Piano World Home Page Forums Our Most Popular Forums Digital Pianos - Electronic Pianos - Synths & Keyboards Yamaha P115 vs Casio PX 160 vs Yamaha P45

So I've been playing piano for maybe 2 years or so on an unweighted keyboard and I'm ready to upgrade now that I am at more of an intermediate level. Which of the three is best? I know they Yamaha P115 will be better than the Yamaha P45 but is the casio better than the yamaha p45. Thanks for the help

Why don't you try these keyboards in a shop ?

Everyone has its own feeling, it is not because I prefer one of the models that you should buy it.

Absolutely try playing them first. If you can't for some reason make it to a music store, too for away, or anything, the video below might help you. Even if you will visit a store, it's not a bad idea to watch it. You'll know more, and will be able to ask questions, you wouldn't think of otherwise.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lJMdh3lk0d0

The video is actually from a music store in the UK, so the salesman could be biased, but he could also be objective, trying to help the buyer, as much as possible to make an informed decision.

I agree with Frederic, you should see what you like best... but also, I would not assume everyone would agree that the P115 would be better than the P45. I remember seeing where some preferred the P35 (the P45 predecessor) to the P105 (the P115 predecessor), so I wouldn't take anything for granted. However, while again the preference is not universal, the trend seems to be that people like the Yamaha sound better than the Casio but the Casio action better than the Yamaha. Also, if you can stretch up a little or maybe find a good price on one, you should try to include the Roland FP30, Kawai ES100, ES110 in your comparison.

I own the P45 (entry level), and I like its action better than even some of the higher priced Casio privias. I believe the action of the 45 and the 115 is the same, so you're basically paying extra for greater choice of sounds, as well as recording capability. Decide whether those are worth the extra cost.

I don't know if I'm correct here, but the P45 seemed to have the previous generation Yamaha sound which I liked. It took me a little while to settle for the CFIII sounds of my DGX, but they were more refined. And recorded much better, too. The P115 should be similar.

I'd pick both the Casio sound _and_ action as better than the Yamaha's. I might be brand-biased.

But you should try them yourself. The FP30 is also quite nice.

It's easy to get used to the purity of sound, and lightness of touch, of a simple sound generator with a Yamaha GHS action. The problem is, that acoustic pianos don't have that purity of sound, or that lightness of touch.

Questions:

. . . Do you plan to switch to an acoustic piano?
. . . Do you plan to play classical piano music seriously?

There is no "higher priced" privia action. All privias from the same generation use the same keybed. If you try PX160, you tried them all.
As for which one is better: No two acoustic brands pianos have the same action either, so it is purely matter of preference. It takes a week or two to get accustomed to different action, then everything else feels different. Same thing with the sound. When you play on yamahas for while, everything else will sound off until you use that thing for some time then yamahas will sound off.
The truth is, you can't get wrong with any of recent DP from either of the big brands. Just don't touch old and sticker brands and you are in the business.