Buying a piano is one of the most wonderful things you can do to enhance your progress in music. Piano is well known as a springboard instrument--in Jazz as well as orchestral music, piano is the fundamental home to direct the other instruments in the band.
Electronic Pianos can be awful or fantastic. But because an electric piano is essentially a computer, a newer electric piano will always trump an older electric piano. Because of the jump in audio sample quality in the last few years, a new electric piano selling for $700 at Costco, Guitar Center, or Brookdale Music probably sounds much better than an older electric piano selling on Craigslist for $1000.
A real piano of any kind has 88 fully weighted keys. Any other number of keys means that it is not a piano, but a TOY. If you are interested in learning piano, do not buy a keyboard with any less than 88 keys, because you will be forced to upgrade the instrument later on!!
The big plusses of electronic pianos are that they can talk to your computer and that you are not limited to just piano sounds. Once again, it is far better to purchase the newest electric piano possible.
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new upright piano costs from $3000-$5000. A good, used upright will
cost about $1200-$2500. Spinet pianos are a short type of piano that
is no longer manufactured, however, there are many good used spinets
out there in the $300-$800 range. I DO NOT recommend buying pianos more
than 50 years old unless they have been meticulously maintained, which
is only about 1 percent. Free pianos are usually 100 year old uprights
that have been trashed beyond repair--this type of piano can only be
given away because the sound is horrible.
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new grand piano can cost anywhere from $25,000 on up. Used grand pianos
vary drastically, so if you plan on investing in one, plan on having
your piano technician check it out first.
I do not recommend buying a baby grand. A baby grand is the inside parts of an upright piano stuffed into the shell of a small grand piano. Since a normal grand piano is 5'3", go for that instead of a baby grand.
When buying a used upright or spinet, check to make sure that the soundboard has no cracks or warps. The soundboard is the giant board underneath a detachable panel that rests just above the piano's pedals. Look inside the piano by the strings to make sure there strings are not broken. Don't buy a piano with rust or water damage if you can help it. Always buy a piano based on sound. If it sounds bad, it probably is bad. Many people who sell pianos list it as untuned, but I don't feel it is too much to ask someone who is selling a piano to get it tuned first. Beware garage-kept pianos, because all pianos are very sensitive to dampness changes and can be ruined by one winter or summer in a garage.
A piano kept high and dry with no soundboard damage and unrusted strings and keys intact will work out fine. Keep your piano in good shape by getting it tuned twice a year by a professional tuner--this will keep your piano in wonderful shape and costs less than $100 per tuning.
Call your local University's music department. Larger universities (like Roosevelt, my alma mater) sell off their "old" pianos in yearly unadvertised piano sales. Much like cars, pianos come down in price once they are used.
The best, most trusted, reputable piano dealer in the Chicago area:
Costco or Sam's Club, based on seasonality
Mark Kiser (630) 910-1960
Sad but true: when people move, they are often forced to leave pianos behind. If you are in the market for a piano, ask around: someone might be selling an instrument on the cheap. Pianos are heavy, bulky instruments. It takes three strong men to move one properly. Moving a piano has almost always cost me about $200-300. Sometimes, people will be willing to give you a piano for the cost of moving it!
Also, check these sites on the web for affordable pianos:
Imagine buying a piano and putting money down and then mysteriously, the piano never shows up! For instance, the now defunct Piano Experts store in Naperville allegedly sold pianos that it never delivered: meaning, the victims purchased or financed instruments that never arrived, but the CEOs of the company masqueraded as several music corporations in order to scam innocent people. Make sure that you buy a piano from a reputable dealer: Google their name and do research before making the purchase or providing your information.