Want to buy a keyboard ..... Any recommendations

[iwantavuvezela]

My daughter (6)is about to start keyboard lessons. If she enjoys it we could move on to piano, but thinking of starting off with this.
However I have no idea what to look for? Any recommendations would be gratefully received.

Tricky. Personally, unless you are in a position to afford a very realistic keyboard I would just get a piano! Most people I know whose dcs have started on a keyboard have never progressed beyond it. The choice is immense, though, and it's a difficult decision. If space and practicality are important, I would go for a very good, compact digital piano, for a couple of grand. I think Aiwa have a new one coming out. Otherwise, you should be able to get a good acoustic piano for around £500.

Keyboards are ok for comping and basic stuff, but don't really work for classical. I'm a bit of a snob, though; many will disagree!

On a budget I would recommend a Yamaha full sized key keyboard-but agree that a proper weighted key digital piano or a real acoustic piano is best for piano lessons.

We were looking at the Casio CDP120 at about £329. At the moment we do not have the room to get a piano. Also it would not need tuning. We were told it was OK for starters. If dd gets good at it we will upgrade.

Watching with interest. We were advised a keyboard would be suitable til grade 2 but then likely to need a full size piano but recommended a keyboard style on a stand. But the dilemma is whether to invest yet knowing they may not continue!

Forgot to mention we were recommended a Yamaha

Get a proper piano. You can hire them quite cheaply and there are some very compact ones around.

Get a keyboard with a decent weighted action and a good quality basic piano sound. Don't spend money on bells and whistles.

Suggested models:

Any Yamaha "P" range, eg. P95, P105.

Korg SP-250.

Casio do something similar but I'm not sure which model.

One of these should set you back somewhere between 400 and 600 quid new. Or you may be able to get one cheaper on Ebay. I wouldn't advise spending any less than this (new) as there will inevitably be compromises to either the action and/or sound that will affect learning and enjoyment.

At this price point, you are much better off going for a keyboard than a piano. There's no way you'll get a new piano for that money, and a second hand one at that kind of price might just be OK, but might not. It might have tuning issues which can affect the training of the ear (just as important as training the fingers, or more! Especially in the early stages.)

Really for a half-way decent piano you want to be looking at a couple of grand new, or a grandish second hand. You can get lucky cheaper than that but really need someone who knows what they're doing to advise. I'd agree that that's something to be addressing a few years down the line when you know they're serious. The keyboards above will easily do till then.

Get a weighted keyboard - you can pick them up on ebay reasonably cheaply - we have gone up to grade 4 piano on one... if piano is needed in future you can then rent one - they deliver, they tune......

We got a new digital piano (weighted keys) from gear4music for about the same money (their brand). It actually replaced our Yamaha digital piano and you can't tell the difference!!! Don't bother with sounds/drums/nonsense. They are just a distraction.

You need to get one with touch sensitive keys. I did a search on here when I was buying ours a few months ago and got a yamaha psre333 for the bargain price of £116 from a local shop and a generic stand from amazon for £20. You can still get them for £120 online.The keyboard should take my dc to grade 4.

Yamaha P95 is a digital piano and I love mine, it was 450 quid iirc from Amazon. Comes with a pedal too.

Forgot to say, it is weighted so feels very realistic.