Piano World Home Page Forums Our Most Popular Forums Adult Beginners Forum Should I buy a reconditioned Yamaha upright?

Oh no, that's terrible! One of the reason I would get a Yamaha is for reliability, I would never want to need serious fixing in just a few years. The salesman stressed exactly this fact, explaining that these pianos are used in music schools for eight hours a day and they don't want problems, not even a sticky key. He also boasted about the technician who preps their pianos, mentioning all the concerts and events he takes care of. I'll have to check whether I can trust him or not.

Of course he says those things, and they may be true, but getting a second opinion before you take the plunge is always a good idea.

Once you take possession of the piano, even if the store has a guarantee or warranty, it will be a hassle to get it done. Chances are if there is a problem ,returning the piano will be hard to get accomplished. The store will not just come and get it, they will first want to convince you that there's nothing wrong with it, and if you keep griping they may even send someone out to fix it before carting it away. This, of course, is fine and understandable - it's not an easy thing to move a piano. So basically once it's in your home, it's a lot harder to get it out if there's an issue.

Because it is a used piano, you will want to know what maintenance will be coming due for it and when. A tech can tell you these things and also let you know the quality of reconditioning it's had. Most piano reconditioning is done in China and Indonesia, btw.

Exactly, I'm not looking for trouble! Although anything one buys may turn out to be a hassle, even a digital piano.

I read a few things about "reconditioned" pianos. It looks like they come straight from Japan where Yamaha has them refurbished by local subcontractors, apparently with original parts. Unless something goes wrong and the pianos takes a different way, to China, like you say, or somewhere else. There is an official dealer of Yamaha certified reconditioned pianos not far from here, the only one mentioned on the Yamaha Website - I might have a look at their store. Actually it turned out that this piano I like has a large sticker under the fallboard saying Yamaha certified etc., but it's clearly not a model that was ever marketed in Italy. I'll have to speak very frankly with them and see if I can figure out exactly how things are.

Sinophilia, do yourself a favor and heed Morodiene's advice to hire a store independent tech to check out any piano you buy.

Also, I would encourage you to do some searches on the piano forum threads for that model number. If you are serious about the piano you should get the serial number and post the info in the piano forum. Folks there are very helpful. [edit - ok, I see you have posted there already....hope you get some more responses]

Last, I would encourage you to take your time and not buy the first instrument that makes you smile a bit. The most important thing is how the piano sounds and feels under your fingers. If you have limited experience on accoustics you may want to play a wide variety of pianos so that you really have something to judge by. Even if out of your price range, it makes sense to try out new pianos, both uprights and grands, and even to try the very best of the European brands. I would pay no attention to salesmen or to listed prices. Everything is negotiable in the piano selling business, especially price.

The one thing I learned when I was searching for my piano was that when you find it you will know it is the one for you.

Yes I should really try many pianos, I know... but in these days I've been thinking a lot about acoustic pianos and right now I'm sure of one thing: either I buy this particular piano right now, or I hold on and don't buy anything, or maybe just upgrade my DP to a PX-850.

I went to these stores because I wanted to get a feeling of how an upright sounds and looks - since I had only seen a couple of old pianos until then. I didn't go with the intention to spend thousands of euros. I thought - maybe there's a bargain there waiting for me. Well, so-called bargains were awful, and I don't want to spend years looking for the pearl in the mud. I don't want a new piano either. The acoustic is meant for my country house, where right now I can't put one, since there's no heating and the room where it should go needs to be renovated. So buying one now and having it delivered to my apartment in town would be a temporary solution. I should actually wait a couple of years until the house is ready. BUT I came across this piano I like very much, and I'm afraid I won't be able to find another one when the time comes. That's all.

I will look for a technician and visit other stores in the next few days, so I can hopefully understand a bit more about the whole thing. Then I may just go back to reading that Casio brochure...

A word of caution... the folks on Piano Forum love to spend other people's money, so under their guidance, you will soon find yourself nudged closer and closer to 30000 Euro pianos!

And I'd be fair game for that

Either way, I would say you really shouldn't upgrade to a PX850. Incremental upgrades in DP seems endless. If you are already looking at acoustic, then, just hold on and live with what you've got until you've found the right acoustic. A new DP could make you happy for a little while, but soon it's just another DP and doesn't have that live sound and feel from the real thing, then you're looking again. Best to avoid this cycle.

You may also want to try a U1-Silent or a YUS1-Silent. They give you the best of both worlds and could be optimal because of your apartment neighbors.

Nobody has asked sinophilia (located in Italy ... what a marvel if in Rome)
how far she's got with her piano-playing.

If still a modest beginner playing Fur Elise (et al) ... it would seem
daft to go to the expense of a costly piano (lumbering up to an upstairs apartment) ... and then have to curb playing times to avoid savaging neighbours' ears.

In similar circumstances way back in my youth, I bought a small Kemble minx upright to my Wimbledon apartment ... my playing at that time was so loopy that practice was infrequent ... on the bright side however , after a 4-year London stay, I was able to sell the piano to pay for a 2-month tour of Europe on my BSA Bantam motorbike.

Well I'm not in Rome but we have our own small coliseum here in Verona, and I must say I like living in Northern Italy

Your comment is spot on btb, even this 3k piano is already too much for me, I'm not even at the Fur Elise stage. On one hand it is intimidating, on the other hand it could be stimulating. One thing for sure, my DP sounds really bad in both houses, although it's absolutely okay with headphones on. So yes, I would love something that sounds decent even if I'm not very good. Of course I'm perfectly aware that that salesman would probably sound good on any piano, plus his playing was very well suited to that specific piano.

It takes a brave lady to resist a piano salesman`s charms . . . they know what they`re doing, don`t they? Especially when they offer big discounts "if you buy it now"

hi Sinophilia,

Glad to hear I was "spot on" picking up that you were pretty fresh to the game of piano-playing ... for what it's worth Fur Elise (70%)is quite a good exercise in
developing the art of arpeggio playing ... the fast bits can be tackled later.

I spent some hour, with the help of the Internet in visiting the charming city of Verona ... way back as a student crossing the top of Italy on a motorbike on my way to an architect's mecca Venice, I looked in on breath-taking Verona.

However, spending 4 days in Rome was a star-turn ... having studied all the architectural gems during my studies at the University of Cape Town ... it was a dream come true within the precincts of Roman treasures ... remember being secreted
under the vaults to the Colosseum and suddenly cottoning on to how the Romans
created their bold forms ... the Romans used a shuttering of brickwork into
which they infused their concrete.

Forgive my blathering on ... if I can be of any help in prospering your studies
in keyboard music ... just call.

I keep reading this thread. Thinking...Here's a thought...

Have you considered getting a Kawai VPC? There are some pretty good software piano's out there to go with it. They will keep getting better. No it's not easily transportable for you. It's something like 63 pounds. The keyboard itself is great. You probably have a decent stereo. Just play through it.
I can say as a beginner. To have better keys. More touch. Responsiveness. It means alot. I'm learning much better with what I have now.

Yamaha upright tends to be bright. Be careful. I grew up with both Yamaha and Kawai.

QUOTE I'm not even at the Fur Elise stage. On one hand it is intimidating, on the other hand it could be stimulating.

I identify w/ what you'e saying. I'm just about at the same stage as you. I had a small piano for almost 2 years, and it was sstarting to sound tinny to me. My ear was becoming educated:D , and I found a used Yamaha P2, which is a studio height, in perfect condition in and out (affirmed by my technician). So I bought it. You could look forever & not find a piano you liked better. Just get that second opinion.

Knowing about the brightness of Yamaha pianos, I was expecting an ugly sound - I thought I'd like warm and mellow. Well, I loved that Yamaha tone! Besides, they're all different. The store also had a W106 (=U3) and that sounded not only louder but also warmer. It was nice but it's too tall and the polished red wood case was really awful. Then the salesman played me a U2, saying it was a bit in the middle, and I found the tone quite flat. Of all the pianos he had there between 2k and 4k, including some non-Yamaha, when he sat at the W110 he said, this is really a nice little piano, this is the one I like the most. I had to agree, since he gave chills up my spine. Bright, yes, but very pleasing.

I've only heard Kawai's online, so I can't compare, but they sounded muffled and confused, while the Yamaha's were all very clean even in videos. I pressed some keys on a new Petrof at the other store but it was so badly out of tune that I couldn't figure out how it sounded.

No, not really... If I don't get an acoustic, I'll stick to my little Casio that's good enough through headphones, or get a PX-850 or AP-450 just for the better speakers and new sound technology. But then, yes, digital pianos are like computers, they get obsolete so quickly, and you're always looking to get something better than what you have. I guess that happens with acoustic pianos too, but if the piano is good enough you might also keep it forever.

That's a big problem, one's ear gets better faster than one's hands (and brain)! I got to a stage where I kind of know how I'd like something to sound, but there is no way I can make it happen.

"but if the piano is good enough you might also keep it forever."

Or expensive enough . . .!

If you love the sound, then it's your piano. Maybe people have already told you this but bring a tuner, teacher and anyone else who can give you an educated third opinion, just to assess general health of the piano. An unaffiliated technicians can give you an unbiased opinion. They will check the soundboard (it could've cracked and mended with special glue) and the serial number (it may have a metal label says made in 1995 but serial no reveals the true date was 1905). Both instances are actual examples that my friends experienced with their grand piano purchase. Not saying your dealer will do this, but they may not notice everything. It's a good idea to protect yourself.