Best Professional Music Keyboard Reviews & Buyers Guide of 2023

We've compiled this helpful list of the best professional music keyboard to assist you in finding the best arranger keyboard to suit your style, configuration, and recording needs. With so many options available, selecting one might be difficult.

Fortunately, there is no absolute right or wrong answer because the quality of these keyboard workstations is continually increasing, with most flexible keyboards and workstations often receiving improvements. Whether you're just getting started in the music industry and need a way to get your thoughts down fast, or you're a seasoned composer wanting to expand your studio, there's a keyboard workstation that fits your budget.

Best Professional Music Keyboard Reviews

#1. Yamaha Mini-key Portable Keyboard PSS-A50 - Best Budget

Important Specifications

• Brand: Yamaha

• Item Dimensions LxWxH: 21.6 x 8.6 x 3.7 inches

• Item Weight: 1 Pounds

Product’s Highlights

The E30 is designed for younger children and includes cartoon effects and a quiz mode, while the F30 is designed for those who like more auto-accompaniment. This Yamaha PSS-A50 is our favorite of the lot.

The A50 replaces the F30's auto-accompaniment functions with a flexible program to help and motion FX function, making it better suited to portable synth-based, dance-oriented music composition. 

At the stroke of a button, the electronic keyboard gives you real-time pitch bend, filtered modification, and slowness effects. This has 138 arpeggiator types, a portamento button, and 42 high-quality sounds from Yamaha's higher-end E-series keyboards.

This Yamaha PSS-A50 digital keyboard's high-quality, velocity-sensitive keybed, which is based on Yamaha's Reface synth line and has a 37-note remote key configuration, is one of the unit's significant shocks. All of this means that the A50 is an excellent fundamental MIDI controller and a super-fun variation on portable keyboards, and it can run on batteries or USB power.

What We Like

• Small, light, and portable

• Premium, velocity-sensitive keybed

• Motion FX with Arpeggiator

Things to Consider

• Only one mono speaker

#2. Casio, 61-Key Portable Keyboard LK-S250 - Best Design

Important Specifications

• Brand: Casio

• Style: Keyboard Only

• Item Dimensions LxWxH: 10.08 x 36.61 x 2.87 inches

• Item Weight: 10.97 Pounds

• Connectivity Technology: USB

Product’s Highlights

The pitch bend wheel has been replaced with a critical illumination system in this Casiotone CT-S300 variant. This Casio LK-S250 Electronic Keyboard offers an enlightened way of learning by illuminating the keys to inform users what notes to play next because you learn 60 well-known songs from the built-in repertoire.

You may remix pre-programmed tunes and add vocal samples by hitting various key combos in a lively Dance Music mode with 50 distinct genres. You may also plug in a media player and listen to music through the newly built audio system.

Its Casio LK-S250 Electronic Keyboard is a fascinating and adaptable learning tool for aspiring instrumentalists of any age when used with Casio's free Chordana Play app (Android, iOS). It features an input to which you can attach an optional microphone and sing along.

What We Like

• Keys with illumination

• Portable and ultralight

• Chordana Play app is required

Things to Consider

• Pro players will need more 

#3. Casio CT-X700 61-Key Portable Keyboard - Best Portable Keyboard

Important Specifications

• Brand: Casio

• Color: Black

• Style: Standalone Keyboard

• Item Dimensions LxWxH: 13.78 x 37.32 x 4.29 inches

• Item Weight: 9.48 Pounds

Product’s Highlights

The Casio CT-X700 is the starting point for Casio's current CT-X family of portable electronic keyboards. It has the Acoustic Intelligent Expression sound processor, which was designed specifically for the CT-X range and represented a significant upgrade over prior CT models.

The CT-strong X700's qualities include the dynamic keyboard, string, organ, and synth sounds, and there's a vast library of international instruments to explore out of the 600 AiX-generated notes. There are also 195 preprogrammed rhythms with changes and fills on board, as well as 110 song samples and 50 independent practices.

Dual voices may be layered, and the keyboard can be separated. There's an excellent six-track music recorder and 32 memory spaces for custom presets.

This Casio CT-X700 electronic piano can be supplied by the mains, six AA batteries, or USB, and an auxiliary audio connection allows you to play along with streaming music from your smartphone while laying it on a specially constructed pad.

What We Like

• Great spec for the price

• Aux in and smartphone docking pad 

Things to Consider

• No individual volume control for layered sounds

• Slight complex user interface 

#4. Roland GO: KEYS 61-key Music Creation Piano Keyboard - Best Fun and Inspiring Keyboard

Important Specifications

• Brand: Roland

• Style: GO: Keys

• Item Dimensions LxWxH: 34.56 x 10.69 x 3.25 inches

• Item Weight: 8.62 Pounds

• Connectivity Technology: Bluetooth

Product’s Highlights

This Roland GO: KEYS is a handheld keyboard featuring over 500 high-quality sounds taken from Roland's Juno DS engine. The GO: KEYS allows you to operate MIDI instruments wirelessly thanks to its battery-powered operation and Bluetooth audio/MIDI. You can also use it to play along with your favorite music by streaming it through the onboard speakers.

Unlike traditional auto-arrangement techniques, the Loop Mix feature allows you to blend loops to create songs by just playing notes on this external device.

There are also performance control strips that may be switched between filter cutoff and note repetition FX, as well as pitch bend and modulator. A built-in 30,000-note composition recorder with USB output is also included on this Roland GO: KEYS electronic keyboard, and it all comes with Roland's famed build quality.

What We Like

• Bluetooth capability

• Compact and portable

• Ivory-feel textured keys 

Things to Consider

• Temperamental performance controls

#5. Yamaha MODX8 88-Key Synthesizer Workstation - Best Keyboard Under $2000

Important Specifications

• Color: Black

• Brand: Yamaha

• Model Name: MODX8

• Item Dimensions LxWxH: 52.48 x 15.91 x 6.3 inches

• Included Components: Power Supply

Product’s Highlights

Using Yamaha's 88-note graded hammer action keybed, this MODX8 combines workstation capability with synthesizer abilities.

That means you'll get a digital piano-like playing experience with all of the bells and whistles that make music production easier. Two sound engines (AWM2 and FM-X) with synthesizer, high polyphony, a large number of voicings and settings, built-in VCM (Virtual Circuit Modeling) effects, and a variety of connecting possibilities are included.

This device also has Yamaha's Motion Control, which allows you to control various parameters in real-time with only one knob. It also has assignable faders, knobs, and buttons, as well as pitch bend and modulation knobs.

What We Like

• Motion Control engine and superknob offer deep, multifaceted real-time sound control/evolution

• Massive power, versatile sounds, and serious portability

Things to Consider

• Lacks a dedicated tonewheel organ engine with preset drawbars, a VA engine, direct sampling, and a deeper Motif-type sequencer

#6. Casio WK-6600 76-Key Workstation Keyboard - Best For Music Creativity

Important Specifications

• Brand: Casio

• Color: Black

• Style: WK6600

• Item Dimensions LxWxH: 5.4 x 16.25 x 47 inches

• Item Weight: 24 Pounds

Product’s Highlights

This is a fairly basic game, yet we were shocked when we played it. Casio has progressed significantly, and their goods are no longer what they were 15-20 years ago. Casio keyboard sounds are actually quite realistic, which surprises me.

This music keyboard is for the musician who wants to get their feet wet before investing a lot of money, given the low price.

If you don't anticipate the world from this keyboard workstation, you'll be pleasantly surprised. It comes with 76 keys, but it's also available with 61 or 88. There are sliders that you may use with your DAW or to modify your sounds on your own.

What We Like

• Affordable

• Great for recording

• All in one package

• Lots of tones

Things to Consider

• Unweighted, incomplete key set

• Difficult to navigate interface

#7. Williams Legato 88-Key Digital Piano - Best Convenient

Important Specifications

• Brand: Williams

• Style: Digital

• Item Dimensions LxWxH: 3.5 x 50 x 11 inches

• Item Weight: 19 Pounds

• Connector Type: MIDI USB

Product’s Highlights

Without a doubt, the most appealing feature of this product is its low price. You've come to the right place if you're searching for a piano that won't break the bank.

When you press down on an acoustic piano key, it has its own distinct amount of resistance. Electric keyboards don't have any inherent requirement to generate resistance. Manufacturers add the resistance to retain a genuine feel.

Higher-end music keyboards will even grade the keys, making higher notes feel different from lower notes.

We also discussed the keyboard problem. A fully-weighted keyboard, as previously said, is always the standard method. It will be up to you whether or not you choose to settle for less.

What We Like

• Affordable

• Easy to transport

• Full Keyboard

Things to Consider

• Limited accessories

• Keys not weighted

#8. YAMAHA P125 - Best High-Performance

Important Specifications

• Brand: Yamaha

• Color: Black

• Style: 88-Key

• Item Dimensions LxWxH: 52.19 x 11.63 x 6.56 inches

• Item Weight: 26 Pounds

Product’s Highlights

The Yamaha P125 is designed for customers who need to transport their piano on a regular basis. Consequently, it's ideal for teachers who need to visit students at their homes and stage performers who wish to bring the piano to gigs and performances.

The P125 isn't really ideal for the demanding academic or jazz pianist, who could be well off with a Yamaha music piano like the YDP-164, Kawai ES-110, or Roland F-140R.

Nonetheless, the P125 is a fantastic music keyboard in its own right, and you won't go far wrong if you're moving from a smaller piano with non-weighted buttons.

What We Like

• The design is small, portable, and light

• The piano's tone is clean and rich

• The sound system is excellent

• Smart pianist with computer connectivity

Things to Consider

• The keyboard action is outdated

• The controls are terrible

• Plastic build; feels solid yet is inexpensive