Piano World Home Page Forums Our Most Popular Forums Piano Forum Used Yamaha G2 or New Kawai GE30

Hi All,
I'm in need of some advice & feedback, please.
This is my first post, but I have been reading the great things and feedback from many of you here in PW, on differrent piano topics. I have learned a lot. As I learn more, I hope to be as good of a resource, as many of you here.

After many years of thinking about it, I have finally decided to purchase a Grand Piano, for lite playing and have my 9 year old daughter practice as she starts piano lessons. Based on budget, action and tonal liking, I have narrowed down to the following pianos, but need some guidance and recommendations, as I'm completely overwhelm by the conflicting information (from dealers/technicians) regarding this brands and models.

Here are the choices I am looking at:
1982 Yamaha G2 - $10,500
Used, but in pristine original conditions. Barely used.
Incl. 10 year dealer warranty + Delivery + 1st tuning

1996 Yamaha C1 - $10,500
Used, good condition, but not as good as the 1982 Yamaha G2
Incl. 10 year dealer warranty + Delivery + 1st tuning

New Kawai GE-30 - $12,500
new model with Millennium III action
Incl. 10 year Kawai Warranty + Delivery + 1st tuning

I like how all of them sound and feel, especially the G2, but my main concern is the age of the Yamaha's, regardless of thier good conditions.

I will appreciate comments and if anyone can share their experience and pros and cons with these pianos, at this price ranges.

Thanks,
viopin

What did you think of the Kawai?

Having played a GE30 quite recently it would easily be my first choice of your three. I thought it was a fantastic piano for the price and by the looks of it not a lot more money than either of the Yamahas. The G2 is a bit bigger but not much and it's over 30 years old. With pianos newer is generally considered to be better unless you are buying a restored instrument from a top manufacturer. The C1 is nice but smaller than the Kawai. I preferred the GE30 to a brand new GC1 when i layer them back to back.

Based on the info you provided and your reactions, I'd recommend the GE-30 first, followed by the G2, but the G2 is priced a bit too high considering its age (unless it has new parts in it). It sounds like you didn't like the C1. Keep in mind there are other new entry-level and better than entry-level grands available at these prices, too.

Chris,
I really like the Kawai GE-30. The action and tone is just right for my untrained hands & ears. Your point regarding the age of the Yamahas for the money, makes a lot of sense.

Thank you for your prompt help.

Terminaldegree,
The C1 is a great sounding piano, I liked it, but the G2 & GE-30 just sounded better for my untrained ears.

I have also tried a new Ritmuller GH-160r. It was a bit mellower, but had a great sound for the size and price point(around $8.5k). It also has a really solid build quality.

Have you heard or have any experince with the Ritmuller GH-160?

Again, Thank you.

Yamaha and Kawai often become the default choice with good reason. Both produce excellent instruments and they are established names that people know and trust even if they know little about pianos.

Terminal degree is right though, there are loads more great pianos out there within your budget. In fact it's getting more and more difficult to buy a bad piano nowadays with recent improvements in design. That's a good thing but the choice can be bewildering and sales staff are well trained in pushing their products.

If you are not sure then I would say a newer piano is a better bet for you. You won't go far wrong and your daughter is a very lucky little girl to be getting a fine instrument to start her playing adventure. As a teacher I find that the home piano is one of the biggest factors concerning practice and progress. A nice new shiny grand piano provides a great deal of motivation.

Good luck

Thanks a lot for you help. Your advice means a lot to us, as is coming from a Pianist & Teacher.

Thank you!

The new Kawai GE-30 is the better deal. Has the newer action, the student will appreciate and be more excited playing a new piano. The G2 is a good piano, getting a little long in the tooth and overpriced. I sold a 1987 G2 a few years ago for much less then the what your dealer is asking and in pristine condition. Good luck in your piano search.

panche23,
Thanks for sharing your prior G2 info & feedback. The sound and feel of the G2 is incredible, but at that age, is hard to tell what to expect, long term. The GE-30 been the better deal, seems to be the recurring theme.
I will be visiting two additional dealers, this weekend, in hopes to try the new Ritmuller GH-170 and others. The Ritmuller GH series continues coming up in reviews as a great/premium piano for the price point. But it seems the Kawai GE-30 may be the one headed for the living room.

Thanks,
viopin

viopin,

It sounds like you are winding down your search. BUT, if you'd still like additional pianos to consider, www.pianobuyer.com is a great resource. If you go to pgs. 44 and 45 you'll see "The Map Of The Market". Look at the upper level consumer category (top right) to compare what else is available in the general quality range of the G-30 Kawai.

Good luck either way!

Need some additional help or maybe just a booster from this great forum to help make a final informed decision.

Today I came across a 1993 Yamaha G2, being sold by a very reputable Yamaha authorized dealer. The asking price, after some negotiation came down to $8,995, including dealer warranty, delivery and two tunings. The piano is in good condition (tone, action & looks), but it has a Disklavier system, which may have abused the piano. I will have a piano technician figure that out for me.

My questions is, if at this price, a 1993 Yamaha G2 would be a better buy than a new Kawai GE-30. Or does the Kawai GE-30 still has the advantage.

Previously, I was comparing the new Kawai GE-30 to a 1982 Yamaha G2 and the general consensus was that the 1982 Yamaha was getting too old to grant a $10,500 price point. I wonder if a 1993 Yamaha G2, which is 10 years younger than the previous one will make

I like both, equally, but I am not knowledgeable enough regarding these instruments, to be able to make up my mind. Reading the Piano Buyer guide was very helpful, but I may have information overload.

Any guidance or comments will be greatly appreciated.

A g2 with disklavier at that price is a good deal. My experience with the disklavier is that it does not unduly cause harm to the piano and is a great entertaining tool. Have it checked out by a tech. g2's were good instruments. As I have said in other posts I prefer the Yamaha to the Kawai.

I am glad to hear that the disklavier does not cause excessive harm to the piano. I will definitely take your advice and have a tech check the piano for me.

Well, a factory installed player system's presence probably doesn't cause any harm. However, if it was used often (the piano was used for display purposes or frequent entertaining), the action would have been subject to a lot of wear - as player systems don't get tired like humans, that could translate into the need for additional regulation or replacement of parts (worst-case scenario). On the other hand, some folks (take my parents, for instance), would only use the Disklavier for 5-10 hours every year - inevitably around the holidays... If only those things had hour meters, like machinery!

Excellent point! I'll let the tech assess the real wear and conditions of the action & parts. My un-trained eyes can't tell, because I really don't know what should I be looking for.
Thanks

The volume and amount of time the disklavier was played would have different results. If it was played for entertaining in a business it could be a problem. Most disklaviers I have seen were only played softly in homes for family entertainment. These pianos would not have been hurt at all. As mentioned before a tech would be able to answer your questions. Ask the dealer where the piano came from as well.

Ladies & Gentlemen,
I'm finally at the final stage and believe I have found our piano, between these two beautiful instruments.

They both were inspected by a Tech and both checked out.

Here is the two options waiting for the final jury:

1993 Yamaha G2 w/Disklavier player: $8,995

2000 Kawai RX-2 (wooden action): $9,500

I would appreciate feedback on these pianos for those years and how they compare to each other.

Looking forward to posting photos in the next week or so.

Thanks,
Viopin

I doubt your piano has a "wooden action." Kawai had been making their actions with ABS styran plastic for decades before they started the millennium actions in 2004. The difference is the addition of black carbon fiber to the ABS styran.

But I don't believe they supplied fully wooden actions in 2000 in the RX series.

Thanks.

viopin,

A wood action in a 2000 Kawai just doesn't make sense. If the age of the piano is correct, it is an action which uses synthetic parts.

Between the two pianos, I would tend to choose the RX. It's newer and you would not be buying the additional player system. And, my personal opinion is that I prefer the sound and touch of Kawai. Even without hearing it, I would surmise that the Yamaha is quite bright in sound, unless it has recently been voiced down.

In top condition they are both good pianos, I might be inclined to pick the kawai but I would need to hear them both.