What piano do you have?

[ivoryplayer4him]

I have a Story & Clark Condensed Baby Grand from anywhere between 1920-1930.  Its unique in that it is OLIVE GREEN! lol i love it though.  Its really old however, so its taking a lot of maintence.  I've got to completely replace the tuning pins, which i have no idea how much that will cost, being how this is my first piano to actually own myself.

[xvimbi]

I have a Story & Clark Condensed Baby Grand from anywhere between 1920-1930.  Its unique in that it is OLIVE GREEN! lol i love it though.  Its really old however, so its taking a lot of maintence.  I've got to completely replace the tuning pins, which i have no idea how much that will cost, being how this is my first piano to actually own myself.

Correct me if I'm wrong, but you can't just replace pins. One has to replace the entire block, which is in the thousands. If it's only a couple of pins, it is sometimes possible to patch it, but I guess, a piano that old can probably not be salvaged. Better start saving for a new one.

[IB]

Hi, I have the Steinway & Sons Concert Grand Model D and I am extremly proud of it!!! Here's a pic:


IB

[donjuan]

You are 16 and have a Steinway concert Grand.  Man, you better get a well paying job if you wish to maintain such expensive tastes.

still,
(drooling)
donjuan

[Babcock]

IB, how old is your D?  I have a New York D too, from 1969.

[Bernardswatch]

I own a Challen mini grand piano date to 30's 40's i think.  Quite out of tune

[sleepingcats]

I have aYamaha U1 48" upright which I bought in January. I absolutely love it! I also have a Yamaha Clavinova CLP-970 which I've had for 3 years.

[coathangerwings]

Yamaha Upright U1, too. Padded bench, woohoo! 

[Daniel_piano]

A Yamaha U3 upright.  When I was small I had a Bosendorfer which had been my grandmother's before she died.  Aged about 4 I composed little tunes on it.  I hadn't learned musical notation at that age, so I scratched the ivory keys heavily with a needle so I could remember which notes were in my composition.  My mother wasn't pleased!  And I only worked out later that my system was no use anyway - I had marked which keys I needed, but not the order in which to play them!

That's why when I composed my tunes at 5 years old I marked the notes that where in my composition by writing with a black halcohol-pen the numbers of the order of the notes in the white keys
The piano was my grandfather's who was a talented jazz pianist

Daniel

[Daniel_piano]

Yamaha Upright U1, too. Padded bench, woohoo! 

Yamaha U1 too
It's a wonderful piano, I've tried a lot of pianos but I think the Yamaha Upright Series is the better one, even better than Kaway or Petrof
I would like a U3 as it is even better, but it's a bit expensive

Daniel

[m1469]

I have a Nordiska 5'6"- quite new to the market.  Also an Ivers and Pond upright.

I don't know what brand my dream piano would be, but, I know that I will know it when I feel it (and I can't wait to finally find it!) 

(The only thing is, once I find it and have it, I probably won't want to ever play on anything else )

[quasimodo]

Yamaha U1.

I swear some day when I play well (which means in a lot of years !!!), I'm gonna have a Yamaha C3 or something like that (a C7 if I have the money).

[RJones]

A very old, rebuilt Hardman Peck baby grand, Yamaha CLP-170 Digital, Yamaha Motif, Yamaha S08, Alesis QS7.1, Yamaha DGX-500, Yamaha PSR, and various tone generators/piano sample libraries.

Actually my son plays everything except the Motif which is my personal toy. 

[tshort]

Have finally made the decision to purchase the Kwai RX2 will be going down today!!!

[dinosaurtales]

WOW!  CONGRATS!  HAVE FUN!

 

[Rockitman]

Baldwin spinet and a Yamaha S90 synth, (full 88 balanced hammer action).  The Yammy gets played much more than the Baldwin.   I would trade it all plus my pinkie toe (can't give up fingers of course)  for a 7' plus grand though. 

[donjuan]

Baldwin spinet and a Yamaha S90 synth, (full 88 balanced hammer action).  The Yammy gets played much more than the Baldwin.   I would trade it all plus my pinkie toe (can't give up fingers of course)  for a 7' plus grand though. 

hmm you might have to trade a little more...maybe three more toes and your left nut.  -> THEN, maybe youll get a deal.  what kind of deal? hmmm what make of grand?  If it's steinway, youll have to give up the other nut.  If it's Bosendorfer or Fazioli, we start taking a few inches off now....

haha ok, dirty minded donjuan has finished now 

lol only on an internet forum

[Rockitman]

I already gave up those odds and ends to my exwife! 

I can sing a great high tenor now.

[wynnbear]

Correct me if I'm wrong, but you can't just replace pins. One has to replace the entire block, which is in the thousands. If it's only a couple of pins, it is sometimes possible to patch it, but I guess, a piano that old can probably not be salvaged. Better start saving for a new one.

Pins can be replaced with the next larger size assuming the block is in good shape and not cracked.  And assuming they aren't already the largest size. 

[chickering9]

I just introduced myself in the other forum, but I'd like to introduce my better half, referred by my friends as "my girlfriend", an 1895 appx. Chickering concert grand.  At 2,400 pounds, my friends have told me my "girlfriend needs to go on a diet".  But I think she's positively svelte and I actually like her fat legs.  It took 9 big men to get her in the house.  When she arrived, she made 5, but I got rid of two of her ugly step sisters and the other two never get played and may get adopted out soon, too.

[donjuan]

I just introduced myself in the other forum, but I'd like to introduce my better half, referred by my friends as "my girlfriend", an 1895 appx. Chickering concert grand.  At 2,400 pounds, my friends have told me my "girlfriend needs to go on a diet".  But I think she's positively svelte and I actually like her fat legs.  It took 9 big men to get her in the house.  When she arrived, she made 5, but I got rid of two of her ugly step sisters and the other two never get played and may get adopted out soon, too.

(drooling)
You are a lucky guy to have such a hot broad standing in your living room

[valen1]

I am a proud owner of a Chickering Grand. Serial number 114890 which dates this piano between 1909 -1910. The measurements are 6' 5" long and 4' 10" at widest
point. This Chickering is a bit old, and needs a little T.L.C from a tech. Oh, and yes I am so jealous of Chickering9. Were did you find your new girl?

My wish list of repairs: does anyone have winning lotto numbers? HA ha HA !!!
installing a climate control system is first priority
new dampers
new hammers
new strings
pins and block are fair, only 2 need repair

[jazzyprof]

My current mistress is a Yamaha C3 grand.  She's got a wonderful mellow sound which is kinda unusual since Yamahas are known for their bright sound.  I also have a bunch of digital keyboards:  Yamaha P250 (awesome!), Kurzweil PC88, and Alesis QS6.1.

[athykay]

A Seiler 180.

[alextryan]

My mom is holding our new Baldwin 5'8" R1 captive in Colorado:

 but I have my very first piano that is just mine:



That's pretty much how it looks all the time.  I got it to learn to tune, so I leave its guts open, but it's really a likeable piano to play.  Kimball, 1980's.  A woman in West Virginia was giving it away because it hadn't been played in 20 years.  I went down with a buddy and a van and some straps and probably did permanent damage to my lower back loading it up and moving it.  =)

[chickering9]

I am a proud owner of a Chickering Grand. Serial number 114890 which dates this piano between 1909 -1910. The measurements are 6' 5" long and 4' 10" at widest
point. This Chickering is a bit old, and needs a little T.L.C from a tech. Oh, and yes I am so jealous of Chickering9. Were did you find your new girl?

It was listed on Ebay about 3 years ago.  I found it 90 seconds before the auction was to close and didn't even get a bid typed in before the close.  I immediately e-mailed the seller and asked him how much outright for it.  Price was too good so I went to see it.  When I played it, I paid him a few hundred more, to equal the original minimum bid he had sought, though he would have settled for less. 

I had looked at about 100 pianos just prior to finding this one and had all but made up my mind to buy a 6'5" Chickering, but when I saw this one the same evening I had planned to sleep on that decision, I decided I could make room for a larger one.  I truly liked the 6-5 better than anything I'd tried before this one and could have been quite happy with it.  In the end, I'm glad I did a little more looking.

When I was in college, the university had a fleet of new Steinway L's that I loved and a number of much neglected old Chickerings.  Those poor old beat-up Chickerings gave me a bad impression of the make, compared to all those Steinways.  But after finding myself liking that 6-5 Chickering in a nearby store over a whole herd of Steinways, M&H's and other great pianos, I did a bit of reading during my overnight thinking to cure my ignorance about the make, which is how I ended up on Ebay (following a link) and found the one I ended up buying.  The owner of the store that had the one I'd almost bought travelled to see this one with me and was nothing but happy for me even though I didn't buy his.

If you can do your wish list a bit at a time, I think you could find that you really can have a much better piano than the same money would buy new.  Chickering resale *is* low, but I think mostly that's because they don't compete with *real* new Chickerings (nevermind those Baldwin pretenders) with prices that would shore up the value of the old ones.  Steinways and M&H rebuilds command good prices that make the rebuilder a bit of money because the pianos are still being built and the price for such quality is quite high creating a healthy market for good-value/good-profit rebuilds.  But in their day, Chickering were frequently reviewed as "second to none".  If the last of the Chickering sons had had a son of his own and the widow not sold the company in 1908 to American Piano Co., Steinway might have yet one more strong competitor besides M&H even now.  So while a Chickering might not reward a rebuilder rebuilding on spec with a reasonable profit margin, a Chickering rebuild can offer the owner/player a major reward with a first-rate piano for a fair price and a very good value for ownership and playing.

[adrian]

I have a Alex. SteinBach....Victoriana Model.  Its alright I suppose....And really well...Cut out...with the nice legs etc.

[CJHoward]

 I have  a 1963 Henry F. Miller Spinet made by Ivers and Pond. It isn't the Best Piano in the world, but I've played worse.

[chopin_girl]

An upright Yamaha c 113-t
Great piano. Nice sound. Although Yamaha does have that sharp tone, but I love it.
HIS name is Negro-because it's black.duh
(LoL I'm wierd-I KNOW)

[SteinwayTony]

Back home in Michigan I have a Steinway L (5'10", New York, 2000) which was used to freak the living @#$% out of me on my 16th birthday.  I'm going to school in New York now, where the practice rooms are crappy Yamaha uprights, so you can imagine how much I miss it. 

[alice oliver]

my piano is a grotrian-steinweg 6'3" grand in ebony polish, which i bought new about three years ago.  it's an incredible piano and i am stunned just about every day that i own it.

[JazzP120]

I have a Yamaha P120 Piano. I love it. It sounds and feels exactly like an acoustic piano, and it is very light and portable. It has a beatiful wood finish, also.

Chris

[MarkAllison]

I have a 1987 Yamaha U3


and a  brand new Yamaha CLP-120.



I use the CLP for late evenings and the U3 for day time. I love the U3 - lovely deep rich sound.

[Daniel_piano]

I use the CLP for late evenings and the U3 for day time.

But am I the only one here who know that you can have a silent device installed in your U3 so you can connect your headphone and only you will hear the sound?

Installing such device on a U1 or U3 will cost less than 150$

Daniel

[MarkAllison]

But am I the only one here who know that you can have a silent device installed in your U3 so you can connect your headphone and only you will hear the sound?

Installing such device on a U1 or U3 will cost less than 150$

Daniel

Hi Daniel - it's not a U3 Silent Series. I'd be interested in the product you are talking about - got any web links? I might take the CLP-120 back to the shop as it's only 10 days old. Would it sound as good as the CLP-120?

Thanks.

[zemos]

But am I the only one here who know that you can have a silent device installed in your U3 so you can connect your headphone and only you will hear the sound?

Installing such device on a U1 or U3 will cost less than 150$

Daniel

First of all, you can install a silent device in any piano. I think it's a great thing, though I don't have one...

second of all and as answer to the post- I have an upright Steinway "K". It's about 60 years old but soooo good! (:

[Nina_too]

Pleyel 131 in polished black.  Easily the best upright I've ever played and it will keep me happy until I get a grand piano... someday. 

[Shellb]

Hi all...
I have a 20-year old Baldwin Hamilton vertical and a 6'10" Bluthner which I purchased earlier this year.  Umm, I sort of like the Bluthner better than the Baldwin.   

[dinosaurtales]

Hi all...
I have a 20-year old Baldwin Hamilton vertical and a 6'10" Bluthner which I purchased earlier this year.  Umm, I sort of like the Bluthner better than the Baldwin.   

Well DUH!  I'll bet that Bluthner is fabulous!

[Daniel_piano]

Hi Daniel - it's not a U3 Silent Series. I'd be interested in the product you are talking about - got any web links? I might take the CLP-120 back to the shop as it's only 10 days old. Would it sound as good as the CLP-120?

Thanks.

See this thread:

https://pianoforum.net/smf/index.php/topic,5710.msg58406.html#msg58406

it is a device that through a optical fibers panel positioned between the keys and the hammers absorb the vibrations and redirect the sound through a headphone line out or a midi output

So, if you bought a digital piano just in order to be able to play at night or with headphones then installing this device would be a far far far more cheap than buying a digital piano
The sound you hear or your record with this device is the same you hear when you play you acoustic
By installing the device there's no change in dynamics, touch or sound

Daniel

[phykell]

1920 Steinway Hamburg Model D in French Polished rosewood.

[athykay]

Hi Phykell!  I was just wondering about you today.  Haven't seen you in awhile.

Beautiful piano.

[chickering9]

1920 Steinway Hamburg Model D in French Polished rosewood.

Great to see you here, Phykell!  The piano looks beautiful at home (like your colors).  I hadn't seen a picture of it since your wonderful series of photographs in the rebuilder's shop.

May I be nosy and ask your source and price for the great double castors?  I want a set of that height to get the Chickering just a shade higher so I can have my knees *not* brush the underside of the keybed while still maintaining something like a 90 degree angle from elbow to keys and distribute some of that weight across a broader area.

[Nina_too]

Hi, phykell!  Victory at last!  Your piano looks gorgeous.  Well worth the wait, I should think.  With those lovely wooden floors, I bet it sounds as magnificent as it looks.

Nina

[calidris]

I have a Yamaha CLP 990. 
One of the few digitals that has wooden keys. 

[phykell]

Hi Chickering! Nice to see you here too

The castors are the genuine Steinway ones, solid brass, double wheels with brakes. Unfortunately they are very expensive (over-priced). From the "Genuine Steinway Spare Parts Order Sheet & Price List" I have in front of me, they are £528.39 +VAT at 17.5%. Even more unfortunate is that the price list is dated 1999!

athykay & Nina, thanks, it's been a long wait, around 18 months in all but it's been worth it. My playing has definitely improved which is the most important thing of course, but I'm just relieved it's finally done. There are a few niggling problems like one of the strings sounds a bid "hard" and of all things, the lock now it's finally working, buzzes when I play a certain note. Other than that though, it's fantastic

[jazzyd]

Phykell! Wow! I am so pleased for you! I wondered what had happened with your piano.

Now, how on earth do you get anything done (eating, sleeping, etc.) with that sat there? 


David

[phykell]

Hi David,

Nice to see you over here!

At the moment my poor piano is surrounded by a load of junk due to having our kitchen done. Can you imagine that there's a new cooker sat right next to it at the moment 

When I got it back of course, after working from home for several months I then ended up working away until this December (back again temporarily in January), so the worst thing is that I've only really been able to play it at weekends!

[chickering9]

The castors are the genuine Steinway ones, solid brass, double wheels with brakes. Unfortunately they are very expensive (over-priced). From the "Genuine Steinway Spare Parts Order Sheet & Price List" I have in front of me, they are £528.39 +VAT at 17.5%. Even more unfortunate is that the price list is dated 1999!

That's about like the prices I saw about 2 years ago.  I hoped you'd found some rare good deal.  This is one of those things I know I'll break over sometime and order and be happy to forget the first cringe as soon as they're on.  Though I almost think I could have them custom-machined for less. 

[Floristan]

Phykell--

Welcome to PF and thanks for sharing the photo.  It's enough to make my heart race...what a beautiful instrument.  Congratulations.