Buying Guides

Electric Guitar

Stratocaster or Les Paul? Two Electric Guitar Classics Compared

How Stratocaster and Les Paul differ in construction, scale length, pickups, bridge, sound, weight and price (US new and used), with alternatives, advice by player type and myths.

Electric Guitar

Buying a Used Electric Guitar: What to Check

A step-by-step checklist for buying a used electric guitar: neck and truss rod, frets, electronics, finish, hardware, online red flags, repair costs against value, and negotiating.

Digital Piano

Speakers and Simulated String Resonance: Why They Matter

Two features that don't show up in a spec-sheet skim but strongly shape how "real" a digital piano actually sounds.

Grand Piano

Is a Free Grand Piano Actually a Good Deal?

Free or near-free pianos show up constantly in classifieds - the real cost is almost never the piano itself.

Digital Piano

Common Wear Points on a Used Digital Piano

A digital piano has no soundboard to worry about - but it has its own specific wear points worth checking.

Digital Piano

Using a Digital Piano as a MIDI Controller With VST Plugins

A used digital piano's weighted keybed can also drive software piano sounds on a computer - here's what's needed.

Digital Piano

Stage Piano vs. Home Digital Piano: What's the Difference?

Two categories that look similar in photos but are built for very different situations.

Upright Piano

Determining a Piano's Age From Its Serial Number

How to actually find out how old a used upright piano is, instead of taking a seller's word for it.

Accordion

Accordion Size and Bass Buttons: Finding the Right Fit for Beginners

Accordions come in genuinely different sizes with different bass-button counts - bigger isn't automatically the better starting point.

Upright Piano

Piano Regulation vs. Voicing: What's the Difference?

Two services piano technicians offer that are easy to confuse but affect completely different things.

Upright Piano

Silent Piano Systems Explained

A silent system lets an acoustic piano be practiced silently through headphones - here's how it actually works.

Upright Piano

Is a "Free Piano" From Classifieds Actually Worth It?

"Free to a good home" pianos are everywhere in classifieds - the real cost almost never comes from the piano itself.