Piano World Home Page Forums Our Most Popular Forums Digital Pianos - Electronic Pianos - Synths & Keyboards Question about buying a Technics "SX-PR804"

Hi,

I am looking for another digital piano as my current one is 16years I got from a Roland dealer. I found a Technics SX-PR804, does anyone know anything about these units and about what are they worth today?

Thanks

Technics withdrew from the DP market over 10 years ago. Apparently as a brand they weren't as highly regarded as Yamaha / Roland, though models from the late 80s / early 90s were good for their time.

Not sure exactly when SX-PR804 was released, but it looks like one of their later models so I'd guess early 2000s. You can download the manual if you google it.

Value: this kind of ensemble piano has gone out of fashion, and quality of piano sounds has improved a lot in the past decade. So not worth a huge amount. One sold on eBay last year went for £578. They sold originally for 10x that.

If it's all working then it could be worth checking out. Read about potential problems here first. Since they're not that common it might be hard getting repairs.

I have fond memories of Technics' keyboards and digital pianos - they were very impressive instruments for their time. However, as lolatu correctly notes, keyboard and sound technology has progressed considerably in the past decade, to the extent where today's entry-level instruments are more realistic than former flagship models costing over ten times the amount when new.

If you are able to visit the seller to play-test the instrument, by all means do so, however be sure to check all keys and functions fully. Even then, you may find that the core piano sound and keyboard action technology is no better than your existing Roland.

Kind regards,
James
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Great advice- Thank you! Its tough to find anything on these units. I think they were asking around $500 US

Just for some perspective, have you tried a Casio px-150? They go for $500 brand new and will sound and feel much better than your Roland or the Technics. Might be good to check out some new DPs in your price range for comparison.

Thank you but the only reason I was interested in that unit was the features and external sounds and effects. The Roland has KR-370 has many sounds and piano types of effects also. My budget is 3-4k but I am not up to date on any of the new units so that is why I was looking at that one. If anyone has any recommendations I would be grateful? The problem with dealers, is that many will try to push a certain model on you without accessing your true needs. So any recommendations of new models or models within the last 5-6 years would be nice. Thank you!

You mention features and external sounds and effects, but this is rather vague, so some question may help clear this up:
-What kind of music do you want to play?
-Will the DP stay at home all the time, or will you be gigging with it, or a little of both?
-Are you OK with a stage piano (where you have to purchased a separate stand and possibly speakers), or do you need a console type (which has an attached stand that comes with it and on-board speakers)?
-Do you want to be able to arrange music on it (like an automatic accompaniment feature and sequencer)?
-Do you want to record on it?
-Do you want to use software piano sounds or sequencing software (DAWs)?
-Do you need lots of different sounds (synth sounds, guitar, drums, etc.), or primarily Piano/EP/Strings/Pad?

There are some great new pianos well within or below your budget that you can consider based on your criteria.

You mention features and external sounds and effects, but this is rather vague, so some question may help clear this up:
-What kind of music do you want to play? Primarily it will be classical and for lessons.
-Will the DP stay at home all the time, or will you be gigging with it, or a little of both? It will stay at home all the time
-Are you OK with a stage piano (where you have to purchased a separate stand and possibly speakers), or do you need a console type (which has an attached stand that comes with it and on-board speakers)? [color:#FF0000]A console type
-Do you want to be able to arrange music on it (like an automatic accompaniment feature and sequencer)? Yes
-Do you want to record on it? Yes
-Do you want to use software piano sounds or sequencing software (DAWs)? Software Piano Sounds
-Do you need lots of different sounds (synth sounds, guitar, drums, etc.), or primarily Piano/EP/Strings/Pad? Yes
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I believe the 804 was the last top range piano released by technics before panasonic pulled the plug further infomation can be found Here

I had a technics sx-pc8 which was the simplest DP ever with an on/off and a volume control and ended upgrading to a slightly newer sx pr902 as I was comfortable with the action and could not find anything that I was comfortable with new under £1300 which is out of my price range for now however actions I think are very much a personal choice and what I would say is that the technics will only get more and more difficult to repair if goes wrong in the future.

If you want to play classical then you will want the best action and acoustic piano sound out there. I highly recommend you try out the Kawai CA65.

Roland's HP-506 is at the tope end of your budget, and I have not played it to say how good it is, but I've heard good things so far and it would be good to have a few pianos to compare.

Yamaha CLP-440 might be a good comparison too.

Any of these should work for your needs (as well as many others), but it should give you a good start. Take your time in shopping so you can find just what you want

Ok,

Thank you as I will take a look at the pianos this afternoon. I'm really looking forward exploring the suggestions and thinking of kind of going towards a piano that has great sound and produces many sounds ( Feature heavy)

Thanks

I have a PR804 and have nothing but good to say for it, other than it is a bit dated and the company is no longer available for servicing and parts.

It is a beautiful piece of furniture, heavily built and well made. I have always loved the sound, as it has better than average speakers. It has lots of sounds and the built-in 16-track sequencer makes it easy to record and compse. You are not likely to want to haul it around for gigs. It's really a home or institutional digital piano.

I have had no electronic troubles with mine in many years of use.

The full 88 key keyboard has always been easy to my hands. It just feels right.

You can buy a newer Yamaha or Roland high-end machine, or a newer and more modern portable. You will pay plenty for those. But for a home uniit with real pedals, the PR804 rocks!