Trichords tuning

Ron Nossaman nossaman@SOUTHWIND.NET
Fri, 27 Nov 1998 08:34:03 -0600 (CST)


At 04:15 PM 11/27/98 -0700, you wrote:
>Newton Hunt wrote:
>> 
>> ...I think this is because you can tune one string, say to an SAT, tune the
>> next by ear, check with SAT and it is flat.  Tune to the SAT and compare
>> unison and it is out.  I have yet to come to an understanding of this, I
>> just know it is so.  Weird!
>> 
>My guess is that the ear listens to the dominant coincident partials
>whereas the SAT might be listening to a different set of partials. Then,
>if there are any inharmonicity differences between the strings of a
>unison, the ear will want the fundamentals tuned slightly differently
>for a quiet unison.
>
>Makes me think of a model C Steinway with the different speaking lengths
>in the lower treble section - for an intentional beat in every unison?
>
>Tom
>
>-- 
>Thomas A. Cole, RPT



That's probably right. The ear judges the overall compound effect, rather
than an inflexibly specific set of partials, and can accommodate a more, er,
idiosyncratic mix of partials than can an ETD. Either method will be right
by it's own criteria, but the results won't agree. 

 Ron 



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