Differences of the Digital Keyboard vs. Acoustic Piano

The digital piano keyboard sits on a stand or can be incorporated in a digital piano shell like that of the grand piano.  It has 88 full length keys that on touch can be made to feel like the same pressure of keys as the grand piano with lighter pressure on the treble cleff and more pressure on the bass.  The keyboard range is usually the same as the piano which is A0-C8. 

The digital piano is versatile in that it can be played in many styles, i.e. grand piano, harpsichord, strings, jazz and pipe organ as well as the more traditional styles of the piano which are classical, jazz and blues.  Of course, most of your classical pianists prefer the acoustic piano over the digital piano keyboard.

The size and weight of the digital piano is considerably lighter than the acoustic piano.  It can be carried around, it is portable, where the acoustic piano is too heavy to be carried everywhere.  The acoustic piano is large and cumbersome.

Periodically the piano will need cleaned of dusted and tuned.  An acoustic piano should be tuned at least 2x a year because the strings can become lose or too tight and cause an out of tune key when the hammer hits a string.  It is best to keep the piano away from sunlight, vents and windows avoiding things that would cause it to get warmer or cooler and affect the tuning of the piano.  The digital keyboard is never tuned because the sounds are in a program written to sound like a given style.   The acoustic piano must be kept in a room with  stable temperatures and humidity. 

Digital piano keyboards are less expensive than an acoustic piano and therefore more affordable for the beginning student of piano. 

Whichever you choose, be aware that both can be made to look the same aesthetically.  Today piano shells are made for the digital piano keyboard that make it look very similar to a grand piano or baby grand.

Amplifying the Digital Piano Keyboard

Most of the digital keyboards on the market do have amplifiers built in, but if yours does not, you will want to purchase one or two depending on your needs.  You will want a small amplifier of 15-20 watts for a small area.  You might also want to purchase an amplifier if you are going to be playing in large rooms or concert areas so that you can be heard all the way to the back row.  The larger your audience, the more power you should have behind your amplifier.  The more wattage you have in your amplifier, the louder it is and the more clear it sounds. You will usually need about 140-200 watts to be heard over the rest of the band instruments.  It is important to note however, that the more powerful your amplifier, the more it points to the weaknesses of your digital keyboard. This may be something you want to consider when buying your keyboard so that you don't purchase under what you are going to need.

Amplifiers are used to amplify digital keyboards, synthisizers and digital pianos. They usually contain a large woofer for bass sound and a horn or tweeter for the treble sound making the sounds more clear sounding to the audience. In most cases, the smaller the better for an amplifier because you will have to carry it around with your keyboard.  Amplifiers can get heavy. 

For most digital keyboard users, the simplet tone controls of treble and bass will be enough.  There are a few that will need the higher multiband control EQs which is also available.  So again, it depends on your needs as to what EQ you will need.

If you are strapped and cannot pay for an amp and your keyboard doesn't have one, you could try hooking in to your home sound system which will also give you some quality sound.

Last, but certainly not least, you want to stay away from the guitar amplifier.  The frequencies of the guitar amp are much lower than what you will need for your digital keyboard.  Your keyboard has a full frequency range and needs its own amplifier.  For more information about amplifiers and digital piano keyboards, click here.

An Introduction - Digital Piano Keyboards

The beauty of the digital keyboard lies within types of music played, the size of the keyboard and features and quite frankly, the sound.  This blog is a discussion of the digital keyboard and its pros and cons.  Our intent here is to answer some of your questions to give you a better idea of  digital piano keyboards so that you can be clear about what you need when you go to purchase.  If you have further questions, please feel free to leave them in the comments section.