stunning tuning without a stun gun

[antares]

Hello Jim Coleman,

I just wanted to say hello to you (it has been a long time, right?) and tell
you that all this gibberish about Verituners, Cybertuners, Sat tuners etc...
is very very nice, but that in the end (and especially when the batteries
are out of energy) the real tuner makes a real tuning...OK?

Most friendly greetings from,

André oorebeek



> From: "Jim Coleman, Sr." <pianotoo@imap2.asu.edu>
> Reply-To: pianotech@ptg.org
> Date: Sun, 02 Sep 2001 16:39:30 -0900 (PDT)
> To: pianotech@ptg.org
> Subject: stunning tuning without a stun gun
> 
> The following comment triggered me to write something:
> 
> "I certainly believe...no I know that it is possible to learn to
> out-tune even the best of ETD's...no matter how good they get."
> 
> Virgil Smith has tried it several times. The net result is that no
> matter which method is used if it is used by a well experienced
> tuner, the results will be practically indistinguishable.
> 
> Several years ago I wrote a program in Basic language which attempted
> utilize all the decision making which we use in aural tuning. The
> program became quite complex. Many many decisions are made during
> aural tuning when one compares all the possible interval
> relationships. When these decisions are made in a computer, it is
> nice, but when one tries to tune to the accuracy of .1 cents in
> real time, the decisions begin to unravel for we are not able to
> tune to the needed accuracy which the programs require. Therefore,
> I came to the conclusion that tuning to a smooth curve is probably
> the best that we can do because it at least gives us a target
> which presumably will keep certain intervals smoothly graduated.
> 
> Now if, in the case of certain poorly scaled pianos, we wish to
> make compromises of one smoothly graduated beat rate in favor of
> accommodating some other interval which does not graduate
> smoothly, this is where artistic license comes into play. Here is
> where the SAT III really shines because of its simplicity in
> making these kinds of changes. Granted, if all piano scalings were
> perfectly balanced, there would be no need for any changes, the
> SAT III does very well. The SAT can do in one pass what the
> Verituner takes 2 passes to do. For those who are specifically
> interested in how, write me privately, it's too lengthy to
> explain in this forum, but is so easy to do. Of course all this is
> predicated upon a good hammer technique and acute ears and eyes.
> No machine tunes a piano for you. Neither do ears.
> 
> Jim Coleman, Sr.
> PS I no longer accept commissions on AccuTuner sales.
>