Are you a beginner who wants to learn piano and needs to buy a piano keyboard? 

I will get straight to the conclusion and then give you more info on why these are my top 3 recommended choices when buying a digital piano as a beginner student.

These recommendations come from experience of teaching thousands of students, many of whom have learnt piano later in life (including retirees / seniors).

1. low budget / 61 keys / portable - Yamaha NP12
   (white is available at £ 149 on 11th Sept 2023 - black mostly sold out)
2. 88 weighted keys - Yamaha P145
   (£433 as at 11th Sept 2023). 
3. 88 weighted keys, fixed stand and pedals - Yamaha P145 pedal and wooden stand package
   (£675 as at 11th Sept 2023). 

If you choose option 1 or 2 above you may also wish to purchase the following optional accessories:-

• keyboard stand - portable & adjustable  (around £ 20)
• headphones (around £ 10)
• sustain pedal (around £ 20)

Silicone Strips to Number the Keyboard

As an alternative to using stickers or a whiteboard marker, to number your keyboard, I use the 61 key silicone strips (I don't think the 88 key version is necessary) which I bought from Amazon at around £6. Here's the details:-

ASTARON Piano Keyboard Stickers for Beginners Removable, Non-Stick Silicone Piano Notes Guide https://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B0BNVN34Z1

This avoids any potential unwanted marking of your keyboard and enables you to take the silicone strip with you and place it on any keyboard you wish to play.

Recommended Keyboard Models

LOW PRICE / PORTABLE KEYBOARDS

For portability and low cost:-

• My favourite 'value for money' digital piano by far is the Yamaha Piaggero NP12 on sale at around £ 160 (at time of writing - 29th Aug 20230)
• The NP12 has now been replaced by the NP15 (around £260) so time is running out to pick up some of the last NP12 keyboards that are in stock.
• The NP12 has 61 keys (semi-weighted) and is very light and portable, with great piano sounds considering the low price
• 61 keys are usually more than adequate for beginners
• The Yamaha NP32 has a few extra keys (76) and a louder sound compared to the NP12 and again is on sale as it has been replaced by the NP35.
• Once the NP12 and NP32 keyboards are no longer available, the Yamaha NP15 and NP35 keyboards will be my favourite for value for money (starting around £ 260) and portability.
• The Roland GO:Piano is even more compact and is a similar price to the NP12, but the keyboard 'feel' is not to everyone's taste - so I suggest you try it out before you buy it.
• The Casio CT-S1 and Korg Liano are also contenders at this price range, but I've not personally tried these model, so I can't comment on how they compare to the Yamaha or Roland options.

Who the NP12 deal ideal for...

The current amazingly low sale price on the remaining stock of NP12 keyboards is ideal if you want to:-

• save money on the best beginners keyboard
• get a second keyboard that is very portable and can run using batteries (great for caravans, playing in the garden or at social events)
• solve your procrastination issues around starting piano - buying a keyboard tells your sub-conscious that you are serious about learning to play and is likely to kick start your piano journey 
• avoid 'heavy' keys - the 'semi-weighted keyboard' makes it easier to press down the keys (compared to a fully weighted keyboard) and is preferred by some who have arthritis  

MEDIUM PRICE / FULLY WEIGHTED KEYS

If you have a budget around £ 500+ and are not as concerned with portability but want more of a 'piano' feel with 88 'fully weighted' keys (heavier keys that feel more like an acoustic piano):-

• Yamaha P-145 or Roland FP-30X are both great value for money.
• These keyboards are semi-portable and are considered 'light' for 88 fully weighted keys, with the P145 being 11.1 kg and the FP30X being 14.8 kg. However these still weigh much more than the semi-weighted 61 key alternatives eg NP12 (4.5 kg), NP15 (5.2 kg) or GO:Piano (3.9 kg).
• Of course the more you spend, the more you get, so both Yamaha and Roland have other great keyboards in their ranges with more sounds and features.

KEYBOARD STANDS 

The most cost effective and portable type of keyboard stand is an X stand which can cost around £ 20+ and which most students buy when using the Yamaha NP range of keyboards. These are height adjustable and light, but are not as sturdy as wooden stands. The X stands can be used on virtually any type of keyboard, including the P145.

If you want a P145 and have more budget for a stand, then you can get a Yamaha P145 package, with wooden stand (£649 on 29th August 2023). See below for similar package plus pedals. 

These wooden stands are specifically designed for each specific model of (weighted key) digital piano. They are more sturdy than X stands and look more 'classy' (like a piece of furniture). The downsides are that they are not as portable and are not adjustable for height, so you may need to use a height adjustable seat with these.

CLICK HERE If you need information on wheelchair accessible piano keyboard stands.

KEYBOARD PEDALS 

Using a 'sustain pedal' can make your piano playing sound much smoother. Generally, students do not need to start using the 'pedal' for several months, as it is best to learn pedal skills after you have mastered the basic playing skills.

The most cost effective type of sustain pedal is a universal piano sustain pedal that costs around £ 20. These are portable but one potential downside is that they can slide around the floor as you are using them, especially if you have wooden floors.

If your total budget for keyboard and accessories is around £ 750 and you wish to get everything in one go, you can option for a wooden stand with built in pedals, such as:-

Yamaha P145 stand, pedals and (non-adjustable seat) package  (£714 on 29th August 2023). 

Built in pedals are less portable but look nice and avoid the problem of the pedal sliding about.

Often the built in pedals will have 3 different pedals (mirroring acoustic pianos) but I only use the sustain pedal (the one on the right).

HEADPHONES FOR KEYBOARDS

You may wish to use headphones with your digital piano or keyboard, especially if you share the house with others, who may not be quite as much a piano music lover as you!  Usually any type of headphones that work with a hi-fi / music centre will work with keyboards and you can buy headphones from around £ 10 with adaptors that can convert between the 2 different sizes of headphone plugs, to suit different types of keyboards.

OTHER ACCESSORIES

Usually piano keyboards come with a music rest, which is plastic stand for your sheet music or iPad. They also usually come with power adaptors, so if you have a suitable table and seat, you can just buy a keyboard on its own eg NP12 or P145 and get up and running straight away.

CONCLUSION - TOP 3 CHOICES FOR BUYING A DIGITAL PIANO

1. low budget / 61 keys / portable - Yamaha NP12
   (around £ 160 on 29th Aug 2023)
2. 88 weighted keys - Yamaha P145
   (£455 as at 29th August 2023). 
3. 88 weighted keys, fixed stand and pedals - Yamaha P145 pedal and wooden stand package
   (£714 as at 29th August 2023). 

If you choose option 1 or 2 above you may also wish to purchase the following optional accessories:-

• keyboard stand - portable & adjustable  (around £ 20)
• headphones (around £ 10)
• sustain pedal (around £ 20)

Want even more info.....???? 

Acoustic Piano, Digital Piano or Electronic Keyboard?

Whilst playing an acoustic 'real' piano is lovely, a digital piano or electronic keyboard has many advantages over an acoustic piano, including:-

• lower price
• more portable
• control over volume
• headphones option
• lighter keys
• lower maintenance (no tuning costs)
• always in tune etc...

Digital pianos are designed to mimic acoustic pianos in look, feel and sound.

Electronic keyboards, 'workstations' and 'home keyboards' often contain piano type sounds but also add lots of extra sounds, rhythms and buttons. These are useful if you wish to use features such as using instrument sounds other than pianos, using '1 finger chords' and auto accompaniment (which are useful if you are not physically able to play chords in your left hand), but have a very different appearance, which is not quite so 'piano' like.

Most DecPlay students choose to buy digital pianos.

Top Features Your Keyboard Should Have

• touch sensitive keyboard (ie the volume of the notes changes depending on how hard or soft you press the keys).
• minimum of 61 keys (although any keyboard over 40 keys will enable you to get started as a beginner)

Recommended Manufacturers

Yamaha and Roland and my favourite keyboard manufacturers for good quality, affordable digital pianos. Other manufacturers such as Korg and Casio are quite good too, but I am not very familiar with their keyboards, so my recommendations are focussed on Yamaha and Roland.

“Which keyboard do you play on Declan?”

A lot of people ask me that, so I’ll start by answering that question.

(In fact you might not need to read beyond this next section because this could quite possibly be the keyboard that’s right for you too.)

Me, I wouldn’t be without my Yamaha Piaggero NP12 – I explain why in this minute long video ...

In fact I very rarely am without my Yamaha Piaggero NP12 – It’s lightweight, portable, and runs on batteries or the mains. So whenever I’m heading off somewhere like a party or a weekend away with friends I pop it on the back seat of my car and I’m away.

And those videos you see me shooting outdoors on a nice sunny day, sipping on a cool drink and entertaining Blue as she races around the garden ... they’re all made whilst playing the Yamaha Piaggero NP12.

And it’s not just me that loves this particular keyboard. The NP12 gets a reassuring 92% 4 or 5 stars on Amazon from both complete newbies and accomplished players alike.

Which is undoubtably because it also sounds great!

Plus – a drum roll for the best bit - it’s very affordable.

Listen, I’ve got lots of keyboards – playing is my passion (and I’ve indulged my passion a little over the years) – but if the fun police brought out a new law and I could only keep one, it would definitely be my Yamaha Piaggero NP12!

I had a quick look on Amazon for you and you can (at the time of writing this post) pick a brand new NP12 up for £169 – a complete bargain for all of the joy it’s going to bring you!

So, if you’re new to playing the piano and you want to get started without delay (or splashing out too much cash until you know you like it), then you won’t go wrong with the Yamaha Piaggero NP12.

And honestly there’s literally nothing else you need to know at the moment.

However, here’s a little more information about pianos if you’re curious.

What’s the difference between a Piano and a Keyboard?

An acoustic piano uses strings to create the sound and the opposite of this is a digital (electronic) piano keyboard which uses electronics to create the sound.

Acoustic pianos have arguably the best sound and baby grand pianos are my favourite to play,

Now, whilst playing a 'real' piano is lovely, an electronic keyboard or digital piano has many advantages, like ...

• They are lower in price.
• They are portable so you can play anywhere.
• They allow you to control the volume – right down to zero for everyone else if you plug in some headphones.
• They have lighter keys. This is a massive benefit for arthritis sufferers or people with restricted finger movement.
• They are pretty much maintenance free.
• They enable you to layer in other instruments, sounds, rhythms etc.
• And they’re always in tune!

Digital pianos are generally focussed on looking and sounding more like a real piano. More expensive models have 'weighted keys' that mimic the feel of real piano keys. 'Semi-weighted' keys usually cost less, are more portable and are lighter to touch.

Electronic keyboards are similar to digital pianos but are less focussed on looking and sounding like a piano and are more focussed on offering a wide range of instrument sounds and extra 'backing' such as auto accompaniment and 1 finger chords.

In this short [7 minute] video I talk about some of the differences and choices available BUT ...

At the end of the day it quite simply gets down to budget, features you require and your personal preferences eg portability vs a heavier keyboard that looks nicer as a piece of furniture.

As long as the keyboard you choose today has at least 61 standard sized keys (borrowing your grandchildren’s keyboard won’t do!) and the keys are touch sensitive, which simply means the keyboard plays louder when keys are pressed harder ... you will be able to have great fun playing piano!