What is your piano model?

Thanks @Pierrot. Inspite of what Roland says, reviews of the app suggest a fundamental incompatibility with Android phones.
I will check out the devices and software link. Thanks.

Seems lot of users have problem of connection with piano partner 2 https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=jp.co.roland.PianoPartner2&hl=en&gl=US&showAllReviews=true
some say that you have to
TURN YOUR LOCATION ON IF YOU HAVE A CONNECTION PROBLEM!! Don’t know why but tried connecting for an hour just when I discovered my location was turned off in my Samsung Tablet. Now it works flawless. It s not written in the instruction of connection

anyway the recording of midi seems not accessible too ) so if thats your looking for… :cold_sweat:

Thanks @Pierrot . Have checked the location settings multiple times, in multiple places on my phone. Always turned on.
Have spent some time this afternoon researching iPad air’s. Think this is the path forward for me.

Thought I’d put in a section about my new keyboard, the Yamaha YC 88. There’s a full demonstration here:

I’ve had it for four months now, and still learning new things about it, but I love it. I had an entry-level electronic keyboard in the 1990s but it didn’t really turn me on, and I always went back to my piano, but they have improved tremendously since then and this one is amazing in its capabilities. It is basically split into three sections - an organ section, a piano section and a special effects section. All explained in the demo. Well worth looking at if you are in the market for a keyboard.

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George,

Thanks for sharing. I’m always interested in hearing different keyboards. The YC88 sounds great, and it should be all you’d ever need. How is the keyboard action?

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Thanks @scott1. It’s definitely a piano action and identical I would say to my Yamaha grand, which I’m sure is a deliberate decision on Yamaha’s part. I wasn’t able to test the action before I bought it because of the Covid rules and my immediate thought was that it was stiffer than I’d like. Although I’m used to the action on the piano I thought the YC88 would be lighter to recognise the huge step they took in upgrading the organ capabilities of the keyboard. But I’ve become used to it. Having said that, I’m not skilled on the organ and I suspect an organ enthusiast would want the action lighter. A lighter action is available on the other models however. The YC61 has 61 waterfall organ keys and the YC73 has 73 keys that are a compromise somewhere in between.
More info here:
YC Series – YC61, YC73 and YC88 - Overview - Stage Keyboards - Synthesizers & Stage Pianos - Products - Yamaha - Canada - English

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Hey George, that demo was a lot of fun. Looking forward to you sharing your own version of Moanin!

Speaking of which, let me know if you or Scott figure out what he’s done with the settings. It’s pretty clearly a split keyboard with piano on top and what sounds like horns, bass, and organ on the bottom. But the drum track is really customized, and I wonder if that’s something he did on the instrument or in a separate track on a computer.

Regarding stiffer actions, my personal experience is that lighter actions are easier to play initially but after a while (half a year in my case), heavier is better. I think it’s much easier to go from a heavy action to a light action than vice versa.

P.S. Why did you go for the YC88 instead of the CP88?

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That would be a separate track on the computer, @gregb . There are no drum capabilities with the YC88. Just organ, piano, synth and the effects that are laid over them. But they are substantial in capability. I use BIAB to generate rhythm backing tracks when I need them or use them ready-made. I went for the YC88 over the CP88 because I was totally seduced by the organ section (and the cool multicoloured drawbars!) And I’d watched a few of the Hammond organ lessons here and wanted to make organ more of my playing.

I must have watched a dozen demos on YouTube from various people, getting more enthusiastic about the instrument every time, and eventually just went for it.

PS: Have you watched 7notemode’s version of moanin’? I know you enjoy his playing.

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Wow, just Wow. A beautiful demonstration of musicality and controlled virtuosity.

Yamaha YDP184R Arius which is decent for all intents and purposes. Has graded pedal response which I like (and is useful for classical). Maybe someday I’ll be able to invest in an avant grand or something, but this will do for now.

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I watched the demo and the sound coming out of digital pianos now is so impressive! The purists say that the sound of an analog piano just can’t be duplicated but I must say that my ears just can’t tell the difference. You have a good buy there LG.

Hi guys! Just to let you know, I’m a proud user of a Roland FP-30X, and I love it! But I’m on the pursuit of the perfect jazz sound.

@Hayden , how do you setup yours at the studio?

Thanks!

Hey @Alex_Bicudo :wave:

For recording PianoGroove lessons, I connect my keyboard to Logic Pro, and the default Steinway sound or the Boesendorfer sound are both great sounds.

If you’re looking for something more sophisticated, there are many advocates of the Ravenscroft 275 virtual piano here in the forum. See the following thread:

If you want to record some performances, I would recommend using a virtual piano. The result will be much cleaner than capturing the audio from the FP30 with a microphone.

One of the positives of the FP30 is that is has built in speakers. If you did want to use a virtual piano, you would have to connect to your computer via the MIDI/USB, and then use some other speakers to generate a similar level of volume.

I would recommend playing around with the default piano sounds in Logic first (Steinway & Boesendorfer)

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Hey @Hayden,

I meant the available setup sounds of FP 30X itself or Roland apps. For instance, there’s an Roland app called Piano Designer where you find a number of setups to change the piano sound. For playing jazz I’m using LX-17 440Hz Jazz Stage setup. So I was wondering if you were using some of these setups.

Regarding Logic Pro, it is Mac only, right? If that’s the case, I can’t use it…

Awesome, I didn’t know about the Piano Designer app. I will check it out this week and try the LX-17 440Hz Jazz Stage setup.

The keyboard I have in my home is the Roland RD-88. It’s a similar weight to the FP-30 and has the onboard speaker, and has a wider selection of sounds and effects. Here’s the front of the keyboard with the controls:

I really like it. It’s sleek and low profile at the back which makes it easy to use for the lesson recording setup.

Yes that’s right, I believe it’s just for mac.

That being said I’m sure there are other DAWs which you could use. I will ask a musician friend of mine who is a Windows user to see what software he uses.

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You might take a look at Cakewalk. I used it before I switched to Mac.

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I have a Yamaha P515; the keybed a bit stiffer than the Roland’s I think but you get used to it to a large degree.
I don’t use the P515’s onboard sound but route the MIDI to my PC, where I have VSL (Vienna Synchron Pianos) running. I route the audio back into the P515 so I can use my headphones on that keyboard again. I love the more characteristic pianos of VSL, especially the German 1904 Upright (in Ambience or Player mode) and Boesendorfer Upright. The Boesendorfer imperial and 280VC are quite clean.

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I found it very challenging to pick out a digital piano as most of the top brands are no where to be found if you want to try the nicer models. I was shocked that there wasn’t a single store in Los Angeles to try out any of the Kawai slabs!

I initially took a chance on the Kawai ES520 but unfortunately it had issues with a plastic clicking sound when playing the keys in the lower two octaves (a Kawai rep confirmed this was not how it should sound) so had to pack it up and send it back. I also found the keys to be a bit light for my preference though the piano sounds were very nice.

I would’ve loved to have played all of the Kawai models especially the MP7se which is a real beauty imo but alas it was not possible. I was able to find a Roland slab that had the PHA-50 keyed and that sold me on taking the leap and going for an FP-90x.

It was a huge relief when the board finally arrived and everything was perfect! I have yet to try it with any VST’s but the internal sounds are working just fine and it is a joy to sit down and practice everyday. :slight_smile:

I am looking for an electronic piano, 88 weighted keys, with midi input, The main objective is to practice using headphones at night, but also having some speakers for practicing during lessons (for listening both to the lesson (tablet/computer) and to the piano.
I read all the posts on the thread, and I looked on the web, and I see a lot of nice comments about Roland, Yamaha, Kawai, Kurtzweil, Korg… I need to decide, and I don’t want to go to the store, so comments from people that compared products will be very welcome.
I don’t need the keyboard to compete with my Bosedorfer, just trying to learn some Jazz basics, when my wife is asleep. But I don’t want cheapest thing, I want a good product.
I downloaded a midi file “cry me a river”, so I see that the keyboard will need to have MIDI input, and some way to play it from a tablet/computer. I am looking for some midi software that can slow the playback to let me follow fast runs. I need it to play very slowly for now.
I played with MIDI 30-40 years ago. We used only the 5 pin circular DIN connectors (no usb or Bluetooth). I need to learn about that as well.

Hi @dan5,
You can’t go wrong with any of those brands if you’re looking at the higher tier models. For me having a keybed action that I felt a “connection” with was top priority so I took several trips to different music stores to find what I liked. I imagine you would have some kind of preference in this area so it would be best to play some models you are interested in as only you can know what is best for you. I can tell you from experience that buying a DP and having to return it because you do not bond with it is a very cumbersome experience due to the size, weight and packaging.

If this really doesn’t matter to you just make sure the board has bluetooth audio and you will find that streaming audio from your tablet through the keyboard is a very easy way to practice. You would be able to use a compatible program to play the midi file at any tempo you like (for me it would be GarageBand) and the audio will stream through your keyboard headphones or speakers and you can practice along.

This all works flawlessly for me with my Roland FP-90x. Just make sure to do a little digging and make sure whatever DP you decide on is compatible with your tablet. This is a good forum to get opinions and advice as well:

Good luck with your search!