If you want to learn to play the piano or keyboard and you are not sure about the difference between these two instruments and from which instrument you should start well, you will find that in this article. By the end of this article, you will completely know the difference between a Piano and a keyboard and which is better for you to learn if you are a beginner or an intermediate. I will also share with you an online piano learning course at the end of this article which will help you to polish and master your piano skills and follow your passion.
So let’s get started.
First of all, let’s see the pictures of both of these.
Talking about the differences between the two and starting with size and keys, the size of the piano is much bigger than a keyboard. A professional or a full-size piano has 88 keys (both black and white) whereas, keys on a keyboard range from 61 to 76 which are also not weighted like a piano and you’ll surely feel the difference upon pressing piano keys and keyboard keys. As the keyboard is smaller and more compact than the piano, the keys of keyboards are also thin as compared to piano keys.
Mechanism and Functionality of Piano and Keyboard
The mechanism inside the piano is completely different from a keyboard. Though after listening to the sounds of both you might feel that they both are pretty similar to each other. The fact is, the functionality going inside both the instruments is completely different from one another. You will find out the difference soon.
In a piano, there are strings present at the back of the keys, and the sound you hear after pressing the keys is of strings. Basically, when you press a piano key, the key pushes a hammer, and the hammer strikes the string. The sound you hear is generated by a string because of the hammer hitting it. This is the reason why the piano sound is richer than the keyboard because you hear actual string sound and not an artificially generated sound.
On the other hand, there are no strings on a keyboard, and the sound generated after you press the key of a keyboard is completely digital and electronic with no strings involved in the process. Moreover, the volume control in a keyboard is completely digital. You will find the volume buttons or nobs on every keyboard from which you can easily increase or decrease the sound level. In a piano, there are no buttons or nob to control and adjust the volume. The volume on the piano is controlled by how hard you press the keys i.e. if you press the key harder you will hear a louder sound of the key and similarly if you press the key lighter in a soft manner, you will hear the lighter sound of the key. Guide about piano vs keyboards.
Keyboard also has built-in speakers and you can also attach external speakers of your own choice with it. You can’t attach any speakers with a piano nor does it comes with any speakers. It only has an original sound which is made when the hammer strikes the strings as a result of pressing the piano keys. The piano also needs tuning like we tune the guitar and may also incur maintenance costs after a certain amount of time but no tuning is required for keyboards.
Options Available in Both Piano and Keyboard
Coming towards the sounds both of these instruments produce, on the keyboard you get more variety of tones with greater variations and diversity. You can set the tone you want, and tune it the way you want like whichever type of key sound you need you can change the settings from the settings panel. You can change the chords and notes you want to play or set those that you like the most. Keyboards also have background music and rhythms so you can play different songs in different background music and beats. With the piano you don’t have that much freedom, you only get a typical piano sound but the quality of sound is much better and when the keys of the piano are played together, a keyboard cannot match its distinctive and unique soothing sound.
Which One is Better in Terms of Mobility
You can easily carry your keyboard with you as it is not very heavy. Nowadays, every keyboard comes with a bag case. A bag is also used to keep it safe and whenever you want to take your keyboard to your friend’s house, to a party, or to any other place, just carry that bag with you. With keyboards, you also get the option to either use them via direct AC power by plugging in the adopter or you can also charge the battery and can play it on the go. So if you want to go outside on a vacation or camping, you can easily take your keyboard along with you.
Sadly, this is not the case with the piano. As they are larger in size and thus are much heavier than keyboards. It is very hard to move them even in your house. That is why most people have a separate place in their house where they keep their piano and they hardly change their position.
Price Comparison – Which One is Better for You?
When comparing the prices of both, keyboards prices range from $200 to thousands of dollars. With the high price, you also get greater features and specs. But it more depends on your budget and how much are you willing to spend. A good piano costs a lot more than a keyboard. You can get a brand new piano for around $4,000 – $5,000. Bigger brands are even more expensive than this. You can also go for a second-hand good-conditioned piano if you want to buy one and are not willing to buy a keyboard.
So this was all about the difference between the two musical instruments, the Piano and the keyboard. Hope you got an idea about both of them and now you can make up your mind and can choose either you want a piano or a keyboard. If you are a beginner, I suggest you should start with a cheaper option first and check whether you like it or not. You can start learning the basics on a keyboard and with time you will have a grip on all chords. With this, you will also get to know how much you are interested in this hobby.
After having good knowledge and learning different chords, you can switch to a more professional option and can buy a piano. On the other hand, if you know the basic stuff about the piano and you enjoy playing different songs and tunes on it. Now you are looking to take your passion/hobby to the next level, then you should go for piano.
If you are interested in a piano learning course that has step-by-step lessons and tutorials, you should also check this Piano for all review. It comes with 200 video lessons, 500 audio lessons, and 9 different e-books. Each resource covers a different topic about piano learning and how to learn to play piano in an easy and fast way.