My daughter enjoys playing the piano at home but now she is at university would like to keep her hand in with an electronic keyboard.

Would you be able to recommend a product that would give her the opportunity to practice, sounds good, can be used with headphones and a stand.

Thank you

John

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Hi John,

Many thanks for your email.

As a piano specialist here at Normans, I would be very happy to help you choose a keyboard for your daughter.

However, I will need some extra information from you before I can suggest anything.

1 - What sort of budget are you working with? Our range of keyboards start from under £100 and go up to over £3500!
2 - What level of piano is your daughter at? Is she or has she studied any piano grades?
3 - Are you specifically looking for a small portable keyboard, or are you looking for a full size keyboard/digital piano? Would your daughters home accommodate a full size/piano-length keyboard?
4 - Are there any extra features that you need, such as background accompaniment music, etc, or is it simply for the keyboard itself?

Please get back to me ASAP with more information if possible, and I will be in a great position to suggest the best instrument for you. If you are stuck on getting this info, I will still be able to give you a range of different keyboards that I can recommend. If you would rather talk on the phone, my number is 01283 535 333.

I look forward to your response - thanks!

Kind regards,

Eamon Kayani
Normans Sales

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Eamon, thanks for getting back to me. I am looking at a keyboard that best replicates a piano as I do not think my daughter is primarily interested in lots of extra functions. It needs to be portable. She is probably at grade 4 level but is not interested in formal grading.I have been looking at the Casio range including models such as the CDP120 or 150 Privia. Whilst price is important I am interested in getting a keyboard that feels and sounds like a real piano at a competitive price.I would be interested in a package price which includes headphones and a folding stand.

I am open to your advice on make and model and pricing options.

Thank you for getting back to me

John

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Thanks for your reply John,

When looking for a realistic piano-style keyboard, there are a few features to look out for. The main ones are:

- Touch sensitivity - When keys are played hard then soft, the resulting sound is loud then quiet.
- Weighted keys - There is some slight resistance and sense of weight when the keys are pressed.
- 88 Notes - This is the amount of keys in a standard full sized piano. As players progress from grade 4 and beyond, they will start to need to use the lower and higher keys. An 88-note keyboard is definitely the best option for someone looking for a piano alternative.

These are all important features to pianists who want to start using a keyboard. My only concern is that you state the keyboard must be portable. All of our keyboards with weighted keys also have 88-notes. (these are actually classed as "digital pianos" rather than keyboards). This is very much a standard amongst serious pianists. In my opinion and experience, smaller keyboards are suited to young children who are starting to learn, or for specific stage or studio applications, where playing something like a full range sonata for example is not necessary.

88-note digital pianos/keyboards can still be portable - you would want one that doesn't have the full cabinet style stand, but rather is just a keyboard on it's own that rests on a portable folding stand. I will start by recommending some of these.

Firstly, a great budget piano, the Axus AXS2 stage piano. Please see the following link for the package deal:

http://www.normans.co.uk/p-4879-axus-digital-axs2-stage-piano-bundle.aspx

Next, the Casio CDP-120:

http://www.normans.co.uk/p-4236-casio-cdp-120bk-88-note-digital-piano.aspx

And the third piano I will suggest is the Yamaha P35. Please see:

http://www.normans.co.uk/p-4881-yamaha-p35pk-stage-piano-free-bench-and-headphones.aspx

All of the above are full sized pianos with realistic weighted keys. There are other 88-note keyboards which fit the bill, but I have suggested some of the basic, lower priced ones for you.

If 88 notes is absolutely out of the question, then I would suggest the Yamaha Piaggero NVP80, which is a 76 note keyboard:

http://www.normans.co.uk/p-2923-yamaha-npv80-piaggero-keyboard-package.aspx

However, as mentioned before, this keyboard will NOT have weighted keys.

I hope this advice has been helpful. I do believe that 88-notes is the way to go, if you want something close to a piano. If you need further information or advice, I am on standby for a chat - just drop me an email back, or give me a call on 01283 535 333.

Thanks,

Kind regards,

Eamon Kayani
Normans Sales