Hex Core Bass Strings

[Richard Moody]

Once I put a hex core replacement wire on a rental B  in a night club. It
was an emergency the string broke during rehearsal and the program was two
hours later.   A few days later the owner (of the rental piano) who happened
also to run the S&S concert and artist piano program called me and was
adamant against using a hex core wire because it was hard (he used a  harder
word) on the agraffe and why didn't I tie it. ("it broke at the agraffe and
they called me because they couldn't' get in touch with you.")    I should
have offered to come over and help him put in the replacement and get on his
list of who to call when he went fishing.  But the techs from the Bay Area
can tell me if this was a good idea for the C&A person of the 79's and 80's.
; )  ---ric

 

-----Original Message-----
From: pianotech-bounces at ptg.org [mailto:pianotech-bounces at ptg.org] On Behalf
Of Jurgen Goering
Sent: Wednesday, October 04, 2006 6:46 PM
To: pianotech at ptg.org
Subject: Hex Core Bass Strings

 

I have been curious for a long time about hex core bass strings. I don't
like the universal bass strings which use them, but there are very decent
pianos which come with hex core bass strings from the factory:
Grotrian and Ibach (in vintage pianos) have been mentioned. Berdux, a small
but prestigious German maker, used them in at least some of their wonderful
grands in the "good old days". I'm sure there are quite a few more brands.

More recently, uprights by Schimmel and Steingraeber (today) use hex core
bass strings. Interestingly, Steingraeber grands do not. I asked a head
honcho at Bechstein about hex core strings, he told me you can't get a good
sounding bass string on a hex core. Well, the Steingraeber uprights are
surely among the finest vertical pianos built today. 

So what gives? Hex core wire costs a lot more than round wire, but perhaps
it can still be cheaper to use? The number of reject strings could be lower
because copper grabs onto the hex wire better. But is that enough of a
factor to go hexed?

I would be very interested what scale experts and bass string experimenters
have to say on this topic.


Jurgen Goering
Piano Forte Supply
(250) 754-2440
info at pianofortesupply.com
http://www.pianofortesupply.com

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