Korg SP-280 Review
The Korg Corporation has been producing electronic keyboards and pianos for over 50 years and during that time introduced many ground-breaking products, particularly in the synthesizer market. Korg currently produce a small range of digital pianos including the SP-280 which was introduced in 2013. The specification of the SP-280 is almost identical to the LP-380 which is featured in another review on this blog, so the main review section of the two articles is basically the same.
First Impressions
The SP-280 comes complete with the stand and had a definite retro look to the styling. There’s something quite 1960’s looking about the piano. The instrument is supplied with a proper piano style pedal that supports half pedaling for piano sounds and as an optional extra, the Korg PU-2, 3 pedal unit can be added. A music stand is also supplied and the piano is available in either black or white.
Where the LP-280 certainly scores is the quality and power of the internal speaker system. Most pianos of this type usually contain 2x7 or 8 watt amplification, however the SP-280 is a mighty 2x22 watts, and very impressive it sounds too. The bass notes have a real depth, something that is often lacking on portable pianos. For anybody looking to buy an instrument to use professionally, the SP-280 could certainly be loud enough to play in some small venues without the need for additional amplification.
Review
The SP-280 utilizes Korg’s Natural Weighted Hammer Action (NH) which Korg say reproduces the same playing experience as on an acoustic piano, with heavier response in the lower register that becomes lighter as you play up the keyboard. (The action used is different to the LP-380) Keyboard action on digital pianos is always very subjective, with each manufacturer working to improve the feel and making it closer to an acoustic piano. The SP-280 is certainly as good as most at this level, although it does not offer the simulated ivory finish to the keys that some brands offer. The control panel is neatly laid out with all the buttons positioned in the center and there is also a 3 character LED display to show several functions. A simple but very useful addition, and one that many other manufacturers fail to include. The SP-280 has a few more controls than most other pianos at this price range and I have to say this does make selecting the sounds and other features much easier. There are 10 buttons for selecting the different sounds and there is also an additional ‘Bank’ button for selecting one of three sounds assigned to each of the 10 buttons, providing a total of 30 tones. The ten buttons are Piano1, Piano2, E.Piano 1, E.Piano2, Harpsi/Clav, Vibes/Guitar, Organ 1, Organ 2 , Strings & Choir. Piano 1 offers Classic Piano, Grand Piano and Jazz Piano, with Classic and Grand featuring damper resonance when the pedal is used. The sound is very full across the keyboard, which is certainly helped by the quality of the speaker system. It’s great to have 3 different piano sounds to choose from, and there is also a facility to make any of the sounds brighter or mellower to suit the performance. The Piano 2 button contains 2 additional acoustic piano tones, Live Piano which is a more pop piano and Honky-Tonk, the old saloon bar piano sound. There is also an Electric Grand which is the sound of a strung electric piano from the 70’s/80’s often used by pop bands of the time.
The 2 Electric Piano buttons provide a total of 6 variations, from the typical 60’s mechanical electric pianos to more contemporary synth pianos. Where appropriate, chorus effects are added to enhance the sounds. The chorus effect is preset for each sound, but can be adjusted should you wish or completely switched off, and it can also be added to any sound that wouldn’t normally have chorus. There is also Reverb which adds ambience to the sound, as if playing in a concert hall. This can also be adjusted or turned off, should you wish. The next sound button is Harpsi/Clav giving a reasonable harpsichord and 2 variations of the Clavinet sound, which was, and still is used on many pop records. Stevie Wonder has used Clavinet on many of his recordings over the years. We then have Vibes/Guitar which actually contains 3 sounds, vibraphone, marimba and an acoustic guitar sound. I’m not sure if many players will actually use these sounds but they are fairly good, and I guess they add to the flexibility of the instrument. The 2 organ buttons contain 3 Jazz and 3 Pipe organ sounds which vary in quality, but certainly there’s plenty of choice. Many similarly priced instruments only have a couple of organ sounds, so the Korg certainly scores with the available selection.
The last 2 buttons provide 3 string and 3 choir variations, which are on the whole pretty good sounds and these probably work best when using the Layer Mode. This allows you to combine a sound from any of the 10 tone buttons with another, and it is also possible to balance the volume of the 2 sounds. Some nice combinations are available, such as strings or vocal mixed with acoustic or electric piano. It is not possible to use 2 sounds assigned to the same button however. In Layer Mode it is also possible to independently adjust the octave of each sound should you wish.
Although layering is available, there is no facility on the Korg for splitting the keyboard and using a different sound for the left and right parts as featured on some other brands. I don’t think this is a serious omission for most potential purchasers, but it could be a feature required by some more advanced players or gigging musicians.
The overall quality of the sounds is generally good, as I would expect from a company like Korg, and although a few of the additional sounds could perhaps be slightly better, the choice of sounds is very useful and offers plenty of variation. To me, the important thing on a digital piano is the quality of the actual piano sounds, and I think the Korg does very well on that score.
Additional features
In common with other digital pianos, the Korg SP-280 offers a range of additional features. A metronome facility is included which is adjusted using the UP and Down buttons by the side of the display. The time signature and volume can also be altered. Transpose is included allowing the piano to be changed in pitch to perhaps match a singer and there is also a fine-tuning adjustment control. The touch sensitivity can also be adjusted from the standard medium setting to lighter or heavier.
One feature that many manufacturers are beginning to include on their pianos is the facility to split the keyboard into two small pianos enabling 2 beginner students to practice on one instrument. Korg call this Partner Mode.
When selected, the keyboard is split at a predetermined point and the note range of each half is adjusted so that each player has a few octaves of notes of the same pitch. In this mode it is also possible for the 2 players to use a different sound and volume if required, making it easier to hear what each student is playing. Finally, if the optional 3 pedal unit PU-2 has been added the soft pedal can also be reassigned as a damper pedal for the left section, creating 2 totally independent instruments.
The SP-280 also features a range of demo songs to highlight the sounds of the instrument, but sadly offers no facility to record your own performance, something that most other manufacturers do offer. This I think is a bit of an oversight by Korg as I know many beginners find it useful to be able to record their performance and listen to it, and more advanced players enjoy duetting with themselves.
There is also an auto-power off facility, which will automatically switch the piano off if it is not played for 30 minutes without a key being pressed.
Inputs/Outputs
There are two headphone sockets, one on the back and one the front of the instrument. There are also stereo lineout sockets on the back panel for connecting the SP-280 to external amplification should you need to. Korg have also included a line-in socket making it possible to amplify other equipment through the internal amplification of the SP-280. MIDI In/Out (Musical Instrument Digital Interface) sockets are also included for connection to other keyboards or a PC, however there is no USB socket so a MIDI to USB cable will be required for PC connection. One nice feature when using the SP-280 as a playback device from a computer is that it is possible to use the sounds independently on 16 different channels. You can for example have piano on one track, strings on another and vibes on the next.
Conclusion
I thoroughly enjoyed my time with the SP-280 and overall was impressed with what it has to offer. The sounds are generally very good and of the high quality I would expect from a company such as Korg, coupled with a great internal amplification system. The instrument looks good and the design is certainly a little different than competitive products. The addition of the stand is really useful and easy to transport. There’s an awful lot of competition out there at this price level, but I think the SP-280 is more than capable of holding its own.
Pros
- Great design complete with stand
- Excellent internal amplification
- Good choice of sounds
- Brilliance/chorus/reverb easily adjustable
- Functions easily accessible from the panel
- Simple LED display
- Dedicated Line-Out and Line-In sockets
Cons
- No internal recording device
- No split keyboard
- No USB socket
- Heavier than some similar products
