| LearnJazzPiano.com archives: The Piano Tech | |
| Scot -- 04/06/2005, 17:42:35 -- #12535 | |
| A new room for questions pertaining to the technical aspects of pianos | |
| Hi folks, Here is a place to ask questions about pianos and keyboards. Questions about how to fix them, how to buy them, what to look for, etc. One of the people who will be browsing this room and has been an active member of the Piano Technicians Guild is Kim Rawlings from Rawlings Music (http://www.rawlingsmusic.com) who also happens to be the person I'm buying the grand piano from. | |
| Whacky -- 04/08/2005, 00:50:39 -- #12583 | |
| I didn't know piano tech stuff was so private:) Now...organ tech I can see...but piano tech? | |
| Scot -- 04/08/2005, 13:32:38 -- #12597 | |
| :) Just trying to make Kim Rawlings from http://www.rawlingsmusic.com feel comfy posting some messages here. I'm SURE some of you have questions about pianos! Questions about buying, questions about notes that don't work, questions about tuning, moving, painting, and even that one little quirk. | |
| The Pat Metheny Songbook: 167 tunes, 400 pages/lead sheets | |
| sdm -- 04/08/2005, 13:53:51 -- #12604 | |
| Actually I do. I'm about to have the thing tuned so maybe he can fix it but... I have a 100 yr old (there's an A-440 mark from 1895 or somesuch) upright grand that's in very nice shape but two or three keys around Bb below mid-C don't ring with the sustain peddle. Very frustrating. Anything simple I can do? | |
| 7 -- 04/08/2005, 14:17:26 -- #12608 | |
| Do they ring when you hold their keys down? | |
| sdm -- 04/08/2005, 15:14:55 -- #12615 | |
| Yes. | |
| 7 -- 04/08/2005, 16:44:41 -- #12618 | |
| The damper connects to a bar that runs the length of the dampers. When the pedal is down the bar pulls the dampers off the strings so they all ring. The system of pulling a damper off a string is a little different when you hold down the key - so I'm thinking that maybe the tension on the little metal rod that connects to the head of the damper is too much. You need to bend it back a bit. But if you bend it back toooo far the note will ALWAYS ring (not a good thing). You'll have to adjust each one individually, but once you've got one to work the rest should be about the same. One note on the damper itself: It's supposed to be flush against the string in the damping position. If only one side or the just the top or bottom are touching you won't get full dampening and possibly harmonics. So in actuality there are two bends to the rod: 1. Bend the rod back far enough (but not too far) that the damper comes off the string when the damper pedal is depressed, and 2. bend the rod so that the head of the damper is flush againt the string in damping position. Even with a bit of trial and error, it shouldn't take you more than about ten minutes. | |
| sdm -- 04/08/2005, 17:43:32 -- #12623 | |
| Thanks guys, I'll give a little (careful) self-help a try. | |
| gabidaradici -- 05/21/2005, 15:07:27 -- #14051 | |
| tuning hammer | |
| i just tuned a couple of notes but i had to do it with a larger square head hammer... where can i find a smaller one? i searched the net but i only foun 6.2mm to 7 an the one i have is about 6-6.2 and it's too big... hope it's not to expensive... | |
| The Pat Metheny Songbook: 167 tunes, 400 pages/lead sheets | |
| Scot -- 05/21/2005, 18:15:45 -- #14058 | |
| Go to http://www.rawlingsmusic.com and send Kim an email asking about the hammer. He knows where to get that stuff. | |
| gabidaradici -- 05/21/2005, 23:41:17 -- #14062 | |
| thanks | |
| thanks for the help. i just love the comunity here!!! | |
| Pianotech -- 05/23/2005, 12:29:45 -- #14118 | |
| I did contact the gentleman and as soon as he provides me with a little more info I am sure I can get him what he needs. Kim | |
| Scot -- 05/29/2005, 14:11:07 -- #14257 | |
| Scot's Piano | |
| Kim- will you give the listeners here a rundown of the components that have been assembled to make my new piano? | |
| Pianotech -- 06/04/2005, 15:40:03 -- #14542 | |
| Scott, Your piano has the very best of everything. The Hammers are Abel hammers from Germany. The strings are Roslau strings from Germany, The soundboard is the highest grade solid spruce avalible. Here is the speck sheet on your piano. Construction of Rawlings Pianos Soundboard and Ribs All soundboards of Rawlings pianos are made of the highest grade White Sitka Spuce from Alaska. The ribs are heat-crowned perpendicular to the soundboard grain to facilitate efficient distribution of vibrations. Back Posts Multi-laminated back posts maintain the structural integrity of each piano, and offset the enormous pressure (over 20 tons) exerted by the string tension, in addition to improving tuning stability. Pinblock Rawlings pianos use Delignit maple Pinblocks from West Germany, These densified pin blocks have age and wear-resistant characteristics superior to those made of other materials. Touch Consistency Each key stick is lead-weighted and balanced to ensure perfect touch and control. Consistency of touch across the entire keyboard offers ease of playing without finger fatigue. Concert Length Keys Rawlings pianos feature full concert length grand piano keys, 1/8" longer than the industry standard. Each key stick is made of straight grain White Sitka Spruce. Highly Accelerated Actions All Grands have an improved version of the Renner action. Cross Bars Acousta crossbars are precisely placed diagonal to the ribs, eliminating any undesirable overtones, while producing a brighter tone and longer sustain. Scale Design All pianos use the most famous scales in the world. (German) The superior tone quality of each Rawlings piano results from a thorough scientific study of the special requirements of various acoustic elements in the instruments. Elements such as rim, case, plate, soundboard, ribs, bridges, strings, hammers, action, and keys are properly balanced in harmony with each other. Cut-Thread Tuning Pins Tuning pins are blue steel, nickel- plated with reverse-torque cut-threads for superior holding power and great tuning stability. Each pin is nickel-plated to resist rust and corrosion. Iron Frame Computer-commanded boring mills machine frames. All frames are tempered and seasoned outdoors for six months before final stress tests and installation. All are wet-sand cast plates. The plates in the uprights are full-perimeter, Roslau Strings Roslau Strings Rawlings pianos use the world- famous Roslau Strings music wire from West Germany. The under and outer wrappings of the base strings are solid copper wire. Hand Notched Bridges Bridges for vertical pianos are crafted from 19-ply, quarter-sawn Hard Rock Maple. Bridges for Grand Pianos are also crafted from solid quarter-sawn Hard Rock Maple. Each bridge is custom-shaped and cut to conform to the crown of each individual soundboard. Custom Crafted Hammers All Rawlings hammer felts are made of 100% Royal George high-density virgin wool (Abel Hammers for Germany). All felts are moth- and moisture- resistant, and are T-pinned to the hammerhead to prevent separation. Butcherblock Keybeds The interlocking Butcherblock keybeds are mounted on a 3-ply cross-laminated tongue and groove base. Keybed-to-string distances remain regular regardless of atmospheric conditions, resulting in a stable, durable action regulation. Tuning Regulation, Voicing The highly accelerated action of Rawlings pianos is fully regulated during the seasoning and settling period of each piano as a complete unit. Each hammer is carefully voiced, tone-regulated to maintain uniform tone level throughout the entire scale. Polyester Finishes Space-age chemistry gives a beautiful polyester base finish to Rawlings pianos. They are completely impervious to water, while exhibiting excellent gloss and color retention. Warranty All Rawlings Pianos come with a FULL 10-year transferable factory warranty. | |
| Scot -- 06/04/2005, 19:01:11 -- #14548 | |
| Folks, what all that means is the piano feels great and sounds great. It's going to be in my living room on Monday and I'm pretty excited about it. | |
| The Pat Metheny Songbook: 167 tunes, 400 pages/lead sheets | |
| Whacky -- 06/05/2005, 00:26:45 -- #14558 | |
| Cool! Did you ever make it past 5% in donations? Should we start up the fund raising efforts again? | |
| Scot -- 06/05/2005, 12:17:13 -- #14566 | |
| Donations might be around the 6% mark now :) | |
| Whacky -- 06/05/2005, 15:42:52 -- #14575 | |
| well, that's not good enough...although it's probably hard to expect more from a site that prides itself on being free...(I always wonder how many folks use Spybot and acutally donate:) With over 10,000 accounts here, a simple dollar from each member would really help - two bucks may actually cover it (I'm just guessing here) I'll try to stir it up again. | |
| SolArt -- 06/25/2005, 15:23:43 -- #15601 | |
| Super-duper Digital Pianos | |
| I have often pondered this thought; wouldn't it be dreamy to have a digital piano sampled from various makes & therefore having for example a killer bass, midrange, & upper end etc (EVERY register)?I've often noticed some pianos have the sweetest high treble, or VERY nice midrange, or killer low high end etc but seldom gives a piano satisfaction in every register. This way the best of each make could perhaps be blended although I suppose it's not possible legally. Rats! | |
| onimousomnibus -- 07/07/2005, 09:20:35 -- #16254 | |
| hi everybody, i was thinking of buying a tuning kit for an old upright that i just got. I want good tools and a chromatic pitch reader...any reccomendations? | |
| Bill Duffy -- 07/09/2005, 19:04:22 -- #16340 | |
| Scot Ranney | |
| Hi Scot; Excuse my computer ignorance. I had my grandson help me in my attempt to order what I thought was a book that could give as a gift to my friends. Going on eighty years of age, I doubt if I will ever have any more success at learning to use the computer than I have in learning to play the piano. My e mail address is: Duff6619@yahoo.com. Thanks for your patience. | |
| The Pat Metheny Songbook: 167 tunes, 400 pages/lead sheets | |
| Scot -- 07/10/2005, 00:05:30 -- #16341 | |
| Oh, I got a message from you but I didn't know who it was from! I'll send the file right away. | |
| Scot -- 07/10/2005, 00:07:36 -- #16342 | |
| Hmmm, also, since you're on Yahoo, I wonder if you will be able to get a 1.5 mb file? If it doesn't come through, click on the LJP Store link and log in using the same login info you used when making the purchase. | |
| Whacky -- 07/10/2005, 07:23:15 -- #16344 | |
| the free yahoo mail gives you a gig of storage now:) | |
| 7 -- 07/10/2005, 10:56:41 -- #16349 | |
| Storage is different from how big of files you can send. But you can send files of up to 10MB now. | |
| jaledin -- 07/28/2005, 17:10:10 -- #17014 | |
| Re: The known defect in Yamaha P-200 P-80 keyboard action | |
| This may not be a good place to ask this question about a digital piano action -- unfortunately, the hard-core gear forums seem to require a "non-free" e-mail account to register, so I can't post at those. My little Yamaha P-80 digital has the same problem I've heard that users of the P-200 have. Apparently, the E and D notes of the upper registers develop a hairline fracture at the base of the key, and begin to tilt to the left or the right, rendering these keys sticky. Has anyone successfully replaced a key on their keyboard with a similar problem themselves? Any details on the part number(s) I'd need to order and/or from whom? I've already dissassembled the keyboard months ago, but the action is inscrutable -- I only assume the problem is with the problem keys themselves (D and E 8va above middle D and E; E 32va above middle E). Thanks for any links to discussions or quick words of advice. | |
| Pianotech -- 08/09/2005, 13:23:44 -- #17433 | |
| Yamaha Digital P-80 | |
| Hi, I don't know much about the digital pianos. I do know that there should be a digital piano tech in your area. You can order parts from: http://www.yamaha.com/yamahavgn/CDA/ContentDetail/Text_WithCatMenu_SC/0,,CTID%253D410035%2526CNTYP%253D,00.html I am sorry I couldn't be of much help. Kim | |
| The Pat Metheny Songbook: 167 tunes, 400 pages/lead sheets | |
| Copyright © 2005 by Scot Ranney. All rights reserved. | |
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