This month, let's tackle the question of digital pianos. I'm briefly going to compare a couple of keyboards that are more road worthy than others in my opinion. In this industry, to me, the quality of the digital piano is extremely critical. This will be one of those very few exceptions when I will mention actual brand names. I bet some eye brows just rose!
First things first. Is your keyboard player comfortable playing the keyboard you have for him? This is extremely important. I know how this feels, because if I have to mix on stuff that I just simply don't care for or is hard to work with or I don't think sounds good, then mentally, I have to work harder to get past that to get done what I need to get done. It's the same thing for a musician. If your piano player doesn't like the "feel" of the way the keyboard plays or sounds in his monitor or many other things about it, they have to work extra hard to get the musical effect they're looking for.
The sound. The sound of the digital piano from an engineer's point of view is critical. For instance, we usually use a Yamaha P200, which works really well to blend in with the rest of the mix, yet it's easy to get to "cut" through the mix, without having to push it too hard or do any crazy EQ work. Recently, after many years on the road it decided to sustain for the remainder of its lifespan. So, we've been using a replacement keyboard, which is a Roland model. The piano player has mentioned how hard it is to play because of the feel and the way it sounds in his monitor. I told him it's not any easier on me. This particular piano, for our applications, is not as easy to mix with the piano sounds that are on it. This changes the entire way I mix my instrumentation. Now, I'm not saying that this keyboard would not work for certain applications, but with a live band, it doesn't provide the combination of a good blending sound with good cut like I prefer.
So what's the difference? Well, certain companies simply put more into getting a good piano sound. Some of the newer Roland pianos have some really good sounds, but I still prefer a Yamaha or Kawai in the digital world. Of course as with anything in this world it also comes to dollars, cents, and application with a pinch of preference.
How do you find a good digital piano? Try them out! Don't just go to the store and listen to them through headphones or the built in speakers. Find a place that will let you take one for the day or better yet, a weekend and use it with your sound system and your pianist. See what it sounds like with your trax and/or band and vocalists. So you say you already have a keyboard and you don't mind the feel of it, but it could use an upgrade in the piano sound area. Have no fear, there are some decent half rack modules out there you can use to upgrade your sound without buying a whole new piano.
I have to give Roland credit for the more recent digital, I think it's the FP9. The piano sound are very good for the price ratio and the vocal samples are the best I've heard.
Happy piano playing, listening, and mixing
Josh Hoevelmann
Author: .(JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address)
Written: 01/02/2004
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Category: Monthly ArticlesSound Advice
Comments: 6
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When I compared all the decent brand names that sold in the $800-$1000 price range, the best keyboard I found was a Kurzweil.
Kurzweil pianos are ok, but my experience with them is that the bass end, especially on the cheaper models, doesn't tend to have enough resonance. That's important to me, especially in the times where I have to make due without a bass player. I love the new General-Music stuff, and of course, the Yamaha P200/250 are the best workhorses out there, in my opinion. This would be a great discussion for piano players, as long as it doesn't heat up too much. Everyone has his/her own preference.
Yeah, as far as sound goes, everyone has a different opinion. I play with tracks, so I don't really need the bass on my keyboard to be louder than normal.
As a piano player, I am VERY picky about how my keyboard mixes in with our tracks, especially the monitor mix. And I'm very picky about what brands I play (Yamaha only). If I had my preference in acoustic pianos, it would be, you guessed it, a Yamaha.
I have been playing a Roland RD 1000 for 18 years. Played a lot of others also, but I still like the sounds that this keyboard produces on my sound system. Sounds like a grand piano. It is no longer manufactured, but it's the best thing I've ever played. Easy to mix
I am also a Roland Fan. I looked for a keyboard for years, bought some of the cheap ones, never could be satisfied with those. Then I began seriously looking for our group and now have the Roland kr-3. Oh yes it is heavy, matter of fact it was made to be stationary piano, not portable. But I turned it into one, had a special pedal made for stand-up. What I found in this instrument compared to others was the full sound and different instruments. As well as weighted touch which was a must (going from a grand piano to digital with out the same touch can be annoying), this instrument provides our rhythms and has the capabilites of playing background soundtracks off 3.5 floppy disk. Recording your own soundtracks plus gives an arranger for back up music as you play. The main reason this instrument was important to me, I am the only musician used in this group. I am a Roland Fan!!
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