Should I get a CVP-805?

[jcm2016]

Hello - I'm hoping for some advice on whether to replace my SX-900 with a CVP-805.

I have a Feurich upright acoustic piano with a silent system.  I also have a P121 (73 key) and an SX-900. 

I'm about to take my ABRSM grade 7 piano exam and have background on other (non-keyboard) instruments.  My work schedule doesn't leave me a lot of time to play (average of an hour a day).  I focus on improving my piano playing skills.  As I've progressed with piano, I'm beginning to understand the importance of the feel/touch/sensitivity of the keys.  Much of my playing is with headphones because of the living setup.

My Feurich in silent mode is ok at best.  The keys lose a lot of the sensitivity and the sample is not great.  The SX-900 has wonderful voices and styles, but I don't like the keyboard itself or the small number of keys.  The P121 has a superior keyboard to the SX-900 and superior piano sound to the Feurich in silent mode.  So the elements I want are split across three different instruments!

When I play the SX-900, I really enjoy taking a fake book and playing tune after tune using purchased arrangements.  I enjoy the live performance aspect, and often a tune turns into a jam.  Or I improvise on the spot.  I haven't done much tweaking or adjusting of arrangements or voices or styles.  If I don't like a voice, I just move on and find another one.  I don't create polished arrangements to come back to later.  I don't expect to paly with other people (so the portable side of the SX-900 isn't important).  To the contrary, one thing I want form the instrument is the feeling of playing with others.

I'm thinking of replacing the SX-900 with a CVP 805.  I think this works for me, because:

* my priority is playing the piano, and I'm increasingly understanding keyboard feel
* I need to be able to play with headphones
* I want a great keyboard feel and a great piano sound when I play with headphones
* I'll lose some of the live controls of the SX-900, like pitch-bend, which I don't use much
* I'll lose some of the creative sides of the SX-900, which I also don't use much
* I think piano room will be fun, as it looks like adding the backing band  is quite easy
* staying with Yamaha lets me leverage what I've learned on how to use registrations, and I think much of the core functionality is similar
* the registrations I have can be converted (I believe someone on here has built a tool)

What do you think?  Am I missing anything?  I appreciate this is all about personal priorities, and then budget.  Given my priorities, does it make sense?

Much appreciated!

[BogdanH]

...
What do you think?  Am I missing anything?  I appreciate this is all about personal priorities, and then budget.  Given my priorities, does it make sense?

You were very elaborate with your post and so yes, it does make sense to me -if you feel that piano playing is your priority (where you wish to improve).
I understand, that you don't use "arranger" features much (if at all) and so SX900 seems to be the obvious choice to replace. But what I can't really understand is, why keeping both: Feurich and P121? I mean, you end up with three pianos... just curious 

Bogdan

[Graham UK]

Yes it makes sense because we all have different priorities.
I moved from a top end arranger to the DGX670 Piano/Arranger simply because the key-bed quality helped me play better.
I think you will be happy with the CVP and remember you can still use the on board styles when the mood takes you.

[Jeff Hollande]

Will the multipads not be missed ?
CVP 805 has no multipads, right ?

Good luck ! JH

[EileenL]

The CVP 809 is a beautiful instrument and the sound quality is amazing. You must remember though that you only have two right hand voices. You can still have some great sound mixes with just these though. They also contain the new Yamaha Playlists which are so much better than the old Music Finder. You can also create your own. It will have all the styles you have on the SX900 plus a lot more including Piano Room. I would say if money is no problem go for it.

[jcm2016]

Thanks for the responses.

I was considering trading in the P121 as well, but have taken it on holiday a few times.  I expect the P121 would not get any use at home.

I want to keep the Feurich because I love the resonance of an genuine acoustic piano.  I like how something in the room will resonate with the soundboard.

I believe that I'll lose multi-pads as well, but I haven't used them actively - meaning I haven't pro-actively turned them on and off.  I believe they do get used in the purchased arrangements, so would add colour.

I'm thinking 805, not 809 because of price. 

Are there any other keyboards I should consider?  Should I look more at the DGX-670?  That's listed as portable, and I don't need that.  Plus I thought I had seen that the keyboard and sounds were better on the 805 vs the 670.  And the screen interface.  But maybe I'm overlooking the 670?

Thanks again.

[mikf]

I have two CVPs and they are a great choice if you want -
Something that gets close to the feel, sound of a decent acoustic piano with 88 keys. Its still not as good, but miles ahead of portable arrangers.
A decent looking piece of furniture - not nearly as impressive as a good grand but completely self contained and streets ahead in appearance of any portable arranger
Most of the benefits of a good arranger - you lose a few things like multipads but they are not too important, certainly to me. Pitch bend is still possible BTW but you have to do it with a pedal.
You don't mind the big price difference over a portable arranger.

I don't think anyone but you can decide, but I have never regretted my decision. It's quite close to best of both worlds. But be aware , the CVP can still never replace a great piano to a piano player. If I were faced with a decision that I could only keep one, the CVP would go and the Shigeru grand would stay. But for now I have the luxury of both.
Mike

[Amwilburn]

The 805 is the same sound library as the PSRsx900, so you'll have access to almost exactly the same sounds (but without the ability to install 1gb of samples... keep in mind the 4 preinstalled packs won't be on the 805, nor will world drums like Chinese, Oriental(Middle Eastern), Indian, etc). The wooden keys on the 805 feel great, but I find the bass lacking (you could just add a subwoofer). I'm certain you'll like the sound on headphones more than your silent piano, as most silent acoustics are based off a single sample, so very frustrating to play expressively.

No there are no multipads on CVP, and the registrations need to be converted, and as Eileen already pointed out only 2 layers on the CVP. The in home warranty is also great!

Mark

[jcm2016]

Thank you everyone for the responses.

I'm going to go for the 805.

Much appreciated!

[Whitecolin11]

Thank you everyone for the responses.

I'm going to go for the 805.

Much appreciated!
Iwasn`t going to contribute but i feel i have played every yamaha and cvp and my advice is the cvp709 because of the speaker system on the 9s they give a very realistic rich feel, when i had the genos, cvp709 and pa4x everyone said the cvp sounded nicer. I tried the 809 bit couldn`t justify the cost difference, for a pianist the cvp is a great instrument

[mikf]

He makes a good point, you might get a  709 for about the same price as the 805. Maybe even a little less for  little used or demo model.  The 800 series does have some arranger/ voice additional features, compared to the 700 series, but they may not matter all that much to you, so you should check the detailed specs. There is no doubt that the 09 models are slightly nicer pieces of furniture and have better internal speaker systems than the 05 models. I have the 705, and it's pretty good, but I sometimes  use a pair of 4 inch MAudio monitors to improve the sound, get a touch more depth. And of course that is a pretty low cost way to improve the sound on a 805, and much less than the cost difference to 809. But then again, if you mainly play with headphones, that may not be an issue anyway.
Mike

[jcm2016]

Thanks again for the responses.

A different question.  I'm trying to configure the room, and the best place would put about 1/3 of the keyboard in front of a radiator (one of the skinny ones that are common in the UK - like 3 feet tall and 5 feet wide, sticks out from the wall about 6 inches).  Will that damage the keyboard?

Much appreciated

[Graham UK]

Constant High temperatures are not Ideal close to electronics plus in the case of the CVP it could damage the cabinet.
A little warmth would be fine but only you will know how hot your radiators are.

[mikf]

Not a great idea for more than one reason. If it's the perfect spot for the piano I would consider getting a plumber to move the radiator, not usually a huge job for just a couple of feet. But then I once moved a whole wall to accommodate a piano.
Mike

[jcm2016]

Thank you everyone for the input.

Next question - are there any third party guides or instructional videos for the 805?   I'm coming from the SX900, so I think a fair bit will overlap (it seemed to when I tried it in a store).  I've watched many YT videos that are more product demonstrations for 805.  When I first had the SX900, I found the instructions produced by Yamaha to be difficult to follow.

Thanks

[mikf]

There are some videos available for the CVP series, you can search for them on line, but not sure how how many will be specific to 800 series, as many will be older models. But you will not have much trouble converting from an SX900 because OS are so similar and everything works very much the same.
Mike

[Ima Poster]

There are some videos available for the CVP series, you can search for them on line, but not sure how how many will be specific to 800 series, as many will be older models. But you will not have much trouble converting from an SX900 because OS are so similar and everything works very much the same.
Mike

I got a CVP-805 after an organ and have not regretted it one bit.  There are plenty of tutorials on the 805 and probably even more on the 809 - which are 99% applicable to the 805 as the main difference is the additional voices and not how the instrument is set up, programmed or played.  Search for CVP-805 or CVP-800 series on youtube and see which videos fit the bill.  Watching Bonners CVP-805 Digital Piano buyers guide as a starter and explore the youtube world from there would be my advice (note - I have no affiliation with Bonners, its just the first video I watched after I got mine).  Graham from Rimmers Music also has a great one as do epianos and others.   The UK videos are a bit more 'this is what it does and how' whereas the US ones are more 'this is why you should buy one'.  And for just listening to a CVP-800 / 809 search out Peter Baartmans.  He's a new hero of mine!

[jcm2016]

Thanks for the feedback.   I couldn't get it for Christmas, so hoping late January.

[jcm2016]

My CVP 805 has arrived and it's really wonderful.   It's done exactly what I wanted - he piano sound with headphones is sooo much better than my acoustic upright in silent mode.   The keyboard action is great and the breadth of sounds and styles is amazing.   A very happy customer!

I do have some questions, so will post those in new threads with specific titles.