
Action
The action refers to how well the keys on a keyboard or piano react when you push them down. Each keyboard model’s action varies in firmness and resistance; unweighted keys are easier to push down, but weighted keys feel like a traditional piano. A weighted keys keyboard is a good choice for beginners.
MIDI Compatibility
MIDI stands for “musical instrument digital interface,” which is a common electronic instrument language that lets instruments “talk” to each other by transmitting and receiving signals. If you’re a beginner, the MIDI isn’t a necessary feature in a music keyboard but might become more important as you progress and choose to get into electronic music or if you choose to interface the keyboard with a computer.
Computer Connectivity
Many of the best keyboard brands have computer connectivity. This feature isn’t “a must” to learn to play, but it’s a good option if you’re a student who plans to make your own music with music composition programs. If your budget allows you, select a computer connectivity keyboard, so you won’t have to do the upgrade in the future.
Sampler and Recording
The sampler and recording options are a good choice if you’re a student who wants to make their own music compositions.
Storage
It’s not necessary to have onboard storage. You can download software patches and new keyboard sounds on micro-USB cards instead. If you’re looking for a keyboard and it has storage as a feature, it may mean that it has an extra 100 blank settings for new sounds and user presets.
Input and Output
Audio input to music keyboards or digital pianos isn’t common and almost always utilises MIDI when available. Keyboard output is a more important feature, as it allows you to use amps and recording equipment.
Sound
The keyboard sound is one of the most important things to consider when buying a beginner keyboard. The best keyboard brands deliver sounds identical to those a true piano makes. Don’t forget to consider the polyphony (the number of sounds a keyboard produces at any given time) and multitimbrality which refers to the capacity of the keyboard to play sounds of other instruments like drums, strings and woodwinds. These sounds will work as a background or will complement the tune you’re playing.
Size
Let’s not forget about the size. A full-size keyboard with weighted keys is the best choice for learning piano if you’re an adult. These keyboards usually have fewer sound options. If you’re a student with an interest in electronic music, it’s best to select a smaller beginner keyboard with unweighted keys with more sound functions.
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