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With 20 years background in digital musical instruments and a decade since we introduced the renowned range of Celviano Privia and Casio Digital Pianos online into SA for James Ralph -Sole Importers and Distributors to retailers We are the Premier recommended specialist retailer in these products

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Comparing acoustic piano with Celvianos and Privias

:: CLICK HERE SEE KEYBOARD MAGAZINE REVIEW of PX 300   ::

Click here to see well known South African Classical Pianists perspective on the Privia- Valda Fuhrs review

See Privia and Celviano Digital Piano Models comparison table and manuals

Read about digital piano hammer action

Music shops from throughout Germany - all members of the GDM - have selected the PRIVIA PX-100 as the 2003/2004 product of the year. At the anniversary celebrations to mark the association's 175th birthday, CASIO had the honour of being presented with the coveted trophy. The GDM is an association of music shops from throughout Germany and has around 800 members. It represents the interests of German music shops to authorities, organisations and other associations, looks after securing the next generation of music dealers and organises communication between the members.

PX 110 DK Hammer action 88 keys portable digital piano

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PX300 Hammer action 88 keys portable digital piano

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PX400R Hammer action USB 88 keys portable digital piano

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PX700 Hammer action USB 88 keys home digital piano

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AP80R Celviano - Hammer action USB 88 keys home digital piano

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AP24 Celviano - Hammer action 88 keys home digital piano

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A less expensive but still quite effective emulation of acoustic pianos is found in weighted-action keyboards. This is a very common type of keyboard for digital pianos. It includes a weight in each key but forgoes the expense and complexity of the hammer mechanism. Many pianists find that this type of action delivers solid piano performance with a feel that suits their playing styles.

Adjustable Digital Piano Touch

Digital pianos are unique, and so are the people who play them. For example, one person may play the keys harder than someone else. Does this mean that the person with the stronger fingers always plays louder? Not if your piano has a feature that lets you adjust the sensitivity of the keys.

This feature often comes in three basic settings -- such as hard, medium, and soft. A few higher-level pianos let you choose from dozens of levels to find the perfect sensitivity for your touch and the music you're playing. The response of the keys won't feel any different when you change a setting: the change is in the digital signal that is sent when you play the key, not in the action of the key itself.

A light setting means the piano will respond to a lighter touch. For example, if you play lightly but you want the piano to sound as though you're playing harder, you would choose a light setting. This is the setting that beginners often prefer. On the other hand, if you are a trained pianist, you may want to use a heavy setting so that it will take a very heavy touch for the key to play loudly. All of the casio Privia range offer the 3 levels of touch.

Digital Piano Polyphony

This is the number of notes an instrument can play simultaneously. It is described as either a number of voices ("12-voice polyphony") or a number of notes ("12-note polyphony"), depending on the manufacturer. You might think that 10-voice polyphony would be the most you would need because you have only 10 fingers, but if you sustain a large chord and play other notes on top of it, you may use more than 10 voices. For this reason, digital pianos have at least 12-voice polyphony.

More polyphony is needed for many styles of playing. If you play a two-octave glissando and don't want any notes to "fall off" before their sound is finished -- or if you plan to play duets -- you will want at least 20-voice polyphony. For sequencing with several other instrument sounds or for playing along with prerecorded song disks, you should have 28 or more voices of polyphony to ensure that each instrument has its own voice.

Digital Piano / Electric Piano Sounds

As you begin to shop for your new piano, one question that will probably pop into your mind is, How do the new digital pianos sound? You'll be amazed at their superb sound quality. Today's digital pianos use digital-sampling technology for emulating fine acoustic pianos: the sound from an acoustic piano is recorded digitally, and this digital recording (also known as a sample) is stored in the digital piano's computer memory. Each time you play a note, the digital piano replays the recording.

The quality of the sound depends on the type of acoustic piano recorded and the recording technology used. Some of the best digital pianos have several different piano samples for each key because acoustic pianos sound slightly different depending on whether they are played softly or loudly. (In these pianos, the sample that is played depends on how hard you hit the key.) Several digital pianos have samples recorded in stereo, and many even have special synthesis enhancements to increase the reality of the sound.

A digital piano's sound depends on more than the sample's quality and the technology used to replay the recorded notes; a recording is only as good as the system that plays it. Digital pianos contain a high-fidelity sound system to reproduce the piano sound accurately. Several manufacturers use the same basic electronics in all their digital pianos. The main distinction in sound between their pianos is a result of different speakers and amplifiers used in the various models.

When trying out some of the digital pianos, take time to listen to the built-in demonstration programs that are designed to show off the best features of the instrument. Even if you're not an experienced piano player or you aren't familiar with the features of a particular model, the demonstration program will show you what the instrument can do.

Some pianos offer fewer than 10 sounds whereas others offer more than 500. But before you decide that more is better, make sure you will use those extra sounds you'll be paying for. You can always get more sounds later by adding an external sound module to your digital piano using its MIDI capabilities.

Percussion

Often a manufacturer will refer to a piano's percussion sounds as a kit. This means the piano has the sounds of the drums, cymbals, and other percussion instruments that would be found in a standard drum set.

If you are thinking about buying a digital piano that can play back prerecorded song disks, you will probably want some percussion sounds. Show tunes and pop songs often use rhythm and percussion instruments, so you may want to get a piano with at least a few percussion sounds so you can enjoy song disks, even if you do not plan to use percussion when you are playing or composing.

Piano digital Electric Piano Effects

Digital effects alter the character of a sound. You'll probably use effects on other instrument sounds more than you will on piano sounds. The five most common effects are: chorus, an effect that doubles or adds fullness to sounds; delay, a single-echo effect that repeats notes as they're played (this often works well with percussion sounds); equalization, a boost (or drop) in the bass or treble to adjust the sound to your taste; reverb, a series of diminishing echolike effects to simulate the sound of playing in a large room; and tremolo, a wavering pitch suited to woodwind and string sounds.

Sequencer recording on digital piano

A sequencer allows you to record your performance as you play and to then play it back at a different tempo or with different instrument sounds. Sequencers are referred to by many different names, depending upon the manufacturer. Some examples are song recorder, performance memory, music recorder, or digital recorder.

Each sequencer track allows you to record a separate part. For example, a 2-track sequencer (which is relatively rare) can record left and right hands separately or a bass part and a piano part. An 8-track or 16-track sequencer is useful when you are recording a song with many different instrument sounds.

Sequencers that record directly to disk are limited only by the disk's size. For an alternative to a built-in sequencer, you can connect your piano to a computer and add a software sequencer.

Disk Drive recording or Smart Media Card on Electric Piano

A built-in disk drive or a smaret media slot ( taking a memory card ) allows you to record and save your songs for future playback. If you don't save your performance to disk, your piano's sequencer will forget it as soon as you turn off the piano. Most disk drives found on digital pianos are the same as the 3.5-inch floppy-disk drives on personal computers.

You'll also need a disk drive to play any of the prerecorded song disks available for digital pianos. Many pianos read disks formatted only by certain manufacturers, but pianos with disk drives that are Standard MIDI File compatible (indicated in the chart with the abbreviation SMF) can read any MIDI song disk. Some drives can both read and write MIDI data, while others are read-only.

Electric Piano / Digital Piano Pedals

Many digital pianos have pedals like those found on acoustic pianos. Some pianos offer one only pedal, others provide two, and a few models have three. Portable pianos that do not come with a pedal often have one or more jacks so you can add an optional pedal.

In general, the pedals on digital pianos are the electronic equivalents of the pedals on acoustic pianos. The pedal on the right is almost always a sustain pedal; and like the sustain pedal on an acoustic piano, it prevents the notes you play from being muted (damped) when you lift your fingers from the keys.

If there are two pedals, the one on the left is probably a soft pedal. In an upright acousticpiano, the soft pedal usually moves the hammers closer to the string, diminishing the force of the hammer blows; in an acoustic grand piano, the pedal shifts the keyboard and hammers sideways, so that one string of each note is not struck, thus diminishing the volume of the sound. Of course, with a digital piano, the softening effect is accomplished electronically.

The third pedal, if one is provided, usually emulates the grand piano's sostenuto pedal, which sustains the notes you are holding when you hit the pedal but not the notes you play thereafter. This allows you to sustain a chord or bass note, for example, and play a clean, unsustained melody on top.

Electric Piano / Digital Piano MIDI Ports

Pianos with MIDI ports can communicate with other instruments and even with computers. A piano may have some or all of the three MIDI ports -- In, Out, and Thru. The chart indicates the type and number of ports a piano has.

Connecting a digital piano to a computer requires a MIDI interface. In many cases, this interface is a separate device that connects to the MIDI In and Out ports on the piano; however, some digital pianos have built-in computer interfaces (discussed shortly).

Electric Piano / Digital Piano Headphone and Microphone Jacks

If you live in an apartment or if you are hoping to practice in relative privacy, you'll want to buy a digital piano that has a headphone jack. You may even want two headphone jacks if you plan to play duets or practice with a teacher. A microphone jack allows you to plug in a microphone and sing along while you play or while someone else accompanies you. You can even use your piano as a karaoke machine if it has a microphone jack and a disk drive that will read disks with prerecorded songs.

Electric Piano / Digital Piano Other Jacks

Computer interface indicates that your digital piano can be connected directly to your computer. Most interfaces are for PCs. Mac users should inquire about compatibility.

Jacks such as line in, line out, and stereo in/out allow you to amplify your piano with a P.A. system, a keyboard amplifier, or the amp and speakers in your home-entertainment system. A few digital pianos even have video ports, which let you use your television screen as part of an at-home karaoke system.

Electric Piano / Digital Piano Digital Display

Many pianos feature easy-to-read displays that help you choose between sounds, effects, and so on. Pianos with fewer features and sounds don't really need a display and will usually have a panel of buttons instead. Some displays are easier to read than others, and some pianos will organize their data in the display more intuitively than other pianos.

Don't minimize the importance of a clear, readable display; you want to be able to access all the features you paid for. Try out several to see which ones you prefer.

Electric Piano / Digital Piano Speakers

Speaker placement and quality vary between models. You may be able to hook your iano up to your stereo system or to a set of external speakers. Ask the manufacturer or your piano dealer which options you have.

A piano with three or more speakers generally has a separate speaker dedicated to reproducing low-frequency sounds, which usually results in better sound. Some pianos may allow you to pan sounds: that is, you could have piano sounds coming from the left speakers and string sounds coming from the right. This gives an orchestra-like feeling to your performances.

Electric Piano / Digital Piano Dimensions and Weight

How you intend to use your piano and where you will play it will influence your choice of digital piano. You'll want to pay close attention to size and weight if you are looking for a igital piano that will fit in the corner of the living room in your third-floor apartment. On the other hand, if your piano will be put in a large family room, dimensions and weight probably won't be deciding factors when you're choosing between models. Some manufacturers offer the same piano housed in a portable, upright, or grand cabinet, so no matter which size you choose, you'll get the same features.

A digital portable piano is an obvious choice if you need to travel with your keyboard or if you want to store it at times. Cost might also be a factor, as these are often the least expensive of the digital pianos. If portability is a determining factor for you, you may want to read about entry-level home keyboards or professional-level performance keyboards.

Digital upright pianos are the most popular style for home, school, or church. The size nd cabinet style of the piano is not always a reflection of the number of features in the piano, but a good rule of thumb is that the larger cabinets usually contain bigger speakers and amplifiers for better sound quality. A digital grand may be your first choice if your piano will be a primary part of your living room or if you have a business or stage area where you want to feature a piano.

Pianos with more speakers are heavier, and those with more keys will be wider. Upright pianos are about 36 inches high, whereas portables are usually about 5 inches high. A piano's depth measurement tells you how far it will come out from the wall against which it is placed. Note also that the dimensions given in the chart for digital grand pianos will indicate whether the piano is a full grand, a baby grand, or a petite grand.

Electric Piano / Digital Piano Finishes

Other important criteria for buying a new piano are the cabinet's look and style. Like any fine furniture, both digital uprights and digital grands are available in a variety of beautiful finishes. You can choose a finish that complements your decor, such as traditional high-gloss ebony. Manufacturers also offer different wood-grain finishes such as mahogany, rosewood, oak, and cherry.

In addition to factory finishes, you'll find that a few manufacturers offer custom colors for the discriminating decorator. Whichever style and finish you choose, your piano will be a cherished heirloom for years to come.

Your Wish List

All digital pianos give you the same basic features, but the quality and the number of those features differ between models. If you are a more advanced musician, you might want to investigate some of the subtler aspects of digital pianos. Several unique and interesting adjustments that cannot be made on an acoustic piano can be made on some digital ianos: for example, you may be able to play with different temperaments or split or layer keyboard sounds.

Keep in mind how you want to use your piano, because this will greatly determine which style and features you really need. For educational use, a sequencer is an excellent feature and worth the extra cost. For church use, you may want a piano that also has good organ and choir sounds. For professional use, MIDI capability is very important. And for home use, many people buy a digital piano that will complement their furnishings.

Electric Piano / Digital Piano The Perfect Fit

Buying a piano is a long-term investment, so choose one mainly for its sound and keyboard feel and secondarily for any extra features it may include. If you're not sure about needing certain features and your budget is tight, you will probably be better off buying a basic digital piano in a higher-level series than buying a top-of-the-line piano in an entry-level series. Remember that some features, such as a sequencer or additional instrument sounds, can often be added later.

How do you make the final choice? Fortunately you can limit your list of pianos to choose from fairly quickly. For instance, most digital-piano manufacturers really make only one or two truly different upright pianos. The Casio Privia digital piano series have differences between the number of features, the style of cabinet, and the power of the sound system.and smaller differances

Finally, don't forget the fun factor. Playing music should be an enjoyable experience, so don't hesitate to include features such as auto-accompaniment or unusual instrument sounds in your digital piano.

Also see :

Click here to see well known South African Classical Pianists perspective on the Privia- Valda Fuhrs review

comparing acoustic pianos with Privias

See Keyboard Magazine review of PX 300

See Privia and Celviano Models comparison table and manuals