Hybrid pianos (Kawai Novus - Yamaha Avantgrand - etc.)

Member

Posts: 1
City: Poitiers

March 16, 2022, 22:42

Good evening, I am writing here because it is one of the few forums that I respect and always follow.

I am a pianist-composer; at this time I work and live in France, where fortunately I am able to make a living from music. Recently, I have needed to get a new piano. The first things I must consider are quality and price. And I have come across these hybrid pianos. Never tried them. I should mention that I have always had acoustic pianos since childhood and, out of passion and necessity, for twenty years I have tuned and voiced them myself; I do not consider myself an expert in the field, but I know what I want and what I am looking for, which is also why I follow your technique and mechanics tutorials with admiration. At this moment, since I am abroad, portability (due to moving) also carries weight in the choice. Here, transporting a piano is extremely expensive... It's one thing to have 100kg in a van and another to have 400kg with a specialized company.. I thought that if it were worth it, I might consider these hybrids since, even for recording—which is part of my work—and being digital, I would have less stress... But I am afraid I might bitterly regret it. So...

They will certainly be part of the future, but I would like to ask those who know more to evaluate whether these instruments are perhaps more useful than necessary or less useless than one might think.

Prices range from 8,000 to 13,000.

A few questions to start:

A good acoustic piano that is well-maintained can last up to 100 years; how long will these hybrids be reliable?

Inside they have a traditional wooden action, some like the Kawai use carbon; from some videos, it can be seen, for example, that they have rollers, felts, center pins... Are these replaceable by a regular technician?

The sound engine, which we partially know through sample amplification, makes as much as an acoustic or almost?

At what frequency and bit depth is the sound generally digitized?

Is the vibration perceived, or does it remain a cold luxury keyboard?

Can one engage in professional study/work with them?

For those who have tried them or own one, what are your impressions?

Thank you again for your always professional and passionate contribution.

David

pianoexpert

Moderator

Posts: 3,876
City: rocca di papa

September 4, 2022, 08:33

The last time I went to the Musikmesse in Frankfurt, I tried some truly good hybrids, but regarding management/maintenance, I am a bit skeptical. It all depends on whether, where you are, you can rely on a truly competent and appropriate technician.... or perhaps on yourself .... learning how to open the instrument and intervene in due time. Everything that is similar to acoustic (hammer felt, pin felts...) is replaceable, but with hybrids.... it is more difficult. Think of a pin that sits in a cashmere gasket which in turn sits in a hole of a carbon element. Reaming and replacing is not easy and very often, as with plastic forked components, the gasket comes out during reaming. So everything remains to be seen. Perhaps you could become one of those rare technicians in France who know how to work on hybrids. Regarding long-term reliability, I would say they are too young to be able to evaluate. Then there is the fact that we are getting more and more used to a "packaged" sound that doesn't let us experience it, except through simulation, and not in a natural way—the energy that starts from our fingers and reaches the strings. The acoustic instrument also has the advantage of being able to modify adjustments and intonations very easily. Even the tuning is "packaged." In short, we all have a digital [piano] for the convenience of practice, but then perhaps we must seek the sound on an acoustic instrument. That's what I think.