ETD Displays

[Kent Swafford]

on 2/28/01 10:09 AM, Robert Scott at rscott@wwnet.net wrote:

> Once you have an offset defined for every partial of every note,
> it is conceptually possible to use this information to provide
> a multi-partial display.  I expect that if this option were
> available, it would not be used very much.  When using an ETD,
> one generally tunes each note to a single partial.

As you say, one _generally_ tunes to a single partial, although tuning
techniques have had to be developed to factor in other partials. One assumes
that if multi-partial displays were available, the practice of tuning each
note to a single partial might very well change. I believe the reason that
having "an offset defined for every partial of every note" is desirable is
that this would allow the (human) tuner to immediately evaluate in the
multi-partial display whether the ETD's assumptions about the inharmonicity
of each note are correct. If all the displays can be stopped (or however
they display the note as "in tune") then there is of no problem -- one just
stops all the displays and the note should be in tune. If however, and more
likely, one display stops and another or others are still moving, then the
ETD assumptions about the inharmonicity are incorrect; this is where new
visual tuning techniques might have to be developed -- do you give priority
to one partial over another? -- do you compromise between all the displayed
partials? I would love to be presented with this "problem" by an ETD; it
would be fascinating to help develop techniques to use ETD's with
multi-partial displays. This has the potential for advancing the state of
the art of tuning. And by the way, I believe such ETD's would really shine
with lesser-scaled pianos -- "anyone" can tune a well-scaled piano -- the
advanced ETD's can make short work of lesser-scaled pianos, the more partial
displays the better, IMO.

Kent Swafford

PS -- Robert Scott is producing quite a string of quotable, helpful posts
here on pianotech. I appreciate these posts very much.

KES