Alesis Recital vs Casio CDP 130
As one of the most popular musical instrument, piano is many people starter into music. Just like everything else, we need to find the most suitable unit to accompany our new journey into a better player. If you want a good piano made for beginner, Alesis Recital vs Casio CDP 130 can be a good option to go. Both of them are dependable but if you also wonder which can be the better option, go check what they can offer to you in our article below.
In this article, we are going to give you information about:
– Are you currently looking for a digital piano
– What are Alesis Recital and Casio CDP 130
– What Alesis Recital and Casio CDP 130 Look Like
– What Alesis Recital and Casio CDP 130 can offer to you
– Alesis Recital vs Casio CDP 130
Choosing Piano
Piano is among the most popular musical instrument learnt by many new players among other instruments like guitars which is also being the starter of many people since long time ago. Unlike guitar that is available in a wide range of price from the most expensive, artist level guitar into the affordable unit which we can pick in our nearest music store, pianos are mostly more expensive and require more budget to spend even since the first learning stage which can be an issue for many new players.
Just like many other instruments, price does play an important role on deciding if the unit we have able to produce the kind of sound we prefer since we may have different preference and taste. As for piano, most of the selecting factors will also depend on the sound it can produce and to make sure they are suiting your taste, make sure to listen to some of their sample first before buying for different manufacture have their own sound.
Professional players or those with more experience must already have their favorite unit due to the amount of knowledge and experience they have that of course will be much of a help when deciding on a new piano. However, for a beginner, we may spend more time into picking which piano will be a better option for our limited knowledge and budget, moreover, as a beginner, it is good to start with an entry-level or middle-level for we won’t need the much features on the higher level.
About Alesis Recital
Due to the huge amount of option when looking for a digital piano, it is understandable to get confused sometime when in the middle of hunting the perfect unit. However, if you don’t want to rummage in those huge options, looking at popular brand can be a good way to quickly reduce the number without really reading all of their capabilities and one of the most popular option for beginner who are looking for a digital piano to accompany their journey is Alesis Recital.
We are sure most of you already familiar with the name because this brand is among the best in the market with their collection of electronic instruments like piano, electronic drum machines and audio interfaces. Alesis Recital itself is one of the most popular unit from the brand with a good quality and very friendly price to help those who just start their lesson without the need to pay a huge sum of money. Read also: Alesis Recital vs Recital Pro here.
Alesis Recital Design
When looking at Alesis Recital, it is clear that this piano is made with beginner in mind because the keyboard is coming with a beautiful look but without being too complicated. It has LED buttons to give the unit a bit of futuristic style with 88 keys, making this a full-sized piano. The body is slim and light enough to be carried from places to another while the look itself is not holding back this piano to be displayed in most living spaces.
Alesis Recital Features
One of the first thing we ask when looking for an electric piano is probably the keys because most of us purchase them as an alternative and tool to get used to the real one or to promote the similar feeling; Alesis Recital also featured with semi-weighted keys that we can adjust its sensitivity according to our preference and skill level. Though it can give somehow a natural feeling, as an affordable item, we won’t be able to simulate the real acoustic piano with this one.
Alesis Recital also comes with five stunning built-in instruments voices like electric piano, synth, organ, bass, and acoustic piano to give the player a wide range of music capabilities while also letting us to take any of those voices and customize them according to our personal preference by combining any two sound using the Layer Mode. Additionally, with its Reverb and Chorus customization, it will give our sound exactly what it needs to flourish.
To deliver a superb sound, this piano is equipped with two 20-watt built-in speakers which is good enough to deliver a rich and realistic sound for an elevated playing experience. However, in our opinion, the biggest selling point of this piano is the educational features because just like what it is meant to be played by, they offer user “Lesson Mode” that when activated will splits the keyboard into two separate sections while still providing the same pitch and voice.
With this feature, teacher and student can play alongside each other without having to take turn on the keyboard itself for more convenience and better learning experience. On the connectivity, Alesis Recital is coming with enough options; we can plug headphones and connect via USB as well. If you also loves recording into a digital audio station, the USB connection is very useful to put MIDI directly into your track and write as many tunes we want hassle free.
About Casio CDP 130
Before deciding on the product, it is better to look around first since we may find a better option than our initial choice or get a better deal from another brand that can give more value into our money. If you are a beginner looking for an affordable piano to accompany your music lesson and playing experience, Casio CDP 130 can be a good option as well. This model is quite new but promising a better quality than its older model CDP 120.
The older model is actually already a good piano which is very popular in the market and upgrading a product like this is indeed not easy but it doesn’t mean Casio is not able to because the CDP 130 is here now having all the features from the older model yet also added with more sounds and what’s more interesting is they are available in a more affordable price, making the already affordable CDP 120 when it was first available, even cheaper.
Casio CDP 130 Design
If you place CDP 120 and 130 side by side, they will give a clear resemblance to one another since the chassis is basically the same, with the same cabinet, keyboard and connectivity options as well, thus comparing them side by side can get quite confusing. It has a very simple interface consisting of power button, volume knob, demo mode, multi-use function button and few others. If you often travel with your piano, this one is relatively lightweight and can fit easily in your car.
Casio CDP 130 Features
On the sound, Casio CP 130 is still using the classic AHL Sound Source Engine that we already mentioned to offer more sound in this new model because as opposed to only 5 sounds, now it has 10 sounds with the same amount of polyphony at 48 notes. This is not the most we can get on beginner pianos but still sufficient for players to play very complex passages of classic music like scales or arpeggios by pressing the sustain pedal.
This ability is also helpful when used to play bigger chords in Layer Mode to avoid the chance of dropped notes. Additionally, it also still use Hammer-Action to help students learning the piano basic and importance of dynamics. It is featured with spring-less hammer system to provide heavier touch on its lower notes and lighter touch on the higher ones like a real acoustic pianos. To suit each users, we are allowed to set a different key responsiveness between 3 levels or even disabling them when needed.
Beside those benefits stated above, what’s appealing from this piano is its interface itself. The buttons and control layout is minimal and easy to get used to just like what a beginner piano should be. With this simple interface, students won’t feel being intimidated by their instrument and let them sit then learn comfortably. On its connectivity, Casio CDP 130 has headphone output, sustain jack, and USB port for MIDI along with two 8W speakers and power jack.
Comparison
Now, let’s compare Alesis Recital with Casio CDP 130. While both of them are beginner pianos, they are put on different level since Recital is coming with 128 polyphony while CDP 130 is 48. Another clear difference is on their sound quality because CDP 130 speakers is not as good as what Recital have, thus there will be some distortion in higher volumes. However, recital only have 5 sounds while CDP 130 have 10 of them.
Alesis Recital vs Casio CDP 130
Conclusion
All in all, both of them are a good option for any users who are looking for an affordable piano. But, if we are to choose, we will recommend you to pick Alesis Recital because this unit have better sound than CDP 130 along with a higher polyphony note as well as Lesson Mode that splits the piano into two parts.
