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Joined: Jul 2001
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Well, the Yamaha is being delivered tomorrow and the M&H will be packed up and kept in storage at Classic while I make a decision. And next Friday I'm heading up to Washington to visit Ed McMorrow's shop and try out some of his rebuilt pianos. Hopefully this will not be a painful experience after just getting your new piano delivered. Ed's got some pretty nice pianos heard.... Would be interesting to hear your story and feedback later. Norbert
Last edited by Norbert; 04/01/16 12:32 AM.
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I should amend that statement. It's going to be painful to see the M&H packed up and taken away. But once I sit at the Yamaha, on the nice artist's bench Classic is including, and play some pieces I've had to shelve because I needed a more responsive action, I'll feel much better. I'm really looking forward to that part. And I'm ridiculously excited to visit Ed's shop - something tells me that is going to be a pretty incredible trip. I will definitely keep everyone updated.
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Are you going to try other pianos while in Seattle? I think the tech at Seattle Classic is much better than the guys down here and I really felt a difference between pianos of the same models. If you find a piano you love there, they can move it to the Portland store for you! (And maybe they still have that dream Bosendorfer 225 <sigh>.) Have fun at Ed's and I hope you find that same feeling when you first played your M&H this time around
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If Ed has a rebuilt M&H, you might really be in trouble!
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twocats - there's a Sauter Omega at Northwest Pianos that I was planning on checking out because I have never played a Sauter before but have heard amazing things about them. Strangely enough, it didn't occur to me to also swing by Classic up there. But now that you have suggested it, I think I will! ando - yes indeed. Or maybe it will make my decision obvious.
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The title of your thread is indeed appropriate, Cassia. You've got some tough decisions ahead of you. As for me, I've played two of my pianos already this morning. Before days end, I'll play the other two. So, my home is like a piano store... almost. Wishing you all the best with your decisions! Rick
Piano enthusiast and amateur musician: "Treat others the way you would like to be treated". Yamaha C7. YouTube Channel
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Movers are here - five guys total. I was expecting three, and that's all I have tips for.
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The Yamaha is all moved in. Classic included a Jansen artist's bench and I put a new (larger) rug underneath it. Which, incidentally, the Mason & Hamlin will look great on should I decide to keep it. And of course, my cat Henry is checking out the new piano. He's a piano cat, he loves 'em.
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The Yamaha looks great in your space! What are your first impressions? I had played the Sauter Omega at Northwest Pianos, but it had just arrived and hadn't been prepped yet. I wonder if they still have that Sauter grand that's modeled after Beethoven's own piano-- the case is very "special", haha. To be honest, I'm not a fan of the Sauter sound, a lot of the uprights have a nasal quality to them that reminds me of a harpsichord. Will be very interested to hear what you think!
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Oh, and Classic and Northwest are just a few miles from each other, so you won't have to go much out of your way!
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Wow, congratulations, Cassia!! Now, all that's missing is a recording/video of you playing your new Yamaha C2X! Rick
Piano enthusiast and amateur musician: "Treat others the way you would like to be treated". Yamaha C7. YouTube Channel
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Rick - thank you! My sister-in-law joked yesterday that apparently two pianos were out of the question for me. It is, but only because my house is too small. I envy you and your four pianos. As for a recording, I need to figure out the best options - I'm guessing a cell phone recording isn't going to cut it. I think I'll be perusing some old threads on the subject.
twocats - thanks! I think angling the piano was a good call. First impressions are mostly favorable. I'm thrilled to have a short stick again - the Mason only had a long one. I've found that I prefer the short stick to the full stick or having the lid closed. The Yamaha is more balanced. With the Mason, it was really easy for the bass to start overpowering everything and it could get kind of muddy. This was especially true in several sections of the Third Ballade. That piece definitely sounds better on the Yamaha. There's a bit of boominess around the break that I don't like. I'm hoping my tech can do a little voicing around there when he's here on Monday. I didn't notice the boominess in the store, and it was something I was specifically listening for, so I think my space must be exaggerating things. The Schimmel I was considering a month or so ago was pretty boomy in that same area (I did notice that in the store), so I kind of wonder much worse it would have been in my house. The action is really nice and responsive, it's so much easier to play ornaments, bring out different voices, and play softly. Even though it could be overpowering, I do miss the bass quality of the Mason. And, I hate to admit this, but I miss the ivory keys. My fingers feel sticky and sweaty on the ivorite that Yamaha uses, they don't glide any where near as smoothly as they did on the ivory. But I prefer that no animals die for my piano needs, so I'll adapt.
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I'm also totally digging this artist's bench. I had no idea the level of plush, adjustable comfort I've been missing out on.
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Really interesting journey Cassia. I was actually torn between a Yamaha and a Steinway and took a long time to decide. I found a great site with recordings using all the same equipment of a C7 and a Model B. What surprised me the most was not how hugely different they were but how similar they could sound depending on how loudly they were played. At f, ff and fff the differences were more apparent. The clarity of the Yamaha came through and the colour of the Steinway was more noticeable. I actually liked them both for different reasons and could see why the C7 is such a very popular piano in recording studios. It sounds really, really good in pretty much all genres of music and has a sound that "cuts through the mix" as they say. The Steinway might get slightly lost in a pop record but had that familiar sound in classical music. Is it better? I don't know, it's probably just the sound I'm used to hearing when I hear classical piano.
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Cassia: Part of my response has to do with my intense dislike of Yamaha pianos. I have friends who assure me that there are a few nice concert grands out there. Mathematically speaking, I suppose there MUST be a nice once, somewhere. Unfortunately, in a lifetime, I've never played one. They are all the same to me: vulgar and characterless with no sustain and absolutely NO colour, fit only for pounding, not creating beautiful, singing, limpid tone. Karl, Have you tried any of the new Yamahas? The Cx series specifically? They have a decidedly different character to the Yamahas of yore that bear a strong resemblance to the objects of your hatred. Yamaha has made some very substantial changes to their tonal goals, most notably in their hammer choices, switching to a softer hammer, more in line with older Steinways and M&Hs. On a well prepped Cx series, the sound has a lot more color and warmth than older Yamahas, and is surprisingly musical and expressive. Don't count them out just yet.
Last edited by adamp88; 04/01/16 05:48 PM.
Adam Schulte-Bukowinski, RPT Piano Technician, University of Nebraska-Lincoln ASB Piano Service
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Really interesting journey Cassia. I was actually torn between a Yamaha and a Steinway and took a long time to decide. I found a great site with recordings using all the same equipment of a C7 and a Model B. What surprised me the most was not how hugely different they were but how similar they could sound depending on how loudly they were played. At f, ff and fff the differences were more apparent. The clarity of the Yamaha came through and the colour of the Steinway was more noticeable. I actually liked them both for different reasons and could see why the C7 is such a very popular piano in recording studios. It sounds really, really good in pretty much all genres of music and has a sound that "cuts through the mix" as they say. The Steinway might get slightly lost in a pop record but had that familiar sound in classical music. Is it better? I don't know, it's probably just the sound I'm used to hearing when I hear classical piano. I am pleasantly surprised by how well Yamaha competes with other brands. I never expected to be torn between a Yamaha and an old American piano, but here I am. I totally get why it would take you some time to decide between a C7 and Steinway B. But your Steinway! If it sounds half as good as it looks, you made a great choice.
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Cassia, any updates on your impressions now that you've had a few more days with the piano?
Yamaha C3X In summer, the song sings itself. --William Carlos Williams
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Unfortunately, I didn't get as much time at the piano this weekend as I would have liked. I woke up Saturday and immediately bounded over to the piano. I managed to get about an hour of play in until I had to stop due to some bad neighbor drama (nothing to do with the piano, they decided to trespass and cut down all the bushes on my side of the fence ). And my tech was supposed to come out this morning to tune it (and maybe do some light voicing), but he got sick over the weekend and had to reschedule. But when I have had a chance to sit down and play, I've noticed that there's a bit of boominess to the bass which hopefully my tech can address. Last night, I dusted off Chopin Etude Op 25 No 7 and started working on that again. I find the clarity of the Yamaha lends itself well to this piece. Man, and now that I'm thinking about how great that piece was sounding, I'm ready to call it a day at work and head back home to practice. And speaking of dusting off things, I've realized I'm going to be a slave to the polished ebony finish. Any little speck of dust or smudge from a finger drives me nuts. When I wasn't playing or dealing with my neighbor, I was dusting and polishing the piano.
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I managed to get about an hour of play in until I had to stop due to some bad neighbor drama (nothing to do with the piano, they decided to trespass and cut down all the bushes on my side of the fence ). How awful!!! I'm pretty sure that's illegal and that they should pay to have new bushes replanted What do you mean by "boominess" in the bass? I had to laugh at your dusting and polishing the piano Though I probably would have done the same!
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Joined: Mar 2006
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I managed to get about an hour of play in until I had to stop due to some bad neighbor drama (nothing to do with the piano, they decided to trespass and cut down all the bushes on my side of the fence ). Well, now we know why they say "good fences make good neighbors". The problem is keeping the neighbors on their side of the fence. Glad you're enjoying your new C2X! Rick
Piano enthusiast and amateur musician: "Treat others the way you would like to be treated". Yamaha C7. YouTube Channel
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Piano
by Gino2 - 04/17/24 02:34 PM
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Piano
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