Piano World Home Page Forums Our Most Popular Forums Piano Forum Why do people not favor uprights??

It's possible that would help but I'm not sure. To be really aware of it on my Mason BB I have to press the keys more slowly than I would during normal playing.

Worth a thread on its own possibly? I remember a thread on the tuner / technician forum where that subject turned up, and at least one person said that they had had to detune some of the unisons to make the client happy. I'm 'reasonably sure,' btw., that in a large orchestra playing a symphony, concerto or what have you, that not all notes are perfectly in tune across all instruments. In my own case I'm quite happy with a minor degradation in the unisons, but not when the entire note sounds out - adds a bit of 'richness' I guess until it gets to the point 'where only rag-time is playable ;)'

As my tech used to say when I complained about the limitations of my upright compared to the grands my teacher has: An upright and a grand are different instruments. Just like a digital and an acoustic are different instruments. There are pros and cons with each.

However it seems to be common to question the rationality of someone's decision to get a grand. I got this as well when I was looking for one. And usually those arguments were not based on balanced experience on the different kinds of instruments. So I feel I must share my positive experience. I really have not seen that many "negative sentiments" surrounding uprights.

I actually love it that my acoustic pianos have their good and bad days just like their owner

And whichever one of us is having a "bad day" I can always blame the other!

Cheers!

I suppose it would not be very nice if you are both not having a good day on the same day.I remember when my old Kawai grand was having a bad day and I was having a bad Bach day .A fugue which would not gel ?

....but you did not answer the OP's question
Ian

I am in that position of considering buying as well, and yes, at my age it could be my last piano. Can't really make a decision until I know if I can stay here in Brittany or have to go back to the UK (possible residency problems arising from BREXIT) but I've tried summarizing my 'deliberations.' Not sure it helps, tbh, it just got me more confused, but for what it's worth:

Cost considerations:

Buying:
- say 3000 euros will buy a good DP, a reasonable second-hand upright (if it can be found), a basic and probably very unsatisfactory upright (see @Shypianist's comments).
- say 5000 euros buys a good DP, a good used upright (but choose wisely) and a new upright that may be satisfactory.
- 7 to 9000 buys nearly top range DP, better used upright (but again, choose wisely) and a lowest level European upright, possibly also a lowest level Japanese-made as well. Not tried the Europen upright, but wary that it is the 'entry-level' model - it is cheaper for a reason.
- about 9000 to 15000, don't know about DPs, but good (not top-line) new European and Japanese made uprights. Probably some top level uprights second-hand.
-above that - well, I'm not even thinking about it!

recent reports here on PW suggest a risk that the DP as delivered may not be good and need repair / replacement, so no guarantee there of a hassle-free purchase. Uprights, no data on that but be prepared for costs of tuning as the piano acclimatizes, and with 2nd hand perhaps for regulation, and if buying privately cost and hassle of arranging delivery.


Running
DP. No tuning, but they do develop problems with age - worn felts, strips or what have you. Order of magnitude in terms of cost not a lot. Lifespan? Unknown. Ease of maintenance - I'm used to using acoustic tuner / technicians and haven't managed to suss out any repairers for digital pianos in our region, looks like a fair bit of DIY fixes necessary. Also, consider that those with acoustic action may need fixes, regulation.
Acoustic. Regular tuning - at least once a year, say 100 euros p.a., but possibly 2 or more tunings in first year as piano settles in to new environment and possibly more for a new piano. Regulation - not sure how often - in my case it was usually done by the tuner on an on-going basis and rarely meant any extra cost. Lifespan - depends on the piano - some low-end models have been reported (hearsay) pretty-much dead (untuneable / unable to hold tune) after 10 years or less.

Conclusion.
- DP probably cheaper, possibly a lot more so, but I am more comfortable with an acoustic because of the availability and competence of tuner technicians.
- Preference. Having mostly used uprights, that's my general leaning - but the jury is still out.

* note - this is in Europe, don't know about the situation elsewhere.

Pianoloverus is right! The ability to use headphones was the prime reason for the digital. The 2nd big reason was portability. The Casio weighs 26 lbs. Whenever I get a used keyboard amp, I can gig with the Casio. Probably won’t happen in my lifetime but hey, who knows.
I bought my C3 because I love it’s voice, sound, and action. It’s expressive ability beat my upright by miles and even my 5 ft baby grand.
If I could only have 1 piano and was limited in space, and close neighbors, I’d be shopping between one of the new fabulous digitals and maybe one of the BIG TALL European uprights with a silent option. It’s too hard to give up an acoustic piano completely. Thankfully, I’m not forced to make that choice yet. As LadyBird tells us, she loves her Sauter upright. I’ve never had the chance to try one. I did really enjoy the big new Yamaha uprights.

I thought I did in my post before this one.

I ran out the edit time to add this. One of things I truly love about my C3 is it’s stability. The most temperamental thing it’s done in it’s 7 year lifetime is that when the humidity is high the G5 damper slows it’s return. I will get it fixed at the next tuning. Seriously, the very thought of having a temperamental acoustic grand as my practice piano isn’t good for my emotional well-being. Growing up in my family and working IT for some seriously delusional managers means I paid my dues. I detest emotional equipment in IT, music, and transportation. My C3 reflects my emotions as I play. PERIOD. I don’t have to worry that piano’s having a bad day. Especially since I play and practice more on my bad days. I want a steady, reliable instrument to soothe me. I don’t want a moody, temperamental, grouchy partner in my musical pursuits.

If you have to lift the key all the way up before repeating then your piano is widely out of regulation. My upright can repeat every time on slow playing from halfway up. I regulate my own upright to its standard specification.
Ian

Absolute rubbish!
Ian

I have just refuted Sanfrancisco's statement but I will now do similar with your statement. I have just checked my piano and I can on slow playing repeat from halfway up without the damper seating. I admit that my Renner regulation has to be very precise to achieve this.
Ian

So can mine, but some cheaper new uprights I have tried (as mentioned up thread) definitely cannot. So either the dealer is selling new pianos that are wildly out of regulation, or it’s a design defect in *some* uprights.

Mine did too (well it still does, but it needs a lot of work) and that's on a Herrburger Brooks action. Unfortunately that company is now defunct. It's the new (well, newish) world order, sadly.

I haven't the faintest idea what action my upright has, but it's (finally!) being tuned in a couple of weeks time so I will be quizzing my technician. ;-)

I didn't either until I discussed it on the Tuner Technicians forum - from the photos I showed one advised that it was either Renner or Herrburger Brooks. I found a name plate on the action itself - thoughtfully screwed through but enough lettering was visible. I'm not saying it's a great action, but it was the best I could afford at the time and better than the others in my price range, which incidentally included a Petrof which I disliked intensely - too 'stiff.' Petrof are still going strong and are the most likely candidate if I'm looking for a new piano because of their prices - oh, the irony

My grand isn't that moody either, actually it keeps the tuning very well. But I live in a rather extreme climate and all acoustic pianos, no matter how stable, do get affected when the temperature outside suddenly changes from +5C to -20+C...I do have humidifiers but they cannot always keep up. During the summer there are no problems with tuning stability.

However I have never met an acoustic piano that doesn't have slight changes in tone from day to day. Maybe they are too tiny for everyone to hear, but I hear them and they are what makes the instruments feel "alive" as opposed to a digital. Even the top quality concert grands can change their tone during one recital.

Yes, that's one of the reason why the C3 is used by so many Churches, teachers, and institutions. The other YAMAHA "C" pianos are similar - as are the "U" series uprights (not the Indonesian ones).