Piano Video Lesson: Are Digital Pianos Better Than Acoustic Pianos?

Hi, I'm Robert Estrin and this is livingpianos.com. And today the question is, which are better, acoustic or digital pianos?

Now you might think that I would immediately say, "Oh man, there's nothing like an acoustic piano." And I kind of feel that way. However, it's not a matter of which is better, it's which is appropriate for the task. Think about this, for example, here, I have a hybrid instrument that I am developing, and it's possible to interface with music software.

Now with a piano, you can put some sorts of MIDI sensors under the keys that can do some of that. But obviously there are benefits to this, having different piano sounds, orchestrations, being able to play with headphones. So there are many benefits to technology. Digital pianos also don't require the same maintenance. In some situations, a good digital piano is a great choice. Or how about if you want something portable? Taking even an upright piano to gigs, good luck with that. Having a good digital piano, one you can put under your arm, is a godsend, or if you're living in very small quarters, if you have neighbors. So it's not that one is better than the other.

Now what about if you just have a certain budget for a piano and maybe none of those benefits of a digital piano are particularly important to you? Then should you just automatically get an acoustic piano? Even then, not necessarily. Because for price versus performance, if you had just a limited amount of money to spend on a piano, for way under $3,000, you can get some really seriously good digital pianos.

Acoustic pianos in the $3,000 price range, you're really pretty severely limited. It's going to be a short upright with a slower action than a grand. It's going to have an anemic sound in the bass. You're not going to get much of a piano at that price point. If you get to that even lower price point, closer to $1,000, good luck finding any kind of piano in the used market that plays okay, that doesn't require a lot of work. And then you're going to have to spend hundreds of dollars just to get it to your home and tune it and all the rest of it.

So at a price point, it's possible that a digital piano could be a better choice for you. So while I love playing my grand piano, I also love the technology and what it affords. There are many benefits to each of these, and you have to find what works for you and what's important to you. And how you're using the instrument, where you're playing it, and what your goals are with it. If you want to have a concert grand bass in an instrument that's the of an upright, you're not going to be able to achieve that with an acoustic piano.

So there are lots to consider here. I hope this has been educational for you. Any if you have questions about this, you're welcome to contact me anytime. This is my passion and happy to share it with you. Again, this is livingpianos.com. Your online piano resource, lots of subscribers here. You're welcome to subscribe if you haven't already, here and on Patreon. We'll see you next time.

Find the original source of this video at this link: https://livingpianos.com/are-digital-pianos-better-than-acoustic-pianos/

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