Yamaha DGX-660B Review – A Digital Piano Create For All Levels

Whether you are a beginner or an aspiring professional pianist, Yamaha DGX-660B will not fail to wow you.

This grand digital piano is every musician’s dream. It is guaranteed to transform your jam sessions and give a new life to your music. The host of features offered and the available bundles make the Yamaha DGX-660B an attractive product and worthy of your investment.

Yamaha DGX660B review

The Yamaha DGX-660B is an 88-key grand piano or keyboard, designed for both amateurs and pros. It comes in a strikingly contrasting black and white color scheme. Several bundles make the piano an excellent buyer’s option as you can select the option that suits you the best.

Design

Though the Yamaha DGX-660B is branded as part of the Portable Grand series, t is not as mobile as you’d want it to be. Although models from the P-series are quite portable, they do not even come close to what Yamaha DGX-660B has to offer in terms of performance.

Dimensions and Weight

Yamaha DGX-660B is 55 inches in width, 5.7 inches in height (extensible to 29.9 inches when rested atop a stand), and 17.5 inches in depth. It weighs around 46.3 pounds, which is bulkier than some portable models but still moveable. We would advise you to set it up in one permanent spot and not to move it often.

Design and Performance Correlation

Being an 88-key piano, the Yamaha DGX-660B offers more versatile action (heavier and lighter than standard). There is an array of customizable buttons and digital displays to help you produce the best music you can (the piano will even suggest some notes and tunes).

A footswitch allows you to switch the sustain option on and off, and several other functions may also be assigned to it.

Sound

The DGX-660B model flawlessly replicates the sounds and acoustics of an authentic grand concert piano. The piano offers a wide spectrum of sounds, with 554 unique options to choose from and four different piano settings to overlay the theme.

It can replicate the tones of several instruments like drums, basses, guitars, organs, saxophones, strings, and trumpets. This piano, hence, is more than just a piano – won’t you agree?

Effects

Several effect settings add to the fineness of the piano’s sounds. The foremost is reverb of which Yamaha DGX-660B offers 41 unique types, which drastically alter the ambiance.

The 44 chorus settings create the effect of several people singing together and this feature is highly sought after for on-stage performances.

DSP, Dual Mode, and Split Mode

The Digital Signal Processing or DSP enables you to improve the sound, chip off the rough edges or even turn it around completely. There are 237 DSP effects to choose from, meaning that your homemade music will rival the excellence of Beethoven’s symphony.

The Dual Mode and the Split Mode are also worth mentioning; the former can lay over another voice on the piano, while the latter creates separate sound effects for the left and right sides.

Piano Room

The exclusive Piano Room feature of Yamaha keyboards allows you to choose from four different piano types (grand, pop, warm, and Honky Tonk) in different room settings.

You can set the piano to stage mode or concert mode and get the best out of a digital piano. Every aspect of the sound is customizable, even the degree to which the piano lid is opened (which affects the frequency) can be adjusted.

Polyphony and 4 Speakers

The 192 note polyphony is another area where the Yamaha DGX660B rocks the stage. Polyphony is the ability to play multiple notes simultaneously; in this case, that would be up to 192 notes at a time.

If you are a pro striving to emulate a tricky masterpiece, you will be able to do so without skipping a single note. To top it all off, the four speakers (12 watts) built into the keyboard provide a clear sound.

Jam Packed with Technological Features

The level of technology built into this model is enough to help you not only master the craft but excel competitors and wow your audience.

The Yamaha DGX-660B will help you become a pianist, let you sing along to songs like a karaoke machine would, record your music, and share it with the world. If you are an aspiring musician looking to make a name for yourself on YouTube and get recognition, the Yamaha DGX-660B will help you out.

LCD and Songs

The crystal clear LCD screen exhibits the lyrics and musical notes for preset songs fed into the piano’s memory.

You can download songs from the manufacturer’s website in a USB device and then use that to transfer them to the piano’s memory, from where they will be displayed on the LCD as well. When you create your first record, you’ll be able to see that on the display.

Piano Lessons

If you are an amateur seeking to master the skill, Yamaha DGX-660B will help you out with this. There are three successive levels for your lessons, the songs will be displayed on the screen and the piano will instruct you about the notes to play, tempo, and so on. You can choose to take a left or right only option or focus on a difficult track until you can beat it.

Microphones

The Yamaha DGX660B allows you to connect the microphone directly via a dedicated jack. You can sing along to any of the preset songs in the piano’s memory or hum along with your music.

The microphone also offers several effects that will improve your music significantly and make it sound less homemade and more professionally produced. You can add reverb, chorus, and even a three-band EQ to finely tune your voice.

Recording Songs and Music

The piano is equipped with an effective six-track recorder that will capture your music in a MIDI format. You can record sections of the song at different times and then merge or overlap them later on.

You can use a microphone to record the song and music directly to a USB device attached to the piano. The USB functionality also allows you to sing along to songs stored in the device’s memory.

Connectivity

The Yamaha DGX-660B offers a host of connectivity options that most of the conventional options lack. This versatility allows you to unleash the true digital potential of the instrument and integrate relevant devices to maximize the experience. Only the USB port for compatible devices is on the front of the piano, while all other jacks and ports are present on the backside.

USB Terminals

There are two USB ports, one dedicated to the host and the other for a USB device. The USB to host terminal is meant to connect the piano with a laptop for accessing the songs and music on its hard drive.

You can also transfer MIDI data to and fro between the keyboard and a connected computer. This data can then be used with learning apps to amp up your performance. You will need to buy an A-B USB cable to use this port.

The USB to device terminal can be used to exchange data with a flash drive. You may download songs and music to the USB device and then transfer them to the keyboard.

¼-Inch Stereo Jacks

These stereo jacks are dedicated ports meant for connecting headphones to the piano. You may have your practice sessions without bugging the rest of the household. You may also use this jack to connect with amplifiers, mixers, PA systems, and so on.

Microphone Jack

You can connect microphones with ¼-inch plugs (not the USB version) to the piano and sing along with the songs you play.

The voice input in the microphone will be played by the internal speakers of the piano and you can control the volume via a dedicated mic volume knob. You may also mix things up a little with effects and themes.

⅛-Inch Mini-Jack/AUX-In

This 3.5mm mini-jack is dedicated to connecting the piano with external audio devices. If you don’t feel like listening to the built-in speakers, you can hook up the device to compatible external speakers and “blow the roof off”.

Sustain Jack

It connects to the foot pedal that controls the sustain option.

Pedal Unit Jack

It connects to the LP-7A/LP-7AWH 3-pedal, an optional unit.

iOS Connectivity

This allows you to integrate your iPhone and other iOS devices with the piano. The only drawback is that such connectivity is not offered with Android devices.

DGX 660B’s Bundles

The prudent course of buying your Yamaha DGX-660B would be to select one of the many bundles offered by the company. The model comes with several accessories grouped in various bundles and you may pick the one that suits your needs the best.

• The standard purchase offers the piano unit alongside a stand and bench.
• The second bundle adds a 3-pedal unit to the standard purchase. These pedals replicate the functions of those in grand pianos.
• The starter bundle adds headphones and a stool to the standard purchase.
• The deluxe bundle adds a 3-pedal unit and a stool to the purchase.
• The microphone bundle includes headphones and a microphone in addition to the standard purchase.

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Comparison between Yamaha DGX-660B and DGX-650

Yamaha DGX-660B has humbled DGX-650, the previous entry of the series. Both are 88-key instruments with built-in speakers and LCD screens, along with several customization options.

However, the newer model has a lot more to offer than its predecessor:

Audio Input

The previous model, DGX-650 offered connectivity with mobile phones that gave an audio output, via a stereo mini-jack. This allowed you to play songs from your phone or tablet, which would be played by the built-in speakers of the piano.

The newer model offers connectivity with mobile devices and USB compatible devices, along with a dedicated microphone connection. You can directly plug in a microphone and sing along your favorite songs in your jam sessions.

Polyphony

Yamaha DGX-660B takes the edge with its 192-note polyphony in comparison to DGX-650’s 128. This means that the newer model can play a greater number of notes simultaneously and is more ideally suited for playing complicated tracks.

Score and Lyrics Display

The new model also takes away the points for displaying scores and lyrics on its LCD. This allows you to keep up with the song and sing along it (with a dedicated mic). This feature also helps learners master the notes.

Piano Room Function

The exclusive piano room function also adds to Yamaha DGX-660B’s excellence. This mode, as stated earlier, allows you to select from the various piano and room types for optimal performance. This way you can ensure that your piano sounds just perfect for the occasion.

Conclusion

The Yamaha DGX-660B is a truly digital piano meant for players of all skill levels and ideal for wowing the audience.

It allows novices to practice the skill until they become pros and can take on live performances. The host of customizable features including several effects and voice options make the music perfect and eliminate any hints of it being homemade.

The ability to directly plug in a microphone (which most devices lack) is another plus. All in all, Yamaha DGX-660B offers so many features that it is impossible to give it a try and not fall in love.