> Rather, the problem is that the ideal is to have what some of the better scaled larger pianos have, which is inharmonicity factors which start at a moderate level at the lowest bass note and decrease smoothly and gradually up to the break; then pick up at the same level on the other side of the break and smoothly and gradually increase from there on out up through the highest treble note. So you have a gentle lopsided bowl shaped curve with only one reversal of direction, a smooth one without any jumps that centers on the break. Then it's more possible to optimize the other factors to make a scale that actually sounds even, and it's possible to find a tuning solution where everything lines up in a pleasing way. The smaller or poorly scaled pianos, and especially the small AND poorly scaled pianos, have a reversal of direction above the break, and probably a jump down across the break, and steeper climb in inharmonicity below that, so generally some very steep and hilly ac! > tivity going on that makes even sounding scales and great sounding tuning solutions less likely. There is no practical reason that I know of to have inharmonicity rise in the low bass. Going to smaller diameter, less rod-like cores in the low bass will make a much livelier and more interesting bass (because the strings can actually bend), and will incidentally lower the inharmonicity to around the high bass levels. > It does seem to me like you pretty much have to consider inharmonicity directly as part of figuring the wrapped string scale, though I hope somebody tells me if I'm wrong about that. If you want to avoid big jumps in inharmonicity at scale breaks, you have to be aware of what the inharmonicity level is in each unison. > I am guessing, however, that Ron and others involved in scale work might say -- for the plain strings anyway -- that if you use care and common sense to design the physical scale so the bridge has a smooth sweep and maintains % break, and your bridge/soundboard is well made so it has sufficient impedance and is free of sharp resonances, and you gauge the wires for a smooth power curve, a smooth inharmonicity curve will pretty much take of itself. Whereas, if you worked from inharmonicity and expected the rest to take of itself, you might have a big mess (for example, extreme case, you could have two neighboring notes thus: the lower-pitched one with a shorter string and a smaller gauge than the higher-pitched one. Obviously, your power curve would be all messed up, but inharmonicity wouldn't ! > necessarily be out of line at all.) That's why inharmonicity is way down on my list of scaling considerations. It doesn't get ignored altogether, but tension and impedance have much higher priorities. Ron N
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