Rocktron Velocity 50 Watt Stereo Guitar Amplifier With Digital Delay

Customer Ratings:
List Price: $369.00
Sale Price: $239.00
Today's Bonus: 35% Off

• 50 Watts Stereo with Digital Delay
• Clean and Distortion Channels
• Headphone Out
• AGX noise Reduction
• 2X8 " Speakers

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I have always been a Rocktron user with my VooDu Valve. Love it. Needed something for the road, and at $168 on Amazon (over $230 everywhere else) this was a steal. I mostly use the clean channel since it breaks up wonderfully with use of the GAIN knob. Combined with the PUPs and POTs on my guitars (EMG's on my USA Made Prodigy, and my PRS SE Custom) I can basically set the break-up levels and tone to anything I want. Bought generic foot switches at B&H for $40 combined!! And have all I need for small gigs and rehearsal. I use no pedals with this AMP, just straight in. The lead (OD) channel is heavy over the top, good for Metal style, or OD's solo's.

I use it sparingly. The good thing is that with separate GAIN & VOLUME settings per channel you can switch over without blowing the windows out.

It has 2 x 10" which create more than enough surface to make this LOUD! even on volume level 2.

I haven't regretted this one moment, especially not, since I can use the LINE-OUT on the back to record with as well, it comes out after the pre-amp & effects allowing me to go into a different power amp.

Would have been complete with Reverb, but that is a different model. Why Rocktron decided to create a model with Chorus & Delay and a separate one with Chorus & Reverb is unclear (to me at least). I consciously chose the delay version and love it.

I tried many modeling amps, and they don't work for me. I don't like Line 6 sounds (tried from POD to the Spider Valve base), the Peavey's are not strong enough, and the Behrenger has too many quality issues.

I get all the sounds I need from this one by using my PUP switching, tone & volume knobs, plus having the Fender & Humbucker guitars, I get more than enough out of this. I learned long ago that you don't need a 1,000 effects to be a good player. You need ears, fingers, and practice. LOTS of it. :)

Enjoy,

JJC

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I needed a cheap amp with dual inputs for my new synthesizer (Novation Ultranova) for when I jam out with my buddies and this little beast hits the right note. It's dual inputs allow great sound and panning. For when I plug in my guitar, the built in effects are dynamite and were a pleasant surprise to what I needed and expected out of an amp in this price range. I play with this small amp next to a half stack and a full drum kit and it's plenty loud.

Definitely would recommend this and I will for sure buy more Rocktron products in the future!

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Although I have not had this amp for very long, it exceeds my expectations. I own several other amplifiers that are larger and definitely more expensive, both solid state and tube amps. The RockTron v50D Velocity is definitely a compliment to my collection. For one thing, the sound it puts out is superb. The clean channel sounds good, and the distortion is comparable to what you might hear on an old Van Halen album or CD. The stereo chorus adds a nice widening effect on the clean channel and even sounds good with distortion. The delay is also a nice added effect that when set right can be substituted for reverb.

Overall, this is one heck of an amp for the price.

After owning this for a while I will add more comments to this review...

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This is the second Rocktron amp I've owned. I bought the last one, a 2x12 100w, about 10 years ago and its still going strong. I ended up picking this one up because I was looking for a good chorus pedal. After shopping around and realizing that I was going to have to spend $150 for a quality pedal, I stumbled across this amp. Seeing that it had built in chorus, delay, and distortion, I decided to give it a shot. At less then $200, I didn't have the highest of expectations. Especially for a 2x8 amp. I'm in a band that gigs regularly so I didn't really expect that 2 eight inch speakers would have the punch thats needed to cut through on stage. This amp does everything my 2x12 can do and more. Its PLENTY loud, extremely versatile, and the effects are the kittys tittys. I can't believe the value for the quality of the product. I highly recommend this amp to anyone in any situation. Rocktron is traditionally known as a "metal" sort of brand. Our band plays an eclectic mix of everything from classic country to modern rock. This amp can be dialed in to make anything sound good. I primarily use a Fender Telecaster and a Gibson Les Paul. Both guitars have the distinct sound that they're suppose to have. This amp doesn't do what most other amps do and "steal the sound" of the guitar you're using. It brings out the best of the guitar. Buy this amp. I don't see how it could possibly disappoint at this price.

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Korg PX5D Pandora Guitar and Bass Multi Effects Processor

Customer Ratings:
List Price: $330.00
Sale Price: $119.90
Today's Bonus: 64% Off

• A compact processor for guitar and bass
• USB Interface capability
• Famous Korg 'REMS' modeling technology. 180 variations of classic and cutting-edge guitar amps, bass amps, cabinets, classic and new effects.

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I've had the Pandora for two weeks now and I've used it extensively. So far, I am pleased that I bit the bullet and shelled out the money for this thing. It's loaded with all sorts of features, and most importantly, it prevents me from being turned off my instrument because of crappy sound (I am on vacation, about 7000 miles away from my beloved amps and mixers and doodads and geegaws).

But take note, if you are listening to this thing through mediocre headphones or earbuds, you will hear a very sub-par and overall tremendously frustrating sound. For example, my Sony earbuds that I would rate 8/10 for iPod listening makes the Pandora sound totally tinnyscoops out all the mids, boosts the uselessly high treble and muddies up the bass. You will sit there trying to dial in a usable tone cursing the paint off your walls.

On the other hand, I have a pair of Audio-Technica M50 studio monitor headphones (no product endorsement, just saying what works for me) that sounds fantastic with the Pandora. So I guess the moral of my story is to pair this headphone amp with headphones that have a flat EQ response.

Because the Pandora is marketed as a headphone amp doesn't mean you are confined to headphones. I plugged the Pandora into a cheap bass amp and my guitar actually sounded pretty good! I can't wait to plug it into a good sound system and let it scream. From what I've heard, people have had a lot of success with going direct into PA or going through guitar or bass amps.

As far as the effects go, they gave me pretty much all I need and much much more. I am overall impressed with the built in reverb and delay effects, and the distortion sounds very good also. Some of the effects work in stereo so you can get that left to right rotary speaker effect. On top of the effects that I use all the time (reverb, distortion, compression, etc.) there are some WACKY stuff in here that I really haven't been able to use except for a few laughs. The intelligent harmonizer holds some potential although the tracking has a tiny, barely noticeable but noticeable hesitation. But since I'm greedy and I like having the option of oodles of stuff even though I might not use them, I would rate the effects on the Pandora 9/10 (where 10 is reserved for OMG EVERYTHING IS SO GOOD)

Korg put a lot of amp/cab/effect combo presets onto the Pandora, and when I started out, I used "Linkin" for my distortion, "Pop" for clean chorusy stuff and "Fab4" for clean tones. I ended up being 10% dissatisfied with them, so I just made my own presets and now I am 99% satisfied. The tweaks weren't big, like dialing down the distortion and adding a touch of reverb to "Linkin" preset and killing the teeny OD on "Fab4" etc. Much like the effects, some of the presets are wacked out. There is a preset on there called "Ill" and I can't for the life of me figure out how to use it in a musical way. Another preset called "Fire" has a really cool fuzzed out sound for single note melodies but goes haywire when you start playing harmonies. It might work really nicely for Muse basslines and such.

One thing I like about this is the AUX input and how it can transcribe recordings to your desire. It has made learning new songs for vocals and guitar much more convenient. The bass canceler function seems to work pretty well, and I imagine it would come in really handy, although I am separated from my bass right now. Korg included a lot of drum loops and an option to add basslines to those drum loops for jamming and practice purposes, but I wouldn't build my career on those drum/bass loops... they can sound kinda cheesy.

The construction of the Pandora looks very solid. I was worried at first that the Pandora would be built like the Korg tuners, which are light plastic without much heft, but I was happy to find that the Pandora feels really rugged. The instruction manual is comprehensive and is multilingual (if you ever get the urge to learn how to talk about flangers in German or something...)! I've been using batteries to power mine since I didn't get a wall adapter, and I burned through a pair of AAs in a week and a half of thorough use.

Other than that, the thing comes with a mini version of Ableton Live, the adapter cable for the footswitches (not included, planning on getting one myself) and the USB cable. Korg even included little rubber pads so the little rectangle doesn't get pulled off the table.

Overall, very happy with the product. Cheers, Korg!

For people who don't want to read all of my drivel,

Pros:

Great sound with good listening devices

Lots of useful effects

Lots of useful amp and cabinet models

Good presets

Very utilitarian (backlight option for the screen, etc.)

Solid construction

Neutral:

Some effects and presets I would never use

Doesn't come with wall adapter

Small learning curve in navigating through the menu

Cons:

Adjusting volume balance between aux and input is finicky.

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I give this unit great marks for the sound quality and features. I also find that the engineers/designers did a good job thinking about how people would use this device and they provided the flexibility to do just about anything. BUT, there are 2 major weaknesses in this product as a whole. Three categories go into making a great product: The Device, The Manual, The Customer Service.

1. In my opinion, Korg is not known for having great manuals. It's so sad to me that a product developer utilizes a really great sound engineering department and then weakens the customer satisfaction equation by utilizing weak technical writers or translators. Here's an example: In the TROUBLESHOOTING section regarding the USB connection to your computer: "Refer to the owners manual of the connected device to insure that it responds to the messages you are transmitting." THIS STATEMENT IS REDICULOUS AND MEANINGLESS AND TOTALLY UNHELPFUL. Why put it into the manual. I am a system developer and I can assure you that 99.9% of consumers have no idea how to "verify that it responds to messages you are transmitting." Other troubleshooting help just says "contact the dealer". Are they kidding? Are you really going to call Amazon for tech help on a USB problem? KORG should have reliable customer services in place for every product.

But, here's the best example of what I call inexcusable. This problem has caused people to return the item for refund or exchanges with Amazon. I know this for a fact. The problem is induced by the KORG manual in the section about performing the KEYLOCK function. It's a great feature to disable the keys during your gig to preclude inadvertently changing modes etc. Again, technically, this is a great feature yet it was essentially rendered inoperative by the Owner's Manual. The Manual states, " Hold

the down the EXIT button and press the TAP/BYPASS button. The LCD will indicate KEYLOCK for approximately one second."

NOT !!!

Like I said, units have been returned and exchanged only to be discovered that the exchanged unit does the same thing. All my attempts to get answers from KORG via the web have gone unanswered. I started trying to figure out what's going on with these units. I checked the German Translation for this function and it reads the same thing. But, in JAPANEESE, the manual says something totally different. I don't read Japaneese but of the few terms of English (button markings and functions), I was able to determine that instead of the TAP/BYPASS button being used, the Japaneese instructions say to use the CURSOR (up) button. BINGO ! HOPSING! That was the solution.

With a unit that has been on the market (well over s/n 15,000 sold), this error should have been highly published. I see forums where people are still fighting this issue and having this problem. I'm sure that KORG is aware but what are they doing about it?(I just got automated messages.) Anyone who buys this unit is going to spend a lot of time pulling their hair out unless they read Japanese.

So, in the final analysis, the product hardware quality is 5 stars but don't expect much help if you need it. Software instruction and functionality is 1 Star (the USB works great on a MAC but we tried 2 different P/Cs with XP Home, SP3 with no success.) And, customer service is a 1 Star.

Product : 5 Stars

USB P/C : 1 Star

Customer Svc: 1 Star

Manual : 0 Stars ( Crucial Errors and Non-sense.)

I hope this helps. Now I can finally get down to enjoying the product itself. I can get by without USB functions but I hate to pay for the feature and never get it to work for me on either of 2 different high-quality P/Cs. Again, it works fine on a MAC.

Best regards.

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Actually this device is much more than a toy. I record weekly with a keyboard player and I no longer need to take my guitar amplifier to this session. I just carry the PX5D along with the necessary cords and attach it directly to his mixer which is hooked directly to his PC. I can change guitar sounds as the music requires. I can also plug the PX5D into my PC via a USB port and quickly edit the user settings for sounds and also program rhythm chains easily. The device seems to be very well made and has performed flawlessly so far .

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Rarely do I take the time to rate a product, but I've been very happy with the PX5 since I got it for Christmas. It's been REALLY fun! It's easy to use, sounds really good, and makes playing a blast. If you're seriously thinking of getting a processor, I highly suggest this product. The ONLY complaint I have is that the power cord is not included. It doesn't seem to be sucking down batteries, but I'd rather run in with an AC adapter. I'll have to purchase that soon..... Overall, 5 stars!

This device is just too much fun. I thought there was actually 700 rythms, but it does not really. It has 128 rhythms, which is composed of drums (three variations) and bass (three variations). Bass can be set to off, drums don't have that option. The device is very easy to customize/change the sounds using the free software that comes with it. I have to read the instructions to figure out how to set the chains on the device itself, but with the software is a breeze. There twenty chains that can be customized. Each chain has 16 tracks with the option of repeating each rhythm a max of 4 times per track. Creating a rhythm for a song is easy. Like I said before there are three variations of drum and bass and a key (scale) can be set for each individual track. This is useful when you have a key change in the middle of a song. The phraser is awesome and very easy to use. press phraser and start playing. it will automatically stop recording when you stop playing and continue looping automatically. This is fun. You'll be hooked on it for hours.

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DATASTREAM High-Fidelity 3.5mm Stereo Audio Extension Cable (6 ft.) for Smartphones / MP3 Players /

Customer Ratings:
List Price: $19.99
Sale Price: $9.99
Today's Bonus: 50% Off

• Premium High-Fidelity 3.5mm AUX stereo audio extension cable works great with Apple iPad , iPhone , Samsung Galaxy , Tablets , Smartphones , Laptops , Handheld Games , Speakers , Home & Car Stereo , Headphones & More!
• High-quality audio transfer for clean signal reproduction
• Quality tested 24k gold-plated connectors for high performance and corrosion protection; Durable alloy plug housing for lasting performance and high-quality feel
• 3.5mm Type A Male to 3.5mm Type A Female
• Quality Guaranteed - 3 Year Manufacturer's Warranty

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I brought this product to extend my auxiliary port from my desktop to a more comfortable place to be able to sit and listen to music. I have to say that the sound is exceptional, I believe that the gold plate is one of the reasons why (I just use regular iPod earbuds). The wire is well built and the perfect distance for my needs. However there is a flaw in the design, on each end of the cable near the female end of 3.5mm jack and the male end of the 3.5mm jack it has a silver shell that can be unscrewed, for purposes unknown to me. Sometimes with just regular usage it unscrews and drops to the middle of the cable adding a counterweight that pulls my earbuds downward. Its an annoyance but nothing extreme that takes away from the overall build and sound quality.

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I got this cable to extend the cable of a set of "Audio-Technica ATH-M50 Professional Studio Monitor Headphones" I just bought. I was a bit skeptical of buying a product with few reviews, but have been very pleased with the quality! The cable is very sturdy and the plugs are nice and bold. The connections are gold plated. (Will update the review on how the plating wears) I have not had any issues with crackling (Like nickel plated connections). Over all I highly recommend these headphones. They are worth the money for the solid and sturdy build, and great quality.

PUDATE: I just found a short in the cable. While listening to music, audio quit working for the right side... Will return for exchange.

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I've had this for a number of weeks now. It seems to be of good quality; I haven't had any issues thus far. Sound quality is great. The real question will be how well it stands up over the coming months...I'll have to update when the time comes.

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compared to previous products i have tried, this is the first to offer the ability to keep my phone case on, while also providing high quality audio.

Purchased two of these cables to use with my iPhone and iPad2. I wanted to be able to listen to my music and audio books without having to worry about accidentally pulling my device off the end table due to the earphone wires being a little short. The quality of the cable is excellent. The sound is crisp and clear. I have no regrets for ordering these cables. I am very pleased.

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Cecilio 92-D Chromatic/String Tuner with Metronome

Customer Ratings:
List Price: $49.99
Sale Price: $13.23
Today's Bonus: 74% Off

• Chromatic tuner function with 8 octave tone generator
• Guitar, bass, violin, and cello tuner function (viola is the same as cello)
• Metronome function with simulated traditional pendulum motion
• Tempo range of 30bpm to 230bpm, 1/4 inch input jack and 3.5mm headphone jack, Volume control
• Large 2 1/4 inch LCD display screen, Battery powered

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The Metronome works fine. When sounding the chromatic tones it works fine. When trying to tune with the microphone it's just bad. I play a C it says its an A. I play a D it says its an A I play a G it says its an A. Sometimes it works, most of the time it does not. I found one for my Droid that works just as well. So if 2 out of 3 functionality is good enough for you have fun.

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I'm a music teacher and I have several tuner/metronomes, but got this one because one of my students who is colorblind had one. I really liked it at first (the back light is pretty) and does not rely on color recognition to determine pitch accuracy. However, no matter how I configure it, the A pitch won't tune properly. This one is probably damaged, leaving me with the feeling that I wish I'd purchased an Intelli; at least I'd know it would work properly.

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I got this Cecilio 92-D tuner with a violin I purchased. I am a novice at this and was very fustrated that every string no matter how it sounds is a 2A. Violin is still not tuned properly so I am stuck until I get a tuner that works.

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It is hard to turn it on and equally hard to turn it off once on. You can press the button for 2-3 minutes with nothing happening. Instruction is poor and too simple. It can hardly display properly for the G string of a 1/8 violin. And I doubt its overall accuracy.

This is a very accurate tuner, I have several tuners but I always use this one to tune my musical instrumentsds. When friends come over to play, we just pass it around even though there are other tuners there. I was lucky also I got it while it was on sale.

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Crate CA10 Acoustic Guitar Amplifier Combo, 10 Watts, 1/4 Input, 3 Band EQ, Chorus

Customer Ratings:
List Price: $139.99
Sale Price: $99.99
Today's Bonus: 29% Off

• Crate 8" high fidelity speaker
• 10 watts RMS
• 3-band EQ
• Switchable Chorus with rate control and on/off switch
• Headphone jack
• 10 watts RMS, 3-band EQ

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The first time I took it out of the box,the handle came off, on further inspection, the handle was completely broken, I've not plugged it in to see if it works, I'm not very hopeful, this is my first unpleasant experience with Amazon

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Looks nice and when I plugged in acoustic with new woody it sounded great. The power is week. At level 5 almost no sound using the acoustic but can be easily played at 10 all day and sounds about twice as loud as non amplified guitar. Sound is nice over all with little hum. I also played a Epiphone les paul jr on it and it sounded nice and much louder. It also sounded like an acoustic guitar which was neat. PS the amp is much bigger than it looks.

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I bought a refurbished CA10 from Amazon and it is crap. Amazon said the warranty was 1 year same as a new one, so i bought it. 2 months later a loud distorted static began coming from the amp. Amazon said the warranty on refurbished gear is 1 month, not one year. I pulled the back off, jiggled some wires, and the amp quit working. Guess you get what you pay for. I wouldn't recommend this amp at all. I also wouldn't recommend Amazons honesty.

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Kustom KG212FX 30W 2 x 12 Guitar Combo Amp with Digital Effects

Customer Ratings:
List Price: Price Unavailable
Sale Price: $198.88
Today's Bonus:

• OUTPUT POWER 30 Watts SPEAKER 2 x 12" INPUT Two Input CHANNELS Lead & Rhythm AUX INPUT Stereo 3.5mm HEADPHONE OUT Stereo 3.5mm TONE CONTROL Bass, Middle & Treble EFFECTS Chorus, Reverb & Delay EFFECTS LOOP Send & Return
• 1/8-inch MP3/CD input for practicing along with tunes
• 5-year transferrable electronics warra
• Whether you crave the sweet, chiming tone of today's Country music or the intense low-end and scooped midrange of the heaviest Metal, KG amps can deliver it and a lot more.
• Designed in the USA
• OUTPUT POWER 30 Watts SPEAKER 2 x 12" INPUT Two Input CHANNELS Lead & Rhythm AUX INPUT Stereo 3.5mm HEADPHONE OUT Stereo 3.5mm TONE CONTROL Bass
• 5-year transferable electronics warra
• Middle & Treble EFFECTS Chorus, Reverb & Delay EFFECTS LOOP Send & Return
• Whether you crave the sweet, chiming tone of today's Country music or the intense low-end and scooped midrange of the heaviest Metal

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I got this amp a few months ago after my crate G20 died. This amp is 30 watts which seems low for a 212 amp, it has a very good volume level. It has a good clean channel. The only thing I don't like about the clean channel is that it's not as bright as I'd like. The distortion is not bad, I'm not a big distortion fan, I usually play rock, blues, and oldies. The only bad part on this amp to me is the distortion drive distorts very quickly. The reverb is decent, it's a digital reverb, the crate had a spring reverb so I prefer. The chorus works well a pedal is nice so you can change the rate. Over all this is a very good amp. If your short on money to get a large 212 I would recommend this amp.

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I wanted something smaller and more portable then my half stack so I decided to bu this amp. I think what a lot of people don't know is that 30 watts is able to get as loud as just about any amp (watts don't mean loudness read up on them). I play for my church band and this amp is very portable and can be easy to put a mic to and get a good sound. Even in a recording situation most will prefer to mic and record a lower watt amp then more. overall this is a very good amp for the price.

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I just bought this amp and have only played it once. It took me a second to dial in the tone, gain, and volume knobs to get a good sound. The built in effects aren't really that great so I wouldn't depend on that. I kind of expected that and went a head and bought other pedals. But for the price of this amp you cant beat it. There's two twelve inch speakers in this thing that can be extremely loud when turned up. Also, the amp is pretty light weight which is a plus when you play a lot of small gigs and have to carry it around all the time. Great for practice, studio, and small gigs. And, it wasn't that expensive.

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Nice unit with the 2 12 inch speakers. There's nothing out there for the price of these amps. Great for practicing or small gigs. You can't go wrong.

The Kustom KG212FX exceeded my expectations in every way. My Squire Tele, my Ibanez GART60 sound great through it. I am very happy with this amp. I'd recommend this amp to anyone. (Jeff Wolf)

Added 8-24-2013: This amp continues to exceed my expectations in every way. I've stopped using my digitech and other pedals, the distortion on this amp along with the built in reverb, delay, and chorus are enough for me. The clean channel sounds fantastic. In reading reviews at other dealers, one thing I see people mention negative is that the effects are poor and the distortion isn't that great. I guess that depends on what you are trying to play. I go for that classic rock sound, 80's metal sound, punk sound, and this amp is just great for me, I rarely push the gain past 12 o'clock and I'm happy with it. I'm not playing high price guitars either, I play a Squier Affinity Tele and an Ibanez GART60 and they both sound great with this amp. I will say there was a little learning curve finding the right settings for my amp and guitars because of the shared EQ, but that isn't a deal breaker. Now I've got the settings where I need them and use the Kustom footswitch I also bought to kick between channels and I am very happy with my sound. I have a friend who plays a Schecter through a Crate tube amp and he thinks my Kustom amp sounds amazing. Haha, maybe I lucked out with a good one? I doubt it...

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Yamaha ARIUS YDP-181 Electronic Piano with Bench ,Rosewood

Customer Ratings:
List Price: $2,199.00
Sale Price: $1,699.99
Today's Bonus: 23% Off

• 88-key GH(Graded Hammer) weighted action keyboard
• Dynamic Stereo Sampling AWM piano with 128-note polyphony
• 2-track, 3-song recorder
• USB TO DEVICE port
• LED Display

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A digital piano will not completely replace a real acoustic, but it comes closer and closer as years go by. I think enormous progress has been made and the YDP-181 demonstrates how much. It used to be that keyboards had springy keys and metallic sound.

1) The box

The box is LARGE. If you buy it from a store, unless you have an SUV you will have to open it and put the parts in the trunk after folding the rear seats. It is HEAVY too. At 110 pounds, you need to help to move it around.

2) Assembly

I found assembly straightforward. If you have assembled IKEA furniture, it is not more difficult than that. Again, because of the weight, you will need someone to help you lift the action so that it rests on the sides. After that, you tighten the screws, connect the pedal cord, the power supply, and you are ready to go.

3) The build

The included bench feels a bit tinny. It is not that wide and large, but unless you weigh 300 pounds, I think it will do the job fine. I am not expecting you would use it to play duets with someone else, it is not wide enough.

The console itself feels reasonably solid. The pedals have an adjuster screw that rests on the floor so that you don't bend everything while pressing the pedals. The back board feels a bit flimsy. It is very thin, and I am not sure it has any structural reason being there.

Obviously, it's not the same sturdiness as an upright, nor is it as shiny, but it doesn't feel too cheap either. There is a sliding key cover to protect the keys from dust and other things.

Due to the light weight compared to an upright, you can move it around a room easily. On carpet you can move it one side at a time by yourself, but on hardwood, I would get help to avoid scratching the floor.

I found the pedals require a bit of force to operate. To avoid damage to the unit, you need to make sure the adjuster makes contact with the floor.

4) The action

I was surprised how close the action felt to my upright. Except for the "let-off" (right before the hammer takes off, you feel some resistance on the key) which you won't feel on a digital, the feel is really good. I would say it is lighter than an upright, but I am not sure it is lighter than a grand. So if you move from this digital to an upright, you will need more force, but if you move to a grand, it will likely be similar.

The keys are sensitive to velocity and again here, I am surprised how good it is. You can press very lightly and get a pp or press fast and you will get a ff. It feels easier to control the dynamics than on an acoustic (where it is probably not as linear, I guess), thus when moving to an acoustic, you will need some adjustment. Playing pianissimo on acoustics is one of the difficult things to do.

On an acoustic, you can miss a key by not hitting it fast enough. The hammer barely moves and doesn't strike the strings. On this model, you can miss a key as well, if you hit below a minimum velocity it will not produce any sound. As with a real piano too, the sound is only produced when you reach the bottom of the key.

There are 3 key sensitivity settings. I liked to set it to "hard" so it feels a bit like my upright and allows for more expressive control.

5) The sound

I really liked the sound of the "piano 1" voice. Of course, it is a digital piano, so you will not get the full richness and amplitude of a real piano, and on the upper registers, there is a bit of an "electronic" feel to the sound. Damper resonance also adds another bit of electronic feel to the upper notes, though with chords on the lower registers, it sounds pretty good. It actually sounds better than my upright (crisper sound, and always in tune) and I have seen a couple of uprights in my family that just sound horrible. The 2 speakers have a power of 40 W and they are loud enough so that you won't need to push the volume to the maximum.

Piano 2 sounds more "muffled" than Piano 1. You can adjust how bright you want the piano to be, between "mellow" and a few degrees up to "bright".

I found the soft pedal effect a bit light by default, but this can be changed in the settings to get a more pronounced effect. The middle pedal is "sostenuto" introduced by Steinway a while back, which I think is some gimmick since most repertoire comes from Europe.

The sustain pedal retains notes shorter than a typical upright (which would retain for something like 15-20 seconds). I measured 15 seconds on the leftmost note and 10 seconds for the middle C. This brings a clearer and less muddled sound, but on the other hand, you lose a bit of amplitude with that. I couldn't find an advanced setting. It would have been nice if Yamaha provided it, especially since the settings system based on sections and sub sections allows for adding settings without extra buttons on the unit.

6) The fun

It's always nice to have a few more voices, like organ and harpsichord. You can play Bach the way it sounded when he was alive, or imagine yourself in a church playing the organ. I care less about the "strings" voice, the "guitar" or the "choir" though.

One of the more interesting aspects of a digital piano is the ability to instantly record and play. The keyboard has memory for 3 user songs, and you can plug in a USB drive to store up to 100 songs on it. You can transfer songs back and forth between the user memory and the USB drive.

For practicing, you can record one hand, then listen to it and play the other hand. Or, you can record the "piano 1" part of a 2 piano piece, have the digital piano play it for you while you play the "piano 2" part along. During playback, you can adjust tempo so that you can practice slowly and increase the speed as you feel more comfortable. I find this increasingly useful for working on 2 piano pieces, piano duets, or working with one hand at a time.

I can imagine a whole lot of possibilities with educational software using MIDI. I am sure the software could record yourself, measure your accuracy, compare your playing against a reference, and ask you to practice various exercises.

Another bonus is the ability to play silently and use headphones. You need a 1/4" headphone jack. If your headphone has a 1/8' jack, you can buy a 1/8" to 1/4" converter.

The unit comes with 50 preloaded songs, as well as a sheet music book for these songs. They range from beginner (a few) to intermediate and advanced. Yamaha included many classics: Arabesque No 1 by Debussy, some Chopin Etudes, the Raindrop Prelude, the Moonlight Sonata. They will keep you busy for quite a while.

7) Playback and the pedal

The pedal gets recorded for each part independently (recorded songs can have "left" and "right" parts), and at playback it almost behaves like I have two pianos. I can play along with the pedal, and the pedal only applies to what I am playing, not to what the digital piano plays back. Damper resonance on the other hand applies to everything that is being played. I have yet to see how this behaves with piano software on the PC. I am guessing the pedal changes from the separate parts will get merged by the software. Or, I would have to use a MIDI editor to extract the left and right tracks, play them separately and then merge the resulting wave files so that it feels like there are 2 pianos playing.

8) Other considerations

Unlike an acoustic piano, where you can get a tuner to come by to your house, open the panels, and tune it, voice it, regulate it, etc. on site, for a digital piano, in case of problems, you would need to ship it to Yamaha. The manufacturer's warranty for this model is a 3 year limited parts and labor warranty, according to Yamaha's web site. Stores may offer an extended warranty which covers shipping. Considering the weight of the item and how much it might cost to ship, this might not be a bad idea.

Another consideration is reliability. Since this model just appeared on the market a year ago, I cannot have a record of how it will deal with use and abuse, repeated use of the pedal, hitting some chords hard, plugging/unplugging the headphone jack many times. I trust Japanese products and I am hoping the quality is there.

9) MIDI

There are 2 MIDI connectors, one for in, one for out. There are quite a few options available to configure MIDI, the channels, the control mode, and so forth.

You should use only the Yamaha UX-16 USB to MIDI interface. I tried the Roland UM-One and it skipped notes. The Yamaha USB to MIDI cable works flawlessly. It may be more expensive than other cables but at least you know that it will work because it is from the same brand. Of course, MIDI should be a standard, but I don't know whether the problem is with Roland or Yamaha not being totally compliant with the MIDI specification.

10) The verdict

I hope this review will be useful as I have been quite frustrated with the lack of real reviews on this product on this Internet. Most information I found is the same description, likely translated from Japanese, that says things like "for the beginner and the experienced player alike, this piano will provide playing pleasure, blah blah ...", pretty much copied/pasted everywhere. Obviously this is an expensive product sold in limited numbers, so that plays a factor in the lack of reviews.

Although I am giving it a very favorable review, in the end you should try it out for yourself in a real store before buying online. Feel the touch, listen if you like the sound, bring to the store a flash drive and record on it, then play the resulting MIDI file on a PC, etc.

The good

Crisp, clear sound, good volume

Strong bass

Two kinds of pianos, plus organ, harpsichord, and other goodies (choir, guitar, anyone?)

Action feels similar to real piano, not too springy

Good control over dynamics (key sensitivity)

Half pedal capability

Ability to use headphones for practicing at night

Ability to record and replay, on internal memory or using USB flash drive

Ability to transfer MIDI songs to PC and replay with high quality virtual piano software

50 songs to listen to, plus the sheet music for these

The bad

Bench is narrow

Music rest is a bit narrow too, makes it a bit clumsy to keep an "accordeon" style sheet music in place (I do that for pieces up to 6 pages)

Back panel is very thin

Wish there was a real screen like the more expensive Clavinovas

On the upper registers, the sound feels a bit "electronic", especially with damper resonance enabled

Wish there was a bit more volume on the upper registers

Pedals a bit tough to operate (but it's like a new car, you get used to it pretty quickly)

Might be expensive to repair with shipping

Buy Yamaha ARIUS YDP-181 Electronic Piano with Bench ,Rosewood Now

After comparing many Roland, Casio and Yamaha models, this is the one I settled on and couldn't be happier about it. I played the piano from about age 6 through high school and I wanted to get back into it.

Of all the Roland/Casio/Yamaha models I tested in person, this Yamaha in particular had the best "feel" of a real piano. It lacks some of the electronic/midi compatibility of the Casio AP620, but in terms of the build quality and the feel of a real piano, the YDP-181 is the clear winner.

It is more sturdily built than both the 161 and the 141, and the key action of the 181 is also better than both the 161 and 141. I'd highly recommend spending the few hundred extra dollars if you can afford it.

Read Best Reviews of Yamaha ARIUS YDP-181 Electronic Piano with Bench ,Rosewood Here

In case anyone is interested in more information about the bench that is included... The piano and bench come together in one box, and the bench is Yamaha BC-100DR.

Want Yamaha ARIUS YDP-181 Electronic Piano with Bench ,Rosewood Discount?

First off, you are paying for the cabinet here in the price. For what you get, it is arguably a good deal, but remember you can pick up a P-155 with identical key feel, GHE (Which is the same as GH per the Yamaha website), and AWM sound. It is less money, and portable.

If you are looking for an authentic feel and sound you will not go wrong here, it is an amazing value if you need the cabinet with touch/sound, but check out the P-155 as well!

"I am a Piano Teacher and Performer Check me out on YouTube Jonathan Bobal"

This is the perfect piano! I actually like it better than a "real" traditional piano.......It's very easy to put together; I put it together by myself in about an hour (5'5" female). The sound is great and I'm delighted that I purchased this piano.

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Ecko Unltd Sound Core Headphones

Customer Ratings:
List Price: Price Unavailable
Sale Price: Price Unavailable
Today's Bonus:

These headphones provide high-end sound at a very affordable price. They pack quite a punch in the bass department and clear highs and mids. I recommend this to all music lovers and musicians who are on a budget.

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Zoom H1 Portable Stereo Digital Audio Premium Pack - (New)

Customer Ratings:
List Price: $249.99
Sale Price: $126.95
Today's Bonus: 49% Off

• Stereo X/Y mic configuration captures perfect stereo images
• Same frequency and SPL handling as popular Zoom H2
• Records Broadcast WAV (BWF) at 96kHz/48kHz/44.1kHz at 16-bit or 24-bit
• Records MP3 from 48 to 320kbps for maximum recording time
• Included accessories:Professional Closed Cup Headphones, Windscreen, AC adapter (USB type), USB Cable, Adjustable Tripod Stand, Padded-shell Case and a Mic Clip Adapter

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Zoom H1 with accessory Pack:

Note: I see that Amazon is selling this complete system around $20 cheaper if you buy the recorder and Accessory pack separately...

Amazon is very slow getting this product in stock, so I got tired of waiting and ordered it from a company out of Colorado on ebay at about the same price, and they also included a 2GB micro SD card & micro SD adapter kit with case, in it. I'm usually a BIG hold-out though when it comes to buying from Amazon as the selling merchant because of their easy return policy, but I really wanted this item and was tired of waiting for Amazon to supply it... anyways I got mine today.

The Zoom H1 is a very nice and very reasonably priced recorder. The added accessories kit is a very good option and I'm glad it was offered in this type of packaging. This thing will probably last me for quite some time. I've owned a few of the older analog mini cassette recorders like the ones made by Sony, but this is my 1st digital recorder. I was waiting on a very good quality device, that was stereo and low in price (compared to its quality).

So the ZOOM H1 with accessory pack, came with:

Zoom H1 recorder,

1 AA Battery

mini tripod,

Windscreen,

Mic clip adapter,

A/C adapter,

USB Cable,

Padded shell case,

set of cheap Tascam headphones with 1/8-1/4 stereo adapter plug,

my shipment included a Micro SD card (2GB) and Micro SD card adapter,

1/8" to 1/8" stereo line-In cable,

RCA (L/R) to 1/8" stereo cable,

Manual & paperwork...

I loaded the battery and micro SD card and the H1 opened a data input screen for programming the date, time, and such. This went very fast and was very easy to program. I then removed the battery to see if I have to redo this after every battery load up, and it remembered the settings, but does a quick SD card check at start up. TO power on the device you need to hold the power switch to the down position for a few seconds (located on the bottom right side of H1), and the screen will digitally greet you. The screen also displays some very nice messaging back to the user.

Next I reviewed the various buttons on the recorder, like on the very bottom there's a small speaker used to monitor playback with, but it's very very weak weak, so don't expect much from it. The monitor speaker works for a quick listen, but again u will need to use headsets or connect it up with the USB or line cables for best playback quality (or pull the SD card and slot it in the computer). On the backside I set the 3 buttons to my settings... (Low cut: ON, Auto level: ON, Format: MP3). On the right side I increased input recording level to 85% & on the left side I set the volume out level to 75%.

One thing I noticed (reading the manual 1st would prob... help), when I tried the REV/FF during playback is if I let off the button right away it would go to the very end or start like complete rewind. But I figured out that you need to hold these buttons done to do skips and short moves.

Then I hit the record button on the face of the Zoom H1 and did a quick recording in front of the HDTV set for 15 seconds. Then I stopped and hit the playback button on the right side, again the small monitor speaker is very weak, so I plugged in the provided headset and the quality was very good. One thing I noticed right away about this recorder is that its very sensitive. When holding it while recording it picks up everything, your movements, bumps, pressing the record, start, or stop buttons... the movement noises are picked up (maybe the input volume is set to high, I will play with that later) whatever... and it seems to have a very high freq... pitch to it, (it would be nice if this thing came with a remote and had built-in bluetooth, so we could use wireless bluetooth speaker/mic headset, that would be nice). So I opened the accessory pack and added the windscreen and tripod and that helped, but still a very sensitive item. You can hear everything during playback.

To delete a recording, just hit the delete button on the bottom right side, then verify it by pushing the red record button on the face of the Zoom H1. I haven't tried the USB connection, line-in, or line-out yet (headphones used as line-out), but its probably much like all the other small electronic devices, so I wont pester the peeps with it but these are nice options to have on such a reasonably priced recorder.

Overall for me: the price was right, especially with the options kit and included SD card kit. I will use this thing for everything, recording my music sessions, or out playing in the world environments... It will take some getting use to on its sensitivity, but I will adapt. So for me... its a keeper!

More Zoom H1 Specs (amazon doesnt do URLs):

Zoom H1 Portable Digital Recorder Features:

* Stereo X/Y mic configuration captures perfect stereo images

* Same frequency and SPL handling as popular Zoom H2

* Records Broadcast WAV (BWF) at 96kHz/48kHz/44.1kHz at 16-bit or 24-bit

* Records MP3 from 48 to 320kbps for maximum recording time

* Hi-Speed USB 2.0 port

* Built-in reference speaker

* Includes 2GB microSD memory card and 1 AA battery

* One AA size battery allows 10 hours operation

* Accommodates up to 32GB microSDHC memory cards

* Track marker function

* Low cut filter

* Built-in mounting joint for tripod mount

* 1/8 inch external mic input

* Stereo 1/8 inch line output

* Auto record level

enjoy :)

Buy Zoom H1 Portable Stereo Digital Audio Premium Pack - (New) Now

I bought one of these to:

Record myself playing trumpet/harmonica/singing

Conduct interviews

record speakers and speaking engagements

???

and it has performed brilliantly.

On that strength, I recommended this to a friend who is a Mary Kay director who does CD's for training, motivation and support for her sales associates. On that end, it has been brilliant. You can plop it in front of a guest speaker (one mic pointed toward the speaker and the other "mostly" towards the audience") and you get a clear, crisp and brilliant recording that is easy to listen to and not encumbered by hiss, distortion or other technological distractions. Not only that, but it is "Non-Technical Person" APPROVED. Very easy to use. If you can pull a file off of a pen drive, you can use this recorder 100%.

For audience recordings:

ALWAYS leave the "Auto Level" switch (on the back) ON. This will adjust the recording levels for when "someone in the back" asks a question (turning the sensitivity UP) and then automatically turn it back DOWN when the speaker starts up again.

** If the speaker is on a PA (meaning talking into a microphone and sound system) **: you are generally good. If you are making a CD, set it to "WAV" (slider on the back), and then use the > (fast forward) buttons when you turn it on (before starting to record) to set it to "44 / 16" mode. Any setting will burn to CD via iTunes (recommended method) just fine, but on the "44 / 16" setting it is the exact format a CD uses. Literally, drop it in and burn.

** If the speaker is NOT on a PA (just them talking to the room unassisted) ** : if you are going to have audience noise, clapping, etc. you will want to put the recorder NEARER to the speaker. MAKE SURE YOU KEEP THAT AUTO-LEVEL SWITCH on the back of the unit ON.

Other than that, unless you want to edit clips, just drop the file or files from the recorder into iTunes (delete any "test" recordings you don't want), make a playlist (plus sign at the bottom left of the iTunes window), drag that particular recording or recordings onto it and then press "burn playlist" to write it to a CD. Just about that easy.

Accessories:

These are life savers:

The tripod lets you put it on a desk, near enough to your mouth, and record an audio training or what-have-you with ease. Put on the foam cover for this, because if you don't, P's and F's and T's can sometimes break up and sound bad. With the foam cover, you sound pure rich, natural and distortion-free, even if you speak into it at close range.

The foam cover (above) protects you when you speak closely into it, or when you are outdoors in any kind of slight breeze or wind. For heavier breeze or wind, you need a RedHead protector (google it).

The microphone handle accessory is a God-send as well: will allow you to record a speaker standing up with ease if you have a mic stand (they are cheap and invaluable). Remember, closer to the speaker if they are not using an amplified PA/microphone/speakers.

The case is really good for keeping this relatively delicate product safe. All the money was poured into the mics and the recording electronics, not the case. It is not necessarily durable enough to smash under heavy weight in a bag somewhere, but the case will help that to some degree.

The power supply keeps you going if batteries die.

The cable allows you to transfer files right from the device. Usually would just use it like a camera card and plug it right into your computer, but this allows greater flexibility.

Final notes:

I highly recommend spending the ten bucks on an 8 GB (eight gigabyte) card. This will yield you many more hours of recording time and more flexibility. More space than that is not always necessary, but for about ten bucks you cannot beat an 8gb card right now.

The headphones in the kit are bulky and lousy, but oh well...they are roughly "free" all told.

If you need to edit your recording (fade in at the beginning or fade out at the end, cut out segments you don't want or mistakes made, etc.) then go ahead and download the free "Audacity" program and teach yourself how to use it by reading the user manual. It's free, powerful yet simple and once you LEARN it, you will LOVE it. It's worth your time. Or if you are big-time enough, hire someone on eLance or Rentacoder to do it for you. HIGH POWERED!!

FINAL NOTE FOR LIVE CONCERT RECORDING:

Other than that, I wish to say that I have now recorded live music with this thing (even bassy high-end PA and concert venue stuff) and it sounds phenomenal. I used to have a Sound Professionals rig with a DAT recorder, battery box and capsule microphones...naturally sounded great. But this is definitely comparable without the fuss of wires and rigging.

When you are recording a concert, you set the auto-levels to OFF and typically I am adjusting the levels (read the manual on how to do this) down to about 25. That seems to be the safest setting overall to prevent clipping or overloading (red light blinking rapidly when this happens) in your live music recording. I have recorded singers on a PA, live rock, orchestra over PA and various other amped and acoustic settings and they all come out really nice. This baby is where it's AT for me! :D Very happy.

Read Best Reviews of Zoom H1 Portable Stereo Digital Audio Premium Pack - (New) Here

I really wanted to like this product. Sure, it's made from flimsy plastic, the battery door rattles, the microsd cover feels like it wants to break every time you use it, and the buttons and switches are rubbish, but I was prepared to give the Zoom H1 a 4-star rating because the audio quality is fantastic for the price, it's light weight, and is supposed to get good battery life from a single AA battery.

Unfortunately, for me, the battery drain issue makes the product completely useless. The claimed battery life was a major factor, along with the great audio quality, in my decision to purchase the Zoom H1. However, I do not record for 8-10 hours each time so I expected a single AA battery to last me around a week or so, but instead the H1 I received drains about half a battery overnight. That is completely unacceptable. I thought about just removing the battery when I wasn't using the recorder but that quickly becomes a pain if you want accurate timestamps as you need to re-enter the date and time each time you remove the battery.

It's a shame as I would have very much liked this recorder if it wasn't for such a silly defect. I did read about users experiencing the battery drain and the fact that Samson was replacing defective units, but I had thought that since the product has been in the marketplace for quite some time now the issue would have been resolved with all units being currently sold.

Bottom Line: If not for the battery drain issue this recorder would have been a very good match for my needs. Rather than try my chances with a replacement I will look for an alternative with better build quality.

Want Zoom H1 Portable Stereo Digital Audio Premium Pack - (New) Discount?

Bought this 2-months ago, mainly to record our band practices since we were "breaking-in" a new guitarist. I was blown away by the quality of the recordings. I placed the recorder in the corner of the room and set the mp3 record quality to 192kbs to keep the file size manageable. Amazing quality with no fuss!

I also used it to record church services, since I play bass on the church worship team. It wasn't quite as successful there since it picked up all the coughing, sneezing, kids crying and a bit of an echo in the large sanctuary. Yesterday, during a church practice, I set it to record in wav format and plugged it into the sound board to record direct to the line in jack. Unfortunately, it only recorded on the left channel but I'm not sure if this is due to the recorder or the sound board. Even though it was mono, the quality was great with no echo or background noise since the on-stage mics were the only input. I will use it to record the Easter Service this morning and have no doubt that I'll be pleased with the results.

There has not been any indication of any battery life problems, and the unit is extremely easy to use. I'm over 65 and didn't have any problem with the technology. I will say that the manual is printed so small that I had to use a jeweler's loupe to read it. I ended up downloading a pdf version and read it from the computer so I could easily enlarge the directions & diagrams.

The accessory pack is a must have addition. I'm happy with the Nady headphones that came with mine. The tripod & usb cable are invaluable. I also recommend purchasing an 8GB micro SD card you'll get at least 5-hours recording time in wav format and at least 10 times more in any mp3 format.

I agree with other reviewers that the auto level function is not very useful for recording live music. It will take a little tinkering to get your input level set correctly for each situation but its easy enough and well worth the effort. Once the files are downloaded to the computer, you can easily tweak the sounds to your preference. The original files sound great but you might want to use a sound editor to reduce the bass or bring up the trebles. Both Nero & Roxio have sound editors built in as do most other audio software programs.

Conclusion is it feels a little "chintzy" but if you handle it with care and keep it in the hard shell carrying case that came with the accessory pack, it should last a long time and give you "A1" recordings.

Any buyer should note that this product is EXTREMELY flimsy and its accessories even more so. Yes, I like that it's so lightweight, but the plastic is simply far too delicate. I've looked after mine really carefully, but already by the fourth usage the 'on' switch/slider had broken off. I now have to slide it on by inserting a pin into the slot. If there were a slightly more solidly-built product for a slightly higher price, I would have considered that money better spent.

Also, it does have a few quirks. I've learned the hard way that you cannot reformat the memory card in your computer: you must do it in the Zoom, by holding down the 'delete' button as you power on. Otherwise the recorder appears to be recording, but you just end up with a blank file of 0kb.

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