<!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 6.00.2800.1400" name=GENERATOR> <STYLE></STYLE> </HEAD> <BODY bgColor=#ffffff> <DIV><FONT face=Arial size=2>The short answer is because of other = factors such as the board losing its crown. Ribs can flatten and loose their crown = (if they had any originally). The panel may be under quite a bit of compressive = force that crushes wood fibers - depending on the soundboard design, that = may cause a loss of crown. Violins do not see the kind of panel compression = that many pianos experience.</FONT></DIV> <DIV><FONT face=Arial size=2></FONT> </DIV> <DIV><FONT face=Arial size=2>Also, one may wish to alter the design = of the original belly. In that case, the condition of the = original soundboard might not be a controlling factor in the decision to replace a soundboard.</FONT></DIV> <DIV><FONT face=Arial size=2></FONT> </DIV> <DIV><FONT face=Arial size=2>I don't think a soundboard ever "needs" = to be replaced. It all depends on what the goals are for the piano. What is it = you "want" to do?</FONT></DIV> <DIV><FONT face=Arial size=2></FONT> </DIV> <DIV><FONT face=Arial size=2>I'd say more, but I gotta get out to = the shop and cut up some Sitka for a new panel!</FONT></DIV> <DIV><FONT face=Arial size=2></FONT> </DIV> <DIV><FONT face=Arial size=2>Terry Farrell</FONT></DIV> <DIV><FONT face=Arial size=2></FONT> </DIV> <DIV><FONT face=Arial size=2><A href="http://www.farrellpiano.com">www.farrellpiano.com</A></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">List,</DIV> <DIV> <DIV>    I would like to start a thread about soundboards.  </DIV> <DIV> </DIV> <DIV>    Many technicians replace soundboards, when the = soundboard is 'dead'.  Is it because the wood is 'dead' and = will no longer amplify the sound, or is it because of other factors such as the board losing its crown, etc?  </DIV> <DIV> </DIV> <DIV>    Where I'm going with this is that I find it interesting that piano technicians are changing soundboards regularly, = if that is their area of specialty.  Contrarily, violinists = seem to be wanting older instruments because wood sounds better over time.  = If the wood sounded that much better over time, and a soundboard was still intact, wouldn't people be begging for the old klunker pianos and = rebuilding them as opposed to replacing the = soundboards?  These two ideas are seemingly contrary.  In saying this, I do acknowledge = that pianos are far more mechanical than violins and I realize that there = are other factors in a piano such as worn out actions, pin blocks, split = boards, hammers, dampers, separated ribs and the like.  I also = acknowledge that some older pianos were never great piano, even in their day, and = will never be made to play like a quality vintage piano.  </DIV> <DIV> </DIV> <DIV>    My point is to determine if these soundboards = really need to be replaced?  If they do, is it because the wood has gone = dead over time, or because of external factors such as splitting or = separation have forced it to need replacement, were the wood in the board itself may = still be good?  I don't hear violinists replacing tops because they = have become dead.  They seem to be wantign them older and older.  = Am I missing something?   </DIV> <DIV> </DIV> <DIV>    I would welcome any viewpoints on the subject, = especially from those who replace boards.</DIV> <DIV> </DIV> <DIV>thanks</DIV> <DIV> </DIV> <DIV>Ron Shiflet</DIV> <DIV> </DIV> <DIV> </DIV></DIV></BLOCKQUOTE></BODY></HTML>