> Why wouldn't it be desirable to reduce inharmonicity ? Do you want a piano, or a pure tone generator? The degree of inharmonicity isn't particularly a problem. It mostly just defines the range of stretch in tuning. The problems come with discontinuities in inharmonicity levels at scale breaks, which affect tuning, rather than tone. >Isn't it the > reason why one expect a full length grand piano to be better than an > upright type ? No. It's the other 4,000 differences between the two. > I also don't understand why higher tension shortens the sustain. I don't understand why either, because it doesn't. While the bass tension and overall tension in pianos I redesign and rebuild typically are somewhat lower than the original, the top two octave tensions are typically higher because I increase C-8 speaking lengths from the original 50mm, to 53-54mm. Sustain at the top end typically improves not because of the tension change, but because the soundboard is built to accommodate the scaling. > Also, about the power... Am I correct, if I say that it give more energy > for the same amount of vibrations, and so you may have a louder sound, > on the condition, that you have more weight in your hammer (so your keys > will be harder) ? I observed that on my piano, the keys are much lighter > than on some modern pianos. It's not any one thing. It's how everything works together. > Or may be, is the louder sound related with the shorter sustain, the > weight in the hammer having nothing to do with that ? Too hard a hammer, in a misguided attempt to get more "power", can certainly kill sustain. Ron N
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