Which piano should be bought for kids who are starting to learn music? Where (online/ offline) to find a piano at the most reasonable price? If you can recommend an exact model, it will be appreciated.
Piano Recommendation for The Kids
virhlpool on 30/01/2020 - 11:25
Last edited 30/01/2020 - 13:35
Last edited 30/01/2020 - 13:35
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I got this too for my kid. Aldi has a digital keyboard coming up, might wanna consider that.
Amazon sometimes has a nice Casio keyboard for sale, can't remember the exact model but they sell it for about $180.
Is it good enough to use for practice after Piano classes?
I would probably just ask the teacher what they recommend. I know nothing about pianos.
Not really. As mentioned by post below you want at least an entry level "Digital Piano", not a "Keyboard." The "digital piano" emulates the feel of an acouustic instrument. The more you pay, the closer it will come but obviously there's a point of diminishing returns.
I would recommend one that comes with its own frame, pedals and seat so everything is in the "correct" position. It would be about a $1500 investment which when you think about it, is still quite cheap compared to other types of instruments. That way it is a prominent instrument in the house which invites practice and play.
For an acoustic piano (the traditional instrument made of wood and strings) you can't go past the Kawai K series or Yamaha U series uprights. These will take a student all the way to university level. Looking at about $7k investment.
Thanks a lot. Which models would you recommend for digital piano? Do they come with frame, stand, pedals and seat or do we need to buy them separately? Also, where would you recommend buying the piano for the best price?
@virhlpool: This all depends on how much you are willing to spend and how serious you think the student is.
I really can't tell you specific models because they are always changing. The top 4 brands to look at are (in no particular order) Roland, Yahama, Kawai and Casio. They all compete at various price points, they are always trying to one-up each other year after year. All have entry level offerings at $1200-$1500.
As far as buying one goes, beware of the car salesman type piano dealers. The RRP is definitely not what you should pay. Haggle on price and/or free extras.
@virhlpool: Along with Casio, Korg has quite good options for entry level. Most come with frames and pedals (or just pedals). Seats and stands (if not coming with a frame) are usually additionally. As others have said weighted keys are a key feature to look for (i.e. get a digital piano not a keyboard).
Digitals are far less of a hassle to move and don't need tuning.
If it's piano lessons (and not keyboard) I'll be looking for something with 88 weighted keys at a minimum. Pianists have to build up strength in their fingers and low cost keyboards won't help with that. Playing actual piano pieces (not the practice beginner ones) will require all 88 keys so I'd stay away from those that say 61 piano style keys.
This would be my minimum: https://www.jbhifi.com.au/products/casio-cdp135-digital-pian… I think a sustain pedal comes standard on this one but best to check the specs.
If near a costco they usually sell this for under 500, if they have it in stock, that is.
Thanks a ton. Does Yamaha P125 fit in this category too (I reckon yes)? How do they compare? Do you recommend Yamaha P125 as well?
The one linked above is even better than what I've linked to, it has all three pedals so is much closer to an old school piano. It is much more expensive though, as pointed out below. I reckon you're better off spending the money on a matching chair (the casio one has an optional chair) as the sustain pedal is usually sufficient until around grade 4 piano level. Maybe check the AMEB? Or ask the teacher when they'll be introduced to the pedals and how far along your child is.
The P125 is a very nice Piano and the weighted keys a very nice touch but it's expensive.
I started with one of the entry level 60 something keys keyboard at about $200.
It gives me a good idea of how into piano they are first before spending $800.
Nothing less than a baby grand
Any model recommendation?
Sorry I was being silly. There are some really good suggestions above. An electric piano would be the way to go. You would be looking at about $1000. We got this one it's relatively basic and slightly higher models give better and louder sound. However that was a really good deal. The kids really enjoy it.
You want a piano with weighted keys to mimic the acoustic piano they will be taking lessons on and also what will be used in exams (if you go down that route).
My kids use a Yamaha Calvinova CLP52B which I got for about $1,895 but you can probably find it at a lower price now. Bench is sometimes packaged in but it's worth checking.
It's still the same price.. seems to be superior to P-125 of Yamaha. Would you know what would be the major difference? Excuse my naivety.
Not sure to be honest. I suppose the P-125 is more portable as you can strip it down while the CLP52B is not. Best you go somewhere like the Australian Piano Warehouse if you're in Melbourne and have them walk you through some options. I chose the Yamaha digitals over the other brands as I much prefer their tone. Your preference might differ.
casio is good as yamaha but a notch cheaper
an alternative to all these other recommendations:
a real (upright) piano, possibly hundreds of years old - $100 on gumtree. $1 on gumtree. free on gumtree.
seriously
why?
because also:
plus
moving cost
free if you have a trailer and two or more strong people
otherwise maybe… $100 via a Gumtree mover or maybe $300 via Minimovers etcand
tuning / minor repair cost
maybe… $200
maybe call or email around, get some estimates
if you have to pay to move it and want to know if its ok before you do that
- you could possibly take some photos (particularly of the insides) to send to them
- or ask for them to inspect it (you'll probs have to pay a callout fee)
and when hire someone explain you're just wanting it to play for kids, not a professional pianist or a photo shoot for an architecture magazinei'm serious people give upright pianos away - they might try to sell them at first, but people don't want them
they're big, and hard to move, and need tuning and fixing sometimesand your kids don't need one that is perfect
it's ok if it looks or plays a bit rough
they're actually my favourite kindi don't know where you live obviously but i just checked and gumtree has it's usual at-any-one-time collection of about 100 FREE pianos around the nation waiting for a new home.
poor lonely things. hoping desperately someone will love them and they won't be sent to landfill.
it feels a bit like when i look at the rspca's adoption website. i wish i could save them all.
did you get a piano?
Not yet, mate.
I knew nothing about piano, recently did some research and got this Casio PX-S1000 with the compatible stand and pedal unit for $1,100 in NSW.
Its simulation of weighted keys is quite good, like you have to press faster and harder for louder sound.
It's the slimmest digital piano on the market, can be powered with 6 AA batteries for 2-4 hours, weigh only 11kg so could be carried around quite easily.
For complete beginner like us this is a good option. And this whole package looks really nice in white in real life. We love it.
https://www.casio.com/products/electronic-musical-instrument…
https://www.casio.com/products/accessories/for-musical-instr…
https://www.casio.com/products/accessories/for-musical-instr…Cool demo on youtube: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=20kb_pF2fRA
P.S with all these viruses going around it's better to get a BNIB instead of 2nd hand IMO.
I'd suggest a digital piano with weighted keys. Like a Yamaha P125