When purchasing a portable piano or keyboard, many people also look into purchasing a piano stand for the instrument to sit on. There are a number of stands out there for portable pianos, many of which vary in price, quality and function.
Today we will break down the main three types of piano stand out there, their pros, cons and the things to consider when purchasing them or piecing together a bundle for your piano.
View Piano Stands & Accessories
Single X Frame
The most basic stand available for portable pianos is a single X frame stand. These are two pieces of metal crossed over with a hinge in the middle. As there are just 2 touch points between the base and the stand, these stands are by far the most wobbly and offer the worst piano experience.
With this comes a lower price, but generally speaking we would recommend avoiding these stands as even if they are being thrown in for free with your piano, this is primarily because they are worthless to the retailer and worth very little.
At Millers, we stock these stands as we do often get requests for them or those on a lower budget, however we do actively make a point to try to defer clients to a better quality stand in order to enhance their piano playing experience.
Pros:
Cheap
Lightweight
Cons:
Incredibly wobbly
Often poorly made
Distract from piano playing experience
Double X Frame
Moving into the double x-frame stand, these stands are essentially the same as the single frame x-stands but with 1 crucial difference, they have four metal bars to form the x, whilst this may sound like a small change, it does dramatically reduce the wobble that you receive from a single x frame stand.
Whilst you may still experience wobbling as you begin introducing dynamics or faster passages into your playing, these stands are perfectly suitable for either gigging musicians who require a place to put their instrument that they can stand up behind, or those looking to get started with piano at home who are on a tighter budget and may not be able to afford a table stand mentioned below.
Pros:
More stable than single x-frame
Better construction
Cons:
Heavier
Still offer some wobble
Table Stands
The table stand is the kingpin of the portable piano stand world. Completely different in design from the x-frame stands, the table stand is exactly what its name implies, it is created to be more akin to a folding table than an x frame. With this comes three key advantages.
-
It actually makes the stand more compact and easier to transport than the x-frames
- Because of its wider stance and more rigid structure, the table stand offers almost zero wobble and is incredibly hard to knock over compared to an x-frame stand.
- Because of the table like design, there is a gap beneath the table stand and the floor that is perfect for pedal placement and being able to use a real piano stool without banging your legs against the metal like can happen on an x-frame, encouraging better piano posture and an all over better playing experience.
Pros:
Durable and sturdy
Easy to fold and transport
No wobble
Leg room for pedals and stools
Cons:
Most expensive
TGI TGKT1 Keyboard Table Stand
So there we have it, a very quick and easy guide to understanding the differences between portable piano stands. Want to see these stands for yourself in person? Visit our Cambridge showroom to learn more about piano stands and how they compare to one another. Alternatively if you are looking for portable pianos, explore our website to learn more about our ranges.