<!DOCTYPE HTML PUBLIC "-//W3C//DTD HTML 4.0 Transitional//EN"> <HTML><HEAD> <META http-equiv=Content-Type content="text/html; = charset=iso-8859-1"> <META content="MSHTML 6.00.2900.2604" name=GENERATOR> <STYLE></STYLE> </HEAD> <BODY bgColor=#ffffff> <DIV><FONT size=2>You can buy expensive musician's earplugs (about = $100 US), molded to your own ear, that fit down inside the ear canal.  = Diane's are around $20, and are "caps": they fit over the ear opening like a lid on = a jar.  This makes them very comfortable.  She has them in = different sizes.</FONT></DIV> <DIV><FONT size=2></FONT> </DIV> <DIV><FONT size=2>I always wear them for pitch raises, and remove them = only for final unison adjustments.  Recently I tuned a piano, removed the = plugs, and was surprised to hear bubbly high-pitched noises.  There was an = aquarium three feet behind me with a bubbler, and I hadn't noticed it at all with = the plugs in!</FONT></DIV> <DIV><FONT size=2></FONT> </DIV> <DIV><FONT size=2>In addition to protecting your hearing, they let you = hear the piano better in noisy environments, such as the floor of a music store, = with customers trying the digital pianos behind you...</FONT></DIV> <DIV><FONT size=2></FONT> </DIV> <DIV><FONT size=2>--Cy Shuster--</FONT></DIV> <DIV><FONT size=2>Bluefield, WV</FONT></DIV> <DIV><FONT size=2></FONT> </DIV> <DIV><FONT size=2>P.S.  Diane posted here with that same email = address just two days ago...</FONT></DIV> <BLOCKQUOTE dir=ltr style="PADDING-RIGHT: 0px; PADDING-LEFT: 5px; MARGIN-LEFT: 5px; = BORDER-LEFT: #000000 2px solid; MARGIN-RIGHT: 0px"> <DIV style="FONT: 10pt arial">----- Original Message ----- </DIV> <DIV style="BACKGROUND: #e4e4e4; FONT: 10pt arial; font-color: = black"><B>From:</B> <A title=quentin.codevelle@tiscali.fr href="mailto:quentin.codevelle@tiscali.fr">Quentin Codevelle</A> = </DIV> <DIV style="FONT: 10pt arial"><B>To:</B> <A = title=pianotech@ptg.org href="mailto:pianotech@ptg.org">pianotech</A> </DIV> <DIV style="FONT: 10pt arial"><B>Sent:</B> Wednesday, February 23, = 2005 3:44 PM</DIV> <DIV style="FONT: 10pt arial"><B>Subject:</B> Diane Hofstetter's = email </DIV> <DIV><BR></DIV> <DIV><FONT face=Arial size=2>Hello Terry,</FONT></DIV> <DIV><FONT face=Arial size=2></FONT> </DIV> <DIV><FONT face=Arial size=2>Thank you for your = reply.</FONT></DIV> <DIV><FONT face=Arial size=2></FONT> </DIV> <DIV><FONT face=Arial size=2>Sarah Fox also confirmed that this = was her address. I hope she had the message.</FONT></DIV> <DIV><FONT face=Arial size=2>Or maybe she will see that I tried to = contact her with this message sent to the list.</FONT></DIV> <DIV><FONT face=Arial size=2></FONT> </DIV> <DIV><FONT face=Arial size=2>What are the average prices of her earplugs?</FONT></DIV> <DIV><FONT face=Arial size=2>I fear this must be really expensive = for me because when we (europeans) order items to the US, we have to pay some = taxes that are much more expensive than the item itself!</FONT></DIV> <DIV><FONT face=Arial size=2></FONT> </DIV> <DIV><FONT face=Arial size=2>But for the health of my ears, I = won't count my money. My ears are too important.</FONT></DIV> <DIV><FONT face=Arial size=2></FONT> </DIV> <DIV><FONT face=Arial size=2>I looked for some information on = standard earplugs (they are said to be made for "musicians") but I'm sure it is = better to deal with people who know what a tuner's ear is really exposed to.</FONT></DIV> <DIV><FONT face=Arial size=2></FONT> </DIV> <DIV><FONT face=Arial size=2>I'd like to hear no difference at all = in terms of beats hearing, I just want the sound to dicrease to save my = ears.</FONT></DIV> <DIV><FONT face=Arial size=2></FONT> </DIV> <DIV><FONT face=Arial = size=2>Quentin</FONT></DIV></BLOCKQUOTE></BODY></HTML>