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According to this article, ideally the maximum piano size is room perimeter divided by 10.
In your case it means a 4.8 ft grand.
But, IMO, a Kawai GL-30 (5'5") will fit nicely in a 10x12 ft room.
Most conservatory rooms fit a bigger grand plus an upright in a room of that size.
Wow! The OP has said many times that they want an upright. ALSO, the room doubles as the office. You have no idea what else is in that room! The 10x12 thing you are assuming is empty?? With the room being an office, even the footprint of an upright might be tight for all we know.
And finally, a Kawai GL-20 with 5'2" size will definitely fit that room.
Pianobuyer SMP is 18,190 USD for GL-20.
You might expect a 15% to 30% discount from that price.
.
I think the OP has made it clear that he is looking for an upright not a grand hasn't he?
You may personally prefer grands but although the GL-20 grand is a nice piano it struggled to keep up with my K800 upright when they were played next to one another. Now the Shigeru SK-7 also played alongside hugely outclassed my upright but I suspect it would also leave most other grands behind as well :-) It isn't as simple as a grand is better than an upright or vice-versa, there is a middle ground in size and price where either can have the advantage depending on the individual models and personal preferences.
I think you and I are the only two people on these forums who feels that an upright can outshine a grand in these categories. We might as well give up at this point.
And finally, a Kawai GL-20 with 5'2" size will definitely fit that room.
Pianobuyer SMP is 18,190 USD for GL-20.
You might expect a 15% to 30% discount from that price.
.
I think the OP has made it clear that he is looking for an upright not a grand hasn't he?
You may personally prefer grands but although the GL-20 grand is a nice piano it struggled to keep up with my K800 upright when they were played next to one another. Now the Shigeru SK-7 also played alongside hugely outclassed my upright but I suspect it would also leave most other grands behind as well :-) It isn't as simple as a grand is better than an upright or vice-versa, there is a middle ground in size and price where either can have the advantage depending on the individual models and personal preferences.
I think you and I are the only two people on these forums who feels that an upright can outshine a grand in these categories. We might as well give up at this point.
No, I agree that an upright can be equal to or superior to a grand. There is just no reason to say it anymore. There are those that believe it.. and those that will never be convinced
And finally, a Kawai GL-20 with 5'2" size will definitely fit that room.
Pianobuyer SMP is 18,190 USD for GL-20.
You might expect a 15% to 30% discount from that price.
.
I think the OP has made it clear that he is looking for an upright not a grand hasn't he?
You may personally prefer grands but although the GL-20 grand is a nice piano it struggled to keep up with my K800 upright when they were played next to one another. Now the Shigeru SK-7 also played alongside hugely outclassed my upright but I suspect it would also leave most other grands behind as well :-) It isn't as simple as a grand is better than an upright or vice-versa, there is a middle ground in size and price where either can have the advantage depending on the individual models and personal preferences.
I think you and I are the only two people on these forums who feels that an upright can outshine a grand in these categories. We might as well give up at this point.
Not at all, never give up :-)
I do agree though that there are folks here who will never agree and pursuing that argument is a waste of time. But what isn't a waste of time is the responsibility to make sure that newcomers to the forum, who won't have read and reread all the arguments, get a reasonable balanced answer to questions they ask.
Amazing that many generations of students prepared for competitions and exams on an upright— wonder how they ever survived?
One thing that gives me a giggle is when someone says "my 9yo is at Grade 3 and her teacher said that we need a grand now to continue." Ummmm, I had a clearance Kawai console that got me through university...
In college, our "star performer" who has gone on to do great things, had his home practice instrument in the garage, in Minnesota; an old upright that was hardly tuned. I always wondered how he was able to do what he did.
Similarly, I only ever had my very cheap student violin my entire life and I was a principle in college with it, even, so there's that, I guess. A violin forum would not like to hear that, I suspect.
I do agree though that there are folks here who will never agree and pursuing that argument is a waste of time. But what isn't a waste of time is the responsibility to make sure that newcomers to the forum, who won't have read and reread all the arguments, get a reasonable balanced answer to questions they ask.
I needed to hear this today more than you realize, pertaining to multiple threads across all the forums lately. Thank you.
I think you and I are the only two people on these forums who feels that an upright can outshine a grand in these categories. We might as well give up at this point.
Actually, the opposite is true. Many/most posters agree that at certain price a high quality upright can be better than a lesser quality grand in some respects. What's not true are certain recently posted ideas that string length in the bass is the only important factor in bass tone, key length is the crucial factor in action feel, very tall uprights have string length greater than grands under 6', etc.
Pianoloverus: Right. I couldn't find the Model O. But I think the other numbers are accurate, the Model O is just a hair longer. At any rate, it shows tall uprights are in the same ballpark as 5.5-6' grands, and a 53" upright isn't like a "4' 5" grand (i.e., what the face value numbers would suggest.)
Lady Bird: Everyone has their preferences, and I'm no expert, just a middling classical dabbler, but I'd rank a Shigaru Kawai right up there with the highest end. The 3 best pianos I've ever played were a 9ft (or close) Schimmel, Shigaru, and Fazioli. And I have played on DOZENS of middling grands that I wouldn't even put in the same class as a K800 (which yes, I've played on), a Seiler ES, or Grotrian upright.
Amazing that many generations of students prepared for competitions and exams on an upright— wonder how they ever survived?
One thing that gives me a giggle is when someone says "my 9yo is at Grade 3 and her teacher said that we need a grand now to continue." Ummmm, I had a clearance Kawai console that got me through university...
In college, our "star performer" who has gone on to do great things, had his home practice instrument in the garage, in Minnesota; an old upright that was hardly tuned. I always wondered how he was able to do what he did.
Similarly, I only ever had my very cheap student violin my entire life and I was a principle in college with it, even, so there's that, I guess. A violin forum would not like to hear that, I suspect.
I also got a Kawai upright for my entire piano learning time. That is the only one piano I ever own, until now (40 yrs later) that I considered getting another piano. But I have to admit the current generation is so much more lucky... I have seen the 7 year old kid got a white Steinway grand at her house. But of course she played very well and I guess she really "deserved" a good piano for her practice. Only if my kid is as dedicated as her....I would give up my car to get her a Steinway too...
Yes a better quality upright is better than a not so good grand I have an upright which certainly outshines quite a few grands (some of those in the GL series for example , but it was really expensive piano to buy ) However there is just no point in arguing about uprights and grands. Even the "very worst grands" can look like superstars in someone's house and that may be enough for them. ( I am not talking about the GL series, although the tone on the GL20, and 30 was unpleasantly bright.)
If the OP has said they need an upright , just let them get an upright.
I had a Petrof 125 and it was a wonderful piano, with a nice touch and a really lovely sound. I actually liked it better than the Petrof IV grand that I briefly owned.
Here's my experience (all late 2020/early 2021). When I tried out some new Seiler SE instruments, I preferred their medium to larger uprights (up to SE132) to at least one of their shortest grands. Fuller sound and better action. No competition with their larger grands though.
As for Kawai GL, there's a HUGE jump in quality from GL 20 to GL 30. I didn't like their GL 10 one bit and would vastly prefer a K500 or K800 upright to these. GL 20 it's closer. GL 30 is no competition.
PS. Please tell me this forum has at least one thread where someone asks in earnest if they can mount a grand vertically on a wall.
Last edited by Windjammer; 02/26/2104:47 PM.
"Ein Buch ist ein Spiegel, aus dem kein Apostel herausgucken kann, wenn ein Affe hineinguckt." Georg Christoph Lichtenberg (1742-1799)
For quality of tone the K500 I think is even better than the K20. One of my students however loved the mellow tone of the GL10 and chose that instead of a K500. She wanted a grand and is perfect happy with her piano. It is soft for a grand, but most of the pieces she played (not a Rachmaninoff or Brahms player) Anyway I do not teach anymorel, but the last time I saw she seemed perfectly happy with her piano.
