I wanted to hear from anyone who actually owns a Suzuki digital piano about their opinion of this product - sound, quality, ability to learn with it, feature set, etc.. In addition, has anyone noticed the Yamaha digital grand piano keyboard on sale at Costco? It appears to be a slimmed down version of the Clavinova for less than $700. Has anyone formed an opinion on it? Thanks for your feedback.

I've never seen any Suzuki piano, digital or
acoustic, but I've considered buying one
online, and would have no hesitation about
doing so sight-unseen. The reason for this
is that the Suzuki company makes quality
products in general, and I don't see how
they would ever put their brand name on
a bad piano.

I also would have no hesitation about buying
any piano from Costco. The other products
they sell are the same as the ones you get
anywhere else, and their pianos should be
no different.

Note that there is an extreme bias against
the Suzuki brand on these forums, which
causes various posters to post outright
and outrageous lies about their quality,
something to the tune of: "I walked
by one of their digitals in the store and
this caused the control panel to break off
and fall to the floor, and so forth."

As you can see, one can accuse posters of BIAS against the Suzuki without EVER seeing one himself (by his own admission). Nice.

Suzuki pianos are of low quality that do not deserve their price tag. I'm in agreement, that Suzuki makes quality products ... when it comes to motorcycles ... but pianos especially, are NOT what the brand would have you believe. Just recently I had a chance to try a Suzuki at Costco and it only confirmed the overall mediocre quality of the product. Especially the keyboard, the keys, the response / touch ... it's in my opinion a waste of money.

The Yamaha you're referring to is the YGP625, an OK keyboard (much better investment than the Suzuki), but I think you should check out Casio's PX575R for that price range (or even better, the new PX200 and PX800).

"a slimmed down version of the Clavinova for less than $700".

you probably saw a YDP model. check the model number and the specs, if you're considering it.

i agree with vitog, there's no base on talking about a brand of digital pianos without ever seeing it!

I haven't posted here in over a year and the first day back I see Gyro's still his old self posting his robotic, ignorant drivel! How can someone legitimately give the OK to an instrument they've never used! Better still, how can they then issue a warning against people who've actually used and determined a product to be of a substandard quality?! This is simply beyond logic. I guess some things will never change.

I don't think Suzuki musical instruments are made by the same Suzuki that makes cars, boats and motorcycles.

I haven't seen any Suzuki acoustic piano, but I've seen the digital ones at Costco. They are okay (not great, not bad) but they are not cheap/inexpensive either. A Casio PX110 is not as good looking but the keys feel better. I also prefer the Casio over the Yamaha DXG620 (? or something like) that at Costco.

Hey MDT,
We happen to sell the Suzuki digital pianos and believe they offer a great value to anyone who wants to purchase an affordable, but quality instrument. I was not alway impressed with their digital line, but over the last few years they have drastically improved.

Thanks,

Suzuki digital pianos are crap. Their dealer support for parts and service is non-existant. I have had experience with both acoustic and digital pianos and found them completely unexceptable. I rarely go to this extream in my comments, but this warrants this degree of disgust.
For months Suzuki had taken full page ads in the trade magazines advertising discounted dealer returns for resale. A distributor would have to accumulate a lot of "returned" stock to warrant a months long full page ad campaign.
Recently COSTCO announced significant reductions in its electronic products return policies. Any connection?

Yamaha digital at COSTCO is the DGX600 or DGX650 model. A lot of stuff for little money. I bears no resemblance to anything Clavinova, not even a YDP series. This is primarily exclusive model for COSTCO. Not bad to play around with, but "weighted action" is not authentic enough for serious learners IMO. GH3 action on Yamaha CLP230 and up is far superior.

OK. First two disclaimers:

1. I got my Suzuki Digital Piano SS-90 for free.
2. I am looking for a new Digital Piano to replace it.

But, the Suzuku Digital Piano I have is definitely not crap. In fact, it is my primary practice instrument when not playing on my acoustic grand.

It is fully featured including handy things like transposing function, song recording, pitch and mod wheels, etc. has a very realistic touch, has ok sound, serviceable polyphony (64), decent speakers & a very firm stand.

For the prices they sell for, they are a good deal. For the price I paid, they are a steal.

At least in Europe I believe that Suzuki service is managed by the old Hammond Organ people who Suzuki own, not the motorcycle guys. When we had a problem with the headphone jack on our Suzuki digital piano (if you can call a problem carelessly letting the headphone cable wrap around your ankle, then jumping up to answer the phone dragging the piano halfway across the room), the distributor came to our house to make the repair for free.

The Suzuki has been a welcome addition to our household and we plan to use it in one function or another for years to come, despite our plans to get the latest, greatest gadget to replace its primary function one of these days.

Hey Witold, so nice to have you back on the forum!

I'd like to add my small comment to the Suzuki issue. Two years ago, before I bought my first DP, I shopped around for a while for pre-owned, lightly used units, having no bias whatsoever as to the brand (as opposed to now, lol), and I had the opportunity to try out a clean, like-new Suzuki French Provincial spinet model.

For those of you who have children, you must be familiar with Fisher-Price toys? That is exactly how the Suzuki felt and sounded. I ran away as fast as I could.

Suzuki digitals remind me of the exquisite quality of Bontempi.You get what you play for.

I recently purchased a Suzuki Digital Grand piano online (S-350). Here is my professional review. I currently own several other digital pianos including a Yamaha Clavinovia, Motif EX8, MO6, and a Korg Triton Studio. My company owns a Yamaha C3 that we use for events. The Piano sound of the Suzuki is defiantly on par with the Yamaha Digital Pianos. It is rich and does not sound like a keyboard. It actually sounds like a medium size (5'5") Acoustic Grand piano. The actual sound was voiced from a Bosendorfer Grand Piano. I called Suzuki and spoke directly to a Tech to verify this claim. The keys feel like real piano keys and the action is almost identical to a real piano (actually far more real than my Clavinovia or Motif). Now, there are a few things that I would prefer about this Digital Piano. First, I think that they could have put slightly larger speakers in. Secondly, I think they tried to match the full volume of an Acoustic Grand piano too well. When you turn the volume all the way up it only gets slightly louder than a real Grand piano would get. Also, the bass could be a little deeper (though it sounds like a real piano, but not as deep and loud as the Roland Grand). Third, it has a very quiet hum when powered on (Hardly audible, but still there.) You can hear it a little more when you barely press a key down. 99% of people probably wouldn't even be able to hear it. The finish and build quality is outstanding (regardless of what anyone here has claimed). I looked at several of these (in-person) before making my purchase and did not find any of them to lack great build quality. On a final note, if you are looking for a Digital Baby Grand Piano that sounds almost identical to an acoustic piano then this is the one for you. If you are looking for a Digital piano that is REALLY loud and has really heavy bass (like an Electric Keyboard plugged into an Amp) then this isn't the piano for you. I give it a thumbs up.

Also, regarding Suzuki’s Service AFTER the sale. When the Piano was shipped to me, it came in three boxes. The Piano, Piano Legs, and Bench were all shipped in their own box. Everything was in perfect shape upon arrival except for 2 of the Bench Legs, which had some bad chips on them). The dealer I purchased it from in California told me to call Suzuki at their 1800 number and said they were really good about fixing things like this. I called the support line and instantly got a hold of a service tech who didn’t even need a receipt or pictures of the product. He shipped out two brand new legs overnight to resolve the issue. I have had NO support problems with Suzuki to date.

This all being said, I would completely agree with Gyro and his intial comment, regardless of him actually seeing or playing one. I have a home studio (hense the Korg and Motif) and I am very critical about quality and playability of an instrument. This fulfills both needs and then some.

Pros:
Very real Acoustic Grand Sound! (9 out of 10)
Excellent Build Quality! (10 out of 10)
Great feeling keys (9 out of 10)

Cons:
>Wish it would get louder (7 out of 10)
Though it gets every bit as loud as a real grand, I feel it should be able to get much
louder, being it’s a digital piano and all.
>Wish it had slightly larder speakers (7 out of 10)
I think having larger speakers would help on the low end. I probably wouldn’t care if I hadn’t of heard a Roland that had killer bass.
>Wish it did not have the very faint hum (8 out of 10)
It probably only would bother those with the best of hearing (which I have).

Some pictures.





And here is a picture of our Yamaha Grand that we use for events. This picture is from our Sinatra Event in Oct.

Great post, Iron Cobra. Welcome to pianoworld!

I must admit that despite flirting with the idea of getting a new digital piano and shopping and trying them out from time to time, that I spend most of my silent practice and play time on my Suzuki and it has been in use for 1-2 hours/day for going on six years now.

I understand your criticism of the volume controls. Ours has to be kept in an extremely narrow band between 5-10% of total available volume not to be too loud.

A lot of the critique of Suzuki on this board is from people who don't like their exclusive, non-traditional distribution arrangements (not unlike critique of Steinway with their exclusive stores and stencils) or who base their experience on hearsay reports of early problems (of which there were very many) or who simply cannot stand the cognitive dissonance that would arise from agreeing with Gyro on anything. That Suzuki might be improving as quickly as its acoustic piano brethren in China or that their lower price points might still yield a decent product doesn't seem to enter their mind.

Also, I find that they are less forgiving and easy to play well than say a Clavinova or Roland. However, I don't want a digital instrument to mask my inferior technique, I want it to help improve my technique which is always intended for transfer to playing my grand.

Finally, they do seem to be less built to withstand problems. Mine has been repaired several times. The last repair to my flaky power supply was done out of warranty but still for free.

Great pictures. I must however take offense to one element of your post: beverages teetering on the edge of an acoustic piano is a no-no in my book whether it is a Sinatra event or even a Dean Martin event.

Don't forget to update the "price paid" thread in the digital forum.

Great reply, thanks! I hope that my Suzuki remains trouble free and operational for years (or at least until I pony up the $45,000 I need for the Yamaha I wish to buy).

Regarding your comments about Suzuki. I agree with you. I think there is a comparison to be made here. Remember, in the past when you wanted to buy a Premium Luxury sedan you were limited to names like Mercedes and BMW and a few other select German or European branded cars? Well in the late 90s, a brand appeared on the market that turned the entire luxury car world on its head. That brand was Lexus (a division of Toyota). Lexus produced some of the most reliable and noteworthy luxury cars ever built and changed the status quo. Fast forward to today. Lexus, BMW, Mercedes, AUDI, Infiniti and Jaguar are all still considered the premium cars that you will expect to pay $50k+ for on the low end. All of a sudden, this economy car company out of S. Korea develops their own Luxury car designed to compete directly against cars costing 2x as much. Along comes the Hyundai Genesis. This car has all the same features and specs as it's far more expensive rivals, but ultimately gets all the criticism because it is Korean made and wears a Hyundai badge on the back. The people that actually go and buy one realize that they are getting a car that is every bit (and then some) as nice as its European or Japanese rival but paying 1/2 the price. There will be some people who will never drive a Hyundai because it says Hyundai and know that they use to only make economy cars and sub compacts. These same people will also be the ones that criticize the car without ever even seeing, touching, or driving it.

Sound familiar?

This story points out the following:
Lexus, Infiniti = Yamaha & Kawai
BMW, Mercedes = Steinway & BOSENDORDER
Hyundai Genesis = Suzuki

Oh, and we didn't know about the drink being on the piano until we saw these pictures from the photographer.

I can't comment on current Suzuki pianos.

I tried one in a showroom about six years ago, and it was closer to dreadful than to anything else.

At that time, there was obvious velocity switching/sample switching, and the damper pedal almost seemed disconnected from the piano.

Having said that, the first Datsun car (Nissan) that I saw in 1963 was a piece of crap.

The first Hyundai cars were a bit better - look at them now - they're first rate.

Another example? When Roger Williams started recording under the Kapp label, he used Baldwin pianos, and they were beautiful - they don't exist any longer, but prior to that they were not very good.

Things change, and I'll concede that Suzuki has changed too.

I think we need to keep our minds open in this fast changing world of electronics (and autos).

Glenn

Got to say I'm a little surprised at the prices of these Suzuki pianos, they ain't cheap! In the UK the cheapest model SS90 is almost £700! That's getting into FP4 or P140 territory so it had better be damned good!

No one pays full price for Suzuki.

Agree, but honestly, who pays full price for any musician equipment? I buy all my recording gear and digital pianos (except the Suzuki and CLP) from Guitar Center and Musiciansfriend. They are 30-80% off retail on everything everyday.

Generally I'd agree but I haven't been able to find anyone selling the piano action Suzukis (SS-90, SS-100, HP-97 and HG-425) for less than list price. In fact I can't find anywhere in the UK that sells them at all. Guitar Center and Musician's Friend don't list them on their websites either.

What would you expect to pay for an SS-90 out of curiosity? Can you point me to any retailers who stock them?

I don't know where you would be able to find one. I think www.musicland.au may carry them though.

I don't think the SS-90 is still a current model. One European distributor is/was (but they don't show Suzuki products for sale anymore):

http://www.hammondsuzuki.com/

These are the folks that did my repairs.

I wonder if Suzuki is still active in Europe...

Hmm, well I found a Suzuki UK website which suggests they are, can't find any dealers though.

suzukimusic.co.uk

Found a dealer for you.

http://www.musicalinstruments.com/products/pc/viewPrd.asp?idcategory=809&idproduct=12402

Thanks for that! Still pretty expensive though.

From the internet, it doesn't appear that Suzuki is being marketed in Europe at the moment.

Some have said that the Williams is coming from the same factory. Perhaps you could check into it?

Suzukis were sometimes being used by dealers to give as free practice instruments to city dwellers buying acoustic grands. That's how I got mine, as a deal clincher. None of those stores I knew from then are still selling or gifting them (or still in business).

From speaking in-depth with the Suzuki North American guys they indicated the following.

Suzuki Acoustic Grand Pianos are made in one of four factories they own and operate.
A Korean, Japan, China, and North American factory.

The overwhelming majority come from their China based factory. All of their Grand Pianos that are sold in North American are assembled in North America at the North America Suzuki Piano Assembly Plant.

Many of the parts used are German or Japanese made and are developed through a partnership with Yamaha. All bushings and dampers are very high quality Japanese felt. Their hammers are made from seasoned hardwoods and the hammer heads and shanks are covered in 100% Japanese virgin wool felt. They also use hand wound solid copper German Roslau strings, Japanese Maple 17 ply pin blocks and other ultra high end features.

All of their Digital Grand Pianos made after 2002 share parts with Kawai such as the weighted hammer action keyboard with velocity-sensitive keys. They also voice all their Digital Grand Pianos from a 9'6" Bosendorfer Model 290 Imperial Grand Piano.

They are one of the few Piano manufacturers who is ISO 9001 certified.

I hope all this information helps dispel some of the rumors regarding their pianos.

Perhaps not : )

Best regards,

Interesting stuff, thanks to IronCobra and theJourney for the info.

I thought this was the "Digital Pianos - Synths & Keyboards" forum. Why are you talking about acoustic pianos?

Anyway, the points you made mainly relate to parts. But most agree that design, skilled labor, and attention to detail make the difference among acoustic pianos.

L Horwinkle,

I wouldn't question anyones opinion on their design, skilled labor, and/or attention to detail if there were more unbiased exampled of a lacking in any of those areas. Every Suzuki Digital Baby grand I've seen has had great craftsmanship, sound, and looked outstanding.

I personally own one as well as some very high end brands many of you like to compare against it. I think I have the most unbiased opinion of the group and I haven't seen any problems with anything you've mentioned.

So, that leaves a question..... What kind of car do you drive? Be carefull how you answer, because if you don't drive a Lexus, Infiniti, BMW, Mercedes or other high end car, I might just assume that your car lacks propper design, skilled labor, and attention to detail that makes the difference among cars (which of course is untrue.)