Digital Piano buying advice

Bacchus

Hey, I'm in the market for a digital piano. My budget is about 1300/1400 EUR(my euro key isn't working).
I'm looking at Yamha's CLP range and was wondering where the best place to buy is. My local music shop quoted me 1200 EUR for a CLP-115 and 1550 EUR for a CLP-230. I checked the sticky in this forum and found the CLP-230 for 1350 EUR on Piedog.com. They didn't have the CLP-115 listed.
Has anyone ever bought anything from them before? What is their service like? Any problems with them?
Does anyone know any other places to get a good deal on a Clavinova?
Thanks
Bacchus

WetDaddy

Hey dude,

I bought myself a CLP 2 years ago. I can't remember the exact model (I think it was 170 or 230), will find out later for ya, but I ended up buying it from a Dawson's Music in Manchester and getting it shipped over to Dublin. After all that (i.e. overseas transport, exchange rate), it *still* worked out €900 cheaper than buying it from the Yamaha store (who quoted me a price not including delivery, I might add) on Aungier St.

So, unless you can get a very good deal in Dublin, I would strongly suggest checking online for this kinda thing. And there wasn't any customs issues involved in buying from the UK.

Oh, and I might mention that it's a beautiful piano and even 2 years on I'm verrrry happy with the purchase!

Bacchus

Thanks for the info.
I'v been in contact with piedog.com and was quoted 1240 EUR (incl. delivery) for the CLP-220.
That's the same price as I was quoted for the CLP-115 in the Yamaha dealer.
My only worry with piedog is the fact that they are in England. What do I do if it arrives damaged or I find out later that somethings wrong with it. It's not like I can just go down to the shop that sold it and give to them.
Have you ever had any problems with your CLP? Do they require any maintanence (i'v never owned a digital piano)?

Cerdito

Hi Bacchus,

Have you considered Roland? I bought a Roland F-50 digital piano last year from Music Maker. Got them down to €1200 from €1350. The piano is perfect as it's slightly smaller in depth than other offerings which meeans it fits in my flat.

The piano has great features overall and has a lovely sound.

Bacchus

I haven't really looked to much at the Rolands. Checking around on the web Yamaha seem to be the top dog for digital pianos. I'll check the F-50 after lunch though.

WetDaddy

That's an excellent price for the 220, especially considering it includes delivery.

Personally, I would have no qualms about buying from overseas. Well, obviously, since I already did But the way I see it is that digital pianos, especially those on the higher end of the quality level, tend not to break as easily.

Now I know every concievable instrument can break *somehow*, but I've had no problems with mine and haven't heard of anyone having problems with their digital piano. I guess my point is that they're not like guitars where you might have an intonation problem, or an amp where a valve might go. They tend to be pretty solid devices.

On top of all that, with the amount of money you're saving (I'm presuming it's a fair bit), is it really that much hassle to have it shipped abroad than have it delivered to the shop and back? Anyway, that's my opinion! I don't know much about Rolands myself, I went the Yamaha route after advice from a friend who's fairly in the know about digital pianos and the like.

Bacchus

Thanks for the replies guys.
I had another look at the Rolands. I'm just not gone on them. Don't know what it is, the specs are the same and the reviews are fine. I just started out with Yamaha as my prefered brand and I guess that's stuck with me.
I reckon I'll get the CLP220. It is a good price and deathfunk made a good point about returning to local shop vs returning overseas. piedog are out of stock at the mo so i'll probably have to wait till Monday week before I get it.
Thanks again for all the advice.

Bacchus