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The newest thing to hit the piano market is the ability for the piano player to play the piano in the same room as someone watching TV without interferring with each other. The piano player wears headphones and the sensors under the keys tell some electronics mounted inside the piano which notes and at what velocity to play through the headphones. You could also input the headphone signal through a PA system or a home stereo to get more volume without the use of microphones. This silentizing feature opens the door to so many more options that piano owners and users didn't have before.

Here are a three manufacturers products of this type and a short summary of each.

Yamaha Silent Series pianos

Consult Yamaha's homepage for details on which models this feature comes in. They've done a nice job on their homepage and it has lots of graphics.

The Silent Series is pre-installed at the factory and so the dealer must order this piano for you specifically. The dealer may also happen to have the most popular seller on their sales floor for you get acquainted with the feature. No matter which piano you order it on, the effect and feel will be the same providing the piano is regulated properly.

The Silent Series pianos come with one very nice sounding electronic piano that can heard through the headphones when the piano is silenced. It has been said that the Yamaha has the nicest sounding electronic piano "voice".

Kawai Anytime Piano

This feature comes factory installed only and has 5 voices to choose from.

I could use some more info on this product. If you have it, and would care to send it, I'd sure appreciate it ....... email larryf@pacifier.com.

Music Systems Research QuietTime

A retrofit........ can be put in virtually any piano, new, used, grand or vertical.

The original QT had a Proformance module that had 16 selections of voices to choose from, plus with the proper sequence of playing certain keys on the keyboard, you could access an additional 16 voices or pre-selected settings of voices.

The current production model, the GT360, is immensely more versatile. It has 128 MIDI standard voices, numerous additional settings for reverb, velocity sensitivity, volume settings for individual voices, as well as all voices at the same time, channel selection per voice, and a host of other features. With the GT360 you could get the function of the middle pedal as found on a grand piano (full sostenuto) when installed on a vertical piano. Access MSR's homepage to get more details on this unit.

All Three Compared

All three are MIDI compatable, IN, OUT and THRU.

All three are velocity sensitive

The Yamaha is activated in a few different ways depending on the model. Most verticals are activated by the middle pedal. The QT is activated by a lever mounted under the keyboard.

All three stop the hammers before they hit the strings. This is how the piano is silenced so that the electronic voices can then be heard in place of the acoustic part of the piano. Yamaha and Kawai stop the hammers quite a ways away from the strings. It's been reported that this makes the action of the piano feel somewhat different, and for some, unpleasant to play. QT stops the hammer at or very near a point called "let-off". This is a technical term used by technicians and it serves as a measurement during an operation called action regulation. When let-off is set at it's proper spot in the hammer's travel, along with all the other adjustments that need to be made in this action regulation process, the action feels good, responsive and controlable. If let-off is set a long ways away from the strings, the action can be difficult to control, especially during soft passages.

All three can be played as regular pianos, with out being plugged into household current.