Letter to PTG Technical Editor (fwd)

[Avery Todd]

Steve,

   I know you're going to get mostly "shots in the dark" :-) so here's
another one. Along with Mike Jorgenson's suggestion about replacing
strings, I'd also have him carefully check the the bridge pinning and
*especially* the notching in that area. I had a buzzing problem once that
was caused by the string laying on a little wood in the speaking length
because of bad notching and/or bad placement of pins.
   That's one thing I didn't see mentioned in the litany of things checked,
so..... it's worth a shot.

Avery

>Dear list,
>	Here's a letter I received recently from a technician seeking
>help on a Steinway noise. Any ideas?
>
>Thanks,
>	Steve
>
>Steve Brady, RPT
>University of Washington
>Seattle, WA
>
>
>
>Steinway Grand "Fuzzy Buzz"
>
>I regularly service a Steinway B grand, approximately twenty years old.
>For many years it has had a problem with a number of notes in the mid
>treble.   Despite my best attempts to locate the source, I have been
>unable to locate a faint, "fuzzy buzz" in this region 1-1/2  octaves
>above middle C.   The instrument has spent its life in an "easy",
>moderate climate.
>
>Although it sounds like a soundboard related noise, I have set the
>strings on the bridges, experimented with the string/ capo d astro bar
>relationship, tried muting duplex string segments, checked action parts
>for loose joints and pinning, reshaped hammers, voiced, and listened
>under the piano and inside it while it was being played.  I have cleaned
>underneath the plate, blown out the whole soundboard area with my vacuum,
>and checked for obvious soundboard and rib  problems, even for dried glue
>remnants on the edges.  I have always been able to find a remedy for
>other Steinway  treble problems, but not this one.
>
>Has anyone out there had this experience and solved the problem?  Are
>there any methods for "getting a fix" on the source of elusive soundboard
>noises?  My customer is frustrated and so am I!  Thanks for your help!
>
>-Tom Armstrong, RPT
>Monterey Bay Chapter, California
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