Call for scaling spreadsheets

[David Love]

Lots of qualifications here--higher tension achieved by increasing string
diameters while keeping the speaking length the same will produce higher
inharmonicity (and a bit more punch btw).  Higher tension produced by
increasing speaking length (the better way to produce higher tension scales
in my view) will produce lower inharmonicity (and still produce a bit more
punch).   (You can easily run the numbers and see)

Re others' comments about projection, I'm not sure how people are
differentiating between projection and loudness in which case the analogy
about elephants, whales, bass drums and piccolos, car woofers and tweeters
doesn't really apply since we are dealing with differences in tension at a
given pitch which may be high or low.  The issue, I believe, has to do with
the storage of energy.  In simple terms, in a large concert hall, if you
want to cut through the orchestra or be confident that you will reach the
back row you will be better off with high tension rather than low.  If you
want a warmer more intimate sound, perhaps fuller and, to me, more pleasing,
a lower tension scale is the choice--interplay between scale, soundboard
design, and hammers (of course) notwithstanding.     

David Love
davidlovepianos at comcast.net 
www.davidlovepianos.com

-----Original Message-----
From: pianotech-bounces at ptg.org [mailto:pianotech-bounces at ptg.org] On Behalf
Of alan forsyth
Sent: Friday, September 29, 2006 5:50 PM
To: Pianotech List
Subject: Re: Call for scaling spreadsheets

David Love said , "The higher tension scales will have
lower inharmonicity.  "

I have not found this to be true. What I have found is that higher tension
still has higher inharmonicity, but it's the RATE of increase in
inharmonicity that decreases.
We've all been led to believe that inharmonicity is caused by the stiffness
of the wire; hence if the tension increases, surely the stiffness increases.

AF