<html> <head> <meta http-equiv=Content-Type content="text/html; charset=us-ascii"> <meta name=Generator content="Microsoft Word 11 (filtered)"> <style>  </style> </head> <body lang=EN-US link=blue vlink=purple> <div class=Section1> That's not been my observation.  To generalize (and I really dislike generalizing) American manufacturers have in the past been more likely to innovate and redesign and improve.  Currently they're not doing that!  Major design improvements have not been part of the picture since early in the last century.    Asian manufacturers – on the other hand - generally have not redesigned or innovated but have been much better at the precision of their work.  Even the new Shigeru Kawai pianos, wonderful as they are, have no design improvements.  They are just copies of the same old designs but much more precision in the execution.    Pianos are made of 3 things – design, materials and execution.  In my view the manufacturer that started this small thread has used very good materials.  Those good materials have been used on old, old designs and executed in very sloppy fashion.  Asian manufacturers have used these same antique designs with somewhat less wonderful materials but have done it with much more precise execution.  This leaves us only old designs.  Then we do get the choice of excellent materials put together poorly, or somewhat lesser materials assembled much more precisely.  I think that is why most in our community have continued to opt for the excellent materials because we have the know how to tidy up the poor workmanship.  We complain about it, but this is the piano business as we know it.   dave   ____________________ David M. Porritt, RPT dporritt@smu.edu   -----Original Message----- From: caut-bounces@ptg.org [mailto:caut-bounces@ptg.org] On Behalf Of RicB Sent: Sunday, March 18, 2007 8:57 AM To: caut@ptg.org Subject: [CAUT] Agraffe alignment   To be honest... I have seen this a lot as well... and in just about every make of piano I see these days.  I believe this has much more to do with the general state of the market itself then anything else.  JMO   RicB         I have seen this, a lot!  It amazes me that a piano company that     consistantly has such sloppy manufacturing can, with a straight     corporate face, call     itself the "standard" piano of the world.  And what really amazes me     is that I     never saw this kind of incompetent construction from the same     manufacturer     between 1900 and 1940.  Where did the quality go?           Ed Foote RPT </div> </body> </html>