Sunday, December 21, 2008

I bought a new Hailun HL125!!!

Yeah!! After months of shopping, I finally bought a new Hailun HL125 (professional model) from PianoMaster International which was delivered to my house on the 24 Dec 2008. I paid in cash and so of coz it is much cheaper than the list price. Here are the pictures:-




39 comments:

happytreats said...

How's that piano??? Does it work fine and is the tune good??? just want to know more about this hailun. Reply me soon.

Pooh Bear said...

Hi happytreats,

I enjoy the piano very much. But just feel that the keys are significantly heavier compared to my piano teacher's Yamaha YUS5. But I've got used to my piano & it makes playing on my teacher's piano much easier.

Hailun pianos were originally designed for the European markets, but PianoMaster is asking for the new batches to have lighter keys which is more suitable for Asians.

I will say, it is a good piano for the price paid. So far I don't have any problems with it, no complains, working completely fine. It holds its tune and I enjoy playing on it. Jason also give a good after sale service.

As of now, I still think is a good buy.

Hope these helps.

Champion said...

Hi

I'm going to get a first piano for my daughter and I like the Hailun piano you bought. May I know whom you deal with at PianoMaster? You mention I can further negotiate on their retail price - how much lower can they go? Are there further "freebies" I can ask for? If it's not convenient to post here, pls email to me ya?

Many thanks
Champion

Pooh Bear said...

Hi Champion,

I dealt with Jason Tan. He is the boss of PianoMaster.

Yes, you can further negotiate on the price. But it depends on how good your negotiation skills is. I don't know how much lower they can go. I could have only bargained 50% of their tolerance level.

Freebies includes:-
1. Free tunings. How many, depend on your skills. I heard pple bargained for 4 before. Usually 1 or 2.
2. Pedal socks
3. Piano cover
4. The bench that you want. Sometimes they give you the most basic one. Then you look ard the showroom, and see which one u like.
5. Buy back opportunity? (If this is important to you)
6. Pay by installments? (Usually will be more ex, coz there will be credit card charges. By paying cash, you can usually ask for a better price).

Hope these helps. Feel free to ask if you have anymore questions.

Champion said...

Thanks so much. I shall visit PianoMaster soon ;-)

JACLYN said...

hi hi,

i just went over to piano world and i saw the HL125 too. i'm thinking between this and a yamaha U3 one. i was quite impressed with the HL125, esp with the fact that it could close by itself, haha. i'm quite clumsy with that actually.

i don't know if it's because of the shop's size but the hailun one sounds better than the yamaha one. but one worrying thing is, people usually buy piano based on brands. so if one day i were to sell it off, would people buy it as compared to a yamaha one?

could u please tell me more about the hailun one and how it sounds, etc?

much thanks!

Pooh Bear said...

Hi Jaclyn,

I suppose you are comparing an old Yamaha U3 vs a new Hailun 125? How old is the Yamaha U3? I was doing that comparison too, when I was deciding to buy. Personally, I prefer Hailun's sound, coz I prefer a thicker sound. And the reason why I chose a new Hailun over a used Yamaha U3 is because:-

1. A new Hailun comes with 10 years full warranty from the manufacturer and dealer, but a used Yamaha U3 only comes with maybe 3 years from the 2nd hand shop. And is not a full warranty. Full warranty means, you can ask them to fix anything or they do an exchange one or one free if they can't fix. In 2nd hand shop, most probably, they will ask you to choose another used piano from their showroom, and maybe make you top up through trade in.

2. I prefer the sound of Hailun, which is thicker compared to Yamaha's which is brighter (but this is personal preference).

3. The Hailun is new, but the Yamaha U3 (which I was comparing) was 26 years old. A piano can't last forever. How many more years can the U3 go?

4. Hailun can be sold back to the dealer at half the price you bought after 5 years. After 5 years, I don't know how much can a 31 year old Yamaha U3 fetch. But note that 2nd hand shop (the one which I went), do not sell pianos that are more than 30 years old.

5. Hailun came with a professional piano bench, and they have a brand name to protect. And Hailun will want to make sure that their customers are happy if they want to continue to stay in business. Yamaha already stated their stand that they do not encourage gray markets, and holds no responsibility on these pianos.

6. The used Yamaha U3 might be subjected to replacement of parts (even if the 2nd hand dealer says everything is original), which is not checked by Yamaha. And you might end up buying a piano that only bears the name of Yamaha, but not the quality assurance and checks from Yamaha.

And this link on "Popularity comes with a Price"…by my hubby…
http://market-uncle.blogspot.com/2008/12/popularity-comes-at-price.html

Haha, I don't trust the 2nd hand shops in Singapore. They do a lot sweet talk.

JACLYN said...

thanks for the info. initially i wanted a yamaha U1. how's that? i'm in grade 7 btw. so i'm looking for something that suits me. Huilan 125 was recommended to me.

the old pianos in that shop are reaalllyyy old. because initally i wanted a U1 so i only know the prices and years for that. the U3 are all around there, i suppose? there's one U1 30 years old for 3300 and another 50 year old one which i've striked out. far too old. i heard and saw from the net that older pianos are pretty good too cos of the quality of wood. any idea on that?

btw u3's selling for various prices.. they range from 3500 to 5k plus minus. sorry dont really remember the price.

Pooh Bear said...

I only tried a new Yamaha U1 silent piano. I must say, I like it very much. But is very ex. According to my teacher, the Hailun piano which I have, is good enough for me to complete Grade 8. But if I want to pursue above Grade 8, then I will need to get a very high end upright or a grand. A new U1 is also not sufficient (according to my teacher). My teacher is using a new YUS5.

But if you intend to pursue piano into higher levels like diploma/degree, then your budget must increase significantly, which will be in the $10k+ zone. I was told that a piano has limited lifespan in that, you can use it to go through from Grade 1 to 8. But if another person wants to use the same piano to learn from Grade 1 again, it can only be used until maybe Grade 5 or so, then will need to change the piano.

So, the question is, how heavily was the 30 years old U1 used? And whether it can satisfy you now. If you intend to just buy one decent piano that you can enjoy, and have no intention to pursue piano into higher levels, then I would say a new Hailun is more than sufficient for you. But in the end, it depends on which one you prefer after trying both.

As for the quality of wood, I heard before, but I have no ways of verifying it, coz I am not an expert. But I see it from 10 years full warranty, if wood got problem, I can ask for one for one exchange free for Hailun. But if old Yamaha wood got problem, Yamaha will not do anything coz they will claim that these pianos are not made for Singapore's climate in the first place. I assume the old Yamaha which you are considering were made for the Japan's market. Then, you are at the mercy of the 2nd hand shop to see what they will/can do for you.

Net net is, if you can afford a new U1 or U3 vs a new Hailun. I will recommend a new U3 or new U1. But if old Yamaha vs a new Hailun, I will recommend a new Hailun. =)

Unknown said...

Hi,
I am also looking at hailun. I saw in another forum that someone play the showroom set in pianomaster and found the keys heavy and not too fluent. That someone asked the showroom sales why this was so and the reply was " it is like that after a few years ". Do you find any issues with the keys ?

I must say the tone of hailun is really very good. Is it still as good as when it was first bought ?

tks

Pooh Bear said...

Hi ChengChun,

So sorry for the late response. Had just delivered my baby girl. And just reached home today.

Ok, regarding ur question on the Hailun piano. My first Hailun piano had a heavy touch when I bought it, because I prefer it that way. But the Hailun pianos do come with different heaviness in the touch. You can try them in the showroom.

No, I have no issues with the keys. In fact, I feel the service from Piano Master is very good. They are always so ready to help solve any issues which you may have even after you purchase the piano. Well, it is under 10 years full warranty, so what is the worry?

And yes, in fact, I realise as the time passes, I grow to love the tone of Hailun more and more. Well, I had always prefer Hailun's tone over Yamaha's, which was the reason why I chose Hailun. But well, is a personal taste. I love the thick thick chocolate sound! Haha.

You go the showroom and try it out lah!

John said...

May I know how much is the new Hailun HL125? and how much bargain one can get from the vendor?

Pooh Bear said...

Hi Chuang,

I bought mine about 1 year ago, when it was cheaper. Now, I think the prices have went up a few hundreds. You need to check out with PianoMaster on the new pricing now.

As for how much you can bargain, really depends on your bargaining skills. But I think you should still be able to get one below $4k now. And if you can pay in cash, then maybe about 3.6k bah.

Unknown said...

My serial no. is 61434. 2 years, and they sold about 25000 pianos! ;)

Profit Taker said...

Hi Pooh Bear,
Happen to Stumbled upon your blog, because my friend was recommending Piano Master to me.

Have you tried their H5?

Profit Taker said...

Hi Pooh Bear,
Happen to Stumbled upon your blog, because my friend was recommending Piano Master to me.

Have you tried their H5?

Pooh Bear said...

Hi Disclaimer,

No, I haven't tried their H5, but I did hear some people telling me that it sounds better than HL125.

How you like it?

Pooh Bear said...

Hi Delci,

Haha, you actually went to see my serial number and count. Haha! So, they will have 6 digit numbers in less than 4 years time :)

Unknown said...

hee hee, I was trying to think how well they are doing :P

Profit Taker said...

I have not tried H5 and HL125. How do you find touch of HL125? The piano is for my child to practise for exam. Understand that yahama piano is used during exam, so do you think using yamaha practise give certain advantage over hailun? The is different touch on piano, right?

Pooh Bear said...

I find the touch slightly heavier than Yamaha's piano. I guess each piano has different touch even for the same piano model and is good to start with one that is slightly heavier to train up the strength of the fingers. Coz it is always easier to move to lighter keys than to move to heavier keys. That is my opinion.

And the advantage of getting an exam model piano is actually minimal. The examiners seems to look more for the skills and fluency.

Profit Taker said...

Yeah Pooh Bear, that's my opinion too. However, new HL125 touch is lighter than the display unit. Jason has mentioned new units will have lighter touch. Anyway, I decided to go with HL125.

Pooh Bear said...

Haha, hope you will enjoy ur HL125 as much as I do!

Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year!!!

Unknown said...

Thanks Pooh Bear and everyone else who had commented. Based on the info in this blog, I am planning to buy a HL125 for my daughter (5 yo), she had been learning piano for 1 year already.

I have a question to those newer batch HL125 (lighter key) owners. How do you find the touch of HL125 compared to Yamaha's? Is it comparable?

The sales guy in Piano Master told me the newer batch HL125 will have lighter key, but still not a light as the H5. I am wondering if I should get a H5 to get as close as possible to a Yamaha.

Thanks.

Pooh Bear said...

Hi howting,

I feel my HL125 have slightly heavier keys compared to Yamaha, but not very significant. Personally, i think it is advantageous to have slightly heavier keys to train the strength of the fingers and hence make playing the exam piano easier.

I have not tried H5, maybe you ask your daughter which (H5 or HL125)she prefers? Sometimes you can request the piano teacher to go down with you to the shop, let her try and get her opinion too.

Armadillo said...

Hi,

Have you heard of Wilhelm Tell 125 Bern or 118 Lugano? These are from Switzerland, are they good? Tks.

Armadillo said...

Hi,

Have you heard of Wilhelm Tell 125 Bern or 118 Lugano from Switzerland? Tks.

Pooh Bear said...

Hi Armadillo,

Yes, heard of those pianos, but have not tried them. But heard they are not bad.

CCMY said...

Hi,
I am looking to upgrade my son's piano. He is doing grade 5 and the current one is really old (30 plus years, and admitted not well maintained).
Have recently been introduced to Hailun. NONE of my friends are recommending me this brand, as the usual concern of Chinese-made and no track record. But I seem to like the sound and tone, etc.
I see that you have own a Hailun for 2 years now and seem to love it. Can I know if it still sounds as good as the day you got it? Is there anything that you don't like about it? many thanks.

CCMY

Pooh Bear said...

Hi CCMY,

Ya, I have own it for more than 2 years now, and still finding it a good buy. It did not give me problems. There were small issues when I first received it, but these issues were gladly fixed by PianoMaster and after that, all went well and I have no complains. Most importantly, it is more than sufficient for me to pursue my piano learning. If I ever want to upgrade, it would most probably be a grand piano and not any other upright piano. And yes, Hailun Grand would definitely be in my consideration list!

Pooh Bear said...

I am generally not very concern on the country origin of a product. For example, a BMW made in Germany may not be superior compared to a Kia from Korea. Coz I have seen so many times that due to the electronics faults, the BMW needs to be sent to the workshop but it never happens to a Kia.

And when you buy reputable brands, you are actually paying more for the brand name than the goods itself, and it does not mean quality either. That is my view lah.

Cheryl said...

Wow this thread is still going on since 2009, maybe piano masters should consider making a forum for buyers to discuss about the brand . I am currently working at piano masters part time .

Pooh Bear said...

Hi Cheryl,

Thanks for visiting my blog! How is it like working with Piano Master? Glad to know you! =)

Swen said...

hi,

I am currently considering HL125. But i asked 3 different piano teachers and they all do not recommend china made pianos. Worried abt their durability. Guess yours is already ard 3 yr plus, may I know how is the sound compared to the beginning when u jus bot?

Swen said...

Hi,

I am currently considering HL125. But I asked 3 different piano teachers and they all do not support buying china made pianos. They say dunno abt durability. May I know how is yours after 3 yrs? any change to the sound?

Pooh Bear said...

Hi Swen,

HL125 served me well for the past 3 plus years and I have no issues with the piano. The sound, the keys, everything are ok. And til now, I still think it was a good buy.

johnlewisgrant said...

I bought a Hailun 218 about 6 months ago. Liked it's tone BETTER than the 2 Steinway Bs sitting right beside it. Here's something I recorded on it:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YxGdncwv1N4

JG

Thomas Lim said...

I had brought this Hailun HL125 delivered in Nov 2011 but I know it is improved version as Compare to your one brought earlier. I had approved loan 2 years hire purchase down payment of 20% from Piano master directly.

It is now in my bedroom. Price I guess they sell still quite standard at retail price. Playing till now like the sound so much as I not good at playing well but very relax easily fall asleep learn for leisure almost 4 years.

Before I Brought this piano I brought a used upright small very old china piano for S$600 stay with me for 6 months. I follow the recommendation of a teacher as she try it to said it is good for me for lower grade playing for leisure. I played for two months find a lot of problem. It was totally out of tune the technician come two times after a month to tune to broke one string. Two keys are sticky faulty so I decided not to fix it. I very happy that my loan is approved to provide income document to get loan up to two times of monthly income and this piano had no defect no problem at all since it came my house bedroom. They took away my old china broken spoiled piano at no extra cost but also no value at the same time this new piano come in.

Next month got to call them piano master technician to tune it as reaching 6 months old as it came with a few free tuning too since new purchase of piano.

The slow fall of the hailun upright piano is built in factory install very good not like external fix it not so good and may easily spoiled not durable.

The string, hammer, touch, action is very high quality made even it is consider cheap at this price to get and even also made in china to produce. The sound is already can compare to more popular Brand like Kawai Yamaha etc little different.

With this kind of New piano, I can practise it well less effort time spend to improve my skill better too compare to that spoilted broken very old china piano that I had.

Pooh Bear said...

Hi JG,

Your playing is great! I love it!