(And home trials were not an option.) We were looking at new pianos and narrowed down to Yamaha and Steinway before discovering Boston (by Steinway) and ultimately she liked a 5'10" Boston best. Action and keyboard "feel" was very important as well as the general sound, especially as we knew it was going into a much smaller room than the big open showrooms in which we auditioned so the sound would change. That is pretty much how my wife auditioned pianos before getting her little grand (birthday present from me bought me a lot of trumpet chits ). Moderators - if this is not the appropriate sub forum then please move accordingly and hopefully not too off topic for this ASR. All the representatives we dealt with were Piano Technicians that could also play. One very positive aspect I did notice in this venture is that the people assisting us at each of the four unrelated piano stores have a vast amount of experience in piano technology including the science behind specific features. stand right by the opening of the lid (nearfield monitoring!) to minimize the room interaction.Īny tips and guidance is greatly appreciated. The piece has quiet moments, loud dynamic moments, low notes, high notes etcģ. His teacher suggested a specific piece he just used for his exam. have my son play the exact same piece on each piano. With that said how would you listen and evaluate grand pianos in vastly different rooms?Ģ. Once we get home from a store, I do make notes in a word document for each store about the specific pianos and some key sound elements that my son, wife and I noticed.
Wife and kid did not like the various Yamaha's (played 6-7 of them) brighter and less harmonic sound at any of the stores we visited. We are aiming for a grand between 5'7" and 6'1" and looking at the brand names such as Kawai, Schimmel, Steinway (old rebuilt - still $), Boston etc. My wife and I do not play piano although she plays violin. I've done a bunch of reading on various forums on the type of sound to expect from specific brands and models.
Yes the sound of a specific piano a personal preference and our audio memories are not the greatest. I trust the same sonic principles will apply to musical instruments such as placement in the room, room volume/dimensions, floor material, wall and ceiling material etc. From my experience with audio, the room makes a big difference in terms of how a speaker sounds. We are shopping for grand pianos that are vastly different: new, used, brands, models, age, sizes, original used, rebuilt etc and they are in different rooms in different stores. My son has gotten to a level where his piano teacher recommends moving to a grand piano from his current mediocre upright. Odd request which I am hoping you can provide guidance.