YAMAHA YPG-235 Portable Grand Piano Review

If you’re a DJ looking for a keyboard that plays like a piano, yet still gives you a technological edge of features, then this Yamaha 76 key portable keyboard piano is a great choice. Not for beginners though, this Yamaha keyboard has graded soft touch keys, making this feel and play so close to the real thing.

Part of what makes this keyboard better than others is also the teaching aids that are included in the keyboard. Yamaha has introduced a Performance Assistant Technology, that helps you play the correct note every time, as you play along with one of the included songs.

It works by making sure that each time you press a key, you are playing the correct note, however the pitch will be different. This allows you to really build up your confidence and competence quickly, as you fine tune which key is the correct one. It feels just like one of those guitar hero games.

There is lesson grading, which gives you feedback, and results on how you are progressing and how accurate you are following the correct notes and melodies. With the small LCD screen, you can see which notes are to be played, and which chords are currently playing.

Chord free mode is another great keyboard teaching aid from Yamaha. Allowing you to play a melody with your right hand, while ensuring that you play the right notes with your left. Although this works with the internal songs that come included with this keyboard, however, you can load in external XF MIDI files too.

The YAMAHA YPG-235 has enough variety of instruments to give you a complete orchestra if you want. There are 116 panel voices, and instruments such as trumpets, guitars, and organs. There are 12 drum/sfx kits to use, and a split mode giving you the chance to play a different instrument with each hand. If there are sounds that you want to hear combined, you can also play with the dual mode.

There are 5 equalizer settings, and a choice of playing the audio through the headphones plug, the internal speakers, which are loud enough to keep a busy room entertained. If rocking the walls are required, then you can plug in any existing speaker system into the keyboard too.

The Auto Accompaniment Styles feature gives you the chance to play along with 160 pre-loaded band tracks. There are also more tracks to download direct from the Yamaha website if you want to expand your library. This is another great example of using this technology to help you play and sound better.

Its easy to connect this keyboard to your laptop or tablet, and get access to the internet to load on more track, backup your existing masterpieces. You can even email directly your music to anyone. Its easy to connect this keyboard up to a relevant music production package such as Cubase, and compose within that.

The keyboard is also light enough to carry between storage and transport, and definitely needs a dedicated stand a comfortable seating if you want to get the most freedom while playing. This keyboard will last you a number of years, and although might not have as many features as the dedicated music producer requires, thanks to its superb pc connection abilities, there is no shortage of ideas and creativity you can unleash.