Yamaha PSR-60 Portasound

A few years later, I begged my parents for a synthesizer. I pictured a DX7, but on Christmas morning I opened a TX81Z and a MIDI cable. Downside: enormous learning curve. Upside: no one told me that managing patches through the front menu, or learning the basics of FM synthesis, was hard. I picked up an awful lot of low-level technical information simply because I didn't know I couldn't.

A couple years ago, Yamaha released the PSS-A50, PSS-F30, and PSS-E30. They're three-octave keyboards with smaller keys... something that Yamaha hasn't had in their product lineup for a while. They compete with other miniature keyboards like the Casio SA-46, Alesis Melody 32, or other low-end keyboards.

What I like about the PSS-A50 is that it makes it easy to grab a keyboard, go somewhere, and make music. The sounds are respectable and the key action is the same as the higher-end miniature keyboards like the Yamaha Reface series (and I've always liked Yamaha keyboard action). You can play the PSS-A50 by itself, or you can plug it into a computer, and it runs off AA batteries. The "low battery" indicator even works correctly with rechargeable NiMH batteries.

The PSS series cost $100, which puts them above well above the price of their competitors. But they're just so nice, and they straddle the line really well between "make it fun to play" and "make it useful for musicians".