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Don't let your emotions blind you from the truth.

Did you also say the same thing about digital cameras 10 years ago?

Hmmmm, What would a digital be called during a power failure? 'Funny looking table? Boat anchor?

If you are trying to be snarky I will let you know you can buy something called a UPS. They will run you about $30 and when they power goes out you can still play your piano all you want.

If you have the soundboard replaced by anyone other than the factory, you will probably have a very nice, very large piano but you won't really have a Bosendorfer any more. If having a true Bosendorfer is important to you, I would explore every possibility to keep the current board (and bridges). If that is not reasonable, then consider replacement by the factory. Boy, that will be unbelievably expensive but you will still have a true Bosendorfer.

Don't let your emotions blind you from the truth.

Did you also say the same thing about digital cameras 10 years ago?

I think you are on the wrong forum.

You're joking, right?

I believe you are unhappy with how the tone has changed since the move to NV-if I remember your earlier post correctly.

Do not worry abou rapidly increasing the humidity to the 45% level. The piano will react in three days.

Has the tone improved with the increase in humidity?

A digital piano is not the same as an acoustic for the person playing it and for the small nuances of control on tone. But sampled sounds on the better DP's are virtually exact "recordings" of acoustics, a single note or chord cannot be distinguished between the two on a blind test....period.

(David Jensen)..."Hmmmm, What would a digital be called during a power failure? 'Funny looking table? Boat anchor?"

Mine would be called a digital piano... it has batteries in it.

On the other hand, what would your 700 lb piano be called if you wanted to haul it out a couple hundred yards into the woods for a music foray with freinds? It would be called a hernia.

One subjective consideration would be the sound you have now. If the piano has punch, clarity, and sustain as it is now, it might not be so bad to keep the original sound board. It'll certainly be less expensive.

Hi Jorge,
If it were my instrument and I knew the recent history (which I do) I would start with some cost effective measures. You said that your installing a full room humidifier. I would let the room acclimate to the higher humidity and, over 4 to 6 months, measure soundboard responses by measuring any effect on the crown, soundboard crack size, increased (or not) sustain etc. If findings are positive but minimal I would install the large Dampp Chaser system to enhance the local improvements. If no improvements are measured with humidity introduction than I would shim the soundboard. I have had mild but positive results improving crown in trouble areas by slightly wedging the s-board from the bottom which opens the crack slightly more, make the shim repair, let the glue dry and cure (2 days), remove the wedges and inspect for crown improvement. The Bosey has a thick panel so I'm not sure if results will be dramatic but worth a try. I normally would restring doing this procedure but moving the existing music wire out of the way is a budget option. At least with these methods 10's of thousands of dollars are kept in the bank until repair scenarios reveal their worth.

A Bosendorfer Sound Board is not the same as most of the others for several reasons.

Unless a rebuilder is specifically familiar with this installation, I might tend to agree with Eric.

Should have gotten a digital. No tuning or maintenance or repairs needed. I know I never need to buy an acoustic. digitals just keep on getting better and better.

And don't they make pianos with carbon fiber soundboards nowadays?

I believe other than lose energy in the bass area the sound is pretty ok, what I really need to do is corner up another Imperial owner and do a 'test drive', I know not all pianos are created equal but Boseys should have some particular characteristics that would carry over from one piano to another, I've played a few Imperials years ago (like almost 10) so it's hard to form an opinion now by only considering my own piano.

Steinway did an experiment where they created gaps in a soundboard and found that it did not affect the sound. Shimming the soundboard is therefore a cosmetic measure and has no effect on the performance of the piano.

Do you have a reference for this?

ddf

Steinway quotes W B White on their website for this matter.