Kawai NS-15 or Yamaha U1

[whitebeagle]

I know this is an old topic, but I was hoping to enlist the help of some piano experts on this forum.

I went to a piano shop today with a very limited budget of £1650-1700. Having failed to find a decent piano with my limited budget in the last month, this piano shop seemed to offer reasonable pianos for the price.

They have offered me 2 pianos for the price(including delivery and stool), a yamaha U1 like model(they told me it's very silmilar to U1 but smaller in size, sorry can't remember the exact model name) or a kawai NS-15. I do prefer the kawai although the tone seemed quite uneven on the extreme registers. The yamaha is newer but didn't have much character, quite a bland piano overall. Still a good instrument for the price.

I have also tried some other U1s in the shop, although somewhat out of my price range, and still liked the kawai better.

My dilemmas is that I've read on this forum that it's easier to resell yamaha and a lot of people seem to recommend U1s and U3s. Along with this, another problem with the Kawai is the uneven tones in the extreme registers, I know this is only natural but is it something I should worry about? My last piano(spencer) also had the same problem and got worse as the months went along despite having being tuned.

Although my mind's almost made up, I would really appreciate any information on NS-15's. Should I go for a yamaha trusting the brand and the eveness of tone, or a kawai with a lovely tone and touch save for the extreme registers?

I would sincerely welcome any advice, I've lived without a piano for 4 months and that's all I think about!

[PianoGuy]

They have offered me 2 pianos for the price(including delivery and stool), a yamaha U1 like model(they told me it's very silmilar to U1 but smaller in size, sorry can't remember the exact model name) or a kawai NS-15.


I have also tried some other U1s in the shop, although somewhat out of my price range, and still liked the kawai better.

Hello Beagle!

The shop is misleading you a bit if they say a small Yamaha upright is "Like the U1 but smaller". The U1 and U3 sound as good as they do because they're that height. If you didn't like their U1s anyway, try another shop to make sure that the shop you've already tried is preparing their pianos well enough. I reckon the U1s you're being offered may well be old ones. A serial number of 4 million is the cut-off point between a newer one and an older one, but a 4M U1 will be around the 3K mark in most dealers.

The NS15 is a decent enough piano but not in the U1 league. If you like it better, then buy it because it's you that is important here. You certainly wouldn't be buying a poor piano.

Yamaha resale value is being eroded by the discount shops so it's less of an issue now, and Kawai's reputation is growing. A Yamaha will still be easier to sell though because of brand recognition.

[sussexpianos]

I had an NS-15 once, very nice piano, went to a good pianist who was on a budget. The NS-15 would be a lot cheaper than a U1 but the same size, 121cm.
Go with what you like! And make sure they prep it.

[whitebeagle]

Thanks for both of your replies. I was told this 'smaller' version of U1 is in fact MC3, made in the mid 80s. I'm actually going to try out a U1 from 1982 today which apparently has a brighter tone than the kawai, somewhat similar to the MC. Although I like the kawai, I still have some reservations and I'm really hoping this will be the one!