In the case of this piano-from the description it sounds pretty much like a spinet or a console, right?-and the bridge material under discussion-maple vs. oak (or whatever similar wood it might be)-I guess I'd like to see the perceived differences in materials demonstrated. I've tested a lot of different bridge configurations (though I must admit, all were of maple) in pianos of the same make and model and so far have not been able to measure or hear any discernable acoustical differences that could be attributed to the variations in the bridges. Now, if we were comparing bridges made of maple or oak vs. bridges made of Select Hardwood (i.e., Luan or pink meranti or some such) I would expect there to be noticeable differences in tone performance. Here, of course, we'd be dealing with significant differences in both density and stiffness. It should also be noted that the piano designer/builder has at his or her disposal several different ways to compensate for any perceived acoustical anomalies that might show up as a result of even significant variations in the species of wood chosen for a component such as a bridge. Both bridge height and width-hence bridge stiffness and mass-can easily be varied if the builder deems it necessary. There is a large difference in tone performance that can be attributed to bridge height, for example. Ditto bridge width. Both are easily defined and easily heard. Given all of the potential variables I'd be hard pressed to label either oak or maple as either a "better" or "worse" choice. And that is after we've actually defined "better" and "worse." Theoretically there may be some acoustical difference in performance that might be attributed to the choice between oak and maple as a bridge material but, with all other parameters tightly held, I think one would be hard pressed to actually describe it or measure it. I suspect you'll find more variations among different samples of the same wood species given the variations of both stiffness and density common to natural materials such as wood. ddf Delwin D Fandrich Piano Design & Fabrication 620 South Tower Avenue Centralia, Washington 98531 USA del at fandrichpiano.com ddfandrich at gmail.com Phone 360.736.7563 From: Keith Roberts [mailto:keithspiano at gmail.com] Sent: Friday, October 01, 2010 3:21 PM To: Delwin D Fandrich Subject: Re: [CAUT] Bridge root material Seems to matter. That seems to be the heart of most piano problems. It's a combination of all the little things that make it beautiful sound. Not one in particular seems to matter but which one do you eliminate first? I understand and agree with you but I also think that overall each part of the system needs to contribute it's max. On Fri, Oct 1, 2010 at 3:11 PM, Delwin D Fandrich <del at fandrichpiano.com> wrote: OK. Let me rephrase that: Seriously, given the number of strings found in the piano and considering the mass of these strings and their tensions along with the force with which they bear down against the bridges and, hence, the soundboard, along with the relatively high mass and stiffness of the soundboard/bridge and ribs system I can't see it mattering all that much. Both woods have about the same mass, stiffness and internal resistance and in a piano-as compared with other stringed musical instruments such as the violin or the guitar-with the relative high stresses and energy levels involved not much else seems to matter. ddf -------------- next part -------------- An HTML attachment was scrubbed... URL: <http://ptg.org/pipermail/caut.php/attachments/20101001/2bfd5876/attachment-0001.htm>
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