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Fellow technicians: Since I am now going on my 25th year as a tuning examiner for PTG, I have seen that the number one problem for many technicians in passing that exam has been the aural tuning requirement of Part 1 of the PTG Tuning Exam. I have decided to embark on a series of articles which will leave no detail untouched. I just finished an article which would fill four pages on how to set the single string, A4 to a tuning fork. I will cover how to do the same in my next article to an electronic tone. Since I have witnessed both great successes and failures, I plan to touch on all aspects of taking and passing that exam. I will invite all comments. I have now produced a draft which has not yet been submitted to the Journal editors, so it is my property and open for comment. It is amazing to me how I could fill four pages on how to tune just one string, the center string of A4 with a tuning fork (no electronic tone yet) but it took all of that writing just to cover every point I had to make. Any of you here may be helpful in refining my comments before I send the final draft to the PTG Journal editors. It is my desire to put out a comprehensive study guide which may help any future applicants to the RPT credential succeed. It has long been seen that the aural tuning requirements of Part 1 of the PTG tuning exam have been the most difficult to overcome. I intend to dissect each and every aspect of that task and to put forth solid information on how to overcome it. The "strategies" part of my series will mean that I include many options. I want each and every technician who decides to attempt the PTG tuning exam to find the method which works the best. In other words, I am not dictating any one method for anything from tuning the initial A4 pitch on down. I will present what I know, how to work with each kind of idea and let each reader decide what works best. Here is my first draft on Pitch from a tuning fork: Strategies for Passing Part 1 of the PTG Tuning Exam
1.Pitch: Zeroing in on the Pitch, You can do it!
The Tuning Fork
The tuning fork has always been the traditional tool for setting the initial pitch. Today, many technicians think of it as obsolete but is it really? As it turns out, it can still be the easiest and most accurate way to set the initial pitch of A4. At a tuning exam, the examinee is afforded five full minutes to set accurately the pitch of just that one string. It may seem to be considerably longer than is necessary but the setting must be within +/- 3.0 cents to pass.
Aurally, that is a mere 0.75 beats per second. You will understand in this article why you may want and need to spend that full five minutes to only tune one single string!
There are many types of tuning forks but actually, the least expensive kind is adequate. A moderately priced steel fork is recommended. An aluminum fork is louder and sustains longer but its pitch is woefully unstable. It can easily change beyond the tolerance limit of the exam with only a moderate change of temperature. All tuning forks will change pitch slightly according to their temperature.
Calibration
If you order a tuning fork from a piano supply house, you may be lucky enough that it reads 0.0 on A4 of an electronic tuning platform set to A4, also set to read on the fundamental or first partial when the fork is at a normal room temperature. While it is possible to calibrate a tuning fork, it may be wiser to simply know at which approximate temperature the fork actually reads 0.0.
For example, the tuning fork I have reads at 0.0 when the fork is at a warm room temperature of 78-80 degrees F. If it is cooler than that in the room, I simply put the fork in my trouser pocket for a few minutes and it inevitably reads 0.0. If I take it from my tool bag during cool or cold weather, it will read sharp. If I take it from my car on a subzero degree Winter day, it will read 6 cents sharp! If it has been in the car during hot Summer weather, it will read a few cents flat, more than the tolerance allowed on the tuning exam.
If the tuning exam is taken at one of the PTG Annual Institutes, the room is often very cool. This is because the examiners set the air conditioning to the coolest possible setting so that it will run constantly. The purpose for keeping the cooling on all of the time is to avoid the cycling on and off of the climate control that may cause the pitch of the piano to migrate slightly over the course of an exam.
Therefore, if you have a fork that reads 0.0 in a cool room such as 65-70 F. degrees, you can ask the examiner in charge to place your tuning fork on the plate of the piano at least 10 minutes prior to the exam, such as during the detuning process. The fork will then be quite assuredly at the ambient temperature of the room.
It is important to know and remember that the examinee is responsible for the accuracy of the calibration of the tuning fork. You may ask someone in the exam office to check the calibration of the fork if that person has the time to do so but you will not be offered a substitute tuning fork by anyone on the exam committee.
A tuning fork may be calibrated either flatter or sharper but one must be aware that even handling the fork will change its temperature. You will need to allow the fork to cool down after making such attempts. To sharpen the fork, grind off slightly and evenly the ends of the tines. To flatten the fork, grind a notch in between the base of the tines. Place the fork on a metal surface such as a piano plate for at least 5 minutes before checking the resultant calibration.
It is a better idea to buy a tuning fork at one of the exhibits at the Annual Convention or Regional seminar where the supplier may have many to choose from. Bring your electronic tuning platform along and check the calibration then and there. If you buy a tuning fork through the mail, you can ask the seller to check the calibration and say that you will return it for exchange or refund if it is not completely accurate at a normal room temperature.
Setting the Pitch of A4 at the Tuning Exam
When you handle the fork, be aware that the way you handle it may change its temperature. If you have a “warm†fork that you have kept in your pocket, it is recommended that you hold it tightly in your fingers before striking it and for a moment in between strikes. If you have a “cool†fork that has been resting on the piano plate, handle it only by the tip so as not to warm the tines and thus lower the pitch of the fork.
Sound the A4 key and sustain the string by using the Sostenuto pedal. Many technicians wonder how they can sound the fork, play the key and adjust the pitch of A4 and listen to the fork all at the same time. The Sostenuto pedal therefore, is just the “tool†to use. It can also be very useful later on in aural tuning as well as regulation. Very few musicians use it so it may be thought of as the “technician’s pedalâ€. With A4 being held by the Sostenuto pedal, strike the fork against any convenient, semi hard surface. I use the leather sheath provided for my fork. Many technicians strike the fork on their knee. A firm, leather wallet can work very well. A wide felt or rubber mute may also be used. Hold the fork immediately to your ear. You will hear the pure A4 pitch which has no partials or harmonics. The “ping†that you may hear immediately upon striking the fork is actually a 6th partial but it is also nearly 100 cents sharp, so it is useless but fades quickly. Otherwise, you will hear only the rather lifeless but unadulterated sound of 440 cycles per second.
What is not recommended is to place the tail of the fork on any surface. This may actually create partials. The terms, “partialsâ€, “harmonics†and “overtones†all refer to the same phenomena except that the fundamental tone is called the “first partial†which cannot be either a harmonic or overtone. The term, “partial†is actually an adjective used as a noun, short for “partial toneâ€.
There will be more information on partials later in this series. You do not want to create any partials at this point because they may actually be confusing when trying to focus on the very narrow tolerance which will pass the Pitch portion of the tuning exam. Some technicians have been known to place the tuning fork between the teeth. For sanitary reasons alone, I do not recommend this. It may also create partials which are unnecessary and can lead to confusion about which partial is being matched. You will want to focus on the fundamental tone of A4 and match it to the pure tone produced by the tuning fork.
You will also understand when the use of an electronic tone is discussed why this is so important. An electronic tone will have clearly audible second and third partials but they will have zero inharmonicity while the A4 string of any piano will have about 1 cent worth of inharmonicity in the second partial and enough inharmonicity in the third partial to create a rapid beat.
If you have been thinking that an electronic tone would be the easy answer, think again. Those conflicting partials generated by an electronic tone can easily lead you to being way off on your results. Then again, there is a way around that which can lead to absolute perfection within mere seconds but you have to have an understanding about what is going on which will be the subject of the next article in this series.
How far off will A4 be at the exam?
The answer is, “Not much†for most tuning circumstances. It may sound “about right†to you, actually. In many circumstances, one beat per second either sharp or flat of A-440 will be adequate. The international definition of “Standard Pitch†even allows for that margin of error but not the PTG Tuning Exam! It will be about one beat per second but if you left it as it is, you would get a score of 70 at best, far from passing.
You will also not know whether it is sharp or flat. Listen at first, to the two tones, one from the tuning fork and the other from the A4 string of the piano. You should hear a definite but slow beat. Try flattening the pitch of A4 first to determine whether it makes the difference in pitch better or worse.
Focus on the fundamental pitch of A4 and the pitch from the tuning fork. Try to match the two pitches as closely as you do when tuning any unison of the piano by ear. That will be your primary strategy. When you think you have an exact match, a perfect unison between the tuning fork pitch and the A4 string of the piano, there will be two ways to prove it.
Test notes
Many technicians do not understand the concept of a “test noteâ€. How could a string that is not in tune be at all useful? The answer is that such a string must actually be approximately where it should be but not exactly. It serves only as a reference. The sixth partial of the note F2 is coincident with A4. Play F2 as it is detuned on the piano. If it has a very rapid beat, sharpen it slightly until the F2-A4 Major 17th interval has a familiar sound: a moderately rapid beat. If the beat is very slow, flatten F2 until it has a familiar sound. If the F2-A4 interval beats exactly alike with the tuning fork and the A4 of the piano, you have an exact match. If the rapid beat is either faster or slower, the match is not yet perfect.
There is also another note which I prefer to use and that is B1. The seventh partial of B1 is coincident with A4. It creates a double octave minor 7th interval which is naturally a mild dissonance. The two pitches will actually be about 20 cents apart when correctly tuned, so there will be a very rapid beat. The more rapid the beat, the more easily any small difference can be heard.
When properly tuned, both the F2-A4 Major 10th and the B1-A4 double octave minor 7th intervals are widened intervals as are Major thirds. Therefore, if either interval beats rather slowly when played as detuned, flatten the lower note somewhat until the interval beats more rapidly. If either interval beats far too rapidly, sharpen the lower note until you hear a conveniently and familiar sounding rapid beat. Some technicians do not like the “sour†sound of an overly wide F2-A4 17th but the B1-A4 double octave minor 7th naturally beats very rapidly.
It is your choice which test note to use but the more rapid the beat in either case, the more easily you may be able to detect any difference. When you think you hear a good, beatless unison between the tuning fork and A4 and your test note interval between the fork and A4 sound exactly alike to you, play all three together: A4, tuning fork and the test note, using the Sostenuto pedal. Listen carefully. If there is any difference between A4 and the tuning fork, you will hear a slow beat emerge.
This is a phenomenon known as Interferometry. When there are two sets of rapid waves of any sort but are not exactly alike, they create a slow wave which emerges from them. That can very clearly be heard with careful listening.
You can even experiment with this phenomenon by deliberately setting the A4 pitch at +/- 1.0 cents with your electronic tuning platform and playing A4 and the test notes. +/- 1.0 cents would earn you a 100% on the tuning exam but with practice using the test note, you can nail a perfect 0.0! I have to admit in all my years as an RPT and examiner, I could never really get a perfect 0.0 reading on the A4 pitch until I used the B1-A4 interval and the Sostenuto pedal. Then, it became rather easy to do!
In summary: Know at what temperature your tuning fork, even the cheapest kind, will read a perfect 0.0 on your electronic tuning platform set to A4 on Partial 1. Practice by first setting the A4 of your study piano at +/- 4 cents. Go first for a perfectly beatless unison between the fork and the A4 string. Then, use either the test note F2 or B1 but adjust either for a very rapid but wide interval beat. Play the test note and A4 simultaneously and hold them with the Sostenuto pedal. Listen for the slowest of emerging beat and eliminate it as you would making the finest adjustment as you would with a Rapidly Beating Interval (RBI) in aural tuning or the slowest drift of a tuning pattern with an electronic tuning platform.
The next in this series will be a shorter article on how to use an aural electronic tone. The technique will be entirely different! You will find out which technique serves you better. Whichever works best for you will be the one which you should ultimately use when attempting Part 1 of the PTG Tuning Exam.
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This is a marvelous idea, Bill. I think it will be welcomed at the PTG Journal.
Keith Akins, RPT Piano Technologist USA Distributor for Isaac Cadenza hammers and Profundo Bass Strings Supporting Piano Owners D-I-Y piano tuning and repair editor emeritus of Piano Technicians Journal
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You are a very generous person Bill.
Thank you very much for sharing your knowledge and experience in this public forum.
I for one can say that I have learned a lot from your articles in your web page and your posts here in PW.
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I can just add that when tuning a piano with no sostenuto pedal we can just use a screwdriver or a paps mute to lift the A4 damper off the strings in order to be able to retune the A4 string with one hand while holding the tuning fork with the other hand.
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Bill,
Allow me as a relative novice, humbly to take up one of your points. You mention at least twice that a difference in beat speeds is easier to hear if the beats are fast. In my autodidactic efforts I have experimented extensively with this, and have found time and again that - taking as an example that A4 is 1 cent or 0.25 bps off - I can distinguish more easily between 2 bps and 1.75 bps than I can between e.g. 7 bps and 7.25 bps. Intuitively, this also makes sense to me. 0.25 bps is a large difference relative to 2 bps, but only a small difference relative to 7 bps. Therefore, I raise F2 and/or B1 temporarily, to get slower beats, preferably around 2 to 3 bps.
We recently had a video posted here of a Dutch technician (erroneously described by Isaac as being German) tuning a temperament using mainly SBIs. When she set the pitch of A4, she gave her students exactly this advice: de-tune the test notes sharper, to get a "nice, slow" beat.
I fully respect your preference for a fast beat, but perhaps some of your potential readers are better served by using slower beats. If your intention is to give aspiring RPTs as many options as possible, perhaps it may be appropriate to add a corresponding comment.
Autodidact interested in piano technology. 1970 44" Ibach, daily music maker. 1977 "Ortega" 8' + 8' harpsichord (Rainer Schütze, Heidelberg)
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Bill, I did take the time to read the document. You say good things on the fork.
I agree with the slow beat rates being usable to notice for differences, specifically because for years I was persuaded it was easier to denote differences between fast beat so the slow ones where left not "measured " (by direct listening ) at least for the temperament. . Both ways work of course but the demonstration from Mark make sense. It is also quieter to listen to slow beats. Now if I use f2 to check I try to have the set of beats that will be there at that point, you so those are not so slow beats. Now there is a possibility that, due to the moderate stability of beat speed, the slow beats are less precise as you need to listen for a longer time period.
I am unsure also that partials are created when the fork is laid on a surface. If so where do they come from ? Was it tested? (you could source some of your affirmations that is the normal way in technical writing)
Just food for thought.
Regards
PS if you want to shorten the text, you may want to avoid basics about beats, as the attendee are supposed to know them already.
I also don't know if test blows are used for A4, I suppose that no, as it is quite common to have 0.2 cts lowering after them.
BTW if the unison is tuned, I wonder if the antipasto mode is not fighting he Weinreich effect that applies then mostly during the attack decay. (as 180 phase mode "shortens" the effective string lenght (the small portion between bridge puns is not energized) ?
Last edited by Olek; 08/27/15 05:37 AM.
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Thanks for the comments, Mark and Isaac. I will alter the text to reflect finding a beat rate that is most easily discernible to the person tuning. It may be F2-A4 with a slow/ moderate beat of B1-A4 with a very rapid beat. The point about using a test blow to make sure that A4 is stable is well taken.
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I am unsure also that partials are created when the fork is laid on a surface. If so where do they come from ? Was it tested? (you could source some of your affirmations that is the normal way in technical writing)
Bill is right, depending on how the fork is touching the surface. If it touching perfectly solid and producing a nice pure tone, then there are no added partials. But as is often the case, the contact with a surface is imperfect, resulting in a slight "buzz" or other distortion. Any distortion of a sine wave produces harmonics. In fact it is so common that in high-end audio amplifiers it is given a name: "harmonic distortion".
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Bill, I learned something here with your techniques to set A4.. thank you. Very complete thoughts. It's always wonderful to see an old problem in a new way.
No doubt, this article will be valuable to publish.
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How very generous of you to take the time for all this, Bill! I was taught nearly exactly the description you gave except always to choose both F2 and B1 as separate checks against A4 and the tuning fork. It adds little time to the process, and I've found on some pianos one check seems to work better than the other.
Glen
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I am unsure also that partials are created when the fork is laid on a surface. If so where do they come from ? Was it tested? (you could source some of your affirmations that is the normal way in technical writing)
Bill is right, depending on how the fork is touching the surface. If it touching perfectly solid and producing a nice pure tone, then there are no added partials. But as is often the case, the contact with a surface is imperfect, resulting in a slight "buzz" or other distortion. Any distortion of a sine wave produces harmonics. In fact it is so common that in high-end audio amplifiers it is given a name: "harmonic distortion". Thanks I was thinking of the diapason installed on a wooden box (resonator) In that case the eventual resonant frequency of the box will not add partials is not it? never had trouble pushing the fork (tight) on the underside of keybed, but hey, I was not looking for added partials or distortion.. Regards
Last edited by Olek; 08/27/15 02:54 PM.
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[quote=Bill Bremmer RPT]
If the F2-A4 interval beats exactly alike with the tuning fork and the A4 of the piano, you have an exact match. If the rapid beat is either faster or slower, the match is not yet perfect.
[quote]/[quote]
This might be clearer to some by saying "If the F2-A4 and F2-Tuning Fork intervals beat exactly the same..."
Maybe it's just me, but I had to re-read this to understand what you meant. Unless I'm wrong about that!
Thanks so much for this! John
Music teacher and beginning Tuner
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I am unsure also that partials are created when the fork is laid on a surface. If so where do they come from ? Was it tested? (you could source some of your affirmations that is the normal way in technical writing)
Bill is right, depending on how the fork is touching the surface. If it touching perfectly solid and producing a nice pure tone, then there are no added partials. But as is often the case, the contact with a surface is imperfect, resulting in a slight "buzz" or other distortion. Any distortion of a sine wave produces harmonics. In fact it is so common that in high-end audio amplifiers it is given a name: "harmonic distortion". Thank you for the comment, Robert Scott!
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[quote=Bill Bremmer RPT]
If the F2-A4 interval beats exactly alike with the tuning fork and the A4 of the piano, you have an exact match. If the rapid beat is either faster or slower, the match is not yet perfect.
[quote]/[quote]
This might be clearer to some by saying "If the F2-A4 and F2-Tuning Fork intervals beat exactly the same..."
Maybe it's just me, but I had to re-read this to understand what you meant. Unless I'm wrong about that!
Thanks so much for this! John Actually John, I used to write "exactly the same" until the great but late teacher, Owen Jorgensen told me that "exactly the same" is redundant. I suggested, "exactly alike" and he said that was good and I took his word for it. This, by the way, is the concept of Equal Beating (EB) which in Equal Temperament (ET) construction is rare. It is usually a matter of comparing small differences. So, when I get the chance to suggest an EB technique, I take it. What I have consistently found has been that tuning novices and even people who have said that they "can't hear beats" can, in fact, easily tell when two intervals beat exactly alike or not. I thank Doel Kees for the "interferometry" discovery. While some may not be able to avail themselves of it, what I found was that when I played two very rapidly beating intervals that were a mere one cent different from each other in width, I could more easily detect the slow beat that emerged. It was not until I deployed the technique with B1 as the test note that I could manage to tune a perfect 0.0 with a tuning fork. If the A4 string is just 1.0 cents flat, for example and the tuning fork, A4 and B1 (creating a very rapid beat and dissonant sound) are all played simultaneously, there is an ugly "snarl" that emerges. Correcting the one cent discrepancy eliminates that unpleasant conflict in sound. It is an example of how aural tuning techniques can be just as accurate as any electronic tuning platform techniques can be.
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Mark C., It seems counter intuitive to me that a slowly beating interval would be more easily detectable than a very rapid one but I revised my text so far to reflect what you said: Some technicians have said that they can detect a small difference with a very moderate beat, perhaps slower than the F2-A4 17th will ultimately be tuned. If this is the case for you, then temporarily tune F2 so that the F2-A4 17th beats at a rate which is most discernible to you.
There is also another note which I prefer to use and that is B1. The seventh partial of B1 is coincident with A4. It creates a double octave minor 7th interval which is naturally a mild dissonance. The two pitches will actually be about 20 cents apart when correctly tuned, so there will be a very rapid beat. My personal feeling is that the more rapid the beat, the more easily any small difference can be heard.
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Thanks I was thinking of the diapason installed on a wooden box (resonator)
In that case the eventual resonant frequency of the box will not add partials is not it? never had trouble pushing the fork (tight) on the underside of keybed, but hey, I was not looking for added partials or distortion..
Regards
Isaac, All opinions are, of course welcome. There was one examinee who I had recently who put the tuning fork between his teeth as I recommended NOT to do in my article and for reasons I stand by. Nevertheless, he was able to consistently tune a 0.0 with the tuning fork, both in tutoring sessions and at the exam. This, I had never witnessed before in my 25 years as an examiner. The trouble was that he barely missed passing the exam. Some scores were quite exceptional: Pitch: 100% Unisons: 100% and Stability: 100%. But, other scores were marginal at best and the last time he took the exam, he failed the Pitch twice and by a large margin. Having said that, this is a person who keeps on trying and he only needs to take again Part 1 of the tuning exam to pass and finally become an RPT. I will work with him. I want to see him continue to score a 0.0 on Pitch however he does it! His Temperament score was also quite good although I do not remember exactly what it was. It was the Midrange which sometimes is the peril. The total number of errors outside the Temperament octave resulted in a score slightly below 80. He is an example of a piano technician who had a life long dependency upon the antiquated strobe tuner. He managed to attempt the entire exam aurally and his outer octaves were within passing range. He was delighted that he could actually hear what he was doing and expressed this to me very strongly. It is a very difficult case but I think I can manage it. I need to reinforce the thinking that the Temperament Octave is yes, central but it must be replicated across the entire piano. There can never be a 4th or 5th that beats! Not anywhere! If there is anywhere in the midrange, it will be at minimum a 2 or 3 cent error and that will be multiplied by 1.5 on the tuning exam! This one case only needs to repeat Part 1 of the tuning exam to finally become an RPT at age 72 or 73, whatever he is at the time when he finally succeeds after 11 attempts already. In my view, it will be the greatest success ever if he does and I intend to make that happen for him at this stage of his life and career. He is an example of a person who wants that RPT credential at all costs. He does not really need it to continue to work. It is a matter of personal satisfaction for him. He would then be eligible to serve the organization as President of his chapter. His fellow chapter members would like to see him be able to do that. He would have the distinct pride in being a Chapter President and to be able to sit in the PTG Council, voice his opinions and actually be an effective member of PTG. People who sit on the side and say that the three letters after the name are meaningless have no clue. I gave the same amount I spent on dues in addition to the PTG Foundation just as a donation. Yeah, it takes about a dollar a day to be part of PTG so I increased that to $2 a day. So what? What do you spend your money on? I also sponsored Associates to attend Regional Seminars and the Annual Convention so that they could manage the costs of becoming an RPT. I helped with a scholarship application which resulted in an RPT credential. It seems to me that some people would rather sit and be smug rather than doing what is best for themselves.
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Hi Bill,
Nice article. Well written. To the point and lots of good, useful, and clear information. Some points if I may: - According to my research, hearing differences in faster beats is easier. Average sensitivities are 12bps @ 2%, 5bps @ 3%, and 1bps @ 6%. But the actual Hz difference is less for slower beats, so they would be more accurate. - When I took the exam, the limit, interval, and multiplier was 0.9 cents, 0.1 cents, and 4 marks off per 0.1 cent. That gives a passing range of +/-1.4 cents, not +/-3.0 cents. - You mentioned F2A4 as a M10th once.
I read quickly so some of those observations may be wrong. You can check them out.
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It seems to me that some people would rather sit and be smug rather than doing what is best for themselves. I don't believe anyone can decide for anyone else what is best for them. My therapist says that it's "telling someone their reality." Only I know what my reality is, therefore only I know what is best for me. While I honestly do respect what you are doing I disagree with your premise that becoming an RPT is the best thing for every piano tuner. A good thing, an educational thing, a personal best thing, a fulfilling thing, a really cool thing... Call it anything you like but please, not the best thing.
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I am unsure also that partials are created when the fork is laid on a surface. If so where do they come from ? Was it tested? (you could source some of your affirmations that is the normal way in technical writing)
Bill is right, depending on how the fork is touching the surface. If it touching perfectly solid and producing a nice pure tone, then there are no added partials. But as is often the case, the contact with a surface is imperfect, resulting in a slight "buzz" or other distortion. Any distortion of a sine wave produces harmonics. In fact it is so common that in high-end audio amplifiers it is given a name: "harmonic distortion". Way to avoid this -- and also not need to be an octopus -- is to bite the end of the tuning fork and then strike it with a finger. Sound goes direct to ears through bone conduction and then you can have one hand on the tuning lever and the other hitting the key.
Keith Akins, RPT Piano Technologist USA Distributor for Isaac Cadenza hammers and Profundo Bass Strings Supporting Piano Owners D-I-Y piano tuning and repair editor emeritus of Piano Technicians Journal
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Joined: Jun 2003
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Yikes! 10000 Post Club Member
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Yikes! 10000 Post Club Member
Joined: Jun 2003
Posts: 32,060 |
Or strike it and hold it to the bone just under the ear. (Striking it with a finger is not loud enough for me.)
Semipro Tech
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Piano
by Gino2 - 04/17/24 02:34 PM
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Piano
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