Digital Pianos

Digital Pianos

Once upon a time, the only piano you could buy was a large and ridiculously expensive acoustic grand piano. Thanks to advances in flash memory, sampling, and other digital technology, we now have more compact and affordable options known as digital pianos. As time goes on, these digital options continue to get closer to genuine acoustic pianos in terms of sound and feel. In fact, many traditional piano brands have sampled their most famous grand pianos to make the signature tone available in portable digital models. The keyboards on digital pianos are designed with special weighted actions and textured finishes to simulate the ebony and ivory keys on acoustic instruments.

At Sam Ash, we carry digital pianos from all the premier brands including Yamaha, Casio, Korg, Kawai, Roland, Medeli, and many more. Nearly all of these brands offer digital pianos in two distinct formats, digital stage pianos and digital upright pianos. Digital stage pianos are more portable and offer features like audio outputs for connecting to portable keyboard amplifiers or house PA Systems. You should buy a digital stage piano if you want an instrument you can bring back and forth to different live shows. We offer great keyboard accessories for stage digital pianos including keyboard stands, keyboard travel bags, keyboard benches, and more. Be sure to check out our keyboard packages which include everything you need to perform and practice with your new instrument. Upright digital pianos resemble the standard grand piano format. They offer built-in stands and look great in your home or apartment. Upright digital pianos are less portable but they offer larger built-in speakers for more intimate performances.

How to Choose a Digital Piano

At Sam Ash, we offer digital pianos for any type of budget. Premium models will offer features like weighted keys, LCD menus for simplified setup, and more after effects such as reverb. With weighted keys, the lower keys feel heavier and the higher keys feel lighter, just like you would find on acoustic models. Higher-end digital pianos will even offer keys made out of wood for a real premium response. Another specification to consider when it comes to choosing your piano is how many notes of polyphony is offered. Polyphony signifies the maximum number of notes that an instrument can produce at one time. If you are interested in layering notes, complex chords, and playing over accompaniment tracks, you should consider a model with higher polyphony. The amount of voices or different types of sounds and the quality of those sounds are also critical features that differentiate digital pianos. These days, most digital pianos offer more than just a traditional grand piano tone. Less expensive models will include four to five presets including strings, harpsichord, and drums. The top-of-the-line digital piano models can offer hundreds of different sounds spanning any genre of music you can think of. Other advanced features on today's best digital pianos include built-in recorders, compatibility with iOS apps for playing along with your favorite songs, and effects that simulate settings like lid positioning and performance venue. Be sure to check out our extensive Digital Piano Buyers Guide and our Digital Pianos: Everything You Need to Know article for further guidance on selecting the perfect digital piano for you.

Learn How to Play Piano

If you want to learn to play the piano, digital pianos offer many benefits compared to acoustic grand pianos. Most digital pianos we sell offer split or dual mode. Engaging this feature separates the keyboard into two identical keyboards with the same notes and octave. This allows you to play along with your piano teacher so they can walk you through chords, melodies and full songs. Select models also offer built-in demo songs with step by step instructions on how to play them.

Of course, for any student or beginner, Sam Ash carries a full assortment of sheet music and books specifically geared toward budding piano players. We recommend starting with a piano instructional book or piano instructional DVD to learn the basics of music theory, chord progressions, and techniques like which fingers to use on certain scales and the proper ready position. We also have manuscripts for tracking your progress. Once you master the essentials, you can move on to piano music books that will teach you how to play your favorite songs on piano. Here at Sam Ash, we have an incredible selection of music books ranging from books focused on specific albums to compilation books that offer guides to mastering the best hits from a certain decade or genre.

If you're looking to take lessons with a piano instructor, be sure to check out one of our nearest Sam Ash Learning Centers, where you will find highly-trained, professional piano teachers on staff that are enthusiastic about teaching piano lessons!