Baby grand Irmler or Yamaha? Also, black or white?......

[maxmark]

I'm looking to buy a Baby Grand and have kind of limited it either the Irmler Studio F142 or the Yamaha GC1. I would look at the Yamaha GB1 if they did it in white....! I've got a beautiful Schiedmayer upright, which I'm reluctant to part with because of the tone, which is so mellow, especially in the bass. I'm worried that the Yamaha will be too bright in tone but they look good value for money and I don't know much about Irmler - an offshoot from Bluthner? I know the model I'm looking at is made in China.

Could anyone please assist before I go splashing out on an expensive purchase? I saw a Hermann but they're not as good as Yamaha or Irmler I understand.

Any advice would be greatly appreciated.

PS: Edited this - seen on a post that white is not a good colour for maintaining value in selling on. Is this going to be a really terrible mistake?!

[PianoGuy]

White is the worst mistake you can make.

Rethink immediately unless you want to keep it for ever and ever.

The GC1 outshines all the other pianos you mention; is far superior to the GB1 and the others are a joke in comparison.

[Gill the Piano]

Hear, hear...I have a customer who just cannot shift her white piano...and they go yellow over time, even if you don't smoke!

[Barrie Heaton]

White Grand’s are very much in vogue at the moment one of the local dealers has 6 in and most are sold. However, and a big however, selling them from a shop is limited, selling them private is very difficult as Gill as pointed out other factors if you do mark it they are much harder to fix well, and finding some one to fix white ones is hard as well.

If you are buying the piano to play then I would agree with PG get the Yamaha C1. Toeing wise you will have more options with the Yamaha C1 you can make them very mellow A lot of the white grads I tune are never or hardy played

The best place I seen a white grand was upside down in a swimming pool and yes the pool was full of water. That’s what happens when you go on holiday and leave your kids at home to party


Barrie,

[PianoGuy]

I'm sure Barrie means GC1 in his last post. The reason the GC1 is so good is that it's closely based on the more expensive C1- it has the same frame and action but lighter hammers- and is so much cheaper than a C1.

A second hand C1 would also be a good buy provided it's a recent one.

But don't buy white unless you're not bothered about resale..... Although I too have witnessed a healthy sales in white polyester grands of late. The tide of fashion could well be turning, but do you really want to take the risk? The irony of it is that white is an expensive option and nearly always a special order on a new piano. If you have seen a new white Yamaha in a dealer's you can bet that it was a cancelled order.

[sussexpianos]

OK people, whats wrong with white??
I have sold a few White grands recently, they do look good under bright white. I have sprayed many pianos white for customers. One I can very much remember was a white and pink one!! Yes, rich bright pink. It was a steck baby grand with mouldings around the side. We sprayed it white and went round with the pink. It wasn't my cup of tea(prefere coffee) but the hotel liked it. We were then asked to make all the brass work chrome, which did set it off nicely.
Anyway, The Irmlers are made in China and I believe, not worth the money. Other options are the Kawai Gm-10. GE-20 and GE-30 which all come in snow white, (go for the Ge-20 and above due to the millennium III Actions).
Also to note is Samick/Reid Sohn, the sig's are OK for the price but the new NSG's are very very good, using the same build process as Bechstein. I have hired some of these out to profensional artists instead of the usual higher brands and positive comments have come back.
At the end of the day, try it before you buy it, and buy what you try!
You might have to wait a while if ordering white, importers don't order many!

[PianoGuy]

OK people, whats wrong with white??

They are traditionally hard to resell. In my experience white pianos hang around in showrooms for years with customers commenting on how pretty they look without actually getting their wallets out actually to buy the damned things. Then, just after the thing has sold for a knockdown price, you get a bunch of people asking if you have a white piano.

In the right setting, a white poly grand can look very cool indeed, but place a white piano wrong and it can look cheap, tacky and very very Del Boy. Especially, I am moved to say, an innocent wooden-coloured '30s one that has been sprayed. For me it's a bit like painting an elderly Rolls Royce or Bentley in Wedding White.

Anyway, The Irmlers are made in China and I believe, not worth the money.

Some Irmlers are made in China, some are made in Eastern Europe, not exactly sure where because Blüthner are cagey about who makes them. They look Polish to me, but without the tight quality control that make Vogels OK. They are not in my opinion one of Mr.Blüthner's better ideas. Not worth the money is about right!

At the end of the day, try it before you buy it, and buy what you try!

Exactly.

You might have to wait a while if ordering white, importers don't order many!

Presumably because they don't sell?????
See above.

[sussexpianos]

well, everyone's different!
I hate people polyestering old Bechsteins, Bluthners etc!!!
They look treadful. The music desks have no style because the polyester is soo thick you cannot see the frete work.
I presume its because these pianos go off the Poland and other countries to be rebuilt on the cheap and they cannot Frenchpolish.
Well, I was asked to spray a grand TVR purple, but I managed to get them to accept black ( with gold trimmings(prper gold powder as well)!!)

[maxmark]

I was late replying as gone on holiday but my husband picked up the forum (unknown to me until I got back) and then commented on how much he was worried about me getting a white piano and told me to read your posts, quoting "worse mistake ever made"... And here's me just coming back from a chilled holiday when he decides to freak me out....

So I read your posts and heh, it's not bad at all. I appreciate all your comments

PG/Barrie Heaton - Can I say I've now put a deposit on a Yamaha C1L (the first in the conservatoire series I think). Anyway, it's not the GB1 or the GC1 but the next one up. Better for resale?!

PianoGuy - yep, it's a cancelled order because I won't have to wait if I go ahead with it (have 7 days to cancel).

SussexPianos - here here! What's wrong with white indeed.

The setting for my piano is in a converted barn with a massive 33' lounge with wooden floors and off white walls. It would look so fab in this room....! I do want to keep it forever (I'm upgrading and won't upgrade anymore - wanted a baby grand and this is it). But if I had to resell - couldn't I go through the trade rather than private and if I did go private, the make and model would assist in selling provided the piano was in very good condition?

The only thing I was worried about SLIGHTLY was the discolouration (and I've even given up smoking..... ). It will be out of direct sunlight so I thought it wouldn't be a problem? But then, there are a few piano dealers who spray pianos - so I could always spend (GULP) much more on spraying it should it go discoloured?...

I'm getting excited now I was really pleased to hear your comments about the Yamaha and in particular, the fact that it can be tuned to a more mellow tone although would the C1L need it? I played on a BLACK one and it was a nice sound - not that black makes any difference aside from the fact

I didn't like the colour but the seller said to me it's more mellow than usual Yamahas - maybe because people have been playing on it as it's in the showroom.

Anyone have any comments on the bespoke tuning aspect of a C1L please? By the way, I got this for an absolute bargain - the place where I tried it out was selling them for Ł10,000 and I got mine for quite a bit less than this.

Laugh or what - my husband has just come into the room and I had to ask him if he read ALL the posts and he said yes - I think he must be a glass half empty kind of guy!!

[sirprize]

".....Also to note is Samick/Reid Sohn, the sig's are OK for the price but the new NSG's are very very good, using the same build process as Bechstein. I have hired some of these out to profensional artists instead of the usual higher brands and positive comments have come back....."

Yes I agree! I tried the NSG series today for the first time and was stunned at the quality for the price! These are really VERY good pianos indeed. The touch is also amazingly good....very light and responsive. These grands will make quite a stir once word gets around