All uprights
Every size
Most pianos in Singapore homes are uprights, and most of the difference between one and the next is height. A few centimetres change how much bass there is and how long a note carries.
Read about upright pianos →Home/Available Pianos/Boston UP-132E
Upright piano · 132 cmThe Boston UP-132E.
The tallest upright Steinway and Sons designs, at 132 cm, built for it in Japan by Kawai. A tall case and a long string in a cabinet that still stands against a wall.
Availability changes. Ask for the current selection and a quotation before visiting.
What it is
The short version.
Steinway and Sons designs the Boston line and has it built in Japan by Kawai. The UP-132E Performance Edition is the tallest upright in that line. The 132 in the name is the height of the case in centimetres, and in an upright that height is the specification that decides how much bass there is.
At 132 cm it is taller than a Yamaha U3 or a Kawai K300, which puts a longer bass string and a larger soundboard behind the same footprint on your floor. What you hear is a bass that keeps its shape rather than turning to thud, and a note that carries for longer before it dies.
The one in these photographs was photographed in the viewing gallery at IMM with the top board off. The model sticker on the plate reads UP-132E PE and the casting beside it reads designed by Steinway and Sons, which is the instrument stating what it is rather than us doing it for it.
Type
Upright piano
Size
132 cm
Condition
Pre-owned, prepared
Ask for current availability and price
Who it suits
Worth your time if.
- A player who wants grand scale bass in a room that will not take a grand
- A teacher or a studio wanting one instrument that will not be outgrown
- Someone weighing a tall upright against a small grand for the same money
- A buyer who wants Steinway design thinking without a Steinway price
Buying one used
Four things to check, in order.
The same four we check ourselves before an instrument goes on the floor. Every instrument is an original used piano. Not reconditioned, not rebuilt. Ask us about any of them on a specific piano and you get a straight answer.
- The serial numberIt dates the instrument, and Boston uprights are recent enough that the year tells you a great deal about the condition to expect.
- Tuning pin torqueAsk about tuning stability and whether any repair is needed on this instrument before agreeing a purchase.
- Hammer wearGrooves in the hammer felt mean heavy use. It can be put right, but it belongs in the price rather than being found afterwards.
- CaseworkPolished ebony shows every mark, so the finish should be described honestly before you see it rather than after.
Where each of those is set out in full: See the inspection photographs → Find the age and serial number → Check delivery access to your room → Ask for an itemised quotation →
Photographed in the viewing gallery
Up close.
The other one to hear
Against the YUS5.
Two tall uprights aimed at the same buyer from two different traditions. The YUS5 is Yamaha at the top of its upright range, the Boston is a Steinway design built by Kawai. Play them side by side and the choice tends to make itself.
Both, back to back, in the same room on the same afternoon. That is a fifteen minute job at the viewing gallery and it settles the question far better than any page can.
Questions
The UP-132E, answered.
Is a Boston just a Kawai with a different name?
No. Kawai builds it, but the design is Steinway and Sons and the two firms build their own instruments differently. The scale, the tapered soundboard and the case are Steinway design decisions rather than Kawai ones.
The honest way to settle it is to play a Boston and a Kawai of similar height next to each other, which takes about fifteen minutes on our floor.
How tall is the UP-132E, and does the height matter?
It is 132 cm, which makes it the tallest upright in the Boston line. Height matters more than almost anything else in an upright, because a taller case takes a longer bass string and a bigger soundboard.
That is the difference between a bass note you can hear the pitch of and one that arrives as a thump.
How does it compare to a small grand?
A tall upright like this and a small grand around five feet are genuinely cross shopped, and the upright often wins on sound for the money because the string length is comparable while the price is not.
What a grand gives you that an upright cannot is the action, which repeats faster and more evenly because gravity resets it. If you are playing at a level where that matters, you will feel it.
How much is a used Boston UP-132E?
It depends on the year and the condition, so a figure for the model in general would be a guess. Ask about the instrument that is actually on the floor and you get a real number.
The rest of the range
Other uprights people ask about.
Yamaha
U1
121 cm
The Yamaha U1 is a 121 cm upright. When buying one used, compare the condition of the actual instrument, touch, tone and delivery requirements.
Read about it →
Yamaha
U3
131 cm
The Yamaha U3 is a 131 cm upright in the U Series. Compare the individual instrument with a U1 for touch, tone, condition and the space available in your home.
Read about it →
Yamaha
YUS5
The top of the U series. Bought by people who have decided they are buying one piano and are not going to do this again.
Read about it →
Kawai
K300
122 cm
The Kawai K300 is a 122 cm upright. Compare its touch, tone, condition and complete quotation with other uprights before deciding.
Read about it →
Visit the viewing gallery
Ask what is on the floor today.
Message us with the model and we will tell you what is in, what condition it is in, and what it costs. If we have nothing suitable we will say that instead.