<div><font face="Bookman Old Style" size="1">I think the point David was making was (in so many words): if you are happy with your Winter, great. But for most folks with the technical knowledge of pianos combined with a desire for musicality - a Winter will not do. Lipstick on a pig, as it were. Further, when someone has to hire me to do work on a Winter, basically everything we do exceeds the value of the instrument. The client must understand that, and if that's OK, then, as Mike Magness said, [it all spends the same].</font></div> <div><font size="1"> </font></div> <div><font face="Bookman Old Style" size="1">True, you won't get much piano if you spend $400 on a new(er) one instead of putting it into your Winter, but it DOES exceed the value of the piano. And, if your client desires an instrument that has some moderate level of responsiveness and tone, a Winter is not the piano for them. I am
comfortable recommending against any client considering purchasing a Winter without ever seeing it. There are far too many better options.</font></div> <div><font size="1"> </font></div> <div><font face="Bookman Old Style" size="1">A piano is not your wife, BTW. That analogy really doesn't fit. I presume your wife is worth investing in. ;-] </font></div> <div><font size="1"> </font></div> <div><font face="Bookman Old Style" size="1">William R. Monroe<br><br><font size="2">I must admit, that as I continue to encounter a variety of pianos, my perspective is changing. My awareness of the value of a piano is displacing my naivete that comes with inexperience and ignorance. I used to think a Kawai studio sounded dull, but now am appreciating the clean sound of it (though i would still prefer something grungier). <br><br>As to the wife analogy, I think it's worth considering. Although my wife resembles but a little my piano, yet
they both belong to a group of entities that can be either discarded or salvaged. Don't you think that in a more ideal world (and that is somthing worth striving for) the divorce rate would be smaller? Similarly, useful objects would be repaired more. Perhaps for discerning musicians a spinet is not "useful." But for thousands of regular people, a spinet IS useful. <br></font></font></div><BR><BR>Noah Haverkamp<br>Know-a Piano<br>http://www.knowapiano.com<br>347-308-0094<br>Fax: 718-701-2071