(I'll be fair though, I think those acoustics leave quite a lot to be desired and aren't really in the best environments, but I would bet that they cost more than what I paid for my CA79.)ĭigitals will always be outclassed by a regularly-tuned decent quality acoustic that is well-placed in a room with decent acoustic characteristics, sure. As someone who regularly practices in his apartment on his digital and plays on acoustics with my piano teacher once a week in a small piano studio, I can confidently say that these higher quality digitals are nearly indistinguishable in terms of sound richness from those acoustics. Kawai CA79/99 or Yamaha CLP-745/775/785? Those come with some pretty serious audio setups-with 4-6 speakers placed in different locations-that can really pack a punch with the high quality recorded samples from concert grands. But have you tried any of the higher end digitals from the latest generation of pianos, e.g. It would be easy to see that happen.įundamentally, you are correct and I will agree with you. I hope the art of piano tuners and technicians doesn’t completely die off. My tuner says that most tuners don’t even know the difference or that it’s even a thing, and I believe him. There is such an art to really getting the individual strings within a note in tune with each other to the level where the sound waves line up and sustain one another rather than canceling each other out and killing off the note quickly. We have an amazing one, but everyone else we have tried cannot make the instrument sing like he can.

There is a notable lack of great piano technicians and tuners. It’s a lot of work so it’s expensive to do, but still a ton cheaper than buying a newer piano, and the sound and quality of the 1920s pianos can be excellent. My favorite piano I’ve ever heard was a 1920s Mason and Hamlin that was owned by my wife’s piano professor.įor us it seemed like the only way to get the kind of piano we wanted to own was to find one of the “golden era” pianos from the 1920s and refurbish it or find one that had been refurbished.

I’ve gotten the chance to play and hear many Steinways and a few Mason and Hamlins. We own a refurbished 1924 Steinway and we love it. My wife is a pianist who studied piano performance. I love playing piano but I don’t consider myself a pianist. I’m a musician who went to a music school that had a lot of nice pianos.

Ravenscroft 275 with mp11se