Digital Piano Buyer’s Guide | What to Look for When Buying a Digital Piano

You’re looking into digital pianos likely because you play but are piano-less; you want to start piano lessons (or take them up again); or you want your child(ren) to play because it’s a beautiful thing plus you know the powerful, positive effect learning a musical instrument has on a child’s development in math, science, and social skills (if you don’t, please spend some time here looking at the research).

There are several reasons to choose a digital piano over an acoustic piano: 

• Room size
• Expense
• Features

There are also several reasons to choose a digital piano over a keyboard:

• Piano-like touch
• Piano-like tone
• Aesthetically pleasing looks

The good news is, there are lots of choices! The bad news is … there are lots of choices. And they are all not equal. While the price of a digital piano is more affordable than an acoustic piano, it is still an investment. So, you want to do some research and make the right choice.

What Is a Digital Piano? 

Let’s back up for a moment. Pianos are intricate instruments with up to 12,000 individual parts mostly made of organic materials like wood and steel. They are rich in tone and to the touch, with weighted keys that allow for both the most expressive and most rollicking playing. Keyboards are all electronic, all plastic, and often don’t all have the full 88 keys pianos come with.

Enter the digital piano: While many have the best of the cool features of a keyboard, the superior ones are designed and built to replicate the touch, tone, look, and feel of an acoustic piano. While most models have portable versions that sit on a stand, the nicer ones come with attractive cabinets that look great in your home.

Do I Need Weighted Keys?

While most piano teachers prefer to teach students who have an acoustic piano, a well-made digital piano is just as acceptable. Having an instrument that has the full 88-keys with the touch and feel of weighted keys is necessary to learning the instrument properly. Many teachers refuse to teach on a plastic keyboard without weighted keys because kids quickly lose interest (though learning the keyboard from a keyboardist is an entirely different thing!). 

So “weighted keys” – solid wood-like keys as opposed to plastic – are essential. But know that all weighted keys are not equal, and some digital pianos reproduce those piano-like keys better than others. When shopping at a respected dealership, compare the feel of digital piano keys with acoustic piano keys and it’ll be clear right away.

Where to Start

If you’re shopping for a digital piano, then touch, tone, and looks are a priority. So, consider starting your research with the ones made by companies that make award-winning acoustic pianos. You’ll find that the highly skilled technicians who design and build acoustic pianos come to the digital piano workbench with a clear understanding of what they are creating. If they have the ability to build truly great acoustic pianos, they are going to go beyond “just” a good piano sound and build something that captures the heart and soul of a piano with all the subtlety and nuances of an instrument that will provide you with years of joy and satisfaction. 

So, a manufacturer who has been building acoustic pianos for nearly a century and has been building digital pianos for decades is recommended. 

How Much Should I Spend on my First Digital Piano?

On this question, the old axiom “you get what you pay for” comes into play. While there are always cheap products in any category, if you’re looking for a console-style digital piano that has features you can play and learn with, will look good in your home, and has fantastic-sounding speakers, expect to pay about $1,000 on the lower end and $3,000 on the higher end. 

Important Digital Piano Terms

Polyphony

Simply, it’s the number of notes that can be played at once, and you want at least 120; in fact, the closer to 200, the better. Why, you only have 10 fingers, you’re thinking … well, think of a fast boogie-woogie or ornate classical piece that sweeps up and down the keyboard. You want every note to linger as long as you want without being digitally cut off. (For perspective, the acoustic piano’s polyphony is essentially infinite.)

Piano Harmonics

If you want to deep dive into an extremely scientific explanation, check out this paper. But simply, “harmonics” has to do with the “rich, full” sound of the piano which in a practical sense involves the acoustic piano hammer hitting the string of a note and in addition to hearing that note, you’re hearing the overtones of that note. So, you want a digital piano that replicates that essential tonal property in terms of “harmonic imaging.”

Responsive Hammer Action

Digital pianos that best replicate the physical hammer-on-strings sound and feel are most advantageous for learning and performing. Fun fact: the piano was originally called the “piano-forte” when it was first invented in the early 1700s. Prior keyboard instruments like the harpsichord “plucked” the strings, and the organ was strictly mechanical. One volume. In Italian, “piano” is soft; “forte” is loud. So, this was a keyboard that was responsive to how delicately or how heavily you hit it – not only in volume, but in tone (and the louder a key is played, the more overtones)..

Pedals

Traditional acoustic pianos almost always come with three pedals. They are, left to right, the soft pedal (or una corda); the sostenuto pedal (partial sustain on selected notes); and the sustaining pedal (or damper pedal).

Traditional pianos are made with three strings per note for that full, rich harmonic sound. The “una” pedal dampens two of the three, thus not only making it softer volume-wise, but also changing the timbre.

The middle pedal can sustain selected notes (it’s not commonly used). The sustain or damper pedal allows the notes to ring out, providing a lush sound (it’s used the most).

If you’re looking for that true acoustic piano look, feel, and sound, you’ll want one with all three pedals. (Bonus: The sustain/damper pedal has half pedaling capabilities.)

MIDI

This term stands for Musical Instrument Digital Interface technology and allows one instrument to connect with another instrument or device (like recording equipment or a computer). Ideally, get a digital piano that has MIDI integrated with Bluetooth technology that allows the instrument to communicate with supported smart devices wirelessly.

Digital Piano Features

Whew! We’ve spent a lot of time talking about getting as close to an acoustic piano as possible. Now let’s talk about the fun stuff.

Lesson Features

Is there a well-known, well-respected piano method lesson program built in? Can you “split” the keyboard into dual/four-hands modes and re-create two pianos for side-by-side lessons? Is there a built-in metronome?

Additional Sounds

You want one with a variety of piano sounds (“concert,” “modern,” “mellow,” etc.). But you also want the sounds of electric piano, jazz organ, strings, choir, etc.

Recording

Does it have recording capabilities? 

Special Keyboard Features

Are there sonic enhancements like reverb, etc.? 

Headphones

Does it have one or two outlets? Can you control the EQ on it?

Built-In Speakers

All these come with speakers, and some are better than others. What is the wattage? (More is better – 20 is better than 10, etc.) Overall quality? 

Additional Devices

Does it have USB/remote play capabilities so you can have it “playing” via your phone or tablet for your own enjoyment or while you have guests over? Can it interact with your device? 

Finally: Does it look nice? Is it aesthetically pleasing? Does it enhance the room? (And there are some that are cleverly and beautifully built to give the appearance of a small baby grand.)

Final Thoughts

Purchasing a digital piano is an investment. It’s for you, your family members, and your children to enjoy and benefit from. Get something from a respected piano maker, with exceptional touch and tone and inspiring features, which will last a lifetime. You’ll be glad you did.