Piano World Home Page Forums Our Most Popular Forums Piano Forum Kawai RX-1 price.... please need a quick reply

Hello
I'm new to this forum and to the piano world all together
I can pick a kawai RX-1 one owned bought new in 1998
Very well maintained with annual tuning and a humidifier
It's practically like new
They're asking $4500
Thoughts on the model, and price please
Thank you

Hello, and welcome to Piano World!

Sounds like a great price on a great piano to me... I don't see how you could go wrong.

Maybe the real piano-pros will chime in with their opinions.

Good luck!

Rick

Thank you for the quick reply
I'm going to see it and put a down payment unless someone else thinks differently
Thanks again!

You should NEVER buy ANY used piano from a private party without first having it inspected by a qualified piano technician, preferably RPT. I'm sure most people wouldn't consider buying a used car without having a mechanic look at it? A piano has FAR more moving parts than a car! A low price could easily indicate there is something wrong with the instrument - or not. Better safe than sorry.

How many moving parts are there in a car?

That's a suspiciously low price. Would verify condition (professionally), model, performance, and age. It could be a great deal, or there could be something wrong.

I will have it inspected and looked at but playing it and inspecting it by my nonprofessional eye looks great.
It's good to know it's a good price if it checks fine technically
Thank you

I was looking at one for about 2 months this past winter, early spring. Great piano but they wanted $8900, which I thought was a tad high for a 2000. $4500 seems an excellent price if there's nothing wrong with it.

If you're comfortable doing a visual inspection yourself (check for cracks in soundboard and bridges, make sure every note plays properly, and all the pedals work) and taking a (small) risk, buy it. It's a great price, and at that age it's unlikely to have anything seriously wrong with it.

If you wait to have a tech inspect it, someone else will probably buy it before you do.

"Marry in haste."

Great piano deals needing a quick reply, and only about price, are often better-considered when you wait long enough for the fever to go down. In your case, ice, applied to the forehead while you download and read "Piano Buyers Guide."

Russell is right about the inspection. With used pianos, condition is king.

Calling an RX-1 "a great piano" is something of a stretch. It happens I have, and love, an RX, but the 1 is a tiny little thing; physics is working against you here.

Are you able to say what you are looking for in a piano, other than a cheap price? If not, wait until you can. This is not the only piano in the world, and there are other good deals.

Good advice, Jeff.

Thing is, by the time the fever has subsided, the piano is already sold, most likely.

And, this is just my opinion, but I'd be more inclined to insist on having a used piano evaluated by a piano technician that is for sale by a used piano dealer than I would a genuine, bonafide private seller.

Also, FWIW, when you buy something, and not just pianos, at a cheaper price than the going street price, there is always risks involved. And, there are risks involved in buying any piano, even if you pay top dollar.

In my view, price is usually among the most important considerations of most piano shoppers; but I could be wrong.

Just my .02.

Rick

I amend my comment to read "Great little piano", LOL. Honestly, the one I played here was very nice. Doesn't compare with my Baldwin R, but for a small grand, you could do a lot worse.

I can live with that.