Startone MKR 61 Review Complete Digital Piano. Is it a good choice?

The Startone brand is a derivative of Thomann, which has offered excellent product proposals for beginners. Now let’s take a look at this curious “portable keyboard”, the Startone MKR 61, with a price tag of €49/£44, which can be quite useful for certain people but never for learning piano due to the lack of basic functions for the same. These are its features:

• 61 keys
• 128 sounds (Different sounds of piano and other instruments)
• 128 rhythms (accompaniment rhythms that adapt to what you are playing. There are bossa nova rhythms, etc. Sometimes they are also known as accompaniment styles)
• 25 demo songs
• Monochrome screen
• Volume control
• Tempo change
• Recording function
• It has a sustain function (the sustain pedal of a piano or keyboard is used to keep the note playing even if you stop pressing the key) without pedal and vibrato
• USB midi connection (MIDI allows you to do such wonderful things as connect your keyboard to your computer, record a sound track and with certain programs click through what you’ve played to musical notes on a score. MIDI tracks store the information of the musical notes)
• Sound IN input
• Mini-headphone jack output
• Charging by USB
• It has a rechargeable battery
• Weight 1 Kg and dimensions (width x height x depth): 110 x 215 x 35m

As we can see, what is most surprising about this “keyboard” is its portable design, which would really let us take it almost anywhere. Its USB MIDI connection is also very appreciated and besides having a sustain function makes the MKR 61 a keyboard that could be suitable for certain circumstances. It is very portable and can be charged with USB.

Now that we have listed and described the features of this keyboard there is no better way than to take a look at the following two videos where they tell us more about the Startone MKR 61 and you can hear how its different sounds sound:

Related post you can be interested in

• Ranking with the best digital pianos
• My selection of cheap musical keyboards.
• Basic concepts you need to know about digital pianos.
• The best resources to learn to play the piano by yourself.

Now let’s compare the Startone MKR 61 with its more common alternatives. Also at the end of the post you will find a section with the best shopping possibilities for this digital piano. But you can go directly to that part of the post by pressing the following button.

Startone MKR 61 vs Startone MK-200

The first comparison we will have are these two Startone keyboards: the MKR 61, which is priced at €49/£44 and the MK-200 which is priced at €89/£79, having a £40 difference between them. We will put the features of each of these pianos in 2 different columns to make it easier to see the differences:

• Come on keyboards have 61 keys, those of the MK 200 have sensitivity, which means that you can make dynamics in the interpretations of that, when you press a strong key sounds higher than another when we press it less strong.
• The MK eres 61 has 128 different sounds or voices and 128 rhythms for accompaniment, plus 25 demo songs. The MK 200 has 320 different sounds or voices, 110 styles for accompaniment and 100 demo songs.
• The MK 200 has dual and split modes. Metronome and split mode on the keyboard. It also has modulation settings, a 4-track recorder, a sustain pedal input and a weight of 4.5 kg and dimensions of 940 x 360 x 136mm.
• The MKR 61 has a recording function as well, auxiliary input, headphone output, USB MIDI and weighs only 1 kg.

As we see in the face to face have very relevant differences, Where the MK 200 is the winner, mainly to the functions of: sensitivity in their keys, and Sustain pedal input that allows us to start the piano study in a very basic way.

Startone MKR 61 vs Casio SA 46

Now we will buy the Startone MKR 61 And as we said it has the price of €49/£44 and the Casio SA46 mini keyboard with a price of €39/£35. With a small difference of almost £10 we will analyze their differences and similarities here goes the face-to-face:

• The Startone MKR 61 has 61 keys, while the Casio SA 46 has 32 mini-keys. Both without touch sensitivity.
• The Startone has a number of 128 sounds, with 128 rhythms and 25 demo songs. The Casio has a quantity of 100 sounds, with 50 rhythms and 10 demo songs.
• The Startone The MKR 61 has a recording function as well, auxiliary input, headphone output, USB MIDI and a weight of only 1 kg.
• The Casio SA 46 has five steps for creating rhythms, two 0.5-watt speakers, a headphone output and still weighs only 1 kg.

There are two toy keyboards, neither of which is really suitable for learning to play the keyboard or piano in a decent way, but surely in certain circumstances it can be useful for a child or a person who has a very limited budget.

We will put the characteristics of each of these pianos in 2 different columns to make it easier to see the differences:

And now a video of the Casio SA 46

Startone MKR 61 vs Casio CTK-1500 (or CTK 1550, which are the same)

Finally, we will have the comparison of these two keyboards: the Startone MKR 61 which is priced at €49/£44 and the Casio CPK 1500 which is priced at about €95. With a difference of about €45, we will see their similarities and differences in the following face-to-face:

• Both have 61 keys with no sensitivity.
• The Startone has 128 sounds, and 128 rhythmic style for accompaniment and offers 25 demo songs. The Casio has 120 sounds, with 70 rhythms or styles for accompaniment and offers 50 demo songs, plus 32 notes of polyphony. Polyphony refers to the largest number of notes that can be played simultaneously on a computer.
• The Startone The MKR 61 has a recording function as well, auxiliary input, headphone output, USB MIDI and weighs only 1 kg.
• The Casio offers a learning system, transposition function, dance music effects aimed at making electronic music, a combined output for line and headphones and the 2-watt speakers. It weighs 3.3 kg and measures 946 x 307 x 92 mm.

As we see the Casio has many advantages over the Startone, is a keyboard with a very competitive price but it is true that it lacks the sensitivity on the keyboard to make dynamics, midi and an input for sustain pedal, without this it will be difficult to start learning to play the piano.

We will put the characteristics of each of these pianos in 2 different columns to make it easier to see the differences:

And now a video of the Casio CTK-1550 that has the same sounds as the 1500 (you’ll notice how it sounds)

If you want to know more about this model don’t miss our review of the Casio CTK-1500.

Where to buy Startone MKR 61

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 catalogue and information.

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