The Best Digital Pianos That You’ll Totally Love
There are a lot of considerations you have to make when purchasing a digital piano, as it ultimately comes down to how you plan to actually use the instrument. Therefore, in compiling a list of the best digital pianos of 2014, I’ve attempted to approach the issue from a variety of different angles (price, size, features, etc) so that by the time you’re done reading, you’ll have a better understanding of the year’s top pianos on sale today.
So without further ado, let’s get to it, as our instruments will range from helpful Casio’s, educational Yamaha’s, and advanced Nord pianos.
What Are the Best Digital Pianos Available?
Let’s first begin with the Yamaha P45, which we consider to be the Most Affordable Digital Piano. Keep in mind that when you’re looking for an affordable digital piano, you sometimes have to sacrifice the special features included with pricier instruments. However, even if you’re trying to save money, you should never sacrifice functional quality, and that’s why I’ve selected the Yamaha P45 as the best in terms of price.
With a very affordable list price, there are definitely digital keyboards out there that cost much less, but next to none of them are as functionally sound this beauty. The P35B utilizes AWM (Advance Wave Memory) sampling to provide a tone that is faithful to the rich, full sound of a Yamaha acoustic grand piano, and the 88 keys are weighted like an authentic keyboard.
While it lacks a lot of special features, its interface is user friendly and quick to learn. This is a great digital piano for a beginner, or someone who is looking to recreate the acoustic piano experience on a budget. A Piano stand and damper pedals are sold separately, but they are definitely accessories you will want to invest in with this model.
Piano Buying Guide
Below, please enjoy the interactive guide that was created to make your piano purchase much easier:
| Photo | Model |
|---|---|
 | Casio PX-S1100 |
 | Alesis Prestige Artist |
 | Casio CDP-S360 |
 | Yamaha P-515 |
 | Casio PX-870 |
 | Korg LP-180 |
 | Casio PX-770 |
Casio Privia PX 150
Most Affordable Runner Up
The Casio Privia PX 150 is a bit most costly than the Yamaha P35B, but for some people, the relatively modest price increase might be worth it based on what you’re getting.
The PX150 includes 88 weighted keys as well as a number of different tone options that include organs, strings, electric pianos, and basses. What really sets this apart from the Yamaha, however, is its pristine acoustic piano sound powered by Casio’s AiR (Acoustic and intelligent Resonator) sound source.
This powerful sound-generating program is unrivaled among instruments in this price range, as well as some of the more expensive models. If you are really serious about recreating an authentic acoustic piano sound, then this is the one for you.
This model also comes with a USB port so that you can connect with a number of other devices to enhance your playing experience, such as a computer or iPad. This is also great for transferring recordings that you make with the instrument’s two track recording hardware. Overall, this is a great piano that will be well worth the extra money for some musicians.
Please note that the Casio PX-150 has been replaced by the Casio PX-160, which we reviewed here.
Below, please take a moment to view some of the best selling digital pianos online:
| BEST SELLERS |
|---|
| 1) Yamaha P-515 |
| 2) Casio PX-S3100 |
| 3) Casio PX-870 |
| 4) Roland FP-E50 |
| 5) Roland FP-30X |
Yamaha DGX 650
Best Educational Instrument
Are you a piano teacher or someone that is looking to become a self-taught piano player? If so, then the Yamaha DGX 650 Digital Piano is the best digital piano for you. Its educational features are hard to beat, and at a list price of only $799.99, it’s a pretty good bargain too.
What makes this model so unique is its new and novel approach to learning the piano. Thanks to advances in technology, this digital piano can offer students learning tools that are simply not available with acoustic pianos.
It includes Yamaha’s educational suite, which offers a variety of features such as “tempo” mode, which monitors the accuracy of your playing and adjusts the piano’s accompaniment accordingly. It also offers you the option of practicing with only one hand at a time, while the piano plays the other. On top of that, you can also have the piano grade you on your performance of a piece.
Plus, with the Yamaha DGX 650, you’ll have access to hundreds of popular songs available in the Hal Leonard publishing library. However, these do not come preloaded into the piano—they must be downloaded and transferred separately.
- Please note that the Yamaha DGX-650 has been replaced by the Yamaha DGX-660, which we reviewed here.
For more information, please read our thoughts on the best Yamaha digital pianos.
Yamaha EZ 220
Educational Runner Up
The Yamaha EZ 220 is a digital piano for the complete beginner. While it lacks many features that most people would consider crucial, it does provide the user with a wealth of piano instruction.
Obviously the biggest educational tool with this keyboard is the lighted keys that illuminate the correct notes for you to play. While this method of learning the piano is a bit unorthodox, it definitely gets the job done. Plus, the digital screen also displays the correct fingers for each of the notes, which ensures that you’re learning pieces correctly and comfortably. And if you own an iPad, you can connect it to the Yamaha EZ 220 via its wireless connectivity hardware and use it to display hundreds of songs that include automatic page turns.
The EZ 220 model is also quite affordable—at just $159.99, it’s one of the cheapest instruments on the market. This does mean sacrificing a full 88 key keyboard for only 61, and it also means giving up a weighted, realistic key system for a more uniform one. However, for the complete beginner, these things are not as necessary as with a more experienced player. And in time, you can always progress to a better model, since you’re not having to spend an arm and a leg on this one.
Nord Piano 2 88
Best Features
The Nord Piano 2 is a keyboard for serious musicians with a desire to cultivate very customized and specific sounds. It clocks in at $2,999.00, which is a considerable amount of money for most people, so buying one of these is not a decision to take lightly. However, expensive as it is, it will definitely be money well spent.
Its main features include:
- Compatible with the massive Nord Piano Library
- Compatible with the Nord Sample Library
- Authentic sounding string resonance
- Lots of customizable effects to apply to samples
- Layering and split options
Access to Nord’s monumental piano library and sample library are a big selling point for this instrument. There are tons of unique and interesting sounds to choose from and all of them can be easily added and replaced on your keyboard with Nord’s sound manager software. This is a great instrument for a musician with a keen ear for timbre and a little bit of disposable income.
And if you’re interested in buying an incredible Nord piano, please check out our review of the Nord Stage 2 HA76. You can also read my review of the Nord Piano 4, as well.
Korg KROME
Best Features Runner Up
Korg is another popular name when it comes to high-end digital keyboards, and its KROME line of instruments is another great options if you’re looking for a model with lots of great features.
What’s most distinctive about this particular instrument is its touchscreen interface. While there are still plenty of buttons and knobs for users to manipulate, adding a touch screen makes changing sounds that much easier. The Korg KROME also boasts an impressive 16 track sequencer with multiple view options on the instruments touchscreen, and its professional quality drum track options allow you to play along live or record with over 600 preset, high class patterns.
This instrument comes with 16 different category sounds including keyboard, organ, strings, and synth, and each of these contains a number of samples that can further be customized too.
At a price of only $1,599.99, the Korg KROME is considerably cheaper than the Nord Piano 2, which makes it an attractive option, and the quality of Korg brand instruments is nothing to shake a stick at. While it may lack some of the features of the Nord Piano 2, it’s in my opinion at least an equal option.
As you can see, in this article, we sort of focused on a mix of everything–digital pianos, keyboards, and workstations. If you need more help, or perhaps find yourself even more confused (we’re sorry!), please do head back to our homepage, where we have reviews of tons of pianos. Also, if you scroll to the bottom of our homepage, we have a few non-review articles that discuss the best budget buys under $1,000, what the difference between a digital piano and a keyboard is, and other helpful articles for you!
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