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Pianos

Buyer's Guides and Articles

 

Steinway & Sons

the world's finest pianos

Boston Pianos

#1 college practice piano

Essex Pianos

best in class

Certified Demo Pianos

deep discounts, full warranty

Kawai Digital Hybrids

wood keys for authentic feel

E.N.C.O.R.E. Used Pianos

ready for their encore

Steinway Spirio

high definition player pianos

Adding a QRS Player System

Factory Restored Steinways

the genuine article

What makes a piano great?

In the 300+ year history of the piano, there have been some specific advances  in design and construction that we know will make a piano perform better and last longer. Most manufacturers treat these as step-up features to justify price differences between models. We are proud that in each line of Steinway & Sons, Boston, and Essex pianos, EVERY MODEL IS MADE THE SAME and never are features left out simply to cut costs. Even the most affordable, small Essex upright has EVERY PREMIUM DESIGN FEATURE.   

Premium vs. Standard Features

 

Premium Solid Spruce Soundboard

All the finest pianos have premium solid-spruce soundboards, but spruce soundboards are not created equal. A premium soundboard will be made of straight-grain solid spruce (not laminated) with a minimum of 8 grains per inch and be free of knots and irregularities. These qualities ensure overall structural integrity and even distribution of vibrations. Most manufacturers do not specify anything beyond solid vs. laminated, allowing for a wide variance in wood quality.

Tapered Soundboard Construction

To promote flexibility, the soundboard is sanded down to be thinner from treble to bass. Because the board is able to vibrate more freely, bass notes sound richer and fuller and overall tone and dynamic range is improved.

Standard Solid Spruce Soundboard

This manufacturer does not publish specifications for the soundboard material for this model beyond the species of wood. Model to model, these soundboards may have variances in grain density, irregularities, knots, or areas where material was cut out and filler material was glued in to take it's place. We inspect the soundboards of every piano we sell and encourage shoppers to inspect the soundboard of any piano they may consider purchasing to determine the quality of the soundboard …more

One-Dimensional Soundboard

A one-dimensional soundboard (top) is the same thickness across its width.  This piano does not have a tapered soundboard or this manufacturer does not specify whether or not the soundboard is tapered on this model. However, if a piano has a tapered soundboard, it is generally something that a manufacturer would want a shopper to know. All else being equal, a tapered soundboard will provide deeper, richer tone and longer sustain. All Steinway, Boston, and Essex …more

Vertically Laminated Bridges

Originally patented by Steinway in 1880, this groundbreaking design is now found in nearly every high-performance piano in production. The solid bridge is replaced with multiple layers of wood, like a layer-cake on its side. This design transfers vibrations from the strings to the soundboard most efficiently and with the least loss of energy. This improves every aspect of tone, projection, sustain, and dynamic range.

One-Piece Bridges

Bridges conduct the vibrations from the strings into the soundboard. This piano has bridges made of one piece of wood and may have a maple cap. Most uprights and entry-level grands have one-piece bridges. Nearly all performance grands include vertically laminated bridges to improve tone, sustain, and dynamic range.

Hammers with Underfelt

Dense under-felt is applied before the white hammer felt is glued and fastened to the hammer molding. This reinforcement will help the hammer retain its shape through years of impact with the strings. Often overlooked and not something that will cause an issue right away, this is a feature many manufacturers will eliminate in order to cut costs.

Hammers no Underfelt

This manufacturer did not include under-felt on this piano. Instead, the white hammer felt is glued directly to the wooden hammer-head. Under-felt is a layer of very dense felt that is applied first. This helps the hammer take shape at production and retain shape over years of impact with the strings.

5-Post Backframe

A 5-post backframe is the first indicator that a manufacturer has taken the design of a piano seriously. However, the thickness of the individual back posts matters. A cross sectional surface area of 400cm2 or more provides massive support year after year for the the soundboard's crown and the nearly 40,000lbs of tension from the strings. The CSA is calculated by multiplying the width and depth of a post, times the number of posts, …more

4 Post Back Frame

If the posts are thick, a 4-post backframe can be solid, but nearly all premium uprights have 5 posts. The back-frame of a piano is responsible in large part for a piano's longevity and performance later in life. Inspect the back-frame of every upright you consider purchasing, because the thickness of the back-posts will be one of the first indicators of an upright piano’s quality.

Dense, Maple Wood Rim

The rim of a grand piano is primarily responsible for maintaining the crown, or curvature, of the soundboard. This curvature is absolutely critical to a piano's ability to project sound and maintain a tuning to proper pitch. As such, strong, rigid, dense wood makes for solid rim construction. Steinway pianos have a unique one-piece, continuous bent, hard-rock MAPLE rim, Boston pianos have a hard-rock MAPLE inner rim and the outer rim …more

Unspecified Rim Material

Some manufacturers often use terms like "select hardwoods" and "carefully selected wood based on its acoustic characteristics" to describe their materials. Most often in the piano industry, this can be interpreted as "may change without notice." This manufacturer either does not provide specifications for rim material, uses non-specific terms to describe rim materials, or, in the case of some older pianos, the information was not able to be …more

Duplex Scale Design

Originally patented by Steinway in 1872, similar designs are now implemented in countless performance grands. Each treble string is sectioned into three separate vibrating lengths. The longest is in the middle and this is the main note we hear. The duplex sections on either end are tuned to upper harmonics of the main note. This design greatly enhances the complexity and richness of the tone and increases the strength of the very highest notes. 

No Duplex Scale

This manufacturer did include duplex scale design on this model. Instead, felt (red in this example picture) is used to prevent the length of string that extends beyond the bridge from vibrating. Duplex scale-design is used to improve the complexity and harmonic content of a piano's tone.

The Artist Pianos Experience

Factory Authorized

Artist Pianos is proud to have earned the exclusive designation of Authorized Steinway Dealer. Only though hard work and unwavering commitment to customer satisfaction does a dealership demonstrate they are ready to represent the finest pianos in the world and the STEINWAY & SONS brand. From the family room to the classroom to the concert stage, Artist Pianos serves every facet of the piano community in upstate New York with the professionalism you can expect …more

Reputation

Ask an area Piano Teacher, Piano Technician, School Music Director, College Music Faculty, Concert Venue Director, or one of our many thousands of past customers about Artist Pianos and you will likely find that Artist Pianos is well known and well regarded. Piano Teachers know they can refer students to us with confidence, because we only sell quality instruments and long after a purchase is made, we are there to offer service, support and guidance.

Community Support

Each year, our staff members host student piano recitals for area teachers, support and participate in fundraisers, and host meetings with area Music Teacher Organizations and the Piano Technicians Guild. We take an active interest in the local music community. Have you seen a piano concert lately? If so, it is likely that you've seen our pianos. Year after year, we provide world-class instruments to area venues and music festivals so artists from near and far can inspire our …more

Expertise

Our lead staff members are industry professionals with a minimum of 20 years experience each! Their extensive backgrounds in consultation, education and technical service provide our clients with unique perspectives that go far beyond a piano's age and price and really match the right piano to each client's lifestyle and goals. Our concert-services technicians serve some of the most prestigious area concert venues and schools, so not only do they know how to maintain pianos …more

Upgrade Guarantee

As your needs change, Artist Pianos makes it easy to upgrade. New and used acoustic pianos receive a 10-year guarantee to apply the full purchase price of your first piano toward a second piano that is at least double the first piano's price. Our digital pianos have the same protection for 3 years. Your investment is protected at Artist Pianos and because we are the area's authorized STEINWAY & SONS dealer, you can upgrade to the finest pianos …more

The Steinway Promise

The Steinway Promise is a unique document from STEINWAY & SONS that assures the value of your Boston or Essex piano. The promise is: If at any time within ten years of the date of this certificate you decide to trade your Steinway designed Boston or Essex piano for a new Steinway & Sons grand piano, you will receive an allowance equal to the full purchase price of your trade in piano. No other manufacturer provides such a guarantee of value.

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