Looking for oppinions on Petrof Pianos

[mainelymusic]

I am looking to replace my older Yamaha GH1 that I lost in my house fire.  My insurance company is giving me just over 17K for a new piano.

I have always been a big Yamaha fan.  My absolute favorite is a C3, however that model is simply not in my budget.  The salesperson that I last talked to suggested  come in and try a Petrof III (6' 4" grand)

I am looking for oppinions on this piano, and/or Petrof pianos in general.  From what I have read, petrof need more work out of the crate than say a Yamaha, but have a georgeous tone and sound when properly tweeked.

Any advice would be greatly appreciated!

[CJ Quinn]

I am looking to replace my older Yamaha GH1 that I lost in my house fire.  My insurance company is giving me just over 17K for a new piano.

I have always been a big Yamaha fan.  My absolute favorite is a C3, however that model is simply not in my budget.  The salesperson that I last talked to suggested  come in and try a Petrof III (6' 4" grand)

I am looking for oppinions on this piano, and/or Petrof pianos in general.  From what I have read, petrof need more work out of the crate than say a Yamaha, but have a georgeous tone and sound when properly tweeked.


Any advice would be greatly appreciated!

17k for a Petrof III is a very very good price, for starters.  I happen to like Petrofs a great deal and came thisclose to buying one were it not for an incredible deal on a slightly used Af190. 

I often revisited the dealer where I bought my piano and played lots of Petrofs (while he still carried them) and I always found them to be musical.  The bass on the Petrof III does not quite match the rest of the scale on the couple or 3 of them that I played - others have reported that well tweaked IIIs are fabulous all through the compass.

I found the Petrof IV (170cm) an incredibly satisfying piano for that size and I have read accounts of a few people who actually prefer the IV to the III.

My first impression of a Petrof sticks in my mind very clearly.  I thought, how in the world is Baldwin going to survive with competition like this?  I was at the time shopping for a Baldwin L.

I'd say czech them out for sure.

 

[iumonito]

I agree with CJ.  The Pertoffs I have played are very good pianos and they age very well too.  I would take it over the Yamaha even is the Yamaha was $5,000 cheaper.

[Danm]

I think they are great pianos, from my experience with them. I almost bought one, would have in fact if I didn't find a CW190 instead. But one of the things that worried me is that the Petrof seems to be a piano that people move out of after a while. I talked to a few people who owned them who became dissatisfied with the touch or tone eventually.

No idea if there is any trend to this information, but it was an impression I picked up.

[pianowelsh]

What you heard is true they do have a gorgeous tone partic Petrof III grand and upwards. I dont know about needing more working in time (but then the usage i gave my petrof upright - it didnt stand a chance of being unresponsive). You definately get more for your money with them  - a possible reason why RAM - london have invested in a load of them. they are jolly decent - try some out and bond with them. you'll learn to love them

[stringoverstrung]

That a piano needs more tweeking than another one out of the crate is not necessarily a bad thing:

it means that it has character and that it is worth the trouble of tweeking it.  Did you know that there are piano craftsman that buy Hamburg Steinway Model D right from the factory and work for over a year on it because it can be made A LOT better then when it leaves the factory. This man has a waiting list of many years for his "tuned" Steinway's.

Personally i think petroff grands are great piano's for their price and i would certainly recommend bying one.  The only problem is if you really want it tweeked perfectly it will cost you some money. Also the action of a Petroff is pretty heavy but you can test that. I think price/ quality under 20 000  $ they are one of the best. A plus IMHO is also that every Petroff grand is different: they do have character of their own and that's remarkable for a piano in that price range.

[etudes]

i once try petrof very big one i think 9 feet
and it is the most difficult piano i have ever touch
the key are very deep and very hard to produce very large and loud sound
but when you play very soft and lyric it works quite well
i dont know is that the same as any of petrof i just try once
it is worth for practising with that kind of piano  not for concert or competition 

[lagin]

I have a Yamaha 5'8 grand.   I really like it.  I haven't heard of the other kind you mentioned, but then again, I haven't heard of alot of things........