Killer Octave - Warranty Issue?

[Delwin D Fandrich]

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----- Original Message -----=20
  From: Wimblees@AOL.COM=20
  To: pianotech@ptg.org=20
  Sent: September 10, 2001 2:14 PM
  Subject: Re: Killer Octave - Warranty Issue?
  ....In design, even "cheap" pianos are engineered to have proper down=20
  bearing, bridges etc. The problem between the cheap and the expensive =
ones=20
  are that in the manufacturing process,=20
Fundamentally this is true. More specifically, it lies in the amount of =
money spent on production machinery to remove hand labor.


  if a problem is discovered with the=20
  expensive one, it is sent back through, while with the cheap ones, =
there=20
  isn't the time, nor the money, to do it over again. So the piano is =
sent out=20
  as is. But that is why it is a "cheap" piano.=20
I've not really seen this happening, and have commented on it in another =
post. If interested the reader can refer to that post.


  When the piano gets to the dealer, we have the same problem. When a =
dealer=20
  can make $10,000 on a piano, he/she is more willing to pay a =
technician a=20
  couple of hundred dollars to correct any problems.=20
I have not really found this to be the case.=20


  Or if the problem is=20
  serious, it will get sent back. (In this case, the manufacturer =
realizes=20
  there is a reputation at stake, and is willing to absorb a certain =
amount of=20
  loss to redo the instrument.)=20
Nor have I found this to be the case.=20

My observation has been that the dealer will either make the problem =
right--or see that the problem is made right--or not. It depends more on =
the personal integrity of the dealer than the price of the piano sold. =
Talk to Roger.


  But when the profit margin gets reduced down to=20
  $2 - 3000, even if the work needs to be done, there isn't the money=20
  available. (And by the same token, the manufacturer is very reluctant =
to take=20
  the piano back.) Again, that is why it is a "cheap" piano.=20
One would certainly think this would be consistently true, but it often =
seems that the manufacturer of the low-cost piano is more concerned with =
backing up its products than are the manufacturers of more expensive =
pianos. Perhaps this is because the low-end manufacturer might be more =
willing to accept that their pianos may, indeed, have problems.


  And when customers buy this, they either know there is a problem, or =
they=20
  don't. If they don't, then they get, as Clyde put it, "what they pay =
for."=20
  For a technician to point out the problem, unless you bought the piano =
from=20
  Roger, or someone with his ethics and reputation, the customer is =
probably=20
  going to have to accept what they paid for, even if we point out the =
problem.=20
  What will most likely happen, as Ron pointed out, is that the dealer, =
or the=20
  manufacturer, will send out another technician, who is more =
"friendly," and=20
  point out to the customer that there is nothing "wrong" with the =
piano. Then=20
  the original tuner looses a customer, and he has made the dealer mad.=20
I have been rethinking this whole issue of late. Just what should the =
buyer of a low-cost piano expect? Relative to the buyer of a much more =
expensive piano, that is.=20

It should be possible to mass-produce pianos giving excellent =
performance. Good piano design, hence good piano performance, is not--at =
least is not inherently--expensive. Rims and soundboards can now be made =
efficiently by machine, why shouldn't they be made in such a way that =
they perform well.

Increasingly I am becoming convinced that what you get with an expensive =
piano is exclusivity, excellence in marketing (and all that that brings =
with it, some good and some bad) and, at least potentially, somewhat =
better materials. None of which necessarily translate into improved tone =
performance. The potential performance gains afforded by better =
materials can probably be designed around, given some effort.

As I've said in other posts, we--the collective we; technicians, =
dealers, consumers, all of us--have not been demanding much in the way =
of piano performance over the past few years. We've been demanding =
perfect polyester finishes, perfectly fitting hardware and casework, =
perfect coils on perfect pins, perfect bridge notching, perfect =
soundboard wood, perfectly shaped hammers, perfect tunability--yes, =
especially perfect tunability--perfect everything except truly musical =
instruments.=20

It is my opinion that, finally, the marketplace is speaking. As the =
piano has become nothing more than a perfect piece of furniture they are =
going off to buy something else. Perhaps it's time to bring back the =
music.

Regards,

Del
Delwin D Fandrich
Piano Designer & Builder
Hoquiam, Washington  USA
E.mail:  pianobuilders@olynet.com
Web Site:  www.pianobuilders.com=20

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