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List Price: $2,699.99
Sale Price: $1,999.99
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- Dynamic Stereo Sampling AWM piano with 64-note polyphony
- 131 Voices + 361 XGlite Voices + 12 Kits; 160 styles; 30 preset songs
- 6-track recorder with hands-separate practicing
- USB connectivity for storing data or interfacing with software
- 88-key Graded Hammer Standard weighted-action keyboard
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The Yamaha Arius YDP-V240 home digital piano is as good as it gets, short of being a Clavinova. I can't wait to get mine.
I went to a music store about an hour's drive from my home to choose a digital piano. My main keyboard is an eight-year-old Yamaha DGX500, which was the closest I could come to owning a Clavinova at the time. The DGX500 has a lot of nice features, but it still performs and sounds like a keyboard, as opposed to a digital piano.
The moment I sat down at the Arius I found it a true joy to play. It was sitting next to a CVP503 Clavinova, which I also played for comparison. The piano sample in the Clavinova was slightly better than the Arius, but not by much. There was also a slight difference between the Graded Hammer Standard and the Graded Hammer touch, but again, not by much. People talk about the Graded Hammer Standard mechanism being noisy. Perhaps it depends on how one plays and the type of music one plays. I didn't find noise to be an issue at all. The touch was satisfyingly pleasant to me. It is certainly better than any of the other keyboards I currently own.
This Arius model has everything anyone could possibly want in a fine digital piano. There is a ton of instrument voices and loads of rhythms with automatic accompaniment styles. I even hooked up a USB portable disk drive to play some piano MIDI files. And wow! The sound blew me away! It sounded as if someone were sitting at the piano playing this wonderful recital for me.
This instrument even looks like a piano, with its wood cabinet design, three pedals, and sliding key cover, which not only conceals the keys, but also the instrument's knobs and buttons. What's not to like? The fact that I wasn't in a hurry to get up from the piano bench speaks for itself. I said to the salesman, "This piano has my name on it."
I decided to purchase the instrument from this particular Yamaha dealer because we came up with a comfortable payment plan and the store will deliver it to my house fully assembled.
For 20 years I've been clamoring for a Clavinova, which always seemed just beyond my reach. Until the Yamaha Arius YDP-V240. I look forward to owning this instrument because it's as good as it gets.
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I have played on many different acoustic pianos in the last forty years. I admit I was a snob about digital pianos, I didn't believe there was one anywhere that could compare to a good acoustical piano. I had only had experience with some inexpensive keyboards that were lacking, to say the least. I did play a friend's digital piano about 4 years ago that had weighted keys, but it was not very impressive at all. I planned to keep my good console piano forever. However, moving into a smaller place made piano downsizing a must; there just wasn't room for my beloved console piano.
So I went shopping for digital pianos, and I was amazed to find so many good choices that are out there today. Things had changed dramatically since I had played my friend's digital with the weighted keys. I discovered the Yamaha's and fell in love with the graded hammer action, I can't believe how much like a real piano the touch is. And for me the touch is everything, that's what makes this digital piano feel like the real thing. And if you close your eyes, I don't believe you will discern any real difference in the sound, either. Simply amazing.
I wasn't sure I really needed all the bells and whistles such as all the voices and I really didn't think I would do any recording or anything like that. But after wading through the manual I decided to try some of the different voices, as well as record accompaniments so I could play duets with myself, and I've had a blast. It's a lot of fun to try different things on this piano, and I'm constantly glad that I didn't go for a model with less features after all.
The finish is really very nice, and it does look like a nice piece of furniture, and like a real piano, especially with the cover that pulls down over the keys.
Having played classical music for many years, I didn't want to have to "settle" for less than what I was used to. And with this piano, I don't feel like I "settled" at all. I don't think I could have asked for or found anything better without spending many thousands more.
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This piano has a really decent sound for this price range, and is also notably quite aesthetically pleasing to the eye. I regularly play on a Bosendorfer Impereal concert grand piano, and obviously you will notice differences in sound between the two. However, the sound of this Yamaha Arius is definitely on par or above the Casio models that I tried in this price range. The handful of available piano voices are different enough from each other that it is fun to mix it up for some variety. There are also a number of other instruments and sounds that aren't too bad either, though I admittedly use the first grand piano voice 99% of the time.
Setup is pretty straightforward, and I was able to do it alone fairly easily. For some, setup may take 2 people because the whole keyboard and upper cabinet is all one piece, and I'd guess that one piece weighs around 150lbs alone.
The manual is a tome, and I have yet to get into it too far. Thus I have not tried out all the available features like the easy song arranger or the performance assistant.
The keys cover slides out to cover not only the keys but the whole digital display and controls, so when it is closed, the whole piano has a really beautiful classic dark wood look. I think it's actually quite beautiful, and looks better in person than even the pics online.
One additional thing I really like is the dual headphone jacks underneath the piano, and the headphones hanger also conspicuously underneath. Note that if you do not ever intend to use headphones, or don't want them hanging underneath, you can choose not to put the hanger on, and you will never notice the headphone jacks (since they are underneath the keyboard).
All-in-all, I am very pleased with this piano and would definitely recommend it for those looking for a nice digital piano in this price range, with a number of extra digital goodies to keep you amused.
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August 28th, 2013 update My wife is an intermediate level piano player and I am a newbie. After checking on several Yamaha and competitor models at different music stores in San Francisco, we became interested in the Arius and Clavinova models from Yamaha. The Clavinova models are (as best we can tell) higher end instruments with several models that are fully analog (non-digital) "classical" standard pianos and several models that are fully digital and a step or two higher than the Arius. They are made for the more serious performer who practices often and their price is likewise higher as well. In comparison, the V240 is really a higher end keyboard with some piano like features (such as the piano wooden frame, speaker placement, addition of pedals, etc....) and that sounds and operates just as a classical piano does (at least when compared to a stand alone keyboard). What attracted us to the Arius over a traditional classical piano, was:
1 More reasonable price for our playing schedule
2 Fully digital so you can add in a flute, guitar, drums, etc... to accompany any piano piece. (cannot do on a classical piano and some Clavinovas). You can also signal process with the YDP-V240 so that your piano takes on the sound of say a 17th century harpsichord, a Greek lute or dozens of other instruments.
3 If you are learning and dont want to disrupt others in nearby rooms, you can plug in headphones and the piano music will pass only thru them (so anyone nearby will hear nothing). (obviously, cannot do on a classical piano) This allows my young son to start learning how to play without driving me mad in the next room.
4 Accepts USB keys, so you can add music files digitally or store your own creations in a USB memory stick.
5 Fully compatible with Windows 7 and Windows 8, so you can alter and manipulate your own music from piano to PC and back again. (cannot do with some Clavinovas)
6 Has a nice sliding key guard to prevent dust when the piano is not in use.
7 Has a slightly smaller form factor than regular sized pianos and will be easier to accommodate if you live in a apartment of smaller home.
This Arius model also comes with the pedals and bench. The piano is also easy to assemble and is made from a nice solid wood. It is a bit heavy at perhaps 140 lbs (65 kg) when first delivered, so if you are a smaller woman/live alone, etc... you might need a hand with getting it inside the house and setup. While our piano may not have the full acoustic effects that some purists and many professional artists look for in their piano, my wife and I are very happy with this YDP-V240 model. For now, 4.9 stars out of five.
Here is a review from the perspective of an adult beginner: I'm very happy with my Yamaha Arius YDPV240. I am a beginner at piano (in my late 40's) as is my 6 year old daughter. We've had the piano for about six months. I did not buy the piano from Amazon, but purchased from Kraft Music.
Before I started playing piano six months ago, I thought there was not any real difference between a digital and acoustic instruments except for the modern conveniences. However, I must say that whenever I am able to play a "real" piano I find the differences quite stunning. In fact, when I see an acoustic piano I do my best to sit down and play it if I can! Real pianos have a wide variety of "touches"--some are much stiffer, some less so, and getting notes to sound is different than on my Yamaha digital piano. Also, acoustic pianos are full of strings, of course, and these strings VIBRATE, and that vibration comes through strongly in the keys and can be felt with the fingers and also with the body. This is a very different feeling. Experiencing these things makes me also want an acoustic piano, and realize that if I really had the $$$ the thing to get would be a Yamaha Disklavier, which is an acoustic piano and digital piano in the same instrument. Maybe some day ...
Back to the Yamaha Arius YDPV240. I am happy with my purchase. It was a reasonable amount to spend, but I know we will enjoy this for years. I love being able to practice with headphones when my children are sleeping, and to be able to control the volume when not using headphones. Acoustic pianos are VERY LOUD. It's nice that the digital piano does not have to be. However, if I turn it up to maximum volume, the volume feels like that of a real acoustic piano. I also love being able to record what I play and play it back. This is nice for practicing, as it forces me to find a tempo where I can play my piece through without mistakes. And it is nice to be able to listen to myself more objectively (than I can when playing at the same time). My daughter very much enjoys having the different instrument "voices." She will play with a variety of voices during her practice sessions and when she is fooling around. I think it is a lot of fun for her. She's taking conventional lessons, but I also teach her what I'm learning with the "Simply Music" method. She fools around with the Simply Music pieces quite a bit, playing them in different positions on the piano and it is interesting that when she transposes to a minor key she will choose a "spooky" sounding organ, for example. It's also fun to be able to play baroque music using the harpsichord, etc. I like the different expressive options one has with the digital piano--it is many instruments in one, in a sense.
My main disappointment with this piano was the bench. It is too small to accommodate me and my daughter to play four-handed piano. I just bought a new bench (see my review of the piano bench I just bought, Griffin's "Ebony Black Leather Piano Bench Wood Double Duet Keyboard Seat with Storage") so that we can more comfortably play together. I wish Yamaha provided bench options, as a storage bench that seats two seems to make sense to me!
I'm glad to recommend this piano!
