Piano World Home Page Forums Our Most Popular Forums Piano Forum Seeking advise for grand piano loudness in a room

When I first changed my hammers from heavier harder Abel to soft Ronsen Weickert my piano definitely was not loud enough. Was actually worried at first, tech said he could juice them now but recommended I let them play in. Took more than a year for that to happen and now only needs some occasional needling in the upper register. But the difference from the Abels to the Ronsens was night and day in terms of loudness and brightness.

A quick piano story related to grand piano loudness (or not). The first grand piano I purchased was a pre-owned, Japanese made Tokai G180 (5'10") grand piano (circa 1980s) in ebony polish. I had enclosed my attached garage on my home to make a music room, just so I'd have room for a grand piano. So, I was chomping at the bit to buy a used grand piano (something I could afford). I noticed the Tokai grand, which I had never heard of, advertised for sale in a near-by town about 35 miles away. I made an appointment to go look at the piano. The owner was a very nice man in his late 40s/early 50s who was a full-time minister of music at a near-by church.

I played the piano and was fairly impressed; at least for a novice who didn't know much at all about grand pianos (at the time at least (2006?). I thought the piano sounded nice and looked nice, and negotiated a price with the seller I could live with. I made arrangements with a mover to move the piano the next day. When I got the piano home and began to go over it in more detail, (in my newly constructed music room), I noticed there was something on the left side of the action that was stopping the action from shifting all the way over the left with the soft pedal released and at rest. It was a small metal shim of some sort. Hence, the hammers were shifted over to the right just enough to cause the hammers to hit the strings on a softer spot on the hammer face. It was like having the left pedal depressed slightly all the time.

Needless to say, when I removed the shim, the piano was suddenly much louder, and brighter. I thought to myself, what on earth have I done. So, not to be undone, and not wanting to call a piano tech (of course, I didn't know any at the time) to come out and solve the problem, my piano technology education began in earnest. Once I realized what I was dealing with, and what needed to be done to improve things, a bit more adjustment to the left pedal mechanism, and some impromptu hammer voicing, the screaming animal was tamed a bit, and not as loud, bright or boisterous.

I said all that to say this, it is possible for a grand piano to be too loud in a room in a home; any room and any home. I still do not think that a bigger piano will be louder, per-sa. But a piano can be too loud in a room.

So, yes, caution on the part of Osho is well advised...

Happy New Year!!!

Rick

My experience has been that different grands' scalings produce different degrees of loudness. My previous 6' Schimmel was loud, I'm not sure if that was attributable to a high tension scaling (it's sound was also very temperamental as to placement). My present 6'11" Estonia is much quieter despite being larger. I also have found, except for their concert size, most Bosendorffers to be quieter. Size alone does not indicate loudness. Also tune stretch can alter harshness which can be perceived as loudness. You have to play it to find out,

This is a rather old thread, but as OP, I wanted to thank everyone who responded to this thread and helped me. It greatly helped my purchasing decision. I took delivery of 7' Mason & Hablin BB - some pictures here.

The piano is not too loud at all - in fact, it plays very nicely. Either the previous owner paid someone to soften the tone or it doesn't need to be softned at all .

Thanks!

Osho

Congratulations on the BB! I'm jealous. Did you end up buying somewhat local?

Thanks. No, not local. Pretty much all 7' pianos were either junk or too pricey. I couldn't find a private seller that would offer a reasonable price. So, I had to look out of state and had to get it shipped to me - it took some 7 weeks, but it got here just fine.

Osho

Did you buy from a dealer? If so, who?

No, I bought from a private seller.

Osho

I had occasion to tinker quite a few pianos at the Coach House in Swansea in their large showroom. I was struck by the variations in loudness - uprights, grands, there seemed no rhyme or reason.

Glass doors and hard floors are a big problem. My house has lots of both and it echoes like a gymnasium.

I’m planning to buy a rug and some acoustic panels. The problem is it’s an open floor plan and a lot of the walls are interior french doors. THis means there are not many large walls to put panels even though the house is quite large. The music room doesn’t have much furniture and it looks so nice and sleek but the echo is horrible.

I don’t want a rug as I like the wood floor look but it’s an absolute necessity, I’ll be out rug shopping this weekend. I found a place that will print art on the acoustic panels. This is expensive but probably the most practical solution, as the wall that needs it most is rather a focal point. I may put panels on the ceiling as well. I dislike that look but my ears ring after practice so I will have to get over it and just do it.

In my case, I don’t need to worry about neighbors, but the echo is really bad and must be addressed.

Anyway, consider what furnishings you’ll use, they make a big difference.