Upright and Grand rims, was: Impressive Steinway Upright

Farrell mfarrel2@tampabay.rr.com
Sun, 15 Sep 2002 07:24:03 -0400


A few comments and questions interspersed below:

Terry Farrell
  
----- Original Message ----- 
From: "Tony Caught" <caute@optusnet.com.au>
To: "Pianotech" <pianotech@ptg.org>
Sent: Sunday, September 15, 2002 12:19 AM
Subject: Re: Impressive Steinway Upright


> Alan, Terry,
> 
> A soundboard should be totally under the influence of the strings. By saying
> that I mean that any part of the soundboard that is not immediately and
> directly influenced by the strings should be made dead.
> This is done by putting cut-off bars across (usually the corner sections)
> the soundboard to stop that section from vibrating with the strings.

So, doesn't that mean that soundboard area is under the influence of the strings?

> As an example,
> When the piano is played with the dampers off the strings, all the strings
> are vibrating as is the soundboard. When the dampers re-engage the strings
> the strings (hopefully) stop vibrating and so should the soundboard.
> In a board with no cut-off or dumb bar, some sections, i.e. the corner
> sections, carry on vibrating with rubbish sounds that linger on.

Really? Is this a way to increase sustain? "Rubbish sounds": is that kinda like many duplex scales?

> When played without using the damper pedal, these areas keep sounding the
> vibrations of previous notes played thus muddling the sound that the
> listener hears.
> One of the major differences between uprights and grands is related to this
> factor.

I don't understand. How do uprights and grands differ in this respect?
 
> When you listen to a grand the sound is cleaner that in most uprights
> because of this.

Like a Yamaha? Some folks criticise this type of sound.

>  When you look at a grand soundboard you can see that the
> rim of the piano virtually follows the shape of the bridge and the cut-off
> bar cuts off the uncontrollable section of the soundboard in the bass corner
> of the board. The cut-off bar can also be in line with the treble bridge to
> also keep more balance to the board.

Makes sense.

> Were a soundboard "rimmed the same as a grand piano" that is in relation to
> the bridges, then the upright would give the same output of sound as the
> grand.

Specifically, what do you mean here? How does a grand rim necessarily differ from an upright rim? Are you speaking of the most common modern grand rim that is laminated vs. the most common upright rim that is solid timbers - or at least straight pieces of wood? Why would that make a difference? I have an Everett grand in my shop with a solid-timber rim - and the S&S upright with the laminated rim. But what would make one necessarily sound better/different than the other.

> Regards
> 
> 
> Tony Caught
> caute@optusnet.com.au
> 
> 
SNIP for Ron    ;-)


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