You might think using a digital piano solves all the noise problems—but then there’s the key action noise, pedal noise… Even if no piano sound is coming out, there’s still a lot you need to watch out for.
In this article, I’ll explain inexpensive and easy ways to reduce the key action noise of a digital piano!
Let’s tackle key noise quickly and easily!
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Prevent keystroke and pedal noise from reaching downstairs!
The sound of keystrokes and the pedal carries down to the floor directly below.
Rough, thumping low frequencies tend to carry through walls easily, you know.
Therefore, even with a digital piano, it is essential to prevent any sound from being transmitted downstairs at all costs.
With rentals and such, you really have to be careful about this kind of thing around here.
From here, I’ll introduce the methods I actually use at home to prevent the key-press sounds of a digital piano!
Lay down interlocking foam mats
First, lay down interlocking mats under the digital piano!
You can find them at 100-yen shops and the like, but thickness is what matters most, so choose something reasonably well-made.
The one I bought was an 8-pack for 600 yen on Amazon as of March 1, 2017.
It's 120 mm thick, so I think this should be no problem.
I need two sets.
By the way, depending on the size of the digital piano, buying two sets of eight pieces will let you set it up without any problems.
One set of 8 pieces isn’t enough...
For my home digital piano, which is 378 mm wide and 423 mm deep, using 10 mats felt like a perfect fit.
Each mat is 30 cm, but there's about a 2 cm joint section, so when you connect them, you end up short by that amount.
I tried laying down interlocking mats.
This is what it actually looks like when the joint mats are laid out.
Since it’s quite thick, it really helps prevent typing noise.
Lay down earthquake-proof gel!
In addition to the joint mats, laying down seismic gel is also an effective measure!
Set it on the four corners to absorb shocks.
By placing them under the four corners of the digital piano, they absorb shocks and create a small gap between the piano and the interlocking mat, which further reduces the resonance of keypress sounds.
The digital piano wobbles a bit.
However, there’s one problem: if we go this far, the digital piano itself shakes a bit…
It's fine for playing normal pieces, but with intense songs that pound out repeated chords, it tends to wobble a bit, which is a little concerning.
Well, the amount it shakes helps reduce the impact downward, so if you’re living in a rental that’s fairly old or one where sound carries easily, I think it’s better to install it.
Countermeasures against key strike noise are important even when playing a digital piano, so make sure to address them properly!
There are 10 color options at the link.
If we’re going to buy them, eight won’t be enough, so let’s purchase two sets.