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Choleric,

Yes indeed when you regularly are reading this forum you get a biased view of the piano market: all of us posting here represent merely a small minority of the global piano owners community, but this is valid for any brand.

On the other hand I would say that Hailun is still well undervalued here as this forum is by it's nature dominated by Nothh American posters and Hailun only being present on the US market for a short time - say some 2 years now.

The Hailun product - as the Wendl & Lung brand - was introduced in Europe quite a bit before, 5 to 6 years ago. With 300+ dealers accross Europe and a multiple of units sold [in total and annually] as compared to the US the success and recognition of the brand is still increasing every day. Big dealers now also start recognising W&L and take the brand on board, e.g. one of the bigger Yamaha dealers - if not the biggest one in the UK - Chris Venables [also a member here].

Some dealers here make W&L their nr. one brand others have taken it on board while already carrying more well known brand names. My impression is that when talking to them the latter category even moderates it's enthousiasm about W&L as to not jeopardize their renown brands sales.

Before even this forum ever heard about Hailun/W&L the member JohnEB [does not post here all that often anymore but is still posting in e.g. the Pianist Corner] and myself started talking here about W&L. Check my profile and go the the posts of do a search schwammerl/W&L or Hailun.

And although I am no longer a W&L owner [owned a 161 and played many] I can say the brand keeps haunting me and that I am still as enthousiastic about it as before not in the least because the finishing quality still improved a lot over the last 2 years. Would I have to make a new choice again I would certainly reconsider it and presumably return to it.

A small anectdote. When I traded in my 161 that dealer hardly ever heard of W&L and had never seen one, so he was quite reluctant of buying it as he thought he would never get rid of it. During this economic crisis when his stock was not moving at all he sold it within two weeks time, yes to a music academy for the heavy daily work and it performs vey well there!

My opinion is that is that the future success of Hailun in North America will only depend on the success with which Hailun is able [or not] to set up a strong dealer network and will not depend on the qulity od it's products.

schwammerl.

Hi all!

I tried to post a picture and got it loaded on Pianoworld, but can't figure out how to get it here, so I'll keep trying.

Since I just bought a Hailun 198, I must say that I had never heard of a Hailun until recently. When I called on a Mason Hamlin, the price was over $30K. The dealer had other brands and when I asked which he mentioned Hailun. I told him I did not want a Chinese piano. But I wanted to try everything. So the next few days I researched Hailuns and read about all the specs. Then I did the same thing for Kawai, Baldwin, Steinway, and Yamaha. I read Larry's info on how pianos were made and compared the specs with what he said in the piano book. I had a friend and my son look at all this, too.

Then I read everything I could find on Hailun including posts on this forum. I was very skeptical.

I drove to the dealer and brought music. (I had already visited several other dealers and played their grands, too.) I played just about every grand he had. I went back home and tried to find more info. I even called my ex who had just bought a new C3 and asked him to research.

Then I went back to try the Hailun again. Now it is in my music room. And I really love it! I think in the end it was the sound and the value for the price. The Blue book said to try to buy new and buy the biggest one you could. Also, if I had bought that new 6'3" Baldwin years ago, I would probably still have it. I hope my new piano lasts a long time and that I will continue to love it!

And if my ship comes in, I'll buy a Steinway, or I may just keep playing the Hailun.

G-L-O-R-I-A

Congrats - very nice piano!!

Just beware of those damned warped keybeds....

Actually scepticism is a very healthy mindset.

We have it - perhaps more than most others here - but this is what swayed us to become dealers, as Schwammerl has so aptly pointed out writing from piano bastille Europe:



I agree - the show goes on.

Norbert

Congratulations Haymarket (Gloria?)!

I hope your 198 brings many years of joy! Thanks for posting about your research on the Hailun. Looking forward to seeing pictures.

Best Regards,
Ryan

P.S. Is there a Haymarket Square in Wisconsin too (besides Boston)?

Ryan,

Haymarket Square is in Chicago and it was my band long ago.

G-L-O-R-I-A

Dear Gloria, Congratulations on your new Hailun 198. I am deciding between a 178 and a 198 from Hailun. Since I don't live in the USA, I am not going to be able to play these pianos to decide on one or the other. Did you audition a 178 before you bought your 198? If so, was the 198 way better or only slightly?

Please help me with my decision

Sincerely yours, Fernando

Fernando,

I played both. I brought a lot of music-everything from Chopin and Liszt to Joplin. I played rock things I have written, too. I really liked the 178. It had a bright sound, similar to the Yamaha C. The 198 had more of a mellow sound, with a deep expressive bass. It was very responsive to playing octaves, (Hungarian Rhapsody #6), but was also great for the soft and jazzy stuff (Linus and Lucy). My son kept going on and on about the tone of the 198. I also had the dealer play both pianos so I could hear them and try to be objective.

In the end, I got the 198. I have had it nearly a month and the more I play it, the more I love it!

It's hard to buy a piano without playing it. That's a tough one! I also think I chose the 198 because I wanted something at least 6 feet. Best of luck on whatever you decide.

If anyone can help me get a picture here, I'll post it. I downloaded it to the forum, but GOK where it is.

G-L-O-R-I-A

You can find the instruction in this thread.
http://www.pianoworld.com/forum/ubbthreads.php/topics/908865/

We tried 178 the other day and I agree it sounds more like Yamaha than Kawai. But I heard 178 has more European design (W&L) and 198 has more American design (George Emerson).

It may have been this particular model you tried.

To be honest we hear all the time that the 178 has actually quite different sound from either Yamaha or Kawai.

Norbert

Strange observation that is.

If most people chose a 178 or even a 161 instead of a Yamaha it is because these do sound anything but a Yamaha: open mid and treble and quite bold in the low section.
But of course I can only speak for the W&Ls.

schwammerl.

We tried Yamaha, Kawai, Petrof, Hailun and Estonia. For my untrained ears, the brightness is the first thing I noticed. When playing a spirited piece, I can feel the energy from Yamaha, Petrof and Hailun, but not from Kawai and Estonia. When playing a soft melody piece, Yamaha, Petrof and Hailun are OK, but I can feel the sweet sound from Estonia and Kawai right away. It's very obvious for our untrained ears.
I wrote how we felt in this thread http://www.pianoworld.com/forum/ubbthreads.php/topics/1233681/

I am sure there are differences between Yamaha and Hailun, but as far as brightness goes, I felt Hailun is closer to Yamaha than Kawai.

schwammerl, why did you trade in your 161? From a reliable source in China, Hailun and W&L are the same pianos.

C.Y.:

You are right, the impression on a musician is very different on different instruments according to the music he plays.

For exactly this reason, custom voicings can make all the difference this, notwithstanding the fact that pianos do have their own innate nature.

Thank you for sharing your impressions with us!

Norbert

As for your initial impression of the Hailun stereotypical sound I would agree with you. Norbert is right on in his post as for voicing an instrument catering to the player though still retaining their inert character.
Most low end pianos don't take to voicing well because they have no initial tone. I've noticed especially in the low end Chinese pianos that the manufactures will intentionally voice them so dark borderline muddy to disguise the lack of potential tone and actual inharmonicities.
Here is a short Youtube demo I did months ago to initially show how the 178 could be voiced much differently(darker)than the norm.It actually goes much further than darker or brighter in voicing. The resiliancy in the hammer felt and the piano discern whether a piano will take to voicing. Helps to have a veteran voicer.
Excuse the digital camera/you tube fidelity and the player but you'll get the general idea.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PazwMgdwTBU

When I bought my HG 178 in March I didn't have the option of looking at a 198. I first played my 178 in October of 2008, and loved it at first playing. Nick (Nick's Piano Showroom in Venice Florida) told me that he had voiced it much more mellow than the other Hailun's he had on the floor. I liked it.

I'm having it tuned and voiced again in August, and if the opportunity presents itself, I will make a recording of a standard, having altered (sweet! sweet!) sounds. I'll also throw in an ending that shows the treble to illustrate the bell-like sustain ones.

Hop

altered (sweet! sweet!) sounds

Well, that might be altered (sweet! sweet!) chords.

Hop

I'm looking forward to that b5,#9,augmented 11th,tritone and chromatic substitutions. It's an art to totally destroy the original harmonic structure tastefully.

Hi,

I do think the 198 reminded my of the Baldwin I played for many years so that might be the Emerson influence.

G-L-O-R-I=A

You've got the idea, if not the specific substitutions. I do like the way I do mine, but I'd readily agree that there are others who will do it better. Actually, this recording (if I can make it!) will show a more mellow voicing of the HG 178. My playing prowess will be secondary in every sense of that word.

Hop