So yesterday I visited an actual piano dealer for the first time. That was fun and very educational! This particular dealer has new Yamahas and Prambergers (sp?) and then a modest selection of used grands (and uprights, I didn't look at any).

Unfortunately I ran out of time because of another engagement, so I didn't play any of the new pianos (including the Prambergers). But here's what I played:

Kawai 5'3" (maybe, I don't remember the details) it was fine, not bad but nothing special.

A 19 y/o Yamaha GH1 with a silent thingy installed. I didn't like it.

A 25 y/o (IIRC) Yahama GH1B -- Bernard, isn't that what you have??
I actually liked this instrument a lot.

A maybe 40-ish y/o Steinway S (5'1") I did not like this instrument at all, it sounded like playing underneath pillows.

A 40ish (maybe) y/o Yamaha C3 (6'1") I like this instrument a lot

I didn't take a lot of notes because I thought they had the info about each piano on their website, but when I got home I realized their website has almost no specific details -- like, the Kawai is listed as "small Kawai grand piano"

I'm planning on calling Monday to get the info and the serial numbers of the Yamaha C3 and the GH1B.

Anyway it was great to have the chance to play those instruments. It seemed like they were all well-prepped and I liked talking with the person who was there (not sure if he's the owner or not). Although, he dissed Piano World (on his own accord, I didn't bring it up!) so that's never good!

So, here's the piano gossip. So I was in city A. There's another piano dealer in city B, another 30 minutes down the road from city A (we didn't go to B because all of these damn shops close at 2 or 3pm on Saturdays. WT*?!?)

Anyway, the guy I was talking with mentioned that dealer in B and spoke highly of them (which was nice, I thought). But he said that Dealer B has been in business for close to 100 years and heretofore they have been a Steinway dealer. But Steinway is currently pushing for all dealers to have the word Steinway in the dealership's name. This dealer didn't want to do that, so Steinway pulled all their pianos and this dealer will now be an independent dealership and not an official Steinway dealer. At the same time, another dealer from the state next door is opening a Steinway store here in city A, and apparently that store will open this month! Wow. The dealer I was talking with said "great, people can go to the Steinway dealer and then come running straight over here when they see the price tags!"

Anyway, I thought that was all very interesting!

Next weekend I'm going to try to visit Dealer B, and I'll be sure to stop by the Steinway store when they open.

What is the range of your indoor humidity swings? Around here it is more common recently to see a 30%-40% shift over a few weeks, then back again... climate change in action!

Anyway, the G series Yamaha pianos seem to react much more to those shifts than the C series, especially at the break just above the bass strings. (A Dampp-Chaser can help a lot with this) I recently tuned a G1 for a church - 2 months ago, the sanctuary measured 33%, and now it measured over 60%. While most of the piano was in the range of 10 cents sharp, (100 cents=1/2 step) an octave above the break was well over 30 cents sharp - really a mess to play!

More importantly, spend a significant amount of time (with any brand piano) and see how much the tone changes as you go from bass strings to the tenor region and back again. (across the break)

The G series typically have a few notes that just stick out about an octave below middle C, though Yamaha keeps tweaking the design to try to make it a bit better. It isn't voicing, so don't believe anyone that tells you they can voice it to your liking!

Good luck and enjoy the journey if you can!

That sounds like a fun day!

You know I love my Yamaha, so that C3 sounds really tempting. I've heard that it's a big step up over the smaller Yamaha grands.

As for the age, it's just a single data point, but my Yamaha is about 40 years old and is holding up very well.

I believe Bernard has a G1R.

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Originally posted by wtg:
I believe Bernard has a G1R.

Yes, that's what I have. SK, The Yamaha C series is very nice.

Ron, thank you so much for those comments about humidity! Since we just moved, I don't know how this house will be over the long term, but in the short term, I believe it's more humid than our rental was. This house has a lot of shade, which means the AC is on less, which means less dehumidifiying. It's comfortable for us humans, but becuse it's fluctuates between 55% and 65% most of the time, I think that's too high for a finnicky piano. Esp if it drops to the 30% range in the winter, which it very well might!

MA, remind me, you have a 7 footer right? (I'm sorry, I know you've said before)

I wouldn't be concerned about the age with that particular Yamaha. Another piano, maybe. But not that one.

Bernard and WTG, thanks for clarifying. I thought your piano had a B in it. Ah well.

Now I have to think about whether a 6 foot piano would be too much sound/volume for this room. Right now, the upright plus the absence of plush furniture makes the room way too loud and it's very live. (We will be getting drapes soon, that should help). But a grand piano is different because it doesn't throw the sound in your face the way an upright does.....

Yes, mine is a C7, which is just over seven feet.

My sister bought a smaller Yamaha new about ten years ago. I don't remember the model number. It's not the C series, but it's about the size of a C2. She's been very happy with it, too.

The only Steinway dealer I've been to was in Scottsdale (aka snottsdale ). I found it to be incredibly off-putting, and the sales people seemed to be looking down their nose at me the whole time. It might just have been my thing, or perhaps partly an issue of being in snooty Scottsdale. Ironically, though, when I bought a grand I ended up with a rebuilt Steinway (but not from them)!

Go check them out! It could be fun. Just be prepared for sticker shock. I couldn't afford a new Steinway unless I wanted to sell my children. otoh, I've been very happy with my rebuild.

MA, how big is the room your piano is in?

Nina, I will definitely visit the Steinway store when they open. But yes, I do expect it to be astronomical.

Since we're gossiping, what did the salesman have to say about piano world?

Yamaha C3s can be very nice.

quote:

Since we're gossiping, what did the salesman have to say about piano world?

piqué, we were talking about the different makes of pianos, and something about Yamahas, which he said sell very well in his store (new and used). Then he said something about how Yamahas are "hated" on the internet and then he added something like "well, on Piano World at least." I was not interested in getting into a discussion about Piano World and just said something vague but he continued on to say that Piano World was toxic (the word he used) and he made a sort of snide remark about people who say Estonia is the only good piano, and something (that sounded like bitterness to me) about how, sure, Estonias might be great pianos but he can't sell them because nobody knows what they are.

He might have a point (i.e. there are some people that can be unpleasant and/or unreasonable on PW) but I love Piano World (even if I rarely post there these days). But I don't think salespeople should make negative or snide remarks like that, especially when he has zero information about me.

Other than that he was very nice, fun to chat with. And he got points for his complimentary remarks about the other piano dealership I mentioned (dealer B), which has got to be his most significant competitor/rival. His comments about them were very gracious, and sincere, I thought.

Holy cow, seems like eons ago since we’ve talked about a piano search. I went with junior to a fancy piano store in Bellevue (because at some point he wants a grand) and it was fun to try them. Unfortunately the one I liked the best was about $125k.

quote:

$125k

As to the piano shopping, I may be shopping for a good year or more, we'll see. I really need to figure out what kind of instrument I want, which will take some time.

And, because of where we live, it's just a colossal pain to go look at pianos because it involves so much driving. Which is why I'm going to try to do as much shopping during the summer when I am a little more able to go running all over the place.

quote:

Originally posted by jodi:
Holy cow, seems like eons ago since we’ve talked about a piano search. I went with junior to a fancy piano store in Bellevue (because at some point he wants a grand) and it was fun to try them. Unfortunately the one I liked the best was about $125k.

I think I’ve been to that store. That’s where I played the Shigeru Kawai.

quote:

Shigeru Kawai

One of my all-time favorite pianos.