This page was last updated September 1998. If you see errors or have something to add that you feel would be useful, email larryf@pacifier.com
The best, the highest priced, and only comes in certain Yamaha pianos. I like the unit, and the pianos they come in, however, there are people out there that don't care for Yamaha's, or the price, or they already have a fine piano in their home and don't wish to buy another one or part with the one they have.
I've heard mild complaints about the owner's manual. It is rather large and some of the language in it is not common stuff people talk about on a daily basis. This would be true of any piece of equipment and it's usage manual. I've referred to the manual on a few occasions to help myself as well as the owner get through a particular feature of the instrument. I don't particularily find it that hard to follow but it is rather large. That's to be expected considering what the DKV can do. Fortunately, the piano is easy to use without referring to the manual.
The DKV comes with two playback actuated pedals. Other brands don't have that yet.
It comes with recording capabilities as standard issue.
The DKV has numerous automatic self regulating functions in it to adjust itself for the eventual and unavoidable wear of the piano's action. This feature is activated in a service mode found in software. Some technicians charge a fee to put a DKV through it's paces on top of the tuning fee. This is to be expected since time is money. As to wheather this ought to be done at every tuning is something that should be worked out between the customer and the technician.
This unit can be set up to play MIDI files directly. Soon to be released is a ROM version that will play both format versions of MIDI files.
For those of you who are involved with the MX100, this was the first DKV that Yamaha produced. It was later improved so that it would play softer and with more dynamics. This upgrade is easily identified by looking for the "choke handle" located under the bass end of the keybed. It's not that difficult for a qualified technician to install and takes about an hour or so to put in.
Disklavier plays only it's own disks and most MIDI type zero files. Some are interactive, the piano plays an intro, for instance, and then waits for you to play the right notes to the tune and the piano fills in with a bass line and chords. The library of pre-recorded disks are available from Hal Leonard Publishing and from most Yamaha Disklavier dealerships.
For more information about MSR/PianoDisc
PianoDisc, made by Music Systems Research out of Sacramento, California, is a really nice retrofitable player piano. I've installed over 120 of them by now and have yet to find a piano that I can't fit one in. It's very versatile and quite adjustable to accomodate every type of piano out there. It records, plays symphonic backgrounds, CD compatible, General MIDI, and does pretty much everything that automatic piano enthusiasts are looking for. If you already own a piano that you're quite happy with, and would like it to be a player piano, PianoDisc is a serious machine. When installed properly, it works really well. Details and proper planning are the key to doing a real successful, good playing installation. If you don't like the sound of the Yamaha piano, and would like to have a Steinway or Mason & Hamlin in your living room, no problem, PianoDisc fits quite nicely in every piano I've put them in, from a 1902 Chickering to a 1996 Chickering (Baldwin). From a 4'9" grand to a 9' grand. These units fit quite nicely in Yamahas also.
The solenoids are individually mounted on a few rails (usually 3 rails). This configuration allows for good centering on each key so the una corda pedal (soft pedal on grands) can be used during playback without causing jamming or binding since this pedal usually shifts the entire keyboard to the right slightly.
A sustain pedal solenoid is standard issue and all three pedals function as they did previous to the installation after a proper installation of a PianoDisc unit. There is no extra fee for this.
Individual minimum note velocity settings are done in resident software. This is similar to the Disklavier, but it is not as automatic. It took me some time to realize the potential of this software. There are a number of settings to work with to get the piano to play with out missing notes during softest playback.
The PianoDisc model 128+ will play MIDI files providing it has the most current version of software installed. As of September 1998, that was version 3.2. The latest version of software for the 128 (no plus) is version L.
PDS plays all of the PianoDisc disks (over 150) as well as the vast majority of the Disklavier disks as well as all of the Pianomation disks that are MIDI type zero.
PDS has CD reading capability as well. As of late June 1996, they had two CD's with non-MIDI background music. The rest are just like the disks that they have for sale, with General MIDI backgrounds. The customer can supply the CD player, amplifier and speakers or any or all pieces can be supplied by MSR. The model 128+ plays PianoDisc CD's via the input jacks on the back of the control unit. It won't play Pianomation CD's. With the exception of the disks mentioned above with non-MIDI backgrounds, the floppies have the exact same information on them as the CD's. The only difference is the storage medium, and the playback method. The advantage with the CD is the ability to play music for many hours using a CD player that holds 5 CD's or more. Plus, CD's are a far more reliable storage medium since there are no magnetic bits to weaken, and no moving parts to fail.
PianoCD is a model 128+ with all the disk related controls removed. It's a totally different control unit, with only a few controls on the front panel. Your CD player does the rest. The purchase price of this unit is slightly less than the 128+ and because it's CD based there are no symphony, or record options available. There was a problem with the microprocessor shutting down on these units due to noise, and spikes occuring on the output of some CD players. The noise would cause some notes to fail to release. This means the solenoid for that note is on all the time drawing current from the power supply. Too many notes at one time doing this would cause a fuse to blow inside the power supply. This fuse was not easy to get to!! As of August 15, 1996 MSR released a new power interface that was interchangeable with the old one. I ran this interface through it's paces here in my shop with a low end Sony D 141 "Diskman" that was known to wreak havoc with the PianoCD units. The new interface never missed a lick. These new interfaces are now standard issue with each kit shipped.
As of 1997, there were still some CD player problems with the control box shutting down. I've not had any of these problems in my service area, but I think I've bumped into the main cause. If you're considering buying a CD player, request a single bit signal processing unit. The Yamaha CDC565 was the last one I purchased for a customer and it hasn't missed a lick since I installed it. It's a 5 CD player and at that time cost around $200.
Installations must be done outside of the home. There's too much at stake, and a good job is done in a piano shop where all the tools and machinery is set up to handle piano work. A slot is cut in the keybed (about 2 inches wide) of the piano and the pedal levers are reconstructed to clear the addition of the key actuators (solenoids). This slot is the same slot cut in keybeds of pianos back in the 1920's when paper player pianos were at their peak of popularity. It's the same slot the factories are cutting (including Yamaha) to install the same type of units in their pianos. The length of the slot is determined partially by the installer and by the location of the legs. In most cases I can fit all 88 notes/solenoids with out having to compromise the support strength of the legs. Some installers prefer not to cut into the legs to get those last few notes, but I've had no trouble at all with any of my installations regarding loss of safety or strength in the legs. There have been a few installations where the last two top notes are not going to play because of leg placement. One brand I can think of off hand is a Boston. A small Schimmel I did recently also had one bass note solenoid missing in addtion to the top two solenoids. The larger Schimmel (special edition 7' I believe) had ample room for all 88 notes. Finally, the solenoids and the circuit boards are all housed in a sheet metal cover that I usually spray paint flat black unless it's a white piano, then I match the white as best as I can. The end view of this cover is about the size of a post card.
The record option and the symphony option can be added at any time, on location, after the basic playback system is installed. There are rare exceptions for the record option but then only the piano's action needs to be taken to the shop for machining. There's been one instance when I took my drill press apart and loaded it into my Honda wagon for the day to accomodate the possible machining process mentioned above.
The symphony option was at one time, simply a circuit board that was added to the existing control box. The current control box has to be returned to the factory to be upgraded to symphony. The customer has a choice between having speakers mounted under the piano (grands) or behind the piano (verticals) or hooking up to some existing stereo equipment either via hard wire or wireless transmitter. The symphonic voices are sythesized in General MIDI format. Most people don't care for the synthetic (plastic) sound of the symphony. Creative Labs, the same people that make SoundBlaster sound cards for computers, custom make the boards for PianoDisc.
As of November 1996, MSR released it's long awaited updated system, the model 128+ with Silent Drive. The power supply is smaller, and quieter, the driver boards are narrower, and changes and adjustments are done via software in the control box. No more removing the rail cover to upgrade the processors, or adjust the pedal solenoid. No more removing the power supply to adjust the driver supply voltage or to change some very difficult to get to fuses. The solenoid noise (zipping sound, or oinking sound caused by the plungers rattling inside the barrel of the solenoid most often heard during soft play) has been eliminated that I've been able to determine. Software version 3.2 has far more control over the playing of the keys expecially near the bottom of the key stroke. It's been my experience that the information sent to the solenoid is far more responsive than any previous software. This was proven when I installed a system in a Lowrey console piano that was about 15 years old and had not been cared for. I regulated the action and mounted the solenoids almost directly under the capstans. It played "Flight of the Bumble Bee" faster and cleaner than I ever expected any vertical piano would be capable of. There was a small gap between the solenoid plunger tips, and the underside of the keys causing some very minor and weak thumping with each key actuation. This noise I considered to be quite soft, and easy to accept considering that there was all kinds of other noises going on in the piano that were action related and normal occurances in the normal course of piano playing. The gap mentioned is considered normal on some installations but most often is not the case with grand installations.
They also have a site at QRSMusic.com
QRS designed a retrofit that goes into most pianos. I've only installed a few so far but I can see where there would be a problem fitting this unit in some pianos. The amount of material removed off the back of the key frame is 1 1/16" measured from the back of the key, as compared to 1/2" on a PianoDisc. This is where on some small grands, the installation would be prohibitive. The slot cut is 1 3/4" wide and standard issue is 80 notes. For an extra fee, you can have 88 note playback with Pianomation. The key solenoid spacing can be somewhat restrictive since the solenoids are mounted in pairs and in triplets on the ends. If the key spacing of the piano doesn't match the spacing of the solenoid brackets, usage of una corda lever (soft pedal on grands) during playback could cause notes to bind. The solenoids and circuit boards are covered with a sheet metal cover that is sprayed black at factory. The end view of this cover is about the size of a post card.
Pianomation has a synthesized sustain pedal feature called Magic Pedal. This feature holds the note being played for the duration of the sustain time called for by the holding of the sustain pedal. You don't get the resonance of the entire piano as you would with the sustain pedal being held down. The addition of a solenoid to operate the sustain pedal is an extra fee at the wholesale level and so that might be an extra fee on the sales price.
There is an extra fee to have the middle pedal functioning as it did before the installation of a Pianomation retrofit.
UPDATES The only update that I've done was on a really old one and that was to fix a delay time mismatch between the piano and the rest of the voices on a CD. The rest of Pianomation units I've not heard of any updates available.
Individual minimum note velocity settings are set by the installer with the use of some addtional equipment that is attached only for this purpose. After the adjustments are made, the equipment is removed from the piano and set aside for the next time it is needed. This equipment is not considered a user device but rather a technical piece of equipment used by technicians.
This unit is capable of reading floppies as well as CD's. It's all a matter of which system you want to go with. The CD's have real music backgrounds to go with the piano playing.
This unit will play MIDI files directly from your computer via a MIDI interface. Since the Pianomation disks contain MIDI files, I would expect any standard MIDI file with piano information on track one, would play directly in a Pianomation machine although I've not had the opportunity to try this.
I'm still gathering information on this product and don't have all the options at my fingertips, however, I have some basic knowledge of this machine.
It's a QRS solenoid rail, with Baldwin electronics attached to it. The control box contains a floppy drive, a CD player, a hard drive with enough factory installed files on it to keep you busy for a week or so, and a wireless remote with LCD display. This box is a bit large. It's 14' wide and 2" high. This intrudes on leg space entering and leaving the keyboard from the bass end.
The piano comes with 80 note playback and 88 note record (performance option). It will play any current file format, Yamaha's ESEQ, PianoDisc, MIDI type zero and type one, and it plays all the QRS Pianomation material. It comes with two AR570 speakers, and uses the Gulbransen MIDI key sensor strip model KS1 to facilitate recording.
At this point in time (September 1998), they are only factory installed that I know of, and only in Baldwin products.
Price wise, they are supposed to fall somewhere between a comparibly equipped PianoDisc and the Disklavier.
UPDATES are as easy as inserting a disk and pressing a few buttons.
Number one request, "Where can I get disks/rolls to play on my piano?"
Depending on your type of player, there are numerous sources of music for your piano.
If you have an old pneumatic type player piano that uses paper rolls to activate the notes, there is quite a list of suppliers for these in the achives of Mechanical Musical Devices This is a list server that can be subscribed to (no charge) by sending the word "subscribe" and your name to rolls@foxtail.com The above mentioned MMD site contains more information regarding this.
Those of you who have CD or floppy based systems can order them through me or your local dealer. These are specially encoded CD's/floppies and can't be found in "record" stores or places that sell audio recordings. There are a number of small suppliers sprouting for these disks and so I expect the market to be constantly expanding. Some disk suppliers are listed in the archives of the above mentioned URL.
Number one complaint ...... they play too loud!! Voice the hammers down, and add acoustic foam to the cavities between the backposts. This is done after the piano action is regulated to the hilt, and the playback mechanism is adjusted to accomodate that regulation. The owner needs to realize that the piano is a mechanical beast and relies on the laws of physics to produce sound. It's not a radio. A certain amount of volume is neccessary to produce piano tone. I've had favorable results with the above mentioned voicing and foam.
It goes out of tune. Yes, if the piano is played a couple of hours a day, and the piano is in sunny location, or near a door to the outside air, the piano will go out of tune readily. Have your automatic piano tuned at least twice a year if you use it often. Most people don't know that a piano goes out of tune wheather it's played or not. It goes out of tune even faster when it's played a lot. You spent thousands of dollars for this device, now spend the modest fee to have it cared for on a regular basis.
No matter which unit you buy, the end result is, you get a piano that plays itself. It's been my experience that the collective sales force out there doesn't seem to have answers for sometimes the simplest of questions. Granted, some of the questions presented concern advanced features that even I don't have experience with. That's why my page is here on the Web. Feel free to email me with your questions. If I can't answer them, I can direct you to the people that will have answers for you.
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You can email me at larryf@pacifier.com
