<!doctype html public "-//W3C//DTD W3 HTML//EN"> <html><head><style type="text/css"></style><title>Re: Steinway O</title></head><body> <div>At 10:06 PM +0300 10/6/03, Calin Tantareanu wrote:</div> <blockquote type="cite" cite><br></blockquote> <blockquote type="cite" cite>. . . I am already impressed with its bass, which is damn good for a 180cm piano.<br> It's a really strong typically Seinway bass, you could even say rough ;-)</blockquote> <div><br> Very likely!<br> </div> <blockquote type="cite" cite>The only weird thing is, that contrary to what some people here say, the<br> lowest A has a very long string (~140cm if I remember correctly, on a<br> cantilever or apron bridge - what's the correct name?) and a very short<br> backscale, yet it sounds good.</blockquote> <blockquote type="cite" cite>What do you think?</blockquote> <div><br></div> <div>Yes it does have a 140 cm speaking length at A1 with a short back scale.</div> <div><br></div> <div>While the instrument might seem to be performing well in the low bass, it would be even better if the speaking length was 4 - 5 cm shorter with a correspondingly increased back scale.</div> <div><br></div> <div>Yamaha have included the same design shortcoming (from my perspective) in their latest C3. They've gone from a speaking length of around 135 cm in the previous 183 cm C3 models to around 140 cm in the latest 185 cm version, with a much shorter back scale. For those of you with the opportunity to do A-B comparisons between the current and older versions of the C3, there is no contest. The latest might have the biggest numbers for the sales people to talk about, but what's the use since it doesn't speak?</div> <div><br></div> <div>Same deal with suspended or apron bridges. The inclusion of these in any piano demonstrates that the designer hasn't been paying attention to what's coming in via the ears. The O is an ideal piano to ditch the suspended bridge and undercut a couple of notes, since it has a straightish bass bridge<font color="#0000FF"> (the 'hockey stick' style bass bridges don't respond quite as well to the undercut)</font>. The last couple of low notes could be undercut where the bridge meets the sound board panel without any problems, apart from a considerable tonal improvement.</div> <div><br></div> <div>The front duplexes are also very long on this model. If I were doing the repair I would cut them out with an angle grinder, fill the 'valleys' with body filler and make up a new set of bars, hardening them, tapering the height of each to achieve a uniform string approach angle and positioning them to detune the front length while making them as short as possible<font color="#0000FF"> (but talk to the client first and get their approval in writing, or you'll have S&S breathing down your neck to ruin your whole year - I lost 1997 but we survived)</font>. I'll try to organise an over head photo of the Steinway D which got this treatment late last year if anyone would like to see it. Anyone?</div> <div><br></div> <div>Just play chromatically up the last few agraffe notes of the O, crossing over into the duplex section to hear the organised chaos which begins immediately you cross to the duplexed section. When I hear this cacophony, all I want to do is reach for the angle grinder.</div> <div><br></div> <div>Ron O.</div> <x-sigsep><pre>-- </pre></x-sigsep> <div>_______________________<br> <br> OVERS PIANOS - SYDNEY<br> Grand Piano Manufacturers<br> <br> Web: http://overspianos.com.au<br> mailto:info@overspianos.com.au<br> _______________________</div> </body> </html>