Yamaha Clavinova Review

“I am discussing a Yamaha Clavinova CLP220 here, bought...”

Written on: 15/01/2009 by AWG (48 reviews written)

Good Points
Beautifully reliable, wonderful touch and nice speakers.

Bad Points
Music stand set too far forward and insubstantial.

General Comments
I am discussing a Yamaha Clavinova CLP220 here, bought new in 2008. This model has now been superceded by the CLP330. Colour light brown. I sold a P60 to upgrade to a Clavinova.

Easy to assemble and will actually break down for occasional gig use. Very heavy keyboard section though so not a regular thing to do. I now use a Casio WK3500 and a Yamaha Portable Grand on gigs. Cheap and easily replaceable.

Very high residual values on Clavinovas, so although obviously not the residuals of an acoustic, probably the best investment.

Playability? I always found Yamaha acoustics precise but soul-less. The tone not being particularly rich or individualistic. The Clavinova is really the same. It does everything it says "on the box" with supreme capability but is about as characterful as a Toyota car.

Built in recording facility means you never need miss that bit of inspiration that sometimes occurs. Usual Yamaha demos and basic voices on the CLP220. Both Piano 1 and 2 are really good, as is the Vibes and Strings. Damping actions also very precise.

I've been buying Yamaha instruments since 1990 when I'd had enough of Italian electronic organs failing on gigs etc. To use motoring comparisons again I 'd expect the CLP220 to do 200,000 miles without any major overhauls and then still fetch a good price on Ebay!

Also consider Casio Digitals these days. They are hot on the tail of Yamaha but sadly will not offer the same residual values. But musical instruments are a personal thing that you either like or don't like so perhaps I'm talking too much about money here.

Yamaha Musical Instruments are a quality act though!