Comparison Chart
Yamaha vs Roland Digital Piano Comparison Chart
Two of the best digital pianos you can buy, made two different ways. Yamaha records concert grands; Roland models the piano note by note.
Yamaha and Roland make the two most popular lines of premium digital pianos, the Yamaha Clavinova and the Roland LX and GP series, and they make their piano sound in two different ways. We carry both, so this chart sets out the differences side by side: first how each brand approaches the sound, the keyboard and the pedals, then the models themselves.
The Differences in Brief
- Sound: Yamaha samples real concert grands (the Yamaha CFX and the Bösendorfer Imperial); Roland calculates each note as you play it, with no limit on piano notes.
- Keyboards: Yamaha’s GrandTouch-S and GrandTouch; Roland’s PHA-50 and Hybrid Grand Keyboard. Both have escapement and wooden keys on their better models.
- Headphones: Yamaha’s binaural sampling and Roland’s Headphones Ambience both aim to make headphones sound like a piano in a room.
- Grand cabinets: Yamaha’s CLP-865GP and CLP-895GP; Roland’s GP-3, GP-6, GP-9 and GP-9M, which has moving keys.
How Yamaha and Roland Compare
| Specification |  |
 |
|---|---|---|
| How Each Brand Makes Its Piano Sound | ||
| Piano sound | Samples of the Yamaha CFX concert grand and the Bösendorfer Imperial, recorded note by note, with Virtual Resonance Modeling and Grand Expression Modeling | Piano Reality Modeling: each note calculated as you play it (Piano Reality Standard on the GP-3) |
| Polyphony | 256 notes | Unlimited for piano tones (256 for other tones; 256 on the GP-3) |
| Through headphones | Binaural sampling, recorded with a microphone in each ear of a dummy head | Piano Reality Headphones Ambience |
| Keyboards | ||
| Upright models | GrandTouch-S (CLP-825 to CLP-865GP); GrandTouch (CLP-875); GrandTouch with counterweights (CLP-885, CLP-895GP) | PHA-50 with escapement (LX-5); Hybrid Grand Keyboard (LX-6, LX-9) |
| Grand cabinets | CLP-865GP, CLP-895GP | GP-3, GP-6, GP-9, GP-9M (moving keys) |
| Pedals and Extras | ||
| Damper pedal | GrandTouch pedals; GP Response Damper on the CLP-875, CLP-885 and CLP-895GP | Progressive Damper Action; Responsive Damper Action on the LX-9, GP-9 and GP-9M |
| Bluetooth | Audio and MIDI | Audio and MIDI |
From Yamaha’s and Roland’s specifications.
Upright Cabinets: CLP-845, CLP-875 and CLP-885 vs LX-5, LX-6 and LX-9
| Specification |  |
 |
|
 |
 |
|
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Keyboard | ||||||
| Action | GrandTouch-S™ keyboard: wooden keys (white only), synthetic ebony and ivory key tops, escapement | GrandTouch™ keyboard: wooden keys (white only), synthetic ebony and ivory key tops, escapement | GrandTouch™ keyboard: wooden keys (white only), synthetic ebony and ivory key tops, escapement | PHA-50 keyboard: 88 keys, hammer action, escapement, Ebony/Ivory Feel, wood and molded materials | Hybrid Grand Keyboard: 88 keys, progressive hammer action, escapement, Ebony/Ivory Feel, grand-length keys of wood and molded materials | Hybrid Grand Keyboard: 88 keys, progressive hammer action, escapement, Ebony/Ivory Feel, grand-length keys of wood and molded materials, Haptic Key Vibration |
| Counterweights | — | — | Yes | — | — | — |
| Sound | ||||||
| Piano sound | Yamaha CFX, Bösendorfer Imperial samples, VRM, Grand Expression Modeling | Yamaha CFX, Bösendorfer Imperial samples, VRM, Grand Expression Modeling | Yamaha CFX, Bösendorfer Imperial samples, VRM, Grand Expression Modeling | Piano Reality Modeling, 324 tones | Piano Reality Modeling, 324 tones | Piano Reality Modeling, 324 tones |
| Polyphony | 256 | 256 | 256 | Piano tones: unlimited; other tones: 256 | Piano tones: unlimited; other tones: 256 | Piano tones: unlimited; other tones: 256 |
| Headphone sound | Binaural sampling (CFX Grand and Bösendorfer) | Binaural sampling (CFX Grand and Bösendorfer) | Binaural sampling (CFX Grand and Bösendorfer) | Piano Reality Headphones Ambience | Piano Reality Headphones Ambience | Piano Reality Headphones Ambience |
| Speakers | ||||||
| Speakers | (16 cm with diffuser + 8 cm with diffuser) × 2 | (16 cm + 8 cm with diffuser + 2.5 cm (dome) with Bidirectional Horn) × 2 | (16 cm with diffuser + 8 cm with diffuser + 2.5 cm (dome) with Bidirectional Horn) × 2, Spruce Cone Speaker | 4: two cabinet speakers (5″) each with a 1″ spatial tweeter, two 3-3/16″ near-field speakers | 5: a 9-7/8″ cabinet speaker in its own speaker box, two 4-3/4″ × 3-3/16″ near-field speakers, two 1″ dome spatial speakers | 8: two 9-7/8″ cabinet speakers, two 4-3/4″ × 3-3/16″ near-field speakers, two 3-3/16″ center near-field speakers, two 1″ dome spatial speakers |
| Amplifiers | (45 W + 45 W) × 2 | (45 W + 25 W + 40 W) × 2 | (45 W + 30 W + 40 W) × 2 | 90 W total | 116 W total | 162 W total |
| Connections | ||||||
| Bluetooth | Audio, MIDI (varies by area) | Audio, MIDI (varies by area) | Audio, MIDI (varies by area) | Bluetooth 5.0: audio, MIDI (Bluetooth Low Energy) | Bluetooth 5.0: audio, MIDI (Bluetooth Low Energy) | Bluetooth 5.0: audio, MIDI (Bluetooth Low Energy) |
| Cabinet | ||||||
| Dimensions | 57-1/16″ W × 18-1/8″ D × 36-1/2″ H | 57-1/16″ W × 18-5/16″ D × 38-1/16″ H | 57-1/2″ W × 19-7/16″ D × 40-7/16″ H | 54-1/2″ W × 18-7/16″ D × 40-15/16″ H | 54-1/2″ W × 19-7/16″ D × 44-1/16″ H | 54-15/16″ W × 19-3/8″ D × 46-7/16″ H (lid closed); 49-3/8″ high with the lid open |
| Weight | 60 kg [132 lb, 4 oz] | 71 kg [156 lb, 8 oz] | 87 kg [191 lb, 13 oz] | 164 lbs (Polished Ebony: 167 lbs) | 192 lbs (Polished Ebony: 196 lbs) | 242 lbs (Polished Ebony and Polished White: 245 lbs) |
Grand Cabinets: CLP-865GP and CLP-895GP vs GP-6, GP-9 and GP-9M
| Specification |  |
 |
 |
 |
 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Keyboard | |||||
| Action | GrandTouch-S™ keyboard: synthetic ebony and ivory key tops, escapement | GrandTouch™ keyboard: wooden keys (white only), synthetic ebony and ivory key tops, escapement | PHA-50 Hybrid Keyboard: 88 keys, hammer action, escapement, Ebony/Ivory Feel, High Precision Sensing | Hybrid Grand Keyboard: 88 keys, hammer action, escapement, Ebony/Ivory Feel, High Precision Sensing, Haptic Key Vibration | Hybrid Grand Keyboard: 88 keys, hammer action, escapement, Ebony/Ivory Feel, High Precision Sensing, Haptic Key Vibration; moving keys (play Standard MIDI Files and player piano data) |
| Sound | |||||
| Piano sound | Yamaha CFX, Bösendorfer Imperial samples, VRM, Grand Expression Modeling | Yamaha CFX, Bösendorfer Imperial samples, VRM, Grand Expression Modeling | Piano Reality Modeling, 324 tones | Piano Reality Modeling, 324 tones | Piano Reality Modeling, 324 tones |
| Polyphony | 256 | 256 | Piano tones: unlimited; other tones: 256 | Piano tones: unlimited; other tones: 256 | Piano tones: unlimited; other tones: 256 |
| Speakers | (16 cm with diffuser + 5 cm) × 2 | (16 cm + 8 cm with Waveguide + 2.5 cm (dome) with Waveguide) × 2, Spruce Cone Speaker | Spatial: 4-3/4″ (12 cm) × 2; cabinet: 7-7/8″ (20 cm) (with speaker box); near-field: 2″ (5 cm) × 2 (5 speakers) | Spatial: 6-5/16″ (16 cm) × 2 (with speaker box) + 6-5/16″ (16 cm); cabinet: 9-7/8″ (25 cm) (with speaker box); center near-field: 3-3/16″ (8 cm) × 2; near-field: 1″ (2.5 cm) × 2 (8 speakers) | Spatial: 6-5/16″ (16 cm) × 2 (with speaker box) + 6-5/16″ (16 cm); cabinet: 9-7/8″ (25 cm) (with speaker box); center near-field: 3-3/16″ (8 cm) × 2; near-field: 1″ (2.5 cm) × 2 (8 speakers) |
| Amplifiers | (45 W + 35 W) × 2 | (45 W + 45 W + 45 W) × 2 | 25 W × 2, 20 W × 1, 15 W × 2 | 25 W × 2, 20 W × 2, 15 W × 2, 15 W × 2 | 25 W × 2, 20 W × 2, 15 W × 2, 15 W × 2 |
| Bluetooth | Audio, MIDI (varies by area) | Audio, MIDI (varies by area) | Bluetooth 4.2: audio, MIDI (Bluetooth Low Energy) | Bluetooth 4.2: audio, MIDI (Bluetooth Low Energy) | Bluetooth 4.2: audio, MIDI (Bluetooth Low Energy) |
| Cabinet | |||||
| Dimensions | 56-5/16″ W × 45-1/8″ D × 36-11/16″ H | 56-5/16″ W × 48-11/16″ D × 36-11/16″ H | 55-5/16″ W × 37-13/16″ D × 36-11/16″ H (1,404 × 959 × 931 mm) | 56-3/4″ W × 59-1/8″ D × 39-3/8″ H (1,440 × 1,501 × 999 mm) | 56-3/4″ W × 59-1/8″ D × 39-3/8″ H (1,440 × 1,501 × 999 mm) |
| Weight | 106 kg [233 lb, 11 oz] | 135 kg [297 lb, 10 oz] | 200 lbs 10 oz (91.0 kg) | 372 lbs 10 oz (169.0 kg) | 414 lbs 8 oz (188.0 kg) |
Specifications from Yamaha and Roland. We show the models in order within each brand; they are not matched one to one.
Yamaha or Roland?
There is no wrong choice between these two; the right one is the one whose touch and sound you prefer. Players often find the Yamaha sound more like a recording of a concert grand and the Roland sound more alive under the fingers, but the only way to know is to play them back to back, with the same piece and the same headphones. Both are on our floor.
Within each brand, see our CLP-800 chart, LX chart and GP chart.
Visit us at 2901 US-1, Lawrence Township, NJ 08648, or call (609) 403-6045.
More Comparison Charts
Yamaha U1 vs U3 Comparison ChartThe two U series uprights side by side: height, soundboard, bass strings, construction and the hybrid versions of each.
- Yamaha Japanese Upright Comparison Chart: U1, U3, YUS1, YUS3 and YUS5All five Japanese-made Yamaha uprights at a glance: size, weight, series, pedals and hybrid versions.
Yamaha Pianos Comparison ChartsRoland Pianos Comparison ChartsYamaha vs Roland Comparison Charts