Piano World Home Page Forums Our Most Popular Forums Piano Forum Yamaha Upright vs Steinway 1098

I am now against buying a 25-30 year old used U1. The price seems too high and some of them sound tinny. The dealer seems to say the new one costs 10,000 but nobody pays MSRP. I have seen new U1 at 6700 so why would you pay 5000 for a 30 year old piano.

The prices vary so much from each dealer to craigslist that if you are not a educated shopper, you will pay thousands more. Also the dealer said 6700 is the group price but even after a month, he is still willing to give that deal. Maybe that is the price if you are a serious buyer.

I saw a brand new P22 selling for 4500.00 - is this a good deal?
For Steinway 1098 - I saw a 2005 for 15k, another one 2006 for 11k and 1979 one for 4200.

I am tempted to just buy the new P22 as the older ones require an expert opinion. There are so many factors to consider for price, that is it hard to compare prices.

I don't consider this forum "anti-Steinway" at all. People who know better are just saying how they see things.

Steinway uprights are expensive instruments. Finding one in good shape for under 5K is very unlikely. The price range tends towards a number of 'new' very good full sized uprights. I would encourage Piano75 to use this time to learn about and enjoy playing different instruments. Their feedback would be great.

That's not a bad price for the P22. Have you compared prices with Kawai? The K3 and K5 are priced somewhat below and above the U1, respectively.

I have not compared the Kawai, have not played them very much either. There were more Yamaha dealers and also the saw the Costco roadshow with Yamaha.

There were also used 1098 here with several dealers but the prices with them are very high.

I might just buy the P22 to begin with and maybe upgrade later.

I was on the market for a used piano for months thinking it's going to be a Yamaha or Kawai. I went up to the top models such as YUX and remained unimpressed untill I came across a 1960 Steinway 1098.

I don't understand why many parents went for the U1 or U3 when you can get these wonderful 1098 for just a little more money. I also don't understand why for some people it's an 'either or' question.

If a U1 is too bright how about a U3, with a mellow board.

Hello Karl - welcome to the forum. I'm not sure if you noticed you're responding to a 2 year old thread, where often the original poster is long gone from the forum...



LarryShone,

What the heck is "a mellow board", and how do you identify such a condition?

A Stoned Surfer?

I was viewing videos made by a shop here in Manchester that specialises in Yamaha and he explained how U3s are all different. Some sound bright, some slightly mellower, and others very mellow. In contrast he explained that the U1 is much more consistent.
By playing 3 pieces on each upright he showed that there was a marked difference in tone between the different U3s. It was clear that it's possible to get a U3 to suit the tone colour you favpur.

Look at the video here:

http://www.markgoodwinpianos.co.uk/piano/yamaha-u3-upright-piano?gclid=CJ6Ho6yZ4r0CFQnpwgodzhEA8g

$ 5000?

It's easy to get a sense of "preference" when pianos can actually be compared side-by-side. Let's say a 20-30 years old something against brand new.

We regularly offer this opportunity due to having "interesting" trade ins to compare.

Actually quite amazing how little time it takes until people are scratching their heads.
In virtual disbelief.

Perhaps one day we will all look back scratching our heads.

Norbert