Yamaha DGX 660 vs YDP 143B
Yamaha as one of the most popular digital instrument manufacturer have a huge option to pick and it can be hard to choose from those collection. If you are here to spend less but want to get more, Yamaha DGX 660 vs YDP 143B are two great options to go. While they are equally offering more than just a digital piano, they are not always identical and if you are also considering these two, go check our article below to pick the one suit you better.
In this article, we are going to give you information about:
– Piano or Keyboard
– What are Yamaha DGX 660 and YDP 143B
– What Yamaha DGX 660 and YDP 143B Look Like
– How are the Keys on Yamaha DGX 660 and YDP 143B
– How Good are the Sound of Yamaha DGX 660 and YDP 143B
– How Good are the Speakers of Yamaha DGX 660 and YDP 143B
– What else Yamaha DGX 660 and YDP 143B can offer to you
– Yamaha DGX 660 vs YDP 143B
Choosing Piano
As one of the most loved instrument in the world, piano has been taking more and more new players into their part because let’s be honest, they are indeed attractive and somehow being able to play them is fun and give you a sense of accomplishment. Of course taste and preference play a huge part when deciding which instrument to learn and play but for starter, piano is probably one of the easiest to start with but not unnecessarily being the easiest to play.
Unlike with violin or instrument like flute that need a harder basic to hold or breathing technique to create the perfect sound, a piano will only require you to press a certain key at a certain moment to create a beautiful sound and a finely-tuned acoustic piano will sound amazing just from the start, similar like a digital piano and keyboard. In our opinion, this is also what makes many young players are supported to play around with the instrument; for they are easier to play.
Notice that we also mentioned keyboard and digital piano above. These two names are often used interchangeably but actually different because they are made for different purpose while similarly creating the same sound. Digital piano is just like the name, it is the digital version of your acoustic instrument and made to mimic the original item to bridge the gap between your concert hall to learning and practice room. In short, they help people who wants to play the real instrument but don’t want the hassle of maintaining.
At the other hand, a keyboard is a device created to produce the piano sound and even more. Unlike digital piano which is marketed for player or learner, a keyboard is created for those who want to produce music because there is much more than just piano sound here and most of them are featured with hundred or even thousands synthesized sounds. While beginner can always use whatever the like better, a keyboard may suit those with more interest on producing music.
About Yamaha DGX 660 and YDP 143B
If you are a learner or just want to play good and upgrade your skill level from the beginner to intermediate or already in the intermediate and want to have a better or higher instrument yet not ready to purchase an acoustic piano for whatever reasons, choosing a digital piano with a higher level of quality may help you feel better and in this part Yamaha will offer you their huge collection to pick with different price and capabilities.
For those who are not in the beginner level and have more to spend, two great pianos to pick from the brand are Yamaha DGX 660 and YDP 143B. Both of them are full-sized digital pianos with a price range pointing above $1000. The first option is currently the flagship of portable grand piano so it is not surprising to see how many people loving the device while the latter is newer model from Arius line and together with the YDP 163 model, currently also best-selling from the line.
In general, the DG 660 is not only a digital piano because just from the outside we can see that it is a hybrid of a digital piano with an arranger keyboard. What has been upgraded from its previous model are more sounds, songs, styles, and rhythms as well as polyphony. At the other hand, YDP 143B or 143 is a digital piano designed for experienced players and the “B” alphabet behind is meant to state the color of its traditional cabinet included which is black walnut.
Yamaha DGX 660 and YDP 143B Design
From the outside, we can easily distinguish them from each other since their design are clearly different with the first model being the bulkier one and the latter looking like those coming from P series such as Yamaha P45B vs P115. In measurement, DGX 660 is 55” wide and 5.7” high with 17.5 depth as well as with a cabinet to place the instrument. As for YDP 143B, this piano is 54.3” wide and 16.6” deep which is very standard for this type of piano.
In color option the first model is available in both black and white colors scheme while the other is black with different table; B for black walnut and R for dark rosewood. The latter slimmer profile is also benefit those with narrower room or those who want to travel with the instrument while on the control panel, DGX 660 is noticeably richer than YDP 143B, even with an additional screen.
Yamaha DGX 660 and YDP 143B Keys
On the key, both of Yamaha DGX 660 and YDP 143B are full sized, 88-keys digital pianos and as an instrument in this price range, they are also weighted to mimic the real feeling of an acoustic instrument. In technology, they are using the same Graded Hammer Standard or GHS like those in portable piano or in “P” line. This entry level technology is actually not the best in the market but they do feel solid and still pretty good to provide the similar experience.
This technology will make the keys have different weight to it and from the left to right, they will feel heavier to lighter along the set. We can also set the response following our preference from fixed, soft, medium and hard. The lowest setting will deactivate the weight producing different sound since no matter how hard or soft we press them, the sound comes out the same while the hardest setting will require you to press harder to produce a louder sound as well.
Yamaha DGX 660 and YDP 143B Sound Technology
On the sound part, both of these digital pianos are also using the same Pure CF Sound Engine so in general they are equally nice to the ears because this technology is recording the sound from a concert grand piano, Yamaha CFIIIS. The sound on both pianos are also full and realistic so when you try playing them, this sound probably will comes to your favorite quickly. What differs them is the sound collection because DGX have 10 piano sounds while the latter only have 3 of them.
In addition to their piano sounds, Yamaha DGX 660 also have 554 sounds including 10 pianos, 12 electric pianos, 14 organs, 5 accordions, 14 guitars, 9 bass guitars, 16 strings, 9 trumpets, 14 saxophones and many others. At the other hand, YDP 134B has 3 grand pianos, 2 electric pianos, 2 organs, harpsichord, vibraphone, and strings. On the polyphony count, both models are coming with the same 192 notes for more complex songs.
Yamaha DGX 660 and YDP 143B Speaker
To deliver you the sound, a digital piano also needs a speaker and generally speaking, the bigger they are the more power needed and louder sound. In this part, both digital pianos are equipped with the same 2 x 6 W speaker built-in the unit in each side of the piano. This mean, the speaker is not going to be loud enough to fill a medium-sized room but is enough to play in front of your family or to practice in your room.
Yamaha DGX 660 and YDP 143B Features
On the additional features part, DGX 660 has both split mode and dual mode while YDP 143B has dual mode and duet mode. Dual mode is also called layering and what this feature do is they will let you layer two instrument at once because the whole keys can be used to play two different sounds so we can use these sounds on top of each other with one device.
As for Split mode, this feature works similarly with the Dual mode but now the left and right part are playing a different instrument such as piano and drums. In this mode, we can layer any sound we like and set a split point as we like as well. The last is Duo mode and just like the name, this feature will let you split the piano into two parts with the same notes which is great for any duet play or teaching session.
Comparison
Now, let’s compare Yamaha DGX 660 with YDP 143B. As you may already can guess, the difference between both digital pianos are on the model or type because DGX is a combination of keyboard and digital piano while the latter is a digital piano only due to the limited sounds and overall collection offered. Additionally, while they have a similar level of sound quality, their additional feature also differs.
Yamaha DGX 660 vs YDP 143B
Conclusion
All in all, the decision is all yours to make because we may have different need and preference. For those who are not planning to compose a music or use a huge amount of sound, YDP 143B is a good choice but if you are here to look for a composing piano, we will recommend you to pick DGX 660.
