[Shuie]

I went through this pretty recently while looking for a starter piano for my son. I ended up getting a really great deal on a US Market '67 Yamaha M2 w/bench ($1800). It's a beautiful sounding instrument. If I were trading up I'd look for a used Yamaha U2 next. You should be able to find a nice U2 these days for ~$3k.

If you are near a University with a large music school you can usually get great deals on the pianos they trade back in every year.

Steinway, or not, if it didn't have great tone, I wouldn't want it for a player. I grew up with a pre-war Steinway in my house. It's long gone, and I don't think I could ever justify owning it myself, but if you have the means you can find good deals on these on the used market as well. Just get it checked out like everyone has mentioned.