Skip to content
  • Categories
  • Recent
  • Tags
  • Popular
  • Users
  • Groups
Skins
  • Light
  • Cerulean
  • Cosmo
  • Flatly
  • Journal
  • Litera
  • Lumen
  • Lux
  • Materia
  • Minty
  • Morph
  • Pulse
  • Sandstone
  • Simplex
  • Sketchy
  • Spacelab
  • United
  • Yeti
  • Zephyr
  • Dark
  • Cyborg
  • Darkly
  • Quartz
  • Slate
  • Solar
  • Superhero
  • Vapor

  • Default (No Skin)
  • No Skin
Collapse

The New Coffee Room

  1. TNCR
  2. General Discussion
  3. Piano shopping...

Piano shopping...

Scheduled Pinned Locked Moved General Discussion
58 Posts 16 Posters 1.0k Views
  • Oldest to Newest
  • Newest to Oldest
  • Most Votes
Reply
  • Reply as topic
Log in to reply
This topic has been deleted. Only users with topic management privileges can see it.
  • LuFins DadL Offline
    LuFins DadL Offline
    LuFins Dad
    wrote on last edited by
    #4

    The Schimmel is nice. I haven't played a Seiler in a while, but I recall liking those as well...

    Out of curiosity, did you try the Yamaha YUS series? Availability might be very limited.

    The Brad

    KlausK 1 Reply Last reply
    • LuFins DadL LuFins Dad

      The Schimmel is nice. I haven't played a Seiler in a while, but I recall liking those as well...

      Out of curiosity, did you try the Yamaha YUS series? Availability might be very limited.

      KlausK Offline
      KlausK Offline
      Klaus
      wrote on last edited by
      #5

      @lufins-dad said in Piano shopping...:

      Out of curiosity, did you try the Yamaha YUS series? Availability might be very limited.

      Tried one today, actually. It was a nice piano, but couldn't compete with the Schimmel. I think the market here is a little different. I believe most Americans buy a grand piano for that kind of money. Over here, people are more likely to prefer a high quality upright, hence dealerships have plenty of them.

      1 Reply Last reply
      • jon-nycJ Online
        jon-nycJ Online
        jon-nyc
        wrote on last edited by
        #6

        David who you met at Jerry’s piano party has a grotrian upright and it is lovely.

        Only non-witches get due process.

        • Cotton Mather, Salem Massachusetts, 1692
        89th8 1 Reply Last reply
        • jon-nycJ jon-nyc

          David who you met at Jerry’s piano party has a grotrian upright and it is lovely.

          89th8 Offline
          89th8 Offline
          89th
          wrote on last edited by
          #7

          @jon-nyc said in Piano shopping...:

          David who you met at Jerry’s piano party has a grotrian upright and it is lovely.

          This is a family forum, dude.

          1 Reply Last reply
          • jon-nycJ Online
            jon-nycJ Online
            jon-nyc
            wrote on last edited by
            #8

            Hey man, I call ‘em as I see ‘em.

            Only non-witches get due process.

            • Cotton Mather, Salem Massachusetts, 1692
            1 Reply Last reply
            • KlausK Offline
              KlausK Offline
              Klaus
              wrote on last edited by Klaus
              #9

              OK, I've now boiled it down to two pianos.

              It's either going to be a 2009 Bechstein Classic 124, or a 2012 Grotrian Classic 124.

              I like the sound of the Grotrian a little better - it has a cleaner more delicate tone - but the Bechstein would be significantly cheaper, and it's also a killer piano. My brain says Bechstein but my gut says Grotrian.

              This has been an interesting piano search, with some surprises:

              • I tried two August Förster pianos, which are often described as a kind of hidden gem. They were a total disappointment to me. These weren't obsessively bad pianos, but nothing special either.

              • Steingräber pianos are really nice, but I don't understand why they charge significantly more than other premium makers.

              • The lower-prized Bechstein pianos ("Academy") are nice pianos, but not nearly in the same league as the "full" Bechstein line. Their second line, Hoffmann, is nice, but not necessarily better than a good Yamaha, for instance.

              • Biggest surprise: Petrof. I remember trying a couple of Petrofs a decade ago, and I wasn't impressed at all. Very unrefined sound and feel. But the Petrof 131 I tried today was phenomenal at that prize point. It's not the kind of sound I was looking for, but for less than 15K or so you get a quality that isn't quite at the same level but amazingly close to the likes of the big Bösendorfer or Bechstein uprights, which are in the 40K region. A real powerhouse.

              • Yamaha's upright range doesn't have anything that even remotely plays in the same league as Grotrian/Bechstein/Bösendorfer.

              • I stumbled upon a couple of Ibachs. I can now see why they went bankrupt.

              AxtremusA 1 Reply Last reply
              • KlausK Klaus

                OK, I've now boiled it down to two pianos.

                It's either going to be a 2009 Bechstein Classic 124, or a 2012 Grotrian Classic 124.

                I like the sound of the Grotrian a little better - it has a cleaner more delicate tone - but the Bechstein would be significantly cheaper, and it's also a killer piano. My brain says Bechstein but my gut says Grotrian.

                This has been an interesting piano search, with some surprises:

                • I tried two August Förster pianos, which are often described as a kind of hidden gem. They were a total disappointment to me. These weren't obsessively bad pianos, but nothing special either.

                • Steingräber pianos are really nice, but I don't understand why they charge significantly more than other premium makers.

                • The lower-prized Bechstein pianos ("Academy") are nice pianos, but not nearly in the same league as the "full" Bechstein line. Their second line, Hoffmann, is nice, but not necessarily better than a good Yamaha, for instance.

                • Biggest surprise: Petrof. I remember trying a couple of Petrofs a decade ago, and I wasn't impressed at all. Very unrefined sound and feel. But the Petrof 131 I tried today was phenomenal at that prize point. It's not the kind of sound I was looking for, but for less than 15K or so you get a quality that isn't quite at the same level but amazingly close to the likes of the big Bösendorfer or Bechstein uprights, which are in the 40K region. A real powerhouse.

                • Yamaha's upright range doesn't have anything that even remotely plays in the same league as Grotrian/Bechstein/Bösendorfer.

                • I stumbled upon a couple of Ibachs. I can now see why they went bankrupt.

                AxtremusA Offline
                AxtremusA Offline
                Axtremus
                wrote on last edited by
                #10

                @klaus said in Piano shopping...:

                OK, I've now boiled it down to two pianos.

                It's either going to be a 2009 Bechstein Classic 124, or a 2012 Grotrian Classic 124.

                I like the sound of the Grotrian a little better - it has a cleaner more delicate tone - but the Bechstein would be significantly cheaper, and it's also a killer piano. My brain says Bechstein but my gut says Grotrian.

                I suspect affordability is not really an issue for you in this case, so go with your gut. Your brain is smart enough to amortize the price difference over the N number of years you expect to hear the piano and come up with a "it's only x Euro per day" argument to rationalize the gut's choice. 🙂

                1 Reply Last reply
                • jon-nycJ Online
                  jon-nycJ Online
                  jon-nyc
                  wrote on last edited by
                  #11

                  Interesting takes, Klaus.

                  I’m with Ax on this.

                  Only non-witches get due process.

                  • Cotton Mather, Salem Massachusetts, 1692
                  1 Reply Last reply
                  • KlausK Offline
                    KlausK Offline
                    Klaus
                    wrote on last edited by Klaus
                    #12

                    It's about a 4K prize difference between the Bechstein and the Grotrian. I've managed to rationalize about half of that prize difference with considerations that are still somewhat rational (age of the instruments, amount of required prep work, differences in list prize when new etc.). For the remaining 2K, I'd have to resort Orwellian self-deception measures. I'll read the "How many fingers am I holding up" scene again for some inspiration.

                    1 Reply Last reply
                    • MikM Offline
                      MikM Offline
                      Mik
                      wrote on last edited by
                      #13

                      For 2K get the one that speaks to you.

                      “I am fond of pigs. Dogs look up to us. Cats look down on us. Pigs treat us as equals.” ~Winston S. Churchill

                      markM 1 Reply Last reply
                      • MikM Mik

                        For 2K get the one that speaks to you.

                        markM Offline
                        markM Offline
                        mark
                        wrote on last edited by
                        #14

                        @mik said in Piano shopping...:

                        For 2K get the one that speaks to you.

                        I agree.

                        1 Reply Last reply
                        • KlausK Offline
                          KlausK Offline
                          Klaus
                          wrote on last edited by
                          #15

                          OK, the dealer managed to bridge another 1K of the gap, and I pulled the trigger.

                          This is the baby.

                          327937a5-e4de-4813-bc35-3b237f4d0bf1-image.png

                          LuFins DadL F 2 Replies Last reply
                          • AxtremusA Offline
                            AxtremusA Offline
                            Axtremus
                            wrote on last edited by
                            #16

                            Next, you are expected to post piano moving videos and your performance recorded with that piano. Congratulations! 🙂

                            1 Reply Last reply
                            • MikM Offline
                              MikM Offline
                              Mik
                              wrote on last edited by
                              #17

                              Beautiful. Enjoy!!!

                              “I am fond of pigs. Dogs look up to us. Cats look down on us. Pigs treat us as equals.” ~Winston S. Churchill

                              1 Reply Last reply
                              • KlausK Klaus

                                OK, the dealer managed to bridge another 1K of the gap, and I pulled the trigger.

                                This is the baby.

                                327937a5-e4de-4813-bc35-3b237f4d0bf1-image.png

                                LuFins DadL Offline
                                LuFins DadL Offline
                                LuFins Dad
                                wrote on last edited by
                                #18

                                @klaus said in Piano shopping...:

                                OK, the dealer managed to bridge another 1K of the gap, and I pulled the trigger.

                                This is the baby.

                                327937a5-e4de-4813-bc35-3b237f4d0bf1-image.png

                                Nice!

                                The Brad

                                1 Reply Last reply
                                • markM Offline
                                  markM Offline
                                  mark
                                  wrote on last edited by
                                  #19

                                  Beautiful! Congratulations.

                                  1 Reply Last reply
                                  • George KG Offline
                                    George KG Offline
                                    George K
                                    wrote on last edited by
                                    #20

                                    Very nice, @Klaus !

                                    "Now look here, you Baltic gas passer... " - Mik, 6/14/08

                                    The saying, "Lite is just one damn thing after another," is a gross understatement. The damn things overlap.

                                    1 Reply Last reply
                                    • JollyJ Offline
                                      JollyJ Offline
                                      Jolly
                                      wrote on last edited by
                                      #21

                                      Congrats!

                                      “Cry havoc and let slip the DOGE of war!”

                                      Those who cheered as J-6 American prisoners were locked in solitary for 18 months without trial, now suddenly fight tooth and nail for foreign terrorists’ "due process". — Buck Sexton

                                      1 Reply Last reply
                                      • KlausK Offline
                                        KlausK Offline
                                        Klaus
                                        wrote on last edited by
                                        #22

                                        Thanks! I'm not sure whether congratulations are appropriate, but I figured that life is too short for suboptimal pianos 🙂

                                        My family will regret this. They'll soon have to endure more of my strumming it in the living room.

                                        brendaB 1 Reply Last reply
                                        • kluursK Offline
                                          kluursK Offline
                                          kluurs
                                          wrote on last edited by
                                          #23

                                          Can't wait to hear that. Now, if you only dedicated as much attention on that piano as you do for the kazoo...

                                          1 Reply Last reply
                                          Reply
                                          • Reply as topic
                                          Log in to reply
                                          • Oldest to Newest
                                          • Newest to Oldest
                                          • Most Votes


                                          • Login

                                          • Don't have an account? Register

                                          • Login or register to search.
                                          • First post
                                            Last post
                                          0
                                          • Categories
                                          • Recent
                                          • Tags
                                          • Popular
                                          • Users
                                          • Groups