u/kindredkite

TL;DR: Never (properly) played an instrument before but want to get into the keytar. The SHS-300 caught my eye as a good starter keytar. Am unsure about what features it supports and which not like for example, using it as a MIDI controller for a synth, DAW or Synthesia. Am also open for other suggestion for low budget starter keytars.

Hello everyone,

Recently I have been getting more into music, specifically learning basic music theory and starting to compose a bit, and I think it's time for me to start learning an instrument. I am naturally drawn to the keytar as my OC plays the keytar and I would love to do small performances cosplaying at cons playing the keytar some day. As an absolute beginner however, I am unsure which keytar to go for as I don't quite know which features I will need, which I would miss if I didn't have them and which are worth the extra price.

I did some research and currently my most likely pick seems to be the Yamaha Sonogenic SHS-300. It's low budget which is good in case I lose interest after a few weeks. (At the very least it will still make a good cosplay prop, hehe.) It's small, light weight and easy to transport. It's not just a MIDI controller and has a built in synthesizer and speaker so there won't be much carrying around of other devices at cons. And while I've heard people talk bad about jam mode, I think it is actually going to be pretty useful for me when I want to perform or sing while playing but haven't learned all the chords yet.

There are downsides to the SHS-300 of course. The available samples/voices that are included aren't a lot and fairly basic. It has smaller keys which could hurt my muscle memory if I decide to upgrade to a different keytar later. And of course visually it isn't the most interesting design. That being said, I do still believe the pros outweigh the cons which is why I am wondering what else I could do with an SHS-300.

The SHS-300 does have a USB port to send MIDI data but what could I do with it? Would it be possible to connect a synthesizer to the SHS-300 and simply use it as a MIDI controller? And then I suppose I would use the AUX In to have those synthesized sounds play out of the keytar's speaker, yeah? And would it also be possible to connect to USB port to my PC and then use my keytar to create melodies in DAWs or even practice songs I want to learn in software or games like Synthesia? That would be a lot of help to learn how to play!

The only other issue is that it is currently pretty difficult to get your hands on any Yamaha keytar. Barely anybody is offering them and the only places that do have them like eBay are located in Japan which could add some hefty import taxes/customs that need to be payed. (I'm from the EU for context.) I am definitely open to consider other keytars and am not set on my decision yet. However, I do believe the SHS-300 is my best fit.

I could go for something like the SHS-10 but it would miss some features I find intriguing like jam mode. There's also the SHS-500 and while it has more voices, the fact that the speaker is facing the wrong way is pretty bad if I don't wanna bring my own speaker. And the only similarly priced keytar I could get locally without having to deal with shipping costs or customs is the Alesis Vortex Wireless 2 which, don't get me wrong, could be a good keytar but I haven't looked too much into it yet. (I think that one is a MIDI controller only, no?)

Either way, I appreciate any input you all have on my matter whether it is answers to my questions, suggestions on which keytar I should look into or even places I could order them at.

Thank you for your time and (hopefully) reading all of this! Can't wait to hear what you have to say. :>