Piano World Home Page Forums Our Most Popular Forums Piano Forum New Piano Time: Kawai GX-1 BLAK, Yamaha GC2, or Yamaha N3X?

Larger piano does not necessarily mean louder. In general, it's easier to play softer on the larger piano. Larger piano of the same model is usually better in bass.

BTW, have you tried Yamaha C1X and C2X? Those are fine pianos.

CX range is out of my price range. They are definitely nicer sounding and build quality is higher. The GC2 definitely had more volume. In terms of feel and sound, I was honestly surprised with how the GC1M sounded in the lower bass. Both felt the same to me, as I don't think the GC2's keys are much larger (probably negligible). I played both with the lid down and folded back to rule out showroom acoustics, and then lid in all positions as well. And I play softly on purpose, but as I was saying, both felt really the same.

The Kawai GX-1 is definitely higher build quality (it's their mid-tier while the GCXX is Yamaha's entry level tier), more close to the CX Yamahas. It's why I think it's a better value. I just prefer the action on the Yamaha and the sustain. Hard to make a pick..

@ghostwind: Just out of curiousity, have you tried some of the Pianobuyer staff picks [1] for short grands made in China? Like Ritmüller GH-148R (4'10") or others? They have specs that compete with mid tier Yamahas (things like vertically laminated bridges) but priced like low tier Yamahas. The Ritmueller could easily be had for less than 10k USD. I would be interested in what you thought of them.

[1] https://www.pianobuyer.com/Articles/Detail/ArticleId/243/The-New-Piano-Market-Today-Staff-Picks

in the staff picks for the same size range as the yamaha GC2, but on a lower price tier, are two other chinese pianos, the well regarded Hailun 178 and another euro-influenced design, Perzina 175. as others have suggested, a few inches longer in a grand does not always bring louder amplitude. it does often mean more controllable key length and consistent scale design. my first grand was a late 60's 5' 3 in. yamaha, which was just as loud as our present 1919 seven foot grand.

Yes, I did look at the staff picks on there. They like the Kawai GX-2 in the larger size range, so I would think the GX-1 is also liked, but they don't list it. It's quite similar. I know there are a LOT of other choices, but the reason I'm "limited" to Yamaha or Kawai, is because I can get 100% trade in value for my piano from the dealer I got it from (lifetime) and they have Yamahas and Kawais. Plus, I do like them

Regarding the Staff Picks, we try everything we can get our fingers on. Trying the entire Kawai grand lineup isn't a hard thing for us to do, between larger dealers and trade shows.

Ghostwind, it sounds like you've already found the specific piano that inspires you.

Of course. I was just thinking that if you liked and recommended the GX-2, you’d probably also like the GX-1. But yeah, I have 2-3 pianos and going back and forth. Either would inspire me and be a step up from my upright, so I have to play them more. What are your thoughts or experience with the Yamaha GC1/2 in terms of durability and longevity compared to the Kawai? Or in any area.

Don't worry about the durability and longevity for either Yamaha or Kawai. They are both reliable. In other areas, it's just preferences.

I think I worded that wrong. I was just curious on the build quality of the GC1/2 Yamahas compared to the Kawai GX-1/2. The latter seem stronger to me - including the keybed and keyslip. I don't want to get a finicky piano that is, and worried a bit more about Yamaha since they are the entry level models.

Update! So after all this, I was able to get full trade-in on my Boston upright and a good price on the Boston GP-163 PE-II grand, so I went with that. Very similar to the Kawai GX-1 (as they share a lot), except I prefer the touch and tone of the Boston slightly more, and with the full trade-in it was cheaper as well. In the end its about touch and tone and price. I didn't find any new formulas

Congratulations on the new piano! Don’t forget to post pictures.

Gosh, do we ever learn on this board?
[having nothing to do with the eventual choice of piano..]

Norbert :

Huh?

Congratulations on the new piano.

I'm sure you will enjoy many years to come.

Let us know when the piano is delivered.

Yes, I will update with photos too. Delivery is for June 1st! I was going to have the Dampp-Chaser installed, but Steinway doesn't support that anymore and says it could void warranty. I think it's due to older units that would not shut off and keep on heating when the water tank was empty, or units incorrectly installed. So in that case, those did do damage.

http://keepintune.com/nltr/2015/01/...-allowing-dampp-chaser-systems-not-good/

Congratulations ghostwind on making your decision. When will you take delivery?

Second sentence, “Delivery is for June 1st!”