Question about 7 foot grands

[joseph]

Almost every 7 foot grand I've played (or 6 ft 10) has had an odd sound in the tenor register, kind of tinny and suffering from poor sustain. I'm talking about pianos including

Steinway B, Kawai RX6 and SK6, Bluthner Model 4,

The ones that were OK, and had a decent sound were

Yamaha C6/S6, and Bosendorfer 214 which is just a bit bigger (not by much tho).

I have found that I love the Steinway A and C, but not so much the B, love the RX3 and RX7 but not so much the 6. Has anyone else noticed this in pianos of this size?

[joe]

Its all subjective i like Yamaha C2 rather than C3 find the tonal balances better on C2 more suited to my ear,find the C3 has detached sounds in the bass and treble,also like C5,C6 and C7 for the power they offer.Kawai different again like RX1 rather than RX2,RX3 a liitle inconsitent and RX7 is in a class of its own.Steinway like the older Model A and B but not the Model C and a well regulated and tuned D is the best piano ever.Bosendorfer,Bechstein or Fazoli never rocked my boat.Mostly down to tuner/tech who is prepping instruments,and some sizes of grand are better suited to other situations than others,hall,studio,home,school etc.

[joseph]

Yeah I guess you're right. The Steinway C sometimes has the opposite problem in that it can have a weak treble, particularly just above middle C. You're right about the D, one of the best all rounders and particularly good in romantic repertoire. Sometimes I prefer something a bit different for other repertoire, like a Bluthner for Debussy and Beethoven - but that would be if I had the luxury of selecting a different piano for each piece. When it comes to walking on stage and knowing that you're going to be comfortable all the way through the recital, I think nothing really beats the Model D, or perhaps, the Yamaha CFX and CFIIIs, although we're talking about 3 quite different pianos.

The RX7 really is a magnificent piano, I fell in love with it, shame I can't afford one either, but I guess at a price/size/quality ratio it must be one of the best out there.

I find Bosendorfers absolutely beautiful, and really come into their own in Schubert, Haydn, clean classical repertoire, and then Lieder and chamber music recitals, but they're not all rounders, and take a bit of getting in to, but once you're there, the Bosendorfer can add a really magical touch to some repertoire. Better in smaller venues though. IMHO.