Piano World Home Page Forums Our Most Popular Forums Digital Pianos - Electronic Pianos - Synths & Keyboards Kwai ES7, MP6, Roland FP-80 or RD700NX

"I do wonder if the 700NX as mentioned in another thread is due a successor this year?"

There's always something new on the horizon; often when you're waiting and waiting and... to get the latest and greatest, you end up with nothing at all. At some point you have to decide what fits your needs at this moment and go for it and don't look back (or on the internet for half a year; always painfull when your new gear is on EOL sale a week after your purchase).

If the 700NX got your attention and your afraid of an RD8xx at some point , you might consider a second hand RD700NX in good condition for a nice price. In that way it will be less of a headache when something new pops up a month later, cause it will cost considerably more anyway.

IMHO the replacement rate of boards like the MP and RD series has slowed down , probably due to the economic crisis. Therefore it is very hard to predict when the next generation will be released (not so steady intervals as in the past). Perhaps they're even sitting on a big pile of stock that first has to be cleared out, which goes very slow I guess these days...Talking expensive high end gear => slow-movers...

Since you're looking for pipe organ sounds you can start with this free app:
"Jeux d'orgues Mini"
Since it sounds like you already have the iPad hooked up to your keyboard, you're pretty much there. Just launch the app and start playing.
There are lots of other apps. If you're looking for more of a Hammond drawbar organ, for example, Garageband does a nice job for $5.

USB cable, then identify the keyboard as the controller.

Then go into a song any song change the instruments, then pause the song, what you press now comes out via synthesia over to your DP speakers.

Thats it, I've found I can pretty much get any midi and get sythesia to play a demo of it and it comes out on the DP speakers.

I don't use synthesia much anymore tbh, except when I see some sheet music I am sure isn't right.

I think several people that have replied in this thread need to read the first post again, specifically this part:



This is not someone looking for professional gigging setup, or the best possible anything at all. And he probably doesn't want multiple boards or anything as complicated as software instruments (not from the outset, anyway). He just wants something that will work for him and cover his needs. His needs, not yours. Just a friendly reminder.

The problem is that his 5 listed requirements are not the easiest combination to find in a single self-contained board. Whether beginner or not, if those are the things you want, you either have to compromise or consider some out-of-the-box solutions. So we're just providing options.

Well firstly I noticed Bonners Music (www.bonnersmusic.co.uk) had the best online price. Up until then Thomann were the lowest at £1,170. However, since it's a Bank Holiday here in the uk I thought I'd check for any holiday discounts that might be floating around.

After a few unsuccessful searches on Google and Bonners Twitter feed I decided to call them direct & ask a salesperson for a discount (01323 639 335).

I literally said "what's your lowest price". I had to wait about 2 or 3 minutes (felt longer!) then the guy came back with £1,075. That did it for me and I bought it on the spot. I asked if the MP was brand new and unopened which he confirmed (I was a little paranoid as that price was so low!).

So I'll have by DP on Tuesday. Might be worth trying this yourself regardless of what DP you finally go with.

The keyboard I have is a Yamaha PSR300 which is over 20 years old but does have a midi input which I never knew how to use before. We haven't actually connected the ipad to it nor used Synthesia directly just used videos from YT of it. This keyboard is something I'd like to try experimenting on though. Need the right sort of wire first (usb to midi?).

Dewster that's some interesting info in that link, opening my eyes to what you can do if your DP has a lot of features like the NX and fp7f.
I really like this vid for instance
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JEDA2ilgq1M

Dooq I may give that site a try when I've decided, the price you got for the MP6 seems really good. They may be particularly keen to give me a deal if I get accessories with the DP.

If I were to go for the NX what are good speakers for that for a living room? I'd need to take that cost into account before deciding. The headphones I have are Sennheiser HD 558.

Seriously though don't use synthesia too much. I used it for a while and learnt some songs by rote, once I started learning properly it opened up so much more.

You can use synthesia for a year and only be able to play what it presents you. Or you can learn properly and have a bloody good crack at any sheet music put in front of you.

Just get the FP-80 or the ES7. You'll be very happy with one of those. Both are very well build and will give you many years of enjoyment. If you want you can always still hook up a computer to it. But, from what I understand, all you want is something simple and good with built in speakers. Just press the on button and play.

So we're back at the beginning. The only reason NX keeps on coming up is because Enthusiast keeps on bringing the NX back in the mix again and again. First advice of most posters (like myself) was indeed go for the FP or ES. In other words Enthusiast may have to get back to the drawing board and decide what he 'really' wants from a board, stick to that and take a pick. ES/FP and NX different kind of breed , different purpose, different setup (external speakers etc); you'll have to make a choice at some point...

You could consider also one of the newest and maybe best action (with triple sensor) equipped keyboard: Numa Concert.

It has no speakers and 'only' 9 layered samples.

May I ask you why do you think the Numa Concert has the best action
Is it the Fatar TP40 which is used in there ?

TP40 Wood with triple sensor (and perhaps some other small improvements we don't know about). Seems to be a good keybed. Pitty no-one sells the Studiologic in our country, cause I would have liked to be able to test it somewhere.

@ Cmin; with all due respect , but to my knowledge the Kawai PHI 'only' has four layers and the amount of layers on the Roland SN is unknown. Both use special interpolation algorithms to smooth out layer transitions, but the Numa concert does that as well, so layer transitions should be inaudible. All-in-all the NUMA offers the most layers of these offerings and some nice sounding piano modeling effects and has the most recent recorded piano sample base of all brands, apart from the coming Kurzweil Artis. All the other known brands have been using the same old or older base material for years in a row , just adding an extra layer or longer samples here and there or offering an extra modeling effect (Roland added soundboard resonance, but seems to have ditched the lid simulation). So the NUMA seems to be a nice package offering - presumably - good keys and fresh new and dynamic piano sounds.

Indeed it doesn't have the speakers...

Isnt it the same keybed as the one used in the Physis Piano ?
I tested the Physis piano and found the keybed quite good (but not superior to others brand)

Seems to be the same yes. Again all from product info, Internet posts and hearsay; neither the Physis , nor the Studiologics are on display here. What's also important is how well the keybed and sound are matched , giving the player good feedback and control over what he/ she is playing. Just a good keybed is only half of the story, though its the starting point, cause a good sound with shitty keybed = big frustration & no use.

I know we are getting a bit (very) side tracked here, but....
JFP check this Roland video. It seems that Super Natural has a different technology concerning the dynamic layers.

Built in speakers are just preferable for me not a necessity which opens up more options. I already knew the MP6 and NX 700 didn't have them when I started the topic. Maybe they offer enough advantages to offset that deficiency though.

Yes I will have to rethink what I want as I'm still learning about the potential possibilities offered in DPs. I've picked up a lot of good info from this thread though but I'll know more when I've had the chance to visit a few shops and try them out.

Another thing I may do is take a couple of lessons from a teacher who specializes in adult beginners and gives a free trial. It'll give me a chance to get a good go on an acoustic so I have a point of reference when trying out DPs.

As an owner, 700NX is a heavy slab. I think you should look at the Yamaha P-105 just in case first. You're not going to find light weight, great piano sound, great key action, on-board speakers all-in-one. If my DP were suddenly destroyed, I would rush out and grab an economical P-105, personally.

According to the specs it's 25kg (55lbs) which would be ok. ES7 would be 22kg and the FP-80 23.8kg so not much between them. It's Nothing like my old CRT TV which weighed nearly 50kg and something I had to carry (with someone else) up and down the stairs a few times.

In terms of size I'd need to see them in person. So far I've only seen and tried out the MP6 which didn't seem too big at all.