If you are someone who has never had a synthesizer before in their life, then it can be pretty intimidating to get into it. Even if you have some experience, being a beginner is challenging. As with anything, it always helps to have the best tools to work with from the start, that way you have your foundation set. With the best synthesizers for beginners, (almost) anyone can go from a helpless newbie to a musical genius. Over time, you will get better and having an awesome synth will make the process a whole lot easier. Take a look at the greatest beginner synthesizers you can get in this calendar year. You can also see which the best synthesizers are, period. Keep in mind however that they may be too advanced for beginners.
Best synthesizers for beginners to buy:
Unfortunately, not every stage of being a beginner is the same, and some are more advanced, yet they are still by definition beginners. This small synthesizer keyboard is perfect for those who are not yet at an advanced stage of their musical journey, and it is great for first timers as well. The best way to describe it would be to say it has an excellent balance of simplicity in its user interface and functionality, yet it has a level of complexity to it too. If for some reason you don't totally love this keyboard, then a good alternative that keeps many of the same components would be the Korg MS20 synth.
It is rather odd to list a synthesizer brand on a list that I have little experience with, but this MiniNova synth by Novation was good enough in my experience with it to have it here. By most peoples' standards in this industry, the sound quality isn't too fabulous, but for the price it's phenomenal. It isn't fair to compare it to something like the JUNO DS88 or the Moog Sub Phatty. It is fair to state however that if you take into account all synths under $500, then this is definitely one that has some of the most powerful and rich sound quality. Novation's MiniNova doesn't come as loaded with features as most 88-key synthesizers, but it does have 256 awesome onboard sounds, which are surprisingly diverse and versatile. Check out the MiniNova review.
Yamaha is known to make some pretty spectacular synthesizers – just take a look at some of my reviews, or see the Montage 8. But can they make good synthesizers for beginners? In my experience, the answer to that question is yes, yes they can. The REFACE is an instrument that I unfortunately did not get a chance to spend too much time with, but in the time I did use it I learned a couple of things. First, this keyboard comes with built-in speakers. At first, you might not think that means much, but actually most synthesizers don't come with this feature, and are heard only on an external platform or through a headphone jack. What I do like, is that the sounds are vintage and the quality is above average.
A keyboard synthesizer is a device that 'synthesizes' an artificial sound that can be played through an external speaker. These sounds can vary from instruments, drums, and waveforms. The technology has become so advanced that it is much more challenging to tell a synthesizer from a real instrument. Here is an example of that. Music Keyboard is a free software synthesizer app for Windows 10. This app contains more than 700 sounds and 5 different synthesizer engines. In it, you can play and edit MIDI songs and also save songs as audio files (WAV, WMA, and MP3). It also lets you record voice through a microphone, so you can mix vocals with synthesized sounds to produce.
Roland does not only make super high-end products (even though that's what they're generally best known for), they also make more affordable products. The great thing is that these products are no less wonderful when you take into consideration what and who they were made for. This JD-Xi might catch you off guard. The menu interface isn't the best, but let's face it; you aren't going to get a great UI on smaller devices anyway. All things considered, the JD-Xi is a fascinating product and Roland should be very happy with what they have here. Check out the JD-Xi review as well.
Anyone who has had the chance to read any of my prior work with Synthesizer Guide knows that I am a huge fan of the OP-1 synthesizer. It's manufacturer – Teenage Engineering did an absolutely outstanding job in creating this small, yet huge masterpiece. Compared to the other products here, this one is well above the average price-point, but it does so much more while being visibly smaller in size. Not only is it a simple product, but it does more than every one of the products listed above it, and the sounds are just fantastic. If you're serious about producing, then the OP-1 might be for you. It's even great for beginners, and many talented artists such as Childish Gambino use or have used this synthesizer.
Narrowing It Down
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Depending on what level you expect to play/perform at, you will have different instruments which are better suited for beginners that can last all the way through an intermediate level. Such is the case with the OP-1 and Roland JD-Xi, as they are slightly more capable and complex then something like the MicroKorg. If you aren't sure where this road will take you and you would consider yourself to be more of a casual artist, then you can definitely look at a cheaper and less performance-oriented option. Price is obviously something that has to be considered, so even though you might want to one day be an intermediate artist, you might not have the funds for the Teenage Engineering synthesizer right now.
What Is Most Important?
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There are many different aspects to synthesizers and as a beginner, you might not yet know what is the most important part of choosing an instrument. Is it the sound quality? The sound variation and features, or the user interface and style of the keyboard? In most cases, the best synthesizer for a beginner will be one which lets the user explore the instrument the most and experiment with the most amount of sounds and features. Sound quality is not as important for a beginner in most cases, because actually learning how to play the synthesizer and become a good producer is more important at the beginner level.
Conclusion
Best Synthesizer Keyboard
While I was only able to list a handful, there are tons of synthesizers for beginners and many of them are not worth purchasing. As a beginner, choosing the right synth is important; this is the instrument that will propel your learning process after all. As someone who has once been new to this world, I can honestly say that the best synthesizer is the one that helps you learn the most.
