Yamaha NP12 Keyboard Review

 

Main advantage

Sound

From the first time you play this keyboard, you will be surprised by the rich sound that it gives out. Of course, it’s not the kind of sound that can compete with acoustic pianos, but for the category, it’s in, the keyboard has excellent tonality. That’s a fortunate thing about Yamaha – they always put the priority on the essentials, which in this case is the sound quality.

The feel also won’t disappoint you, which is another good point. For the better part, the instrument comes with AWM Stereo Sampling, which allows for the grand piano sound to be almost like the real deal. This particular sound has been recorded from a Yamaha grand piano, and the result is a bring one, with authentic sound and contrasts that will make you forget this keyboard is digital.

If you have a trained ear you can also notice how the ample polyphony number contributes to the great sound quality. The polyphony number represents the maximum notes that a digital piano can produce at the same time. The sound will be affected if these notes are not enough. In an acoustic piano, each individual key may have 3 separate notes playing at once (with very subtle differences between them).

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Main disadvantage

The keys

Although great on the sound part, the actual keys of this instrument don’t offer you the real feel of an acoustic piano. Furthermore, you only get 61 notes, instead of the full range of 88 notes found on the piano. If you’re a beginner and you are just starting, 61 notes will be alright at first, but you will soon outgrow them.

More advanced players will need a full keyboard, especially if you eventually want to start playing the acoustic piano. Another important factor is that the keys aren’t weighted and they don’t feel like the acoustic piano.

 

Main features explained

 

Many settings

This keyboard would be a recommendable one for those looking for an instrument capable of accomplishing many different tasks. It gives you the usual sound buttons, and alongside them a simple metronome button. This one will help you keep the tempo while you practice and you can modify its tempo.

You can also set the metronome to different tempos too, with 4/4 or ¾ being some popular options that you will need to use. This neat keyboard also comes with a recording function that lets you keep the best moments of your practice sessions immortalized and usable afterward. It also allows you to play over prerecorded material and layer everything in a nice piece of music.

Hearing yourself play is always a fun thing, and it also helps you develop your skills faster. And speaking about developing, the keyboard offers 10 demo songs that beginners can use to get accustomed to how the instrument plays and start learning faster.

This model is compatible with different devices, amongst which it can use a sustain pedal. The sound of a grand piano wouldn’t be complete without the sustain involved, and although this is a standard for most keyboards, it’s still something that should be mentioned here. Fortunately, this package also comes with the pedal needed, to make sure you have everything.

Speaking about that, you also get a nice foldable chair, a stand to place your keyboard on, the adaptor you need to plug it in and play from the comfort of your home, a pair of modest headphones and even a book to learn to play the instrument faster. It has built-in speakers as you might expect, and they are decent enough to allow you to play in your home and for studio practice.

 

Portable

What’s interesting about this instrument is not necessarily how lightweight it is, but how it still manages to feel durable and sturdy despite that. It’s a highly-portable keyboard that is so compact. Most keyboards that are so light are constructed using cheap and flimsy plastic, and when you carry them around you need to pay extra attention to them.

Fortunately, this is not the case for this keyboard, or generally for instruments that Yamaha creates. This portable piano keyboard is strong and can take some abuse, although you shouldn’t do that, of course. Weighing only 9 pounds, it is one of the lightest keyboards out there, and possibly the lightest model from Yamaha.

Give its compact size, you can place this keyboard anywhere, no matter how small your room is. What makes this keyboard even more portable has to do with the way it operates. It can be powered using batteries. This means that no matter your destination, you can still have this travel buddy with you. You don’t need a power outlet to make it work, although it can also be powered like that.

This model is a versatile instrument that provides you with the flexibility needed when you go out of your home. It’s a great buddy for young children thanks to how light it is and how transportable it can get. Another reason why it’s so good for beginners is the fact that it comes with really everything you need at first. From the sustain pedal to the book that will help you learn more, it’s got it all.

You also get the 10 demo songs that are great for anyone, as they teach you how to use the instrument and how to improve your style. The headphones will allow a passionate student to practice even at night.

Construction

For a keyboard like this one, it’s always surprising to find out how sturdy it is. It’s a well-built keyboard that benefits from its minimalistic design. It’s a feature that allows the manufacturer to put an emphasis on other aspects. Yamaha wanted to create an instrument with a simple interface that allows the user to start playing fast without having to worry about the keyboard’s construction.

It’s interesting to find out that there are only 10 buttons on the keyboard. Other models have maybe hundreds, each button designed for a specific purpose. When seeing a simple keyboard like this one the beginner will have an easier time understanding what it does, especially nowadays when the world has been so digitalized.

For a quick power-up, the power button is easy to find, and you will be pleased to find out that the keyboard doesn’t take too long to start. Despite only coming with 61 keys, they are enough for those that should use it – beginners and younger individuals. This is also a plus for players that want to keep the instrument more portable. Classical players won’t like that they don’t have the full 88 key range at their disposal.

Taking into account the people this keyboard has been made for, the keys actually feel good. They are not fully weighted, but they still resemble the acoustic piano a bit. Despite being lighter than they should, they have touch sensitivity incorporated, so they can play the notes harder when you press them with more power.

The advantage of using lighter keys is the fact that they also reduce the weight of the keyboard overall, which is something that Yamaha took into consideration when building this model. Despite being so light, the materials used are still durable and make the construction a strong one.

 

Keys and connectivity

Touch-sensitive keys have been used for creating this keyboard, and that helps with controlling the sound volume of the instrument, as you play it. The more experienced players will also feel the response of the keyboard this way. Adding more to the feel of a realistic piano, such keys allow one to express themselves more naturally, and musical pieces can be played with more dynamics and expressiveness.

This is also an awesome feature for beginners because it teaches them to control the dynamics in the early stages of their learning curve. A touch-sensitive keyboard is always practical at helping you practice how hard you need to hit each note. At first, many people don’t even realize that in a song there are more powerful notes than others.

Talking about features, this instrument comes with an onboard 1-track recorder that can be used for practicing or for sharing your performances with others. Playing a song once you might think that you play it to perfection, but after you review the recording you might found out that certain parts were not as good as you thought.

Furthermore, this function allows you to accompany yourself, and it’s a great thing to have when you want to layer more music patterns. Offering you the possibility to export music in a MIDI format, this keyboard can also be used as a controller that allows you to edit music. It has a MIDI port that allows it to be connected to a computer where you can have a DAW ready to make adjustments to the sounds.

Editing music is not only a passion for some, but it can also be a means of educating a young musician. The MIDI connectivity also allows a player to get more functions with the help of a computer or tablet. Learning can be made easier this way.

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