UPDATED REVIEW – Feb 15, 2015 – The Samick SG210 piano is discontinued and no longer available.
I recommend the Samick SG210 (aka SG210 Symphonia) 48″ deep digital baby grand in the digital baby grand category for higher quality features in a lower price range (under $3000). The SG210 piano is offered by the Samick piano company, a well known
acoustic piano manufacturer out of South Korea who has built and sold
acoustic pianos throughout the world for over 50 years. Their US
headquarters is based out of Nashville, TN (upper left pic). I was impressed when I recently played the SG210. Generally speaking, this model is discount priced on the Internet at about $3500.
The SG210 is, in my opinion, a very simple piano but one that has the features most people want; quiet & responsive graduated piano hammer key action which is built in Europe by a well known piano key action company, good pedal movement from the 3-pedal unit, good dynamics and velocity for more expressive tone response, a powerful 120 watt audio system that delivers very good volume, easy to use & functional digital features and buttons, and an attractive cabinet with a 2-piece hinged lid, sliding key cover, and custom brass hardware. And at 4’1″ from front to back, this piano has enough size to really look like a small baby grand without overpowering the room for its size.
Some of the other features of this piano (left pic) are adjustable touch sensitivity controls, 16 good quality instrument sounds including classical grand piano and pop/jazz piano, layer & split sounds, 2-track MIDI recorder, LED display, headphone jack, MIDI output to iPad or laptop computer using USB adapter, reverb for concert hall effects, and key transpose function. The SG210 has 64 notes of polyphony which is about standard in this price range for digital grand pianos (128 note polyphony would have been better), but that should be enough for playing most songs unless you are a more advanced player and then I would say you should probably spend more money for an upgraded brand & model if you want the baby grand look. But for most people, this piano is a nice one and far better than the “off-brands” in this price range found through stores like Costco, Sams Club, Guitar Center, Musicians Friend, and others.
There are the other lower priced digital baby grands out there under various brands like Adagio, Suzuki, Williams, Artesia, and others, and I have played them all. But just because a piano may look pretty on the outside does not mean it’s good on the inside. And this 4’1″ Samick SG210 (left pic) in polished ebony has the right balance of looks, performance, digital features, and good construction in its price range. As I mentioned earlier, it is a simple, easy to use piano and does not have drum rhythms, automatic chords, USB flash drive input, or LOTS of extra instrument sounds. But it does have what is most important in this price range for a digital baby grand and that should be of primary importance when making a decision on which piano will best suit your needs.
The Samick company also offers some upgraded models with more “bells & whistles” which I have reviewed here: Samick SG110, 310, 450 Digital Grand Pianos
Of course you could always get one of the better, higher priced models from Yamaha, Roland, or Kawai as they are definitely upgraded instruments over the Samick models, but you’ll be spending a lot more money to move up to that level. However, if you do have that kind of disposable income to spend on a piano, then I would recommend you consider those brands & models too. But in the “under $3000 price range,” the Samick SG210 is one certainly worth considering and it would look, play, and sound great in the home as compared to many of the other brands in that price range in my opinion. If you can live without the grand piano look, then there are certainly other good digital piano options for less money in a regular upright piano style which would also give you a great piano playing experience.
Regardless of what you decide is right for you, please contact me if you have questions. Also, I will tell you how to save lot of money over internet and store discount prices on digital pianos.
If you want more info on these and other pianos and lower prices than internet or store discounts, please email me at tim@azpianowholesale.com or call me direct at 602-571-1864
hi tim,
what would be a good digital baby grand with preset drums , rythms, polyphony for a range under $3000/-?
thank you
desmond silveira
Hi Desmond,
You ask a good question. Please email me and I would be happy to give you some suggestions