Topic by homerghost

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Topic: Good Semi-Portable Controller Options?

Hi all! Sorry in advance if this is an annoying topic, but I've gone round and round in circles over what keyboard I should get. There are some good posts here about hardware, but it doesn't seem like there has been one for a while. I'd love to go somewhere and try some devices out myself, but it's not an option for me right now unfortunately. Any feedback and experiences on what you've used (especially what you've tried and hated) would be appreciated!

I like playing fast classical, mainly Bach and Beethoven. I'd like good responsive action, but not too stiff or slow. 5 Pin Midi In and Out is (edit: preferred but not entirely non-negotiable) for me. On board speakers are nice but not essential as it's for mostly headphone home use. Aux In would be nice if speakers are there. The smaller physical footprint the piano has the better (eg. FP-10) as I'll need to move it around the house a lot.

The biggest dilemma I'm having is settling on something decent that isn't complete overkill. ES920 and FP-90X for example look awesome, but they are huge and have all sorts of bells and whistles and sound engines that I'll never use. SL88 Grand looks great as a pure controller but I've heard so many complaints about quality control. Korg D1 looks like a really good option too but I've heard it's heavy. VPC1 gets great press but it's pricey and I've heard mixed reports about consistency for midi. On board speakers would be nice but a lot of the other usual suspects are USB MIDI only which I'd prefer to avoid for several reasons (edit: but USB is probably going to be the way forward).

If I was taking a blind punt right now I'd probably grab the Korg D1 but I'm keen to hear what people's thoughts are on what they've tried and used for Pianoteq specifically. Thanks!

Last edited by homerghost (12-12-2021 15:53)

Reply by dv

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Re: Good Semi-Portable Controller Options?

homerghost wrote:

USB MIDI only which I'd prefer to avoid for several reasons.

Can you elaborate more on that? USB MIDI is great as far as I can tell. The only limitation is the distance of the connection with the DIN allow much longer, but that could be a problem on a stage, not at home.

Where do I find a list of all posts I upvoted? :(

Reply by homerghost

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Re: Good Semi-Portable Controller Options?

dv wrote:
homerghost wrote:

USB MIDI only which I'd prefer to avoid for several reasons.

Can you elaborate more on that? USB MIDI is great as far as I can tell. The only limitation is the distance of the connection with the DIN allow much longer, but that could be a problem on a stage, not at home.

It's more of a preference thing if I'm quite honest, but my wireless midi adapter requires a five pin in/out (if/when I want to use it) and I've got limited USB ports on my laptop so it would be nice to run everything through my audio interface (Steinberg UR22C)

Reply by dv

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Re: Good Semi-Portable Controller Options?

homerghost wrote:
dv wrote:
homerghost wrote:

USB MIDI only which I'd prefer to avoid for several reasons.

Can you elaborate more on that? USB MIDI is great as far as I can tell. The only limitation is the distance of the connection with the DIN allow much longer, but that could be a problem on a stage, not at home.

It's more of a preference thing if I'm quite honest, but my wireless midi adapter requires a five pin in/out (if/when I want to use it) and I've got limited USB ports on my laptop so it would be nice to run everything through my audio interface (Steinberg UR22C)

Are you sure that you would not be affected by excessive latency, making the whole point moot?

In any case, of all the boards you mentioned I have tried only the ES8 (which I think has the same action as the ES920) and did not like it: too bouncy. I had it side-by-side with the ES100 and I liked the latter much better. I tried some older Kawai CA series cabinet digital piano which had actions similar to the VPC1 and they were very good. I know you mentioned the VPC1 as already too expensive, but another option is also the MP11 which has the best action in any (somewhat) portable keyboard: I tried that again in a CA series model.

You also do not mention the FP-30X about which I've heard great things.

For the quality control, I know Kawai takes care of them aftermarket very well, even though with COVID that may take an unacceptably long time. I would personally not worry about that, but I cannot blame you if you do.

In conclusion, I invite you to https://pianoclack.com/ where these things are discussed at length. Look around, and perhaps check all the post by https://pianoclack.com/forum/u/eddiepiano who tried very many digital pianos!!

Last edited by dv (12-12-2021 15:33)
Where do I find a list of all posts I upvoted? :(

Reply by dazric

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Re: Good Semi-Portable Controller Options?

homerghost wrote:
dv wrote:
homerghost wrote:

USB MIDI only which I'd prefer to avoid for several reasons.

Can you elaborate more on that? USB MIDI is great as far as I can tell. The only limitation is the distance of the connection with the DIN allow much longer, but that could be a problem on a stage, not at home.

It's more of a preference thing if I'm quite honest, but my wireless midi adapter requires a five pin in/out (if/when I want to use it) and I've got limited USB ports on my laptop so it would be nice to run everything through my audio interface (Steinberg UR22C)

I think that if you're going to insist on 5-pin MIDI your choice is going to be severely limited. It's true that USB ports are in short supply on many laptops but you should be able to get around that by using a decent quality powered hub. I use this one with USB-MIDI without any issues: https://www.climaxdigital.co.uk/epages/...cts/111215 (it's a UK product so you may need to search for something similar, depending on your location). Or you might be able to get an adapter for USB-5 pin MIDI, but make sure it's a good quality one.

Last edited by dazric (12-12-2021 15:38)

Reply by homerghost

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Re: Good Semi-Portable Controller Options?

Fair point taken about MIDI, guys. it's workaroundable and really shouldn't be my limiting factor - scratch that!

I'm not limited by price per se, but the VPC1 seems like overkill for someone who is flexible on "grand piano" action and for that kind of money I might as well opt for something with speakers. Plus I've heard mixed feelings on midi accuracy.

Reply by homerghost

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Re: Good Semi-Portable Controller Options?

dv wrote:

You also do not mention the FP-30X about which I've heard great things.

Well after some deliberation, I'm giving the FP-30X a shot. You are right about MIDI connection, plus the audio return feature is an incredibly cool touch.

Eddie's comments were very compelling. It's a piano I had read a lot about, but I had dismissed because of the horror stories about the heavy action. But then with every single keyboard I've read up about, someone out there hates the action.

Thank you for the guidance, you were most helpful. I'm sure I'll like it!

Last edited by homerghost (13-12-2021 07:31)

Reply by dv

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Re: Good Semi-Portable Controller Options?

homerghost wrote:

Thank you for the guidance, you were most helpful. I'm sure I'll like it!

You are most welcome. Let us know on either or both forums how you'll like it. It'll help others and satisfy our curiosity :-)

Where do I find a list of all posts I upvoted? :(

Reply by homerghost

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Re: Good Semi-Portable Controller Options?

dv wrote:

Let us know on either or both forums how you'll like it. It'll help others and satisfy our curiosity :-)

Well, I've had my FP-30X since Tuesday and so far I love it! The tough action was definitely a shock from my previous keyboard (a Gear4Music DP-7 that I'd been borrowing) but I feel I adapted to it very quickly and I'm playing much better and more consistently on it which surprised me.

Setting up with Pianoteq was effortless, and having the playback coming out of the piano's own speakers with just one cable to my computer is just awesome. I'm so glad I moved past my obsession with 5pin MIDI!

I'll put together a noob pov review at some point. Overall very happy but still morbidly curious about a second keyboard, perhaps a Kawai, for rapid playing. Maybe after Christmas