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Keybed OK/good? No chance to try b4 buying

 
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Randelph
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Joined: 18 Oct 2008
Posts: 604
Location: San Francisco, CA

PostPosted: Tue Jan 17, 2023 1:22 am    Post subject: Keybed OK/good? No chance to try b4 buying Reply with quote

Could really use some input! I am keen on buying the EK50L but am worried I won’t like the keybed, and I don’t have local stores with it in stock. I assume the EK50L and the newer i3 have identical keybeds.

As point of reference I’ve had or played:
Korg:
PA1000: loved the board EXCEPT for the keybed, disappointing at that price point, 6/10
Yamaha:
EW425 / E473: these are the latest budget arrangers, as far as I can tell from the limited time playing them I thought they were decent. As a piano player, getting good expression for piano is always very key, not bad for unweighted 7/10
Casio:
WK7600: had this board for years, I believe it got looser over time, it was a s**t show, made me into a sloppy player, hated it, 1/10
CT-X5000: lots of clacky keys, and there’s a slop that I’m worried will just get worse over time, uninspiring to play, 4/10, the keys are a large part of what is motivating me to get a different budget arranger!

The more I research the EK-50 the more I’m inclined to think it was designed for a player like me, but the biggest question mark is whether the keybed is decent. I’d settle for a 6/10 given how strongly the rest of it matches my needs!
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Keyboards: Kawai ES920 / Casio CT-X5000
Instruments: Keys / Alto Recorder and Melodica
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grahamid



Joined: 14 Jul 2022
Posts: 11
Location: Wales UK

PostPosted: Mon Jan 23, 2023 3:26 pm    Post subject: Keybed Reply with quote

From what you say, I think you might not find the EK-50 satisfactory, at least as a sole instrument. Speaking as a pianist myself, if I really want to 'play piano', I go to another instrument. (I have a very elderly Clavinova CLP 100, and a Kawai ES100). The EK-50 doesn't (to me) feel like a piano, and TBH, the piano sounds are not its greatest strength, either.
That said, I've had my EK-50 just six months, and I don't regret the purchase. I just wouldn't be happy with it as the only keyboard/midi source I had.
I'd be happy to say more about what I think are its strength, if that would be useufl.

Ian Graham
Wales UK
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Randelph
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Joined: 18 Oct 2008
Posts: 604
Location: San Francisco, CA

PostPosted: Tue Jan 24, 2023 8:35 pm    Post subject: Re: Keybed Reply with quote

grahamid wrote:
From what you say, I think you might not find the EK-50 satisfactory, at least as a sole instrument. Speaking as a pianist myself, if I really want to 'play piano', I go to another instrument. (I have a very elderly Clavinova CLP 100, and a Kawai ES100). The EK-50 doesn't (to me) feel like a piano, and TBH, the piano sounds are not its greatest strength, either.
That said, I've had my EK-50 just six months, and I don't regret the purchase. I just wouldn't be happy with it as the only keyboard/midi source I had.
I'd be happy to say more about what I think are its strength, if that would be useufl.

Ian Graham
Wales UK


Ian,
Thanks for the reply!

Thankfully I’ve got a great piano board, the Kawai ES920. The reason I’m getting a 2d board is I like having more than 2 sounds to work with and it’d be nice to have a lightweight board for parties/jams.

What draws me to the EK-50 is the 3 voices you get to work with for the Upper voices, the speaker quality, the user friendly UI.

My biggest question mark is the quality of the onboard sounds, esp in comparison to the Casio CT-S500 and the Yamaha ew-425/e-473. It’s been a long time coming for sounds to be decent on these lower priced boards, and these 2 boards are the latest/greatest, noticeable overall improvement in sound quality.

Thanks,
Randy
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Keyboards: Kawai ES920 / Casio CT-X5000
Instruments: Keys / Alto Recorder and Melodica
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Deniće033



Joined: 19 May 2023
Posts: 31
Location: Tennessee

PostPosted: Mon Jun 19, 2023 10:27 pm    Post subject: @Randelph Reply with quote

I currently have the kross 2 88 keyboard. I just ordered the EK-50 CSA keyboard as a second keyboard due to the sounds. I watched the videos to help me decide to get it. Possibly some of the music stores in your area would have a display model to play in the store. Hopefully you find the keyboard that is right for your needs.
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KO4ESA/WRJR757
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Randelph
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Joined: 18 Oct 2008
Posts: 604
Location: San Francisco, CA

PostPosted: Tue Jun 20, 2023 5:42 pm    Post subject: Re: @Randelph Reply with quote

Deniće033 wrote:
I currently have the kross 2 88 keyboard. I just ordered the EK-50 CSA keyboard as a second keyboard due to the sounds. I watched the videos to help me decide to get it. Possibly some of the music stores in your area would have a display model to play in the store. Hopefully you find the keyboard that is right for your needs.


Interesting- how do you like the keybed on the Kross? I briefly had the 61 note Cross number one, and was totally enamored of how user-friendly it was and how easy it was to record and overdub.

An update on my purchases: I bought both the EW 425 and the CTS 500. Compared to my Kawai ES 920, the Piano’s are a joke and I don’t like playing them, especially The Yamaha pianos, they suffer from the usual problem with Yamaha pianos, the high end sounds brittle and thin, even with headphones.

I wish I had not bought the Casio, it is a good couch board, but other than being lightweight, not of much use to me. As a lightweight board for parties and jams, the Yamaha is nice, love having 76 keys and decent speakers on board. but many of the sounds seem like they have only two sample layers, so there is an exaggerated response when I play louder, not much control of the sound.

Because I am not that crazy about the sound quality of either of these cheapie boards, I guess I’m back to using my iPad in order to have more sounds when playing my ES 920.

Would be curious to hear your review of the EK 50.
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Keyboards: Kawai ES920 / Casio CT-X5000
Instruments: Keys / Alto Recorder and Melodica
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Deniće033



Joined: 19 May 2023
Posts: 31
Location: Tennessee

PostPosted: Tue Jun 27, 2023 2:58 am    Post subject: @Randelph Reply with quote

I’ve had the EK-50 CSA for a few days now. I like the keyboard. The extra voices on it are fun to test out. The keyboard is definitely easier to carry around from one room to another. Since I originally used an upright piano for several years,the EK-50 keys are similar to the upright pianos I have been used to. The controls ,buttons etc on the EK-50 take a bit to get used to but works out fine for my use.
The Kross 2 has a spot in a spare room. It fits perfectly on the top of a long bookshelf. The bookshelf is at the necessary height for me to sit and play the keyboard.
The EK-50 will be used as a portable keyboard when I go on trips and to play outside at a canopy spot in our yard.
Playing scale exercises on the EK-50 is quick and easy with a light touch of the keys. Happiness is music.
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grahamid



Joined: 14 Jul 2022
Posts: 11
Location: Wales UK

PostPosted: Tue Aug 08, 2023 8:34 am    Post subject: Point of comparison re piano sounds and performance Reply with quote

I came on this a day or two ago, and thought it might be of interest to any members here who similarly hadn't seen it:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RSApAFi9OXA

The guy looks like he's playing piano, and sounds like he's playing piano. My experience with the EK-50 doesn't remotely match this, and I am primarily a pianist.

It must all be in the blend of voices, possibly octave settings, possibly reverb, possibly touch settings.

Sincerely
Ian G
Wales UK
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