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59 Reviews
Essex Reviews
Definitely value for money purchase
The Essex Grand Piano 155 has a beautiful tone, resonance and touch that is perfect for my teaching studio.
I got my piano from Steinway in 2017, the year that I got married, and was preparing to move into my husband's 4-room flat in the northern part of Singapore.
My name is Dorothy Chia and I am a piano teacher for the past 28 years. They say, "love happens when you are not looking for it", that is what happened with the 2 loves of my life, marrying my husband and getting the Essex Grand Piano 155.
In my 28 years of piano teaching, I strongly believe that teaching on an excellent piano is of the utmost importance in my piano studio. Whether the student that I am teaching is a young beginner or a novice teacher, the experience of drawing out the most beautiful of musical tones must happen in the student's musical journey with me.
This piano is the perfect size for a small living room, the size of a small apartment or 4-room flat. The tone sings at every register, neither too sharp nor too dull. The rich, mellow tones are perfect whether my piano students are playing a beginner piece such as "Mary had a Little Lamb" or my advanced students working on a Mozart piano sonata.
The action of the keys is very responsive to the touch, something very important especially in teaching young musicians to listen and be sensitive to coax out varying dynamics out of the instrument.
A large factor that contributes to the technical development of a young pianist is good technical control. This calls for much more than learning to curve one's fingers while playing the piano. The hours spent playing Czerny studies and Chopin etudes are fruitless if the piano that the student is working on fails to deliver the tonal results of good technique. The student must be able to tell the difference between a beautiful tone and an ugly tone coming out of their fingerwork. For that, you need a sensitive, responsive and reliable piano, and I must say that Essex Grand Piano 155 has done a good job in this aspect.
The Steinway brand has a worldwide prestige and reputation. I trust that my purchase of the Essex Grand Piano 155 comes with the same reliability that Steinway piano company has built up over the years.
Great value for money
I think the Essex piano is great value for money. It has the touch and feel of a Steinway.
But I am not afraid that, when my four young kids literally 'play on the piano', they may damage a very valuable piano. And it sounds great!
Bought Essex Upright from the rental programme
We bought our Steinway Essex on the rental program which allowed us to try the piano, see if we like and use it, and purchase at a later date.
The tone is more beautiful than the other pianos.
There is the Steinway & Sons within 10 years trade in promise for a Steinway & Sons Grand.
The Essex UP-111 is an entry level piano with the most possible value for your money.
It provides for tonal volume in a small room and has better responsiveness and control as compared to most other entry-level pianos in this range.
Our studio toddlers and young beginners are always in awe of the rich, vibrant tone it produces. More often than not, they love coming for classes, citing the piano we use as an extra factor for motivating them!
I like the sound that Steinway's piano produces, it's so crisp and melodic.
Essex pianos are 9.8 out of 10 in terms of the value for money
The Steinway & Sons grand piano should be the ultimate goal a devoted pianist should invest in.
With the 10-year Steinway Promise that comes with the Steinway family of pianos, students could trade up their Boston or Essex piano to a Steinway grand piano at full price.
What a privilege!
The reason why we choose Steinway's piano, simply because it sounds better than other brands like Yamaha or Kawai......
Our shopping experience at Steinway Gallery Singapore is smooth and wonderful, the delivery and tuning services were great. The sales executive, Dennis is a wonderful young man, he is very helpful when we are choosing the piano.
As a parent, I would really recommend this Essex upright piano, it is better in terms of sound and touch. My daughter really likes her piano a lot. If I were ever to upgrade my piano I will definitely go back to Steinway & Sons.
Briefly review the cabinet, the action, pedals, sound, and timbre.
I own an Essex EUP-123S upright. I will briefly review the cabinet, the action, pedals, sound, and timbre.
The cabinet is phenomenal, one of the main reasons why I chose this piano. The design is very pleasant, modern-classic, with large pillars supporting the keyboard. The lid’s design is exceptional, it disappears completely when opened and it cannot interfere in any way with the hands of the player, even better than on a grand. The music desk spans the whole length of the keyboard and it is very wide, it can accommodate any number of scores. The upper cover can be fully lifted if one needs additional volume. The front panel can be relatively easily removed if one wants to enjoy the visual pleasure of the action in motion.
The action is very good for an upright. It is not as fast and responsive as that of a grand, as one would expect, but adequate for most uses. The size and finish of the keys is very good, I especially like the look and feel of the black keys, but even the white ones are impeccable. The red lining at the end of the keys provides a touch of luxury. I find the keys well balanced, with the same amount of strength needed throughout. Compared to a Steinway grand I feel it is slightly heavier. If one removes the front cover a stunning display is revealed (note that this model has no mute rail which I find them very ugly, and they partially hide the action). It offers a more interesting visual experience than on a grand piano where the hammers are hidden below the strings. An interesting option for shooting videos for the Youtubers out there.
The pedals are the next great treat, especially the left soft pedal. The sustain pedal is very good. I find that it does not cut off instantly all sound when released, or maybe it is just the way I am using it. This can be seen as a downside as an instantaneous cut-off is usually preferred. It has a rather wide vertical range, wider than a Steinway grand. This is a plus because it is easier to use the sustain pedal at half-height, providing useful harmonic options. The left soft pedal is great, I think all pianos, including grands, should have a soft pedal designed in that way. In fact, the ultra-high end Fazioli F308 does have two soft pedals, the second one of which does exactly what this upright soft pedal does: it brings the hammers closer to the strings thereby reducing the amount of strength the hammer hits the strings with, achieving lower volume without changing the timbre. This is far superior to the soft pedal on a grand piano, where the whole action is shifted to the right, which is also slightly distracting for the player. The central pedal is a sustain pedal only for the bass section; I don’t find it useful.
The sound. First of all it is a loud piano. It is entirely suitable for any large living room or music studio. For my music room (the size of a small bedroom) I had to use some dampening material, as it would have been too loud otherwise. I find the timbre to be on the brighter side of the spectrum. The mid-range has really stunning timbres. The high range is adequate and still quite loud. The low range is slightly lacking in terms of both timbre and loudness, which is to be expected considering the size of the piano which also constrains the maximum length of the strings. That is compensated by the exceptional dynamics. I am really impressed by the range of dynamics achievable, especially the pianissimos. They require good skills, but once mastered the pianissimos are very pleasant and sweet.
I had a couple of small mechanical issues with the piano, over the course of two years I have spent with it. One with the sustain pedal, triggering an odd sound, and another one with a couple of keys in the mid-range, also causing an unexpected additional buzz. They were tricky to fix and not necessarily covered by the warranty. It may be due to some defect with the assembly process, note that the piano parts are made in Germany but I understand assembly is done in China.
Overall I find the Essex EUP-123S an exceptional value for money instrument. It has several features superior to those of a grand piano (the soft pedal, the lid, the misc desk, and the visible hammers/action). The rich timbres of a Steinway model B will be a dream in comparison but at several multiples the price of this more modest upright.