Digital Piano Roland FP 30 Full Review. Is it the best?

Today we bring you one of Roland’s most interesting piano keyboards for less than 600 €. A very interesting keyboard that rivals powerful competitors such as the Yamaha P125 digital piano.

You may read a lot of opinions about the Roland FP 30 keyboard and be a bit of a mess. But here I am with this review to solve all your doubts.

This digital piano is the best seller after the Yamaha P45 piano keyboard (they are linked at the end of the article).

It’s available in black and white. If you decide to buy it in white, many times it is even possible to buy it cheaper than in black. The Yamaha P45 is cheaper and it doesn’t make much sense to compare them. If you see Roland in several places like Roland FP 30 BK. The BK simply means that the color of the keyboard is black. The keys don’t change. It’s just that I get a lot of questions about this.

The code of the white keyboard is Roland FP 30 WH which can sometimes be found cheaper than the black model; it also comes with its support in white. It has 88 weighted keys with 5 different sensitivities and a piano sound based on Roland’s Supernatural Engine. It is the sum of the black and white keys and is the number of keys of a normal piano. That’s why they’re also called a piano keyboard.

It has a polyphonic memory of 128 voices, the polyphony is the number of notes that can sound at the same time in the digital piano, not only the keys pressed but those of the accompaniments that sound underneath. It’s not bad polyphony, with it you can play most of the pieces.

First, we give you a preview of where you can find this digital piano at the best price and then read on that you have all the review and we also tell you about its supports and savings pack.

What is the best store to buy the Roland FP 30 piano?

Amazon

Free Shipping and possibility of shipping in one day with Amazon Prime
Full Guarantee but they are no experts in music equipment
A leader in fast shipments
A price that change a lot daily
The best option in the USA and worldwide

View Current Price at Amazon.com

Thomann

Free Shipping
Full warranty; if you have any problems, they take care of everything
100% reliable payment
Leader in trouble-free shipping
Usually best price
Best Reputation: They are the leading online store in Europe and have the best catalog and information

View Price at Thomann

The reasons that make it a bestseller among others are:

It includes a microphone.
It has USB MIDI and USB to put a pen drive
All other aspects like speaker power, sound, key size, consistency are great for the price it costs.

Sound

It brings 35 high-quality sounds, which is not bad at all. It’s got everything from piano sounds to jazz organ. Many times in the lower quality keyboards the sounds are quite bad but in this case, they have good quality and are not a “toy.” The truth is that the amount of different piano sounds is one of its great attractions and Yamaha has improved the P125 with more sounds to challenge the Roland FP 30. Below you have the comparison.

If you want cheaper Hammer Actions pianos but with a minimum to start with you have to go with Yamaha P45 or Casio CDP 130.

As we have said before it has a polyphony or polyphonic memory of 128 notes. The polyphony is the number of notes that can sound at once through your speakers. This includes if you play on top of an accompaniment, etc. This polyphony is fine.

The sound of the previous video on this piano is great because it’s line recorded and totally debugged. I filmed myself in Madrid the following video of a girl playing in the street and it sounds pretty good being mobile and being outdoors. Use a standard scissors stand and the best selling color of this piano keyboard which is black.

I’m sure you’ll be interested in…

The polyphony is important because on these digital pianos you can do layering, which is to record a track and then play over it. This consumes polyphony as many more notes sound at a time.

See also this piece of video in which you can listen to how the piano types that are there sound (we have put it to start from minute 2).

On the other hand, you can see how to combine a piano sound with an accompaniment of strings plus piano (same video but starts at minute 2:54):

It has 3 different levels of brightness adjustments. Brightness defines how mellow or metallic the sound of a piano is. Then you have 5 levels of reverberation. This effect simulates if you are playing in rooms with different acoustics such as a church. It is basic in the sounds of digital piano keyboards.

It has quite powerful 11W speakers that can fit for an intermediate-sized room. But if you play outdoors you might need a separate loudspeaker as in the video of the girl playing in the Street.

Hammer Action and velocity sensitivity

A very strong point of this Roland digital piano is its keys. Your Hammer Action keyboard system has 5 sensitivities. Other piano keyboards of the same level have 4 sensitivities or 3. The sensitivity is that the musical note sounds strong or weak depending on the force with which the key is pressed and Hammer Action is the effect that reproduces the “weight” of each key. This aspect of the keys is super important.

The touch of the keys of a digital piano must resemble the keys of an acoustic piano as much as possible. While it is true that we must be aware of the difference in price. A vertical acoustic with weighted keys can cost about 2500 euros and weighs more than 100 kg. For the price, the Roland is not bad at all

In addition, the touch of the Roland FP 30 digital piano works a lot on the escape effect. This means that you do not have to wait for the key to go up again before you can play the note again. This is important for playing certain complex and fast works. A very accomplished detail in this Roland. It has split and dual-mode.

These features allow you to split the keyboard in two so that one instrument sounds in one half and another in the other. For example, we can combine electric bass and piano on the same keyboard. The dual-mode allows you to divide the piano into two equal pianos for both teachers and students to play at the same time. All digital pianos in this price range carry it.

USB connectivity to computer

Connectivity is also important in a digital piano like this as it is one of the advantages of this type of device. It has a USB MIDI interface that makes it possible to connect it to the computer and compose music with programs like Sibelius. You can also record MIDI tracks in music editing programs such as Cubase or Ableton that can then be exported to the music sheet.

Recording and microphone

A very interesting aspect is that it brings a microphone of a certain quality and the keyboard allows you to record what you play. Which makes it very useful to record a quick demo or to record ideas. And then we can transfer the recordings in Wave and or MIDI to the USB pen drive or to the mobile with Bluetooth. It’s very fast how you work with it.

Sustain pedal

The pedal that comes with it is not the best, to tell you the truth. Although you can buy a standard one in the future for between 20 and 30 €. The sustain pedal serves to maintain the note in time even if you stop pressing the key. As we have said on several occasions, the pedal is a fundamental piece of a digital piano because it allows you to keep the sound even if you release the key making a slur. It is a vital interpretative resource in a piano.

Does it fit all levels?

Let’s see, if you’re starting conservatory you’re good for the first 5 or 7 years without a problem and also to practice later. It has Hammer Action, sensitive keys, and a footswitch.

The advantages of these portable digital pianos are obvious. The normal thing when you study classical is that you study most of the hours in acoustic pianos but this is not always possible.

There are many places where you can study an hour a day or two on a real piano but then at home, the neighbors can kill you. For these digital pianos like the Roland FP 30 are perfect. An elite top conservatory pianist studies with an acoustic piano at that level. But in the middle-level conservatory, the truth is that many people are studying with digital pianos because they are cheaper and more portable.

The thing with this piano is to mix the studio in one and the other and then when you have to rehearse or compose you use the digital piano. With a weight of 14 kg, it can be used in live or rehearsal playing. So we can conclude that it is useful at all levels.

Roland FP 30 vs Yamaha P115 vs Yamaha P125

For price and quality, the greatest competitor of the Roland FP 30 is the Yamaha P115 (now called Yamaha P125 and only differ in the number of different piano sounds). Both are piano keyboards of similar price and quality but there are certain differences that may make you decide between one or the other.

The Yamaha P115 gains in polyphonic memory as it has 192 voices compared to the 128 of the Roland FP 30. This makes the sound of the Yamaha more quality. Another thing is that you like Roland nuances like the tone.
The Roland FP 30 has more sounds than the Yamaha P115, but already with the Yamaha P125 these changes and now, they are more equal. Well, the Yamaha P125 now has 24 sounds.
Both have apps for the mobile and allows recording but the P115 does not have micro or Bluetooth. This usability is better at Roland.
Roland’s Hammer Action system has 5 sensitivities and Yamaha’s 4. We like Roland’s Hammer Action a little more and the exhaust effect and feel is better. Synthetic ivory touch comes in handy; if you study a lot as your hands will sweat.
Both admit triple pedalboard.
The Yamaha P115 is less heavy. A couple of kgs that sometimes you notice a lot if you transport it weekly to tests and similar without a car.
The Roland FP 30 has very powerful 11W speakers. If you play live with your piano in restaurants this is a wonder.

The price of both is also similar and although the Roland wins in several things that the Yamaha P115 and P125 have more polyphony makes the competition quite close. Either one is a great choice. The Yamaha P115 comes with a slightly better pedal although it is also basic and is usually a little cheaper than Roland FP 30.

If you find them at the same price stay with the Roland FP 30. Below we tell you in which stores you can find it at the best price. And the truth is that lately the Yamaha FP30 is being sold at very good prices.

If you move around a lot think more about the Yamaha P115, that 2 kg difference in weight is noticeable over time. We also advise you to see our review on the new Yamaha P125.

Roland FP 30 vs Kawai ES110

The other great competitor is the piano keyboard Kawai ES110. Another bestseller. Let’s go with the differences between these two keyboards:

The polyphony of the Kawai piano is110 is 192 notes, while that of the Roland Fp30 is 128. The Kawai ES 110 is usually a little more expensive.
The Responsive Hammer technology of the Kawai keyboard is 110 provides more sensitivity and better feel than the counterweight and 5-level sensitivity of the Fp 30 on its keys.
The Roland Fp30 has a USB input while the Kawai ES110 does not have one. Its MIDI output is DIN type which is an older connector.
The Roland FP 30 comes with a microphone and USB flash drive input.
The Kawai ES110 has 2 helmet tickets while the Roland Fp30 has only one ticket.
The Kawai is110 weighs 12 kg and the Roland Fp30 weighs 14kg.
The failure of the Kawai ES110 is that it has 7 W speakers compared to the 11 W of the Roland FP 30. Although with 7 W speakers you can already use it for small restaurants.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=feKATbTjgvM

Where to buy the Roland FP 30 at the best price?

Today you can get the best prices and conditions by shopping online. But you have to make sure that the store has a good reputation and won’t leave you stranded if you have a problem with shipping or with the warranty.

If you live at Asia or America check Amazon. But If you live at Europe check also Thomann:

View Price at Thomann

View Current Price at Amazon.com

We hope you found this article useful. We also recommend our selection with the best piano keyboards to find out more.

If you want to buy the Roland FP 30 second-hand you can get a good offer if the seller shows you the origin of purchase. Either with an email from the store or similar.

Avoid buying the Roland FP 30 keyboard in a place you don’t trust. If you don’t know about pianos and keyboards and you don’t have anyone to accompany you to see if the keys are right, that the speakers don’t fail, that the sound is right … etc.

Roland FP 30 digital piano stand

There are several support possibilities for this piano keyboard. It depends if you are going to leave it in a fixed place to study or you want to move it from one place to another.

Normally if it is for your son and daughter and they are going to study classic the normal thing is not to move it. In this case, the black support with triple pedal can be a success. In addition, with this support, the piano shakes less when pressing hard. It’s a little more comfortable to play. The furniture that includes the triple footswitch is quite attractive and also serves as a decoration of the house.

The triple footswitch is useful for advanced students mainly of classical.

The digital piano has dimensions of 130 x 28.4 x 15cm (width x depth x height) and with a stand in the form of a piece of furniture can weigh about 22 kg. Without the bracket, it’s 14 kg.

It comes at a very good price at Thomann if you buy the black pack of the image, you can consider with the pack a used piano Roland FP 30.

You can also purchase lightweight clamp-type support (you can have any) such as the one in the following savings pack, also in black:

Although I have described you the best possible Roland FP 30 keyboard here we leave you the official link to its manual in English.

For a similar price you have the following pianos and keyboards:

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Jaime Echagüe

Hi! I'm Jaime Echagüe, a musician and an authentic fan of musical instruments. With this blog I want to give general information about musical instruments in an easy, direct and honest way. I hope you enjoy my website and that you find it very useful.