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Good evening,

I wonder which VERTICAL/UPRIGHT you would consider the most underrated instruments, kind of hidden gems, best kept secret of the industry.

Thank you

Maybe Sauter uprights?

Because apparently they are not that well known, and all i hear/read about them says they are amazing.

I'd say Sauter too. They're not underrated as such, but the name isn't as well known as many other manufacturers, as they're not a high-volume manufacturer. They're a bit like Steingraeber. Another manufacturer of extraordinary instruments, but again not too widely known. August Förster also make lovely pianos, but they're almost unheard of in many parts of the world.

Probably Pfeiffer upright. I never tried it but lots of people tell me that it is incredible piano, very stable action and holds tuning for a long time. Price is high for this upright because it is small family production in Germany and handmade. Definitely a hidden gem.

Boston pianos in general I think are underrated perhaps because they are
designed by Steinways and made by Kawai.
They are neither Kawai nor are they Steinway.They sound different to the Kawai yet cost more.

I haven't played any Boston uprights, but I loved the Boston grands I played, I loved their sound, and I loved the action/feel on the new ones and on all but one of the used ones I tried.

So if I were shopping for an upright, I would definitely put Boston on my list of pianos to try.

Underrated means better than most people think it is. So underrated and hidden gem are not necessarily the same. So far most posters have discussed hidden gem in the sense of not well known but good.

I played a few boston uprights, they were very nice, but also quite expensive.

Although I am rather biased my 7'2" Mammoth VCG (Vertical Concert Grand) would be THE most underrated piano of all.
-chris

Well some more European hidden gems apart from Sauter and Pfeiffer are - Bechstein Academy series, August Forster and W Hoffman uprights .Other than these Seiler uprights are wonderful.
The German made Seiler is really nice.However the Indonesian made replica is also very nice.
From my own past reading of Sauter uprights on PW, there was a great deal more mention of different models of Sauter pianos other than the very well known Masterclass.We would hear of
the Pure Noble, the Raggaza, the Concent ,the Competence etc
Now apart from myself when there is mention of Sauter ,often Tweedpipe will pop up with mention
of his MC.Recently LarryK and I had a discussion about the Artes upright piano which has quite a
detailed Art Deco style.
Since 2016 conflicts between Sauter dealers and the THEN Sauter distributor to me at least seemed
to have damaged the reputation of this fairly small German piano manufacturer at least here on PW.
We only seem to hear about the Masterclass model and one owner of this model magnifies this
model even higher than ever before against other excellent models.(even though they are less expensive than the MC and so more available to the less wealthy)
Apart from Sauter the Schimmel Classic series are other hidden Gems .I recently tried a console sized instrument and yes not only the Concert series is worth thinking of when it comes to Schimmel uprights.

I was curious about this so I googled:
https://www.pianobuyer.com/brand/chernobieff/

Wow! Very pretty, but I'm curious about what it's like to play this instrument? I recently upgraded from an upright to a grand, and one of the reasons was because I was tired of having all that sound in my face and also with having to sit facing the wall!

Many enjoy thier upright pianos and do not feel the "sound is not just all in your face " If you have tried some really good European uprights you would not have experienced this .
ShiroKuro I know you love your grand piano a number of people here enjoy thier grand pianos.This
thread is NOT about grand versus upright! Just now it will.be about BASHING uprights., In fact it.probably will end up being about bashing uprights anyway which would be just a dumbing of the
thread.Please everyone try and respect the FACT that some here own upright pianos and enjoy having them !

Agreed. And I LOVE my upright and my grand.

Since I first built it, I have had to make some modifications. The front is practically a facade as it is made to let 100% of the sound out. As it turns out, it is so powerful that I had to reduce the hammer blow distance a couple of times. But now the volume is perfect for the room and it has an extremely deep bass. If you go to youtube and search for Mammoth piano shop tour by Ryan Sowers you will get a good idea of how it sounds. I play on it everyday and enjoy it very much.
Thanks for asking.
-chris

IMO: Most people keep their uprights too close to the wall. I experimented with mine and found out I liked it best out about 8 inches. The sound was more "alive" and enveloping. After about 8 inches out there was less noticeable change and I settled at 8 inches since it's a small room about 10x11 and there's also two desks and a set of drums in here. I also really like the sound with the "grand piano (side hinge) top open but I can't break the keeping stuff on top of the piano habit.

Kurt

NobleHouse,
I see your upright is an Astin Weight.Sorry I probably spelled it incorrectly ? Is it an American piano ?
Then you have your lovely grand piano as well.

Actually when I mentioned Seiler Indonesian made pianos and the authentic German made Seiler pianos,.I seemed to imply they were equal in quality? So no, obviously the German made piano is
a much higher level instrument than the Indonesian one.The price of the European model of course is also much higher, as one would expect.
The two models both however have the enhanced repetition qualities which is also common in Bechstein , Sauter and Steingraeber. The actual mechanism used to give the illusion of a grand
action is different in these different brands.
Other European pianos with a low profile on PW is Ronisch and Haessler (spelling ?)These are
made by Bluthner pianos .I think some models of Ronisch may use strung backs from China.
( I am not sure ?)One would need to read about them in Piano Buyer.They probably are less expensive than Bluthner models .

Yes, it is an American piano. They went out of business a few years ago.

So is it a "hidden gem" ? as an upright ?
They can and do. no doubt exist everywhere .

Your piano looks really interesting! If I bought one of those, no one could argue with me here in
Vancouver BC !