Piano World Home Page Forums Our Most Popular Forums Piano Forum Kawai GL30 or Boston 156?

Hello all,

I am an adult beginner.. and clearly with my limited playing skills, it is difficult for me to try and play the piano to know which one to buy. could you guys help to share your opinion pls? which piano listed below will you recommend?

Kawai GL30 (166cm) made in Japan $23k
Kawai GL20 (157cm) made in Indonesia $15k
Boston GP 156 made in Japan $24k

Both of those are well known brands.How do you like the Boston compared to the Kawai? The GL3 is a nice size for a grand though.

As a rule of thumb, longer pianos have better tone, particularly in the base. Therefore, the GL 30 at 5 ft 8 might have better tone than the 5 ft 1 piano. Even if you are a beginner, go play and listen; also have a salesperson play so you can listen.

The pianos will also have a different feel (touch), with some feeling beaver/lighter from
Others. There is no wrong answer to what you prefer— so go test them out 😊

And be aware that even though the design and materials might be a tad different, BOTH the GL30 and Boston 156 are built by Kawai in Japan.

Thought of one more suggestion: ask the salesman to play the same music on all three; it should be music that uses the lower octaves.

Tbh, the Boston 156, appearance and sound wise were love at first sight but again, I’m a newbie. I missed a good deal on a near new 2021 156 over the weekend. If I want this now, I will need to pay full MSRP at $25k. Given this is a 156 baby grand, I tried to compare it with a Kawai GL30 which is 166cm since it is around the same price and both made in Japan and very likely at the same factory but of course ppl are telling me the Boston has better materials. I am not sure can I even compare these two pianos side by side.. but for sure I want to get the best value if I’m paying $25k for a piano as a newbie. Thoughts?

The Kawaii GL30 is 5’5 😊

Emerald, you said there was a sale that you missed? If so, and that’s the piano you want, see if you can get them to give you the sale price.

Re the piano sounds, the Boston and Kawai must sound quite different, so try to see if you can tell which you prefer, just with those specific pianos.

I think it's a matter of personal preference. But 5'5" vs 5'1" is typically a significant difference, even though 4 inches of length seems so insubstantial. I would perceive these pianos to be of roughly equivalent quality. I am a fan of the performance/value equation for a decently prepped GL30.

Did you have a chance to play or hear the actual pianos you might consider buying?

An owner bought this piano for 3 months and needed to move overseas; hence, the dealer took it and offered nearly $6k below retail. It is one of a kind and it’s gone. 😔

Oh, so it's not that the sale ended but that the piano itself was sold. Shoot!

The Boston is designed and engineered to last longer than the Kawai -- that's where a low tension scale design comes in. Less tension = less stress on the components. It also gives you a warmer tone. You said yourself it was love at first sight. You're more likely to get a "deal" on a Kawai or Yamaha, if that's more important to you than loving the instrument, go with one of them.