Piano World Home Page Forums Our Most Popular Forums Digital Pianos - Electronic Pianos - Synths & Keyboards LX-17 sustain pedal

Hi Maybe someone can answer this.

Is the sustain pedal of the LX-17 supposed to have a 'catch' in its travel?

It works like this:

up----catch---------------down

The catch is about one centimeter down.

The soft and sostenuto pedals are smooth, like this:

up------------------down

The 10H pedal of my MP7 is smooth as well.

The sustain pedal on the LX-17 feels a bit as if it has some sort of escapement.

Maybe it's something that is replicated from how a grand piano pedal feels, and I'm just not used to that, but I'd like to make sure.

If it is correct, should I use the part of the pedal travel 'under' the catch, or the entire pedal? If using only the part under the catch, the travel is quite short compared to the Kawai 10H pedal.

I don't recall there being any "catch" on mine, but I'll check later tonight.

Thanks for looking.

I've quickly visited the dealer today, to test an LX-7.

It behaves the same: the pedal goes down, then there is a catch/stop about one centimeter down, and then the pedal actually engages. Only, on my LX-17 the catch/stop is more noticable, just as if the resistance of the pedal is greater.

I've also tested some acoustics, and they all had wildly different sustain pedals; some I liked, some I didn't; and the Kawai K-6 I tested had the same behavior as the LX-17. Down, 'stop-point', engage.

I'm starting tot think that the behavior on my LX-17 is correct, but I'm going to await Roland's reply to my query. If it is indeed correct, then it's something to get used to. (But to be honest, I would rather have a completely smooth pedal, like the Kawai 10H with my MP7.)

As you are pressing the LX17 pedal, is there no discernable effect/sustain prior to reaching or going past the "stop point"?

Nope, no sustain at all. The pedal enganges as soon as I press it beyond the stop point. Even the slightest depression beyond that creates sustain, and a very soft "damper lifted" noise.

I've at least eliminated one thing causing a difference in feeling between the LX-7 and LX-17 pedal: in the store, I tested the LX-7 wearing shoes(obviously). At home, normally play wearing loafers.

These loafers have thinner and softer soles, which makes the stop point more apparent. When playing the LX-7 and LX-17 while wearing the same shoes, the two pedals feel exactly the same.

As both pedals are the same, and having encountered the Kawai K-6, which behaves exactly the same as well (at least the one in the store), I'm starting to believe that Roland has modeled the sustain pedal after an upright or another.

In that case, I'll just have to get used to it.

(In one Kawai upright, a BS-20, which seems to be from the 80's, I could actually feel and hear the entire sustain mechanics engaging and moving through the pedal... though probably normal for that piano, I didn't really like it. It did play fine and had a good sound, though.)