Some advice on the best way to go with a new piano

[123allsorts]

Hi,

I am a piano student in Australia. My piano teacher has intimated to me that it is time to get a new piano before my 7th grade exam later this year as he says I have outgrown my current Renardi (circa 1920s unrestored).

I have been doing some research and played many different pianos. At this stage, there are three totally different options for me and I would like some advice on which to choose.

1. A brand new Yamaha U1J. I really like the touch of this but many people have warned me against Indonesian Yamahas and my tuner suggests the tone will be lost in 5-10 years. Price $6200.

2. A second hand 1991 Yamaha U3. I liked the sound of this one especially. Price $6500

3. A restored 100 year old Roensich Three Crowns. I haven't played this yet but my tuner says it has magnificent sound and will last longer than the other options. Price $5500

Where to from here?

[awesom_o]

What is your budget, and what is the asking price of these three pianos?

[123allsorts]

What is your budget, and what is the asking price of these three pianos?

I have edited the original post to contain asking prices. My budget is about $6000-7000.

[indianajo]

I would definitely go test the 100 year old Roenschich piano your tuner recommended. Sounds German, the wood could be of high quality.  
Piano tests of high quality pianos -1 take a finger of alternating hands, and play a single note repeatedly as fast as possible.  Will the piano repeat faster than you can?  Bass, 2 string, 3 string notes? Some pianos I can definitely outrun, and these I don't play.  
2 Does the tone match on bass, 2 string, 3 string notes? My mother's 1949 Everett, they did not.
3. Do the dampers go all the way to the top octave, or do they stop on the G below?  Cheaper pianos, the second octave notes rings on when you play those notes.  
4. How soft can you play with the notes hitting consistently?  I played a nineties Wurlitzer (imported from somewhere, the W factory was demolished by them) where different notes would drop out on me and not sound.  
I'm prejudiced in favor of woods harvested from old forests, of a known high quality tree, and dried in traditional ways.  We'll know about the longeviity of the woods used in Yamaha, Kawai, Pearl River, etc, in about fifty years.  I read Yamahas have a plywood pin block instead of solid.  My 1941 Steinway 40 with the solid pin block definitely has better tuning stability than my 1982 Sohmer with a 5 ply pin block.  
How does the piano sound? especially the bass notes.  I have detested the sound of every Yamaha console or studio I ever heard. That goes for the 1981 Everett studio piano (owned by Yamaha) that I auditioned in 1982 when I bought the better sounding 1981 Sohmer console. This is despite the fakey overtone interference bass of a console piano versus the fundamental bass of a studio piano.    Many $75 uprights from the nineteen twenties at Salvation Army resale sound better than Yamahas, IMHO.
My physician friend bought a"superior" new Pearl River studio piano in 2009 just before I bought my used 1941 Steinway in 2010.  I saw the Pearl River studio piano last holiday in Hitchcock TX, but I didn't get to play it.  One string had broken four times, had been replaced three, and the Houston  PR dealer was refusing to replace it under warrenty because my retired military friend did not keep paper receipts of the previous service calls.  
What is wrong with your old piano? If it is too slow, there is no repair, probably.  Also if the action is uneven on more than one or two notes, or the keys do not come  fully up to rest.  One or two notes only sticky, I'd get it repaired, if the dampers and hammers weren't scooped by wear, the shafts bent, or the glue coming unglued on the clevices.  Also a broken soundboard or pins too stuck to tune it are reasons to scrap it.  
    

[123allsorts]

What is wrong with your old piano?

Nothing really wrong with it. It doesn't keep its tune very well, but it is still a good reliable piano in terms of action. However, both my teacher and technician have recommended I move on to a piano which is easier to express in terms of sound. All the pianos I have tried so far have been easier to produce a more expressive tune on.

My old piano is a circa 1920 Renardi; we're hoping to sell it for $500-1000.

[123allsorts]

Well, I went down and tried the Ronisch today. It's been fully rebuilt, new action, new strings. I fell in love with it: its keyboard rivalled the best Yamaha for evenness, and they can't rival the ivory. Its touch was great, tight and fast.

So I'm pretty well decided, unless someone can give me a good reason to think otherwise!

[j_menz]

unless someone can give me a good reason to think otherwise!

Nope, and if anyone tries, they're wrong. Go for it!