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Author Topic: Tuning a relatively new box  (Read 1675 times)

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MandoC

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Tuning a relatively new box
« on: November 30, 2016, 02:41:04 AM »

I received my new Cairdin BC mini from the factory about 3 years ago. In the last 3 years, I have played it a lot.  I think I have read somewhere that new melodeons should be re-tuned after two to three years of playing. My BC mini is tuned dry. I have no interest or inclination to try to tune it myself. I intend to keep it tuned dry. Can I check the tuning with a guitar tuner?  Or after three years of fairly frequent use, should I ship it off to a reputable tuner? Any information would be appreciated.  Thanks  Charlie
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pete /acorn

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Re: Tuning a relatively new box
« Reply #1 on: November 30, 2016, 06:45:51 AM »

Hi Charlie
I suggest to customers having instruments re tuned after a year or so,[I give an extended warranty if this is done.]

There are so many variables  and allowing the box to settle down lets the box equalize to its environment,the re tune sets the reeds and it should not need re doing for a year or two after that.

A Mano reeds certainly need doing.

The trouble is most people just get used to how a box sounds and never have it serviced.

Pete

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Theo

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Re: Tuning a relatively new box
« Reply #2 on: November 30, 2016, 08:08:23 AM »

I think the answer is much simpler.  If you have been playing a lot for three years then yes,the box does need tuning. You may not notice this but when it is done you will notice the improvement.
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MandoC

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Re: Tuning a relatively new box
« Reply #3 on: November 30, 2016, 08:35:11 PM »

Thanks for the replies.  I checked my records and the Cairdin is actually 5 years old.  So it definitely needs to be tuned!  It seems to be fairly in tune with itself, but I have noticed in local jam sessions that it seems a bit flat.  Unfortunately musicians in the sessions frequently do not tune their instruments very well, so it is hard to tell who is out of tune. Now i know I must be one of the offenders.  Thanks Charlie
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Rog

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Re: Tuning a relatively new box
« Reply #4 on: November 30, 2016, 11:57:05 PM »

Hi. It might not be you that is flat. Accordions don't gradually go flat like a piano. You often find one or two notes start sounding off, and another giveaway is that the tremolo rate is not consistent across the note range (assuming it was properly tuned when you got it), by which I mean adjacent notes should all have a similar wetness/tremolo. A good test is to compare the same note (e.g. On a BC the B pull on the C row and B push on the B row, or similar with the low E). if you sound flat against other musicians, I'd check their tuning first. The common complaint against melodeons/accordions is that they sound sharp. Which doesn't mean your box is not flat, but there are a few things to check.

IanD

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Re: Tuning a relatively new box
« Reply #5 on: December 01, 2016, 11:29:13 AM »

Or you could be playing in a session with conventionally wet-tuned melodeons which sound sharp of concert pitch, which would make a dryer-tuned instrument (yours?) sound flat...
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Re: Tuning a relatively new box
« Reply #6 on: December 01, 2016, 12:50:31 PM »

Reeds go randomly out of tune in either direction, so if the box was dry tuned, and it still sounds dry, there's a good chance it's  still pretty well in tune.

You'd easily notice if a tremolo had developed on some notes and not others. Similarly on a swing or tremolo tuned box, when it's started drifting it's easy to hear the inconsistency when some notes are wider than others.
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triskel

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Re: Tuning a relatively new box
« Reply #7 on: December 01, 2016, 01:55:35 PM »

Or you could be playing in a session with conventionally wet-tuned melodeons which sound sharp of concert pitch, which would make a dryer-tuned instrument (yours?) sound flat...

Added to which, it's not unusual for some makes of boxes to be tuned slightly sharp (to A=442) at the factory, which makes them "sing out" more, and is more-like the pitch that orchestras actually play at (A=443 even!), so that other makers' instruments sound dull and flat in comparison...

For example, I have two vintage Paolo Sopranis that are still in original factory tuning and the red 3-voice is at A=442, whilst the black 2-voice (made for a shop in Chicago) is at an extreme A=444 that will "sing out" over everything!  ;)

They used to tune professional-quality English concertinas that way too, to help the soloist stand out in a band situation.
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