Baldwin Digital Piano Manual

This page lists owners manuals, service manuals and documentation available for Baldwin audio, music, stage and studio equipment. Our website has lots of manuals and documentation for many brands in multiple languages as PDF, DJVU or paper document. When in doubt, the best solution is to bring your piano in to a reputable piano dealer for repair. Because most manufacturers void the warranty if work isn’t performed correctly, its easy to quickly do damage beyond repair. That can be a costly mistake, especially if it ends up requiring a new piano instead.

The Baldwin Piano Company is an American piano brand. It was once the largest US-based manufacturer of keyboard instruments and known by the slogan, 'America's Favorite Piano'. It ceased most domestic production in December 2008, moving its total production to China. A former subsidiary of Gibson,^[3] Baldwin is one of the top 10 largest American manufacturers of musical instruments. Current pianos only display the 'Baldwin' name and brand with all of the formerly American made upright models being made in Baldwin's Chinese factory.^[4][5]

History[edit]

The company traces its origins back to 1857, when Dwight Hamilton Baldwin began teaching piano, organ, and violin in Cincinnati, Ohio. In 1862, Baldwin started a Decker Brothers piano dealership and, in 1866, hired Lucien Wulsin as a clerk. Wulsin became a partner in the dealership, by then known as D.H. Baldwin & Company, in 1873, and, under his leadership, the Baldwin Company became the largest piano dealer in the Midwestern United States by the 1890s.

In 1889–1890, Baldwin vowed to build 'the best piano that could be built'^[6] and subsequently formed two production companies: Hamilton Organ, which built reed organs, and the Baldwin Piano Company, which made pianos. The company's first piano, an upright, began selling in 1891. The company introduced its first grand piano in 1895.

Baldwin died in 1899 and left the vast majority of his estate to fund missionary causes. Wulsin ultimately purchased Baldwin's estate and continued the company's shift from retail to manufacturing. The company won its first major award in 1900, when their model 112 won the Grand Prix at the Exposition Universelle in Paris, the first American manufactured piano to win such an award. Baldwin-manufactured pianos also won top awards at the Louisiana Purchase Exposition and the 1914 Anglo-American Exposition. By 1913, business had become brisk, with Baldwin exporting to thirty-two countries in addition to having retailers throughout the United States.

Baldwin, like many other manufacturers, began building player pianos in the 1920s. A piano factory was constructed in Cincinnati, Ohio. The models became unpopular by the end of the 1920s, which, coupled with the beginning of the Great Depression, could have spelled disaster for Baldwin. However, the company's president, Lucien Wulsin II, had created a large reserve fund for such situations, and Baldwin was able to ride out the market downturn.

During World War II, the US War Production Board ordered the cessation of all US piano manufacturing so that the factories could be used for the US war effort. Baldwin factories were used to manufacture plywood airplane components for various aircraft such as the Aeronca PT-23 trainer and the stillborn Curtiss-Wright C-76 Caravan cargo aircraft. While the employment of wood components in military aircraft could by no means be considered a resounding success, lessons learned in constructing plywood aircraft wings ultimately assisted in Baldwin's development of its 21-ply maple pinblock design used in its postwar piano models.

After the war ended, Baldwin resumed selling pianos, and by 1953 the company had doubled production figures from prewar levels. In 1946, Baldwin introduced its first electronic organ (developed in 1941),^[7] which became so successful that the company changed its name to the Baldwin Piano & Organ Company. In 1961, Lucien Wulsin III became president. By 1963, the company had acquired C. Bechstein Pianofortefabrik and remained its owner until 1986. In 1959, Baldwin constructed a new piano manufacturing plant in Conway, Arkansas, originally to manufacture upright pianos: by 1973, the company had built 1,000,000 upright pianos. In 1961 Baldwin constructed a new piano factory in Greenwood Mississippi. Subsequently production of upright pianos was moved from Cincinnati, Ohio to Greenwood.

The company next attempted to capitalize on the growth of pop music. After an unsuccessful bid to buy Fender Musical Instruments Corporation, Baldwin bought Burns of London in 1965 for $380,000, and began selling the guitars through the company's piano retail outlets. During this time period, Baldwin engineer Robert C. Scherer developed the Prismatone pickup for nylon string guitars.^[8] Unaccustomed to marketing guitars, the Baldwin stores failed to interest many guitar buyers, and sales proved disappointing.^[9] In 1967, Baldwin also bought Gretsch guitars, which had its own experienced guitar sales force and a distribution network of authorized retail outlets. However, Fender and Gibson continued to dominate, and sales did not reach expected levels. The Gretsch guitar operation was sold back to the Gretsch family in 1989.

Throughout the 1970s, the company undertook a significant bid to diversify into financial services. Under the leadership of Morley P. Thompson, Baldwin bought dozens of firms and by the early 1980s owned over 200 savings and loan institutions, insurance companies and investment firms, including MGIC Investment Corporation. The company changed its name to Baldwin-United in 1977 after a merger with United Corp.^[10] In 1980, the company opened a new piano manufacturing facility in Trumann, Arkansas.^[11] By 1982, however, the piano business contributed only three percent of Baldwin's $3.6 billion revenues. Meanwhile, the company had taken on significant debt to finance its acquisitions and new facilities, and was finding it increasingly difficult to meet its loan obligations. In 1983, the holding company and several of its subsidiaries were forced into bankruptcy with a total debt of over $9 billion—at that time, the largest bankruptcy ever. However, the piano business was not part of the bankruptcy.^[12]

During bankruptcy proceedings in 1984, the Baldwin piano business was sold to its management.^[13] The new company went public in 1986 as the Baldwin Piano and Organ Company^[14] and moved its headquarters to Loveland, Ohio.^[15]

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However, difficulties continued as demographic changes and foreign competition slowed sales of keyboard instruments. The company responded by acquiring Wurlitzer to increase market share and by moving manufacturing overseas to reduce production costs.^[16] In 1998, the company moved its headquarters from Loveland to nearby Deerfield Township.^[15][17] Throughout the 1990s, the company's fortunes improved, and by 1998, the company's 270 employees at its Conway, Arkansas facility were building 2,200 grand pianos a year. However, in 2001, Baldwin was again facing difficulties, and filed for bankruptcy once again, when the company was bought by Gibson Guitar Corporation.^[18] In 2005, the company laid off some workers from its Trumann, Arkansas manufacturing plant while undergoing restructuring.^[11]

The company, now a subsidiary of Gibson Guitar Corporation, has manufactured instruments under the Baldwin, Chickering, Wurlitzer, Hamilton, and Howard names. Baldwin has bought two piano factories in China in which they are manufacturing grand and vertical pianos. Recreations of the former US built verticals are built at its factory in Zhongshan, China. These include the Baldwin Hamilton studio models B243 and B247 which are the most popular school pianos ever built.^[19] The much larger factory in Dongbei is not building pianos at this time. Baldwin grand pianos are being built to Baldwin specification by Parsons Music, China.^[1] All new pianos are being sold under the Baldwin name and not Wurlitzer, Hamilton or Chickering.^[19]

Baldwin stopped manufacturing new pianos at its Trumann, Arkansas factory in December, 2008. They retained a small staff to build custom grands and to finish numerous artist grands which are ordered.^[5] As of October, 2018 the factory in Trumann, AR has been closed and remaining inventory disposed of^[20].

Notable performers[edit]

Many distinguished musicians have chosen to compose, perform and record using Baldwin pianos, including the pianists Walter Gieseking, Claudio Arrau, Jorge Bolet, Morton Estrin, Margaret Baxtresser (née Barthel), Earl Wild and José Iturbi and the composers Aaron Copland, Philip Glass, Igor Stravinsky, Béla Bartók, Stephen Sondheim, Leonard Bernstein, Lukas Foss, André Previn, and John Williams. Baldwin pianos have been used by popular entertainers including Ray Charles, Liberace, Richard Carpenter, Michael Feinstein, Billy Joel, Cat Stevens, and Carly Simon, and jazz pianists Dave Brubeck, George Shearing and Dick Hyman. Amy Lee, the lead vocalist, pianist and keyboardist of Evanescence also uses this brand in most of her compositions, recordings and live performances. A Baldwin piano was seen nightly being played by Paul Shaffer on the Late Show with David Letterman. Baldwin was the official piano of the television show Glee. Marian McPartland's long-running radio show Piano Jazz was hosted by Baldwin.^[21] Baldwin was second only to Steinway in its artist and symphony roster.

See also[edit]

• Moody Amplifiers, the Australian importer of Baldwin pianos in the 1970s

Bibliography[edit]

• Crombie, David. Piano: Evolution, Design, and Performance. Barnes and Noble, 2000. First printed by Balafon Books, Great Britain, 1995. (ISBN0-7607-2026-6)
• Baldwin Piano & Organ CompanyEncyclopedia of Company Histories. Answers.com. Accessed March 1, 2007.

References[edit]

1. ^The Baldwin Story at Taylor Music.com
2. ^For distribution. Baldwin pianos are manufactured in China.
3. ^La marca de guitarras Gibson se declara en bancarrota by Oscar Adame on Warp.la, 20 Feb 2018
4. ^http://www.musictrades.com/top100.html
5. ^ ^ab'Baldwin ceases production, lays off workers'. Trumann Democrat. December 8, 2008. Archived from the original on 2012-03-19. Retrieved 2009-02-11.
6. ^'Baldwin Pianos'. Baldwin Piano. Retrieved 2014-03-11.
7. ^Hans-Joachim Braun (1982). 'Music Engineers. The Remarkable Career of Winston E. Kock, Electronic Organ Designer and NASA Chief of Electronics'(PDF). CHE2004 of IEEE.Cite journal requires journal= (help)
8. ^'Robert C. Scherer Prismatone inventor'. Retrieved 2014-11-14.
9. ^Gjörde, Per (2001). Pearls and Crazy Diamonds. Göteborg, Sweden: Addit Information AB. pp. 35–37.
10. ^Baldwin Piano & Organ Company History fundinguniverse.com
11. ^ ^abKAIT8 News, Jan. 7, 2005, 'Trumann Piano Plant Lays Off Workers While Undergoing Restructuring'Archived 2009-02-21 at the Wayback Machine,
12. ^Baldwin, A Casualty Of Fast Expansion, Files For Bankruptcy New York Times September 27, 1983
13. ^'G.E. Credit Signs Deal With Baldwin'. The New York Times. June 19, 1984. Retrieved 2007-12-17.
14. ^Rothstein, Eward (September 27, 1987). 'For the Piano, Chords of Change'. The New York Times. Retrieved 2007-12-15.
15. ^ ^abOsborne, William (2004). Music in Ohio. Kent State University Press. p. 492. ISBN0-87338-775-9 – via Google Books. In November 1998 its headquarters had been relocated a bit further north in suburbia, abandoning the location in Loveland it had occupied since 1986 in favor of an office park in Deerfield Township.
16. ^'COMPANY NEWS; Wurlitzer Sale To Baldwin'. The New York Times (Reuters). The New York Times Company. 1987-12-24. Retrieved 2008-10-25.
17. ^'Baldwin to move headquarters'. Cincinnati Business Courier. American City Business Journals. August 24, 1998. Retrieved April 1, 2018.
18. ^'Gibson Guitar to Buy Baldwin Piano'. Los Angeles Times. Tribune Company. 2001-11-02. p. C2. Retrieved 2008-10-25.
19. ^ ^abFine, Larry (2016). Acoustic and Digital Piano Buyer. Brookside Press. p. 168. ISBN978-192914543-0. Archived from the original on 2016-11-29. Retrieved 2017-01-08.
20. ^Jean-Pierre Thiollet, 88 notes pour piano solo, Neva Editions, 2015, p.135. ISBN978-2-3505-5192-0
21. ^'Marian McPartland's Storied Life, Told 'In Good Time''. Weekend Edition. August 17, 2012. 10:58 minutes in. NPR.

External links[edit]

• Morley Thompson Interview NAMM Oral History Library (2003)
• Lucien Wulsin Interview NAMM Oral History Library (2005)

THE BLUE BOOK OF PIANOS

DIGITAL PIANOS FAQ AND FYI
By Isako Hoshino

CONTENTS:
[Q1] What are the differences between 'acoustic', 'digital', 'electric' and 'electronic' pianos?
[Q2] Okay, now that I know the difference between acoustic and digital pianos, tell me more about
digital pianos.
[Q3] What are the advantages of buying a digital piano as opposed to an acoustic one?
[Q4] What are the drawbacks?
[Q5 Should I buy a digital piano or an acoustic piano?
[Q6] What are the basic things I should look for in a digital piano?
[Q7] Are there any magazine reviews on digital pianos?
[Q8] What's different between the different manufacturers and the different models?
[Q9] What are the most popular brands?
[Q10] What is the mean time between repairs?
[Q11] How much pounding can they take?
[Q12] Where can I get the best deal on a digital piano?
Copyright and Credits
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[Q1] What are the differences between 'acoustic', 'digital', 'electric' and 'electronic' pianos?
An 'acoustic' piano is the traditional piano everybody is familiar with, that produces sounds by means of hammers striking strings. It is generally referred to as 'the piano.' The term 'acoustic' is usually used when specifically making a distinction between other various forms of piano (digital, electric, etc.)
A 'digital' piano is an instrument which does its best to duplicate the sound and feel of playing an acoustic piano. It uses digitally sampled sounds, amplifiers and speakers instead of strings and hammers to produce the piano-like sound. They have weighted key action to imitate the action
of an acoustic piano.
An 'electric' piano is an electro-acoustic instrument analogous to an electric guitar. It has a real action, some sort of metal tine or string which vibrates, and pickups to detect the audio signal for subsequent amplification.
An 'electronic' piano, better referred to as an 'electronic keyboard' is an instrument with a keyboard, but usually without the weighted key action or velocity sensitivity, and the sound is usually generated through synthesizers (computer-generated); however, some may have sampled sounds. This type of keyboard is the one you see most in bands playing popular music.

[Q2] Okay, now that I know the difference between acoustic and digital pianos, tell me more about
digital pianos.
A complete digital piano system consists of the following: a keyboard with a weighted key action, optical or other electronic sensors which detect the velocity with which you strike the keys, a digitized sound bank, an amplifier or two, and speakers/headphone jacks. Usually the sound for each note has been sampled off a high-quality acoustic piano. When a key is pressed, the sensors detect the key's velocity, and a microchip produces the note with corresponding loudness (the faster, or harder you hit the keys, the louder), just like a piano. Keys are usually weighted to approximate the feel of a piano's keyboard rather than that of an organ (soft, very little resistance, light).
Most digital pianos also offer other than piano sounds (such as pipe organ, harpsichord, etc.), plus miscellaneous digital technology 'gadgets'. Since all the sounds are stored in electronic form, you can listen to the piano through headphones instead of speakers, thereby allowing you to play the piano without anyone else hearing it.
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[Q3] What are the advantages of buying a digital piano as opposed to an acoustic one?
The biggest advantages of digital pianos are:
(1) Relative portability. Most digital pianos weigh less than 200 lbs., as opposed to 450--500 lbs. for a typical upright and much more for grand pianos. You have the luxury of disassembling the major parts of the digital piano, stash it in your hatchback, and drive away with it.
(2) Does not need tuning. If you have a piano, you will usually have to tune it once or twice a year. The sounds for a digital piano are recorded and stored 'digitally' within the hardware, so it does not go out of tune.
(3) Option to play silently. By using headphones, you can play a digital piano as loud as you want whenever you want without producing any sound which others can hear (well, except for your fingers hitting the keys and some low-level noise from the keys moving). If you live in close-quarters or in an apartment with poor sound insulation, this silencing ability is very useful.
(4) Relatively low maintenance. Beyond the usual practices of keeping liquids away, keeping it out of direct sunlight, and occasional dusting, etc., digital pianos are virtually maintenance-free.
(5) Electronic interface. Many digital piano models have a MIDI interface capability, which allows you to connect the piano to your favorite computer or other MIDI hardware and enjoy the benefits of digital technology. As you pay more, the built-in recording and playback capability available will become more elaborate.
(6) Many voices. Most digital pianos come with several different types of piano sounds, plus the sounds of other instruments. For example, with a press of a button you can make it sound like a harpsichord, a pipe organ or something else. The variety of sounds you get differs among models, but generally as you pay more, you get more voices. Some models come with a full orchestra sound, allowing you to compose a symphony right on your piano!

[Q4] What are the drawbacks?
(1) Sound quality. No matter how well the piano sound is sampled, you can never truly get away from the 'amplified', 'digital' sound quality. As digital sampling technology improves, the gap between the acoustic and digital sound may diminish, but digital sound will never equal or be superior to those of an acoustic.
(2) Inability to produce a 'color' to the tone. In an acoustic instrument, by using various playing techniques, you can produce almost infinite kinds of 'color' to the tone. Digital pianos can only produce sounds that were originally sampled (recorded), and thus very limited in terms of variety in the sound produced. For a very accomplished pianist, the limited sound produced by the digital piano can be disturbing.
(3) As with any electronic mechanisms, digital pianos can develop problems like damaged spring action on the keys, bad contact, bad amplifier, bad speaker, etc. Digital pianos in general are considered relatively robust, but there has been reports of key action break down, hissing and crackling speaker noise developing, and having difficulty in getting it fixed correctly.
(4) As with any electronics, the technology used to create the current digital piano may (well, almost certainly will) become obsolete in the near future. Whereas, in an acoustic piano, one can assume if you buy a good piano and take good care of it, your grandchild or great-grandchild can still play it and will find someone who can maintain your piano. This is not necessarily the case with digital pianos. Digital pianos haven't been around long enough to really make a good case study of its longevity. One reason to purchase digital pianos from a reputable company.

[Q5] Should I buy a digital piano or an acoustic piano?
The technology of digital pianos has made some impressive strides in the last couple of years. For between $2000 and $3000 (at the best available discounts), you can get some fairly satisfying instruments. However, the current state of the art isn't perfect (yet :-) ), and for those prices you
can pick up a decent used acoustic piano. If your situation doesn't require the advantages of a digital piano (relative portability, and the option of practicing silently with headphones are the big ones), you might be happier hunting down a good deal on a new or used upright. If you really want to splurge, you can get something like a Yamaha Silent Series, which is an acoustic piano with the digital piano
silencing capability added. You get the best of both worlds, but you also pay the price.

[Q6] What are the basic things I should look for in a digital piano?
Before you set out shopping, fetch a good-quality (the best quality you can get your hands on) headphone sets and take it with you to the piano dealers. If you're buying a digital piano instead of an acoustic piano, the chances are you'll be practicing through headphones a lot and should determine how
it sounds through a headset as well as through the speakers. Using headphones is also practical because it is easier to hear many subtle defects which might be masked by the speakers. Don't be afraid to play away on the floor models. That's what they're there for. If you want, you can grab a
friend who can play the piano well, so you can listen how it sounds while your friend plays it. But don't be a passive observer. Also, if the showroom also has fine acoustic instruments, use them for comparison.
Keep in mind that it is *you* who will be playing the digital piano, and not your friend or the salesperson. Buying digital piano is like buying a stereo system. You can spend almost infinite amount of money if you don't watch out. Get what you are satisfied with, not what others say that you
will be satisfied with.
Here are some common concerns for picking a good digital piano, whatever your needs.
(1) Action. Does it *feel* like a piano to you?

Do the keys have the proper weight and do they move
under your fingers the way you remember a good piano
does? Is it easy to imagine that you are picking up and
throwing a hammer forward at the end of each stroke?
Some pianos offer many levels of velocity-response (i.e.
how heavy you have to hit the keys before you get a
sound out), so check those settings also.
(2) Dynamic range. Does it respond to velocity
properly? How loudly and how softly can it be played?
Is it easy to play and maintain an even dynamic level?
Does the timbre change properly with dynamic shifts?
(3) Sound. Pick a note, play it loudly, hold it and
listen carefully while it decays into silence. Does it
sound natural? Does it take long enough? Does it last
*too* long? (Time a note at similar loudness on a grand
piano for comparison). Can you hear obvious, repeating
patterns ('loops')? Repeat this test, playing a chord
instead of a single note.
(4) Realistic sound source. Play something moving up
and down the keyboard (scales, arpeggios, etc.). Does
the sound 'move' realistically from side to side (do the
bass notes seem to be coming from the left side of the
cabinet while the treble notes come from the right)?
(5) Polyphony. How many notes can you hear at once?
Ones with less polyphony (12-16), you can run out of
notes quickly if you start sustaining multiple notes or
playing big chords, resulting in notes being abruptly
'cut-off'. A good test is to hold down the sustain
pedal, play the two lowest C's, then play a glissando
about five octaves or more long. Not-so-good models
will prematurely and abruptly drop notes in a fashion
that you can hear clearly; the worst models will drop
one or both bass notes. The best models will chose
notes that are acoustically masked by others.
(6) Design. Is the control panel (and the manual)
well laid-out and easy to understand? Some poorly
designed panels have buttons which are too close to the
keys, and while you play you may accidentally hit the
control buttons and change the setting of the
instrument.
(7) Gadgets. Does it have many bells and whistles?
Are the ones it does have useful for you? Is there a
built-in key cover? If you need some non-piano voices,
does it have the ones you want? Are they good enough for
your purposes? Some models offer various levels of
reverb, imitating the acoustic 'echo' effect you hear
when you play an instrument in different environment
such as, room, concert hall, studio, etc.
(8) Fine-tuning capability. What kind of hidden
'effects' does the model have? Some digital pianos
offer a few special purpose modes (like alternate
tunings, variable harmonics, adjustable decay length,
etc.). Alternate tunings are useful if you play in an
ensemble often, because you will be allowed to tune your
piano to the ensemble. Others are useful for those who
like to fiddle with electronics to get the sound 'just
right.'
(9) Pedaling levels. Does the damper (or sustain)
pedals have multi-level of pedaling response, or is it
just on-off? In a piano, depending on how much you
depress the pedal, you get different amounts of
sustaining of the notes. A simple 'on-off' pedaling may
hamper pianists who are trained to use half-pedaling
techniques in a piano.
(10) How powerful is the amplifier/speaker system?
Bigger amplifiers and multiple number of speakers
generally give you a better sound. You may not
necessarily ever use all that excess power, but having
that excess power can give you more balanced sound when
you play (doesn't sound as if the speakers are
straining, etc.).

[Q7] Are there any magazine reviews on digital pianos?
'Keyboard' had a review of many models, and 'Piano and
Keyboard' had a similar review -- you might want to check
your local library and see if you can find them.
'Electronic Musician' publishes a yearly 'Digital Piano
Buyers Guide'; you won't find any recommendations for specific models, but
it gives a pretty comprehensive listing of *everything* on
the market, and an easy overview of the current technology
for people unfamiliar with it.
'Keyboard Magazine' is a hardware buyer's guide, and it seem to have specifications on
most digital pianos and synthesizers.

[Q8] What's different between the different manufacturers and the different models?
As for *manufacturers*, they usually differ in:
(1) how they sampled the sounds,
(2) key action design,
(3) sound output design,
(4) overall appearance.
Thus each company's product line has a distinctly different
feel and sound. There are many makers out there. (In
alphabetical order) Baldwin, Casio, Kawai, Korg, Kurzweil,
Roland, Samick, Technics, Wersi, Yamaha, to name a few. The
best way to decide what these differences mean to you is to
go to a local dealer and try out the different brands.

Usually, the main differences between various models within the *same maker* are in:
(1) the weighted key action (how the keys feel),
(2) amplifier power,
(3) number and size of speakers,
(4) number of voices (piano and non-piano sounds),
(5) polyphony (how many notes you can play simultaneously),
(6) the miscellaneous 'gadgets' (like sequencing
capabilities, metronome, etc.)
In general, the more money you shell out for a digital piano,
the more closely it imitates a piano and better sound. The
difference between a low-end model and a mid-range model is
usually pretty dramatic. Some low-end models do not have all
88-keys. Some may not even have a sound output system (you
basically play it through your stereo speakers or use
headphones). The difference between a mid-range model and a
high-end model is mostly in the 'gadgetry' department and in
amplifier power; most of the key elements don't vary a whole
lot. The majority of the digital piano market is in the mid-
price range, and that's usually good enough to keep most
people happy.

[Q9] What are the most popular brands?

Kawai is the frontrunner in technical support. They provide the best in service and warranties.
For overall satisfaction within this newsgroup, the general consensus seems to center around Yamaha Clavinova and Technics Digital Piano series. The Suzuki offers a magnificentfull 88 note Digital Piano for under $1,200 perfect for the beginner. The Roland HP series seems to have good reviews on key action and miscellaneous sounds, but they tend to be more expensive.Kurzweil is another brand which is well received. But as stated before, go check them out yourself. Like/dislike is a very personal thing, and you should not make a decision based on what others say.

[Q10] What is the mean time between repairs?
Nobody really seems to know the answer to this. This is akin to asking how often does a new car or a stereo component breaks down. There are many people who have had the digital pianos for 10+ years with absolutely no problem, and there are people who ended up with a 'lemon' which needed frequent
repairs soon after the purchase (within the warranty period).

[Q11] How much pounding can they take?
The general consensus is that digital pianos can take as much pounding as a piano can. One would hope that the manufacturers have designed them with that in mind. But there have been reports of people chipping the plastic on the key, or losing a spring which helps the feel of a weighted action and have been playing gingerly ever since, but this seems to be in the minority.

[Q12] Where can I get the best deal on a digital piano?
Prices vary greatly depending on the make and the model, and the suggested retail price (SRP) can range anywhere from $1500 to $7000. Don't be daunted by this, though. You can buy most of these from mail-order houses for substantial discounts, as much as 50% off the SRP. Some local dealers
may or may not try to match the mail order price. You will just have to shop around and ask. There are many mail-order firms. Any copy of the magazines 'Keyboard', 'Electronic Musician' or 'Piano and Keyboard' will have ads for them.
NOTE:
One thing you will want to consider is, that in some states, a 'Use Tax' law is enforced, which is a sales tax levied on mailorder purchases made out-of-state and delivered out-of-state. If you are not aware, you may receive a rude surprize few years down the road from the Department of Revenue of your state. If you are found liable to the Use Tax, and did not file a Use Tax return by 15 April of the following year, you may be required to pay up to double the sales tax amount in taxes, interest, and penalties (Believe me. I was caught unaware and was forced to pay 2 years after I bought a digital piano out of state).
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**************************
Copyright, Credits end of Digital Piano FAQ
I would like to extend my thanks to Michael Scott for his extensive contribution to this FAQ, and Philip Tompkins for giving me suggestions and corrections. Also, to many others in the RMMP newsgroup for bits and pieces of information contained in this FAQ. I couldn't have gotten this thing
This document is copyright (c) 1995-1997 by Isako Hoshino. It may be freely distributed in its entirety provided that this copyright notice is not removed. It may not be sold for profit nor incorporated in commercial documents without the author's permission. This article is provided 'as is' without express or implied warranties. While every effort has been taken to ensure the accuracy of the information
contained in this article, the maintainer assumes no responsibility for errors or omissions, or for damages resulting from the use of the information contained herein.
Isako Hoshino