Prior to buying a Disklavier about a year ago, I made a very extensive research of the market. My final conclusion was that even though the Disklavier was more expensive, it was worth it. Since I am not wealthy enough to have the luxury of not buying the best the first time, I decided to go with Yamaha. 1. The Disklavier was far more advanced than any other payer available. It has more capabilities than any single person would need. 2. With regard to memory: Midi files are very compact. You can get a lot of music on one 1.44 MB floppy disk. And if that is not enough, it is very easy to connect your PC/MAC to the Disklavier and be able to play directly from your hard disk. If your PC is connected to the Internet you can also play directly from there, and trust me, you could listen to music from the Internet all your life and not have to hear the same thing twice. 3. The Disklavier also has an internal hard disk, which I do not use because it does not have any means of sorting the songs, and quickly finding something specific. 4. You say that the Baldwin ConcertMaster can store 10,000 songs. What you need to ask your self is how you are going to pick and FIND the single song that you desire to hear. 5. With regard to polyphony. It is true that the Disklavier is limited to 16 keys. I do not know about you but I only have 10 fingers, and even if playing a duet, the chances of 2 people playing more that 16 keys simultaneously must be quite rare. Besides this, most people will not even be able to tell the difference if a few keys are dropped. 6. Look at all the differences between the pianos. Not just one item. I recommend you talk with Dave LeeRight at 510-581-1660 or DLeewright@... <mailto:DLeewright@...> He is an expert. Steve -----Original Message----- From: Anthony J. Messana [mailto:Tony@...] Sent: Thursday, January 27, 2000 6:40 AM To: disklavier@egroups.com Subject: [disklavier] Re: Evaluating options I have never looked at that model but have the Pianodisc 128+ which allows you to hook up a CD player containing as many songs as you can fit on there. I am happy with my PDS system but wish I would have figured out before I bought it that you can add the system to any piano, new, used, upright, grand, whatever. It would have saved me some money by buying a used baby grand and installing the system instead of going out to purchase a new piano with the system already on it. The Pianodisc can play almost any other brand disc and it is really easy to create your own midi's and just pop the disk or CD in. I also have the symphony option which plays background music and chorus. I have actually never listened to or seen any other system so I have no idea which one is best. All I can tell you is that I love mine. P.S. Does anyone know if there is a system or development that will allow a voice to play along with the piano? It would be like having a concert hall in your home. -----Original Message----- From: Mark A. Fontana [mailto:mfontana@...] Sent: Wednesday, January 26, 2000 10:34 PM To: disklavier@egroups.com Subject: [disklavier] Re: Evaluating options Barry wrote: > I just recently started researching options for a player grand piano. > Disklavier was the first I looked at. > > Has anyone looked into or know anything about Baldwin ConcertMaster? It > looks good and has a 1 gig hard drive to store up to 10,000 songs. > > Any direction you can provide would be greatly appreciated. I am considering the ConcertMaster as well. The primary advantage it has over the Disklavier is the capability to play 32 notes simultaneously versus the Disklavier's 16 (the Disklavier also comes in a "Pro" series that may not have this limitation-- anybody know?) In my case, I could use the extra polyphony since I like playing MIDI files encoded from reproducing piano rolls. Quite a few of those require 16+ note polyphony. On the other hand, the Disklavier has a technical edge over the ConcertMaster in several ways: - 128-position partial pedaling, record and playback (ConcertMaster is simply on/off pedaling) - far more accurate recording capabilities, using optical shutters on the hammer shanks to measure hammer velocity (ConcertMaster uses an under-key record strip like the PianoDisc system) - self-calibration; the Disklavier can adjust the solenoid drivers based upon feedback from the hammer shank sensors, to compensate for irregularities in the action's mechanics etc. Apparently the ConcertMaster is really just a QRS Pianomation system in a Baldwin piano with a customized control unit. What I would really like to see is a Yamaha U-3 or U-5 with Disklavier or Disklavier Pro installed. Mark Wisner at Yamaha told me there are no plans to make a 52" upright Disklavier, however. As for the Pro option, I have yet to see a Disklavier Pro in person. A prominent Yamaha dealer shooed me away when I asked about it, saying that those models are never displayed in stores and that "customers who truly require a Pro series unit already know they need it so there is no need for a demo". Well! -- Mark A. Fontana Minneapolis, MN ------------------------------------------------------------------------ To Post a message, send it to: disklavier@... 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Message
[disklavier] Re: Evaluating options
2000-01-27 by Hoffman, Steve