[pianotech] shorter final tuning time with pitch raises; forearm smash

[David Love]

I think it depends on where in the scale you're talking about and how you
are playing the note.  In the upper end of the piano you need less time (and
get less time), in the lower part more.  Also the harder you hit the note
(especially lower in the piano) the longer it takes for the noise to settle.
Since we tend to tune while playing the note firmly (or should) you can miss
something if you move too quickly in certain sections without allowing time
for things to settle.  A final pass check of unisons playing the notes
softly often reveals very subtle late blooms in lower sections but I think
that this is best left for a final and separate pass rather than trying to
accomplish this in the first pass.  It actually goes faster that way overall
and allows you to focus your hearing and concentration more closely without
the confusion that can come from jumping back and forth between firm blows
and soft blows.  

 

However, I agree with Ron overall that people probably tend to listen too
long into the note especially while manipulating the pin.  That is to say
that the manipulation of the pin should coincide with frequent and repeated
playing of the note.  The mistake is
play-manipulate-manipulate-manipulate-manipulate-manipulate-manipulate-play
rather than continuous and simultaneous  playing and manipulation.  In the
final check phase then you are simply playing softly enough that there is
little or no attack distortion and listening.  If you find something to
correct then you need to return to the firmer play-manipulate procedure.  A
bit of a back and forth wiggle of the tuning lever on the turning plane (on
plane is important) while playing the note to see if things are really
settled is the final check before leaving the pin.  

 

David Love

www.davidlovepianos.com

 

From: pianotech-bounces at ptg.org [mailto:pianotech-bounces at ptg.org] On Behalf
Of Ed Foote
Sent: Thursday, November 04, 2010 6:36 AM
To: pianotech at ptg.org
Subject: Re: [pianotech] shorter final tuning time with pitch raises;
forearm smash

 

Ron writes:
> Hi David,
> From past observations rather than specific knowledge of what you, 
> personally, are doing, I find that tuners taking well over an hour are 
> all doing the same thing. They listen too long, and tune way too deep 
> into the tone envelope. Tuning into the decay is a waste of time and 
> effort, I think. Pretty much everything you need is in the first half 
> second of the note.  







Umm,  not for me.  After the unison is close enough to stop beating, there
are still cats meowing over the
next second or two that will be missed if I only spend 1/2 second.  The
bigger the piano, the more true this is. 
Regards, 
Ed Foote RpT
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