You’ve made it this far. You know you want a Yamaha digital piano but are stuck between the Yamaha P45 vs P115. Never fear, this showdown review will give you all the information you need to help you make up your mind. We’ve even included some great videos so that you can see these 88 key digital keyboards in action.
For those who cannot afford or do not have space for an actual full-sized acoustic piano, you now have a wide array of digital pianos to bring out the Beethoven in you. (If you want more on how to choose the best digital piano for you, check out our guide to buying the best digital piano here.)
Digital pianos serve as the more compact and affordable alternative to acoustic pianos that will not take up a lot of space in your houses and which you can bring with you to your performances.
Yamaha, as the world’s leading piano manufacturer, designs high-quality digital pianos. They make pianos that feature similar qualities to their renowned grand pianos.
Featured below are two of their high-performing digital pianos and see which one best suits your level of mastery.
Yamaha P45 Digital Piano and Keyboard
This 88-key digital piano is the most affordable one from Yamaha. It is an upgrade from the P35 model. The P45 is an entry-level piano that utilizes Yamaha’s GHS weighted action keyboard, which has a sound quality you can expect from a Yamaha instrument.
This is very suited for beginners because of the simplicity of its design and features. Complicated and extensive features of other high-end digital pianos, not to mention it fits into your budget, will not overwhelm beginners.
Yamaha P45 Specs
Specifications
- 88-key GHS weighted action keyboard, so it has a heavier touch on the low end and a lighter touch on the high end
- Utilizes Advanced Wave Memory stereo sampling
- 64-note polyphony
- Ten different voices
- Ten preset piano songs
- Ten demo songs
- Dimensions are 1,326 x 295 x 154 mm (52.2″ x 11.6″ x 6.0″)
- Has a weight of 11.5 kg (25 lbs. 6 oz.)
- Hard, medium, soft, and fixed touch sensitivity
- Has four types of reverbs
- Metronome, tempo range, transpose, and tuning overall controls
- 6 W x 2 amplifiers
- Duo and Dual modes
- Has a USB connectivity, headphone, and sustain jack
Yamaha P115 Digital Piano and Keyboard
The Yamaha P115 also features 88 GHS weighted action keys on its keyboard. It is highly favored by advanced and professional musicians alike, but it is also very beginner-friendly.
It boasts the similar piano tones of Yamaha’s CFIIIS 9′ concert grand piano. It also caters to professionals playing more extensive pieces because of its maximum of 192-note polyphony.
The P115 can also be controlled with your iOS devices by connecting your iPhone or iPad via the USB connectivity.
This is the kind of piano you want to bring to your gigs and other musical performances.
Yamaha P115 Specifications
- 88-key GHS weighted action keyboard, so it has a heavier touch on the low end and a lighter touch on the high end
- Utilizes Pure CF Sound Engine sampling
- 192 maximum number of polyphony
- 14 different voices
- 50 preset piano songs
- 14 demo songs
- Dimensions are 1,326 x 295 x 163 mm (52.2″ x 11.6″ x 6.4″)
- Has a weight of 11.8 kg (26 lbs. 3 oz.)
- Hard, medium, soft, and fixed touch sensitivity
- Has four types of reverbs
- Metronome, tempo range, transpose, and tuning overall controls
- 7 W x 2 amplifiers
- Duo, split, and dual modes
- Has a USB connectivity, two headphone jacks, line out, and sustain jack
- Has a lesson function to practice each hand separately
- Two-track MIDI recorder
- Sound boost and intelligent acoustic control
Digital Keyboard Showdown: Yamaha P45 vs. Yamaha P115
Key Action
Both the P45 and the P115 use the Graded Hammer Standard weighted action on their keyboards, which means that the lower end has a heavier touch and the higher end has a lighter touch.
The keyboards on both these digital pianos feel the same, and they are both similar to the feel of the keys on acoustic pianos.
Sound Sampling
The P45 used the AWM sampling technology to give it its acoustic piano tones. This kind of sampling uses two microphones to record waveforms (L and R) to give the P45 the ability to play a key at different levels of volume and timbre.
The P115 resembles the piano tones of Yamaha’s CFIIIS 9′ concert grand piano because of the Pure CF Sound Engine sampling technology. This gives it that beautiful piano tones that are super realistic and produces a clear and bright sound.
Polyphony
Polyphony is the maximum number of notes a digital piano can play simultaneously. The P45 only has a maximum of 64-note polyphony while the P115 has a significantly bigger number of 192-note polyphony.
A greater number of notes playing at the same time lets you play more complicated pieces for a richer and fuller sound you will also be able to layer multiple sounds and create multi-track recordings for a more creative sound.
Price
Price is a big factor when it comes to choosing the items that we want to purchase. Prices can be ever changing even with digital pianos because there will always be newer models and there are many manufacturers that compete for the attention of customers.
The P45 is in the price range of under $500, while the P115 is in the price range of over $500. If you are a beginner who is not sure yet how serious you will take your piano playing then maybe you can start safe with the P45, while those who are really considering advancing their musical journey the P115 suits you better.
Other Features
The P115 has more features than the P45. The former has more voices, preset songs, and demo songs than the latter.
The P115 can also be connected to your iOS devices so you can control the features in the piano through your iPhones and iPads while the P45 does not have this feature.
Conclusion: The Yamaha P45 or Yamaha P115?
The P115 has the advantage when it comes to features and performance, but let us not forget that there are certain factors we need to consider before we buy one or the other.
The P45 will be the easier digital piano to learn for beginners. It does not have many extra-added features that the P115 have. Choosing this one will be less confusing to the beginner who has no idea what all those buttons are for.
The P115 is for the more advanced and professional musicians that will be able to utilize those features with their creativity in making music.
These pianos will suit different levels of mastery and how the overall design, sound, and features best get your interest.
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