Getting stocked when researching digital pianos is very understandable in this day and age due to all the fancy naming some keyboards present, especially if you are a complete beginner and have no clue how the digital piano world works.
In our case, we are dealing with a very simple but tricky matter, regarding the Yamaha p115 digital piano.
One of the most popular “enigmas” surrounding this Yamaha digital piano is this:
What is the difference between Yamaha p115 and p115b?
So really what is the distinction? is the Yamaha p115b actually better or worst than the Yamaha’s p115 digital piano? what are the contrasts?
Yamaha p115 vs p115b resolved
The truth of the matter is that this P115 and p115b digital pianos are one and the same, yes one and the same.
I’ll explain:
I had the same problem my self when reaching for my very first ever digital piano, the Yamaha p45, the predecessor of our beloved p115.
Just like You, I actually came across this Yamaha p45 vs Yamaha p45b dilemma which I’ve written about in a previous article.
At first, I thought there was a hardware or software difference, in fact, I believed the Yamaha p45b to actually be superior to the normal Yamaha p45.
How I found out
I finally decided to give Yamaha musical center a call, explaining my current situation. The lady from Yamaha explained to me that the letters at the end of digital piano models are actually color indicators.
Meaning that there is not a difference in performance, but rather a difference in color.
- Yamaha p115 is referred as a white digital piano;
- Yamaha p115b is referred as a black digital piano;
Final Outcome
- No polyphony difference,
- no hammer action difference,
- no weight difference
- no performance difference
keep this in mind it is only a color distinction.
Why are not the vendors making this clear?
This is an interesting question if this small detailed was actually explained by big vendors you won’t have probably get bogged down with such a simple matter.
My best guess like I explained in the Yamaha p45 vs p45b article is that big corporation are not fully aware of how confusing a little b at the end of their digital pianos might be for complete beginners.
Having said that, I will say that this color contrast is actually specified in the description section of some vendors, nevertheless we the buyers do need more hints and help with digital piano terminologies such as this.
Hopefully, you have found this explanatory article clear and straightforward.
Yamaha p115b mini review
This mini-review section has been added to further complement your Knowlege about the Yamaha p115 digital piano.This is not a Paianokeysolution full review for the p115, there is already an in-depth breakdown of this 88 key piano from Yamaha with interactive imagery on this site.
History and Trademark
The Yamaha p115 digital piano is Yamaha’s most popular digital, due to its great performance, lite weight and price.This Yamaha musical instrument made a first appearance in 2015, replacing the good but old Yamaha p105 digital piano.
This weighted piano is part of the famous Yamaha’s P family, a series that specializes in portability. The p115 weighs 11.8kg, (26 pounds), a very reasonable weight for a musical instrument designed to be taken around with ease.
Polyphony
This piano as a total number of 192 polyphony note.
Beginners tend to find this concept of polyphony difficult to grasp, all You need to know is that the higher the ratio is the better it is, a piano with high polyphony note count allows better performance and this usually come at a very high price.
More on polyphony notes here: What is polyphony and why is it important?
Hammer action and keys
The Hammer action technology used for this musical instrument is the GHS, which stands for graded hammer standard action.This is not Yamaha’s very best, to be honest, nevertheless, it is a good hammer action.This is an 88-key piano keyboard which provides a heavier touch in the lower end of the piano and a lighter touch on the high end.
More on the GHS notes here: What is the GHS mechanism and why is it important?
is the Yamaha p115 digital good then?
There are more functionalities to point out about this piano keyboard, such as its functions, touch, ports and even mobile integration, this is just a general panoramic.
The Yamaha p115 is a good digital piano, perfect complete beginners, and intermediate players.
- Full Review article on the Yamaha P115 weighted keyboard.
