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My husband and I are considering two different pianos and we are complete newbs! Can you all give us advice on two different pianos? We are currently looking at the Boston 156 brand new or a used Yamaha GC1- we love the action on both. Just not sure of the price on the Boston- what is a decent price for new? The Yamaha is wonderful- built in 2003… more in our price range BUT when you push the sustain pedal- something in the actual piano itself squeaks. Any reviews, comparisons, thoughts would be helpful! Our 11-year-old is very invested in playing and we have been told is very skilled for his age- so please keep that in mind with advice! Thank you all! My husband and I have been combing the board for advice!

You should have the used piano inspected by a good tech to see if it has any problems. The squeak in the pedal could be an incredibly minor issue. For the Boston 156 pricing see the Piano Buyer(free link in left column). You must read the explanation of SMP to understand the prices next to the model.

If the Boston is being sold by a Steinway dealer, I don't know if the price would be discounted below the MSRP and SMP shown in Piano Buyer. I know that new Steinways are usually not discounted - but not sure about Bostons. Anyone?

How can I get that? I am down to 20,325 plus tax.

That's actually not bad. Please ignore the earlier post that I deleted. Is this from a Steinway dealer?

They are both Steinway dealers!!

If you are responding to the post that suggested $17,000.00 was a good price, there is no guarantee - or even any way - that you can necessarily "get" that price. It all depends upon your negotiations with the dealer, and the dealer has the final say on which price he is willing to settle on, or the unsatisfied customer walks out without a purchase.

Prices will vary from dealer to dealer depending upon market interest and demand in various areas of the country.

Regards,

You have the right to try and negotiate the price, even with a Steinway dealer. They may or may not negotiate, however. Pianos are like cars, you can ask to pay less. See what happens. Good luck, if you decide on the Boston!

Boston page for prices: https://www.pianobuyer.com/brand/boston/

Thank you, everyone, for the advice so far!

They are both good brands.I am not sure if the Yamaha GC1 has a full sostenuto pedal or just a bass sustain.The Boston probably will have one.The Yamaha would have a brighter tone than the Boston.(this however relates to taste more than anything)
Have the Yamaha checked by an independent technician.I feel you probably could get a discount on the Boston.Ask the dealer what his best price is.

The Yamaha's pedal squeak should be fixable... Did you say that piano is at a dealer's? Is it at the same dealer as the Boston or a different dealer?

Either way, if it's at a dealer's ask the dealer to fix the squeak and go back and look it once fixed.
Also, definitely find an independent piano tech/tuner (by independent, I mean someone who has no connection to the seller and that you pay) and have that person evaluate the Yamaha.

I own a Yamaha C2 that was made in 2000 (I bought it used), so it's similar age, but my piano is bigger than the GC1.

I have played a lot Yamahas of that size (GC1 and the older G1), and I've played that size Boston as well. If money were no object, I would say get the Boston because the design of the Boston means it will sound better in the bass than the Yamaha.

But money is always an object, and assuming it checks out by a piano tech, the Yamaha will be an excellent piano for your son.

BTW, does the Yamaha come with a dealer's warranty? And am I correct that you're shopping in the US?

Two Steinway dealers in the same city? That's rather unusual - but probably not unheard of.

General impression based on my own personal experience: Steinway dealers tend to charge more for pianos (new and used) than other dealers and are less likely to give significant discounts. Am I correct?

Is there any reason why you are only working with these particular dealers? Are there other dealers in your area? Have you looked at Craigslist?

Being built in Japan, the Boston 156 has a lot going for it from a design and quality perspective - however, it is a very short piano. Are you limited by space? Could you accommodate something a bit larger?

I would like to ask a few clarifying questions. This is really aimed at thinking beyond the two options you’ve mentioned, so if you’re set on one of these two, then probably ignore this. However, it sounds like you are looking for more general advice, in addition to your specific questions about these two pianos.
Do you currently have a piano, and if so, what piano do you have?
I understand that the piano you’re looking for will mostly be for your son to play. How much playing experience does he have? (If considerable, I would definitely recommend that he be a very active part of the process and that he play all the pianos under consideration). I think I have a sense from your post about your budget. You mentioned some pretty short grand pianos. Is this because of particular space constraints? There are a lot of reasons to look at longer pianos, if you have the space. If you don’t have the space, it is also worth looking at uprights — with your budget, you could get a very nice upright.
Are you visiting Steinway dealers in part because you are considering a ‘trade in’ down the road (for a Steinway)?
I hope this doesn’t seem too intrusive. There are lots of pianos and lots of piano manufacturers, and to my mind, it is very much worth the time put into understanding what all your options are.

I can answer a few questions.
- Our son has been very active in the process playing every piano we’ve tried. I’ve also been playing them and listening. He’s a far more advanced player than I am however I have a better ear, know what I like and can hear the difference between the pianos. It comes from doing live sound for 20 years.
- The used Yamaha GC1 is from a private seller in town. It was referred to us by arguably the best tech in our area. The squeak sounds more like a washer rattling around so a screw might just be lose. I took a video tonight to send to the tech. I love the tone and action on it.
- Our city is 300K people but doesn’t have a piano dealer with a showroom. There are two cities nearby that both have dealers and we’ve visited 3 dealers.
- We’ve played numerous pianos at this point. Kawai, Yamaha, Boston among others I can’t remember the name of or aren’t worth mentioning. Plus both Steinway and Mason & Hamlin out of our price range but just for fun.
- I throughly enjoyed the Boston. It sounded great both at the keyboard and listening a few feet away. The GC1 sounds great when listening but lost some fullness behind the keyboard and was a brighter from this position.
- Anything >= 5’8” is out of our price range. We could go up to 6’ but it would be tighter than we’d like.
- There’s very little to nothing in terms of a used market for good to better pianos here.

Thank you all for the replies as we try to navigate this almost overwhelming process.

The Yamaha GC1 is a personal seller- and yes!! Good idea having an outside tuner check it out- no warranty since it’s personal. We would love a Yamaha C2- but it was out of our budget. We are shopping in the US. There are two Boston dealers in opposite directions so we traveled to both.

Yamaha C2s don’t seem to show up on the used market very much. I got lucky with this one.

So, I think you should get a tech to check out the Yamaha GC1. You’ll notice some shortcomings if you compare the GC1 to bigger pianos, including the Boston which thinks it’s a bigger piano bc of the wide tail. Also the Boston is just a really nice piano with a different sound from the Yamaha, so it’s really hard to compare.

But if you evaluate the GC1 on its own and like then I think theres no reason to break the bank.

P.S. welcome to PW to both of you!!

We have a Yamaha keyboard… it has weighted keys but I can’t remember the specifics off the top of my head!! He has been playing for 4 years, he has been very active (and excited) about the purchase of the pianos. We don’t have space constraints as much as budget constraints!! I am thankful you are asking these questions- we need the advice! We are over our heads here! We did look at a Yamaha U3- but LOVE the look of the grands! Ha!! We are looking at Steinway dealers because we are limited here in Des Moines, Iowa!! I would love suggestions! Thank you for your time!!

Sorry- I replied and it didn’t take because you have to wait 300 seconds (probably because we are new)

We live in Iowa so we have two dealers in opposite directions an hour and a half- two hours away!! We are just so limited on our options for stores! We are limited more by budget than space!!

Thank you for the welcome!! We appreciate all the advice!