Hi folks!
I have a question regarding my tenor regulator(Childress). All of the notes are in tune except for the G. At regular playing pressure, it is quite flat, somewhere not far above an F#. It can be brought up to a G with more pressure than I care to use. Is there any way to stabilize this note? All of the other notes are quite stable.
Thanks!
~Tiarnard
I am not an expert, but my tenor reg has the same tendency, namely a flat G, relative to the other notes. One general comment is the need to tune regulators at the same pressure as when chanter and drones are playing, so tune to the chanter with drones on. You may find that this changes your perception of what tuning changes are necessary.
If you have a piston or tuning pin, you may find that moving this helps the tuning of the G. On mine, piston movement to make the G sharper changes the A so I end up in a compromise with the A and the G a little flat. If you can use the piston/pin to bring the G into tune, and the A is now sharp, you can use a rush to flatten the A. If you find that your tuning pin doesn’t do much, then you may have to move the reed to bring the G up, and then use a rush to flatten all the other notes, which is not ideal, but it works. When all else fails, make a new reed…
Hugh
Tiarnard,
The amount of filling and its placement on the tuning wire, (it may have moved).
The action of the keys play a part in tuning.
If you prefer to use PM that’s fine with me.
Just to point out, Peter, that you’ll need 2 more approved posts before you’ll be able to send and receive PMs.
When I received the regulator last august, the reed was far too closed and “gentle” to play, so i moved the bridle up to open the lips a tad. Essentially, I’ve had the problem with my G ever since purchasing the thing. I (recently) contacted Bruce, but haven’t heard back yet.
You mentioned “filling.” Is that the disc of metal on the tuning piston? If so, it is still firmly in place.
What do you mean by the action of the keys and their role in tuning?
It seems odd that that one note would be misbehaving, while none of the others do. I really can “bend” it all the way from F# to G with varying pressure, while the rest of the reg is in tune.
Hello Nanohedron,
Thank you for signing me up, and for the information, I will read the T&C’s during the coming days.
Peter.
Tiarnard,
The action is the amount the key should be opened to achieve the correct pitch (with normal air pressure).
The filling could be blue tack or something similar stuck on the tuning wire/pin.
Bear in mind the tuning pin used with rush wire and blobs of wax/hemp (or both) is used to flatten the system. It is not possible to sharpen with rush. From the Heagarty book:
“Fault - Low notes persistently flat when upper notes correct.
Cause/Remedy/Remarks
Note holes may be in wrong position. Re-check with experienced reedmaker and
pipemaker; if improvements cannot be achieved with different reeds. Most old
regulators - Crowley, Rowsome, Kenna, Coyne, etc. can, with patience and
experience, be tuned satisfactorily.”
I would suggest inserting the reed further to bring the G in tune. The other notes will be sharp, or less so by backing off on pressure, possibly. If so, the fix is easy. Otherwise, it is then possible to flatten individual notes with rush wire and blobs of wax/hemp (or both). Be aware flattening notes above G will likely affect G, so you may wish to tape the top portion of the keyholes instead, but only slightly. Wax is a possibility as well. I have a customer that used cork to fill the individual holes slightly, which worked with some degree of success on individual notes. That modification was done by my customer, not myself, so I can’t speak to how it was secured in the hole or the method of the drilling. I would caution the normal disclaimer: Such mod would best be performed by a pipemaker, or someone who knows what they’re doing, has the right tools for it, and won’t screw up your investment.
Peter,
I was sorry to see that you edit your first response, it was useful information. I’ve also been struggling with my regulator, all the notes in tune, expect for me it was the F# that was flat. I took your advice and put some cork on the key to lessen the opening of the Key and this brought it into tune. I went back to reread the post and you’d edited it. I’m glad I had a chance to read your original post.
Tjones, glad it helped anyway.
Thanks for all the input. I have also heard back from Bruce, and I thought I’d share his response, for the sake of all those interested:
"The G on the tenor regulator is the most difficult of regulator notes to get stable and in-tune. The reason is that the interval between F# and G are a 1/2 tone while all others are whole tones. If it wasn’t for the necessity of key placement geometry, ideally, the G tonehole would be about 1/4 inch closer to the F# tonehole and larger.
There are ways to work with the tenor G, when all other tenor notes are in tune and stable. One way is to add or remove material from the tuning rush wire. Adding will flatten the note. Taking material away will sharpen the note. I use bits of peel-n-stick open cell foam window insulation for the purpose.
You can also alter the note as you would with a chanter tonehole with a piece of tape. The way to do that on a regulator note, without removing the key goes thus: Take off a strip of Scotch matte finish tape about 1 1/2 long. Fold over about 3/16 inch on one end so that you will have something to grip without it sticking to your fingers. Cut a strip lengthwise about 1/8 inch wide. Hold down the G key and slip the tape under the keypad covering part of the tonehole and let the key close on top of it. You may have to experiment with placing the tape. Covering more of the tonehole will actually raise the pitch on the tenor G. (There may already be a piece of tape on it that I put on there.) Once you have found the “sweet spot”, you can use an exacto blade to trim away the excess tape so it will not be seen. You will need a workspace with good lighting."