Hear the difference?

[pianowelsh]

It is often remarked that pianos by different manufacturers have their own unique sound. Id be interested to know what you guys think. Myself i believe there is some truth in this but its also true that the same piano in two acoustics sounds completely different so id be interested to know from your experiences which sound characteristics you have noted as general trends.

[gkatele]

I can't help but remember when I started my search for a piano (I still haven't finished!). I played two Mason & Hamlin model A's. They were as different as can be. Yes, they played the same, but, even though they were next to each other in the showroom.... oh my, how different they were.

Now, for the corollary to your questions: Do different manufacturers' pianos have a different "distinctive" sound. Again, I'll say most emphatically "Y E S ! ! !"

Regards,


George

[Axtremus]

Yes, they are different.
My notes on various pianos *HERE*.

[Danm]

Yes of course different mfg's have different sounds! Same goes for other instruments, LeBlanc sounds different from a Buffet.

Individual instruments all sound different from each other too, from the same mfg. For some reason I'm not sure of however, I expect piano mfgs to produce a pretty consistent product. I guess because consistency is an indication of adequate prep, and consistent sound board construction.  The piano offers a lot of opportunities to affect it's tone and intonation. I'm reminded of when I was shopping for a professional clarinet (my previous instrument). I sampled about 10 or so before I found one I liked. Each one has tuning variations (minute differences in the finger holes make for large intonation differences, with the result that you have to fix whatever your instrument gets wrong). And the tone was very dependent on the piece of wood the thing was made out of.

With piano, you can shape the hammers, set the strike point, needle the hammers, etc. Of course you can't do much after the key has been pressed 

[dinosaurtales]

Yes.  Each brand of piano has it's own distinctive "sound".  The higher end pianos are specifically designed to BE different - since each scale design will generate a unique sound.  But because each manufacturer selects materials, designs the scales and model features, and constructs to their own spec, the differences are incredible, which is waht makes shopping for pianos so fun!