Midi pianos

[Tunapiana@aol.com]

Gulbransen makes a few MIDI kits (I know what you are thinking, but this MIDI
stuff is good) ranging from real basic to some complete with sound modules.
Sounds as if your customer just needs the basic sensor strip with a control
box. It is essentially a long metal strip with circuit boards and little
"fingers" that activate a type of opto/electric circuit. It is installed
under the keys as close to the front as possible. The instructions are very
well done. The piano technician can install it unless he/she has a great fear
of the unknown...(giggles I hope). I have installed these on a couple of
instruments back in '93 and in '95 with the results being excellent. One
installation was a Yamaha, an old No.2 circa 50's and the other a 7 ft
Baldwin, circa early 80's.  The Gulbransen "MIDI Kits" were relatively
inexpensive (500.00 - 650.00) and the installation was straightforward. The
Yamaha was really easy, but on the Baldwin I had to mortise about a 1/4 inch
from the top of the key-frame so the sensor strip would sit at the right
height under the keys. It was a little scary but it didn't hurt the integrity
of the keyframe and it turned out beautiful. There are other manufacturers of
"MIDI" strips but I found the Gulbransen to be a good product at a reasonable
price for the basic MIDI features needed.  It should only take a few hours to
install. I charged 350.00 for the Baldwin back in '95 but would charge more
now especially because I didn't know I would have the additional time & labor
of removing wood from the keyframe. The Yamaha was pretty much a bolt-on
installation. You have to remove the stack and all the keys in either case,
mount the strip on the keyframe making sure you have the proper clearance
from the bottom of the keys to the switches (i.e. "fingers"),  Put everything
back together and test with customers MIDI sound module or computer. I also
play music professionaly and have MIDI sound modules so my installation was
easy to test. There should be no regulation needed after the install unless
regulation was needed before-hand in which case do the regulating before the
install or the MIDI data generated won't be consistent (as would be the case
with the piano's touch). Go for it!

Greg Torres, Technician
Niceville, Fla
Tunapiana@aol.com