Yamaha p255b vs 105

[andd845]

Plan A was to buy a 'cheap' digital to practice on to supplement
The limited time I get to play my acoustic.

Unfortunately, it's gone wrong in that
I've tried the p35, p105 and p255 but
The first two feel more like keyboards, the
P255 much more like an acoustic.

Not sure if the difference is real, or
Whether both have same grade hammer action and parts
And I'm being swayed by the p255 key surface
And sound, plus more solid, heavier construction?

The right answer is p105 given price difference.

Anyone know if action is the same p105 & p255?

[andd845]

Update - tried Kawai es100. Very disappointed. Tone synthetic (too my ears) and touch perhaps on a par with p105. Tried es7 - better but again not as good tone or touch wise as p255. I own a Kawai grand, which I love, so not biased. Talk of a p115 imminent, but went for the p255. Feeling guilty about spending so much to grab 1 or 2 hours extra practice a week, but once you go acoustic perhaps very hard to accept entry level digitals. Used to have a p120, but sold when getting first acoustic, wish I'd kept it but wonder if it would be good enough now? Would have been interesting to try it...

[andd845]

The P255's arrived and I think I made the right choice. Now I'm able to play the P255 and the Kawai Grand side by side, the action on the P255 really is very good.

Well, it's arrived.

So, observations- You need an extra midi cable/thing to plug ipad/iphone into the usb port,
There are 50 demo pieces, many of which I've attempted,completed,am attempting, but these can't be paused or slowed down from the start (can be slowed to a lower tempo by reducing tempo once playing.) You can play back left or right hand parts individually.
Volume - does seem quiet, even in a small room.
Rythym tracks (not that I use them as stick to classical) actually sound good.
Very solid, quite heavy construction - possibly another reason the action/touch feels realistic.


I don't understand why the piano sound on digital pianos aren't more realistic - you'd think things would move on, but I think the p255 still has the better sound vs Kawai ES500, ES7, or P105.

[hfmadopter]

The key to more realistic piano sounds isn't brand related but sound system related. Run any Midi capable piano through Pianotech  then out to a real sound system and you get a whole different experience in digital. You need to be able to change velocity curves of how the keys input to a program in order to change your perspective on key feel and touch reaction. My MP6 Kawai does this but so does Pianotech. The true test of action itself in a digital piano is to play the keys with no sound, to feel the weight and resistance, the springiness or lack there of, because how the curves are set at the factory will mask the actual feel through touch response.

You can't gain much insight as to how a keyboard will sound in a store, factory default settings are far from optimum, the store surroundings are not your living space.. Plus someone playing on it before you might have changed settings to something even worse ! I bet the p105 played through Pianotech and then out to a sound system is a very pleasant experience. If you want to depend on a [portable keyboards own sound system then you will Never Know it's true potential, not even close. You would be better off playing through high quality head phones .

[andd845]

Well, yes but supposing you're looking for a switch it on and play option, not a lot of additional software or hardware? If pc software can produce such a superior sound, why don't Kawai, Yamaha, Roland etc licence it and embed in the keyboard. It seems the native sounds are stuck in the 90s - the Es7 was truly awful, headphones or not. I bought the Yamaha p255, as I mentioned which I'm happy with as a practice option. Thinking about it, I should have looked to see if there were any options around keyboard (no in built sound requiring external tablet/software) but built for optimum piano action. Adjusting the many parameters might turn into a hobby in itself, so then again...

[jimbo320]

Don't go cheap!
As the old saying goes, you get what you pay for. And you do!
Never sell your artistic abilities short...