Ref.: Vacuum Transducer for Motor Speed Control

Hi All,  Like Roger Waring, satisfying a customer's desires is always my No. 1 priority.  However, doing everything I can to preserve the piano comes in a very close second.  Naturally, I could relate enough horror stories to fill a book, but that wouldn't be very productive.

When I electrify a player piano, I give my customer an option that most technicians never consider: a "Volume Indicator".  I stole the idea from Lauter-Humana.  It involves very few parts and all of them combined cost less than $20.00.  I drew up a simple diagram and sent it to Robbie.

It's truly amazing how effective a simple volume indicator can be when it comes to how a customer uses their player piano.  When they can "see" how loud the music is, they always back it down a notch.  I think it's fair to say that using a player piano without a volume indicator is similar to driving a car without a speedometer.  Even though one can "feel" about how fast they might be going, they don't really know.  And with a piano, even though they can hear how loud it is, they don't really know how abusive loud music is to the instrument.

In closing, considering Roger's needs, I'm thinking that a 5-step volume regulator similar to what Recordo used would fit the bill.

Musically,

John A. Tuttle
Player-Care.com
Brick, NJ, USA
http://www.player-care.com/
01 May 2004 08:32:22 -0400