Mechanical Music Digest  Archives
You Are Not Logged In Login/Get New Account
Please Log In. Accounts are free!
Logged In users are granted additional features including a more current version of the Archives and a simplified process for submitting articles.
Home Archives Calendar Gallery Store Links Info
MMD > Archives > November 2006 > 2006.11.03 > 05Prev  Next


Steck Duo-Art Piano in UK
By Julian Dyer

Niels Berkers asks about the chances of fitting an ex-Steck PEDA
[Pedal Electric Duo-Art] action into his gutted piano.  There a fair
chance that the stack might match the piano action, because there are
only a couple of piano models for British Steck Duo-Arts.  However,
transplanting between British (Hayes) and German (Gotha) Steck
instruments would be much harder because the pianos are different.

As far as I'm aware the piano case is the same for PEDA or Pedal-only
("half") [PDA] Duo-Art models, the only difference between them being
the type of expression box and ancillary equipment such as electric
motor and the rewind/repeat control gear.  The upper action of a PEDA
has four theme primary valves (one set for Duo-Art and the other for
Themodist), while the PDA has only two, but that's easy to fix: the
stacks are otherwise identical, and the spoolbox change-over switch
is capable of operating either model (or at least it was in the piano
I had).

In reality the PDA was often simply a Themodist piano with an
expression accordion fitted so that the accompaniment level would vary
automatically, so you could nearly as easily fit a PEDA works into an
ex-Pianola as into an ex-PDA.  You can even use Duo-Art expression
boxes to operate Pianola stacks, but the stack split is one note higher
in a Pianola so needs changing or else the middle E won't be accented,
and you would need to add a change-over switch to the spoolbox.

Julian Dyer


(Message sent Fri 3 Nov 2006, 18:04:42 GMT, from time zone GMT.)

Key Words in Subject:  Duo-Art, Piano, Steck, UK

Home    Archives    Calendar    Gallery    Store    Links    Info   


Enter text below to search the MMD Website with Google



CONTACT FORM: Click HERE to write to the editor, or to post a message about Mechanical Musical Instruments to the MMD

Unless otherwise noted, all opinions are those of the individual authors and may not represent those of the editors. Compilation copyright 1995-2024 by Jody Kravitz.

Please read our Republication Policy before copying information from or creating links to this web site.

Click HERE to contact the webmaster regarding problems with the website.

Please support publication of the MMD by donating online

Please Support Publication of the MMD with your Generous Donation

Pay via PayPal

No PayPal account required

                                     
Translate This Page