informal survey

[Delwin D Fandrich]

Guy, Karen, and Tor Nichols wrote:

>         What do you notice first?

I probably "notice" the general level of workmanship first. Does the overall look appear neat and professional?


>         What do you actually "look" for?

This is what I should have looked for in the first place. How does it sound? What is the bass like? Is it muddy (as per the
normal original)? How about the bass/tenor cross-over. Can I pick it out by ear? Easily? Or do I have to work at it? What is
the killer octave like? Does the piano die? How is sustain vs. power from the fifth octave through the top? Does it have a
clean, clear treble or is everything just lacquered heavily to give it "power?"


>         What's the most important? (could be categorized, 'cause there's lot's of
> important stuff)

The sound. Even if other things don't measure up, they can be fixed. Usually. But not the sound.


>         What would you LIKE to see?

A combination of workmanship and good technology that result in a really great sound with a strong, sensitive action that
does what the pianist wants it to do.

>         What would you like "standardized"?

Terminology.

>         Do you want a reference, inside the piano, to know who's responsible, with a contact phone #, or something like
> that?

We've not been doing this, but will probably start soon. We've been asked to put a small decal on the instruments someplace.
Some people think it may be of value.

>         What ticks you off the most?

Pianos that are restrung with new dampers that still have the old style glued-up damper lever assemblies.

Pianos that are advertised as "completely rebuilt/restored/remanufactured/etc. that still have original
wippens/hammershanks/pinblocks/soundboards/etc.

Pianos that look great, super detailing, flawless finishes, etc., that plat and sound rotten. I looked at one of these a few
months ago. A well-known 5' 10-1/2" grand. The finish was superb. The plate finish and detailing was so good I was
embarrassed when I got back to our own shop. The hardware plating, polishing and detailing was flawless. The slots in the
screws were carefully lined up. The hammer job looked really great. The action regulation was klunky. Uniform as could be,
but klunky. And the sound was awful. The bass was muddy. The bass/tenor break sounded like we were dealing with two different
makes of pianos. The killer octave died. There was no sustain. The treble was thin and weak, in spite of having obviously
heavily lacquered hammers. It sounded worse than a lot of the "before" pianos we look at. The piano had no bottom end. It
could be played loud or loud. All that careful work -- and for what?



>         What makes you drool?

Anybody that has done better detailing than we do.


>         What do you wish you could do? Or afford to do on your next rebuild?

Replace the plate on the next "Killer B" that we do.

>         Do you ever"pre-judge" a rebuilt piano based on the brand or rebuilder or some other factor?

Sure. But I get really upset with myself when I do -- I'm working on that. We've done enough "no-name" pianos now to know
that the brand name has very little to do with how the finished product performs and sounds.


> Guy Nichols, RPT, corner of cactus-and-rock in the cold stinkin' desert

  -- ddf