Introduction
Ahhhh, the Clavinova. If you like Clavinovas as much as we do at YamahaMusician.com, for the month of September 2008 we will be reviewing the complete line of current Clavinova CLP digital pianos that are available in the U.S. market (some of these models may also be available in other markets too). Today, we start with the CLP 220.
The CLP 220 is Yamaha's answer to a great sounding, classy looking entry-level digital piano. The CLP 220 is powered by Yamaha's legendary AWM (Advanced Wave Memory) sound engine as are all the current CLP models. It comes with the Graded Hammer fully weighted 88 key piano keyboard, 10 different voices, dual voice mode, 64 notes of polyphony, a recording function, and reverb effects for added realism. The Clavinova CLP 220 also comes in 4 different wood finishes: polished ebony, dark rosewood, mahogany, and, cherry to match your décor.
Sounds
The Clavinova is renowned for its outstanding piano sounds—and the CLP 220 delivers with stereo piano samples. The CLP 220 comes with 2 acoustic pianos, 2 electric pianos, 2 harpsichords, a vibraphone, 2 church organs and a string ensemble.
Recording
The CLP 220 allows you to record your own compositions and performances. When you're ready to record, simply press the REC button to start recording then when you're finished recording press the REC button to end the recording. To play back the recorded song just press the PLAY button and to stop playback press PLAY again. Now that's simple and straight forward. You can save just one song on the CLP 220 with a maximum performance length of 11,000 notes, however, you can use its onboard MIDI interface to transmit sequences to a computer for saving and editing.
Other Features
The Clavinova CLP 220 also comes with an effects processor that adds realism to your playing. There's a choice of 4 different reverbs—a room, 2 halls, and a stage and you can very the amount of depth (wet/dry mix) too. So, for example, once you record your performance, you realize that the song sounds better with the stage reverb set to a depth of 11. Just dial in your effect settings and press PLAY to hear your recorded song play back with the new settings! You can make these changes at anytime!
Lastly, the Clavinova CLP 220 comes with dual voice mode—you can combine any two voices on the CLP 220 and individually set their volume and octave, a metronome for keeping you on beat, a piano touch mode for adjusting key sensitivity, a transpose mode so you can precisely tune to another instrument or CD player for playing along, 2 headphone jacks, and MIDI in/out ports for connecting the Clavinova to another synthesizer or computer for song editing.
Conclusion
The Clavinova CLP 220 is an excellent home digital piano for budget-minded people who are interested in learning the piano for them or their family. Professional and recording musicians alike will probably feel more at home with the features of the Clavinova CLP 240 and up (our next CLP feature article will review the CLP 230/240).
For the fraction of the price of a real piano and no expenses for tuning and maintenance, you get one very excellent value while having the quality and dependability of a Yamaha Clavinova.