yamaha PSR172 keyboard

S

Slava

Guest
hey yall, is this a good keyboard and midi controller? for hip hop.
 
Well it's a "home keyboard" or "portable keyboard" ... not really considered "pro quality" (pretty much anything with built-in speakers isn't pro-quality gear)

But that doesn't mean that it's no good or anything like that. Lot's of club-bands use this kind of thing. It's just not gonna be as versatile or "Phatt" as the "real thing".

I'd never take one into a studio.

But consider a few things:
  • It does sound pretty good (especially for the money)
  • You won't have to screw around with amps and speaker cabinets while playing at home.
  • The "education" stuff that's built in is really good for learning about music. It shows you how to make chords and stuff like that. (A lot of people on this forum with better gear could stand to get that kind of education!)

So, what I mean to say is that if you are starting out and don't have a lot of money, it's a pretty good way to go. Just don't think you are getting a Triton or a Motif! (and don't let anyone give you shyt if that's all you can afford ... just keep yourself learning and makin' music!)
 
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hey what bout the Yamaha PSR292 is it better and is it good for home studio?
 
Well, anything that starts with ""PSR" is still not "pro-quality" ... so let's be clear about that.

I've seen the PST292 at Costco, and I think it is a very good home keyboard.

It has a better sequencer than the PSR172, and has a decent General MIDI implementation. It's also 32-note polyphonic (the PSR172 is 16-note polyphonic)

So ... yes, it's better than the PSR172.

Last rtime I checked, you could get these for about $200 ... you aren't gonna get much better for that kind of money.
 
I actually owned a PSR-172 for a while, got it for a real bargain, and I have to say, it was a decent machine, but I dont think it is touch sensitive (maybe I had a lower-end model), and it has a limitied range of sounds that could be applied to hip hop. But the piano sound on it is very nice. Another cheap alternative, with a little more hip-hop/electronic features is the DJX-II keyboard from yamaha, it has sampling (although very basic, its a start) and a great selection of DSP effects, as well as a whole pile of pre made synth sounds and organic instrument sounds (although you cant really edit the waveforms like a synth) I paid $149 for mine, and yes, as crappy as it is, it has become a permanent part of my setup (it sits under my MS200B).
 
The PSR series is not that bad. I have a Korg Karma, Ensoniq Mirage, and a PSR-550. The PSR 550 has vvery good sounds in my opinion to be a cheap board(i paid $450 from music123.com) I didn't like the sequencer because it did not really have any good looping capabilitites and I did not want to sit there and program a whole song out measure by measure. Honestly I play the PSR the most out of my boards because it is easy to use and has good speakers. I almost want to say the pianos are better than my Karma which is a pro workstation. At any rate get what you can afford, but don't buy straight junk because 6 months from now when you have learned some stuff you'll feel limited.
 
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