Piano World Home Page Forums Our Most Popular Forums Digital Pianos - Electronic Pianos - Synths & Keyboards I need some recommendations on piano accessories..

Hey guys. There are two things I need for my piano (Casio PX-200). A bench and a sustain pedal. I'm looking to spend as little as possible, yet getting decent products.

Right now I'm sitting on a chair that is too low and is not height adjustable. I need a bench with adjustable heights.

The pedal I'm using now came with the piano when I bought it. It works, but it is really light and moves around too much when I step on it. I'm looking for a better pedal with a good feel to it. I don't know if I want one of those square shaped pedals or the round ones like you'd typically find on an acoustic piano. I would like to hear your thoughts on this.

Overall, I am hoping not to spend much over $50 USD. Just doing a quick search on amazon.com, I figured I'd be spending somewhere near there.

There are cheap benches out there. You might be able to find a standard bench for under $50. But adjustable ... that will likely cost more, even for a cheap brand. You might want to look for something used. BTW, how tall are you? The standard 19" bench height is good for most people. If that would work for you, you might not need an adjustable bench.

I am 5' 6" ish. I was thinking about getting something like this: http://www.amazon.com/Yamaha-PKBB1-...nstruments&qid=1260094130&sr=8-3 ... There are similar benches, some for cheaper than that one, but I just don't know which to choose.. Was hoping someone here had some experiences with this and can recommend me a decent bench at a decent price.

That fits your budget.
But those x-frame metal benches are less stable than the regular, 4-legged benches.
I'd look for a 4-leg bench (used) on ebay or Craig's List.

I bought the m-audio pedal and am quite happy with it. I think it may be called the sp-2 but hope i have that right----it's the one for about $20.00 on amazon.

If you're not in a hurry for a bench, start watching garage sales. It's amazing how many quality benches end up being sold for $10 because they need new upholstery. I reupholstered mine myself, went to the fabric store and told the woman I wanted something black for a piano bench and she handed me something I don't even know the name of, but it worked great. I stretched it over a piece of 2" foam and stapled it to the bottom.

I'll second the m-audio pedal. It has a switch on it to flip the polarity so it should work with any DP that has a1/4 jack for the pedal. It's a very sturdy design that might last forever. The pedal itself is chromed steel and housing is weighted so it stays put.

I was looking at height adjustable "X frame" benches at Sam Ash a couple weeks ago. Prices start at $29 and go up to $50. My daughter liked the lowest priced one but she is 85 pounds and when I tried it I crushed the foam flat. I'm 100 pounds heaver and it may as well had been un-padded. I'd go for the "deluxe" model. My point is that you have to try them. Any of the big chain stores like Sm Ash or Guitar Center will have a dozen models in stock that you can try. The only thing about the x-frames are that the height is not continuously adjustable, you have to choose which hole to put to locking pin through.

If you buy an acoustic piano
with a solid wood bench, the
ht. from the floor to the top
surface of the white keys will
be 28 to 29 inches, and the ht.
from the floor to the top surface
of the bench will be about 18.5
inches.

If you're using the
PX 200 with the factory Casio
stand, then you will have the 28-29
in. from the floor to the
top surface of the white keys.
If you're using a folding
X-frame stand, then you won't
be able to adjust it to this standard
ht. Similarly folding X-frame
benches can't adjust to give the
standard ht. of 18.5 in.

If you want to spend less than
$50, I'd recommend sticking
with your current "mousetrap"-
style pedal, because all sustain
pedals-on-a-wire are going to
slip around on the floor no
matter what you do, and so you're not
going to be able prevent this by
buying a more expensive pedal.
And a good bench is going to cost more
than $50, so I'd recommend
going to piano dealer and asking
them if they have an extra
used bench. What often happens is
that they take trade-ins on
new pianos, any kind of junk that
they end up discarding, but they
save the benches. They might
give one to you for free, so
that you remember them if you
ever want to buy a new piano.

Thanks everyone. This thread has helped a lot. I am still considering both the x-style bench and a new pedal (maudio sp2?). Both of these combined comes near my budget of $50. Right now my friend's setup is similar. He has a yamaha keyboard, a yamaha x-style stand, a yamaha x-style bench, and a yamaha 'mousetrap' pedal which all came with his keyboard purchase. His pedal does not slide much compared to mine, and I think it's because his pedal is significantly heavier than mine. We both have carpet floors if this makes any difference. Overall, his setup feels pretty good, at least when I play on his keyboard. In fact, I was considering getting the same accessories as him. I already have the same x-style stand he has. Anyway, I will consider everything else you guys have said when I make my final decision in the next week or two.

Lastly, I just thought about this but will the maudio sp2 be compatible with any keyboard like my casio?