Comparison Roland RP-102 vs Yamaha YDP-142

The number of built-in sounds provided by the Digital Piano.

Despite the name, digital pianos are extremely rarely designed to imitate the sound of only a piano — the electronic hardware allows them to provide other timbres of sound. In addition, even the piano has its own varieties — for example, among the grand pianos there are 6 main classes, from large concert to miniature. So the built-in sounds can cover different kinds of pianos, as well as other instruments and sound effects.

The abundance and variety of timbres in digital pianos as a whole is not as great as in synthesizers, however, in this category there are very “charged” models, with a hundred timbres or more (in the most multifunctional, this number can exceed 900). However, it is worth specifically looking for a “multi-instrumental” model if you do not intend to be limited to the sound of the piano and would like to have more freedom of choice. It is worth remembering that a specific set of timbres can be different.

If the instrument is bought exclusively as a piano, then here, on the contrary, it is worth paying attention primarily to solutions with a small number of timbres. Such models are not only cheaper than "universals" — they can also sound better (due to the fact that there are few timbres and the manufacturer can carefully approach the sound quality of each built-in "instrument").

The range over which the tempo of the sound played by the instrument can change. It can be either a built-in melody or a part recorded on a sequencer, or an auto accompaniment, a tutorial or a metronome. For more information on all of these features, see the corresponding glossary entries. Here we note that a change in tempo is often required in fact — for example, to speed up an initially "sluggish" accompaniment or slow down a training programme that is difficult to master at the original tempo.

Tempo is traditionally indicated in beats per minute. The classical, "academic" range covers options from 40 bpm ("grave", "very slow") to 208 bpm ("prestissimo", "very fast"), however, in modern digital pianos, the working range of tempos is often significantly wider.

The ability to change the brightness of the sound of certain timbres or tracks.

Brightness determines the overall colour of the sound — from soft, smoothed to sonorous, sharp. This feature allows the player to adjust this coloration to their preference, and thus further expands the possibilities for customizing the sound of the instrument.

— Mini-jack (linear). Any line input is designed to receive an audio signal in analogue format. Such an audio signal can be played back by the instrument itself through the built-in speakers, external speakers or headphones, switched to external equipment (for example, an amplifier or audio receiver), or recorded (if you have a sequencer, see above). In digital pianos, the most popular is the first option — playback; typically, the line-in sound either serves as an accompaniment to the main part or provides additional effects. As for the mini-Jack standard, this is a miniature plug, also called "3.5 mm" and known to many as a standard audio jack on a smartphone, laptop or computer. However, this standard is also very popular in digital pianos — among external signal sources, mini-Jack plugs are generally more common than full-size Jacks.

— Jack (linear). Line input using a Jack type connector (aka "6.35 mm"). In terms of purpose, such an input does not differ from the mini-Jack type input described above. As for the connector, it is almost 2 times larger than the mini-Jack in diameter — however, given the dimensions of digital pianos, this cannot be called a serious drawback. At the same time, the Jack socket provides a better and more reliable connection, with less likelihood of interference. At the same time, for a number of reasons, this type of connector is used somewhat less frequently in digital pianos.

— MIDI in. An...input that allows the Digital Piano to receive MIDI signals from external equipment. MIDI is a standard signal format in electronic musical instruments; such a signal (MIDI-event) is created for each keystroke and contains information about the note number, strength, speed and duration of pressing; these signals can then be recorded and/or played back in a specific tone. The ability to receive MIDI events from external devices can be useful, for example, when playing two keyboard instruments at once (to play all the music on one of them, with better sound quality), or to use the digital piano as an adapter for another instrument that does not having the desired tones. In addition, technically, a MIDI signal can be switched to other devices (see "Outputs — MIDI thru").

— USB to device (type A). USB connector that allows you to connect various external devices to the digital piano. However, most often the range of such devices is limited to "flash drives" and other drives. However, even this functionality can provide very extensive additional features: you can play backing melodies from a flash drive, update user timbres and auto-accompaniment styles (see above) or even instrument firmware, and copy materials recorded by a sequencer to a flash drive (or even write music directly). ), etc. Specific features in different models may be different, this point should be clarified separately.

— Card reader. A device for reading memory cards — usually, the popular SD format. By purpose, this function is similar to working with a USB flash drive (see above), adjusted for the fact that memory cards will be convenient primarily when exchanging data with a laptop — almost all modern laptops are equipped with card readers, which cannot be said about desktop PCs.

The number of line outputs provided in the design of the digital piano.

The line output allows you to send the sound from the instrument to external audio equipment. In this case, the sound is transmitted in an analogue format, and to play it, it is enough to pass it through a power amplifier; and active acoustics can generally be connected directly to the line output. The outputs themselves can use different types of connectors, but most often they are 3.5 mm mini-Jack or 6.35 mm Jack, compatible with most audio equipment either directly or through the simplest adapters.

Multiple line outputs allow you to connect multiple signal receivers to the instrument at once — for example, speakers with an amplifier for playback and an external recorder for recording. However, digital pianos rarely have more than 2 line outputs — more, taking into account the specifics of the use of such instruments, is simply not required.

The power of the native acoustics installed in the Digital Piano.

This indicator directly affects the maximum volume that the instrument is able to produce "on its own", without connecting external speakers. At the same time, it is worth noting that many manufacturers go to the trick and indicate in the characteristics not the rated power (rms power when operating at full volume), but the peak power, which is the highest power that the acoustics can deliver at short “ups” of volume. Peak power values can be quite impressive — in the tens and hundreds of watts — but these figures have a very indirect relation to the actual capabilities of the speakers. Therefore, before choosing, it is worth clarifying what kind of power is mentioned in the characteristics. To do this, it is not necessary to look for detailed data on the instrument, it is enough to compare the power of the speakers with the power consumption (see below): if the claimed power of the acoustics is greater than the power consumption of the entire instrument, then the manufacturer indicated exactly the peak value.

The type of display installed in the Digital Piano.

— Monochrome. Single colour display, not capable of working with a colour image; such screens are often referred to as "black and white", although other colour combinations are actually possible (for example, a blue image on an orange background). Despite their simplicity, the capabilities of such displays are quite sufficient for both simple and fairly advanced digital pianos; and they are inexpensive. Therefore, most models that have a screen at all use monochrome matrices.

- Coloured. A screen capable of displaying a multicolor image. Such displays are more advanced than monochrome, they not only look nicer, but also provide more information and visibility (colour is often used as a way of highlighting). At the same time, such functionality is rarely required in the case of digital pianos, and colour screens are noticeably more expensive. Therefore, this option is typical mainly for premium-class instruments.

The power consumed by the tool during normal operation.

The cost of electricity, as well as connection requirements, depend on this indicator. At the same time, we note that digital pianos require relatively little energy — even in the most powerful and advanced models, consumption usually does not exceed 60 watts. So in fact, power consumption data is required mainly for specific cases — for example, to calculate the total load when connecting a tool to an autonomous generator along with other devices. In addition, this information may be useful when assessing the power of the built-in speaker, for more information, see "Built-in acoustics".

Additional items included with the instrument.

— Music stand. A music stand mounted above the keyboard, in front of the musician's eyes. Note that in this case, only the detachable music rest supplied with the portable instrument is meant (see "Body"); in stationary digital pianos, by definition, such a stand is available; moreover, it is often a non-removable part of the body.

— Pedal. Only portable digital pianos (see Body) can be equipped with an external pedal. stationary are equipped with built-in pedals. Note that there is usually only one such item in the kit, even if there is more than one input for the pedals. However, this cannot be called a serious drawback: situations where a musician needs more than one pedal are extremely rare. For more information about the inputs and the pedals themselves, see Connectable Pedals.

— Power Supply. Power supply for connecting the tool to the network. Even for portable tools, an outlet is often the most convenient way to power; and in stationary cases, other options may not be provided at all. Therefore, the power supply is an almost indispensable element of the digital piano package. The absence of such a block in the kit, usually, indicates that it is made built-in; however, this is rare.

— Disk. An optical disc (CD or DVD) containing various digital piano supplements. These can be instructions and other documentation, drivers for connecting to a computer, specialized software for edit...ing music on a PC, etc. Such a medium can be very useful if you need access to information or specialized software, but there is no Internet connection at the moment or there is a problem with it.

— Rack. Stand for floor installation of the tool. It is used only in portable models (see "Chassis") — stationary, by definition, do not require additional stands. Such a device, usually, is made folding, which provides ease of storage and transportation. Racks are also sold separately, but in some cases it is more convenient to buy a stand immediately, along with the tool.