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The New-Piano Market Today: Staff Picks (Recommendations)

LARRY FINE

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It’s important to understand that in any artistic field, “expert” recommendations are only partially recognitions of inherent quality; in other ways, they are simply personal preferences. Thus, while you can probably count on pianos recommended by us to be “good” instruments, it doesn’t follow from that that you will necessarily like them as much as we do. Our recommendations also say virtually nothing about brands and models that are not on the list. Either we haven’t had the opportunity to try them out (or, at least, not under favorable conditions), or they just didn’t stand out to us as being really special — but that doesn’t mean there’s anything wrong with them, or that you wouldn’t want to take one home with you.

This list focuses on home- and studio-size instruments and does not include concert grands. A work in progress, it is by no means comprehensive, and will likely grow and evolve with future issues of Piano Buyer.

Classics/Perennial Favorites are models with a long-standing reputation for performance and durability. They are generally top sellers from well-known manufacturers.

Musical Standouts represent pianos that play and sound great to us. Although the list understandably tends to favor larger instruments, we’ve also included several smaller models that are noteworthy for having great sound for their size.

Good Values are pianos whose performance per dollar, in our opinion, is particularly attractive.

Vertical piano sizes are shown in inches, grand piano sizes in feet and inches. Prices shown for acoustic pianos are the Suggested Maximum Prices (SMP) of the least expensive style and finish (significant discounts from these prices are likely — see Model & Pricing Guide). Prices shown for digitals and hybrids are the Estimated Prices of the least expensive finish (see Digital Piano Key to Specifications and Prices for explanation).

SCROLL DOWN FOR DIGITALS & HYBRIDS

 

 

Brand/Model Classics⁄
Perennial Favorites
Musical Standouts Good Values Price ($) Comments
ACOUSTIC PIANOS
Verticals 43"–46"
Boston UP-118E PE (46")   X   11,950 Noticeably more refined tone and appearance than the school model 118S.
Perzina GP-112 Kompact (45")     X 8,000 Impressive low-bass performance from a small, inexpensive vertical.
Walter, Charles R. 1520/1500 (43"/45") X X   18,000 Proof that a 43" piano can be musical, and it's made in the U.S.A.
Yamaha Silent Piano b2SC2 (45")     X 10,298 An affordable acoustic with the flexibility of a digital.
Verticals 48"–52"
Bechstein, C. Concert 8 (51.5") X X   68,980 One of the all-time great upright pianos.
Hailun HU5-P (50")   X X 8,230 A “total package”—balanced tone, responsive action.
Kawai K300 (48") X   X 10,790  
Kawai K500 (51")   X   13,590  
Kayserburg KA-132 (52")   X   16,190 Lovely, singing tone.
Kingsburg KG133 (52")     X 9,421 A well-balanced, powerful tall upright.
Knabe, Wm., WKV132MD (52")   X X 9,798  
Pearl River EU122 (48")     X 5,790  
Perzina GP-122 (48")   X X 9.090  
Perzina GP-130 (51")   X   11,460 A vertical piano that can hold its own against some far more expensive peers.
Petrof P125F1 (49.25")   X   19,900  
Ritmüller UH-121RA (48")   X X 7,990 One of our favorite vertical pianos at this price.
Schimmel K132 (52")   X   36,664  
Schulze Pollmann SU122A (48")   X X 10,390 A warm, round tone quality and beautiful case finishes.
Yamaha U1 (48") X X   11,399 The standard against which every 48" vertical is inevitably compared.
Grands 4' 10"–5' 4"
Cunningham Studio Grand (5' 4")   X X 20,890  
Geyer, A. GG-150 (4' 11")     X 9,590  
Ritmüller GH-148R (4' 10")   X X 11,990 Amazingly good performance for such a small piano.
Seiler, Johannes, GS-160 (5' 3")   X X 18,798 Pleasantly mellow with an elegant look.
Story & Clark H60A (5' 3")     X 17,495 When you take into account all the technology it comes with (player piano and MIDI record), this piano is a great value.
Weber W150 (4' 11")   X X 12,780 Surprisingly musical and satisfying tone for such a short grand.
Grands 5' 5"–5' 11"
Baldwin BP178 (5' 10")     X 23,390  
Estonia L168 (5' 6")   X X 41,538 Estonia grands are an excellent value among high-end pianos.
Hailun HG178 (5' 10")   X X 19,416  
Kawai GX-2BLK (5' 11") X     37,390 A must-try for those shopping for a grand under 6' long.
Mason & Hamlin A (5' 8") X     61,255  
Perzina GBT-175 (5' 10")     X 19,640 Nicely balanced scale. Some of the nicest wood-veneer case finishes we've seen at this price.
Pramberger PS-175 (5' 9")     X 15,598  
Steinway & Sons O (5' 10.5") X X   85,800  
Grands 6'–6' 10"
Baldwin BP190 (6' 3")   X X 27,790  
Bösendorfer 200 (6' 7") X     136,998 A lovely and distinct chamber instrument.
Brodmann PE187 (6' 2")   X X 24,993 Design said to be based on that of a Steinway model A.
Estonia L190 (6' 3")   X X 50,496 The tone has lyrical beauty and is without harshness.
Estonia L210 (6' 10")   X X 60,796  
Förster, August, 190 (6' 4")   X   70,689  
Grotrian Cabinet Grand (6' 3")   X   84,306 Uniquely diverse timbre. Subject of book Grand Obsession, by Perry Knize.
Haessler 186 (6' 1")   X   75,750  
Mason & Hamlin AA (6' 4")   X   69,779  
Seiler ED-186 (6' 2")   X X 33,198 Clear treble tone and good sustain.
Steinway & Sons A (6' 2") X     99,100  
Weber W185 (6' 1")   X X 18,780 Satisfyingly beautiful tone at a good price.
Yamaha C3X (6' 1") X     52,298 A workhorse in countless teaching studios and institutional practice rooms.
Yamaha C5X (6' 7")   X   58,098  
Grands over 6' 10"
Blüthner 2 (7' 8") X X   137,386  
Bosendorfer 214VC (7')   X   150,998 Updated design combines improved projection with classic Bosendorfer sound.
Boston GP215PE (7' 1")   X   52,950  
Kawai, Shigeru, SK-6 (7')   X   84,200  
Mason & Hamlin BB (7') X X   79,047 Prodigious bass register sounds like that of a concert grand.
Sauter 220 "Omega" (7' 3")   X   135,000 An incredibly capable tool for any serious pianist—and for fun, take a look under the lid.
Schimmel C213 (7')   X   63,796  
Schimmel K219 (7' 2")   X   82,796 A fantastic instrument from Schimmel's newer Konzert series.
Wilh. Steinberg Signature S212 (6' 11")   X   60,980  
Steingraeber & Söhne C-212 (7')   X   146,150 Remarkable tonal subtlety.
Steinway & Sons B (6' 10.5") X X   112,000 Very popular model in college and conservatory teaching studios, and the standard against which other high-end grands are measured.
Yamaha C7X (7' 6") X     74,698 Very popular in recording studios; musically versatile in the hands of the right technician.
Yamaha CF6 (7')   X   119,598 A 7' grand that can compete with the best in the world.
DIGITALS & HYBRIDS
Blüthner e-Klavier PRO-88 EX   X   2,736 An interestingly-styled slab with a unique piano sample.
Casio CGP-700     X 799 Huge feature set and powerful speaker system.
Casio Privia PX-5S     X 999 A professional instrument at a consumer price.
Casio Privia PX-160 X   X 499 One of the first models mentioned when considering better entry-level digital pianos.
Casio Privia PX-870     X 999 Impressive sound from a shallow cabinet.
Kawai ES8   X   1,649 A no-frills slab that performs better than many console-style digital pianos.
Kawai CN37     X 2,599 Updated display and samples are a noteworthy improvement over the previous model CN35.
Kawai CA98   X   5,399 Solid action performance, Soundboard Speaker System, and nice variety of piano samples.
Kawai VPC1   X   1,849 Not a digital per se, but rather a dedicated controller keyboard for software (virtual) pianos, with Kawai's great RM3II action.
Kurzweil CUP-2   X   2,999 An extremely compact contemporary design conceals a wealth of voices and features.
Roland FP-30     X 699 A fine example of high-end piano sound generation trickling down to an economy model.
Roland HP601     X 2,299 A way-above-average starter instrument with Ivory Feel keyboard.
Roland V-Piano Grand (GP-7) X     19,950 Enclosed in an elegant grand-piano cabinet, the V-Piano gives you the technology to design your own piano.
Yamaha Clavinova CLP-645   X   3,500 Premium features like wooden keys and bi-amped speaker system in a midrange model
Yamaha Clavinova CVP-705   X X 6,455 A price/performance sweet spot in ensemble digital pianos.
Yamaha Arius YDP-184 X   X 2,200 A direct descendant of the venerable YDP-223 from 2002. A perennial best-seller.
Yamaha AvantGrand N1X and N3X   X   8,199 and 18,816 A game changer that redefined our expectations for the sound and feel of a non-acoustic piano.

 


 


 

 

 



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Reader Comments

Used Schimmels
By: Jamie Created: 12/29/2018
Hi, I'm curious as to why there are not any smaller grands by schimmel on your"staff picks" list. Thank you!

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