<HTML>In a message dated 1/9/02 8:08:03 AM Central Standard Time, mfarrel2@tampabay.rr.com writes: <BLOCKQUOTE TYPE=CITE style="BORDER-LEFT: #0000ff 2px solid; MARGIN-LEFT: 5px; MARGIN-RIGHT: 0px; PADDING-LEFT: 5px">will be voicing a 15 year old mid-sized Yamaha grand in a couple weeks. I am very much a beginner in voicing. The owner complains that it is "not as mellow as it was before". I'm looking for any general do's and don't regarding Yamaha hammers. I will likely be using some light steaming as a first step aimed at general brightness reduction. The owner also complains of the "upper register" being quieter than the rest of the piano. I asked if it was most noticeable in the 5th or 6th octave. She said yes. So I realize this may largely be a soundboard problem, and I will measure soundboard shape and downbearing to evaluate that. But even if it is a soundboard problem, I doubt she is ready today to put in a new board. What if anything can be done to at least partially improve this area. Thanks for any guideance. Terry Farrell </BLOCKQUOTE> Terry I agree with Don. Before trying anything, just tune the darn thing, and then ask the customer to identify the problems. I had a similar situation a couple of years ago. She is a piano teacher, with a 2 year old Yamaha grand. She wanted me to voice the piano, since she thought it sounded to schrill. After I tuned it, I asked her to help me voice the piano. She listened and said, "But it sounds so much better now." All that I needed to do is tune it. The previous tuner did a lousy job on unisons, not to mention temperament. Problem solve. That is not to say you'll have some voicing problems. Yamaha, as do all Asian pianos have a tendency to get brighter and brighter with use. The idea you have will work, but be sure to take enough needles with you to punch down the hammers. The try to bring up the "killer" octave with deep shoulder needling. Good luck, and tell us how it went. Wim </HTML>