<!DOCTYPE HTML PUBLIC "-//W3C//DTD HTML 4.0 Transitional//EN">
<HTML><HEAD>
<META http-equiv=Content-Type content="text/html; charset=US-ASCII">
<META content="MSHTML 6.00.2900.2802" name=GENERATOR></HEAD>
<BODY id=role_body style="FONT-SIZE: 10pt; COLOR: #000000; FONT-FAMILY: Arial"
bottomMargin=7 leftMargin=7 topMargin=7 rightMargin=7><FONT id=role_document
face=Arial color=#000000 size=2>
<DIV><FONT size=3> Hi Dean</FONT></DIV>
<DIV><FONT size=3> Well the statement you make on the bottom of your post
is usually the problem. I have voiced or replaced hammers in many older
& newer Kawai & Yamaha pianos & had tremendous improvements in
tone. As is the case in so many pianos with the harder pressed version of
hammers, without out voicing, sustain will always be short & the tone an
imitation of the sound of shattering glass.........., unless I sell a
voicing job. </FONT></DIV>
<DIV><FONT size=3> Some pianos I've serviced have been tonally
so bad that <STRONG>IF </STRONG>after a couple attempts at moving the client
towards voicing without success, I have politely suggested they
perhaps they find someone else & also that I'm trying to protect my hearing
from the excessive DBs these pianos produce. A bold move?... yes & but
rarely does the client go elsewhere. The cleint doen't realize what's
possible. An A-B voicing demonstration is often the best sales
tool to share tonal changes with our clients & let them hear what's
possible. </FONT></DIV>
<DIV><FONT size=3> By the way I have replaced hammers in many old Kawai
500 series pianos, KG-2's, GS-70 GS- 60. All with remarkable & stunning
results. Not my words but clients exclamations.</FONT></DIV>
<DIV><FONT size=3> 10 years or more ago a teacher bought her dream piano,
a Kawai KG-2. She liked it at first but then as it changed &
brightened to unacceptable levels within a short time & she thought
she had truly purchased a Lemon. After first attempting to voice some a
very hard set of hammers without getting what we wanted, I put in a few Isaac
hammers in & her face lit up. She still teaches & I saw the piano
last week & the voicing was perfect even after all this time & use.
I have yet to stick a single needle in these hammers. DItto the
<STRONG>exact</STRONG> same experience time after time on the GS- 60 & 70
& Yamaha C-3s, kawai 500,550 & others. </FONT></DIV>
<DIV><FONT size=3> I saw the GS -70 recently as well &
still hanging in after 12 years. It is ready for a few minutes of needling
& evening up but nothing major. This client is big church Power
pianist, always plays to the bottom of the keys...vigorouly. By the
way many of the pianos mentioned here just to be accurate are the Isaac hammer
is which are or can be softer hammers voiced up properly with
lacquer. On other pianos they are Ronsen Hammers. All
these painos are used more than the average.</FONT></DIV>
<DIV><FONT size=3> As you may no Heroic & extreme voicing attempts are
not with in the realm of my patience any more. If the tone <STRONG>I
KNOW</STRONG> is possible & it doesnt' develop within a short amount of
time, then hammers tell me they are just to hard to achieve
the lasting results & tone I want. </FONT></DIV>
<DIV><FONT size=3> In these cases I'd rather the client
spends the hundreds of dollars I would have spent voicing, & put it
towards a new set of hammers. The sustain & balanced tone will be long
lasting & without continual re-needling & tennis elbow. You'll be
a Wizard & the good will is enormous.</FONT></DIV>
<DIV><FONT size=3> Hope this is of value friend</FONT></DIV>
<DIV><FONT size=3> Dale</FONT></DIV>
<BLOCKQUOTE
style="PADDING-LEFT: 5px; MARGIN-LEFT: 5px; BORDER-LEFT: blue 2px solid"><FONT
style="BACKGROUND-COLOR: transparent" face=Arial color=#000080 size=2>
<P class=MsoNormal></P>
<P class=MsoNormal><FONT face=Arial color=navy size=2><SPAN
style="FONT-SIZE: 10pt; COLOR: navy; FONT-FAMILY: Arial">I don't get it. Most
all of the Kawai grands I tune (which aren't that many) I don't really care
much for. Since there aren't any new Kawai's being sold in this area most of
the ones I encounter are 10 plus years old of the KG variety, a couple of GS,
one GS-70. I don't like the sustain. With the sustain pedal on when playing an
arpeggio the sound quickly fades into white noise and one cannot discern what
scale was just played. I've done some experimenting even, hitting individual
notes across the scale with an f blow and I get about a second of tone before
there is only noise.</FONT></FONT></P></BLOCKQUOTE>
<DIV> </SPAN><FONT style="BACKGROUND-COLOR: transparent" face=Arial
color=#000080 size=2><FONT face=Arial color=navy size=2><SPAN
style="FONT-SIZE: 10pt; COLOR: navy; FONT-FAMILY: Arial"><STRONG><EM><U>These
are pianos with original hammers that have probably never had a needle stuck in
them. Is this a hammer/voicing problem?</U></EM></STRONG></SPAN></FONT></DIV>
<BLOCKQUOTE
style="PADDING-LEFT: 5px; MARGIN-LEFT: 5px; BORDER-LEFT: blue 2px solid">
<DIV>
<P class=MsoAutoSig><B><FONT face="Bradley Hand ITC" color=navy size=6><SPAN
style="FONT-WEIGHT: bold; FONT-SIZE: 22pt; COLOR: navy; FONT-FAMILY: 'Bradley Hand ITC'">Dean</SPAN></FONT></B></P>
<P class=MsoAutoSig>
<P class=MsoAutoSig><FONT color=navy><SPAN
style="COLOR: navy"></SPAN></FONT></P><FONT face="Book Antiqua"
color=#000000></FONT></FONT>
<DIV><FONT lang=0 face="Book Antiqua" size=2 FAMILY="SERIF"
PTSIZE="10">eereeeeerwinsErwins pianoDale Erwin--Piano
Restorations<BR><STRONG>4721 Parker Rd.<BR>Modesto, Calif 95357<BR>Shop
209-577-8397<BR>cell 209-985-0990<BR></STRONG></FONT><FONT lang=0
face="Abadi MT Condensed" color=#000000 size=3 FAMILY="SANSSERIF"
PTSIZE="12"><A
href="http://www.erwinspiano.com/"><STRONG>http://www.erwinspiano.com/</STRONG></A></FONT><FONT
lang=0 face="Book Antiqua" color=#000000 size=2 FAMILY="SERIF"
PTSIZE="10"><BR><STRONG>Specializing in the restoration, service & Sales
of<BR>Steinway, Mason & Hamlin, & other fine
pianos</STRONG></FONT></DIV>
<P></P></DIV></BLOCKQUOTE></FONT></BODY></HTML>