🎹Digital vs Acoustic Pianos - What Should You Buy? What are the Differences?🎹

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We appreciate everyone joining us for another piano video here at Merriam Pianos! In this video, Stu Harrison dives into some of the critical differences between acoustic and digital pianos, pros and cons of both, and which option might be better for you . We hope you enjoy the video, and please chime in and leave us a comment!


ACOUSTIC VS DIGITAL: PIANO ACTION

Acoustic Action - Acoustic piano action design has continuously evolved for over 300 years now, with the goal of providing the player with the greatest possible control over the speed and expression, or volume, of the notes being played. Essentially, an acoustic piano action is a mechanical link between the key and the hammer, which strikes the strings of a piano at different velocities. With over 4,000 moving parts, acoustic piano actions are highly intricate.

Digital Action - The role of digital piano action is to simulate the feel of an acoustic action by sending an electronic signal to a computer when the key is pressed. The signal contains information such as how hard the key is pressed, and that signal is then interpreted through sensors and a modelled or sampled piano tone is generated. Much of the early criticism of digital pianos centered around an overall lack of sensor accuracy, unrealistic feeling keys, and the fact that the internal computers were not sophisticated enough to offer any type of nuance or dynamic subtlety. The overwhelming consensus from most pianos teachers was that a digital piano was simply not an adequate substitution for a student to learn piano.


ACOUSTIC VS DIGITAL: TONE

Acoustic Piano Tone: On an acoustic piano, when a key is pressed, a hammer extends and strikes the strings. The sound of the strings is then transmitted to the soundboard via the bridge. The soundboard essentially functions as a very large speaker, amplifying and projecting the sound outwards as it resonates. The higher quality the piano, the more the entire structure of the piano resonates to help produce sound.

Digital Piano Tone: A digital piano’s tone is re-produced the same way as a stereo. An audio signal is sent to an amplifier, which then powers a speaker system. Most digital pianos have two speakers, but certain models will be equipped with four or sometimes even more.


ACOUSTIC VS DIGITAL: PROS AND CONS

Digital Pro’s: One of the huge pros of going with a digital piano over an acoustic is the price. With technology and build quality in 2019, a digital piano for $1000 - $2000 can deliver a far better tone, action, and overall experience than an equally-priced acoustic piano. Although even the best digital pianos can’t simulate the resonance and tonal complexity of a high-quality acoustic upright or grand, the same can’t be said for an over-worn and poorly maintained used piano 30 years old or more.

A second pro is certainly the lack of needed maintenance - besides paying your hydro bills, there’s not much you’ll need to keep up a digital piano. Turn it on, choose your settings, and off you go.

Digital Cons: While a digital piano will be just fine for the first few years of learning, once the student achieves a certain level of progress, upgrading to an acoustic piano is necessary for continued progression. For those looking to avoid a “stepping stone”, going with a good quality acoustic piano right away takes care of the need for a costly upgrade down the road.

Acoustic Pro’s: A potentially important consideration and strong advantage of going with an acoustic piano is longevity - even a basic acoustic piano is going to provide you with 30-40 years of use.

Acoustic Cons: The big one here is of course maintenance. An acoustic piano needs to be tuned at least once a year, or if it’s receiving lots of use, twice a year. Humidity needs to be monitored and kept as stable possible since sudden and drastic shifts in relative humidity can lead to potential issues given all of the wood components found in a piano.

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