self tuning piano????

[Pianotech]

You don't know the owner, Mr Dolan, he's not really a piano anything so he
experiments a lot. It has a lot to do with money and if it can be made by
getting rid of the techs I expect.
----- Original Message -----
From: <Wimblees@AOL.COM>
To: <Pianotech@ptg.org>
Sent: Monday, July 01, 2002 1:51 PM
Subject: self tuning piano????


> In the July Journal is a hillarious article about the self tuning piano. I
know this story has been on the list before, but I just want to be sure all
of you read it, just for the fun of it. It is absolutley unreal to think
that someone could actually justify the invention of this "tool". What is
even more discouraging is that someone from the piano industry actually paid
this guy to develop and install the system in a real piano.
>
> Here are a couple of misnomers which lead this guy to think the systme
works. He thinks one of the reasons strings go out of tune is because tuning
pins slip. To solve this problem, he actually has developed a "string lock",
to permantly clamp the strings in place, making tuning pins superflous.
Tuning pins and strings do not move. (unles the pin block is bad).
>
> Another problem with the system is that the piano will be re-tuned
repeatedly to a tuning set at the factory. This tuning will be done by a
"Story & Clark Master Technician". Oh, I know the kind. The one in the booth
at the end of the production line, competing with the noise of the stringing
department. I am sure that will be a great tuning. For comparison, it took 4
CTE level tuner 5 hours to tune a piano at the convention. Do you think
there might be a differnce between the two tunings? I wonder if the piano
can be reprogrammed? Will Ed be able to do his thing on it?
>
> Mr. Gilmore's experiment "have shown that varying the pitch of a string 50
cents requires, on the average, about one watt per string". Oh that's great.
A pitch raise of 50 cents, with all the strings being tuned at the same
time. I wonder what the effect on the soundboard will be? Do you think it
will stay in tune?
>
> Mr. Gilmore, if you're lurking, please just concentrate on your job as a
engineer, and leave pianos to people who have expericen tuning and repairing
them. I'm sorry you spent so much time and engergy, not to mention money, on
a system that is a failure. You might be able to sell a few of these things
to unsuspecting customers, but you have done the tuning industry, not to
mention the whole piano industry, a great diservice inventing a usuless
electronic device. You should be ashamed of yourself for even attempting to
justify your invention.
>
> Wim Blees RPT
> Tuscaloosa, AL