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Comparable Alternatives:
🛒 Yamaha YDP-164▸geni.us/Yamaha-YDP164
🛒 Kawai KDP110▸geni.us/Kawai-KDP110
🛒 Korg C1 Air▸geni.us/Korg-C1
🛒 Roland RP102▸geni.us/Roland-RP102
#YDP144 #PX870 #DigitalPiano
Hi everyone, and welcome to another piano comparison video at the Merriam Pianos KZfaq channel. In this video we’ll be comparing the Yamaha Arius YDP144 and the Casio Privia PX870.
The Arius and Privia lines don’t tend to intersect, except for these two models which actually go directly head to head.
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Piano Overview:
The YDP144 has been on the market longer than the PX870 so as a slightly older product, it’s not fair to expect the tech to be exactly the same between these two instruments. With digital piano sales increasing year over year, the amount of investment into the category by manufacturer’s is also increasing, resulting in rapid innovation.
Casio has been a significant player in the under $1,000 category for quite some time, but over the last few years they’ve also made significant ground at higher price points and have emerged as a legitimate contender to Yamah, Kawai and Roland in said categories.
The YDP144 is without question one of the most popular models in the $1,500 home digital piano category. With that in mind, we can think of the PX870 has a response to the YDP144, with notable improvements in quite a few of the specs.
Piano Sound:
You’ll notice right away that the main acoustic piano samples on these two instruments actually sound very different. The YDP144 sound emphasizes the upper mid range, whereas the PX870 has a more traditional EQ curve with enhanced bass and treble, with a compressed mid range. It’s not fair to say which is better as it's going to come down to personal preference, but it's important to note how different they do sound.
The YDP144 uses a sample of their CFX concert grand piano. This is not an 88 note individually sampled engine, but it sounds good nonetheless. The user has the ability to edit and customize the piano tone via an app that allows you to adjust some of the reverb settings, among other parameters.
Casio offers their Chordana app for the same type of remote control over the instrument, and editable parameters include string resonance and key-off simulator among others. An interesting thing they’ve included is “tone ports”, which allows a wider range of frequencies to reach the player.
In terms of speakers, the PX870 has two 20 watt speaker systems, whereas the Yamaha has two twelve watt systems. The disparity in speaker power leads to a fairly big difference in the overall power of the tone between these two instruments.
In terms of polyphony, the YDP144 has 192 notes, whereas the PX870 has 256 notes. Even 192 should be more than sufficient for the vast majority of applications as it is, but if polyphony is important to you, the PX870 has the advantage.
Piano Action:
In general I quite enjoy the Casio action, from the nice textures on the keys, and the presence of the triple sensor for the accurate MIDI output. The YDP144’s action has a double sensor, which should still be fine for lots of playing situations, but if you’re looking at doing any commercial recordings or playing more advanced classical repertoire, the PX870’s triple sensor action might be a better choice.
Neither action features escapement, which isn’t too common at the price point anyway. When it comes to the weighting and key dip, these actions actually feel very similar. In terms of repetition speed, it’s also quite similar between both, and while not the fastest I’ve played, is still good.
All in all, these are both solid actions for beginners, and even experienced players looking for a secondary instrument.
Piano Features:
Both instruments come standard with integrated stands, as well as triple pedals and built-in dust covers.
In terms of connectivity, both instruments have two stereo ¼” headphone jacks, as well as USB ports.
Conclusions:
These are both solid options in the $1,500 (CAD) home digital piano category, along with the Roland F140r and Kawai KDP110. The PX870 does out spec the YDP144, but ultimately you should try to get out and try both instruments to see which one you prefer.
Thanks for watching!
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