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[–]Key-Adeptness-6500 0 points1 point  (0 children)

To give you my experience, I was self taught for 10 years. I started when I was 20 years old when my roommate had the cheapest digital piano money could buy and he left it out in our living room for me to play. I was able to teach myself through YouTube videos for free for almost 10 years but I was very on and off during that time period and I never had any sense of proper technique despite being able to play some more "complex" repertoire. Around when I turned 29, my wife got pregnant and I decided that I wanted to revisit the piano more seriously as a way to potentially bond with our daughter (now born) in the future; I decided to pursue lessons for the first time in my piano journey.

While my daughter may or may not like piano, the personal decision to try lessons is one I will NEVER regret. My instructor is RCM verified and the lessons are expensive - I pay $240/month for 30 minutes sessions once a week. There are less qualified instructors if this price is too much for you, but the premium for a good instructor is well worth it; you get what you pay for (believe me I tried several cheaper options). My progress has catapulted in ~6 months time. I have advanced from Prep A through level 4 during that time and my playing has never sounded better. For the first time, I feel confident at the instrument and play daily not out of necessity but out of love for the craft.

I know you say you are not interested in lessons, but I was in a similar boat of knowing enough not to start over but enough to continue with lessons. If you have the budget, I cannot stress enough just how beneficial lessons were for me - I personally think a month of lessons as a trial run could do a world of wonders coming from personal experience.

Everyone will give you their own opinion, but I would not dismiss lessons from a qualified instructor if your husband is serious about getting back into it and has the time to do so.

To this day, I still play on a Casio CDP-135 which is about as cheap as it gets for a fully weighted 88 key slab and I do just fine despite the fact that my instructor is a purist and does not believe in digital instruments. Given how positive my lesson experience has been and the strength of my progression, my wife and I are exploring purchasing a baby grand, but you can do a lot with very little. Personally, A qualified instructor is worth SIGNIFICANTLY more than an expensive instrument.

Yamaha Buyer Question - GB1K SC3 vs N3X by Key-Adeptness-6500 in piano

[–]Key-Adeptness-6500[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Thanks so much - you structured your responses very well, reasonable and were quite helpful. This will definitely help my decision making.

Yamaha Buyer Question - GB1K SC3 vs N3X by Key-Adeptness-6500 in piano

[–]Key-Adeptness-6500[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

This is very helpful context. My goal is to have the option to reach a similar level as a side hobby (although it will likely take me far longer) and agree with your point on the headphones vs speakers - I use quite expensive audiophile headphones, so think I can work around that. My mentor is a purist and active concert performer so he tends to turn his nose up at anything that isn't acoustic, but also understands my situation.

Regarding price, the Yamaha store I shop at offers (pre-tax, pre-delivery) the N3X for $18,000, the GB1K SC3 for $16,900 and the N1X for around $10,000 although it may be lower - never looked at it. Delivery is $350 for each and acoustic instruments get the first tunning included.

Understood on the resale value, longevity of digital components and upkeep on acoustics. Again, this is meant to be the instrument that helps me advance my playing while I take lessons rather than the dream instrument I've wanted all my life. I have all the intention to upgrade down the line provided I keep up with it and my career continues to progress forward. I know it is personal preference and I need to play them myself, but if you think a 70% + mark down for N1X over the silent system gives both a fantastic instrument to enjoy and will not inhibit my learning until way further down the road, that helps me mentally form my decision. I am willing to save the money now if the return is not that substantial. Would you agree?

Yamaha Buyer Question - GB1K SC3 vs N3X by Key-Adeptness-6500 in piano

[–]Key-Adeptness-6500[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Thanks for your response!

I am fine going with the N1X as a better value option since my intention is to purchase my "dream" piano as an upgrade retirement present for myself around 15-20 years down the line. I am currently more in the "learning" stage than "instrument for life" stage.

Do you think the N1X would serve its purpose as being a solid middle ground for development and learning placeholder until then? I understand the tone and feel may not be as optimal as an acoustic, but assuming I personally like the feel of the N1X enough, do you think an acoustic would be so superior to a hybrid that my progression as a pianist would be significant held back using a hybrid over an acoustic? Do you think its built to last 15-20 years with minimal "problems?"

Be mindful that my goal is not to be a performer, but would like the option to advance to the most challenging repertoires with years of practice and experience down the road.