In a message dated 6/30/00 9:03:17 PM Central Daylight Time, btrout@desupernet.net (Brian Trout) writes: << I don't know if that helps or not. Perhaps others will care to comment. >> Brian spoke like a Master Technician of decades of experience on this. This is obviously a procedure only useful on the finest instruments where the clients are willing to pay for custom quality regulation that may need to be changed later on. The usual practice is to set the dip as evenly as possible, as you would all other regulating adjustments with the result being an acceptably even Aftertouch. It is only after all the other adjustments are satisfactory and stable that fine adjustment of the Aftertouch should be undertaken. Even then, it will mean subsequently changes in the Backchecking and possibly the Repetition Springs. There is always a side effect type of consequence for every compromise made. If this is the goal from the beginning of a regulation set up, to have individually evened out or "custom" Aftertouch, then the following will save some time and effort. When it comes time to set your Keydip, make it slightly deep by using a thicker gauged dip block or setting whichever gauge you are using just slightly deep, say the thickness of a thin piece of cardboard. Use only card and thick paper to set your Keydip, no fine paper at this point. Don't spend any time getting the Keydip exact at this point. When you have all of you other regulating adjustments done and stable and leaving only the Backchecking a little far and not necessarily perfectly even, do the custom Aftertouch adjustment. You should only have to fill in a thin card or paper to make the adjustment exact. If you run into an odd key where your aftertouch is unexpectedly off from all the others, check all of the other aspects of what affects aftertouch and see if you can make a compromise that will avoid making the Keydip for that note very much different from its neighbors. A quarter turn of the Capstan screw or of the Let-Off Button will do as much to the Aftertouch as thick paper will. Don't forget to check the key level if this problem shows up. If you detect a slightly high or low key, even of an amount correctable by thin paper, this will mean a significant difference in this custom Aftertouch adjustment. When you have finished custom adjusting the aftertouch, you will still need to even out the backchecking and check the repetition levers speed for evenness. It's really a thrill to play a piano that is regulated with that kind of precision. When you add to it other kinds of highly developed, customized skills in tuning and voicing, you have a truly superb instrument. Regards, Bill Bremmer RPT Madison, Wisconsin
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