Yamaha U Series

There are two models in the U Series as follows:

• U1: 121cm
• U3: 131cm

For the last fifty years the Japanese built Yamaha U Series has been considered one of the best choices for practice and performance worldwide, and thousands of examples have found their way into schools, practice studios, performance venues and homes the world over. The range is critically important to Yamaha, representing the cornerstone of their upright piano offering, and consists of the 121cm tall U1 and the 131cm tall U3.

The Yamaha U1 offers such refinements as a solid Alaskan spruce soundboard and a locking, soft closing keyboard fall. A celeste or muffler pedal enables quieter practice by moving a small piece of felt between the hammers and strings to mute the sound. Proportionally it is an excellent choice and a perfect practice piano. Its taller sibling, the U3, is 10cm taller than the U1 which gives it an enhanced resonance, with similar soundboard size and speaking string length to that of a small grand piano.

Additionally, it employs what Yamaha calls a ‘floating soundboard’, a unique way of affixing the soundboard to the piano so that it can vibrate freely, thus enhancing the resonance. A sostenuto pedal replaces the muffler pedal which, unlike the damper pedal, enables the pianist to select the notes they wish to sustain. This pedal is more commonly found on grand pianos and is one of the many reasons that the U3 is the model most often chosen by professional musicians and more discerning amateurs.