Ideal for more demanding students and experienced players alike.

Perfect for beginning students and experienced players alike, the ARIUS / YDP series provides true piano sound and feel. The Graded Hammer keyboard makes it a true joy to play, both in practice and in performance. The 3-level AWM Dynamic Stereo Sampling Voices deliver remarkably authentic sound, and YDP-181 incorporates a USB device port for storing songs recorded on the instrument. Moreover, the damper pedal includes a half-damper effect, giving you nuanced expressive control over the sustained sound. Dual Voice capability lets you play two different instrument sounds at the same time, while a 3-track song recorder allows you to capture your original musical ideas and performances.

Graded Hammer (GH) Keyboard

Just as on a traditional acoustic piano, lower notes on a GH keyboard have a heavier touch, while the higher ones are more responsive to lighter playing. GH features an extra key sensor capable of reproducing fast repetitive playing of a single note with perfect articulation. The matte finish of the black keys enhances the keyboard's luxurious appearance.

The piano sound is a sampling from one Yamaha Full Concert Grand Piano "CFIIIS", which has won high acclaim at the world's most famous concert halls and music competitions. The best piano was selected, and an experienced tuner adjusted it to ensure it was in top condition. Sampling is carefully performed over a long period, from when the sound starts until it fades out, to reproduce a natural sound and attenuation not commonly seen in digital pianos. In addition, they also focus on the change in timbre due to the strength or weakness of the key strike that is unique to acoustic pianos. Sound sampling covered more than 10 stages of key strike strength for each keyboard.

The Yamaha development team spent a lot of time together with pianists in thorough pursuit of the optimum touch and timbre combination, resulting in the achievement of natural sound changes that sound like a person is actually playing a grand piano, no matter how the keyboard is played.

Variable Touch Sensitivity Via Dedicated Panel Button

Use the dedicated “TOUCH” button on the front panel, select the hard, medium or soft setting to match your playing style or finger strength. Turn off sensitivity for a fixed response setting, ideal when playing the organ.

Advanced Wave Memory (AWM) Dynamic Stereo Sampling

The AWM (Advanced Wave Memory) is a sampling system which creates the realism of an acoustic instrument by using digital technology to record the instrument sound and applying high-quality digital filter technology to the recorded audio samples. The waveform of the sound created by playing the key of an acoustic piano differs depending on the playing strength from pianissimo to fortissimo. The AWM Dynamic Stereo Sampling can produce such dynamic nuances by recording samples of various playing strengths. The greater the number of samples used, the higher the expression.

USB connectivity for storing and playing music

Insert an optional USB storage device into the USB port to save and transfer your performances.

128-note Polyphony

Conventional digital pianos quickly run out of notes during fast, dense legato passages: sustained notes are cut off as the instrument "steals" notes to make room for new notes. A maximum of up to 128-note can be played at once.

Damper Resonance

Damper Resonance samples provided the rich and broadening tones produced in pedaling. Using these comprehensive gradations, YDP-181 model can realistically reproduce the complex sounds of a grand piano.

Song Recorder

The built-in, 3-song performance memory allows you to record a song, then step into the spotlight and solo over it. Best of all, you can change tempo or Voices even after you've recorded your performance. There's also a built-in metronome to help you stay in perfect time. Once you’ve recorded your song, you can transfer them to a USB flash drive via the USB TO DEVICE port and load them on to your computer for backup, import into a notation program for printing or into a MIDI sequencing program for further editing.

50 Preset Piano Songs

50 classic piano songs are provided in the song player and as a music book, "50 Greats for the Piano." These songs can be used for background music or as learning reference.

Stereo 16cm Speakers

Enjoy full, stereo sound from the built-in stereo 16cm speakers. Bigger speakers mean deeper lows for greater bass response.

Product Specifications

Similar Yamaha Products to Consider

Yamaha ARIUS YDP-161 Digital Piano with Bench -- The ARIUS YDP-161 provides true piano tone and touch. The GH keyboard and 3-level AWM Dynamic Stereo Sampling voices deliver remarkably authentic sound and natural expressiveness. The damper pedal includes a half-damper effect, giving you nuanced expressive control over sustained notes. Dual voice capability lets you play two different instrument sounds at the same time, and a 2-track song recorder allows you to capture your original musical ideas and performances.Stepping up to the YDP-161 provides true piano sound and feel. The 128-note polyphony responds to the beginner and experienced player, both in practice and in performance.