Michael J. Wathen wrote: > > I know that I said in a previous post that my 100 year old Chickering was > "maybe a little weak" but after ddf's most recent post saying > > >Actually, I'd have replaced the soundboard and capped the bridges. There > >is no way that a soundboard that old can have the necessary amount of > >stiffness that it needs to provide the proper impedance load to the > >strings. Both sustain and tone quality will have suffered. Assuming that > >wasn't an option for you, I'd suggest that you still need a certain > >minimum amount of string load on the soundboard. Forget about crown, > >there isn't going to be much left after a hundred years, if any. But > >without some sting load against the bridge (i.e., downbearing) you're > >going to have a tough time realizing even what little tone performance > >the old board does have left to give. > > > > I thought that I would stand up for the old girl. I have had lots of pianos > in my house over the last twenty years but she is the best. What I said > about her being "maybe a little weak" was said in jest. Her age is > deceiving. I am not saying that you are wrong in what you say above only > that this one defies the odds for good sound. You can listen to two sound > clips on the page below and judge for yourself. The miking is not the best > and it is in mono so the depth and some richness is lost. Still..... > > http://ucccm56.ccm.uc.edu/sound/index.htm > ,.,.,,,.,,,,,,.,.,,,.,,,,,,,.,,.,.,.,.,.,.,.,.,.,.,.,.,.,.,.,.,.,.,.,.,.,.,, > ,,,.,.,.,., > > > Michael J. Wathen, RPT Phone: 513-556-9565 > Piano Technician Fax: 513-556-3399 > College-Consevatory of Music Email: Michael.Wathen@UC.Edu > University of Cincinnati > Cincinnati, OH 45221-0096 > > http://www.uc.edu/~wathenmj/ As I have often said in the past, beauty is in the ear of the beholder... --ddf
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