You should try staring into our souls while you play as well. I'm stoked to see this video. I bought a 1980 U3X. It sets at the bottom of the open staircase in my old farm house and it is LOUD. But who cares? Everyone should suffer along with me as I learn to bang out the right notes.
I work on a lot of these in my area of the UK. They are a good solid professional instrument. Harsh in the upper bichords, a common Yamaha trait. Fine pianists of a certain age will complain that they have no "soul." But younger musicians like their consistency. What I like is Yamaha's spares service. If you order a bass string for a model still in production, it comes cut to the correct length, as if plucked from the factory floor. (You might have to wait a few days if it has to come from Germany, their main supply centre.) So when you wind it on the coil is perfectly the same as those around it. Even after 40 years that's hard to achieve measuring with finger widths. For overall quality, I always use the Ford Mondeo analogy: Sorry if that's a bit dated. It will take you everywhere a BMW will take you for half the price. The U3s are heavier instruments. I think the U1s are like the English pianos I encountered 40 years ago,then 20 or 30 years old, when I was new to the trade,: slender and lean, like the Challens, Collards etc. The U3s are more like the German pianos prior to WW1. Heavier, more ponderous action, and more powerful bass. I'll finish the Jack D and go to bed.
I'm one of those people that have said they have no soul haha, but I am warming to them (no pun intended) now as they do make good workhorses, and if they have a heavier action great for strength, the sound is with you and not far away trapped in a box, and I do trust Yamaha - you know what you're getting so they make a good reference point of what a modern piano should sound like. I think the no-soul thing is just a preference for that older, warmer, "tired" sound that some (like myself) prefer, but after spending time playing on U1 and U3 in the shop I work in, I'm starting to learn why they're so popular.
I owned the no longer made (but still available used) U2 for many years while I was still a student. Yamaha is probably the sturdiest piano on the market, U1 and U3 are nice and almost identical. The latest series are better than elder ones, and I'd take this into account if buying a pre-owned one. My U2 was from the 70s, coming from a "gray market" that's unfortunately diffused here in EU selling fake reconditioned pianos at unreasonable high prices. I was lucky because my U2 was in very nice conditions considering he already was 25 y.o. when I purchased it. I loved and hated it at the same time and eventually sold it at the same price I purchased it 10 years before. So it's a quite stable investment if you provide the needed maintenance to preserve it efficient. As far as I know the U2 was no longer manufactured at the end of the 80s and some pieces remained available brand new until the first half of the 90s. They discontinued it because they started to build a quite upgraded and re-engineered U3 (series from H) discontinuing the U2 because the cost was almost the same and the U3 it's not so bigger than the U2, so the U2 became a senseless alternative. So you must pay attention to which series you are purchasing because there could be significant differences between U1s and U3s from different era. The current U series has a reasonable price (it's not cheap nor expensive) and it plays very nice as you found in this video, but elder ones could be a little uneven in quality. The action is a lot better than Renner, and if you are a student it's still one of the best upright choices on the market but if you have some more moneys I'd recommend the SU series or to evaluate Kawai with composite action.
I play Jazz and Classic Rock and I find that the Yamaha uprights, and even the spinets, have the best touch. I like the touch even better than most grand pianos. It is very easy to play very fast Jazz and Rock runs. Since I am primarily a Hammond B-3 player, I certainly like a light touch to play my fast ad-lib runs.
I never owned a U1, or even 2 or 3 but played quite often on them. Not that I always love the tone but you can just almost play everything on them. Nice to see - and hear- you play a acoustic piano again. Nice. And on location! Like it. Thank you for sharing and playing!
I got one new around 30 years ago (£3.500). Still have it now (my practice felt is more worn than that one!). Practice felt easily replaced. My piano teacher at the time recommended it. He liked Bechsteins but he felt in value for money terms, the Yamaha was very good. I get it tuned regularly and my tuner says he likes tuning Yamahas. No problems - they just work, which I guess says something about their consistent build quality.
I am currently playing on a rental UI while waiting for my NU1X to arrive. If I didn't have to worry about the loud piano sound, I would keep this one instead of a new NU1X.
Back when I was in school (the 70s) those were the pianos in the public schools, reason: well build for last; they will take the abuse of years of hammering and little maintenance that was what makes the Yamaha piano a favorite
I bought my seventies U1 about 15 years ago. The action is light , even and feels great to play. That's its forte. The only substantial maintenance it has had was to replace a lot of the spring retaining cords on the hammer but flanges a few years ago. This is the shortest piano I have ever owned but also the one with the smoothest action. It sounds just fine but lacks the richness of a taller piano. It is a great choice for anyone who wants a reliable and durable instrument and doesn't mind a bit of compromise on the tuning scale.
Yep, those cotton cords tend to fail, it's a bit of a design flaw to say the least. Kawai used nylon cords which never really failed. Hopefully Yamaha does now, too, but in the grand scheme of piano problems it's a relatively minor issue.
Thanks James! I am glad you made that comment that the yamaha sound isn't for everyone - usually I don't like the yamaha sounds so much, but thought it was just me as they are so popular 😂 This one sounds pleasant though, so perhaps it is just the digital ones. Loved the Clair de Lune!
I've got a U3 in a home studio. Hard to beat a U1 or U3 in that setting. The bass on the U3 is a bit richer and compares well against smaller grand pianos.
Years ago I had a 1969 Yamaha P2B beautiful sound ... my old piano tuner compaired it to a baby grand ... they hit the US market with a quality product. Baldwin had the U S market at that time but with the cheeper home models had let the quality fall. The early Yamaha's were the bomb... Now my tastes have changed and I play a Knabe parlor grarnd. Memories
I find it interesting that Yamaha has this special "ingredient" that many people identify with. It's just not describable. It's just something that works for so many. And it goes from their lowest models to highest models, even if the qualities of the pianos are different and it seems older to newer, though some people only like their newer models due to changes Yamaha made in the tone. However, there are anti-Yamaha people that know Yamaha is one of the biggest players in the piano industry, along with Steinway, and are not fans of Yamaha at all. Some, at every chance, will state how other pianos are better than Yamaha's U1 and U3 or C or CX models. Maybe some are, at least better values. But Yamahas have withstood the test of time and continue to perform well and last a long, long time. And they are constantly being improved while the quality hasn't gone down. The U1 is still the standard where every other upright is judged by.
The first song you played for your testing that you use in quite a few videos is so amazing and I've seen a lot of people like it. I think people would really appreciate sharing the sheet music ( I know I would😊)
At first, I thought you were talking about Haburu, then I thought, no, Vinheteiro. Then I remembered, his black upright is a player piano. Can anyone tell me what other YT presenter uses a U1 that has the emblem covered? As for the logo being covered, I think it's to protect copyright infringement. YT, and various foreign countries, have some odd rules.
The U1 really is a great instrument. I almost replaced my Kawai K200 for one but realized that I would not gain much in terms of dynamic range and I like Kawai's tone better. I had the opportunity to test Yamaha's and Kawai's side by side and I think they are very similar in terms of quality, but I personally prefer Kawai. I would like to hear your thoughts on a comparison between these two popular brands. You did a very nice review of the U1, but the one thing I missed was how that instrument compares to other options in a similar price range.
I once had a chance to review two eerily similar upright pianos - one from Yamaha and one from Kawai. They looked nearly the same but I never got the chance to do the video for a couple reasons, one being that one was out of tune and the other wasn't, making it an unfair comparison.
I own a nearly 15 year old Kawai K-2. I would never replace it unless I was able to finally buy a grand! I play on a Yamaha saxophone, trumpet, guitar, and melodica, but the warmth and tonal colors of the K-2 just push it way farther than the Yamaha. I just had mine tuned a few weeks ago, and it has this awesome bell-like tone on the attack in the mid range keys.
Great video! Yamaha makes great instruments. My saxophone, guitar, trumpet, melodica, and stage piano are all from them. Though my upright piano, is a Kawai K-2! You're totally right in saying that the Yamaha tone isn't for everyone, and while I like Yamaha's grand pianos, their uprights just don't do it for me. The Kawai has such a warm sound for an upright, and the carbon fiber hybrid action has helped it stay in tune for longer than it has any right to be. Nearly 15 years ago I chose the Kawai K-2 over the Yamaha U-1 and I've been happy ever since. I'm pretty sure they've upgraded the K series since then. If you get the chance, I'd love to see you take a look at the Kawai K series.
The Kawai upright is a wonderful piano. I may like it better than the Yamaha in some ways. The thing is, the U1 has this extremely strong following and I think that's what James is getting at. What makes it the most popular? The answer is its great all roundedness and sturdy build. But there's something else too, some X factor, that makes it so. That's the hard part to answer. There's really very few pianos, including from Kawai, that have this quality. At one point, maybe the Baldwin uprights came close.
Treble good not perfect. Mid range excellent. Bass outstanding. This is a great upright piano for a thrifty price if you if you can find one in such great condition. Goodluck and God speed you are going to need that. Thank you shawcross you rock .
Always love U1! Personally my ears will ring when playing uprights higher than 120cm without using practice pedal, that’s why I’m not very enjoying U3 for example, though it’s said that a taller upright will have a better sound. However, personally speaking, U1 has got a unique sound suitable for baroque and jazz, and the sound can be easily recognized. Though I haven’t touched a U1 for years, my previous experience with a U1 was unforgettable. Yamaha has also sampled the U1 for their digital pianos like the CP88, and I have to say that sample was also gorgeous. The only thing I hope for Yamaha to improve U1 is to use a ivory-like material for the white keys and ebony for black keys, that will make playing U1 a lot more enjoyable. (by the way the action of U1, if maintained accordingly, is very responsive, which gives U1 a dynamic sound)
I always make the comparison of the upright to a good school horse. We didnt always like them but they were great teachers. Although for so many , the big upright WAS the first piano in their lives , while learning at Mom and Dads back in the day . . Verticals are still a hard sell to some musicians. I respect that, and its in the action that always seems to be their point. But these Yamahas come awfully close to the conventional grand piano. If space is the big player and you want a real acoustic with the big sound, one still should look at these and try it out.
I bought a 1976 U1 about a month ago, the higher notes are really let’s say too sharp, any way to fix this problem ? Would voicing it fix the problem ?
Can you do a review on upright low cost russian pianos? Just to understand what's your vision on the way they are built and sound. I have a Strausser, a brand I could find absolutely nothing online, but it sound great still - ressembles this U1. Thanks!
@@ThePianoforever I have no idea, I am from Portugal and bought one being selled by a music store as used with 15 years old in perfect conditions. It sounds really good. I don't know if in the US you can find european pianos to try, if so it would be nice to hear you talk about them. Thanks for your videos, I've learned a lot from you and you play wonderfully.
Can u compare this to a price equivalent pearl river? I feel a pearl river would outperform this u1 by a fair bit, I personally have a pearl river UP120s I really want to know of some similar sounding pianos.
I think the Yamaha would outperform and outlast a Pearl River to be honest. Some of the high end Pearl Rivers are getting respectable but I wouldn't expect them to compare well to a Yamaha.
Where I grew up, piano was the instrument of somewhere else. I was raised in a very working class industrial area littered with weapons manufacturers, oil refineries and lots of government housing. My brother took piano lessons and I took violin lessons. My violin cost around $300, the piano was $3,000+. The catch here was that both of my parents played the piano in church. I knew exactly zero kids my age, or my brother's age (6 1/2 years my elder), who played piano. It just wasn't a thing in an area with extremely high divorce rate where nearly 1/2 of us died before we turned 30, in a county with the USA's highest tort cases due to pollution and dangerous industry; people couldn't afford them and the environment wasn't aligned with the piano's catalog of music which tends to NOT be about oppression and coming to school half beat to death by a drunken parent, therefore the reserve of those who had the outlet of a musical church. That said, in my violin experience, I was exposed to SIUE college's newly stocked campus which had a Yamaha grand in every other room and 2 or 3 uprights in every room in between, all together around 40 new Yamaha pianos. Yes, I was spoiled for accompaniment. This was the period from 1977 to 1983. I went back to talk with a previous instructor there in 2000 and, indeed, all of those pianos they had purchased in the late 1970s were still there and they sounded awesome. Hundreds and hundreds of students and 1,000s and 1,000s of recitals and practice hours later and not one of them was ready to retire. I switched to guitar in 1983 at the age of 10. It took me some time to look around and get an idea of what I wanted to play. Eventually, I found a 1991 Yamaha SA1100 hollow body electric in the style of the Gibson 335 and I have never looked back. It is piano black with white binding and it produces such a clean tone across the spectrum. It reminds me of those hundreds of days spend in my youth playing with others accompanying us violinists on Yamahas. Their being somewhat cheaper than other top brands means something, it means that there are 10,000s of former kids like me who got the chance to experience classical and other styles of music that weren't stale 4 chord church songs or mind numbingly depressive bar music. I will always prefer to be in the presence of a Yamaha because I know that Torakusu Yamaha's initial motivation to manufacture instruments, that of bringing a well refined instrument to the masses who did and would NOT otherwise have had access to them, was achieved and still is being achieved. I respect that. $4,700 is a fine price for that upright, even on a 5 year payment plan that makes having a piano a realistic option for those who are interested. Thank you for this overview.
Not quite so nice as the small Kawai grand I used a while ago: Under 6 foot strings don't seem to give real pitches on the bottom few strings... on any piano.👍🏼🤠
Depends on where you are in the world. And cost is always negotiable. Check the piano book from Larry Fine for SMPs. Also, a brand new one, U1Q has a somewhat softer tone with less of the traditional "brightness" that is associated with older Yamahas.
Ah, the memories. Yamaha has such a distinctive sound. I learned on one growing up at the school for the blind here in NZ.
You should try staring into our souls while you play as well.
I'm stoked to see this video. I bought a 1980 U3X. It sets at the bottom of the open staircase in my old farm house and it is LOUD. But who cares? Everyone should suffer along with me as I learn to bang out the right notes.
Thats creepy🎹🎶
I work on a lot of these in my area of the UK. They are a good solid professional instrument. Harsh in the upper bichords, a common Yamaha trait. Fine pianists of a certain age will complain that they have no "soul." But younger musicians like their consistency. What I like is Yamaha's spares service. If you order a bass string for a model still in production, it comes cut to the correct length, as if plucked from the factory floor. (You might have to wait a few days if it has to come from Germany, their main supply centre.) So when you wind it on the coil is perfectly the same as those around it. Even after 40 years that's hard to achieve measuring with finger widths. For overall quality, I always use the Ford Mondeo analogy: Sorry if that's a bit dated. It will take you everywhere a BMW will take you for half the price. The U3s are heavier instruments. I think the U1s are like the English pianos I encountered 40 years ago,then 20 or 30 years old, when I was new to the trade,: slender and lean, like the Challens, Collards etc. The U3s are more like the German pianos prior to WW1. Heavier, more ponderous action, and more powerful bass. I'll finish the Jack D and go to bed.
I'm one of those people that have said they have no soul haha, but I am warming to them (no pun intended) now as they do make good workhorses, and if they have a heavier action great for strength, the sound is with you and not far away trapped in a box, and I do trust Yamaha - you know what you're getting so they make a good reference point of what a modern piano should sound like. I think the no-soul thing is just a preference for that older, warmer, "tired" sound that some (like myself) prefer, but after spending time playing on U1 and U3 in the shop I work in, I'm starting to learn why they're so popular.
I owned the no longer made (but still available used) U2 for many years while I was still a student. Yamaha is probably the sturdiest piano on the market, U1 and U3 are nice and almost identical. The latest series are better than elder ones, and I'd take this into account if buying a pre-owned one.
My U2 was from the 70s, coming from a "gray market" that's unfortunately diffused here in EU selling fake reconditioned pianos at unreasonable high prices. I was lucky because my U2 was in very nice conditions considering he already was 25 y.o. when I purchased it.
I loved and hated it at the same time and eventually sold it at the same price I purchased it 10 years before. So it's a quite stable investment if you provide the needed maintenance to preserve it efficient.
As far as I know the U2 was no longer manufactured at the end of the 80s and some pieces remained available brand new until the first half of the 90s. They discontinued it because they started to build a quite upgraded and re-engineered U3 (series from H) discontinuing the U2 because the cost was almost the same and the U3 it's not so bigger than the U2, so the U2 became a senseless alternative. So you must pay attention to which series you are purchasing because there could be significant differences between U1s and U3s from different era.
The current U series has a reasonable price (it's not cheap nor expensive) and it plays very nice as you found in this video, but elder ones could be a little uneven in quality. The action is a lot better than Renner, and if you are a student it's still one of the best upright choices on the market but if you have some more moneys I'd recommend the SU series or to evaluate Kawai with composite action.
I play Jazz and Classic Rock and I find that the Yamaha uprights, and even the spinets, have the best touch. I like the touch even better than most grand pianos. It is very easy to play very fast Jazz and Rock runs. Since I am primarily a Hammond B-3 player, I certainly like a light touch to play my fast ad-lib runs.
I always enjoy these in the field reviews, have been missing them.
It has been a long time. I missed making the videos to be honest.
I just bought one of these a month ago and am loving it!
That's wonderful!
@@ThePianoforever can you try k800 kawai uprights
Finally a model that I have actually played.
Thank you for making this video.
Love you vids as usual.
I never owned a U1, or even 2 or 3 but played quite often on them. Not that I always love the tone but you can just almost play everything on them. Nice to see - and hear- you play a acoustic piano again. Nice. And on location! Like it. Thank you for sharing and playing!
I got one new around 30 years ago (£3.500). Still have it now (my practice felt is more worn than that one!). Practice felt easily replaced. My piano teacher at the time recommended it. He liked Bechsteins but he felt in value for money terms, the Yamaha was very good.
I get it tuned regularly and my tuner says he likes tuning Yamahas. No problems - they just work, which I guess says something about their consistent build quality.
I am currently playing on a rental UI while waiting for my NU1X to arrive. If I didn't have to worry about the loud piano sound, I would keep this one instead of a new NU1X.
Back when I was in school (the 70s) those were the pianos in the public schools, reason: well build for last; they will take the abuse of years of hammering and little maintenance that was what makes the Yamaha piano a favorite
I was waiting for this ❤️ thank you
I bought my seventies U1 about 15 years ago. The action is light , even and feels great to play. That's its forte. The only substantial maintenance it has had was to replace a lot of the spring retaining cords on the hammer but flanges a few years ago. This is the shortest piano I have ever owned but also the one with the smoothest action. It sounds just fine but lacks the richness of a taller piano. It is a great choice for anyone who wants a reliable and durable instrument and doesn't mind a bit of compromise on the tuning scale.
Yep, those cotton cords tend to fail, it's a bit of a design flaw to say the least. Kawai used nylon cords which never really failed. Hopefully Yamaha does now, too, but in the grand scheme of piano problems it's a relatively minor issue.
@@ThePianoforever “minor” heh. Music pun!
Thanks James! I am glad you made that comment that the yamaha sound isn't for everyone - usually I don't like the yamaha sounds so much, but thought it was just me as they are so popular 😂 This one sounds pleasant though, so perhaps it is just the digital ones. Loved the Clair de Lune!
I get so excited when a new video comes out haha great job my friend!
Thanks for watching!
I've got a U3 in a home studio. Hard to beat a U1 or U3 in that setting. The bass on the U3 is a bit richer and compares well against smaller grand pianos.
The lion kingdom's 1st piano was a U1, 35 years ago. It sounded very much like a grand, but with a lighter action.
Years ago I had a 1969 Yamaha P2B beautiful sound ... my old piano tuner compaired it to a baby grand ... they hit the US market with a quality product. Baldwin had the U S market at that time but with the cheeper home models had let the quality fall. The early Yamaha's were the bomb... Now my tastes have changed and I play a Knabe parlor grarnd. Memories
People say many nice things about Knabe pianos!
I grew up on a Yamaha U3 .... brings back memories
I find it interesting that Yamaha has this special "ingredient" that many people identify with. It's just not describable. It's just something that works for so many. And it goes from their lowest models to highest models, even if the qualities of the pianos are different and it seems older to newer, though some people only like their newer models due to changes Yamaha made in the tone. However, there are anti-Yamaha people that know Yamaha is one of the biggest players in the piano industry, along with Steinway, and are not fans of Yamaha at all. Some, at every chance, will state how other pianos are better than Yamaha's U1 and U3 or C or CX models. Maybe some are, at least better values. But Yamahas have withstood the test of time and continue to perform well and last a long, long time. And they are constantly being improved while the quality hasn't gone down. The U1 is still the standard where every other upright is judged by.
Also you can get used ones from the eighties and nineties at a really good price. Often in very good condition. Kawai does not offer this
Are you talking about Vinheteiro? 😅
I was thinking of him or Haburu. Both use Yamaha.
The first song you played for your testing that you use in quite a few videos is so amazing and I've seen a lot of people like it. I think people would really appreciate sharing the sheet music ( I know I would😊)
Once it is complete I will do so.
@@ThePianoforever oh yes please, i tried to transcribe it but failed, so beautiful, thanks again for tout Always awesome reviews !
I'm currently thinking about buying either a refurbished U1 or brand new K300. Both have similiar price. What do you think?
At first, I thought you were talking about Haburu, then I thought, no, Vinheteiro. Then I remembered, his black upright is a player piano. Can anyone tell me what other YT presenter uses a U1 that has the emblem covered? As for the logo being covered, I think it's to protect copyright infringement. YT, and various foreign countries, have some odd rules.
Great infos! Love the yamaha sound. May i know every songs played? Thankss
It sounds exactly like the U1 I'm playing in my profile picture. I was in high school back then.
you should do a review of the new ALESIS PRESTIGE ARTIST to see if they fixed the bugs of their previous digital piano.
Hadn't heard of that, I'll have to look into it.
The U1 really is a great instrument. I almost replaced my Kawai K200 for one but realized that I would not gain much in terms of dynamic range and I like Kawai's tone better. I had the opportunity to test Yamaha's and Kawai's side by side and I think they are very similar in terms of quality, but I personally prefer Kawai. I would like to hear your thoughts on a comparison between these two popular brands. You did a very nice review of the U1, but the one thing I missed was how that instrument compares to other options in a similar price range.
I once had a chance to review two eerily similar upright pianos - one from Yamaha and one from Kawai. They looked nearly the same but I never got the chance to do the video for a couple reasons, one being that one was out of tune and the other wasn't, making it an unfair comparison.
I own a nearly 15 year old Kawai K-2. I would never replace it unless I was able to finally buy a grand! I play on a Yamaha saxophone, trumpet, guitar, and melodica, but the warmth and tonal colors of the K-2 just push it way farther than the Yamaha.
I just had mine tuned a few weeks ago, and it has this awesome bell-like tone on the attack in the mid range keys.
Great video! Yamaha makes great instruments. My saxophone, guitar, trumpet, melodica, and stage piano are all from them.
Though my upright piano, is a Kawai K-2! You're totally right in saying that the Yamaha tone isn't for everyone, and while I like Yamaha's grand pianos, their uprights just don't do it for me. The Kawai has such a warm sound for an upright, and the carbon fiber hybrid action has helped it stay in tune for longer than it has any right to be. Nearly 15 years ago I chose the Kawai K-2 over the Yamaha U-1 and I've been happy ever since. I'm pretty sure they've upgraded the K series since then. If you get the chance, I'd love to see you take a look at the Kawai K series.
I also have a K-2. How is yours touch? Mine is too heavy (about and over 60 grams), so I plan to weight the keys to 50 grams.
The Kawai upright is a wonderful piano. I may like it better than the Yamaha in some ways. The thing is, the U1 has this extremely strong following and I think that's what James is getting at. What makes it the most popular? The answer is its great all roundedness and sturdy build. But there's something else too, some X factor, that makes it so. That's the hard part to answer. There's really very few pianos, including from Kawai, that have this quality. At one point, maybe the Baldwin uprights came close.
Thanks for this video!. I own a 1976 U3H and it is a wonderful instrument :-)
Awesome!
Treble good not perfect. Mid range excellent. Bass outstanding. This is a great upright piano for a thrifty price if you if you can find one in such great condition. Goodluck and God speed you are going to need that. Thank you shawcross you rock .
Always love U1! Personally my ears will ring when playing uprights higher than 120cm without using practice pedal, that’s why I’m not very enjoying U3 for example, though it’s said that a taller upright will have a better sound. However, personally speaking, U1 has got a unique sound suitable for baroque and jazz, and the sound can be easily recognized. Though I haven’t touched a U1 for years, my previous experience with a U1 was unforgettable. Yamaha has also sampled the U1 for their digital pianos like the CP88, and I have to say that sample was also gorgeous. The only thing I hope for Yamaha to improve U1 is to use a ivory-like material for the white keys and ebony for black keys, that will make playing U1 a lot more enjoyable. (by the way the action of U1, if maintained accordingly, is very responsive, which gives U1 a dynamic sound)
I always make the comparison of the upright to a good school horse. We didnt always like them but they were great teachers. Although for so many , the big upright WAS the first piano in their lives , while learning at Mom and Dads back in the day . . Verticals are still a hard sell to some musicians. I respect that, and its in the action that always seems to be their point. But these Yamahas come awfully close to the conventional grand piano. If space is the big player and you want a real acoustic with the big sound, one still should look at these and try it out.
First comment, I guess? U1 is such a beutiful piano. It is indeed a all-rounder.
I bought a 1976 U1 about a month ago, the higher notes are really let’s say too sharp, any way to fix this problem ? Would voicing it fix the problem ?
Yes, you can soften the tone with intonation.
U1 is beautiful, UX even more beautiful :)
Can you do a review on upright low cost russian pianos? Just to understand what's your vision on the way they are built and sound. I have a Strausser, a brand I could find absolutely nothing online, but it sound great still - ressembles this U1. Thanks!
I have heard interesting things about Russian pianos but never have seen any. Are there any pianos made there today?
@@ThePianoforever I have no idea, I am from Portugal and bought one being selled by a music store as used with 15 years old in perfect conditions. It sounds really good. I don't know if in the US you can find european pianos to try, if so it would be nice to hear you talk about them. Thanks for your videos, I've learned a lot from you and you play wonderfully.
Who is the youtuber you are referring to ? I want to watch his channel
Can you share the sheet music you used to show the sound? Such a beautiful piece
Anyone know who the popular TH-camr he was referring to who plays a U1 in his videos, with the nameplate covered up?
Perhaps Vinheteiro?
What do you do with the practice rail when you tune the piano? How do you get it out of the way?
great informative vid. thanks!
Can u compare this to a price equivalent pearl river? I feel a pearl river would outperform this u1 by a fair bit, I personally have a pearl river UP120s I really want to know of some similar sounding pianos.
I think the Yamaha would outperform and outlast a Pearl River to be honest. Some of the high end Pearl Rivers are getting respectable but I wouldn't expect them to compare well to a Yamaha.
Where I grew up, piano was the instrument of somewhere else. I was raised in a very working class industrial area littered with weapons manufacturers, oil refineries and lots of government housing. My brother took piano lessons and I took violin lessons. My violin cost around $300, the piano was $3,000+. The catch here was that both of my parents played the piano in church. I knew exactly zero kids my age, or my brother's age (6 1/2 years my elder), who played piano. It just wasn't a thing in an area with extremely high divorce rate where nearly 1/2 of us died before we turned 30, in a county with the USA's highest tort cases due to pollution and dangerous industry; people couldn't afford them and the environment wasn't aligned with the piano's catalog of music which tends to NOT be about oppression and coming to school half beat to death by a drunken parent, therefore the reserve of those who had the outlet of a musical church. That said, in my violin experience, I was exposed to SIUE college's newly stocked campus which had a Yamaha grand in every other room and 2 or 3 uprights in every room in between, all together around 40 new Yamaha pianos. Yes, I was spoiled for accompaniment. This was the period from 1977 to 1983. I went back to talk with a previous instructor there in 2000 and, indeed, all of those pianos they had purchased in the late 1970s were still there and they sounded awesome. Hundreds and hundreds of students and 1,000s and 1,000s of recitals and practice hours later and not one of them was ready to retire.
I switched to guitar in 1983 at the age of 10. It took me some time to look around and get an idea of what I wanted to play. Eventually, I found a 1991 Yamaha SA1100 hollow body electric in the style of the Gibson 335 and I have never looked back. It is piano black with white binding and it produces such a clean tone across the spectrum. It reminds me of those hundreds of days spend in my youth playing with others accompanying us violinists on Yamahas. Their being somewhat cheaper than other top brands means something, it means that there are 10,000s of former kids like me who got the chance to experience classical and other styles of music that weren't stale 4 chord church songs or mind numbingly depressive bar music. I will always prefer to be in the presence of a Yamaha because I know that Torakusu Yamaha's initial motivation to manufacture instruments, that of bringing a well refined instrument to the masses who did and would NOT otherwise have had access to them, was achieved and still is being achieved. I respect that. $4,700 is a fine price for that upright, even on a 5 year payment plan that makes having a piano a realistic option for those who are interested. Thank you for this overview.
Hey James!
So, would you recommend this to a beginner/intermediate player over a grand or cheap grand?
A well kept and maintained U series piano would be an excellent choice for a practice instrument.
@@ThePianoforever Thank you!
It's LORD VINHETEIRO!!!!!!!!
I think the TH-camr james was talking about is Traumian.
vinnheitero i think
@@rcporras check out Traumian's channel, it is the Yamaha U1 every time with the open lid.
Not quite so nice as the small Kawai grand I used a while ago: Under 6 foot strings don't seem to give real pitches on the bottom few strings... on any piano.👍🏼🤠
How much does it cost brand new?
Depends on where you are in the world. And cost is always negotiable. Check the piano book from Larry Fine for SMPs. Also, a brand new one, U1Q has a somewhat softer tone with less of the traditional "brightness" that is associated with older Yamahas.
Around 10 000 USD
how about a U2 James ?
I'll be on the lookout!
@@ThePianoforever thank you ! and btw,check out the Casio CTS-1 if you got time !! keep up the good work !
Did you mic the piano?
Yes, we always mic an acoustic piano.
Cool 💯💯💯😎🤘
Best
I want 5:51-5:59 acords its amazing beautiful.
1:11 who’s the TH-camr? Why won’t he shout him out?
You have to guess! :D
Hint, he's Brazilian and had millions of subscribers -- literally!
He often looks at the camera while playing
@@ThePianoforever vinnheitero
Your videos are like crack
FIRST
I’ve never been first to anything in my life, so that’s nice 😂
Now I mamma watch your videos! I like them a lot man!!
why? because the market was flooded with fakes made with cheap parts that fell apart in the USA.