But some people said that digital piano lack of expressiveness, limited dynamic range, etc. And people also said that we can't play legato passages perfectly on digital piano.
Digital pianos (at least from mid-level price and up) have something resembling a hammer action.
This is absolutely correct! The reason why you cannot study legato properly on a digital piano is because it doesn't have piano keys. It has buttons which look like piano keys, but they do not function in the same way. Actual piano keys are levers that function in a highly particular way. Learning how to play piano requires us to understand these levers. The keys on digital pianos are not levers. They are just buttons. You push a button. You pull a lever. That is the difference.
If you have never seen the action of the Kawai digital pianos you can see them at Kawai's web sites ( US, Europe, World Wide etc). Still, to experience one you just have to play it. tHe same can be said for any piano, acoustic or digital, you must play them in order to get the one you most want.Sound is another matter though, there I may tweak for ever. It is good that I own an acoustic grand piano.
But to tell the truth, the MAJOR advantage of a digital is the headphone feature ... if I wanted to play aloud all the time, I would probably also have an upright, or even invest in a baby grand. But that is no option to me; I really really need those headphones. And my digital sounds perfect in those.
Hi Mr. Hfmadopter May I know about your relationship with classical music? Are u a serious classical pianist or a teacher, etc? Sorry to ask, just wanna know
Even if you have the money for a concert grand at home, in some countries, "hard work" on a regular instrument can get you in jail, like that Spanish pianist Laia M. not so long ago, so it's either:1) a good digital piano2) a full-time job to pay for the rent of another place to practise, which defeats the purpose because one has only 100% time + energy to reach a certain goal within a certain time frame.
As for buying one, go to a big dealer, ask for good headphones and try them out, multiple times. There's not much point for to say what you should buy because everybody has his own taste.
Thanks all for the feedback From the feedback above i can conclude that digital is still a good choice to practice, but if we can buy a grand piano then it's better. But for now i think will go to the digital one. I'm still a student and i'm sure you understand I wont distress my parents too much, they have give me a favor to upgrade my piano. The previous and still used is Yamaha DGX 630. I bought it when i was just enter piano course. I really hope that i can try Kawai CN34 myself before buy it, but i have no choice. In my city, only yamaha exist, i dont like it too much, so I decide to try Kawai CN34 which praised by many although i cant test it. But i hope i will like it
It very much depends on what you want to do with your music. If your goal is to become a concert pianist, then it's a no no. They clearly lack in tone, color, dynamics, pedaling, and sound in general. The touch is also very different. Though, if your goal is to become like a pianists for Weddings or bars or other things where the music isn't the main attraction, then a digital might work just fine, since you might need to carry one with you.
Hi, Just like add my experience with digital pianos to this thread. I bought a Clavinova 430 which yes has a good sound however I didn't like the key action at all. Far too heavy for my liking and it was aggravating my existing Arthritis. Eventually I had the chance to try the new Yamaha Nu1, liked it immediately. The key action was as near to an acoustic piano action as I have ever tried. (I have never tried the Kawaii range however) The sound was in my opinion superior to the Clavinovas also.
I had the rather interesting experience of taking a vacation for a week lately (how do you take a vacation when you are retired? Oh well...) and wanting to keep practicing. The place I went had available a very good Yamaha stage piano type of thing -- not sure of the model, but recent -- basically a keyboard and a stand to set it on, and a sustaining pedal switch. Good speakersI'd never played such a creature extensively before.Observations, for what they are worth: tone quality generally excellent, although the bass was poorly matched in quality to the treble (roughly from the C below middle C down was much more emphasized).The action was just plain weird feeling, but I'm used to a grand. Not bad action, but strange.There was no partial sustain, which I am quite accustomed to using.Nowhere near the dynamic range available.Perhaps the biggest difference, though, and one which would have a real impact on learning and practicing romantic and later pieces was that the notes did not sustain anywhere near as long as they do on my grands. The volume dropped off much more quickly and abruptly than I was used to.Just one old timer's observations...
Hi What do you think about digital piano for classical music?Personally i like digital piano, because it has more feature like recording, other sound, no need tuning, etc.But some people said that digital piano lack of expressiveness, limited dynamic range, etc. And people also said that we can't play legato passages perfectly on digital piano.My question is what do you think about some people statement above? is they right or wrong and why? i do really confused now If i go to digital piano, maybe i will take Kawai CN34. if i go to acoustic, maybe i will take Kawai K-3.What do you think about the instrument?Do you know dynamic sample level on kawai cn34?Thanks Sorry for my english
I think people that say that about digital are correct. There are a couple of major differences which digital cannot match. The first is that with an acoustic instrument, we are actually physically moving air. You can actually feel it in a way that a speaker cannot duplicate. This also creates a much larger dynamic range. The second difference is that the keys of the digital are programmed to be on or off and mixed with velocity . The keys on a acoustic piano are almost unlimited in how they strike the strings. And the way we release the key on an acoustic is also much more of an art. With digital it simply turns off even if we use sustain.
Actually, Yamaha digitals are incedibly good.
For practice any mid-range or better digital instrument is fine. The Royal Academy of Music in London even endorses the Yamaha CLP-440 as a good practice instrument to their piano students. They probably don't do that because it's not one...I own a Yamaha CLP-430 myself, which has the same action mechanism, but regular plastic-coated keys instead of synthetic ivory (which is more comfortable). You can't beat the sound of a well-maintained acoustic piano, but for reasons of practicality a digital instrument is unbeatable: practice all night at low volume or over headphones, hook it to your computer and use it as a MIDI keyboard, or even insert an USB stick with WAV recordings taken from a Music Minus One CD and play entire piano concerti without having to use a separate sound source for the orchestra, etc.And, not unimportant, it will save you at least 70 quid every year for having it tuned, and a few 100 every few years for having the action or the felt on the hammer tips sorted out.
As far as finances, the depreciation of the digital will probably far surpass the cost of tuning. Technology tends to make things worth far less in just a few years time.
the only yamaha digital piano that is halfway decent is the avantgrandeven then, there is almost no comparison.
Depends how you're planning to use the Clavinova. If you're using it for practising only, you should use a headphone and then the piano sounds and behaves really, really good (as long as you have a good headphone).If you dont want to use headphones for whatever for reason, you should use a grand clavinova and is ofcourse no match for a good accoustic grand, since the speakers face upwards and are of much better quality.
Hmm, ya decent head phones are quite realistic. Not sure how that makes up for poor action if a digital has that though.On another note, my MP6 uses external speakers, I have it rigged to a sub and off to two monitors. It sounds really nice in stereo using XLR and TRS cables. I originally had some TR cables in the mix and couldn't get the sound right . Balanced cables really do make a difference. I also changed the reverb to a bigger hall sound and it responded well to that too. I love the thing but it has been a very long learning experience that goes on and on. It's not an instrument you just take out of the box and start playing and everything will be right there all set to go. A lot of people have that impression with digital, not sure they make that D piano yet !
A lot of accoustic piano's have 'poor action' too, and just as accoustic ones are cheap accoustic piano's usually of worse quality than more expensive ones. Also, 'poor action' is often relative to the person; For example some Steinway models have this very small resistance point in their touche, wich i find really annoying though other people dont seem to have an issue with it.
Hi all, Thanks for comment and sharing knowledge I finally end up to Kawai CN34. I love the touch and the sound, especially when used headphone. There are big diffrences i feel, compared to my yamaha Dgx 630.Here is a video i play my Kawai CN34, maybe can help someone looking for CN34 demo
Very nice and glad it comes to a happy ending for you, enjoy !
It's not the ending, It's the start.. lol
The keys on digital pianos are not levers. They are just buttons. You push a button. You pull a lever. That is the difference.
Hi,I want to buy a Digital Piano for study at home. I want the keyboard to be as similar to a grand piano as it can get. I have tested until now the Kawai CN-34 and Yamaha CVP-601. The Kawai is out of the question because the keys are very light, but I understand that they have the CA line, which uses heavier keys (wood?).After some research on the net, I want to ask you, which action is more realistic :From the Kawai line: RM3 Grand II action with Let-Off and Triple Sensor (Kawai CA-15) Grand Feel (GF) action with Let-Off and Triple Sensor (Kawai CA-65&95) RH3 action, 88 weighted keys, Let-Off simulation (Kawai CN-25&35)From the Yamaha line: NVX (Natural Wood X) (Yamaha CLP-575-585) GH3X (Yamaha CLP-535) GH3 (Yamaha CLP-525)I have played on Kawai CN-34 (RH2) and Yamaha CVP-601 (GH3), and I liked the Yamaha.And suggestions ?
I also bought Pianoteq two years ago, as an addition to my Yamaha CLP 465GP. Although I am satisfied with the original instrument, I thought Pianoteq was a good bargain. It was also interesting to discover how the different sound experience seemed to have an effect on the touch itself - of course it was just an illusion, but therefore interesting.