What are your ideal keyboard/electric piano ranges?

[Kyubiwan]

This post is a follow-up to:

Here are my ideal keyboard ranges (including those that may not actually exist today in reality):

 

- 61 keys: F1-F6

- 68 keys: F1-C7

- 69 keys: E1-C7

- 73 keys: C1-C7

- 76 keys: A0-C7

- 77 keys: C1-E7

- 78 keys: C1-F7

- 80 keys: C1-G7 (or A0-E7)

- 81 keys: A0-F7

- 82 keys: C1-A7

- 83 keys: A0-G7

- 85 keys: A0-A7

- 88 keys: A0-C8

 

What about you guys?

 

[The Piano Man]

For me, 88. Same as most real acoustic pianos. Just put any pitch and mod wheels above the keys. 

[Baggypants]

128, otherwiseI feel like I'm not gettting value-for-money from my midi modules.

[pinkfloydcramer]

My biggest gripe is with 73 key keyboards that go from E to shining E, all in the interest of fitting into "guitar world". My world is bigger than that. For me, C to C would be much more useful, for classical, jazz and NOLA flavors. Nord Stage 76-key models would work great for me, but older ones have outdated ac. piano sounds and newer ones are outrageously overpriced (and no thanks to iPads on stage, I'm a hardware holdout). No pleasing a curmudgeon. 😄

 

I used to gig with a Roland RD-64, and the low A really came in handy, also. But not holding my breath for either 76 or 64- key boards.

 

Edited, just noticed that my post count is the same as my area code. Shouldn't I get a prize for that? 

[ProfD]

1 hour ago, pinkfloydcramer said:

....I'm a hardware holdout). No pleasing a curmudgeon. 😄

Totally understand.  I will carry my Rhodes or an 88-note weighted DP that I enjoy playing.  No compromise.🤣

1 hour ago, pinkfloydcramer said:

I used to gig with a Roland RD-64, and the low A really came in handy, also. But not holding my breath for either 76 or 64- key boards.

The RD-88 footprint is similar to the RD-64 with 2 more octaves including the low A and provides access to the Roland *ahem* sound library.😁😎

[stoken6]

2 hours ago, pinkfloydcramer said:

Nord Stage 76-key models would work great for me, but older ones have outdated ac. piano sounds

You can load the new pianos into the old models. I have a Stage Classic 76-key with a bunch of the new samples (small size, admittedly).

 

Cheers, Mike.

[stoken6]

2 hours ago, pinkfloydcramer said:

C to C would be much more useful

Reposting this link https://www.thomann.co.uk/thomann_sp_120.htm. Synth-weighted keys, and presumably crappy given the price, but it does have the 6-octave C-C range.

 

Cheers, Mike.

[BenWaB3]

2 hours ago, pinkfloydcramer said:

My biggest gripe is with 73 key keyboards that go from E to shining E, all in the interest of fitting into "guitar world". My world is bigger than that. For me, C to C would be much more useful, for classical, jazz and NOLA flavors. 

 

Ditto for me. That was one of the contributing factors for me opting for the Nautilus 73. I'm missing that bottom B open string for bass sounds but everything else works out much better, including allocating splits. One thing they did on their default organ patches, setting the lower manual an octave lower, has been something I've adapted to the VB3-II. That way the right hand can go below the usual default C-split and the left hand can go above it, pitch-wise.

[Kyubiwan]

2 hours ago, pinkfloydcramer said:

My biggest gripe is with 73 key keyboards that go from E to shining E, all in the interest of fitting into "guitar world". My world is bigger than that. For me, C to C would be much more useful, for classical, jazz and NOLA flavors. Nord Stage 76-key models would work great for me, but older ones have outdated ac. piano sounds and newer ones are outrageously overpriced (and no thanks to iPads on stage, I'm a hardware holdout). No pleasing a curmudgeon. 😄

 

I used to gig with a Roland RD-64, and the low A really came in handy, also. But not holding my breath for either 76 or 64- key boards.

 

Edited, just noticed that my post count is the same as my area code. Shouldn't I get a prize for that? 

But Nord's 76-key keyboards are a sh!tty E1-G7. I want A0-C7.

[Kyubiwan]

8 minutes ago, stoken6 said:

Reposting this link https://www.thomann.co.uk/thomann_sp_120.htm. Synth-weighted keys, and presumably crappy given the price, but it does have the 6-octave C-C range.

 

Cheers, Mike.

C-to-C 73-key keyboards were quite common and popular in the 2000s-early 2010s (thanks to Casio), but unfortunately their fame faded.

[CEB]

Depends.  If a professional show gig with full cartage and support…. 288 keys. Seriously. Brocket is right on this one. It’s a show.  
 

If not then 88.  
 

 

[CEB]

 

[Dave Number Four]

Thanks for posting that! Brockett is from my hometown and an old friend, great guy, great musician. 

29 minutes ago, CEB said:

 

 

[Konnector]

61 note: Low C, which thankfully is standard.

76 note: Low C would be ideal. I have two 76 note synths. They both start on E. 

88 note: No issues there, although I never use the bottom 3 notes for piano, so losing those as well as 3 of the highest notes would probably be just fine. (82 note piano...good luck ever finding one of those!) 

[Stokely]

I never really had much issue with any of them, other than occasionally if the highest note is not a C--there's a couple songs we play where you swipe up to a high C  organ note (Renegade, Roll with the Changes, might be another one)....I've been known to "go over" a couple times!

I don't see ever needing an 88 live, heck I don't need one at home for that matter.

[niacin]

5 or 6 octaves with the top key being C cause Hammond.

[Kyubiwan]

16 hours ago, Konnector said:

61 note: Low C, which thankfully is standard.

76 note: Low C would be ideal. I have two 76 note synths. They both start on E. 

88 note: No issues there, although I never use the bottom 3 notes for piano, so losing those as well as 3 of the highest notes would probably be just fine. (82 note piano...good luck ever finding one of those!) 

But a 76-note keyboard starting on a C would end on a black key (Eb in this case). Are you sure that's fine for you?

[Analogaddict]

A-C. It has been great for many many years. I don’t use low A and Bb all that often, but low B isn’t uncommon. Also, it’s a keyboard layout that is in my muscle memory, with little or no need to adjust. The VAX77 had it right.
 

Weighted E-G is pretty useless. I love my Yammie YC73 but have to to a lot of octave shifting on gigs - and it’s not a function available on the front panel..! 🙈