Need help making a decision

[RolnThndr]

Hello everyone. After 30 years of not playing, I'm wanting to get back into playing keyboard again. Obviously, things have changed quite a bit since I last touched a keyboard so I've been doing some research and have found a couple of keyboards that I'm pretty sure will meet my needs at the moment. The 2 keyboards I'm looking at are the WK-6500 and the WK-7500. I realize the main differences between these 2 keyboards are the number of polyphony and the fact that the WK-7500 has a drawbar organ. Here's the thing, the drawbar organ isn't at all important for me, I'm just looking for something that I can learn to play again on and that I won't outgrow in a couple of years. Now for my quandry....I can buy a new WK-6500 or I can buy a used WK-7500 for the exact same price. I'm somewhat leaning towards the wk-6500 as it would have the full 5 year warranty where the used wk-7500 comes with a 30-day return policy or I can buy 1 year of coverage on the wk-7500 for an additional $25.00.

So here's what I would like to ask. If you were in my shoes, which would you purchase and provide your reasoning please.

 

[happyrat1]

Offhand I'd say if you'd shop around a bit more you could find a WK-7500 brand new for about the same price or a trivial amount of money more.

Check out all the usual suspects including local dealers, department stores, online sources such as Amazon and eBay (A lot of new merchandise is sold on eBay) and don't forget the xmas sales are coming up soon. Black Friday or whatever the equivalent is in your country is usually when retailers put up massive price drops.

My advice is to get the best you can afford if you want to use it without outgrowing it too quickly and bear in mind that Keyboards are finicky mechanical instruments and if someone is getting rid of one you have to ask yourself "Why?"

Gary

 

[RolnThndr]

Thanks for the quick response Gary. I was thinking the same thing regarding the possibility of finding a new 7500 but after searching ebay, amazon, GC, musicians friend, craigslist, etc. the closest I can find is over $100.00 more for a new 7500. I know that in the long run an extra $100 isn't much but at the present moment in time, it's $100 that I can't justify to the boss (my wife) for what seems to be only a minimal upgrade over the 6500. Especially when you consider that I'll basically be starting over from scratch when it comes to playing (you lose almost all abilities after 30+ years of not playing). I mean I can still read sheet music to a large degree but making my fingers and hands do what they're supposed to is going to take some time.

I hadn't given any thought to the black friday sales which will be coming up in a little less than a month....might just wait and see if anyone has any real sweet deals on the WK-7500. Regardless, any and all others, please continue t reply to this thread.

 

[happyrat1]

I did some web searching and the lowest American price I found for the 7500 was about $439 USD.

Too bad you're not in Canada because I found it here for $409 CDN. CDN$ = about $0.97 USD right now.

http://www.fleetsound.com/catalog/casio-note-keyboard-p-9654.html

Then again one other thing to consider is if you walk into a local music store or Guitar Center you might be able to make a lowball offer on a floor demonstrator if they have an open box. It should be easy to knock an additional 10%-15% off for an open box model with full factory warranty.

Offhand I'd say that the 7500 may be discontinued or superseded by a new model come this Winter's NAMM show sometime in January 2014 so they may be clearing out old stock soon.

And don't consider the extra polyphony to be inconsequential. It means a lot when you are trying to sequence complex songs and layers and the keyboard has to generate everything from percussion and bassline to chords and lead tracks all at once.

Worst case scenario if you skipped eating out for two weeks and brown bagged it into work you'd find the extra $100 you'd need for the 7500.

And don't sell your own skills short. It's like riding a bicycle, even after 30 years it will all come back to you, and you'll quickly come to regret not spending that extra $100 for the 7500.

Gary

 

[happyrat1]

BTW, Canadian price on the WK-6500 is $169.

I hope you're not paying more than that for it.

http://www.axemusic.com/store/produ...rd-Slot-USB-Port-includes-AC-Adapter-B-Stock/


Edit>>> I just noticed the 6500 is B-Stock. That means open box floor demo with full warranty.

 

[happyrat1]

Right now Best Buy US has the 6500 on sale for $199

http://www.bestbuy.com/site/casio-p...keys/2672177.p?id=1218343869905&skuId=2672177

Like I said, it pays to google all of your options before you put your money down.

Gary

 

[happyrat1]

Here's a WK-7500 for $365 CDN.

http://www.hookbag.ca/product/H3C0CORSY/wk7500-casio

Maybe you can get somebody in the US to price match?

 

[RolnThndr]

Yeah, I saw where BestBuy had the WK-6500 on sale for $199 USD but alas, they have been sold out for quite a while. The used WK-7500 that I've been looking at is through Guitar Center. I'm not as leery of purchasing it since it is through a quality retailer and I can't see them selling an instrument that isn't fully functional.

 

[happyrat1]

None the less, you still lose out on the 3 year warranty buying used.

 

[The Y_man]

How about a CTK-xxxx? Same innards, fewer keys, bit cheaper.

The polyphony on the Casio's are a bit of a dud IMHO
It was a big factor when I chose my CTK-7000 over the equivalent Yammie.
Problem is, it just plain sounds bad when you layer big harmonies - and the auto harmonizer only works on the first layer of sound..........

The Y-man

 

[RolnThndr]

well, I was initially looking at the Yamaha PSR-E433 but I prefer to have the 76 keys as opposed to the 61 found on the Yamaha.