<HTML><HEAD> <META http-equiv=Content-Type content="text/html;= charset=iso-8859-1"> <META content="MSHTML 6.00.2600.0" name=GENERATOR> <STYLE></STYLE> </HEAD> <BODY bgColor=#ffffff> <DIV align=left>David,</DIV> <DIV align=left> </DIV> <DIV align=left>How did your long-term clients react when you= started tuning their pianos with an electronic gizmo?</DIV> <DIV align=left> </DIV> <DIV align=left>David I.</DIV> <DIV align=left><FONT size=2></FONT> </DIV> <DIV align=left><FONT size=2>----- Original message= ----------------------------------------><BR>From: David Love= <<A= href="mailto:davidlovepianos@earthlink.net">davidlovepianos@eart= hlink.net</A>><BR>To: Pianotech <<A= href="mailto:pianotech@ptg.org">pianotech@ptg.org</A>><BR>Rec= eived: Thu, 24 Oct 2002 07:22:00 -0700<BR>Subject: Re: ears vs.= eyes..kinda long-winded</FONT></DIV> <DIV align=left><FONT size=2><BR>There is another aspect to this= debate worth mentioning.  I spent the first 20+ years = as a strictly aural tuner.  A few years ago I decided= to buy an Accutuner mostly for use in institutional work where I= needed to tune as many pianos as possible quickly and stress= free.  More recently I purchased a Verituner.  During= the period when I was tuning aurally I think I was a very= competent tuner, did lots of concert work, and wasn't slow by= any means.  Since going to ETD's I have found that on= average, I can tune more quickly and more accurately. = Under the right circumstances, good piano, good concentration= (beginning of the day) I could probably rival the speed and= accuracy of my ETD tuning.  But overall, through the= entire day, different kinds of pianos, different levels of= concentration, I can without a doubt deliver more consistent and= faster tunings with an ETD.   I'm not sure (if people= are being honest) how it could be otherwise. = </FONT></DIV> <DIV><FONT size=2></FONT> </DIV> <DIV><FONT size=2>Since my fees are based on time, and I can= complete the task more quickly, I am, in effect, earning more= money.  The 5th tuning I do in a day is more likely to be= of the same high quality as the 1st tuning of the day and the= stress I feel from that kind of schedule is greatly= diminished.  Moreover, as far as the customer is concerned,= I can actually complete a few additional tasks within the same= time period that I generally took for an aural tuning (which is,= in fact, what I do).  Thus, the customer benefits because I= can include a few items in a regular service that were more= difficult before because the average time spent tuning= prohibited that without either an extra charge or= loss revenue.   I benefit from having done a more= thorough job on the piano, the customer loves me and refers me= to all their friends, and after tuning five pianos in a day, I= can still come home and have a coherent conversation with my= wife.</FONT></DIV> <DIV><FONT size=2></FONT> </DIV> <DIV><FONT size=2>It's not only difficult to give up these= benefits, the bigger question might be is it really fair to the= customer to insist on tuning aurally when you could deliver just= as good (perhaps better) of a tuning and more in the same amount= of time and, presumably then, for the same price?</FONT></DIV> <DIV><FONT size=2></FONT> </DIV> <DIV><FONT size=2>For me, the answer seems obvious.</FONT></DIV> <DIV><FONT size=2></FONT> </DIV> <DIV><FONT size=2>David Love</FONT></DIV> <DIV><FONT size=2></FONT> </DIV> <DIV> </DIV> <DIV>----- Original Message ----- </DIV> <BLOCKQUOTE style="PADDING-RIGHT: 0px; PADDING-LEFT: 5px;= MARGIN-LEFT: 5px; BORDER-LEFT: #000000 2px solid; MARGIN-RIGHT:= 0px"> <DIV style="BACKGROUND: #e4e4e4; FONT: 10pt arial; font-color:= black"><B>From:</B> <A title=HazenBannister@cs.com= href="mailto:HazenBannister@cs.com">HazenBannister@cs.com</A>= </DIV> <DIV style="FONT: 10pt arial"><B>To:</B> <A= title=pianotech@ptg.org= href="mailto:pianotech@ptg.org">pianotech@ptg.org</A> </DIV> <DIV style="FONT: 10pt arial"><B>Sent:</B> October 24, 2002 5:10= AM</DIV> <DIV style="FONT: 10pt arial"><B>Subject:</B> Re: ears vs.= eyes..kinda long-winded</DIV> <DIV><BR></DIV><FONT face=arial,helvetica><FONT size=2>In a= message dated 10/24/2002 3:08:17 AM Eastern Daylight Time, <A= href="mailto:bigda@gte.net">bigda@gte.net</A> writes:= <BR><BR><BR> <BLOCKQUOTE style="PADDING-LEFT: 5px; MARGIN-LEFT: 5px;= BORDER-LEFT: #0000ff 2px solid; MARGIN-RIGHT: 0px"= TYPE="CITE">and I've followed up on some really good EDT users,= some <BR>famous, at least regionally so. <BR></FONT><FONT lang=0= face=Arial color=#000000 size=3= FAMILY="SANSSERIF"></BLOCKQUOTE><BR></FONT><FONT lang=0= face=Arial color=#000000 size=2 FAMILY="SANSSERIF"><BR>Hi, <BR>I= have no doubt,that you are probably an extremely talented aural= tuner.But,as you have said above,I also have followed aural= tuners in my region,with a notable reputation,that really need= to borrow my Accutuner for a few days. <BR>Best, <BR>Hazen= Bannister</FONT> </FONT></BLOCKQUOTE></BODY></HTML>