advice on keyboards?

[Glenn Mitchell]

I'd love to get a "portable", yet quality keyboard that can plug into my MBR. Any suggestions? It should have some "feel" so weighted keys, and not sure how many. 64?

[Davo]

I dont know much about keys but I have heard that if you want the feel of weighted keys you are going to give up alot of portability.

I play a Casio SK-1 so its 14 inches long and I can play on my bed

[Glenn Mitchell]

Thanks but I have one of those and it's just not doing it for me.

[OsCKilO]

We Use one of these....... A Virus TI

It pretty much does everything.....


And it's light enough to carry to Jam Sessions......

It's got a Midi as well....

We'd recomend it to anyone!

[64Guitars]

How do you define "portable"? Keyboards are often categorized by the number of keys they have. Common sizes are 25-key, 49-key, 61-key, and 88-key. Many keyboards marketed as "portable" have 61 keys, making them just over three feet long. But Micro BR users might have a different definition of "portable". Are you planning to use the keyboard only at home (in which case, I'd assume that size isn't a big concern), or did you specify portable because you plan to take it to gigs, rehearsals, jams, etc.?

What price range are you looking at? A quick look at musiciansfriend.com shows keyboard prices from $50 to $7,000. It would help to narrow it down a bit.

[Glenn Mitchell]

Good questions. My wife Jen is the piano player and said it would be nice if it had 61 keys for two hands. We would not be using it for travel so "portable" means able to move from room to room easily or perhaps play on your lap.
Tho Osckilo's unit looks fabulous and exciting, I'd think regular playing might be limited? How much would that one be?
I'd be looking in the +/- $500 CDN range if that's reasonable.

[64Guitars]

A 61-key keyboard is a bit too big to play on your lap, but it's light enough to carry from room to room. Keyboard stands are fairly inexpensive and fold up for portability.

I have a Yamaha PSR-2100 which I'm quite happy with, but it cost a lot more than $500. Anyway, it's discontinued. The least expensive Yamaha I could find with similar features is the PSR-550B which is about $750 US (I'm guessing about $1000 CDN).

One of the things I like about my PSR-2100 is its built-in 16-channel sequencer which lets me record up to 16 keyboard tracks as MIDI sequences, then record the stereo mix of those 16 tracks to just two tracks on my BR-864. However, you couldn't really do that with a Micro BR since it has no MIDI Out connector to synchronize the recorder with the keyboard.

Another thing the sequencer's great for is loading standard midi files that I've downloaded from the internet. The sequencer lets me mute any channels I don't want, and mix the levels of all 16 channels. A midi file played through a good keyboard sounds a lot better than it does on the computer. And they make good backing tracks to record to the BR, or just play along with for fun.

I also like that it has its own built-in stereo speakers. I can switch it on and start playing right away without having to mess with cables and external amplifiers. I suppose that most portable keyboards in your price range will have built-in speakers too, so this probably won't be a big factor in your decision.

Yamaha makes several keyboards under $500 that would probably meet your needs, although I don't think they have sequencers.

Roland's 61-key E-09 is about $500 US and includes a 16-track sequencer. It might be worth considering.

One feature I'd look for is some kind of removable storage for saving and loading midi files. For example, USB flash drives, memory cards, etc. A large display is a nice feature too.

[Glenn Mitchell]

Very kind of you to reply in detail.
Frankly I've been avoiding learning about Midi. I think I fear some sort of black hole of endless possibilities and Gear Acquisition Syndrome.
I know the basic theory and have heard some great stuff ..offset by some awful stuff.
It's pretty likely that the more I pay, the more quality will be there for me.
I tell people not to buy a cheap guitar as they'll never learn to play it and so I should be able to keep my own council by now..

[FedericoC]

I'm very satisfied with Korg's micros.
I own almost all the products in the line (well, all but the microSAMPLER).
I think the microARRANGER could suit a songwriter quite well: it's actually a PA50d with small keys, and it's not that expensive, especially considering what arrangers usually cost (it's $460.00 on amazon.com, for instance).

It has very nice sounds, including fantastic woodwinds and saxes... I'm particularly fond of a gorgeous-sounding harmonica patch, and I'm an harmonica player!

It also has some onboard speakers... nothing to phone home about, but they're clear enough end they add to the portability factor... you can find some demos here: http://www.korg.com/microarranger , or I'll be glad to record something for you need. If the micro keys are not a showstopper for you, I'd really suggest you to consider it 

just my 2 eurocents and no, I'm not associated with Korg in any way 

-- Federico