Digital pianos can sync your playing to your PC to make recording easy.
They offer a ton of features while still managing to produce the traditional sound of a piano that you might expect.
Like traditional pianos, digital pianos are also quite expensive.
Why Are Digital Pianos So Expensive? (10 Reasons)
The average price of a digital piano ranges from $400 to more than $3,000.
Digital pianos are expensive because of material costs, certain features that add to the cost of manufacturing, brand name, and its ability to record.
Let’s look into these factors and others in more detail.
1. Material Costs
Digital piano manufacturers tend to use either plastic or wood in their manufacturing.
Cheaper digital pianos tend to be only plastic.
Mid-tier digital pianos tend to contain durable plastic or a low-quality type of wood.
Expensive digital pianos tend to have high-quality wood.
Similar to traditional pianos, digital pianos can look a lot like them.
Even if it has certain digital features, some pianists will make their digital pianos look exactly like traditional pianos.
They’ll use expensive types of wood to create the exterior of the piano.
Some will also use other traditional materials to make the keys, hammers, and pedals.
These materials tend to be expensive because they come from rare sources.
A certain type of wood, for example, might be rare since its sourcing is scarce.
Sources might face regulations that only allow them to harvest a certain amount of wood in a given time.
Since the supply of that type of wood is low, the price for it is quite high.
That’s because the demand for that type of wood is likely still high.
Since the material is expensive, the company making the digital piano takes on a high cost to make the product.
With high costs come high prices.
Digital pianos are expensive because they sometimes contain expensive materials.
2. Self-Teaching Features
One of the coolest aspects of a digital piano is its ability to instruct you.
Because it’s digital, you can download lessons.
They might appear on a screen before you, or you can sync the piano to your computer to have it appear there.
Some digital pianos might even have light-up keys that can help instruct you how to play certain songs.
Most people use digital pianos for their self-teaching capabilities.
They find it a cheaper investment than hiring a piano teacher.
The piano can teach them how to play certain songs which can help them memorize keys.
There are also basic lessons designed to teach the keys and notes.
Eventually, the pianist can graduate to a traditional piano.
They’ll take the lessons they learned from the digital piano and apply them to the traditional piano.
While self-teaching is a great quality for the digital piano to have, it’s also one of the main reasons it’s expensive.
For one, being able to sync music found online requires the piano to have sophisticated software.
That means an engineer has to develop and maintain that software.
Self-teaching also makes the digital piano valuable.
Some people might be willing to pay more for them because they can replace a piano teacher.
Digital pianos are expensive because they can help you learn how to play the piano without a teacher present.
3. Recorded Sounds
Another advantage of a digital piano that some people enjoy is the vast library of recorded sounds.
Cheaper digital pianos tend to only have a small selection of recorded sounds.
More expensive digital pianos have a large library of recorded sounds.
Those sounds might be different key sounds, a metronome, other instruments, or even rhythms.
The more expensive the digital piano is, the more sounds it likely has or can store.
This allows you to try different things with the piano.
For example, even though digital pianos mimic traditional pianos in terms of sound, you might choose to change how the keys sound.
That can allow you to bring different styles to certain songs.
You can use the metronome to ensure you’re playing the music at the right tempo.
Different rhythms can also inspire you to compose your own piece.
The features essentially add value to the digital piano since someone might want to pay more to have all those sounds.
The better quality of the sounds, the more expensive the digital piano is.
That’s because the manufacturer had to either record those sounds or buy them.
Digital pianos are expensive because they have recorded sounds on them.
4. Brand Name
The brand that made the digital piano can also influence its price.
A digital piano from a well-known brand name, for example, is going to be more expensive than one from an unknown brand.
That’s because the brand has put a lot of work into building up its reputation.
It’s been in business long enough that customers know that they’re going to buy a high-quality product from the company.
The products are reliable.
Some big-name brands in the digital piano market include:
- Yamaha
- Roland
- Kawai
Yamaha, especially, is a well-known instrument brand.
Yamaha makes traditional pianos, digital pianos, and any number of other digital instruments.
The company even makes hybrids.
Its focus has always been on developing high-quality pianos that offer incredible sound.
Since it’s managed to do that over the years, pianists know that they can buy a solid product from Yamaha.
Some people are simply willing to pay more for a product that comes from a well-known brand name than a cheaper product from an unknown name.
To them, the investment is worth it.
Digital pianos are expensive because brand names can add to the price tag.
5. Bluetooth Syncing
Digital pianos are also capable of syncing with Bluetooth.
This is another great feature because it allows you to sync the piano with several other devices.
You can sync with a Bluetooth speaker, for example, and have your music play throughout the house.
For more quiet evenings, you can sync the piano to your Bluetooth headphones.
The music will play solely through the headphones rather than from the piano.
This is great for pianists who only have the chance to play at night while everyone is sleeping.
You can play without waking anyone.
The ability to sync to Bluetooth devices adds to the digital piano’s value.
People interested in syncing with Bluetooth devices are likely willing to pay more for a product that lets them do that.
The software and hardware needed to allow Bluetooth syncing also add to the price tag.
It makes the piano spend a bit more time in the factory.
Since it costs more to make, it’s going to sell at a higher price.
Digital pianos are expensive because they can sync to Bluetooth devices.
6. Smart Device Syncing
Bluetooth devices aren’t the only things that digital pianos can sync to.
They can also sync to smart devices.
For example, you can sync your piano to Alexa or Google Nest.
This is a great feature because it means you can download music directly from a smart device.
For example, you can have Alexa search for free piano music sheets and download them to the piano.
You can then play them.
There are also music sheet subscription services you can link to.
By paying for the subscription, you can download tons of different music sheets.
You’re then able to upload them to your piano and start learning how to play them.
Clearly, being able to sync to a smart device also adds value to the piano.
People who want to learn more music might be willing to pay more for a piano that allows them to download almost any kind of sheet music in the comfort of their own homes.
That adds to the price of the piano.
As with Bluetooth syncing, being able to sync to smart devices also requires a few more steps in the manufacturing process.
Since it takes a bit more time to produce, the digital piano is a bit more expensive.
Digital pianos are expensive because they can sync with smart devices.
7. Weighted Keys With Hammers
Not every digital piano is the same.
More expensive digital pianos tend to lean toward a more traditional style of piano.
They have weighted keys, hammers, and pedals.
Other digital pianos may not have those.
They might just have keys that are standard for cheaper digital pianos.
Weighted keys, hammers, and pedals are more expensive because they’re extra parts.
You technically don’t need them to play a digital piano, but they can be useful.
Most pianists who have digital pianos that come with weighted keys, hammers, and pedals do so because it helps them learn how to play a traditional piano.
A traditional piano has all those parts.
If you’re trying to learn how to play a traditional piano, it’s also important to develop the appropriate muscles for weighted keys.
It’s appropriate to understand what it feels like with the hammers or how to use the pedals.
It has more value to those who are playing digital pianos to train for traditional pianos.
Since it also requires more parts, the manufacturing costs are higher.
Some companies make highly accurate weighted keys, hammers, and pedals.
Since they’re high-quality, the pianos are even more expensive.
Digital pianos are expensive when they use weighted keys, hammers, and pedals.
8. Ambient Sounds
Digital pianos don’t just have recorded sounds.
They also have ambient sounds.
The more expensive the digital piano is, the more selections they have.
The ambient sounds can make your playing even more enjoyable.
For example, you could have a recording hall ambiance.
The piano plays differently in such a setting.
You can also have a concert hall ambiance.
The piano will sound as though you’re playing in a concert hall.
The different ambiances can bring a bit of life to your music.
That makes a digital piano expensive because it means the company had to either record the ambiance or buy the different selections.
Since that makes the manufacturing costs a bit more expensive, the price of the piano is also going to be more expensive.
Digital pianos are expensive because some have a large selection of ambient sounds.
9. Durability
Digital pianos are also quite durable.
Whether they contain durable plastic or wood, they don’t break easily.
That’s especially important since digital pianos house a lot of vulnerable parts inside them.
The cost of making something durable can be pretty expensive since it usually means the company is using high-quality materials.
That makes the piano expensive in turn.
It also means that people typically only buy one digital piano for their entire lifetime.
Since piano companies only sell a few products, the price needs to be high to ensure the companies make enough of a profit.
Digital pianos are expensive because they’re durable and last a long time.
10. Recording Function
A final reason digital pianos are expensive is that they have an incredible recording function.
When recording on a typical piano, you need recording equipment.
That isn’t the case with digital pianos.
You can record directly into the piano.
You’re then able to sync that recording with your computer or smart device.
Also, you can record directly to another device with your piano.
It makes recording and sharing your music easier than ever.
This makes digital pianos expensive because it increases their value to some people.
It also usually means the manufacturer has higher costs to produce a piano that can record.
Digital pianos are expensive because they’re able to record the music the pianists play on them.
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