Opinions on Schimmel?
Richard F. Parker
or used. This led to my fist encounter with Schimmel pianos. Frankly,
I was extremely impressed by their 6' model. Tone and action were just
to my liking. The tone was also not as bright as the Yamaha grands but
not as dark as the Steinways I've played. I've also heard very good
things about the brand in general. The pianos I saw and played seemed
to be immaculately constructed. The brand doesn't seem that well known
in the US, although I'm told Schimmel is one of the most common brands
in Europe.
Any other opinions on the Schimmel?
Richard
Rick Clark
>Any other opinions on the Schimmel?
I love them. Germany and Austria consistently make the world's great
pianos, and Schimmel has brought the price down with no sacrifices
that I can detect.
RC
Steve_K
RFP> Any other opinions on the Schimmel?
I played one briefly a few weeks ago and it was indeed lovely.
You might also want to have a look at Seiler, which strikes me as a
similar sort of German piano, and if I recall correctly, they're in the
same price ballpark, if not lower. They have, IIRC, a 5'11 model, and
a 6'9 model, which I actually preferred to the Schimmel when I played
them both. You might not, but it can't hurt to check it out.
- steve
Jory Olson
Schimmels are a little bright for my taste, but I like a pretty dark sound.
One annoying thing about the Schimmels is the damper pedal. Some seem to be
incredibly stiff. I think this is by design, but you might want to make
sure the damper is okay. That is about the only thing I've ever noticed
wrong with a Schimmel, other than not being voiced to my taste (which is
easy to fix).
Other pianos with the same general sound would include Sauter (toward the
darker end), Seiler (very pure almost "bell like" tone), and Pleyel. I had
a chance to try a Pleyel a few weeks ago and I was quite taken with it.
Very nice touch, very nice, unusually pure sound. All of the pianos I've
mentioned have Renner actions much like the Schimmel action.
Most of the Schimmels I've seen are well constructed, but probably not up to
the standard of Seiler, Sauter, or Pleyel. The Pleyel, in particular, had
some amazing casework. Some of the Seiler cases are works of art.
I don't know where you are located, but here on the West Coast of the US you
can get some real deals on Seilers and Sauters. Pleyel is very new to the
US so I would expect large discounts on them at least for awhile. In the SF
bay area Schimmels seem to be always on sale. Schimmel seems to be standard
issue in Northern California. I've seen some real deals, like $24K for a 6'
1" Special Edition.
Jory
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Max
>Any other opinions on the Schimmel?
>
Schimmel have been in the Pianofortefabrik business for 115 years so
they have a very good pedigree ( B.T.W ., so does Yamaha and even Kawai )
but as well as all the accumulated expertise and craftsmanship , they also
use very modern techniques to produce their pianos at their Braunschweig
plant , hence a "Name" German piano at a competitive price.
Some nice features on the Schimmel are high quality cast iron plates ,
regulating screws to adjust the repetition spring tension and laminated
"crackproof" Hornbeam bridge capping (important for tuning stability as per
recent thread .)
Also on another matter , I suspect that it is indeed Schimmel who are
making Erard, Gaveau and Erard at their Brunswick plant.
Max
Max wrote in message <7ts70q$khk$1...@gnamma.connect.com.au>...
> Also on another matter , I suspect that it is indeed Schimmel who are
>making Erard, Gaveau and Erard at their Brunswick plant.
Yoogi
company to Yamaha in the late 1980's. You could spend 50 percent more for
the most expensive German piano but maybe only notice a 10 percent
improvement, if any.
They manufacture moire pianos than any other European builder except Petrof.
> >Snip
> >Any other opinions on the Schimmel?
> >
Jory Olson
Sorry. Pleyel is no longer made by Schimmel. Pleyel is now made in the
Pleyel factory in Ales, France. Pleyel employs about 120 workers at their
plant. They make about 100 grands and 2000 vertical per year. If you
haven't heard or seen the new Pleyel's, then you're in for a treat! See the
September 1999 issue of "Musical Merchandise Review" (MMR) for more
information.
John S. Gray
well as Gaveau and Erard. What corporate machinations have gone on there
in recent years...?
Out of touch, as usual.
JG
Barrie Heaton
<db...@torfree.net> writes
No they were made under licence. Just like Broadwood is made under
licence by Welmar to strict guide lines.
Pleyel and Gaveau Pianos were made by Schimmel from 1971 to
1994. In 1994 production moved back to France and some new designs
were introduced using Langer and Renner actions.
Barrie,
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Max
Jory Olson wrote in message <8goM3.14380$k57.6...@news1.teleport.com>...
>Sorry. Pleyel is no longer made by Schimmel. Pleyel is now made in the
>Pleyel factory in Ales, France. Pleyel employs about 120 workers at their
>plant. They make about 100 grands and 2000 vertical per year. If you
>haven't heard or seen the new Pleyel's, then you're in for a treat! See
the
>September 1999 issue of "Musical Merchandise Review" (MMR) for more
>information.
>
>Jory
means that the Pleyel is authentic . I may have to wait until my next trip
to Europe but I will very much look forward to playing a few.
Bachopin88
finest upright made. I traded in a Steinway upright for it and toyed with the
idea of replacing with a new Steinway but felt that the Schimmel sounded better
and felt better then the Steinway. It also was thousands of dollars less.
I bought a 6' Schimmel a year ago and have been very happy with this piano.
The action is outstanding and the tone (to my ears!) terrific. I also looked
at The Yamaha S4, Seiler, Baldwin, Steinway. I liked the Schimmel best
followed by the Yamaha S4. I'm very happy to own the Schimmels!