"Feels and sounds (through external speakers) just like a fine acoustic piano."
Sound:
You're probably buying this for the acoustic piano sound, which is really quite outstanding. Plugged into good speakers, it is almost indistinguishable from a real acoustic piano. I also like the Rhodes sound quite a bit. I find it very realistic in most respects, and I owned and gigged with a real Rhodes for 5 years or so.
I compared the P120 to digital pianos in the same price range from Roland, Korg, and Kurzweil, and liked the P120's piano sounds the best.
The P120 comes with about a dozen other sounds (DX7 and Wurlitzer, strings, clav, a few organs, guitar, wood & electric basses, and vibes), and whether you like them is purely a matter of taste. I find them mostly serviceable, but not wonderful.
The built-in speakers are serviceable, but once you plug the P120 into real speakers you'll be amazed and won't be able to stop playing it. A pair of Yamaha MSP5 powered studio monitors are an excellent choice for home use (not for gigging, the sound breaks up a bit at high volumes). If you get external speakers - get two. Most of the voices in the P120 are stereo and sound better with two speakers.
One final note: I compared the P120 quite closely with the P90. The two are identical except:
- the P90 is newer and has a newer Rhodes sample, which has a brigher "dyno"-style attack
- the P90 does not have built-in speakers
- cosmetic differences
Feature:
You can record yourself playing, then record a second track on top of the first one (using a different sound if you wish), then play it back and accompany yourself. This is easy to do and fun.
You can tune the whole keyboard up or down in small increments, so if you're playing along with a CD or tape, you don't have to worry about being a little too sharp or too flat.
Has a handy built-in metronome. The built-in music stand is nice, but can be removed quite easily if needed.
The pedal works well and feels almost like a real sustain pedal. You can also program it to control different effects and features, or you can buy a second pedal for about $25 and use one for each purpose.
Love the split- and dual-modes.
As to the onboard effects: The chorus is satisfactory but not great. The delay is a very nice feature. The phase shifter is nice - takes you back to the 1970s - but probably not real practical for playing recent tunes.
My one big problem is that the "tremelo" effect is really not tremelo at all. It sounds almost exactly like the chorus effect (or a slight variation thereof). This is not just a defect with my unit. Yamaha tech support admitted to me that it is true of all P120s they manufacture.
It would have been soooo nice to have a *real* tremelo, preferably a stereo pan/tremelo, like on those old Fender Rhodes with the built-in amp & speakers. The Yamaha P250 has the true tremelo. (But costs $600 more!)
It's very convenient to have the two speakers built-in. But once you play this piano through good external speakers, you'll be so amazed and happy, and never go back to using the internal speakers.
Quality:
The P120 feels solid. The weighted keyboard feels AMAZINGLY LIKE A REAL ACOUSTIC PIANO. I am so impressed with the feel of the keyboard.
Again, I compared the P120 to similar digital pianos by other makers. The Roland and Korg felt cheap and the action was too light compared to the P120. The Kurzweil had a good feel to it (but didn't sound quite as good as the Yamaha).
I'm no longer gigging, I play just for fun, so I haven't dragged the P120 around and cannot attest to its road-worthiness. However, I've banged the crap out of the keys and it shows absolutely no signs of wear.
Manufacturer Support:
My only experience with support is that I emailed Yamaha tech support with a few questions. They responded to my questions within 24 hours each time.
Value:
The P120 (and P90) are excellent values. You get a LOT for your money, and the sound quality, feel of the keyboard, and feature set are very attractive. The P250 is better, but not better enough to justify spending the extra $600 or so.
The Wow Factor:
When you see it in the store and play it and feel it and hear it (especially through decent external speakers), you WILL WANT ONE.
Overall:
I love the P120 and expect to enjoy it for many years to come.
Thanks for your vote. Can you specify what about this review did or did not help you?