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PIANO TUNING PRICES - CONSIDERATIONS FOR CHOOSING A TUNER In a challenging economy, we're all looking for a good deal. Heck, in ANY economy, we should always be mindful of getting the most value for our money! For someone comparing prices of piano tunings, there are a few things to consider. The prices range widely and so does the quality. Obviously, “quality” in this case means how good does your piano sound after the tuner has tuned it. The ability to deliver a precise, musical tuning is something that a piano tuner develops (potentially!) commensurate to his / her experience and earnestness. But really one of the most valuable factors of any tuning is longevity. If you pay a few bucks less, but have to have it tuned more often, isn't that actually more expensive in the long run? With more and more experience, a tuner can learn to deliver more and more stable tunings. The skills we piano techs learn to this end are: (1) "SETTING THE STRING" There are several segments in each piano string. The "speaking length" of the string is just one. If one of the string segments is left with more tension than the others, the string can go out of tune more quickly. (2) "SETTING THE PIN" To tune a string, you increase / decrease it's tension by manipulating the tuning pin. If the tuner leaves the tuning pin flexed too far forward or too far backward, it will later find it's correct equilibrium and the string will go out of tune. The same is true if the tuner leaves any “torque” (twist) in the tuning pin. Setting the strings and tuning pins correctly are skills a piano technician can only get better at through years of experience (and a sincere desire to continue getting better!) Of course, there are many other factors that will put your piano out of tune (humidity fluctuations being first and foremost!), but isn't it smarter and cheaper to in the long run to choose a piano technician who not only can make your piano sound fantastic but is also skilled at setting the strings and pins? Our commitment to you is to always provide the absolute highest quality tunings, with the best tuning stability at reasonable rates. |
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Jim
Wilson's L.A. Piano Services
Sherman Oaks, CA (by appointment only) (818) 789-1212 (818) 789-1211 (fax) info@lapianoservices.com |