This keyboard was purchased for my 5 year old daughter who had just began piano lessons. We were in the process of trying to get a full-sized upright piano we were offered to our home from where its location. This proved nearly impossible due to the lack of man-power (we had 4 men). The piano was well over 1000 lbs. and proved to awkward and heavy to mount on the truck. So we skipped it. Meanwhile, my daughter had already began her first 2 piano lessons and had nothing to practice on at home. With her third piano lesson rapidly approaching we decided to find something that we could afford and was also of suitable quality to practice upon.
Enter Amazon. After reading many reviews and educating myself on the difference between an electronic keyboard and a digital piano, my pocketbook necessitated that I give the EZ-200 a serious look. It was in the price range we could afford in a hurry and was accompanied with many positive reviews by individuals who had purchased it for the purpose of a starter piano for their kids of a similar age. So it is fair to say that I was not expecting a high quality product for the price-point. My expectations were not exceeded.
The keyboard arrived on time, as it was ordered with 2-day shipping. Everything that was supposed to be in the box was there... EXCEPT the headphone jack adapter.
HEADPHONES: The included headphones have a 1/8 stereo mini-jack, yet the keyboard itself requires the standard larger 1/4 jack. The box says that the 1/8 - 1/4 adapter is included. It was not. I happen to have several of those so I simply wrote it off as no big deal. The headphones have an extremely poor sound dynamic when plugged into my stereo. The keyboard demands only a narrow range of sound at any one time, so with the headphones plugged into it they perform adequately. Keeping in mind it merely need to suit my 5 year old daughter. The headphones also feature a volume control along the cable. On the second day of use, under light tension, the cable separated in two. The part that separated was one of the 2 ends of the cable that join at the volume control. Upon inspection of the wire ends, they were not stretched or torn. It was as if they were simply "placed" inside the volume control mechanism on the cable. I decided to open the volume control mechanism on the cord and as suspected, it was apparent that that side of the wire going in to the volume mechanism was not properly soldered.
At this point the cheap price is starting to feel expensive.
The STAND: The stand itself is actually quite sturdy. It is adjustable to 5 different heights. It looks nice enough. Made of a charcoal colored metal. So yes it is a decent stand, with only one problem....... It is ridiculously obvious that the stand was not designed to fit this keyboard. It allows the keyboard to sit on top of it, but so would an ironing board. The bottom of the keyboard is not flat. It has 4 rubber feet will allow it to sit level and slip-free on a flat surface. The bottom also has 2 grooves that were definitely designed to accommodate a stand, but NOT this one. No matter which of the 5 positions this stand allows, none of them line up with the keyboard's "Stand Grooves". So it is next to impossible to center the keyboard atop the stand and have a sturdy playing surface. So when the keyboard is atop the stand, do not bump into the keyboard, as it will most likely slide off the stand.
POWER ADAPTER: This seems to work fine. It is the only accessory that accompanies this keyboard that seems to be designed for it.
KEYBOARD: The keyboard brought a smile to my daughter's face when she first saw it of course.. she's five. The keys are not "weighted" of course, but they are pressure sensitive. So hitting the keys softly or hard produces different volumes accordingly. Though I believe the volume is strictly 3 phases;loud-medium-soft. There is an option to turn the sensitivity off allowing any press of the keys to produce a loud volume. "Loud" is of course a relative term, here I use it just to distinguish between 3 volumes. The speakers on the keyboard itself are definitely NOT loud. They are sufficient. Tonally they offer a somewhat projective treble tones, but the mid to low-range sounds almost seem as though they are muted. It makes for a frustrating playing experience. The keys light up as you press them as well as when there is a preprogrammed song playing. I suppose this is a nice feature for those who are trying to learn the songs they have programmed in the machine. My daughter currently has no use for the feature. The keys themselves are a cheap plastic which makes them susceptible to misalignment and loosening if you run your fingers down the keyboard laterally, which children seem to love to do. It comes preprogrammed with 100 songs, 5 of which are contemporary, the rest are jazzed up versions of old standards such as Twinkle Twinkle Little Star.
In summary, I suppose it will suffice until my daughter demonstrates that she is going to pursue instruction of the piano. If that is the case, we will certainly be looking into a product that is more durable, and places a premium on sound quality. If I consider this a TOY and not an instrument, I feel less burned by the purchase.Get more detail about Yamaha EZ-200 61 Full-Sized Touch Sensitive Lighted Keyboard Bundle: Includes Professional Headphones, Keyboard Stand, and Power Supply.
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