Ever since the advent of electronic keyboard instruments, emulating the nuances of an acoustic grand piano has been a challenge where many have failed. Even the best sampling methods cannot make an exact replication of the piano. Having had great experience in making an entire range of keyboard instruments from acoustic pianos to synthesizers and everything in between, Yamaha certainly knows and appreciates the challenge. While trying hard to replicate an acoustic piano using electronic components, Yamaha opted to create a totally new instrument that represents both acoustic and electronic worlds. Representing the AvantGrand line of hybrid pianos, the Yamaha AvantGrand N2 makes it's debut at the Summer NAMM 2009 show.

Following the footsteps of the flagship hybrid piano, the AvantGrand N3 hybrid grand piano, the AvantGrand N2 features the same combination of electronics in the form of synthesis, speakers, and onboard electronics, with that of the physical elements of an acoustic piano that manifests in its wooden keys with proprietary Yamaha Grand Piano action and pressure-gradient-sensitive pedal action.

The AvantGrand N2 is the upright brother of the N3, and is specially designed for those who don't have the space for a grand piano. The AvantGrand N2 is equipped with the standard 88 Ivorite keys bearing the specialized grand piano action for AvantGrand. Three standard pedals add more means of expression which are the soft (it's una corda for those who are so into grand pianos), sostenuto, and the pressure-gradient-sensitive damper pedal with half pedaling effect (for those who are playing stuff like Debussy such as yours truly). The Tactile Response System (TRS) replicates that of the sensations a pianist feels while playing an acoustic piano where the vibrations of the piano are directly transmitted from the piano to the fingers and eventually throughout the entire body. This is especially when a pianist is playing bass notes. Adding more realism to the experience, the Spatial Acoustic System in the N2 places two speakers strategically installed to recreate the stereo effect of an upright piano.

The Spatial Acoustic Sampling used to create the sounds captures the timbral variations of the piano. With a polyphony of 256 voices, you'll never run out of notes as you play massive chords, arpeggios, and scale patterns while pedaling. Just as any other electronic piano, it features two grand piano sounds, two electric piano sounds, and a harpsichord patch. Other features include reverb, metronome, tempo adjustment, transposition and tuning, seven scale types, a single-track 30,000-note MIDI sequencer, two headphone jacks, MIDI I/O, aux in and out, and USB connectivity.

It seems like I ran out of breath just going through that impressive set of features that s*/dfa~`2@3#$!7^*... -- Sorry, I was drooling so much the keyboard got messed up. Yamaha says that compared to acoustic grand pianos, the AvantGrand N2 will have a more competitive price, perfect for pianists such as myself who record a lot of stuff via digital means. The AvantGrand N2 is scheduled to ship in September 2009 and will come with a matching padded bench. Now, I better avert my eyes away from this one before I get lost daydreaming again.