Buying A Piano from teVelde Music

teVelde Music, Inc., now carries a wide variety of Spinet and Console sized pianos to fit any budget. We have pianos priced for new students from $600 & Up. All pianos come with a 3 year warranty, and the first tuning is half price! (Only $30!) For more information, click here.

When looking for a piano, the most important thing is to find one that fits with your family's needs. Hopefully, you will have this instrument for many years to come, so look at this purchase from a long term perspective.

1. What Size is Best?
   1. Spinet
   2. Console
   3. Upright, Upright Grand
   4. Baby Grand, 4'11" to 5'6"
   5. Grand, 5'7" to 6'1"
   6. Concert Grand, 6'2" to 9'
   7. Digital Pianos
   8. Keyboards
2. Where to Look for an Affordable New/Used Piano
3. Where to Look for an Inexpensive Used Piano
4. How to Evaluate a New Piano
5. How to Evaluate a Used Piano
6. The Bottom Line
7. Where to Find a Great Tuner & Repair Technician
8. Where to Find a Qualified Piano Mover

What Size is Best?

In general, the best size is the largest piano you can fit into your home. In general, the larger the piano, the better and more rich the sound it will make. This is not always the case, and there are certainly smaller pianos that have a beautiful sound, but the longer the strings are, the more chance you will have to get a sound that has great range and depth! You should put the piano on an inside wall, away from direct sun and large temperature variations. This is because the more the piano expands and contracts with temperature variations, the faster it will go out of tune. Direct sunlight can also damage the finish on your piano. Although a spinet, console, and upright grand all take about the same amount of floor space in a room, 2' deep by 5' wide, the difference between them is the height of the back. This height, in turn, determines how long the bass strings are, and how the action inside of the piano works. These differences can really change the feel and the sound of the instrument.

Another factor in determining the best size for your needs is to look at who will be using it. If the main pianist in your home is a quiet person who is mainly playing for their own enjoyment, a quiet room or a bedroom is a great option. This way, the pianist won't have to worry about being distracted by a TV set, or be embarrassed to practice in front of other family members or company. This would probably require a smaller piano that fits on a wall. These pianos are about the size of a dresser, and will fit in most bedrooms. On the other hand, if your pianist is a ham, and loves to play for the family, a grand piano in the middle of the living or family room may be the best choice. Just make sure you are willing to sacrifice a TV show or two when the pianist decides to entertain you. Many performer personalities are also spontaneous, and if you relegate practice times to only a set schedule based on TV shows or movies being on, they may lose their desire to want to play at all. It's important to remember that they are not being rude, just enthusiastic. A few negative comments can take away all the student's desire to play.

Spinet:

If you find that you have a limited amount of vertical space in your home, or have determined that the best place for the piano is in a bedroom, the smallest acoustic pianos are classified as "spinet" pianos. When they are up against a wall, a spinet piano seems a lot smaller because they are no more than 36-40" tall. The floor dimensions of a spinet piano itself is about 2' deep by 5' wide. Since these pianos have the shortest bass strings, and smaller cases to resonate sound, these pianos tend to have the smallest sound. For some environments this is actually a plus, as in apartment or more crowded living conditions, it may be better to have a little less volume. These pianos are also the lightest of all acoustic pianos, which makes them an obvious good choice if you have to put the piano on a second floor, or up a staircase. Make no mistake, though. In my opinion, a good spinet piano is, by far, better than a keyboard in every situation that involves playing and learning piano.

Console:

A console piano has the same floor footprint (2' deep by 5' wide) as a spinet, but it is 4-8" taller. It's strings are a little longer, and the case a little larger, giving this size piano a great mix of good tone with a small size. This size of piano is my personal favorite, when it comes to the style of piano that fits on a wall. The action of a console piano is set up very similarly to an upright grand, so you get the better touch and feel of an upright, while you avoid the extra weight and size.

There are several consoles that are really good, but, in my opinion, the very best one is a "Baldwin Acrosonic". Look for one that was manufactured between 1950-1960. For some reason, acrosonics made in this time period have the most incredible sound. They can look a little different, because they have a deeper case, but they sound amazing... and will last for 100+ years. You will always get your money back when you sell one. A good acrosonic, made between 1950-1960 will run you between $12-1600, but if it's in good condition, it's worth it. If you find one for less, buy it. (Only the ones made between 1950-1960 are the really special ones. If they are newer, judge them like you would judge any other spinet or console piano.)

Upright Grand

An upright grand is exactly what it's name implies. A piano with strings as long as the strings on a grand piano, and a large case to resonate the sound those strings create. The sound of these pianos can be truly amazing! They can have an incredible amount of power and depth, and be wonderful to play. On the other hand, they are incredibly heavy and difficult to move. The footprint is the same as a spinet or console, about 2" deep and 5" wide. The difference is that the height is 50" or taller. This can create a large visual impression, especially if you are working with small spaces.

Baby Grand

If you have limited wall space in your home, a really good option is to go for a baby grand. They actually take up a lot less space that one might think. A typical baby grand piano measures 4'11" to 5'6" deep x 4'7" wide x 4'4" tall when open. Besides the elegant, artistic look that all grand pianos add to a room, they create a beautiful sound for all to enjoy.

A small baby grand can be put in the middle of a room, or into a corner, and actually not take up more space than a small dining room table and chairs. You also get the benefit of a very artistic and functional piece of furniture, and make your student/musician feel like they are the center of attention.

Again, as with upright pianos, the larger the size, the longer the bass strings... and the better the tone quality and sound. Because the "clamshell" design opens to several heights, the piano can be made both soft and loud.

Parlor, Music Room, Medium, or Studio Grand

These pianos vary in size from 5'7" to 6'1" deep x 4'7" wide x 4'4" tall when open. They are a wonderful combination of large enough bass strings for a wonderful, deep tone, and the right sized case for wonderful high tones. These pianos are definitely made for a larger space, as their sound is powerful and can really fill a room. In my opinion, the best piano for a student to learn on throughout their musical education is the largest piano you can afford, as well as fit into your ideal practice space. If you can find a way to get your student a grand piano, the student would be very fortunate!

Concert Grand

These pianos are the biggest and the best of all pianos. They range in size from 6'2" to 9' deep x 4'7" wide x 4'4" tall when open. They need a very large space or a concert hall to truly show off their amazingly powerful sound. I dream that some day I will have the opportunity to have one of these pianos in my home. Some day... sigh...

Digital Pianos

A digital piano is basically an electronic version of an acoustic piano. They usually have "weighted action" (which is a must, so make sure this is the case), and 88 keys (another absolute requirement). There are new models of digital pianos that have amazing sound samples for each note, and the touch is almost identical to a good acoustic piano. Digital pianos can be a great solution for situations in which an acoustic piano simply will not fit. You will not gain any extra space width wise, but you will get about 6" less depth Many digital pianos are less than 12" deep, which makes them a perfect option for a small bedroom. They also have the option to plug in headphones, which makes them ideal for apartment or low noise situations. Make sure that the digital piano is securely placed on a stand, with a good bench that is adjusted for the correct height in relation to the piano.

It should be noted, however, that once a student is past the "Intermediate" level (Level 3 or higher, which is anywhere between year 1 to 5 of study, depending on the student), a digital piano is simply not substantial enough to practice on.

Keyboards

There are too many electronic keyboards available to give any kind of accurate feedback on this option. If you feel that an electronic keyboard is something you are considering, either because of price or size, and you have the option of considering a Digital Piano too, I would choose the digital piano first. That being said, there are some keyboards out there that are worth trying if you need a portable option. Make sure your keyboard has both of the following features, or it will be absolutely useless as a practice instrument:

1. Weighted Action (this makes the keys heavy enough to support the weight of both the hand and the arm). This is an absolute must! Don't be fooled by the words "touch sensitivity". Touch sensitivity is not weighted action. Keyboards with weighted action will, however, be touch sensitive, as well.
2. 88 Keys (without 88 keys, the student will not be able to play all of the songs that a beginning/intermediate pianist needs to learn). Usually keyboards with weighted action also have 88 keys, but there may be an exception to that rule that I'm not aware of.

Where to Look for an Amazing New or Affordable Used Piano

teVelde Music now carries a wide variety of spinet and console sized pianos. If you would like to save yourself the time, cost, and hassle of looking for a used piano, only to get it home and find out you have just brought home an incredibly heavy set of problems, I now have a team of people assembled to find the best pianos out there. We check the ads daily, get a thorough history on the piano, go out and play each piano rigorously, test all of the keys and the harmonics between the notes, and have a master technician check them out for major problems. If the piano is one that we know we can warranty for you, for at least 3 years, we buy it. Our delivery team brings the pianos to our showroom, where we make fine adjustments and tune them up, so that they play like they did when they were new. We clean and polish them up, and price them to sell. Most of our pianos are between $600-1000, and come with a 3 year warranty, and the first tuning for half price ($40). We want you to have a piano that's ready to play when you get it home. (The first tuning should be done after the piano is in its new home for at least 3 months, so it can get used to the temperature and humidity in the new environment.

The best local piano master technician is Jimmy Enos. He personally checks out every piano I buy. If you have already found a piano you are considering buying, it is worth it to pay him $80-100 to come out and check it out. He will also tune your new piano for $85. (It may be more depending on where you live.) His phone number is: (805) 347-4420, daytime pager (805) 780-2122.

To get an idea of which pianos are out there, you can start by visiting a local piano dealer like Owens Music in SLO or Santa Maria. There is also a new piano outlet in Nipomo. The Piano Outlet is a good store for buying new pianos, and Owens Music has also been around for a long time and has a great reputation for selling new pianos. (Many of our used pianos still have the original price tags from Owens Music on them, and look like they are right off the showroom floor.) On your first trip to a piano store, look around carefully, and play a lot of the pianos. You will get a good feel for the size and touch you prefer in a piano, as well as the look and finish you may want to consider. I would not buy a piano at this stage, however, no matter how great the "deal" they may offer you.

After getting an idea of what size and type of piano you may want, give me a call or email me. I will talk to you about your needs, and the kind of piano you prefer, and help you find exactly the piano you are looking for. If you have found a piano that you think might fit your needs, I can ask Jimmy Enos to go out and evaluate it for you, and let you know if it's really as good of a deal as it seems. This can save you hundreds on repairs, delivery, and tunings on a piano that is less than it seems. Even though I have bought many pianos, and have played for over 40 years, I still call Jimmy when I am considering a piano because I don't know all of the details that could go wrong. I have learned the hard way that every piano has it's own history. Because pianos are made of wood, they all age in a different way. They are affected by temperature, humidity, the amount and type of playing that is done on them, and a hundred other factors.

You can also look on Craig's List and eBay, although if you are searching on eBay, make sure to limit the range of your search to under 100 miles. (You don't want to have to pay to move a piano further than that.)

Here are a few tips to get the best buying experience for a new piano:

1. First of all... unless you are a virtuoso pianist, and have between $30-100,000 to spend on a concert grand, there is no need to buy a new piano. My advice is to contact a piano expert, like myself or Jimmy Enos, to help you find a slightly used piano that fits your needs. There are absolutely beautiful pianos available that were purchased brand new as decor for a home or hotel, and then never played. (As an example, I just sold a beautiful piano to a student that was purchased new by a senior citizen, only 10 years ago for over $4500, and never played. It was absolutely brand new inside and outside... from the flawless finish, to the shining new strings, it still had the price tag from Owens on the back. I sold it to my student for $1000, plus moving and tuning, and gave her a 3 year warranty.)
2. I can work with you to find you the perfect piano for your needs, practically new or lightly used. In most cases, a slightly used piano will give you a wonderful instrument at 1/3 the cost of a new piano. I will not only help you find the best piano for your money, but make sure your new piano is delivered, set up correctly, and tuned up to pitch. I will warrantee your piano for 3 years, and help you set up a maintenance plan to maintain your piano and keep it in great shape.
3. Keep in mind that every piano brand and model has a different sound. Inside of various brands and makes, each piano can have it's own feel and particular sound. (Some are deeper, some are brighter, some are heavier to the touch, and others are very light. Some are better for young beginners, while advanced pianists may want additional qualities.) I will work with you to help you determine what qualities you want in a piano, and which brands will give you what you are looking for.
4. If you want to start out with a used piano, and see if your student will stick with lessons for the long haul, I can find you a great "starter" piano. When your student excels at playing, and reaches the next level, it can be very motivating for them to get a "new" piano. I will work with you to trade in your used piano for a better one.
5. If you decide to look at pianos on Craig's List, bring a friend who plays piano, well, with you to play it(if you don't play yourself). Have your friend run through a few fast songs, slow songs, and have them play loudly and softly. Listen to the tones of the different pianos and get a sense of what your personal taste is. Personal taste can vary widely. No one should tell you what your personal taste "should" be. Don't be influenced by the seller, who may tell you that the piano is worth a lot because they paid a lot for it, or someone who came over last month to play it said it was a really great piano. They all have some kind of a story, but unless you have a technician check it out, you just don't have enough information to buy it. It just costs too much to have them tuned and delivered to make a mistake.
6. If you buy a piano on your own, make sure you know how much delivery and tuning is going to cost. A base price for delivery is usually between $125-200 for a spinet or console piano, if there are no stairs, and it only has to be moved 20 miles or less. If its an upright, baby grand, or grand, you have any stairs, or it is over 20 miles, it will be substantially more. Tuning will cost you at least $85, and if the piano hasn't been tuned in over a year, it will probably have to be tuned in stages, at least twice, doubling the cost of tuning. If you buy on Craig's List or from a private party, be aware that there is no warranty. Piano repairs are costly, and there are a lot of small parts that need fine adjustments on a regular basis. If the piano isn't in absolutely excellent shape, it will cost you.

How To Evaluate A Used Piano

There are several things you can do to find out if the piano you are considering is sound. Before I start, however, I would highly suggest you read the previous paragraph about buying a new piano, because the principles are the same. I don't ever buy a piano without consulting a piano technician, that checks it out, in advance, for me. (In my case, Jimmy Enos (805) 347-4420, daytime pager (805) 780-2122.) If you would like to narrow down choices and look at some used pianos on your own, here are a few more tips:

1. Hit every key on the piano, black and white, as hard as you can. (You can hit them very hard without hurting them, if the piano is in good shape.) You should not hear any buzzing, clicking, clanking, or any other strange sound. Each key should feel the same as the one next to it, and they should sound equally loud.
2. Put your face at key level, and make sure all of the keys are even in height. The keys should not have any chips or cracks. The black keys should be firmly attached, and look even from side to side. Wiggle them to make sure they don't come off. These problems are not deal breakers, but you should adjust the amount you are willing to pay for the piano.
3. Open up the back of the piano, and look inside. Feel the pins that the strings are attached to, and make sure none of them are loose. Play some keys on the piano, while you are looking into the open back. The hammers should hit the strings quickly, and not get stuck.
4. Make sure you don't smell cigarette smoke inside the back. The piano could have been in a smoker's house, and when the pads absorb the smoke, there is no way to get the smell back out. If the piano is in a house with a smoker, I would leave it there.
5. Check to see if the last person who tuned the piano signed their name. It should be there somewhere inside the back, in pencil. If it's been over 2 years, it will be more expensive to tune the piano, and it will probably have to be tuned in stages, at least twice. Take $100 off the price if this is the case.
6. Look at all of the wood on the piano, especially any wood around the strings. On a grand or baby grand, crawl under the piano and look at the wood underneath. There should be absolutely no cracks. There are sneaky repair people who take silicone and try to repair sound board cracks, but these solutions rarely work. The result is a buzzing sound... usually on one or more notes in the lower register. It is especially important to listen for any kind of buzzing sound when you hit the keys hard.
7. If you think you have found a good piano, have an advanced pianist come with you to play the piano. There are harmonic problems that can't be heard until the piano is played fully. Have your pianist run through chromatic scales, from the bottom of the piano to the top, and play fast and slow passages, at all volume levels. Make sure you have them check that the pedals are working correctly, and that they don't squeak.
8. When you have narrowed down your choices, and think you have found "the one", it is always worth it to have an experiences piano technician come out and look at it for you. For the cost of $80, you can avoid costly mistakes.
9. To those of you who are tempted by buying a "refinishing project" piano, my advice is: Don't do it!!! There are so many more issues to refurbishing/finishing a piano than the wood on the outside. This can easily become the most expensive project you've ever done, and in the end, it is usually simply not worth it unless you plan on keeping the piano in your family for generations.
10. To those of you who are romanticizing the idea of buying a "player" piano... again, I say: Don't do it!!! If you want to actually play the piano, the action on a player piano is not the same as a regular piano, and it is very difficult to remove the additional parts.

The Bottom Line

There is a blue book valuing system for pianos. You can check this website: Bluebook of Pianos to find out the value of most used pianos. They have a lot of useful information on how to figure out which brand and model you are looking at, and what it might be worth. As with used cars, every piano is different based on the previous owners, the amount of use, and how it has been moved and stored in the past. Get a thorough history on the piano, and write down the year of manufacture (should be inside the piano on the sound board somewhere), and the serial number. This is information you check in the bluebook to find the starting value.

Tuning and Repair

There are several local people who tune, adjust, and repair pianos. If you are looking for a great tuner, Jimmy Enos is wonderful. He uses an electronic tuner, and then goes on to tune the piano the rest of the way by ear. I have found that this system of tuning a piano far exceeds the results achieved by some piano tuners, who really don't play piano well, and try to get the job done with an electronic tuner alone. As a side note, Jimmy is one of the most incredible pianists, anywhere, so make sure your family is home when he comes to tune the piano!

Here is their contact information:

Jim Enos: (805) 347-4420, daytime pager (805) 780-2122. You can also e-mail him at: jenospiano@verizon.net. He charges $80-95 for tuning. Please tell him Bonnie teVelde sent you to get a 5% discount on your tuning services.

Piano Movers

There are two companies that we recommend to do the job right, the first time. These people will make sure your piano arrives undamaged.

teVelde Piano Movers: 805-543-1064

We are always either picking up or delivering pianos for customers. If we are going to be in your neighborhood on a particular weekend, we may be able to move a piano for you. We move spinets and consoles only. We do the job right, every time, period.

Louies Piano Movers: 805-925-7923

These guys are a bit more expensive, but for large grands and uprights, these guys have the heavy equipment they need to get the job done without any damage to a very valuable instrument.

Spisak and Sons: 805-772-2517

Piano moving can cost as little as $150, for a small spinet that doesn't have to be moved up or down stairs. It can go as high as $350, plus mileage, for a grand that has to be moved up multiple stairs, or a long distance. Let them know you were referred by Bonnie teVelde when you call.

To e-mail us for more information on buying pianos or other instruments: click on this link