Piano World Home Page Forums Our Most Popular Forums Digital Pianos - Electronic Pianos - Synths & Keyboards Yamaha P155 Issue

Hi Everyone,

I'm new to the forum. I'm glad it's here because I'm not sure where else I could go to ask for help. I've had my P155 for a few months now. At some point (maybe after a month and a half) I noticed that one of the keys was making a slight 'tapping' sound when played. Eventually, this sound was also heard on 3 other keys adjacent to the first one. It's not a loud sound and does not affect the sound or feel of the piano. It's just annoying because when I play a piece all I can hear is this tapping sound. My P155 is on an X stand. I noticed if I moved the keyboard somewhat diagonally on the stand, the sound would go away for a while (but would always return).

I took the piano to an electronics service centre that does warranty work for Yamaha. The technician could not replicate the problem. He did mention that all of the screws on the unit were 'finger loose', so he tightened them up. He also tried to contact Yamaha tech support but they did not respond. So, after 2 weeks I went and picked up my piano. I set it up at home and played for an hour or so without detecting the 'tapping sound'. A few hours later, I went to play again and there it was again on the original 'C' key I had first heard it on. It was subtle, but there. I am going to lose my mind! I don't know what could be causing this sound. It seems to be somehow related to how the weight of the unit is distributed, as the sound diminishes or goes away for a little while if I shift the keyboard around on the stand. I feel that this shouldn't be happening though. Any thoughts or advice? I will try to include a link to the videos I took of the sound. As I said, it's not super loud but it is to me when I'm playing. Thanks for any help or insight you have to offer. At this point I just want to return the thing and get a new one, if possible. The videos can be a bit choppy on first playing, so it might be a good idea to let them load first then play them or to download them. The 'tapping noise' would be on the b,c,d keys. It's heard more clearly on the video that is closer to the piano.

Piano video 1

Piano video 2

Yeah that would be annoying. Since it still appears to be under warranty, I guess I'd stick it to the Yamaha man.

If it wasn't under warranty I'd probably open it up myself to see if it was something I could fix myself. People have had problems like this because of a lack of the white grease they slime around in there, for example.

The keys may be hitting a wire or something that is hanging down. There are circuit boards and wires above the keys that make the sound. It may be something loose that makes contact with the back of the keys off and on and moving the keyboard helps temporarily-just a guess. I would either call Yahama or take it back to the shop you had it at for another look. Does not sound like anything serious.

Hi,

Thanks for the replies. The piano technician had the keyboard for about 3 weeks. He took it apart and could not find a problem. I'm not an expert by any means, but I have a feeling it's an issue with the plastic casing that houses the unit. When I press down on the casing just above the offending keys, the sound goes away. This makes me wonder if all P-155s have at least some keys that make this noise. I hope not. I'm also wondering if it could be my stand. If I lay the keyboard on my bed for example (a soft surface), the keys do not make the noise. The issue seems to arise when there's contact between a hard surface and bottom of the keyboard. Yet, if the keyboard is laid on the floor and is therefore perched on those 4 rubber (legs?) I don't hear the sound. If I knew it was my stand causing the problem, I'd get another one.

You may be right but my guess would be that something above is hitting the back of those keys. The technician may have overlooked that. It could also be your stand. Perhaps you could lay a towel or maybe a board on the stand and see if the noise is still there. What kind of stand do you have? I recently had my digital piano apart to replace felt and had a whole octave of keys making a similar noise to what you are hearing (tapping). It ended up being the stand. I repositioned the piano on the stand and tightened it down and now the noise is gone.

Hi,

I have a rather 'rickety' X style stand. I had thought about getting the Yamaha L140 stand which is made specifically for the P155 but it costs 199.00 from my local music store. I don't want to shell out that kind of money if it's not even the stand that's causing the problem.

You could always return it then. If nobody else can figure out what the problem is...maybe it is the stand?

Funny that you say when you press the plastic down the problem goes away. I bet you are right about it being the casing.

I recently bought a PX-130 and went through 2 exchanges before I got one I was happy with. One of the problems on the second one was a vibration on 3 adjacent keys (only when the sound was on however) and I found it would go away when pressing on the casing.

The problem was the casing was a bit loose at a seam so I cut a business card into a small square, folded it in half with a small peice of rubber band inside and wedged it into the casing seam. The offending vibration went away.

While it doesn't sound like quite the same thing, you may want to investigate this option.

EDIT: I also had a clicking noise with a few keys on the new one but that went away once the screws connecting the keyboard to the stand were tightened... So it could easily be a stand issue like many have pointed out.

i would talk to Yamaha - they want to make you happy - they replaced my keybed a while back and it was 10 years old.

I would take it back, demonstrate the problem to them and ask them to either fix it or replace it with a new one.

Hi,

Well, I ended up getting in touch with Yamaha tech support. They were quite prompt in getting back to me. I spoke with the manager of the service centre about the issue. He watched the video of the links I posted. He said it was probably something minor and that it could most likely be fixed but that I'd have to send it to Toronto (and pay for the shipping myself). As I live in a different Province, and shipping is ungodly expensive in Canada, I told him I'd contact the retailer who sold me the piano, and get back to him. Long story short, I called the manager of the store and explained what was going on and expressed my frustration at having to send the piano away (politely, of course). He very quickly offered to order me a replacement. I thanked him and accepted the offer. So, as it stands, once the replacement comes in I will bring in my piano and pick up the new one. I'm very happy with how this turned out. I hope the new one doesn't make any weird noises. If it does, then maybe the noise I'm hearing is normal? Would any other P-155 owners care to comment on the 'noisiness' or lack thereof on their 155s?

Great ! That is exactly what is supposed to happen.

I would be very surprised if the next one came with the same problem. They couldn't possibly sell them if that was the case.