Yamaha UX50BL

[er223]

Hello from a keen amateur (with 2 young children who I hope will also come to play when they are a little older).

We've been looking to buy and looked at a range of upright pianos around the £4000-mark, but keep coming back to the benchmark of the Yamaha U3, particularly those form the mid-late 1980s.

This post is not intended to be a rehash of the old (and well made) arguments for or against buying a Yamaha vs alternatives, or indeed a refurbished U3 vs. a new B2 etc. Rest assured, I have read these posts, and played the options, and, speaking purely personally, have come to the decision that a refurbished U3 from a reputable dealer is the right choice for us.

However...

...I have found a Yamaha UX50BL from 1989 for sale. I haven't had a chance to play it yet, but will do so very soon, I hope. There is very little out there on the internet about these, but from what I can find out (e.g. http://www.keyartspianohouston.com/file ... eries3.pdf) this is a 'Special X series' piano based upon the U3, but with the X-series bracing, agraffes and other high end materials.

Does anyone know how many of these were made, and why Yamaha stopped making them?

Price-wise the UX50BL seems reasonable - the dealer in question has a good reputation and is very clear on what exact work is carried out on each piano. When I asked more about this piano, he realised that he had 'mis-priced' it and immediately raised the public price on his website by 10%, but to his very great credit, he is honouring the original price for me if I wish to purchase after I have played the piano (hopefully v soon).

Has anyone out there any experience with these pianos, compared to the 'standard' U3 of the same era? I appreciate that asking for like-for-like comparisons is silly since the variation between U3s from the late 1980s will be huge, but from a technical perspective, do the changes in build all add up to a very different piano? Since we want to own this piano for many years, do any of you have a sense of the build quality vs. a U3 of the same age? Is there anything I should be wary of? (In particular, some people seem on these message boards seem to suggest that the UX series doesn't really vary that much from the standard U series).

Many thanks and best wishes to you all.

[Colin Nicholson]

Both reputable pianos.
Check if agraffes in the bass or throughout