A digital piano is a must-have instrument for every music lover. Digital pianos have undergone many developments in recent years in terms of components and quality. Due to plenty of functions and features, they are the best for beginners who want to learn music.
They are a significant upgrade and alternative to acoustic pianos. However, buying a digital piano can be challenging for beginners, especially if they don’t know much about a piano. This post shares some tips for buying a digital piano for the first time.
Portability
The digital pianos available in the market are much lighter and compact than the conventional acoustic pianos. Also, the console of existing models comes with a cabinet like traditional pianos, but they weigh less than them. Most models come in a compact size that you can quickly put them in your car while going for an event or practice session.
Recording capability
Most of the digital pianos available in markets enable you to record your performance, but there are some models without the recording feature. If you want to learn or play seriously, you need to buy a piano with recording capability. Nobody wants to play their best without recording it to play it later. Recording your music also enables you to share it later with your friends.
Connectivity
Connectivity is another essential feature in this digital era. Every device you see today like watches, smartphones, computers, and fitness devices comes with connectivity features. Connectivity in a piano means you should be able to connect it with other devices like a computer or music player or recording devices. It allows you to transfer your recordings to other devices and use them when required.
Volume and versatility
A traditional piano creates volume, depending on how hard you tap its keys. However, a digital piano is much different than its acoustic counterpart. It offers you more control over its volume. You can easily control over a wide range of volume and also practice on low volume that is close to silence. Moreover, you should look for features to add drums, woodwinds, brass, and other sounds to enhance the performance of a piano.
Keys
Most digital pianos come with 88 keys as they are made to mimic the real pianoforte. Some musical keyboards come with 61 keys while others with 76 keys. It is the difference between a digital piano and a keyboard. So, it is essential to check the number of keys to ensure you buy a digital piano and not a keyboard.
Polyphony
Polyphony is important to consider when it comes to purchasing a digital piano. Polyphony means the number of notes a digital piano can play one after another with the decay or previous note still in progress. As you advance as a player, you will need a higher polyphony to play with expression. Therefore, it is better to purchase a digital piano with a modest amount of polyphony.
Teaching and learning tools
Digital pianos are designed for beginners, as most manufacturers offer lessons for the students and learners. The built-in lessons, note/chord displays, metronomes and exercises, and access to online tutorials help the beginners to learn to play and composing music. Displays showing the chords being played and lighting schemes can help students to pick the right chords and melodies.
Amplifier and Speaker
The amplifier in a digital piano determines the volume and quality of sound it will produce. If you want a piano for home use and practice, a standard amp will do a perfect job. However, if you want to perform in concerts and events, you need an amplifier that can handle connectivity with external speakers and other amplifiers. So, it is essential to consider the amplifier and speaker while buying a digital piano.
Price
In addition to quality and features, the price of the piano is an essential factor to consider. The price you need to pay while buying and the cost of maintenance, both needs to be considered. The maintenance of digital pianos is quite low as compared to their acoustic counterparts. As they don’t need much maintenance, its cost is also low. So, you need to consider the price you need to pay for buying a piano.
Size of the piano
The size of a piano is worth considering, as it should fit in the space where you want to play or store it. If you are buying a piano for a child, the height of the keyboard should be less. Moreover, if you want to play in concerts and music events, the piano should fit in the vehicle that you use for traveling.
Your Skills
If you have never played piano in your life and buying to start playing, you should prefer a low-cost model with inbuilt learning tools. On the other hand, if you have some skills and experience, you should go for an advanced model. A person with a few months of experience should check things like touch response, sensitivity, and other advanced features that matter for them.
Velocity sensitivity
The digital pianos can sense subtle differences in the velocity that determines the volume and attack of each note the user play. The digital pianos available at low prices have switches, to adjust the volume level, which ensures that they don’t have real velocity sensitivity. The high-quality pianos come with volume control knobs instead of switches. Users can adjust the overall output using the volume knob or slider. The volume on pianos with velocity sensitivity is determined by the way how hard a user strikes their keys.
Final Words
These are the points to consider while buying a digital piano for beginners. To get a high-quality piano at a reasonable price, you can look for musical instruments for sale online. Buyers can also visit a physical store and check all the above-given things to find the right piano for them. The key to finding the right piano is to make a list of all the features you want and your requirements and check the same while buying.