This is a multi-part message in MIME format. ---------------------- multipart/alternative attachment Hello Terry and List I think you are going back to the drawing board Broadwood used in the = mid 1800's. The grand they provided for Beethoven would be a good = starting point. There is so much data to be construed out of that piano = and interpolated with modern conventions such as Bessemer processed = steel strings for strength and modern cast frame. In the Beethoven piano = the frame was "constructed" as was most of the Broadwood pianos up to = the one (No.857) I had. Chickering it was, I believe, who first used a = cast frame. Broadwoods (and others) quickly followed. Broadwoods = developed the "barless" grand frame which permitted of a continuous = bridge up to the bass/tenor break. This was, however, an otherwise = standard overstrung piano. Terry is, I take it, trying to break with = convention and develop a new approach to grand construction using a = style derived from that early Broadwood concept. One may ponder the = possibilities here of such a concept - the vast length, the innovative = scaling using the modern steel-cored single covered (please!)bass and = steel treble strings. Include the possibility of quatro stringing as did = Broadwood at one time. Even the "bent side" concept could be scrapped in = favour of a triangulated plan. Let me throw in an idea here based on a = small Harpsichord sitting at this moment under my S&S"A". All the = stringing is "parallel" but the bass strings instead of running parallel = to the direction of the keys, are at an angle to them. The "spine" is = still along the bass strings side and the open side with its prop on the = treble end, but the keys are at, maybe, 45deg. to the spine. The = pianist's hands will be seen by the audience even if the piano spine is = parallel to the cyclorama. Bizarre? Well... why not? Go on from there! Regards from a dusky and balmy evening in the Downland Village. Michael G.(UK) ----- Original Message -----=20 From: Farrell=20 To: Pianotech=20 Sent: Friday, July 15, 2005 2:08 PM Subject: Re: Piano Design Question Hi Richard - Perhaps I did not make my question clear enough. I think = your answer targeted conventional piano design. I'm trying to step out = of the box. I am asking about designing a piano with no limits on size = or shape. As such, overstringing to maximize bass string length has no = merit - just make the piano longer if you want a longer bass string. = Also, putting the bass bridge in the center of the board also looses its = meaning, because you can make the case any size or shape you want - so = even if the bass bridge is down at one end of the scale, you can stretch = the case (make it bulbous if you want) down there and provide the bass = bridge with any amount of soundboard area you find advantageous.=20 And BTW, with a conventional piano design, I don't know that = maximizing the length of bass strings is so singly important. I think = more important is to achieve a good compromise between length and = mobility (i.e. and looooong bass string with a 5mm backscale won't do = any piano any good).=20 Terry Farrell Richard Cromwell wrote: In my minimal studies of piano design the benefits that overstrung = scales provide over a straight scale are pretty simple =20 Overstringing maximizes the length of the bass strings while being = able to position the bass bridge closer to the center/most flexible part = of the soundboard. This is important as the amplitude of the lower frequencies produced = by the bass strings move the board more and thus benefit from the = additional throw available closer to the center. I am not going to = bother to go into why maximizing the length of the bass strings is = important, because if you don't know. you shouldn't be reading this. I = think that the designers of old felt that the substantial benefits = yielded in the quality of tone produced in the bass section of the piano = by overstinging far outweigh any resulting deficiencies (which there are = of course) in the tenor or anywhere else for that matter. which makes = sense to me. =20 =20 To those who delve into piano design (and loose sleep over such = things)...... =20 My understanding is that the bass/tenor area of the typical modern = grand piano soundboard poses a challenge from the design standpoint = because in pretty much the same location you want a very flexible = soundboard for the bass and a stiffer soundboard for the lower tenor. = This necessitates compromise. =20 Yes - is that true? =20 Wouldn't a straight-strung arrangement work better? Seems to me that = designing a piano with performance being the #1 criteria, a straight = strung (or parallel or whatever - you know what I mean) arrangement = would offer the designer the luxury of designing the soundboard to meet = the needs of the various sections of the string scale - and not having = to make the same area suit two different needs.=20 =20 Now keep in mind that I ask this question strictly from the = performance (musical) standpoint and not the standpoint of how well a = design might sell. I believe it is the case that one can design a piano = with longer bass strings for a given piano length with an overstrung = design - if the marketing department is put in charge of piano design. = I'm talking about eliminating the marketing department and the = accounting department and just dealing with how to build the most = acoustically pleasing piano. (I know, silly idea.) Now rememeber - no = marketing - we can make the case ANY shape we want (we don't have to = have a flat side on the bass side)! =20 Without having to concern yourself with factory sales, would you = rather design a straight-strung or overstrung piano? Which approach give = the designer more freedom to design an optimal piano? =20 Thanks. Tomorrow in the shop will pivot on this..... ;-) =20 FWIW: Seems to me that straight-strung offers significant design = benefits because each area of the string scale occupies a unique area of = the soundboard - and hence that area of the soundboard can be designed = to optimize the performance of that area of the string scale. =20 Terry Farrell ---------------------- multipart/alternative attachment An HTML attachment was scrubbed... URL: https://www.moypiano.com/ptg/pianotech.php/attachments/73/64/9f/92/attachment.htm ---------------------- multipart/alternative attachment--
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