Yamaha P121 73-Key Weighted Action Compact Digital Piano, Black

This is the only affordable 73 key digital piano. You might be wondering--why should I get 73 keys, when I can get 88-key pianos for cheaper?The answer is space. If you live in a small apartment, you might not have space for an 88-key piano. Most short-compass keyboards you will find have unweighted actions, which makes them unsatisfactory as *pianos*. This gives you a very good graded, weighted action over 73 keys.Will you miss the extra keys? That depends on the music you're playing. Most pop songs since the '60s "fit" just fine on 73 keys, since many of them were composed/arranged/performed on compact electric pianos (Fender Rhodes, Wurlitzer, Yamaha CP) with that many keys. Classical pieces originally composed for clavichord or harpsichord will fit here, too. Odds are, if you are specifically shopping for a 73-key keyboard, you already know what music you want to play, and know that you can use a 73.Sound: For a piano of its price, this is a decent-sounding piano. As an apartment/practice piano, it's great. The multisamples are fine. You can play with a bit of dynamics. The built-in speakers mean you can practice without having to power up the rest of your setup (amps, DAWs, whatever). The acoustic piano sounds are decent. Electric pianos aren't bad: EP1 is a "Rhodes" type sound, EP2 is a "Wurlitzer" type sound; EP3 is a Yamaha DX7 synth e-piano sound (think cheesy '80s ballads/slow jams); EP4 is a "fantasia" type sound. The organs are less good, since you only get four sounds and no drawbars to control registration. But, really, for this price, do you care? If you need a real organ, this may not be your thing.I had been cross-shopping this with Casio Privia models, and I went for this PRECISELY because it was a 73 key piano. It fits my space perfectly, and it fits the music I want to play on it.

I ordered this to replace a much less expensive Casio (which was in the $250 range). It's no surprise this more expensive keyboard has a much better keyboard "feel" than the less expensive keyboard. As a low-beginner piano student, I am finding this to be fine for my needs. Keyboard feel seems close to that of a real piano, it has more than enough different sounds (really, why would I need more than one piano sound!?), the sound quality of the built-in speakers is fine for my needs. I have a few micro-nitpicks about some features; but unless I can find a company that will custom design/build a keyboard for my personal needs, all for under $700, this is as good as I'm going to get. I did check the reviews on YouTube for comparable Casio/other brands in the same price range; they all had decent reviews, but this one seemed overall best. (I also purchased the full-size wooden stand. Easy to put together, and looks/works great.)

I could not be more pleaded with my Yamaha P121. I am a beginner and wanted to hold down the cost of my first piano. I first borrowed a cheap keyboard from a friend but very quickly realized that the feel of the keys was going to teach me bad habits. Also the mushy keys did not allow me to play expressively and would not strengthen my fingers.The Yamaha P212 feels remarkably close to a real piano and the sound (especially with headphones) just blows me away. The reduced number of keys makes the piano fit in the small space I have available. I have not come across a song that needs the extreme low and high keys I don't have.It is heavier than keyboards without weighted keys. I recommend a heavy duty stand. I got a portable "Z" style stand that works great.

We are beginners and have been practicing on an upright piano. We wanted to continue to practice while traveling around the US by van so purchased a Roland Go Piano. We were disappointed when it arrived. The sound was poor and the feel wasn’t right when playing. We returned it and bought the P121. The sound and feel are very similar to the upright piano that we used. We are very very happy with the P121.The downside is that the P121 weighs over 20 pounds and is a bit longer than the Roland. The P121 cost is almost twice that of the Roland. The unit isn’t a portable as we would like but we are willing to put up with the downsides to get the play and sound quality we want.

I'm a beginner and wanted to upgrade from a smaller keyboard to something that played more like an acoustic piano. The weighted keys on the P121 are absolutely perfect. Unfortunately, the sampled sounds leave something to be desired. The piano sounds are just ok but the organ and other sounds not so much. Its worth noting that other keyboards in this size with weighted keys are 2 to 3 times the price of this one so all things considered the P-121 is a really good value! Overall, I'm happy with this purchase.

I bought this digital piano because of the smaller size, 73 keys instead of 88. The weighted keys, and the sound makes it easy to play every day without tiring my fingers. It has four speakers, two of which are on the bottom. So if you put it on top of a table, you can turn them off. The keys are 5" above a regular height table. I suggest you buy the optional stand to bring it down the height of a standard piano, 29-30".

Awesome sound and features. I was nervous about not getting a full keyboard, but this size is really convenient and I’ve enjoyed playing every day!

Great keyboard, great size for me, and would be great for a beginner. Nice speakers & weighted keys. It is a bit deeper in size than most portable keyboards, but well suited for a stand. It’s an “unpack, plug-in & enjoy” keyboard. Just what I wanted.