WAS Re: Tune-off

[Gregory Torres]

This thread brings to mind a question probably some or even most of us have asked.

How hard is it really for the manufacturers to just put a decent scale on some of these
smaller pianos ?
I have tuned many pianos that were maybe not the highest quality construction overall
but they tuned nicely. On the other hand far too many seem to have been made with some
care but no matter how hard we try the scale prohibits a smooth temperament.

Why is it that we should have to re-scale these beasts when perhaps it can and should be
done correctly at the factory?

Regards,
Greg Torres



dpitsch wrote:

> The idea here is not that more variables will be thrown in, but to show how useless
> the "theoretically correct" computer generated temperaments/tunings are when working
> on a poorly scaled piano.  After all, most technicians do a lot of "bread & butter"
> work on smaller grands and uprights.  I have never seen a tuning demonstration at a
> PTG seminar on anything smaller than 7' & 9' pianos.  Wouldn't it be more helpful to
> the normal tuners to see a demonstration on a spinet or console, which is what they
> will work on when they get home?
>
> I can count dozens of tuners who were told that stretch charts or FAC or whatever
> would help them in their work, only to find out after spending large sums of money
> that these claims just are not true.  The same goes for well known concert tuners,
> and what they teach at PTG seminars.  How many times have we heard to tune FA at 7
> bps?  It works fine on 9' Steinways, but fails miserably on spinets, console, and
> studios.
>