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Topic: "wet" pianos, (from Japan)?  (Read 4283 times)

Offline lagin

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"wet" pianos, (from Japan)?
on: March 04, 2006, 08:01:36 PM
 I have a Yamaha G2, which I just discovered is a "wet" piano, made in and for Japan's climate verses Canada's dry climate.  It's turning 30 years old next year, so do you think any warping ect. that's it's going to do, it's already done?  I bought it used a couple of years ago, if that helps :P
Christians aren't perfect; just forgiven.

Offline tompilk

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Re: "wet" pianos, (from Japan)?
Reply #1 on: March 04, 2006, 08:08:01 PM
mmm... i heard about this when i bought my yamaha grand.
I guess that it'll be ok and that all the stories you hear are just the worst outcomes. And if you've had it 2 years in your house/climate then i dont think it should be a problem...
Tom
Working on: Schubert - Piano Sonata D.664, Ravel - Sonatine, Ginastera - Danzas Argentinas

Offline cy_shuster

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Re: "wet" pianos, (from Japan)?
Reply #2 on: March 06, 2006, 11:16:21 PM
These are also called "grey market" pianos, since they are not warrantied for North America.  Look for your serial number here:
https://www.yamaha.ca/content/piano/support/serialnumbers/index.jsp?from=support

You may, in fact, have problems because the wood wasn't cured to a low enough moisture content for North America (this isn't a problem with current Yamahas).

Ask your tuner to check for cracks in the soundboard, loose bridge pins and ribs, and so on.  Any piano in a severe climate like Canada's should have a humidity control system to protect it:
https://www.dampp-chaser.com

This will avoid any further damage.

--Cy--
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Offline lagin

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Re: "wet" pianos, (from Japan)?
Reply #3 on: March 07, 2006, 02:15:08 AM
Thanks Cy!  My serial number isn't on that list, so maybe the guy was wrong?  Another person told me that since my piano is a 1977 and has THREE pedals that it likely isn't a "wet piano."  Not sure anymore, but definately hoping it isn't!
Christians aren't perfect; just forgiven.

Offline arensky

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Re: "wet" pianos, (from Japan)?
Reply #4 on: March 07, 2006, 05:13:06 AM
If you are in any dry climate (I'm in Arizona, VERY dry) you must humidify the room. Idealy the room should be at 70 Fahrenheit and at least 40% humidity. I was getting away with 35% for a long time but it's been very dry this year, a couple months ago I went into the studio and the humidistat read 27%  :o Visions of a cracked soundboard filled my head, I went out the next day and bought a humidifier with a sensor, so the studio is now stabilized at 40% humidity all the time. Lol it's so dry here that I can't get the room over 46%, even if I leave the sensor off and leave the humidifier on high for two days!  ::)

I don't like the effect the Damp Chaser's have on a piano's tone. If the piano is in a hall or a public room and there can be no regular humidifier then it must be so; the piano at the College where I teach is so fitted out.
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Offline cy_shuster

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Re: "wet" pianos, (from Japan)?
Reply #5 on: March 08, 2006, 01:23:57 AM
I don't like the effect the Damp Chaser's have on a piano's tone. If the piano is in a hall or a public room and there can be no regular humidifier then it must be so; the piano at the College where I teach is so fitted out.

What difference do you notice on a piano's tone?  The system shouldn't make any difference at all.  Is this an upright or a grand?

--Cy--
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Offline arensky

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Re: "wet" pianos, (from Japan)?
Reply #6 on: March 08, 2006, 07:53:05 AM
What difference do you notice on a piano's tone?  The system shouldn't make any difference at all.  Is this an upright or a grand?

--Cy--


This is a Steinway grand piano. When the "damp chaser" was installed I found the tone of the piano to be "flat" (texture not intonation) and less brilliant than I felt it should be, when I took the "damp chaser"  out to clean it I noticed an immediate improvement in the piano' s tone, so I didn't put it back.
=  o        o  =
   \     '      /   

"One never knows about another one, do one?" Fats Waller

Offline cy_shuster

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Re: "wet" pianos, (from Japan)?
Reply #7 on: March 09, 2006, 12:35:11 AM
Is this what you're talking about?
https://www.dampp-chaser.com/grandsys_n.html

There's nothing that you should be cleaning in this system.

--Cy--
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Offline arensky

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Re: "wet" pianos, (from Japan)?
Reply #8 on: March 09, 2006, 12:51:42 AM
Is this what you're talking about?
https://www.dampp-chaser.com/grandsys_n.html

There's nothing that you should be cleaning in this system.

--Cy--


The pan had a residue of white dust in it (mineral buildup), so I removed it to clean it, and got sidetracked with something else and didn't put it back right away, and noticed that my piano now projected at mezza voce, not sotto voce. Other pianists I know have experienced this too, and have opted to humidify the room rather than the piano itself.
=  o        o  =
   \     '      /   

"One never knows about another one, do one?" Fats Waller

Offline cy_shuster

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Re: "wet" pianos, (from Japan)?
Reply #9 on: March 11, 2006, 12:11:23 AM
If the room is at the same humidity with your room humidifier, I can't explain what difference hanging a pan underneath the piano should have.  With a dry climate like Arizona, it's possible that you weren't getting enough humidity, and were losing soundboard crown.  The new grand undercover helps enormously.  If you have a model larger than the S, you may need two water tanks.  You may also need a humidistat that is set to a higher humidity level.

The point is that the Dampp-Chaser systems are customized to your piano and its environment.  It's often a problem with room systems to keep sufficient humidity levels, for example, if you're on vacation for a week.

I'm glad you've solved your problem, though.

--Cy--
piano.com [/url]
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