>My two bits worth......
>I have seen the RCT and I think it does some very nice things... the
>concerns that I have are these:
>1. A notebook is too large to use comfortably, it will not sit on any
>ledge, lid etc on most vertical pianos.
>2. If you come into a house using a computer it doesn't look as
>professional as a dedicated electronic tuning device.
>3. If an enterprising customer thinks you are tuning, just using a
>computer he may think he can do it too, and download something and try
>it.... he just might be semi successful, or break something... In any
>case, it's not something I would like to see done.
>4. The notebooks need to have their batteries recharged after every 2-4
>hours of use. That means recharging every day at least once, probably
>twice...
>
>C. Mike Swendsen RPT
Mike,
I've been using Reyburn CyberTuner for a year and a half. I'm also author of its user manual and an authorized RCT dealer. (List, please accept my apologies in advance if my ensuing enthusiasm for RCT is mistaken for profit-drooling.)
As an experienced Reyburn CyberTuner user and teacher, I'm confident your objections would vanish if you used RCT to tune a few pianos. Having had this pleasure, I'd like to respond to your post.
In my humble opinion, it's an understatement to say that Reyburn CyberTuner "does some very nice things." I think Reyburn CyberTuner is the most amazing electronic tool for tuning pianos ever created. (FYI, RCT's newest version 2.0 will be released any day now, and will include some great new features, including the astounding Custom Equalizer that allows you to adjust the stretch of every octave individually with a simple graphical interface; and Limits, which automatically recognizes scale problems on, for example, spinet pianos and creates tunings with the best possible compromises.)
You state some objections about Reyburn CyberTuner that I'd like to address:
>1. A notebook is too large to use comfortably, it will not sit on any
>ledge, lid etc on most vertical pianos.
A modern notebook computer is not large. In fact, a rectangle enclosing a closed Mac PowerBook 280 is 19% *smaller* than a rectangle enclosing an SAT II (129 cubic inches vs 159 cubic inches). Furthermore, a laptop's shape lends itself to easier transport; I carry mine in a small cloth briefcase with padded straps and a built-in elastic suspension system. This case holds my regular tuning hammer and my impact hammer, 6 wedges and 5 felt strips, a small assortment of tools (screwdriver handle and blades, touchup pens, wrench, brass key pounder, padded bike glove, earplugs), and billing invoices. Since my tuning device is also my office computer, I "weightlessly" carry with me the addresses, phone numbers, and tuning histories of all my customers, my complete financial records, my saved PianoTech downloads, games for my lunchtime amusement like computer chess, an unfinished letter to my Mom, etc. etc.
With its wide base and low center of gravity, I can locate my laptop in a wide variety of positions on a grand plate or on a table or music stand; the laptop's large screen means I can place it far away (across the room if need be), especially since RCT's automated NoteSwitcher changes notes up or down without need of cord or thumb switch.
Contrary to what you assume, my laptop fits atop any vertical piano easily by placing the computer on its side. This neat little trick was Jim Coleman's idea, and like many of Jim's insights, works so well I'm embarassed I didn't think of it myself. In some ways placing the computer on end is the coolest, because it means RCT's Spinner (the rotating *and* moving indicator of a note's pitch) moves higher when a note is too high and lower when a note is too low.
>2. If you come into a house using a computer it doesn't look as
>professional as a dedicated electronic tuning device.
In my experience, this is simply not the case. In fact its opposite is true.
I have never ‹ ever ‹ had a customer comment adversely when seeing me tune their piano with a computer. Instead, what I hear almost daily is, "Oh wow, a computer! It's about time the computer age caught up with piano tuning." This leads to conversations during which I explain how well RCT works and how it helps me keep better care of their piano.
If you still aren't persuaded, you can get our Luna 1 package for $1595 (complete ready-to-tune package with all necessary hardware and RCT 2.0) and call it a "dedicated electronic tuning device." You don't need to use the "free" laptop computer if you don't want to, but IMO that would be ignoring RCT's biggest advantage over a true "dedicated electronic tuning device." For instance, I'm writing this post on my electronic tuning device!
But the bottom line is that the appearance and reality of professionalism should be based on one's overall conduct and skill, not whether a device atop the customer's piano is blue, grey, or polka-dotted.
>3. If an enterprising customer thinks you are tuning, just using a
>computer he may think he can do it too, and download something and try
>it.... he just might be semi successful, or break something... In any
>case, it's not something I would like to see done.
This objection, the weakest of the four, is unlikely at best. Furthermore, it could apply to any electronic tuning device or a tuning hammer or even a pair of ears.
Personally, I don't think there are many customers who are so naive or skin-flinty to try this; if so, I promise they'll be phoning you within five minutes begging you to undo the mess they've made and will forevermore hold an increased respect for your well-honed skills.
Everybody on this list knows it takes more than a cool tool to be a skilled craftsman; it's to our benefit to educate every customer to this fact. Otherwise there'd be no need (or market) for professional piano technicians, and we'd all have get "real" jobs ;)
>4. The notebooks need to have their batteries recharged after every 2-4
>hours of use. That means recharging every day at least once, probably
>twice...And that's while the batteries are new, when they start to loose
>their charge holding ability.....
This is the most common objection I hear about RCT. It's the objection that's the most fun to respond to because this perceived weakness is in fact a by-product of RCT's strengths. In any case, by spending less than a dollar the battery "problem" is totally solved.
Your estimate of the length of battery charge is correct for the older generation of Nickel Metal-Hydride batteries, but you err on NiMH battery life, which actually have very little memory effect and can be rejuvenated by running a reconditioning program once a month. (You might be thinking about Nickel Cadmium or NiCad batteries, which *do* have a pronounced memory-effect but are not used on any notebook computer as far as I know.) The new Mac 2400 laptops use the wonderful new Lithium-Ion batteries that hold a charge 50-100% longer than NiMH, weigh much less, and have zero memory-effect.
But first, a very important point. With very little care, a single battery can last three, four or even five tunings. All you need to do is put the computer to "sleep" when you're not using RCT (for example when tuning unisons). Sleep is a standby mode whereby the computer shuts down except for the RAM, which means the battery drain is almost zero but RCT (or any other application that's running) doesn't quit or close. You can set the computer to sleep automatically after 1 to 15 minutes of inactivity, or you can instantly put the computer to sleep simply by closing its lid or clicking an on-screen button. Awaking the computer from sleep is as simple as pressing any key on the computer's keypad; it takes about five seconds for the computer to "wake up" and for you to resume tuning.
During the first few months I was using a laptop and RCT, I carried a second fully-charged battery in my toolkit. If the first battery wore down, I simply swapped batteries (which takes all of five seconds), then finished the day with no problems. Easy, quick, and simple.
Now I use an even simpler method. I plug the computer into an AC outlet when tuning a piano, which, since investing 99¢ in a ten-foot extension cord, I can do at least 99% of the time. Consequently, the problem of limited battery charge has completely vanished, with the added benefit of ensuring that my battery is always fully charged if an outlet is ever unavailable or inconvenient. I now leave my spare battery in my car and, quite frankly, haven't used it in at least six months.
Dean Reyburn has a car charger which lets him charge his computer while he's driving to the next job. Dean tells me this lets him run all day on battery power and never need to plug in to AC the customer's home.
This objection is based on a true perception ‹ RCT uses more electricity than other electronic tuning devices. As I think I've shown, that's easily compensated for. But more to the point, RCT's increased power usage is due to its increased capabilities, such as a full-screen active matrix computer display and vastly increased computational power, which means RCT has the advantages of:
€ faster calculation, which not only speeds up the job of tuning but also enables Dean to program some pretty complex algorithms leading to RCT's increased accuracy and expanded feature set (e.g., pitch raising with RCT as described in my PTech post of 9/3/97, subject line "pitch raising (longish)")
€ interactive color graphics (lets you pretend you're playing a video game instead of working!)
€ oodles of info on-screen, enabling more control by a more informed tuner
€ alpha-numeric typing and readout, allowing you to type in important info such as piano model, customer name, or "Watch out ‹ dog bites" into every tuning record; sort and search that database of info
€ bigger and brighter display of note deviation, letting you adjust the Spinner sensitivity anywhere from 1 to 16 revolutions per second per cents *or* beats
Allow me to rephrase your objection about batteries thusly: Is RCT's increased power, speed, control, ease of use, and accuracy worth 99¢ and a few seconds of plugging or swapping? The short answer: Absolutely yes. A more poetic answer: There is no free (electrical) lunch, especially for such a succulent and nutritious feast.
Mitch Kiel, RPT
authorized Reyburn CyberTuner dealer
phone (360) 264-5112
visit the RCT web page at www. reyburn.com
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