Question for pianists who use acoustics and digitals.

[schimmel]

I know it will be far from the same but which digital piano comes closest to emulating the feel and touch of a Steinway D or any other professional piano?

ATM I need convenience, so I think digital is the best temporary solution. I am interested in the GEM PRP-800, Yamaha P140 and Korg SP-250. Like a grand, it's touch should be heavier than an upright but more responsive. Thus you can do trills, repeated notes, glissandi etc.

Sound is important, but takes a secondary position b/c I've learnt that you can "upgrade" the sound using modules.

What are your experiences on the above?

Thanks.

[yamaha2006]

Hi,

I do not know the type name but I know that Yamaha are the best in emulation of Grands.
Then you should ask a dealer if it is a CF3 or Steinway D?
But CF3 is excellent, you will not see the difference since this is implemented with 0 and 1...the sound is synthetized, then whether a CF3 or Steinway, it's quite the same numerically...

[yamaha2006]

Search for Clavinova !

hope you will get a good piano !

[gyzzzmo]

I agree with yamaha. I have visited loads of shops and played sjietloads of digital piano's, and my experience is that the clavinova's excel.
Still, digital piano's sound like crap compared with accoustic ones.

gyzzzmo

[leahcim]

I know it will be far from the same but which digital piano comes closest to emulating the feel and touch of a Steinway D or any other professional piano?

ATM I need convenience, so I think digital is the best temporary solution. I am interested in the GEM PRP-800, Yamaha P140 and Korg SP-250. Like a grand, it's touch should be heavier than an upright but more responsive. Thus you can do trills, repeated notes, glissandi etc.

Sound is important, but takes a secondary position b/c I've learnt that you can "upgrade" the sound using modules.

What are your experiences on the above?

Thanks.

I'd be stunned despite the other comments if you can find a Yamaha that emulates a Steinway D in any form After all, their acoustics are yamahas and they use those to record to make their digitals. It aint gonna sound like a Steinway this week

IMHO, get the Gem. The action might be closer to Horowitz than some of the threads in here that talk about their teachers heavy Steinways. But it's not excessively light though.

I'd add the Kawai ES-4 [or MP4/MP8] to your list [...and chuck the Korg off it You'd probably add Roland 300sx before that ]

As for modules, you'd probably be better going down the route of software piano samples on a computer - but the price of the stage pianos you're looking at probably mean you're just as well getting one you like the action of, and having the piano sound built in, as you are getting a midi controller - because the price is not much different and there aren't a plethora of weighted midi controllers with superlative actions afaiaa.

[nsvppp]

I'd be stunned despite the other comments if you can find a Yamaha that emulates a Steinway D in any form After all, their acoustics are yamahas and they use those to record to make their digitals. It aint gonna sound like a Steinway this week

I think I read somewhere in a Yamaha booklet that Yamaha uses a Steinway grand to emulate the sounds. So the Clavinova might sound the same as a Steinway from a distance. Nearby you miss the feeling inside of you of the strings vibrating and you miss the vibrations through the keys.

 

[leahcim]

I think I read somewhere in a Yamaha booklet that Yamaha uses a Steinway grand to emulate the sounds.

Wasn't it Victor Cranberry who said "Yamaha make two good things - money and motorbikes, I'd take the money" ;o)

I'm pretty sure Yamaha digitals sample Yamaha pianos. [It'd be pretty much a PR disaster for them to do otherwise if you think about it - You'd have to hope they at least have some faith in their ability to make a piano that's worth sampling ]

Perhaps they've put the odd sample that hasn't been - some of the Synths / workstations have more samples than the average digital piano's one or two samples plus eq'd variations on them after all.

The Clavs and Grandtouch certainly are sampled Yamahas.

It's moot though, the kawai I suggested is a sampled Kawai and won't sound like a Steinway either but it's still worth trying.

[yamaha2006]

Clavinova are quite good..I began on a clivinova, it's excellent for the fingers because the keyboard was very very heavy ...you have to hit the key with force...

[andric_s]

I've tried alot of digital pianos, and I've yet to find one that can compare to even the unmaintained old upright in the garage, let alone to a Steinway D. 

For the money, the Yamaha P series is pretty good.  Anything with internal speakers will at least give you the above-mentioned vibration in the keys.  Sometimes I play a P80 when I have to, and I don't totally hate the piano sound.  I'm not sure about the p140, but I know they used a different set of samples when they replaced the p80 with the p90.  The action is certainly better than any Roland or Korg.

The Clavinovas are great.  More expensive than the P's, though.  You'd probably do better to buy a real piano.

I'm not familiar with the GEM.  The Yamaha beats the Korg hands down in terms of tone and touch (the Korg is kind of mushy).

I don't know of any sound modules that have better piano sounds than the Yamaha p's already have.  If you are counting on using a module, and you are looking at a keyboard with internal speakers, make sure the keyboard has audio inputs... otherwise you'll need an external amplifier to use the module.