If a tech were to evaluate that Petrof, I'm sure they would have given me a shopping list of things it needed, and had I done such repairs, it probably would have been a much better instrument. The seller was asking $1200 for it but I ended up getting it for $700 (long story). When I upgraded from the rental-house Baldwin, I bought the Petrof upright. Just keep what ever instrument you have playable (even if it's barely playable) and save for a future upgrade. But also, don't spend $900 on that Baldwin either. No, don't spend $900 on your current console piano. Oh, whoops, I forgot the other part of your question. After that I upgraded to a Petrof upright, and then to my current Yamaha grand after we bought our house. I played the Baldwin for about a year and a half.
Baldwin digital piano 20 years old full#
So it certainly wasn't at its full potential as an instrument, but it was great for my needs, which were basically to have an acoustic instrument and be able to play on it until I could get something better. That Baldwin probably needed a ton of work done on it, but I spent zero money on it beyond tuning. I bet I have a video of it somewhere.Īnyway, that piano was an in-between instrument for me (we had moved, and the piano came with our rental house, I hadn't had an acoustic piano for a few years and had only had a digital). When I became its caretaker, it hadn't been tuned in a long time, so I had it tuned and it tuned up very well. I had a Baldwin Hamilton 243 for a while, they are good pianos. Is it possible you could get it and do no work on it, just play it for a few years before another, more significant upgrade? Have you played the 243 yet? If it plays better than your current piano, I would say take it. I'd like to ensure that work sets me up with a decent piano for the next several years.
Baldwin digital piano 20 years old upgrade#
Is the 243 a decent upgrade over the little Baldwin spinet, or am I just wasting effort? I am assuming that the 243 is going to need a similar amount of work as the spinet, so I'm probably spending $900-$1000 on technician work either way. I don't have the space for a grand at this time, so an upright it is. I have a truck and the dolly I built to move my current upright, so I can get it home safely. I have the opportunity to pick up a similar vintage Baldwin Hamilton 243 upright studio piano for next to nothing. My kids love the piano too, and as soon as things get back to some level or "normal" we will start them in lessons (my lessons moved from in-person to Facetime in March, its better than nothing but just not the same).Īnyway. I'm concerned about spending $900 on a piano and being disappointed with the results, or completely outgrowing it in the next year or two as my lesson pieces get more complex. My other piano is a Yamaha P515 digital, and it feels completely different (much heavier, better repetition speed, etc). At the end of the day, its still a drop action piano and I'm hitting the point that I notice things about it that I don't like. I have no issue spending the money, but I do worry about throwing good money after bad. https:/ / / ECNkXwLotJjpKFrU6Īfter its last tuning, the piano technician quoted me $900 to pull the action, do all the work, and regulate and voice it. (I think the action may not be re-setting consistently on a few keys). Sometimes I'll hit a key and get nothing. The hammers are grooved and could use some attention. They make noise and I even noticed a couple have deeper cracks in them. The rubber grommets that attach the keys to the drop links are all ozone crazed and hard and need to be replaced. It sounds decent in my living room, but the action is old and needs some help. It is 40" tall, but it has a spinet style drop action. I have a little Baldwin console piano from I believe 1979. I've been lurking (reading and learning) for some time, but this is my first post.