When you decide to buy one of the pianos for sale, acoustic or traditional, it is not a decision that is made without a specific use or need. Depending on the use or need, the pianos for sale can be pricey or affordable. Several people feel that it is best to start with a more affordable upright piano for their children who have just started showing the skills and desire to play the piano.

A reputable and accomplished piano teacher will advise you to purchase the best piano, so that it will be exciting for you or your child to play, but at the same time, you should buy only what you can afford to pay. Pianos can be traded up easily, as the need arises and bear in mind that it will be a financial loss only when no one wants to play it. In this article, I will discuss some tips about purchasing the right piano for you or your child.

Shop Around

The time has come for you to buy a piano. It will not make sense to buy the first piano you see, which is why it is imperative that you visit a few musical instrument stores to get acquainted with various manufacturers, names, types, and qualities of each piano that you come across. Ask questions about the pianos for sale and obtain brochures. If it helps, write down whatever you learn about the different pianos, so that you can look back at your notes later.

Play the Pianos

While you are browsing, do not be shy to take the time to play the pianos. Alternatively, you can ask the sales representatives to play a few pieces of notes that have major and minor scales. Listen intently and you will realize that each piano has a vaguely different tone – soft, loud, brilliant, or mellow. Regardless of style, each piano generates a different tone and extraordinary sound. In addition, make sure you take the size into consideration especially if you have a small room or space for it.

• Upright Pianos

These pianos range in height from 36’ to 51’. Any type of uprights requires the same amount of floor space, which is about five feet by two feet. The most sought after upright piano is the studio piano, which stands at 44’ and above. Another type of upright piano is the consoles that stand at 39’to 42’. Spinet upright pianos stand at 36’ to 37’ but they are no longer built. Many manufacturers stopped producing spinets because they did not produce excellent sound and they were just less impressive compared to studio and console pianos.

• Grand Pianos

A concert grand piano stands at less than five feet to nine feet and baby grand pianos for sale are normally around five feet high. Compared to others, grand pianos are more responsive and have a faster touch. They are more powerful to any upright pianos. Nevertheless, other larger and better quality upright pianos can have equal tone quality or even better than the smaller grand pianos. As a side note, the grand pianos have a horizontal action; whereby upright pianos have a vertical action.

It is highly recommended that you take an experienced pianist with you when you want to buy a piano. Get as many opinions as you can from experienced pianists on various types of pianos. However, it is imperative that you know the tonal preference is extremely subjective, which means, at the end of the day, your opinion counts the most when it involves the sound that you prefer. Listen to the high, middle, and low notes and learn to comprehend what makes a particular piano more appealing to others. Do not waste too much time on pianos that are not your cup of tea.

Which is the best way to shop for pianos – online or the traditional way?  

Even though Yamaha Corporation is a multifaceted establishment, initially, it was focused only on keyboard instrumentation for the piano and reed organ. Nevertheless, the establishment’s insignia is still the same to this day, and its industry covers a variety of products including home appliances, motorcycles, and many more. In the musical instrument industry, Yamaha remains the largest manufacturer of quality parts for instruments. A new and used Yamaha Piano are certainly sought after by many pianists – professionals or amateurs. The pianos have graced many stages of concert halls all over the world and they have never failed to live up to their reputation.

The establishment produces different sizes and styles of pianos. You will find a variety of finishes and woods, as well. While there is no denying that the resonance of sound produced by Yamaha pianos are first-rate and flawless, it is imperative to know only few homes are able to accommodate the size of the pianos, especially if you are looking at buying a grand piano. Additionally, the price tag plays a huge part in making a decision. Below, you will find different types of Yamaha pianos.

• Upright Pianos

An upright Yamaha Piano has numerous heights, finishes, and cabinetry. The height of the piano is measured from the top of the piano to the floor. The height and width is perhaps the most important factors that influence the volume and tone quality. The taller the piano, the longer the strings are and they are able to produce louder sounds due to the bigger soundboards. The most affordable upright piano and the shortest is the spinet piano, which is about 36” to 39” in height. The console piano stands at 40” to 43”, whereas the studio piano is 44” to 48” tall. Studio pianos are normally used in living rooms, studios, and schools. Professional upright pianos stand at 48” to 53” and they may have larger soundboards and longer strings compared to smaller grand pianos.

• Grand Pianos

This type of pianos varies in sizes and finishes. A grand piano is measured from the front of the keyboard to the very end of the piano. The lid is closed to obtain a precise measurement. Grand pianos have become more popular over many years and a large number of owners have enjoyed them for generations. The smallest grand piano is less than 5’ to 5’2” and it is known as a baby grand piano. People love the baby grand piano because of its size, which fits in many living rooms. The medium size of this type of piano stands at 5’3” to 7’2” and it has longer strings and a larger soundboard. Due to its tone and volume quality, many piano teachers, serious amateurs, and schools, as well as universities prefer the medium grand pianos. The concert grand pianos run from 7 foot to 9 foot and they are normally used in auditoriums, churches, public performances, and concert halls.

• Digital Pianos

Many people buy a new or used digital Yamaha Piano for various reasons, such as:

– It can easily be moved from one place to another
– It has all the extras to enjoy
– It does not require tuning
– It has playback and recording devices
– It is affordable

This type of piano cannot replace traditional acoustic pianos in terms of touch and tone. Even though its sounds have been recorded with real instruments, it cannot be compared with high-quality sounds from acoustic pianos. Digital pianos are ideal for people who enjoy different instrument sounds such as woodwinds, strings, and many more. Bands or individual musicians will find these pianos to be first-class.

If you are planning to buy a piano, research is vital, because there are many types, styles, sizes, and finishes available.

Which type of piano, new or used, do you think suits you and your family the best?   

Before you buy used pianos, there are several things you need to find out from the seller, such as:

• Reasons for Selling the Piano

There are many reasons why people sell their pianos. Whatever the reason is, it should not be one that will cost you money. If sellers claim that the used pianos are taking up space or they could use the money, chances are that they have not been taking care of the pianos. You might end up spending more money to check the condition of the piano and on additional maintenance. If the sellers are considering buying another piano, ask why they prefer the new piano to the other. Ask as many questions as you like.

• Consistency of Piano Tuning

How often do they tune the piano? It is advisable for a piano to be tuned at least, twice yearly. If the piano is tuned less than twice a year, then you are likely to spend additional money for special piano tuning, and other related services. Purchase at your own risk if you find the piano is out of tune. There is no knowing if a piano is out of tune due to severe internal issues, thus you might have to spend more than you like to find a professional to tune the piano to perfection. In fact, some pianos are not even tunable especially if it has never been tuned before.

• Person in Charge of Maintenance

Ask the seller if his or her piano is tuned by a professional technician or by someone who has no experience at all. You should not hire a person that has no experience in piano tuning because it can lead to a great amount of internal damage. A registered piano technician should do repairs and tuning of the piano.

• Space or Storage for Piano

It is essential to find out where the seller has kept the piano. If it has been stored or placed in a basement, especially in flood prone regions, chances are the health of the piano has been exposed to various serious threats. Basements or public storage facilities often lack climate-control, thus it could lead to damage.

• Usage of the Piano

Do not hesitate to ask the seller if the piano was played often or not. For some people, pianos are just for display purposes, thus, there is no knowing if the piano is tuned accordingly.

• Previous Owners

If applicable and possible, find out how many owners have bought and used the piano. Ask if the piano was well taken care of. Get to know your potential investment as thoroughly as possible.

Once you purchase your secondhand piano, it should be treated like any other furniture in the house. You can dust the piano every other day to ensure it is clean. If you own an upright piano, you need to learn the proper way of cleaning it. Dust the piano regularly to keep foreign remnants off the surface of the piano. In addition, frequent dusting protects the finish of your used piano.
Use a soft and lint-free cloth to wipe the dust particles from the surface. This helps to remove fingerprints on the piano. You can use dampened cheesecloth, but make sure the cloth is completely wrung because any water residue may cause damage to the piano.

As previously mentioned, you should hire a professional to tune your used piano. Used pianos need to be looked at or checked regularly, just like your vehicle, to ensure they work perfectly. Since a piano has over 200 strings that are stretched at a high volume to produce soothing, beautiful sounds, it is highly recommended that you tune it, at least, two times a year. Ask for recommendations concerning a piano technician from your family or friends.

Is buying secondhand or used pianos something that you would consider for your home?  

One of my favorite things about pianos is the amazing range of types and sizes on offer. There’s no other musical instrument with such diversity, and what it means is that there truly is a piano to fit anyone’s lifestyle.

Grand pianos, especially, come in a huge range of sizes. A grand can be anywhere from under 5 feet long, to 10 feet or more. Generally speaking, the larger the piano, the bigger and more impressive the sound, but even a small grand will still produce great music.

So, we wanted to put together a guide to the different sizes of grand pianos that are available. However, one note before we get started: there’s no true standardization in piano sizes. These terms are really just for reference, as individual manufacturers may or may not use them in their naming, and there’s quite a lot of disagreement on where the exact size cutoff points are.

Baby

A baby grand piano is one of the most popular sizes, especially for people wanting a grand piano in their home. These start at 5 feet, and go up to around 5’6". Despite their relatively small size, most of the major manufacturers make these. Some good examples include Yamaha’s G series and the Steinway Model S. If you want a piano for your home, baby grands are a great place to start.

Medium

Medium grands are slightly larger than a baby grand, generally between 5’7" and 5’10" or so. This is the size at which you start getting "true" grand piano sound, thanks to the larger interior space. The Steinway Model M is a perfect example of a Medium grand piano, capable of full-sized sound and yet still small enough to fit into a typical house.

Parlor

Again, moving upwards in size, parlor grand pianos are generally in the area of 6 feet, give or take a couple inches. Sometimes a piano that’s exactly 6 feet is also called a "Professional Grand." The Kawai RX-3 BLAK is a popular example of this size piano. Also, as the name suggests, the larger the piano gets, the bigger the room needs to be to hold it.

Ballroom

As the name implies, these large pianos – which are also sometimes known as "Semiconcert Grands" are meant to fill a big room, although still one within a home. Most ballroom grand pianos are around 7 feet long, and can get into 8-foot territory as well. Kawai makes an excellent ballroom grand, the RX7.

At this point, you’re into the territory of true performance instruments. While smaller pianos are still great for entertaining people, this is the size range you should start looking at if you’re a performer looking to fill a room with sound.

Concert

The largest and most prestigious grand pianos are the concert grands. These are at least 9 feet long, up to at least 10"2′ for the Fazioli F308. A grand of this size can easily fill the largest concert halls, and can have unmatched range and expressive qualities. As the biggest, they are also the most expensive pianos, but the sound is simply unmatched.

So, with six (or arguably seven) different "official" sizes of piano, there truly is one for every home.

Do you think there should be more standardization in piano sizes and the terminology used?