Disklavier

I'm not a piano tech, but am rarely at a loss for opinions to offer.

First, don't do any evaluating with on/off pedal files.  The reason is 
that with on/off, the dampers are either completely on the strings or 
completely off the strings--never at the half-pedal point which you are 
interested in.

Are you aware that there is a sustain pedal test song built into the 
DKV?  It is Schumann's Traumerei played by Jorg Demus, an acknowledged 
master of pedaling.  You will find it in the Maintenance Mode.  Use the 
"Forward Song Arrow" to get to program No. 17.  If this piece plays well 
for you, you've got it.  Then if other files don't sound so good, be 
assured that it's not the fault of your adjustment.

I'll give you my thoughts on your questions:

 > 1) Can anyone give me some perspective on how much "silence" is
 > being specified by the half point adjustment?

+++ There is some latitude for taste here.  Cut and try and evaluate 
with Traumerei.  Then you'll know.

 >
 > 2) Out of curiosity, why is the procedure entitled " half point"
 > or "adjust 1.5 sec"? Is this to imply that the dampers should be
 > engaging the strings around the midpoint between the 1st and 2nd C7
 > note?

+++  At a MIDI value of about 20, the dampers are still fully damping; 
at 95, they are fully undamped; at 64, they are slightly damped--half 
damped.  A good pianist controls the damper for the effect she wants 
which may be anywhere in the range of 0 to 127.  The object of the 
procedure is to standardize all DKVs so that the degree of damping at, 
say 64, on your piano is close the same as everyone else's and a piece 
recorded on one DKV reproduces much the same on other DKVs.
 >
 > 3) If the 1st and 2nd notes are being used as a timing reference to
 > make the half point adjustment, why are four notes sounded in total
 > instead of just two?  I'm thinking there must be some significance
 > to having the 3rd and 4th notes?

+++ Yes, it gives you a range to gauge where your present adjustment is. 
  If the chord is still ringing on the 3th beat, you know you don't have 
quite enough damping.
 >
 > 4) Any comments about the greater amount of string sustain during
 > playback of files containing basic ON/OFF pedal data?

+++ It makes no sense to evaluate the half-pedal point with the dampers 
completely opened or closed.
 >
 > 5) Can anyone confirm whether every time the pedal measurement
 > program is run, it MUST be followed by the "keyboard measurement
 > program" (maintenance mode # 5)?

+++ The two adjustments are completely independent.  You can do either 
or both as you chose.
 >
 > In anticipation of some writing back to suggest that all DKV
 > adjustments be left to a "qualified" DKV technician, I'll mention
 > that I usually have my RPT (who is wonderful and also the local DKV
 > tech) visit my piano anywhere from 2 to 4 times a year.

+++ So do I.  No big deal.  The mechanical part on the DC3 is hardest . 
. . prone on the floor with wrenches and a flashlight in your mouth, 
etc.  I made a solenoid gap gauge using a wooden paint stirrer stick.

+++ If you like to experiment, write some MIDI files that hold the 
sustain pedal at 30, 40, . . . 60, and play some notes to hear the 
various degrees of damping.


rrl_edm wrote:
> I need some help interpreting the damper pedal "half point 
> adjustment".  I'll apologize in advance as I'm guessing that this is 
> going to entail a bit of a lengthy explanation.
> 
> I have a Disklavier MX1Z upright and like many others on this forum, 
> I do some of my own DKV calibration.  This is particularly true for 
> the DKV pedal regulation (adjustment/calibration procedure) that I 
> became quite familiar with through a recent exercise to correct a 
> thumping problem I had with the damper (loud) pedal. I'm happy to 
> report that the pedal thumping is gone!
> 
> Although I've become comfortable doing most of the pedal adjustments 
> (damper/loud and shift/soft), I'm trying to get my mind around 
> the "half point position" that's part of the damper (loud) pedal 
> adjustment procedure.  Although this procedure is simple, I find it 
> subjective, fundamentally because I haven't yet developed a solid 
> basis for the required adjustment. 
> 
> At the end of the DKV damper pedal calibration (maintenance mode 
> #3), the loud pedal half point starts automatically.  The DKV will 
> play a C major chord and, following this, DKV hammer #88 (DKV note 
> C7, i.e., C note, 7th octave) will play once per second.  So what we 
> get is the following repeating (60 bpm) pattern:
> 
>     C chord
>     note C7 (hammer #88)
>     note C7 (hammer #88)
>     note C7 (hammer #88)
>     note C7 (hammer #88)
> 
> 
> The display on the DKV controller indicates, "ADJUST 1.5 sec AND 
> PRESS [REC]". 
> 
> So far so good.
> 
> The objective of this procedure is to set the half point value so 
> that the dampers silence the strings just as the 2nd time note #88 
> is heard.  What I'm trying to ascertain is the degree of "silence" 
> specified in this procedure.  
> 
> For my first attempt, I set the half point value such that the 
> dampers were just starting to dampen the strings exactly when the 
> 2nd C7 note sounded.  However, when I later played a PianoSoft solo 
> piano file, I found that there was too much sustain, i.e., the 
> dampers were not engaging quick enough and the strings 
> were "ringing" too much.  I played back a variety of solo piano 
> pieces, both with continuous pedal data and ON/OFF pedal data, and 
> came to the same conclusion.
> 
> For my second attempt, I lowered the half point setting such that 
> the dampers were completely silencing the strings just as note C7 
> sounded for the 2nd time.  This time, when I played a PianoSoft solo 
> piano file, I felt the piano sounded too restrained on playback, 
> i.e., the strings were being muffled too quickly and/or too much.
> 
> For my third attempt, I set a half point value that was a compromise 
> between my first two attempts.  It now appears that I'm in the 
> right "Ball Park".  However, if I understood the adjustment 
> procedure better, I may be able to find the exact "sweet spot".
> 
> As it stands with my current setting (a half point value of 43 if I 
> recall), I find that song playback is good for files containing 
> continuous pedal, but I hear more sustain going on with songs using 
> simple ON/OFF damper pedal data.  I'm guessing that this is the 
> expected end-result and/or audible difference between continuous and 
> ON/OFF pedal data.
> 
> So, with the forgoing as background, here are my questions:
> 
> 1) Can anyone give me some perspective on how much "silence" is 
> being specified by the half point adjustment?
> 
> 2) Out of curiosity, why is the procedure entitled " half point" 
> or "adjust 1.5 sec"? Is this to imply that the dampers should be 
> engaging the strings around the midpoint between the 1st and 2nd C7 
> note? 
> 
> 3) If the 1st and 2nd notes are being used as a timing reference to 
> make the half point adjustment, why are four notes sounded in total 
> instead of just two?  I'm thinking there must be some significance 
> to having the 3rd and 4th notes?
> 
> 4) Any comments about the greater amount of string sustain during 
> playback of files containing basic ON/OFF pedal data?
> 
> 5) Can anyone confirm whether every time the pedal measurement 
> program is run, it MUST be followed by the "keyboard measurement 
> program" (maintenance mode # 5)?
> 
> In anticipation of some writing back to suggest that all DKV 
> adjustments be left to a "qualified" DKV technician, I'll mention 
> that I usually have my RPT (who is wonderful and also the local DKV 
> tech) visit my piano anywhere from 2 to 4 times a year. 
> 
> 
> Regards,
> 
> Robert
> 
> 
> 
> 
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-- 
Robert Welcyng
Anchorage, Alaska