There is a lot that goes into making a great stage piano. Yamaha recognized this, and in response, produced the Yamaha CP33 stage piano. This digital keyboard is built to be the best piano for stage performances available today and comes equipped with some of Yamaha’s most innovative technology.
With a host of features geared towards the modern performer and a nice, realistic key action and acoustic piano sound, the Yamaha CP33 is great option for any pianist taking the stage. In this Yamaha CP33 review, we’ll take a look at all the various features of the CP33 and determine whether it is worth its cost.
The various types of connectivity that the CP33 supports and programs and modes that it comes with are both absolutely wonderful. You could play and explore this piano for weeks without running out of various modes to try, giving you more than enough ways to produce your own unique sound. Along with this, the CP33 is equipped with a highly realistic keyboard that feels more like an acoustic piano than most any keyboard on the market, as well as a selection of full, realistic voices. For a performance-oriented pianist, there really are no better options than the CP33.
One of the few cons of this instrument is that it does not have as wide a selection of voices as some of Yamaha’s other instruments. The CP33’s 28 voices are all highly realistic, however, they simply do not provide the options that a piano such as the Yamaha YPG-535, with its 500 voices, provides. Besides this, there really are no obvious drawbacks to the CP33. This really is an excellent stage piano.
Our Ratings
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Sound Quality
The CP33’s piano voice is live sampled from a full-sized, grand piano, and it has a realism that is unparalleled among most digital pianos. Even more impressive than this, however, is Yamaha’s Advanced Wave Memory technology.
This technology is able to accurately detect how hard the key was pressed and then produce the appropriate note from its massive catalogue of recorded tones. The piano is equipped with a great set of speakers that can easily pump out enough volume to be heard in a stage performance.
The CP33 does come with only 28 voices to choose from, which is the only knock against the sound quality of the instrument. However, it does have a maximum of 64 note polyphony, meaning that none of your notes should ever be cut off prematurely.
Key Action and Realism
Key Action and RealismThe key action of the Yamaha CP33 stage piano is really where this instrument shines. The piano comes with an 88-key, graded keyboard that is one of the most realistic keyboards you will ever have the chance to play. While most keyboards are known for having keys that are too light to be realistic, the CP33 does not have this problem.
Its keys are fully weighted and feel as close to an acoustic piano as any stage keyboard I’ve ever played. Yamaha’s Graded Hammer Effect (GHE) technology is one of the best key action technologies to come on the market today, and the CP33 has certainly benefited from being equipped with this realistic new key action.
Other Features and Specifications
The CP33 is as much a controller as it is a piano. If you’ve got the time to learn all of its features, there really isn’t much you can’t do with this piano. For instance, the CP33 allows you to play and control two external tone generators, assign different voices to different sections of the keyboard as well as layer the voices together for different types of sound.
The CP33 comes with sliders that allow you to tweak the level of each sound as you are playing and wheels that can be programmed to control a whole variety of different effects, such as sound attack, decay, brightness and filter cutoff. Really, the CP33 is an instrument that is only limited by your own desires and talent. Along with all of this, the CP33 weighs just 40 lbs., making it highly portable as well.
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Final Thoughts
The CP33 is a truly excellent stage piano with one of the most realistic key actions and impressive set of features that you will find in a digital keyboard. This is a powerful instrument for serious musicians. If you are a performance pianist looking for a digital piano that will allow you to take your concerts to a new level, the CP33 is a great instrument to consider adding to your selection.